Introduction
Our nutritional guidelines are based on the principles that our bodies have evolved from that of a hunter/gatherer. If we reflect on the lifestyle and environment of that time, we can then better understand the conflict between our body systems, which mimic our ancestral origins, and the present day nutrition. Think about it...Survival of the fittest is one the basic principle of human nature, whether you are in the past or the present. The difference is in what is required to survive.
The Past
In the past, shelter, protection, and strength (among others) were all important elements of staying alive; but, by far, the most valuable component of surviving was food. Sufficient amounts of it exemplified the fittest survivors. Food was scarce and our ancestors would spend their entire existences hunting for it or growing it. They didn't have the convenience of a grocery store within a few blocks of their house. There were far too many days that our ancestors went without eating food. Therefore, it became essential to our survival that we develop a new system to survive under these conditions.
Our nutritional guidelines are based on the principles that our bodies have evolved from that of a hunter/gatherer. If we reflect on the lifestyle and environment of that time, we can then better understand the conflict between our body systems, which mimic our ancestral origins, and the present day nutrition. Think about it...Survival of the fittest is one the basic principle of human nature, whether you are in the past or the present. The difference is in what is required to survive.
The Past
In the past, shelter, protection, and strength (among others) were all important elements of staying alive; but, by far, the most valuable component of surviving was food. Sufficient amounts of it exemplified the fittest survivors. Food was scarce and our ancestors would spend their entire existences hunting for it or growing it. They didn't have the convenience of a grocery store within a few blocks of their house. There were far too many days that our ancestors went without eating food. Therefore, it became essential to our survival that we develop a new system to survive under these conditions.
So, after hundreds of thousands of years, our bodies evolved to account for the scarcity of food. First, our body systems adapted to optimize the efficiency of our metabolism. This way we could absorb the maximum amount of nutrition from the little food we received. Beyond that, we needed something to get us threw days of zero consumption. You can already probably guess where I am going with this. Next, evolution gave us the ability to store energy for later use as fat. Consequently, our body had a backup system to ensure survival on days without food.
The Present
Today, survival is still dependent on food, but survival of the fittest is not. Food is now abundant. It is seen and accessible around every corner. Food's value in our nature to survive has been diminished. It no longer holds the value it had in the past. As a society, we have accepted this, but biologically our systems are still set in the conditions of our ancestors.
The Big Problem
Here in lies the problem. Storing energy as fat has no purpose in today's food enriched world. It is a lingering process of our past that now serves harmful implications in today's society. Unfortunately, evolution hasn't had sufficient time to correct this, so we are forced to embrace this damaging process and fight it ourselves. How? Well, since we cannot change our predisposed system to store energy, we must target the materials that initiate its functioning, the food we eat. We need to be aware of the food we are putting into our body and its ramifications.
Today, survival is still dependent on food, but survival of the fittest is not. Food is now abundant. It is seen and accessible around every corner. Food's value in our nature to survive has been diminished. It no longer holds the value it had in the past. As a society, we have accepted this, but biologically our systems are still set in the conditions of our ancestors.
The Big Problem
Here in lies the problem. Storing energy as fat has no purpose in today's food enriched world. It is a lingering process of our past that now serves harmful implications in today's society. Unfortunately, evolution hasn't had sufficient time to correct this, so we are forced to embrace this damaging process and fight it ourselves. How? Well, since we cannot change our predisposed system to store energy, we must target the materials that initiate its functioning, the food we eat. We need to be aware of the food we are putting into our body and its ramifications.
Look out for my next blog post on how to limit this ancestral process. I'll go into detail about the right food to eating and how much of it you should be eating. And, as always, feel free to post any questions on this topic that you would like me to address.
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