As we evolve: Crop yields are expanding. More food is available.
If this is true why are we seeing steep inclines in Obesity, Diabetes, and other nutrition based diseases in the world today? More crops are cultivated but the nutritional value of that food has decreased.
http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5339
“Farmers today can grow two to three times as much grain, fruit, and vegetables on a plot of land as they could 50 years ago, but the nutritional quality of many crops has declined, according to a new report from The Organic Center, a group based in Boulder, Colorado. “To get our recommended daily allowance of nutrients, we have to eat many more slices of bread today than people had to eat in the past,” notes report author and Worldwatch Institute food expert Brian Halweil. “Less nutrition per calorie consumed affects consumers in much in the same way as monetary inflation; that is, we have more food, but it’s worth less in terms of nutritional value.”
“It’s happening to crops in the United States, too. In 2004, Donald Davis, PhD, a former researcher with the Biochemical Institute at the University of Texas, Austin, led a team that analyzed 43 fruits and vegetables from 1950 to 1999 and reported reductions in vitamins, minerals, and protein. Using USDA data, he found that broccoli, for example, had 130 mg of calcium in 1950. Today, that number is only 48 mg. What’s going on? Davis believes it’s due to the farming industry’s desire to grow bigger vegetables faster. The very things that speed growth — selective breeding and synthetic fertilizers — decrease produce’s ability to synthesize nutrients or absorb them from the soil.”
Eating your veggies…![images]()
As you can see, just eating your fruits and veggies may not be the answer. In the example above: broccoli has decreased in nutritional value by 60%. How much broccoli are you willing to consume a day? Broccoli for breakfast, anyone? How about broccoli for breakfast, lunch, dinner and between meal snacks?
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=soil-depletion-and-nutrition-loss
“Journal of the American College of Nutrition studied U.S. Department of Agriculture nutritional data from both 1950 and 1999 for 43 different vegetables and fruits, finding “reliable declines” in the amount of protein, calcium, phosphorus, iron, riboflavin (vitamin B2) and vitamin C over the past half century.
“Efforts to breed new varieties of crops that provide greater yield, pest resistance and climate adaptability have allowed crops to grow bigger and more rapidly,” reported Davis, “but their ability to manufacture or uptake nutrients has not kept pace with their rapid growth.” There have likely been declines in other nutrients, too, he said, such as magnesium, zinc and vitamins B-6 and E.”
Over the last year…
I have been learning about diseases that can be caused by lack of nutrition. We may think that we are doing everything right for ourselves and our families, but the rules have changed. Getting 5 servings of fruits and veggies are not enough anymore. Our bodies are created to work at peak performance when we are supplying what it needs, and today that is very difficult.
Over the past four decades Autoimmune disease has more than tripled, ADHD has doubled in the last decade, Diabetes cases have risen 75% in the last 20 years, Autism diagnoses have increased 78% within the past 5 years, and Obesity has doubled in the past 3 decades.
These are just a few health issues in our world today. I believe that as our food is decreasing in nutritional value and toxins in our environment continue to thrive, our health will continue to decline. I was forced to delve into the issue of my health and body function over the past year. To look for answers.
I found my answer…I am thriving…and will continue to do my best to stay healthy.
I am thankful to get out of bed each day, thankful as I do mundane chores that I could not accomplish 6 months ago. I whistle with joy as I clean the toilets, scrub the shower, and take out the trash. I hope that through this series of health and nutrition many of you may find yourselves completing mundane chores as if they were a trip to Disney World or a Winning Lottery Ticket.
Good Health…PRICELESS!!!
