The main purpose of this post is to share what I do in my daily life, practices I believe contribute positively to my well-being. I hope that it will inspire some readers to reflect, do their own research and explore what I consider one of the most vital aspects of everyday existence – food for a healthy life. After all, we eat every single day, often two or three meals. Thus, the impact of our choices is constant and significant.
At the same time, I’m aware that two to three billion people around the world struggle to access enough food each day. For them, posts like this may seem irrelevant. In their reality, any food that keeps them alive is valuable, regardless of its nutritional profile.
I also want to emphasize that I’ve dedicated considerable time and effort to learning about nutrition. I’ve read extensively and once I’ve gained a solid foundation, I took the most meaningful step – I applied what I learned. It was both a safe and effective way to test the theory.
MY NUTRITIONAL IDEOLOGY
A brief summary of my diet is this – I avoid foods that are rapidly digested and quickly converted into blood sugar, leading to dangerously high glucose levels. This spike triggers the pancreas to release insulin, a hormone responsible for regulating blood sugar by converting excess glucose into fat. That fat is then stored around the abdomen and internal organs which, over time, contributes to weight gain and chronic inflammation.
This is a basic overview of the metabolic response that occurs when we eat. However, certain foods are especially responsible for these unhealthy spikes in blood sugar.
GLYCEMIC INDEX AND GLYCEMIC LOAD
Of course, the science behind this is more complex than it may seem at first glance. Understanding how the food we eat directly impacts our health requires some deeper insight.
Without going too far into the technical details, I focus on two key measures to guide my food choices: Glycemic Index (GI) and Glycemic Load (GL). For reference, pure glucose, the standard benchmark, has a GI value of 100.
Glycemic Index indicates how quickly a particular food raises blood sugar levels when consumed on its own. The lower a food’s GI, the slower the rise in blood glucose, making it a healthier option.
Glycemic Load goes a step further by considering both the quality and quantity of carbohydrates in a food. It measures how much a standard serving of that food will raise blood sugar. GL is calculated by multiplying the grams of available carbohydrates in a food by its GI, then dividing the result by 100. As with GI, the lower the GL, the better for maintaining stable blood sugar levels.
THINGS THAT I DON’T EAT
What this really means is that carbohydrates are the main drivers of blood sugar spikes. When I first learned about this, I was shocked to discover that some of the foods I regularly ate had some of the highest Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load values.
For example, two slices of brown bread can cause a larger spike in blood sugar than an equivalent amount of a chocolate bar. Both white and brown bread have a GI of around 75. While eating a chocolate bar for breakfast seems unthinkable, having a couple of slices of bread can have the same, if not worse, metabolic effect.
As a result, I almost never eat bread or other wheat-based products like pasta, breakfast cereals or biscuits. Also, I limit my intake of potatoes, which are essentially pure starch. I eat rice maybe three or four times a month and I completely avoid cakes and added refined sugar in any form.
I say almost never because it’s difficult to maintain strict control over my diet while traveling. But that’s a story for another time.
FOOD THAT I EAT
My diet primarily consists of fish, chicken, pork and beef. I also eat eggs, cheese and a variety of nuts. Most importantly, I consume plenty of vegetables. I eat fruit in moderation as it contains fructose, a natural sugar that still impacts blood glucose levels.
All of my meals are cooked from scratch. I never buy ready-made meals. Also, I completely avoid junk food and mass-produced convenience foods commonly found in UK supermarkets. In my view, these aren’t real foods, they’re processed products that mimic food, often packed with preservatives, additives, flavour enhancers, stabilizers and other harmful substances. This means that I steer clear of both highly and ultra-processed foods. In fact, I try my best to avoid buying anything with more than five ingredients listed on the label.
In terms of drinks, I have a coffee in the morning and drink water throughout the rest of the day. Occasionally, I’ll have a glass of red wine, although I’m fully aware that alcohol is rapidly converted into blood sugar and that it’s not exactly beneficial to my health.
BENEFITS OF FOOD FOR A HEALTHY LIFE
With my current diet, I can eat as much as I want and never feel hungry. I used to have a bowl of “healthy” cereal for breakfast but, just two hours later, I’d be starving again or craving more sugar.
Now, I don’t experience cravings, although I do get hungry after a reasonable period of time. I sleep better and I never feel bloated. Additionally, I used to get red blemishes on my face from time to time, for which my doctor prescribed corticosteroid cream. Now, my skin is completely clear.
Despite eating a lot, my weight remains stable. Given how much I eat, I should be gaining weight, but I’m not. I also aim to avoid modern “lifestyle” diseases, such as hypertension, cardiovascular conditions, diabetes and other inflammation-related issues. These are strongly linked to unhealthy diets, particularly those high in carbohydrates.
FOOD FOR A HEALTHY LIFE
I’ve been following this nutritional regimen for about ten years and, so far, everything has been great. I have no complaints. In fact, it’s when I stray from this diet that I start to notice things don’t feel right. The most noticeable issue is bloating, which occurs as soon as I eat anything containing wheat.
To conclude, I want to emphasize that this post is about my personal experience and the choices I’ve made regarding the food for a healthy life. I’m not a qualified nutritionist, but I am more than capable of making decisions about my own diet and well-being.
We live in a time where information is more accessible than ever. Anyone can do their own research, learn and make informed decisions, just as I did.
Ultimately, we all have to determine what’s best for ourselves. When I first came across this information, I wanted to test the theory. Personal experience is the best evidence we have. In my case, eliminating certain foods and slightly adjusting my eating habits caused no harm, especially when the end result is better health and a stronger immune system.
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