Why Buying Local Produce is Important to your Health
by Peggy Schauffler
What makes me sick? 🤒
Some people will tell you it is a virus. Some people will tell you a virus is the body's response to a bacterium. Some people will tell you it is toxins we eat or that are in the air. Some people will tell you it's parasites. Some people will tell you it is too much sugar. Some people will tell you it is because you eat meat or cheese, and the list goes on and on. To be perfectly honest all these answers are true. Our bodies are bombarded with so many bacteria, poison and unhealthy foods it is a miracle we ever live to be adults.
Buying local supports not only the local economy but your health as well.
One of the most underlying problems is the lack of nutrients. If the body has plenty of oxygen, sunshine, water, exercise, rest, temperance, love of God and lots of good food it can heal, detox, rebuild cells, feed, pump blood and repair almost any disease. So why are we so sick with heart disease, diabetes, Parkinson, depression, and other diseases? Where is all the nutrient dense food? To be perfectly honest with you, we are not growing much of it anymore. Most, if not all of the big farms in the United States and probably most of the world have used commercial fertilizers to grow plants for so long the soil is stripped of any nutrients or microorganism. All those microorganisms help the plant, and you, to be healthy. The plants are grown on man made chemicals that don’t keep the body healthy. Because this food is shipped all over the country and sometimes the world it has to be picked green because ripe food is too soft to ship. The plant pumps most of the nutrition into the food, in most cases, the last three days before it ripens. Because of this the food is being picked before it reaches nutritional maturity. Once picked the nutrients begin to oxidize. Oxidation is increased under the grocery store lights. If the food was shipped in from out of the US, it has been radiated which damages a high percentage of any nutrients left. That means we the people, our animals and even the insects don’t have enough vitamins, minerals, microorganisms, protein and other nutrients to keep us healthy.
Buying local cuts out many of these nutrient robbers. Local is not radiated, put under store lights nor does it have to be picked green. It is much fresher so oxidation is much less. Just for these reasons, your food will have a higher density not to mention the benefit to the local economy. Check out this website for more information at the Bio Nutrient Food Association’s website https://bionutrient.org/.
Also, check out your local CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture), farmers markets and search out local produce at your food coops.
