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Health Matters Trust Marandure
OUR physical health is mainly dependent on what we eat. What you put in your body affects all of your organs and tissues. A wrong diet or an indulged appetite of a good diet greatly hinders mental and physical efficiency. An improper diet not only injures our bodies, but also prevents our minds from functioning as well as they should.

People must learn to eat the right amount of the right food, and only at regular hours. The food you eat should be of a simple, healthful quality and should be eaten slowly in an atmosphere of cheerfulness.

Our enjoyment or suffering maybe traced to obedience or transgression of natural laws. A significant aspect of this is the fact that the body is the only medium through which the mind and soul are developed for the building of character. The original diet given to the human family consists of grains, fruits, nuts and vegetables. If prepared in a simple and natural way as possible, these foods are the most healthful and nourishing.

They impart strength, a power of endurance and vigour of intellect that is not afforded by a more complex and stimulating diet. Our diet should be simple and composed of simple food that is simply prepared. Healthy food, both raw or properly cooked, free from spices, grease, flesh meats and complicated mixtures is what the body requires.

Raw food is good, but warm food is needed by the system also. Eating only cold foods draws vitality from the body to heat it up in the stomach prior to digestion. We should also learn to eat fewer kinds of food at a meal. Fashionable eating with its many dishes, mixtures and hurtful foods is an invitation to gluttony.

Your diet should be nourishing to enable your body to make good blood. Perfect health is the key to perfect circulation and this cannot be done without good blood. A diet rich in vegetables and fruits can lower blood pressure, reduce risk of heart disease and stroke, prevent some types of cancer, lower risk of eye and digestive problems, and have a positive effect on blood sugar, which can help keep appetite in check.

Fruits, grains, vegetables and nuts prepared in a simple way, free from meat or spices or grease of every kind, constitute the healthiest diet. It requires careful thought to prepare nourishing food. This effort requires earnestness of purpose. We are mortal and must supply ourselves with food that will give proper sustenance to the body.

Vegetables such as pumpkin, carrots, spinach and broccoli are rich in Vitamin A that stimulates new cell growth. Green vegetables contain Vitamin B that releases energy from food and is good for the nervous system. Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, spinach, peas, beans, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, lettuce and leeks contain Vitamin C that helps the immune system by fighting against infection.

Broccoli, lettuce, cabbage, peas and green beans have Vitamin K that helps blood clot. For healthy teeth bones, hair and nails eat lots of spinach, broccoli, celery, leeks, onions, cabbage and carrots as they are rich in calcium.

It is important to note that all vegetables contain potassium, which controls muscles and nerves. These may be important in preventing high blood pressure. Pumpkins also help to prevent high blood pressure.

Preparation of vegetables must be done with extra care as most vitamins are lost in the cooking process. Do not peel potatoes as the peel contains vitamins and fibre. Always use a sharp knife when preparing vegetables as a blunt knife causes cell damage that leads to Vitamin C loss.

You should cook vegetables as soon as they are prepared and do not soak them in water as water-soluble vitamins B and C will be lost during this process. Use a small amount of water or preferably steam vegetables if you can. Fruits that should be part of your diet without fail. Include apples, bananas, oranges, avocados, grapes, grapefruit and pawpaws in your diet.

Apples have lots of fibre and contain an antioxidant that may help protect you from heart disease and also help lungs function better. Bananas are loaded with potassium that helps lower blood pressure and boosts your metabolism, while grapefruits help prevent heart disease by lowering cholesterol.

If you eat just one medium orange, you will have reached recommended daily intake of vitamin C that keeps your immune system humming. Oranges are also a great source of fibre, potassium, calcium, and other B vitamins.

Grapes contain a powerful antioxidant that promotes a healthy heart. Avocados are packed with healthy fats that help lower bad cholesterol levels while raising the amount of good cholesterol in your body. They are also essential for a healthy heart. Pawpaws contain powerful antioxidants that help protect against heart disease and colon cancer.

Investigate your habits of diet and study from the cause to effect. You do not want a rich, greasy and complicated diet, but neither do you want a skimpy, impoverished one. There are healthful foods that you need, which you should not avoid. Be alert to your food combination as some are healthful and others are not. Individually study this matter for yourself and come to your own decisions as to what you shall eat.

There is no doubt that there is generally an ample variety of foods from which to select. In making this choice, keep in mind the climate. Certain foods may be suitable for one country but not work so well in another. Some foods may also be good for a particular season of the year but detrimental for another.

Then there is also the matter of your occupation to consider. If you are engaged in physical labour, you can eat somewhat more amply than can a more sedentary person. The warmer the climate, the less severe our physical work should be, and the less food is correspondingly needed.

In connection with this, too much sugar in the diet in hot weather or in a hot climate can cause trouble. Far too many people worry about their diet, understandably so. Eat your food cheerfully, do your best to avoid study or doing heavy work or violent exercise immediately after a meal.

Trust Marandure is a naturopathic practitioner based in Bulawayo. He can be contacted on 0772 482 382