By Jon Patrick Frieda,
Vice President of Marketing and Sales for Neels Pharmacy
The food that we eat on a daily basis is essential for sustaining life. As elementary as this sounds, food is arguably the main substance that we put into our body through our mouths over a long period of time, our lifetime. We begin in the womb with the nutrients that we are provided by our expectant mothers. Then shortly after birth, we latch our mother’s breast and begin consuming nutrients orally for the first time. There are so many different types of food at our disposal at this point in our evolution that the only thing limiting a culinary sensation creation is the extent of our imaginations.
With such an intimate relationship between food and human beings, must not we consider if any of what we are consuming may play a role in creating several of the debilitating health conditions that many Americans now find themselves suffering from in epidemic proportions? Historically, human civilizations mortality rate for heart attack, stroke, and cancer has experienced a rapid increase in this modern age. As we move from the broader tactical/strategic article in the month of February on kindness, we will touch more in depth on the aspects of maintenance and prevention from the perspective of food and eating when it comes to our health in this text.
More specifically, food is what we put into our bodies through our mouths that can determine if we have robust immune systems, strong hearts, and lucid minds. Or, frequent infections, hypertension, emotional and psychological shortcomings, poor sleep, neurotransmitter imbalances, slow detoxification and healing, mitochondrial dysfunction, the list goes on. For some people, heredity can play an important role, but for most of us, it is our dietary habits that send us down the slippery slope, from the Land of Good Health, to the Doldrums of Unwell. Herein lies the concept of epigenetics.
Since conception our genes are our destiny, or are they? Epi meaning outside of, epigenetics is the study of how what we do or do not put into our bodies over time will lead to a long life of good health or an existence where we will most likely be limited by our ability to sufficiently manage the symptoms of our disease states. In other words, epigenetics studies how genes manifest and are expressed, rather than altering the genetic code itself.
So, aside from tasting delicious, what else do All American pleasure foods like ribs, cheeseburgers, French fries, bacon, doughnuts, cakes, pies, and other deliciousness have in common? It’s no secret. They are all high in cholesterol and fat. The truth is that a diet high in cholesterol, saturated fats and trans fats can and will raise your risk of obesity, stroke, heart attack and sudden death.
What the mainstream information feed does not emphasize in their affinity for sensationalism, but should, is that a healthy amount of cholesterol and fat is essential for the body in many ways. Would you be interested to know that cholesterol is essential for making vitamin D, and that it is the building block for all steroid hormones, including sex hormones adrenal hormones and stress hormones? Would it surprise you to know that cholesterol helps to create bile salts that are necessary for your body to digest fat, and that it is an essential element to support the structural integrity of every cell in your body? If so, please visit our website, www.neelspharmacy.com, click on the resources tab and select articles to read the full newsletter which highlights and explores the truth about cholesterol and fat, and how too much or too little can lead to unintentional and undesirable results. Also stay tuned for future articles on epigenetics, fruits and vegetables, proper hydration and more. Cheers and Enjoy!
For more information visit Neels Pharmacy & Wellness Center, #8 Crestwood Executive Center, Crestwood, MO 63126. 314-84-3123. www.neelspharmacy.com.