A wholefood plant-based diet is about thinking consciously, environmentally and ethically about the food we eat, where it comes from and how it’s produced. Ultimately, what we put in our bodies, influences not only our inner health, such as our thoughts, emotions and personal vibration, but also the outer world, as in environmental pollution, food and resource waste, worker exploitation, animal welfare and the general drift away from natural practices.
Some argue that the human being is designed and built for eating a plant-based diet. Others suggest that early humans enjoyed far greater health prior to the growing of crops and sourcing of food staples from domesticated animals. While the origins of man and the kind of diet we originally had are open to debate, what has most definitely paved the way to the adoption of our current dietary habits is the development of many large profit-based industries and food manufacturing / processing plants.
Is it really so inconceivable that we could survive on plants, when a great portion of living beings on this planet (human and non-human alike) do just that. Elephants, gorillas, moose, even bears, are plant eaters. They eat straight from the source. Fresh and natural. Their diet contains all that they need, and is localised and seasonal. Undomesticated animals rarely suffer deficiencies when allowed to roam wild and free in nature. It’s also rare to find one cooking its supper. :)
Studies are starting to prove what many have known for decades, even hundreds or thousands of years (back to ancient Greece and India), that a wholefood plant-based diet is the most natural for our body-mind-soul. Confirmed benefits range from prevention of heart disease, cancer and obesity, to conservation of water and freeing up of land for sustainable natural farming practices.
Many people throughout history have known of these benefits and have actively promoted a wholefood plant-based eating as the key to overall human-nature-universe balance. People from Pythagoras and Hippocrates, to the representatives of almost every major religion and belief.
The whole idea behind a wholefood plant-based approach to life is that the food we eat is right for our body. When our diet is natural and consists of minimally processed food, adheres to proper food combination principles, and takes into consideration healthy pH values, then what we ingest ultimately heals and strengthens our body.
Without proper digestion, absorption and elimination, the body accumulates waste. This can lead to the depositing and storing of waste anywhere in the body, which in turn can produce deformities, whether in bones or the spine, poor flow of fluid such as lymph, unhealthy blood composition, tissue and organ degeneration, psychological and neurological disorders, and the list goes on – and indeed it does go on and on in our modern day and age.
Plant-based eating covers a wide spectrum from raw foodism (no cooking), fruitarianism (eating only fruits), veganism (eating that which does not harm or kill an animal), and vegetarianism (abstinence of flesh). For each of these different types of diet, there are a different set of principles and practices.
There are many misconceptions of what a real vegetarian diet constitutes. Some so-called vegetarians eat fish. However, a pure vegetarian diet (also known as plant-based) is one in which no animal products are consumed. This includes fish, seeing as it is also an animal. However, for vegetarians who are not so purist, eggs and dairy products are consumed.
If you are against eating and using a product that comes from an animal, or was produced in such a way as to have harmed or killed that animal, then a pure vegetarian or plant-based diet is the one for you.
Contrary to popular perception, veganism is not a diet, it’s a philosophy. There are varying degrees of veganism, with some who are quite political about it, fighting and protecting the rights of animals, while others who choose it because of its health-giving qualities to both the animal and themselves. Not all vegans are alike or choose the vegan diet for the same reasons.
A fruitarian and raw fooder go one step further and avoid cooking their food, regardless of it being plant-based. They believe in preserving the living essence of food, with a fruitarian limiting their selection to fruits only – although when you see a list of what constitutes a fruit, the selection is quite high, in comparison to some very one-sided standard diets. A raw fooder eats both fruits and vegetables, as well as seeds and nuts. Although there are of course variations in how lax or strict either of these diets are, as the case is with any diet or individual approach.
Choosing a plant-based lifestyle really does mean choosing a different way of thinking and living. The main point about any diet is to live in balance with nature. If we respect nature, we will know what the limit is and when we overstep it.
All fresh, natural, unadulterated food is superfood. If that is the apple in your backyard, then that is more of a superfood than something commercially processed and packaged, and sold as ‘superfood’ in your local supermarket. A wholefood plant-based diet is filled with superfoods, even if it’s essentially simple and consists of the humble apple. We don’t need to buy a fancy product or gimmick from another country to eat a wholefood plant-based diet.
A wholefood diet is about keeping food simple and essential. Plant-based is about following nature’s lead.
Any questions, please feel welcome to contact me on +61 (0)448 381 306 or by email.
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