Natural Food Diet

The natural or whole foods diet is really the original native or tribal diet intrinsic to all cultures before the industrial age. What was available from nature varied according to the area of the world, but all people cultivated their own food or gathered or captured wild vegetable and animal foods. Whatever the culture - North or South American Indian, Mexican, African, Mediterranean and European, or Asian - the diets consisted of very similar food components.

The foods that nature provided were used directly and in a multitude of ways to feed all these people. And nature can still provide all the people of the world with the best possible diet if we use our land harmoniously and productively, as caretakers cultivating respect for Earth's resources. The whole grain cereals, such as wheat, rice, and corn, have been and still are the predominant foods on Earth.

Fruits and nuts can be cultivated and gathered from the trees. Fruits were often a special treat, eaten freshly picked, ripe and juicy. Vegetables could be grown in abundance - the greens, legumes, and root vegetables alike.

Most native cultures knew to mix their grains and legumes or seeds together for complete protein nourishment. Most of these cultures, however, were not vegetarian, although their diets consisted largely of vegetable nutrition. Fish was a good source of protein for the tribes who lived near big lakes or streams or by the ocean.

The wild birds or animals, when they could be found, provided an important source of food for some people, according to the skills of their hunters. Water or brews from their foods were drunk freely. And there was occasional fasting from foods, either voluntarily or because availability was low.

This may have helped keep the people in balance - and most definitely sustained their reverence and appreciation of food. Nowadays, more and more people follow a "natural food" diet. The health food industry has grown greatly, and many stores provide the wholesome or basic foods as nature provides them; if we look, we may find bags, boxes, or bins containing a variety of grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and so on at most markets.

Fruits and vegetables are usually widely available, though some natural food stores attempt to find or specialize in "organic" produce, as the natural foods diet is as low as possible in chemical sprays.

It also avoids food additives and prefabricated and refined foods with extra sugars, salts, flavorings, and chemicals added to increase shelf life and to appeal to the addicted taste buds of the industrial-age consumer. The natural food diet is rich in natural flavors. Foods are prepared so that the flavor of each food can be tasted, and that usually means with the least amount of tampering.

Herbs and spices may be used to enhance flavoring if desired. I'm particularly enthusiastic about this topic, because these are the dietary principles that I follow and advocate to others - eating foods as wholesome, as chemical-free, and as much from our local environment as possible.

Foods are obtained for their quality, even though the more wholesome foods may be slightly more expensive. When we prepare our own foods and eat the more vegetarian diet that we all were intended to eat, the average cost is usually less than that of the typical American diet.

If a minimum of animal foods are eaten, we should take special care to get sufficient protein, calcium, iron, zinc, and vitamin B12. A natural food diet can be omnivorous or vegetarian; if properly balanced, it will provide a good level of all the nutrients we need for our body to function optimally.