In a preceding blog post, we talked about how genetics don’t have to limit the quality of our lives and lifestyles. We can go beyond our “prescribed” genetics by making conscious choices in just about every aspect of our
lives. Today, we’re discussing food and water and how they can elevate our inner vitality and make a positive influence on how we feel and look.

In addition to the quality of the air we breathe, both the water we drink and the food we consume are critical to our health and beauty. Exterior physical beauty includes both body shape and skin condition. 

While most people know that what they eat affects their body shape, few are aware of the effect nutrition has on their skin condition.

The body is a thermal machine. It needs fuel to function. In addition to the oxygen necessary for combustion, we must feed the body machine a certain amount of daily calories according to our activities and age. Unlike a regular furnace, however, it needs more than simply a caloric input; it requires a variety of foods as sources for the large amount of nutrients required for the body’s proper function.

Unfortunately, not only are most conventionally grown foods void of nutrients, they have generally been treated with chemicals that are bad for our health. While higher quality and organically grown food has become more available because of growing demand, and though it is also more costly, our increase in the food budget will be more than compensated for by a reduced need for doctor visits and medical drugs.

“[A] large meta-analysis published in 2014 … in the British Journal of Nutrition, found that organic crops — ranging from carrots and broccoli to apples and blueberries — have substantially higher concentrations of a range of antioxidants and other potentially beneficial compounds. That review included data from more than 300 studies. For instance, organic crops had about 50 percent more anthocyanins and flavonols compared with conventional crops. Anthocyanins are compounds that give fruits and vegetables, such as blueberries, their blue, purple and red hues.” –Allison Aubrey, NPR

For an in-depth discussion of organic produce nutrition, we urge you to visit the NPR article here.

In addition to food void of nutrients, our air is often polluted and so is our water. This dreadful reality in many parts of the nation and the world forces us to make a conscious effort if we wish to improve the quality of our water and food. We should be drinking ample amounts of good quality water.

Bottled water isn’t always as pure as it is advertised to be therefore in this respect, being a conscious consumer is vital. The use of appropriate filters and purifiers with our drinking and cooking water source is a wise improvement.

An important consideration is the pH of our water. Too many brands of bottled water have an acidic pH (lower than 7) as do sodas (as low as 4). Since our body needs to be slightly alkaline, overly acidic food and drink contributes to ill health and premature aging. Tap water is usually at the right pH by law, but it often contains undesirable chemicals.

Even the water used to bathe affects our skin. Have your home water analyzed. It might need to be filtered and (naturally) treated.

Source:

Aubrey, Allison. “Is Organic More Nutritious? New Study Adds To The Evidence.” Blog post. The Salt: What’s On Your Plate; Eating and Health. NPR.ORG, 18 Feb. 2016. Web. <http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/02/18/467136329/is-organic-more-nutritious-new-study-adds-to-the-evidence>.