Kim Davey: Throw out those foodless foods

Kim Davey

Dis-ease is not a mystery, as many want us to believe. Our health starts and ends with what we put in and on our bodies. So make sure you take care of yours.
ON Tuesday I attended my first American funeral. Now I have had a lot of exciting firsts in the States but this was not one of them. Unfortunately my fiance's teammate passed away of a heart attack during a bowling tournament. It was horrible. He was, however, a very big man.
Spending a lot of time in the States you see overweight people everywhere. Unfortunately it is now commonplace in NZ. You can still be skinny and unhealthy but either way it is very sad when someone's weight causes health problems and in this case death.
Ultimately, you are what you eat.
Today we live in a society of foodless foods. There are so many packaged, processed, toxic foods in the supermarkets, dairies and fast-food restaurants that many of us no longer even understand what real food is.
When I was young I held this belief that "the government wouldn't allow anything in our supermarkets if it wasn't good for us, right?" Wrong!
We need to get back to eating the way our grandparents and great grandparents used to eat. Fresh, organic, delicious whole foods grown in our own back yard with no sprays, no pesticides, no chemicals and no additives. The rule of thumb for working out whether or not something is good for you is to ask yourself "Would my great grandmother recognise this as food?" If not, don't eat it.
Our bodies are fuelled by the food we eat. They are the vessels that transport us through our lives. Like a car, we need to have the correct fuel (food) in us to operate effectively.
The trick to eating healthy is to only shop for groceries around the outside of the supermarket. This is generally where the real foods are - fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds and legumes. In the middle is where all the packaged, processed crap is, which usually doesn't go off. If it doesn't go off in a couple of days, it ain't good for you.
Some of the scariest, yet now most commonplace products are fizzy and energy drinks. These lifeless liquids are filled with toxic chemicals and sugars (Google phosphoric acid), which offer no nutritional content whatsoever and poison your system. It is like putting diesel in a petrol car - it isn't going to work and you damage it in the process. Seeing little kids buying massive energy drinks at the dairy is sooo sad.
With the number of heart disease and cancer patients skyrocketing each year (despite billions being poured into the industry) it is time we all took a giant step back and looked at what we are doing to ourselves. We were put on this earth with everything we need to survive. All the food we need is grown naturally and you can grow it at home.
There are some fabulous stores in Hawke's Bay - my favourite being Chantal Organics and the Wholefood Kitchen where you can buy organic produce and fresh, delicious foods. You feel so fabulous and energised after eating wholefood meals, and wonderful juices. You really can tell the difference. When you eat fatty, stodgy food, you often feel sick, bloated and tired.
Low on energy? Often feel tired? You are what you eat.
Another wake-up call I received a number of years ago was - Did you know that what you put ON your body is as important as what you put in it?
Your skin is the biggest organ you have and it absorbs everything you put on it - shampoo, conditioner, body wash, moisturiser, makeup, perfume, dish-washing liquid, washing powder, cleaning products. Have you ever thought about this? These are toxic chemicals that get absorbed into your body every single day. When constantly exposed to toxic chemicals eventually we are going to suffer a health problem because of it.
Solution: buy natural, plant-based products that are not tested on animals (if they have to test it on animals then it can't be good for you, let alone the animal). So time to wake up - dump the colourful pretty bottles and go natural. There are some fab products out there now which are good for the environment, the animals and YOU.
I am very fortunate to have come across the self-care and wellness industry a number of years ago. I have spent a lot of time with forward-thinking, health-conscious people who are making and creating some awesome changes in the world for the benefit of us all. Times are changing, people are starting to wake up and take responsibility for their own health and be pro-active in ensuring they prevent any dis-ease from entering their lives.
Dis-ease is not a mystery, as many want us to believe. Our health starts and ends with what we put in and on our bodies. So make sure you take care of yours. Check out one of my health idols at www.thedontolman.com. See you there.
Be Real. Be True. Be You.
#Kim Davey is an international speaker, author and entrepreneur who lives between Hawke's Bay and LA and runs www.nzdancenetwork.co.nz and www.kimdaveylive.com