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Show What You Need To Know About Nutrition For your health's sake, do you know all you need to know about your nutritional lifestyle? Sure, there is an element of truth in the fact that if it tastes good you ought to spit it out. Mainly because fat and sugar both enhance the payability paya-bility of food and most of us eat far too much of both. "So what else is new?" WELL, THE most definite predictors of heart disease are high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol level, and cigarette smoking. "So?" Your cholesterol level is strongly influenced by your cholesterol and fat intake, particularly saturated fats-meat and animal products (eggs, milk, and milk products). "YES, I know that, and I'm going to try to cut down." But, did you know that cakes and candy, for example, range between 30 and 50 percent fat calories, with the average being nearer the upper up-per figure? And fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains are practically all under 20 percent per-cent fat calories? This is correct. That is why you should be predominantly a vegetarian. NOT ALL food additives are dangerous, but many of them worry me. Additives intentionally intentional-ly put into foods have many different functions: func-tions: 1. some maintain and improve nutritional nutrition-al function (vitamins and minerals), 2. others maintain freshness (preservatives and antioxidants), antiox-idants), 3. thickeners, stabilizers, texturizers, and so on aid in processing and preparing foods, and 4. others make food more appealing (sweeteners, flavor enhancers, natural and artificial colors and flavors). Then there are chemicals (additives) that get into food by accident. They include hormones aand antibiotics fed to animals, pesticides used on plants, residues from substances used to clean processing equipment, among other harmful things. THE BEST way to avoid additives is to buy fresh, whole foods. Frozen foods are preferable prefer-able to canned, packaged or powdered items. Avoid soft drinks, sweets, junk foods, highly processed convenience foods, diet foods and beverages. Eat a varied diet. Repetitiously eating a fast food burger and a soft drink for lunch every day can lead to higher levels of certain additives addi-tives and increased risk. DON'T BUY food labeled as "natural" to avoid additives, because many additives are natural substances. Some are safe, some are dangerous. On the other hand, synthetic additives addi-tives are not all unsafe. Many are identical copies of safe, natural substances. Now, you should see another reason for fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains-all added to a physically active lifestyle for your health and fitness. |