Complete nutrition from whole, natural foods ?

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  • LesaLu4
    LesaLu4 Posts: 83
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  • pennydreadful270
    pennydreadful270 Posts: 266 Member
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    Funnily enough a good way to get everything you need is absolutely NOT to eat the same things. A good rough guide is to make sure you're eating different coloured foods throughout the week.
  • bokodasu
    bokodasu Posts: 629 Member
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    What I need now is a lunch I can pack that gets me through the end of the workday, and a dinner that completes the nutritional requirements. I'm prepared to eat the same food every day, initially.

    This is probably heading in the wrong direction. The thing about getting your nutrition from whole natural foods (which I think is a great goal, just one I don't share ATM) is that real food isn't that tidy. All those entries in the USDA nutrition database are averages - nutrient content is going to vary depending on where and when the food was grown, what sort of weather there was while it was growing, how long it's been since it was harvested, how it was packed/stored/shipped - all kinds of stuff. And there's no practical way to find out if you're eating a low-vitamin-c orange or a high one. So you're more likely to get what you want (complete nutrition, no supplements) by eating a wide variety of things so you're less likely to be reliant on one thing that turns out to be not as advertised.

    I know there's software that can help you sort this out, because there was 10 years ago when I tried to figure out the same thing, but I have no clue what's out there and is good/easy to use/cheap.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    Funnily enough a good way to get everything you need is absolutely NOT to eat the same things. A good rough guide is to make sure you're eating different coloured foods throughout the week.

    truth. I also eat a big *kitten* salad every day - you can switch that up and change it up daily with pretty much unlimited combinations.

    eating the same thing is 1) boring and 2) actually not as nutritionally beneficial. You can't always have chicken and broccoli and cover all your bases. :)
  • satanist
    satanist Posts: 8
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    I get pretty close though I really just eat what I like. My diary is open if you want to see. But I caution you that eating the same thing every day has its own hazards and you should try to eat a wide variety of foods and change things up a bit for nutritional reasons if not for your sanity.

    Over the course of an entire day, it's not possible to eat a wide enough variety of food to get complete nutrition? Hmmm. OK, the systems analyst in me says I can just make it a two or three day plan instead.

    The point here ( for me ) is getting into a habit. That means *avoiding* change. Fortunately for me, I can eat the same food every day and never get bored - I just want to build a simple plan that I can follow mechanically. Looks like I'll have to supplement with a multivitamin, but I guess that's not too bad.
  • satanist
    satanist Posts: 8
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Ah, and now Godwin's Law rears it's inevitable head. Millions of years of evolution says you're wrong, and calling me a Nazi is somewhat insulting. Have a nice day.
  • dovetail22uk
    dovetail22uk Posts: 339 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Isn't it interesting that you seem like you are shouting even though you are not writing in capitals?

    Don't agree with what you say re vitamin D. The sunlight exposure needed is only about 15 minutes a day.

    If you take an interest in what you eat I think you'll find it pretty simple to meet all your nutritional needs. Unless you're a bodybuilder or something. Why would you need a multivitamin if you eat a wide range of foods with all the essentials in them? And oily fish/ flaxseed for omega 3 and 6?
  • dovetail22uk
    dovetail22uk Posts: 339 Member
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    godwins-law1.png
  • PaleoPath4Lyfe
    PaleoPath4Lyfe Posts: 3,161 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Very miuch agreed.

    The fruits and vegetables we eat don't have the nutrients that we "think" they have unless you are fortunate enough to get very locally grown produce.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Ah, and now Godwin's Law rears it's inevitable head. Millions of years of evolution says you're wrong, and calling me a Nazi is somewhat insulting. Have a nice day.

    Apologize that you took offense. I could have phrased that better you're right. Unfortunately millions of years of evolution have nothing to do with the low quality of the food we eat today. In fact it's that very evolution that supports my position, as humans haven't adapted to the new strains and varieties of foods that have been genetically manipulated in the last 50 years. Foods are less nutritious today than they were 50, 100, 1,000 years ago, so we have to supplement.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Isn't it interesting that you seem like you are shouting even though you are not writing in capitals?

