Jamie Arreola, M.Ed, NBC-HWCJamie Arreola, M.Ed, NBC-HWCFunctional Nutritionist @ Jamie Activates | Certified Functional Nutrition Counselor + Life CoachOctober 11, 2024
Have you heard the saying, "what goes up must come down"? Metaphorically, it describes situations where inputs or actions directly result in outputs or consequences. Here are a few examples: in coding and programming, the data you feed into an algorithm affects the correctness of the result. In finance, the quality of your investment management affects the quantity of the outcoming yield. Environmentally, how we steward the earth affects how livable our planet will be in terms of usable soil, water and air quality. This same concept applies to the human body.
What we put into our bodies, minds and spirits will come out, too! Do you imagine that the quality of the input: food, drinks, and information, does affect the output? Our output includes our unique health and wellness. Our output includes the way we function, and everything we do, think and feel!
While we all have different starting points of health, can we all maximize our personal health with small steps, by focusing on our input? What are you allowing into your diet, your habits and your lifestyle? And what are you putting out into the world, as a result of those choices?
What if what we ingest into our physical body does matter. We humans can be likened to the finest machine ever created, and while we can run on basic fuel for the short run, in the long run, we may be optimized when we eat a whole food diet that includes minerals, vitamins, healthy fats, quality proteins, complex carbohydrates and plenty of natural water. Hmmm...
Could we function best when we eat whole food? Whole food includes fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins including legumes, meat, fish and seafood, and lots of fresh water. While specific diets may exclude a few of these categories, the Standard American Diet (with an appropriate acronym SAD), excludes almost all whole foods, or destroys whole foods by processing them or cooking them in a way that removes the healthful minerals, vitamins, amino acids and fiber originally in the whole food. I do know this...Take a sweet potato, bake it, and it is full of nutrients. French fry it, and it is basically a grease stick, no longer nutritionally valuable…We do this to much of our food. So, by learning to eat real, whole food, in appropriate serving sizes, can we begin to heal our bodies, by providing proper nutrition?
Contrast whole food to processed food, drinks, and the other junk we ingest. Every time we eat or drink a substance that contains preservatives, additives, and chemicals, high amounts of processed sugar, gluten, caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, fake sugar, added hormones, colored dyes, etc., our bodies have to try to figure out what to do with all of the non-foods. We stress our bodies by taxing our liver and kidneys to filter out all of the gunk. So, we have slowed down our digestion, and clogged our system. We unfairly challenge our bodies to make sense of foreign matter inside us that doesn’t belong. Each time we take recreational drugs, drink alcohol, or eat highly processed foods, we are stressing our body systems. Even medications that we need to survive can be hard on our bodies, so we need not add to our body’s internal stress by consuming things we can’t easily process.
If input matters, then when we eat a whole food diet, our output must improve. In fact, most people I coach experience increased energy stores, clear thinking, muscle development, brain growth, increased immunity, and physical healing. Conversely, when clients have a crappy diet, they often suffer from low energy, poor sleep, and a restless mind. They get sick. They gain weight. They have skin, hair, and digestive issues, and they eventually get health problems like high blood pressure, irritability, and increased mental stress. Then they develop diseases like diabetes, cancer and more. Could this be true for all of us?
It is important to remember that we consume more than food and drink. Our minds also ingest the energy from media and personal interactions we have during our day. When we are mindful of boundaries, and keep good energy around us, by choosing what, and who, we allow into our lives, we can better predict what the output will be. A song with positive lyrics can uplift us, and a dark song can bring us down. A phone call from a friend can set us on the right path, while a nasty comment from a negative coworker or relative can cast a shadow over our day. In the same way, the news channel we select can deliver facts, or spin a scenario that scares us, rather than preparing us. Could the sources of information we watch, listen to, and identify with, affect the way we think, feel and act in the world?
And what about spiritual inputs? I define Spirit as the eternal, perfect us, separate from our body and mind, but existing alongside. What outside influences we expose ourselves to, matters! What we allow into our hearts and minds can mask our true spirit and suppress our light. When we move our bodies with purpose, show gratitude in our daily lives, pray, meditate, walk in nature, breathe deeply, use beautiful language, act kindly towards the earth and all living things, think good thoughts towards humanity, take in healthy foods, and drink plenty of fresh water, we unveil our spirit selves, and the lightness of our being. Why do some people seem to glow, while others are a drain on our senses? Are we in tune with our highest selves, or is something zapping our spirit?
Now I ask you. What is your input? What is your output? What do you want to do, feel and think? Health, wellness, and hope? Or doom, gloom and disease? Maybe it's time to check on yourself and your habits. While you can begin on your own, it is helpful to kickstart changes with the help of an educator and mentor who can help you take a deep dive into your own routines and clean them up. Informed input results in outputs that bring us greater satisfaction, function and increased wellness.
As far as investment, there is no better investment than your health. Everything you do comes from that place inside you that is either healthy or unwell. You can’t hide it for long. It will show itself when you least expect it. If you think others do not notice, you are incorrect. People can spot health and they can spot someone unwell, too. Why not get ahead of the curve on your health? And remember, mental health is health, so pay attention to changes in your brain function and thinking, too.
**I teach habit change through diet, brain health, movement, and mindfulness. Wherever you start, these are all connected, so there's no wrong answer as to your starting point. All paths lead to increased awareness about where you are now, and where you want to go, and how to get moving in the right direction! I invite a conversation about how we can work together for the health of you, your family and your organization.
-Jamie Arreola, M.A.Ed, NBCHWC, Educator
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