(but probably still not very helpful depending on where you go).The one relatively simple thing you can do to improve your health is to avoid the worst ingredients that are found in many processed foods and can really damage your health. You can do this by growing your own food or shopping at health food stores, farmer's markets, and buying organic when you can. It's actually not that simple and easy to do but it's easy to do mentally in that you don't have to give up your favorite foods, become a vegeterian if that's not what you want, eat only raw or organic foods, etc.
I will give you some of these bad ingredients and a few reasons why you should avoid them. I assume you like your brain cells.
Monosodium glutamate/glutamic acid/MSG - it's an excitotoxin, so that means it overexcites and kills your brain cells. You won't feel it. It's linked to arrhythmia, nausea, stomach cramps, depression, mood swings, headaches, anxiety, seizures, asthma, and many other conditions (it would take a page to list them all). It is found in many things, usually in salty spicy foods like Doritos, spicy nuts, sausages, etc. http://www.truthinlabeling.org/adversereactions.html
Aspartame - sugar substitute and also an excitotoxin. Linked to blindness, many neurological conditions, including migraines, epilepsy, seizures, dizziness, depression, anxiety, irritability, and many others (again, the list takes a page). It is found in sugar-free foods. http://www.sweetpoison.com/aspartame-side-effects.html
Trans fats - these are also called "franken fats" because they are manufactured and the body doesn't know what to do with them. They wreak all kinds of havoc, end up stored as fat, and are found in many processed foods.
High fructose corn syrup - a sweetener linked to obesity and diabetes. It's becoming harder and harder to avoid. http://www.naturalnews.com/026468_sugar ... syrup.html
If you realize you have been eating these things for a long time, don't panic. Just stop and start eating healthy. You body has the amazing ability to heal itself from diseases you don't even know you have if you give it a chance.
There are many fat-free, sugar-free, natural, "healthy" products that are in fact very bad for you and usually contain some kind of harmful ingredient. They do the exact opposite of what they claim. If you like sodas (very bad for you, btw) and can't give them up, at least drink the real thing (in moderation), not the diet version with aspartame. Don't think that if something says "diet," "fat-free," "sugar-free," "healthy" etc., it's good for you.
Please try to take care of your health by eating healthy, eating organic when you can, getting some fresh air and exercise, and trying to relax from time to time (I know that's close to impossible right now but I will include it because it is very helpful). The way the health-care system and the FDA work is not designed to help you. The less you have to use them, the better off you'll be. The FDA is no more your friend than the Fed, in fact it's worse. Also, there are alternatives like naturopathic doctors, clinics, etc. There are even some centers that I heard heal cancer (or rather, just help your body heal itself) but you might have to go to Mexico for that.
I know some of you probably already know these things but maybe not everybody does. If this post helps one person or makes them wonder, then it's worth writing. Health issues and natural health are sort of my passion, so I just had to write this post.
Here are some wonderful resources for you to learn more:
Food, Inc ~DVD
Healing Cancer from Inside out ~ DVD
Health and Nutrition Secrets That Can Save Your Life ~ Russel L. Blaylock
Anticancer: A New Way of Life ~ David Servan-Schreiber
http://www.naturalnews.com