    Don't agree with what you say re vitamin D. The sunlight exposure needed is only about 15 minutes a day.

    If you take an interest in what you eat I think you'll find it pretty simple to meet all your nutritional needs. Unless you're a bodybuilder or something. Why would you need a multivitamin if you eat a wide range of foods with all the essentials in them? And oily fish/ flaxseed for omega 3 and 6?

    I urge you to get your vit levels tested then. The recommended level of Vit D is about 65 and most Americans fall in the teens to 20s. We're severely deficient unless you live in Florida or SoCal.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
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    Not sure if this is 100% natural or not, but I pare some low fat cottage cheese or greek yogurt (sweetened with a couple packets of truvia) with a piece of fruit for a 200 calorie high protein mini meal.

    I think sprouted grain breads are considered fairly natural - you could grill a piece of chicken and top the sandwich with lettuce and tomato slices.

    A ton of clean eaters seem to like salads as one of their meals - I see a lot made with dark green lettuce, diced chicken, carrot shreds, and nuts. Again, pare it with a fruit for the carbs.
  • dovetail22uk
    dovetail22uk Posts: 339 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Isn't it interesting that you seem like you are shouting even though you are not writing in capitals?

    Don't agree with what you say re vitamin D. The sunlight exposure needed is only about 15 minutes a day.

    If you take an interest in what you eat I think you'll find it pretty simple to meet all your nutritional needs. Unless you're a bodybuilder or something. Why would you need a multivitamin if you eat a wide range of foods with all the essentials in them? And oily fish/ flaxseed for omega 3 and 6?

    I urge you to get your vit levels tested then. The recommended level of Vit D is about 65 and most Americans fall in the teens to 20s. We're severely deficient unless you live in Florida or SoCal.

    I'm in the UK and my vitamin levels are rockin!

    ETA: It's sunLIGHT that we need, not sunSHINE.
  • alex066
    alex066 Posts: 7 Member
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    What really helped me was this book: 150 Healthiest Foods by Johnny Bowden: http://www.amazon.com/150-Healthiest-Foods-Earth-Surprising/dp/1592332285

    No matter if you decide on going paleo, keto, vegetarian, vegan, or whatever, it's great reinforcement to look up components of foods that you often eat and find out why they're healthy and what they're doing for you.

    I find this to be a more sustainable approach then diving in dogmatically into a diet... find out why things are healthy, see some other foods that you might not have known about, and seek new recipes based on that info.
  • dovetail22uk
    dovetail22uk Posts: 339 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Ah, and now Godwin's Law rears it's inevitable head. Millions of years of evolution says you're wrong, and calling me a Nazi is somewhat insulting. Have a nice day.

    Apologize that you took offense. I could have phrased that better you're right. Unfortunately millions of years of evolution have nothing to do with the low quality of the food we eat today. In fact it's that very evolution that supports my position, as humans haven't adapted to the new strains and varieties of foods that have been genetically manipulated in the last 50 years. Foods are less nutritious today than they were 50, 100, 1,000 years ago, so we have to supplement.

    That's such a sweeping statement - where are you getting your facts from? It is true that some mineral contents of foods go up and some go down, due to differing agronomic practices but the health implications of this is not apparent (e.g. the potassium levels of green leafy vegetables have declined but people eat bananas now - problem solved). It is true that for example, there is less vitamin C in oranges than there was in our grandparents' day, but then we eat many more oranges than our grandparents ever did anyway.
  • CoachReddy
    CoachReddy Posts: 3,949 Member
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    Follow my food diary :-)

    Nope. Powders and pills in that diary. Thanks anyway.

    seriously? you CAN'T get full proper nutrition without supplements in America. try getting enough vitamin D. Not happening. The majority of Americans are D3 deficient (like, significantly) because of the lack of sunlight they get - which is the only way to get D3 unless you supplement.

    being a no-pill-nazi is a surefire way to make sure you're not meeting all your nutritional needs. you need a multivitamin and you need omega 3s and you need D3 - at mininmum.

