Are You A Health Warrior?

Written by Kari @ Living Strong, Health & Wellness , Contributing Writer

We’re in a battle right now. Many of you might not understand what I mean, but each day we wake up, we are faced with decisions that will ultimately affect our health – now and for years to come. A battle we face everyday is our food and nutrition.

Eating healthy isn’t as simple as it used to be; going to our garden, picking apples off a tree or collecting eggs from our backyard chickens. With all the changes that have taken place in just the last 100 years, how can we be sure that what we are feeding our family is safe, truly healthy and real?

What can we do to ensure we are providing our family nutrition that is going to benefit them and not harm them? How can we avoid falling prey to the habit of convenience and poor food choices? We need to rise up as health warriors and fight for our health. There is an onslaught of information regarding health and nutrition right now and honestly, it’s overwhelming and confusing.

Here are some easy tips for winning this battle:

• if your food has a label, read it closely
• eat living foods; avoid dead and fake food products
• drink clean water; filtered water, reverse osmosis
• prepare meals at home more often
• eat organic produce to lessen toxic chemical exposure
• choose organic, grass-fed and pasture-raised meats and dairy products
• choose natural sweeteners in lieu of artificial ones
• if it came from the ground, grew on a bush or tree or has a mom, it’s typically safe to eat
• if it was made in a plant, don’t eat it or at least eat much less of these
• stay away from GMO foods (genetically modified organisms)
• don’t eat conventional meats (beef, chicken, pork) from CAFO’s (concentrated animal feeding operations)
• cut out/eliminate prepackaged and processed foods
• cut out ‘white’ foods that have been refined and overly processed such as white sugar, white flour, white rice
• stay away from foods containing MSG
• eliminate soda, energy drinks, pasteurized fruit juice
• eliminate soy from your diet, soy and soy byproducts are in everything
• don’t participate in diet trends; they are never long lasting and usually cause internal damage and leave you unhealthy
• plan your meals in advance and keep a shopping list on hand
• do grocery shopping each week to avoid buying bulk and unnecessary items
• plan meals so they work with your daily schedule and make enough for leftovers
• make your child’s lunch for school

These are small yet powerful and beneficial steps for us to be proactive in our physical health. Yes, there may be a war going on, but we can stand up strong and be on the offensive when it comes to the choices we make.

Our lives literally depend on how we fight this battle and I choose to be victorious!

What can you do to be a health warrior in your home and to inspire those you have influence over?