Despite dairy being a major staple of the modern diet and often being promoted as an excellent source of nutrition, it’s also one of the most common sources of food sensitivities and is associated with many disorders and diseases. However, as with most foods, there’s a significant amount of variation in the quality of milk, and this is a critical factor to consider.

More than 2000 years ago, Hippocrates, often referred to as the father of medicine, promoted the healing effects of milk. Since then, many doctors have continued to do the same. Milk is essential to the survival and development of baby mammals, including humans, and even the adult members of traditional tribes such as the Masai and Samburu continue to thrive on significant amounts of it. In addition, anecdotal evidence as well as published research supports its numerous health benefits. If this is the case, then how can milk be associated with so many health problems? One of the most compelling reasons is the difference between pasteurized milk and raw milk. However, to understand why pasteurization is not the great idea that it’s widely believed to be and why it destroys many of milk’s inherent health benefits, it’s necessary to consider the history of milk and the politics behind pasteurization.

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Based on some of the questions I get about my diet, I thought it might be helpful to write about my personal eating habits in detail. Since I often say that a healthy diet doesn’t have to be overly elaborate or time consuming, I think it’s only right that I explain from experience how it can be done.

Although my interest in preparing elaborate meals is growing, I generally don’t like to cook, especially not on a regular basis. However, I’m dedicated to doing whatever is necessary to support my health and wellbeing with excellent nutrition. Based on these factors, nutritional quality and efficiency are the focal points of my diet. Although my meals would never be mistaken for the work of a gourmet chef, I’m able to follow a very healthy and satisfying diet without having to dedicate a lot of time to it. By reading about my eating habits, hopefully you’ll realize that healthy eating doesn’t have to be as difficult or complicated as you may think.

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Digestive issues have become extremely common and are often a result of the typical modern lifestyle. Unfortunately, most people perceive digestive issues as nothing more than an inconvenience and fail to recognize that they can easily lead to compromised health and disease.

Digestive issues range in form and severity from mild cases of gas and bloating to severe cases of Crohn’s disease or diverticulitis which can require that sections of the intestines be surgically removed. Mild digestive issues are so common that most people consider them normal. However, they’re an undeniable indication of compromised digestion, and over time, can progress to more serious issues including food sensitivities, toxicity, susceptibility to illness, and autoimmune diseases, all of which can effect the entire body and initiate a downward spiral of poor health.

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With the ridiculous and misleading claims that are made on the packaging of many foods, it can be difficult to differentiate the truth from devious marketing. This is important because the failure to make this distinction can have a significant impact on your health and wellbeing.

To help you recognize the deceiving marketing that’s commonly found on food labels, I went grocery shopping and came home with a number of great examples. Aside from the obvious reason of it being unhealthy, I ordinarily don’t buy this type of food because it supports industrial agriculture, and in turn, supports irresponsible and inhumane farming practices. However, if I’m able to help steer you away from these foods, then it will be for a good cause.

The following are some of the most ridiculous and misleading food labels that quickly drew my attention in the grocery store.

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Due to the massive amount of confusing and conflicting nutritional information, many people find it practically impossible to implement a healthy diet. Fortunately, there’s one basic and foundational principle of healthy nutrition that clears the confusion and makes it much easier to eat well.

Unfortunately, the concept of a healthy diet has become very ambiguous and most people who think that they’re eating well are often mistaken. Despite making a significant effort, they fail to recognize this one simple, important, and effective principle of healthy eating.

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General Mills has successfully marketed their Cheerios brand of cereal to the point of it becoming widely recognized as a healthy breakfast food that helps to prevent heart disease. Are their claims for real, or are they nothing more than marketing hype?

One thing we can be sure of is that General Mills is pushing Cheerios as a “heart healthy” food very aggressively. The Cheerios box proudly boasts it’s cholesterol lowering capabilities and prominently displays the very expensive American Heart Association seal of approval, and just in case you overlook them, there are plenty of Cheerios commercials to make sure that you get the message.

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The low fat diet has been extremely popular for decades and is still strongly promoted by doctors and even the American government. As shown by the Fat Head documentary, it’s a load of bologna and many of us are suffering the serious consequences of our unhealthy fear of fat.

A Misconception About Fast Food

Fast food is undoubtedly an unhealthy and arguably unethical food choice, but not for the reasons you may think. Conventional wisdom tells us that fast food is high in saturated fat and is a major cause of today’s obesity epidemic. However, saturated fat is far from the nutritional villain that it’s made out to be and fast food is no more to blame for obesity than any other type of restaurant food. In fact, many people are overweight as a result of the food that they buy in the grocery store and eat at home.

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Beer and soda are two of the most popular and unhealthy beverages available today. They’re both associated with a long list of health risks, but which one is worse?

For the past two decades, Americans have been drinking just as much beer as they’ve been drinking coffee and milk. Soda consumption is even worse and typically doubles that of any other beverage. In fact, many people drink more soda than water. Needless to say, a majority of the population is harming their health by drinking a significant amount of these beverages. As such, choosing which one is worse is a matter of determining the lesser of two evils.

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Gluten sensitivity is estimated to potentially affect nearly half of the population. Although this is a vague estimate, it’s clear that gluten poses a risk to the health of many people and can even cause many of today’s most serious diseases.

Gluten sensitivity and celiac disease result from the inability to completely digest the gluten proteins found in most grain based foods. Unfortunately, celiac disease often takes years to be diagnosed and gluten sensitivity is rarely even diagnosed at all. Because grains are such a significant part of the modern diet, many people who unknowingly don’t digest gluten well are consuming it on a regular basis and are destroying their health and inviting disease in the process.

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Grain based foods such as cereal, bread and pasta have become a staple of the modern diet. Despite their popularity and the common recommendation to make them the most significant part of your diet, grains are at the root of many serious health issues. Between the number of grain based foods that are highly processed and unhealthy for anyone and the number of people who don’t digest grains well, frequent consumption of these foods can easily lead to life compromising conditions, and if left unaddressed, even premature death.

Many government organizations and so called nutrition experts adamantly state that grain based foods are the foundation of a healthy diet. Unfortunately, this dogmatic perspective is misleading many people and encouraging them to harm their health and live a compromised life.

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