I've been hearing about the use of chia seeds for a while now, but I hadn't done any research. Yesterday I had the opportunity of meeting a lady a the gym who supplied me with an excitement for learning about it. Me and food... why do I find it "fun?" From omega fatty acids to antioxidants, the benefits of Chia seed is amazing! (Thank you Susan! Should I pass along the info you sent me?)
Although I think my bowl of oats in the morning is a cost effective and healthy food, I do know that people need to minimize consumption of grains in general AND corn (which remember is a grain.) Corn is found in most all packaged foods and meat- even organic. Just one of the reasons for concern for high grain consumption is the omega factor. This is why when it comes to meat, you need grass fed animals since they are higher in omega 3's (remember you are what you eat eats.) Grains are high in Omega-6. This is not a bad thing in and of itself. The problem is that most everyone's ratio of omega-6 to 3's is waaaay off at about 10:1. It should be about 2:1. That said, eating more omega-3 is not enough if you do not lower your consumption of omega 6's. One important thing to know about omega-3 is that it is an anti-inflammatory.
Although I think my bowl of oats in the morning is a cost effective and healthy food, I do know that people need to minimize consumption of grains in general AND corn (which remember is a grain.) Corn is found in most all packaged foods and meat- even organic. Just one of the reasons for concern for high grain consumption is the omega factor. This is why when it comes to meat, you need grass fed animals since they are higher in omega 3's (remember you are what you eat eats.) Grains are high in Omega-6. This is not a bad thing in and of itself. The problem is that most everyone's ratio of omega-6 to 3's is waaaay off at about 10:1. It should be about 2:1. That said, eating more omega-3 is not enough if you do not lower your consumption of omega 6's. One important thing to know about omega-3 is that it is an anti-inflammatory.
I think every person's body is different for what their body requires, but as a basic rule... in the U.S. especially, we allow so much in our food and accept so many non-food items. I don't think the consumer is to blame and it really sucks that that we should even have to learn about what we eat. It is a very overwhelming subject and I for one, still have SO much to learn about! I am not trying to recruit anyone to eat my way... promise! :) I just get excited about food and like to talk about it all the time. I wouldn't call it an obsession, more of a passion. :) I talk to so many people that make comments or apologies about how they eat meat or even talking about it. For me, I went through stages until I finally just couldn't eat meat (even family farmed). The list of reason goes on and on!
SO, that said, here is one of my favorite sites for you meat eaters: http://www.eatwild.com/products/oregon.html
I was excited when I just put that link it because I noticed that it has a picture of Michael Pollan's Food Rules book. Never read it because from what I gather, it's a summary and sort of a hand book of the "to-dos'" from his book In Defense of Food. Maybe a great super-simple place to start???
Oh, other resources? I have even found people selling their cows, etc on Craigslist in the past. We started off just eating less meat and I wait and see what was on sale that week at New Seasons. The cost is always a shocker even when on sale. It really is the true cost. I know everything is grass fed there, but not sure about the certainty of the animals living conditions and slaughtering practices.
Food is a big subject, but just know enough to know that it is important stuff- even if it's just for the sake of your health. I can admittedly be a hypocrite at times and go through different spurts of learning and eating right. For now, my new "thing" is to incorporate Chia seed into my diet in place of flax seed.
OKAY, if you made reading this far... I'll shut up now! ☺
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