10 ways to healthy living

1 Use whole grain flours
If you are eating white bread, gradually change to brown flours or a combination of both. Consider making your own bread. Purchase the flour in bulk from wholefood, organic sources and if you want to invest in a grainmill to mill your own flour.


2. Drink and cook with pure water.
Our bodies are 75% water and we need at least eight glasses of pure water daily to cleanse away impurities and toxins. Chemical contamination of our water supply is increasingly being implicated in a wide range of degenerative medical disorders.

Chief among these contaminants is chlorine and trihalomethanes (by-products of chlorine
interaction in water). Over 1000 chemical contaminants have beenfound in our nation's drinking water supply. Most bottled water is reprocessed tap water and is even held to less regulation than tap water. In addition, it is much more expensive per gallon than a good filtration system and you need to deal with the plastic bottles. Use a filter to filter out some of these.

3. Eliminate refined sugars from your diet. Most of the convenience foods and cereals available in the supermarket are full of sugars and fats. Completely cutting out sugar cold, is dangerous as it is an addiction like any other that has the ability to change our brainchemistry, making us crave more and more sugary items. Many of the behaviours exhibited by children in schools are due to a drop in blood sugar levels due to a high of sugar followed by a low, which can cause depression. If you want to read more, you can find details on Katherine Demaisons site, potatoes not prozac.

4. Incorporate whole grain pasta and brown rice into your menus. Refined flour pasta and white rice adversely affect blood sugar just like refined white sugar. Whole grains used for many meals, including breakfast, are nutrient-dense with many essential vitamins and minerals and do not have the same effects on blood sugar as do refined flours.

5. Increase your consumption of fresh vegetables and fruits. Most nutrition experts
recommend five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day. For some of us, this will take planning and effort. Offer 2 or 3 choices of vegetables with meals, make soups and fruitjuices to increase availability.

6. Eliminate hydrogenated fats from your diet. Did you know that most commercially
produced baked goods contain hydrogenated fats? The easiest way to eliminate or significantly reduce hydrogenated fats from your diet is to begin baking your own
whole grain breads, muffins, quick breads, cookies, and even crackers with quality ingredients.
7. Eliminate preservatives found in fruits, vegetables, cereals, and commercially baked goods.
Watch your labels, select organic when possible. Grow and preserve as many of your own produce as possible. Health and economy-minded cooks "can" or "dehydrate" whatever is in season year round, including their own soups!
8. Learn to prepare family meals from basic whole food ingredients to promote health and save money. Your taste buds will gradually adjust to the new healthier ways of eating . Keeping a weekly, monthly and yearly menu will show you what you used to eat and how you can introduce different ingredients and meal choices. Most of us use about 10 dishes and rotate those around. Check what is available locally and try something new each month, if its a success, add it to your menu, if not try something else.

9. Use lots of freshly extracted fruit and vegetable juices for a refreshing, nutritious beverage.
Drink two glasses a day for health maintenance and four glasses a day when you are sick or run
down.

10. Reduce your use of fast food. Instead of getting commercially prepared pizza with its white flour, hydrogenated oils, etc., make your own and improvise with toppings. You could use the pizza parlour’s menu as inspiration. We recently had a pizza with roasted vegetables and goats cheese which was different and yummy. Not always does it need to be pepperoni or cheese and tomaotoe. Children love to decorate their own pizzas.