THE ULTIMATE MACHINE
The human body is an amazing machine that can function for years in spite of our sometimes abusive behavior towards it. Any other mechanical machine would have broken down long ago under the same conditions.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT (FUEL)
Let's say you've purchased this high performance machine (car, boat, motorcycle, etc.). Most people would buy the appropriate fuel necessary for it to operate at peak efficiency rather than the cheapest low grade fuel they could find. Unfortunately, many people are putting this "low grade fuel" in their high performance machine (their body) in the form of food.
They are also filling their body with potentially harmful additives. Today, most commercially produced foods have many chemicals added to them. Artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, sweeteners, stabilizers, etc. are added to the processed foods that are consumed by millions of people. These additives are supposed to be thoroughly tested for safety before being allowed into consumable products. My confidence in their safety is suspect especially with the recall of many formally "safe" substances. Also, since these additives are chemical compounds, their storage can affect their stability and safety. Are they thoroughly tested under all conditions such as heat, cold, damp, dry, etc.? Are they tested with every food they are added to, since there is a chance of chemical reactions between the additive and the food. What happens when several additives are added together in one product? Also, the testing is generally done by the manufacturers so falsification of data is always a possibility. I can go on and on but enough said.
THE MISSING OCTANE
Most commercially processed foods are missing the nutrients necessary to help keep the body functioning at peak efficiency. The refining process strips out essential vitamins & minerals and generally de-energizes the food. To make people feel good, the processors add back some of the nutrients and call it "enriched or fortified". Unfortunately, this upsets the nutritional balance and replacing the naturally occurring nutrients with artificially produced substances is of questionable value. To make matters worse, the body has to use its store of other nutrients to process this food that is lacking the natural enzymes and other substances. The net effect is that the body is using a lot of energy to process the foods to create energy. In addition, this processing also removes most of the fiber that is needed to help move the food through the digestive tract. Some examples of this "dead" food are white rice, white flower, granulated sugar, salt, and the products that are produced with them (bread, pasta, cereals, cake, etc.).
THE STANDARD AMERICAN DIET (S.A.D.)
It is quite interesting that the abbreviation for the Standard American Diet is "SAD". It seems that the average American (and other developed countries) eats the exact opposite of what the body needs to properly function. The diet consists of high fat, sugar, and low carbohydrates. It relies heavily on meat, dairy, and sweets.
MEAT & DAIRY
Meat and dairy are generally high in animal protein and fat. This is one problem but the greater concern is treatment and general health of the animals. Most animals that are used for dairy and/or meat are sickly. They are kept in close quarters and disease spreads easily. Consequently, they are shot full of antibiotics and other chemicals which make it into the meat and dairy we consume. The animals are also given growth hormones so they can supply more meat. Often times, their feed is low quality which contributes to their generally unhealthy condition. They are also the breeding ground for dangerous bacteria such as E Coli, salmonella, etc.
Recently, dairy farmers are adding a hormone called rGBH to increase the milk yield. This hormone has not been thoroughly tested for safety and has serious side effects. Cows treated with rGBH get more infections and must be treated with even more antibiotics; if this is the case, is there really any gain in overall milk production? To make matters worse, dairy producers are not required to label the milk where rGBH is used. In a dairy cooperative, milk from many producers can be mixed together making the tracking of the rGBH milk even more difficult. Remember, milk is also used to make cheese, cream, sauces, ice cream and many other products.
CHEMICALS & MORE CHEMICALS
Most commercial agriculture is heavily dependent on chemicals. Pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers are all used in great amounts to increase crop yields. This is dangerous to the farmers as well as the consumers. These chemicals also make their way into the drinking water supply, adding to the water pollution problem. The agri-chemicals may increase crop yields in the short term, but overall are detrimental to the soil in the long run. More land becomes unusable every year, partially due to the overuse and overdependence on these chemicals.
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