Sunday 16 February 2014

The best machine you will ever own

Imagine being given an incredibly expensive machine, something like a machine that creates oxygen, or unlimited power. Something truly amazing that you really can't believe that a) it exists and b) someone has given it to you free of charge.

There are no instructions, just the suggestion that you maintain it well and keep it supplied with the best fuel possible. Anything less than the best will make the machine perform less optimally and be much less efficient. It will also break down and possibly stop working completely.

You might take care of it. You might keep it well maintained, especially if you could see the inner workings getting clogged up and manky, you might also be spurred into action.

Now imagine that this machine isn't just expensive, but rather, irreplaceable. Without it, you will die.
Would you then take care of it? Giving it the best possible fuel? Or would you spend money on other things, getting away with low quality stuff that, although keeps it going, isn't the best for it, potentially reducing its effective life.

Yes, this is a long and over-laboured analogy, and if you haven't got where I'm going with it yet, you should have.

Your body is the most amazing and irreplaceable thing you will ever have.
Every cell, every bit of blood, every muscle and sinew, every nerve, neuron and brain cell needs to be given nutrition. Where does it get that from?

From the stuff we put in our mouths.
Where else would it come from? You are not just what you eat, you are absolutely made up of what you consume.
If you eat "good stuff" which has high nutritional content, that nutrition goes to all the microscopic parts of the body that you don't know about, don't think about, and sometimes, don't even understand. The body is held in balance by what it is you are eating.
Start consuming food and drink that is non-nutritious, which doesn't have all the bits and bobs that the body needs. Using cheap, frozen food instead of fresh (as and when you can), the cells and blood and everything inside you are not getting what they need. The body becomes less efficient at processing, and generally becomes a bit less good at what it does. Things start breaking down, maybe you become a little more susceptible to colds, and your quality of life goes down.

Now, I'm not saying to go out and count calories, not unless you really want to. Instead, take the step of being in control of the quality of what you put in your mouth.
Make it contain as few preservatives as possible. Fresh food, fresh veg, as good meat as you can get, proper cuts, not nuggets or chemically enhanced easy meals.

Yes, it may be a bit more expensive, yes, it might mean taking time out to go visit a local butchers or grocers, and these are tough economic times. But at the end of the day, its your body. What you put in it will affect what you get out of it. (It'll also have the added bonus of circulating money in the high street, in the local shops, as opposed to giving it all to tesco, or whichever monster-market you shop at).

Even if you don't agree with this, at least just sit down for a moment and consider, if you don't see the connection of food to actual health, where, exactly do you think the body gets energy to live, heal, process and progress as a being?
Just a thought.

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