Today so many people suffer from autoimmune conditions and illnesses caused by or aggravated by inflammation. Why so much inflammation? I do believe it also is connected to our emotional health. Inflammatory emotions: anger, anxiety, fear, frustration….these all contribute to our health, or lack thereof….
I believe emotional health has a lot to do with physical health. We also know how happy people are generally healthier people. Happiness is good for the heart, good for all aspects of health, and in fact, healthy people tend to have stronger immune systems.
Diet of course is important to control inflammation. Eating an anti inflammatory diet, as much as possible, is very helpful. This includes trying to eat organic vegetables and fruits as much as possible (especially when it comes to the “dirty dozen” foods such as strawberries, apples, peaches, greens, celery etc. which should be organic).
Why organic? A big part of it has to do with the negative effects of pesticides. There are so many pesticides in some conventional foods that those pesticides could affect many things, including fertility.
I know organic is expensive but try to get the organic produce that is necessary….and if your budget does not allow much, so buy a little of what is actually needed. It may be healthier (or safer) not to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables that are non organic, rather than eating a lot of them thinking vegan is better. Sometimes a simple diet of healthy bread, eggs, fish , perhaps some grass fed meat and dairy, would be safer than lots of lettuce, greens, fruits and so on that are grown with a lot of pesticides.
Growing up in Canada, we ate a lot of potatoes. But back then potatoes were healthier. Nowadays potatoes are sprayed with tons of pesticides, including round up. Even potato growers are afraid to eat them.
So health is no longer as simple as “be vegan”, “eat a Mediterranean diet”, “cut out meat and dairy” etc. No, it all depends on what you are eating on those diets. And what is the alternative? Maybe there are two options that are both not good…..which is better for you in particular? Each person may differ but in general we need to think through our options and try to choose the safest way to eat, given our particular circumstances of life.