Get smart about food! 🍕🍫

As a society, we abuse a lot of resources and one of the main things we exploit is food.

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I don't think it's entirely our fault, I think it's hugely influenced by the government as they have a huge chunk of money invested in fast food restaurants and fancy advertising campaigns. I think eating fast food and processed food is what we are 'used' to so we carry on regardless, without questioning the health risks of doing so. We saw our mothers and fathers eat crisps and chocolate and burgers so we follow suit...

Most of us are ignorant to the effects that certain foods can have on your body. But, some of us know all too well what the consequences are but still continue to eat it. 

The percentage of childhood obesity is rising and we need to do something to help combat this epidemic. In 2015/16 over 1 in 3 children were measured as overweight or obese that's 20% of children that were obese in 2015/16, compared to 17% in 2006/07. This means the number of obese children has risen by 3% in the last 8 years. 

The number of children that are obese is also strongly correlated to the social status of the family they belong too, those families that are living in deprived areas are more likely to be overweight or obese. The fact is 26% of children living in the most deprived areas were obese compared to 12% of those living in the least deprived areas, according to government statistics sourced from the NHS. 

We need to start educating people about food and the benefits of eating nutritious whole foods. Our children need to be educated enough to make decisions for themselves, whether they WANT to eat meat or WANT to eat that chocolate bar. But, of course, we also need to make sure the parents are aware of the side effects of eating processed foods and what the long-term effects could be on their health and their children's. So many basic elements of everyday life are not included in education, we are not taught how to cook properly, how to study nutrition, how much exercise we need to stay healthy or how to manage money. 

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Food is fuel, that is the basic outlook that you should have when you want to eat, each food has an amount of calories which we take in and burn. We need food and water to live, they fuel our body in order for us to run, walk, read and write. But not all food is equal, some foods like those that contain sugar, give us energy for a short amount of time as your glucose levels rise but then, shortly after, it drops back down and you become sluggish and tired. Your body wants to be fuelled, but it wants to be fed the right foods that will help sustain it until it goes to bed or is able to rest. Too much of anything is bad and moderation is key to anything in life, and finding the balance is one of the hardest things to do. 

A lot of people form bad relationships with food from a young age, I know I certainly did and it is one of the hardest things to separate yourself from. I used to watch my mother sit and eat a whole box of chocolates in front of the television when she was sad. She would use it to forget her troubles and that sugar gave her a mood boost and the chocolate gave her a boost of dopamine which meant she was happy. And so, I had learnt that food was a way to cope with my emotions, when I was sad I would eat, when I was stressed, I would eat, when I was happy...I think you get the picture. Emotional eating is the main reason I was stuck in a rut for so many years, that, and I had no idea that different foods were more beneficial than others. It took me a long time to learn how to cook for myself, what foods were good for me and which ones weren't, and let's face it I'm still learning now!

In the end, food is medicine, its fuel but its also a source of enjoyment and just because it's healthy doesn't mean it's not tasty! And of course you can have a chocolate bar or a Mcdonalds now and again but like I said earlier, it's all about moderation. Fast food, chocolate, crisps, they should be occasional treats not everyday staples in your of your children's life. 

You should be getting daily exercise as well, whether that is a walk, a run, some yoga, a workout video, the gym, who cares how just that little bit can boost your mood and keep your body and mind healthy.  

When all this is said and done it isn't meant to make people look bad, it's there to educate. We all want to live as long as possible and watch our children grow up healthy and strong. In order to do that we need to feed our bodies well, move our bodies around and also take care of our mental health. 

We only get one body and one mind, so we need to look after it as well as we can 😊

I will do another blog post on foods and their properties to educate myself and others about the benefits of certain foods. It's the small changes that add up to the bigger changes.

I hope you can see that we can help this epidemic but only if you're willing to help yourself first!

Check out my Instagram for some simple and tasty meal ideas!