    Ah, and now Godwin's Law rears it's inevitable head. Millions of years of evolution says you're wrong, and calling me a Nazi is somewhat insulting. Have a nice day.

    Apologize that you took offense. I could have phrased that better you're right. Unfortunately millions of years of evolution have nothing to do with the low quality of the food we eat today. In fact it's that very evolution that supports my position, as humans haven't adapted to the new strains and varieties of foods that have been genetically manipulated in the last 50 years. Foods are less nutritious today than they were 50, 100, 1,000 years ago, so we have to supplement.

    That's such a sweeping statement - where are you getting your facts from? It is true that some mineral contents of foods go up and some go down, due to differing agronomic practices but the health implications of this is not apparent (e.g. the potassium levels of green leafy vegetables have declined but people eat bananas now - problem solved). It is true that for example, there is less vitamin C in oranges than there was in our grandparents' day, but then we eat many more oranges than our grandparents ever did anyway.

    speaking of sweeping statements... i don't eat ANY oranges... so... there's that...
  • satanist
    satanist Posts: 8
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    What really helped me was this book: 150 Healthiest Foods by Johnny Bowden: http://www.amazon.com/150-Healthiest-Foods-Earth-Surprising/dp/1592332285

    Sounds like a good recommendation. I ordered a whole series of similar books from that author just now - the price of used copies is ridiculously cheap.
  • timpicks
    timpicks Posts: 151 Member
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    I get pretty close though I really just eat what I like. My diary is open if you want to see. But I caution you that eating the same thing every day has its own hazards and you should try to eat a wide variety of foods and change things up a bit for nutritional reasons if not for your sanity.

    Over the course of an entire day, it's not possible to eat a wide enough variety of food to get complete nutrition? Hmmm. OK, the systems analyst in me says I can just make it a two or three day plan instead.

    The point here ( for me ) is getting into a habit. That means *avoiding* change. Fortunately for me, I can eat the same food every day and never get bored - I just want to build a simple plan that I can follow mechanically. Looks like I'll have to supplement with a multivitamin, but I guess that's not too bad.

    I hear you and I'm not saying that you can't use some basic building blocks daily. Just vary it a bit. For instance, I eat homemade yogurt most mornings but put in different fruits, typically ones that are peak in terms of taste and nutrition. And I have a huge salad most lunches with as many colors of veggies as I can fit, but change up things in it like chicken for falafel or portabellos for cheese. Simple stuff like that. For dinner, I change up more but still try to keep it as clean as I can. I cook huge batches of stews that I freeze and cycle to keep things interesting and pair with fresh veggies that look good. It's not that complicated. Yes, I do a multivitamin but more as a reminder that I am not really starving when a bit hungry. Hope this helps.
  • satanist
    satanist Posts: 8
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    I cook huge batches of stews that I freeze and cycle to keep things interesting and pair with fresh veggies that look good. It's not that complicated. Yes, I do a multivitamin but more as a reminder that I am not really starving when a bit hungry. Hope this helps.

    Ah. Now *that's* a good idea. Efficiency through good old American mass production. Now that I've tossed out all that pre-processed crap, there's a lot of room in the refrigerator and freezer. Might as well put it to good use. Do all my lunch and dinner cooking on the weekend, save a bunch of money, get my varied diet through varied soups/stews/salads.
  • sammycat1
    sammycat1 Posts: 56 Member
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    If you want a powerful eye opener about nutrition and whats in the food we eat try to watch the film 'hungry for change'

    I try to eat as 'clean' as I can but usually can do better, doing the best I can at the moment

    Some good ideas here.

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