The Basic Principles of Eating

The Basic Principles of Eating
by Dr. Mark Hyman

We are all genetically unique and need to find a way of eating that matches our personal needs, but also considers the worlds ever-increasing toxic environment. Rather than waiting for disease to set in (reactionary), we should focus on preventive health care (proactive), and there are some basic guidelines we can follow to achieve and maintain optimal health. The goal is not to be perfect, but rather to have simple guiding principles to keep us healthy for years to come.

Dr. Mark Hyman is a popular American physician dedicated to tackling the cause of all chronic disease and Director of the Cleveland Clinic Centre for functional medicine. He is a ten-time #1 New Your Times best-selling author; “Eat Fat, Get Thin”, medical contributor on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Today Show, CNN and The Dr. Oz show. An internationally recognised leader, speaker, author and advocate in his field, he is also the founder of The Ultra Wellness Centre, medical editor of The Huffington Post and chairman of the board of the Institute for Functional Medicine. In short, he’s got all the right credentials.

Below are Dr Hyman’s top 12 principles for eating well:

1) Stay away from sugar.
This means a diet low in anything that causes a spike in our insulin production--sugar, flour, & refined carbs.

Can sugar impact cancer risk?
In a study completed at the University of Texas published in 2016, it found high amounts of sugar influenced enzymatic signalling pathways otherwise known as 12-LOX (12-lipoxygenase) that increases the risk of breast cancer.

2) Eat mostly plants.
70-80% of your diet should be from veggies, nuts & seeds. Stick with mostly non-starchy veggies; go easy on the potatoes.

3) Go easy on fruits.
Eat 8-10 servings of fruit and veggies a day; only 2-3 should be fruit. It is easy to overindulge on grapes, pineapple & sugary fruits & forget about your veggies.

4) Stay away from toxins and inflammatory additives.
Including foods that are non-organic and contain pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics, hormones, GMO foods, chemicals, food additives, preservatives, artificial sweeteners, dyes.

5) Eat healthy fats.
Eat omega-3 fats from small wild fish, extra virgin olive oil, nuts & seeds, avocados, whole eggs, grass-fed meats, grass-fed butter or ghee, virgin coconut oil & MCT oil.



6) Stay away from refined oils processed with heat, solvents and deodorizers.
This means almost all vegetable oils including canola, safflower, corn & especially soybean oil.

7) Avoid or limit dairy.
Especially from modern dairy cows. If you want to eat some, stick with goat or sheep milk & cheese. Always go organic and grass-fed.


8) Meat should be a side dish.
Think of meat and animal products as a condiment or “condi-meat.” Eat grass-fed & sustainably raised to avoid the health & environmental consequences of factory-farmed meat. Broth should be consumed if you have digestive issues, an inflammatory disease or leaky gut syndrome.

9) Eat sustainably farmed or harvested seafood that is low in mercury.
Stick with what Dr Hyman refers to as wild SMASH fish (salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, herring).

10) Avoid gluten.
Modern wheat is not healthy. It has more starch, more gluten, is addictive and contains harmful preservatives.



11) Eat small amounts of gluten free grains.
Especially less if you are overweight, have digestive problems or have an autoimmune disease.

12) Eat beans as a side dish, not a staple.

Are you confused about what to eat? 
Dr. Mark Hyman explains why...