The 5 Golden Rules

The Five Golden Rules

1. Cut back on sugar
2. Avoid vegetable oils
3. Eat real food
4. Avoid processed foods
5. Drink water

1. Cut back on Sugar

Sugar is killing us and we need to do something about it.

For many years, sugar was a luxury item only enjoyed by the rich - but with the industrial revolution in the 19th century, sugar refineries could produce sugar in large quantities at a fraction of the previous price. This allowed the development in the 20th century of the confectionary industries and soft drink industries.

How much sugar do we consume?

On average, each Australian consumes roughly 64 grams of sugar (which is 16 teaspoons) per day. This is ADDED sugar, not to mention the sugar content in a lot of the foods we buy from supermarkets.
Teenagers consume a much higher amount.

Sugar content of common drinks

Sugar content of fruit juices

Fruit

Certain fruits will contain more sugars then others, the difference with fruit however is the benefits of vitamins, other nutrients and dietary fibre that you receive from eating them. This is all because the sugar from fruit is a natural sugar (or intrinsic sugar).

BEST choices of fruit

These fruit choices ALL have less then 10g of sugar per serving!

• Apricots
• Blackberries
• Blueberries
• Grapefruit
• Kiwifruit
• Lemons
• Limes
• Raspberries
• Rhubarb
• Strawberries

All of these choices (in moderation) are great to have and have no added sugar!

Why is sugar so bad?

Sugar is associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, and other chronic diseases such as fatty liver and cardiovascular disease. Studies have shown that people who obtain more than 10 percent of their calories from sugar have a 30 percent higher risk of death due to heart disease.

Sugar activates the same dopamine reward system as nicotine and cocaine, which feels good and makes us want to eat sugar again. This can lead to cravings and addiction. When we eat a lot of sugary foods regularly, the body adapts to prevent overstimulation of the rewards system. This means we need more sugar for the same hit each time.

1. Vegetable oils

When polyunsaturated oils are heated to 180 degrees Celsius, a normal cooking temperature, they oxidise and form significant quantities of toxic matter. Vegetable oils are used widely in cooking and processed foods.

Vegetable oils are high in omega 6 fats, which can be oxidised and become 'rancid' which is detrimental to our health!

How to avoid Vegetable oils?

Cook with;

• Butter
• Coconut oil
• Ghee
• Olive oil
• Tallow

What other fats should we eat?

• Almonds
• Avocados
• Beef
• Cottage cheese
• Chia seeds
• Eggs
• Salmon

1. Eat Real Food

Real food just means food that is not processed, grows from the ground\on trees, meat from animals with the exception of processed meats etc.

These foods include:

• Meat
• Fish
• Dairy (Greek yoghurt, cottage cheese)
• Vegetables
• Fruit
• Nuts and seeds

These foods are whole, untampered with, full of nutrients and affordable!

Examples of meals:

1. Avoid processed foods

Processed foods are packed with unhealthy ingredients, they do not nourish us!

Processed foods are more likely full of:

• Sugar
• Unhealthy fats (vegetable oils)
• Artificial flavourings
• Emulsifiers

They normally come pre-boxed or in wrappers, examples are:

• Breakfast cereals
• Baked goods
• Chocolate & ice cream
• Cakes, biscuits, crackers
• Popcorn, potato chips
• Corn chips
• Sugar sweet beverages
• Diet drinks
• Fruit juice
• Margarine
• Pasta
• Pizza
• Rice
• White bread
• Honey that is not raw

1. Drink water

This one is super simple!

Water is the healthiest, cheapest drink we can have. While I still suggest that you drink as much as you can, there are other things you can have to get your liquid consumption up:

Tea

Tea has been linked with lots of health benefits, including improved mood and cognition, reduced risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

Add lemon or lime, or strawberries or mint!