The Importance of Optimum Nutrition For Good Health

Many people believe they are healthy simply because they are not showing signs of any major disease or illness, but they probably don't feel anywhere near as great as they could do. Good health is much more than just the absence of disease, good health should extend beyond that to include a good level of physical fitness, being emotionally balanced, having high levels of physical and mental energy and a feeling of vitality.

The food that people eat, and the nutrients their bodies absorb and utilise from that food, has a dramatic effect on how their bodies are able to function. Much of the food we are faced with on the supermarket shelves is highly processed, lacking in essential nutrients and high in sugar, salt, fats or possibly all three. These types of food provide very little in the way of nutrition. They are far removed from types of food humans would have eaten during their evolution, and so we have not been 'designed' to eat these products. We cannot expect our body to be in the best of health if we feed it food of poor nutritional value.

When we consider the complexity of the body, for example, the millions of biological and chemical reactions which take place within it each day, the cells that are constantly being broken down and rebuilt and the fact that all the processes within the body rely on a constant supply of water, carbohydrates, protein, fats, vitamins and minerals, it is easy to see how important optimum nutrition is if we want to be in a good state of health. A deficiency of a mineral required in just a very tiny amount each day can have devastating effects on the body and its state of health.

Also, modern life brings other challenges for the body to deal with. We lead stressful busy lives and come into contact with numerous environmental toxins in the air and in the water. We ingest pesticides in the food we eat, drink alcohol and visit smoky pubs and clubs. This daily onslaught has very damaging effects on the body and means that the food we eat not only has to keep the complex everyday processes of our body ticking over but also has to create defenses against all these toxins and deal with the increased levels of stress hormones and free radical damage.

With poor nutrition, over time, there will be a build up of these 'anti-nutrients' within the body and a breakdown of the body's normal functioning which may eventually lead to illness and disease. So, although someone who currently eats a poor diet does not have any clinical signs of an illness, the fact that they may be feeling low in energy or stress or have recurrent minor infections shows that their body is not functioning at it's best and that situation needs to be addressed before their health declines further and they succumb to a more serious illness.

On the other hand, continually eating well and providing the body with the nutrition it needs, means that the body will be functioning well and the person should be feeling well. The body's defenses will be continually being built up and are much more able to deal with stresses and toxins. Optimum nutrition gives you a feeling of good health today and minimizes the likelihood of serious illness in later life.

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