While recently researching a class paper about modern agriculture, I wound up awake late into each night, dumbfounded and intrigued by the obvious and simple truth it seems billions of people have overlooked.
And here it is: poor health starts not only with what we are putting into our bodies, but also with what we are not putting into our bodies.
I am in a state of humbled horror thinking about what we consider “food.” After reading into our more recent advances in agriculture, I put the pieces together: there was an alarming spike in worldwide health issues that paralleled the intense introduction of toxic chemicals into what was once called “farming.”
And I’m not saying it’s just the pesticides and imitation fertilizer. By feeding ourselves all sorts of mass-produced, pre-packaged crap along with “fruits” and “vegetables” grown in a non-organic factory farm, we are lacking what our bodies need to survive: vitamins and minerals, the health benefits found in pure, naturally developed food.
One definition of food is “a nourishing substance taken into the body to sustain life.” Does a bag of potato chips fit this definition? Hell yes! Wait… no. But, in this day and age, we seem to think it does, along with microwavable mac and cheese, ice cream on apple pie, and s’mores over the fire. This is just the norm; it’s everywhere. Eating healthy is not at the top of the menu, if it’s on there at all. We aren’t supposed to be ingesting this heavily processed and, basically, fake food. Of course our bodies don’t function at their best these days: they aren’t filled with the fuel they need.
The biggest game-changer I took away from writing my paper is that I will no longer tolerate people’s complaints and search for sympathy when dramatically discussing their health problems. Scarily enough, most scoff angrily when my response is, “Well, what are you feeding yourself?”
What has reared its ugly, toxic head on my body as acne appears in different forms for different people. High blood pressure? Chronic fatigue? Irregular heartbeat? Is your body nourished? Chances are, it’s not.
I’ve learned to listen to my elders who were here long before the population started considering a factory as a suitable place to “grow” (in other words, “mass-produce”) food.
And “organic” isn’t a trendy, hip term; it classifies what is rightfully and purely food.
Next time you’re at the grocery store, read the labels on what you pick up. If you recognize all the listed ingredients, great. If not, stop whining about your self-induced sicknesses to others.