Healthy People, Healthy Planet

Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different than it was before. Taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing into a heavenly or a hellish creature: either into a creature that is in harmony with God, & with other creatures, & with itself, or else into one that is in a state of war & hatred with God, & with its fellow creatures, & with itself...

- C.S. Lewis

Every moment you have a choice, and every choice dictates your destiny on this planet.

Do you make the choice briskly without any genuine forethought? Or do you take time to ponder how this decision will impact you and the greater good? Most of us push these critical questions aside and take the spontaneous route. We get caught up in the act and forget the power of these choices, decisions and reactions. Charles R. Swindoll had a great quote about attitude and to paraphrase part of his quote, “Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it.”

Ain't that the truth? Life is all about reactions. What choice do we make when something happens to us? Or perhaps nothing happens to us and we simply just make a choice. This brings up the power of choice regarding consumerism. More specifically, consumerism in the food industry.

Are you putting your righteous dollar bills towards foods that nourish you and the planet? Yes, some ‘food-like products’ out there taste damn delicious and are much more ‘affordable’ for your wallet than organic produce, health supplements, etc... but are they really affordable? Most of the foods on the shelves in grocery stores, fast-food menus and gas stations are actually quite expensive. They are expensive to your health (and the planet’s).

A simple scenario of you waltzing in the grocery and placing the diverse array of goodies in your cart plays a bigger role in life on earth than you may realize. For instance, you could opt for the dirt cheap, inflammatory deli meat instead of the healthier organic grass-fed beef or pasture-raised chicken. You save a couple bucks and you go on your way. Great, but it's not that simple. That same transaction of processed foods week after week not only begins to disrupt your health and your family’s, it transcends to the macrocosm. Without notice, you are affecting the entirety of the planet and all life on earth.

That deli meat wrapped in that plastic packaging came from a distressed cow, turkey, chicken or pig that lived its short life in closed cages, clambering over others, breathing rancid air, sleeping in feces and fed inflammatory chow that isn’t designed for their physiology (i.e. soy for cows... they’re grass-eaters, far from tofu). When these factory-farmed creatures were alive, they emitted an incomprehensible amount of greenhouse gases like methane into the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases absorb infrared radiation and cause the greenhouse effect, which warms the Earth (heard of global warming and pollution?).

Now that is just diving into the carnivore crisis. I could go on and on about the wrong-doings in the produce industry as well, but I'll spare you from the negativity…

To conclude this blog, let's talk about what you can do to radiate positivity and promote healthfulness on earth. To keep it simple and straightforward, here is a valuable list of things you can begin utilizing today to make your healthy mark on the planet:

Compost food scraps

Microbiology thrives on peels, skins, eggshells, coffee grounds, etc. However, this microbiology cannot access these precious nutrient-dense compounds to make nutrient-dense soil without oxygen and the suitable climate. When we throw our banana peels in the trash to be bagged up and picked up by the dumpster, they are piled under TONS and TONS of layers of garbage that can be decomposed. Therefore, they create a ton of methane and other harmful greenhouse gases that destroy the planet, one peel at a time. Compost your food scraps with a cheap stainless steel bin like this one I have on your countertop and dump it outside with soil and moisture (a place where nature can play its part).

Use reusable bags when grocery shopping

The more paper or plastic bags you don't jumble up and throw in other plastic trash bags, the healthier you will make the planet and your psyche. Seriously, about ONE TRILLION single-use plastic bags are used annually across the globe. That’s nearly 2 million every minute. F*ck that. #savetheseaturtles

Buy organic and non-gmo when possible

FACT, organic meat and plant farming is better for the environment. If you want to reduce pollution and soil erosion, use less water, increase soil biology, and use less energy, then organic is just for you! That is why I love permaculture, which you can read all about in my blog here. Organic farming also steers clear from toxic pesticides which kill all the adorable birds and rodent-like animals nearby! Do you want to kill birdies and squirrels? No. Anyways, organic, pasture-raised, wild-caught and grass-fed meats are 100000% healthier for you and the planet as well! They do not contain harmful antibiotic pumps, growth hormones and sadness in their genes from a crammed, despair-filled life like the non-organic animal friends. They are also higher in omega-3s and vitamins from their healthier (real) diet vs the grain-fed guys. Moooooo.

Eat whole foods (not packaged, ultra-processed, food-like products)

This one is obvious, and I know that you know this. The more money you put towards the colorfully packaged BS (you know you shouldn't spend your good-earned money on) the better YOU will feel and the better the PLANET will feel. When you are sick or ill or feeling like ass, you tend to make selfish decisions without knowing it, right? I know when I am feeling run-down, I could care less about the gum I throw out the window. But if I am feeling vibrant and healthy from my workout, my smoothie, the sunshine I took advantage of on my hike in nature, then I more than likely will not litter and I will put that piece of gum in my car (resused) grocery trash bag (or I will savagely swallow it to ferment in my gut for 7+ years… jk). For real, the more you prioritize healthy REAL foods you can hold onto and pronounce, the less destruction big ag and big food corps. (corpse) will pile on the planet.