From Farm to Fork: How Agriculture Changed Our Diets and Our Health for Generations to Come

Although agriculture has solved the problem of having to constantly migrate on the search of food, current modern industrial farming practices (and flawed dietary theories) are depleting our food from essential nutrients, all the while contributing to obesity, cellular toxicity and metabolic dysfunction.

 

Curious about the declining oral and general health, chronic disease and infertility that seemed to get worse with every generation since the induction of agriculture, Weston A. Price was a dentist who traveled the world in the 1930s to study the diets and health of traditional cultures. He found that these cultures, who subsisted on diets of whole, unprocessed foods, including animal fat, had excellent health and were free from chronic diseases like tooth decay, heart disease, and cancer.

 

However, when these traditional cultures began to adopt the Western diet of processed foods and refined carbohydrates, they experienced a rise in negative health outcomes. Tooth decay, malocclusion, and chronic diseases became more common, and the overall health of these populations declined. Not to mention, indigenous populations were disproportionately affected by a slew of metabolic challenges, including weight gain and diabetes, as a result of adopting these new processed foods

 

Price concluded that the Western diet, which he called the “white-man’s” food, was responsible for these negative health outcomes. He believed that the key to good health was a diet of whole, unprocessed foods that were rich in nutrients like vitamins and minerals.

 

Price’s work was groundbreaking in its recognition of the link between diet and health. His research has inspired many people to adopt a traditional diet of whole, unprocessed foods in an effort to improve their own health and well-being.

 

One of the key features of traditional diets are eating plant and animal-based saturated fats, which are rich in fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K2). All types of animal fat delicacies, including fish roe and organ meats, have a long standing history across the globe to support fertility and longevity.

 

Today, Weston A. Price Foundation continues his legacy, advocating for the importance of nutrient-dense, traditional foods and working to promote sustainable agriculture and access to healthy food for all.

 

Fats & Metabolism

While most people have been taught to believe that weight management is a simple calories in, calories out equation – this is far from the truth. In reality, we do not need to go on restrictive diets to lose weight and optimize our metabolism. On the contrary, we need to consume MORE nutrients in less calories, including fat-soluble vitamins. We don’t need to avoid fats like the plague – we need to incorporate the right, quality fats of both animal and plant origin.

Let me reiterate: FATS are NOT EVIL. Fats are an absolutely essential part of our diet – it’s one of our 3 macronutrients, which means we need to consume it in larger quantities, as opposed to vitamins and minerals, which we need only trace amounts of.

Fats allow us to store energy to use at a later time of need (this is exactly the biological evolutionary advantage that is now a disadvantage in our modern lifestyle and processed food consumption). They also fuel the brain, cushion organs, provide heat, compose our cell membranes and form the backbone of our sex hormones (specifically, cholesterol does this – which is a whole topic for a different post). 

We cannot lose weight while running on empty. Instead we need to fuel our cells with adequate macro and micronutrients (including healthy FATS), we need to prioritize rest and sleep, and we need to be kind to ourselves. 

I am super excited to announce a new offering I am currently working on to help you do just that. Wouldn’t it be great to love your body into its perfect weight? Introducing – the Weight Loss Alchemy course in a partnership with Ashira, an Energy Healing Practitioner, brining you a very balanced approach to weight loss focusing on developing healthy routines, balancing your hormones and aligning your energy.

Please join our Weight Loss Reiki group on Facebook to start the healing journey with us and access free resources and guides!

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