jeudi 7 décembre 2017

Understanding The Connection Between Western Diets And Disease

By Eric Walker


As obesity rates climb in the United States, the rate of chronic illness is climbing as well. The connection between Western diets and disease is as real and undeniable as ever. Apparently, what people are eating is having a significant impact on their overall life qualities and their length of life among many other things. Following are some important facts about the link between the foods that people consume and their overall health.

One thing to now is that people in the west tend to consume massive amounts of sugar on a regular basis. This is usually due to consumption of refined and processed foods that are filled with additives. This is one of the largest causes of western obesity along with issues such as hypertension and diabetes.

In addition to causing obesity and other weight-related problems, consuming massive amounts of sugar also creates considerable, internal inflammation. Inflammation is a major cause of western disease. People who eat diets that are high in sugar are more likely to deal with arthritis, fungal infections and even cancer as a result.

People in the west are also consuming a considerable amount of corn. Unfortunately, however, rather than eating corn in its fresh and natural state, they are eating byproducts of this produce that are hardly recognizable by the body. This includes things like corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, and maltodextrin among many others.

Sometimes, however, it is more about what people are not eating than what they are. A lot of consumers are not making it a practice to eat regular servings of fresh vegetables and fruits, whole grains and heart-healthy fats. As such, their bodies are not able to take advantage of the rejuvenating and revitalizing benefits of these foods.

Another important thing to note is that modern food production has had a significant and very negative impact on overall food quality. Soil depletion has lead to a shortage of minerals in cultivated foods. Thus, even when people are doing their best to eat healthily, they are often still missing out on a range of essential nutrients. This is why more people are experiencing significant vitamin, mineral and other nutrient deficiencies.

Diets in developed nations should be significantly higher in nutritional value than the diets in undeveloped nations. The introduction of genetically modified foods and the lack of nutrients in food that has been locally cultivated, however, have raised a number of new and serious health concerns. Americans are undernourished, even as many of them remain overweight. Surprisingly, this has even lead to a number of mental health issues such as chronic anxiety, chronic depression, mood swings, and more. With nutritional deficiencies, emotional distress is often one of the very first and most common symptoms.

Westerners often maintain diets that are largely animal based as well. The best way to fuel the body, however, is by implementing a diet that is largely plant-based. This helps fight internal inflammation, diminish cancer rates, and fuels the body with essential antioxidants and phytonutrients. These nutritional additions actually stave off disease rather than contribute to it, by bolstering the immune system and limiting inflammation.




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