Nutrition
“You are What You Eat”
There is nothing more fundamental than eating when you feel hungry. Our brains are wired to respond to hunger by triggering the desire to eat – a survival mechanism dating back to times when food was not always readily available. Historically, humans favoured high-calorie foods to ensure survival during times of scarcity. This primal hunger instinct is still with us, but is easily influenced or overridden by cultural norms and the modern day abundance of readily available food, often leading to overeating or choosing less nutritious options
Eating a healthy, balanced diet is essential for maintaining good health and feeling your best. Every bite you take is a powerful opportunity to either promote health or contribute to disease. While the “science” behind healthy nutrition can sometimes seem bewildering, it doesn’t need to be complicated. At its core, nutrition is a straight-forward choice between “real food” – the kind that comes from the earth, which fuels and sustains us – or the industrialized, ultra-processed, hyper-palatable junk that degrades our bodies and contributes to illness. Which kind will you allow into your body? The choice is yours to make.
New dietary trends aimed at improving health and increasing longevity continue to emerge, but it is important to understand that there is no one-size-fits-all diet that works best for everyone. However, certain dietary patterns have consistently shown the potential to prevent chronic diseases and enhance longevity. These patterns generally share common principles – eliminating highly processed foods and sugary beverages, and emphasizing nutritious carbohydrates, healthy fats, and quality proteins. Essentially, you should aim to consume whole foods – predominantly animal-based proteins, fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats; along with moderate amounts of legumes, nuts, seeds and whole grains.
Before continuing, please note that this section of the EPL website provides broad dietary recommendations intended primarily for mature adults who are in good physical health and genuinely committed to healthy eating. Individuals with specific dietary needs or medical conditions should always consult their doctor or a registered dietitian for personalized nutrition guidance.
Now, let’s explore the facts about food, discover what the science truly supports, and learn how to “eat well for life”.
Hungry for (mis)Information: Navigating Nutritional Advice Online
If you’re still reading this, I assume that you are truly committed to healthy eating, but find it challenging to get your head around this confusing world of nutrition and food advice. You are not alone. I have dedicated many years studying nutrition, and discovered that even nutrition experts frequently grapple with conflicting research, leaving the rest of us understandably baffled and bamboozled.
Those of us that are committed to healthy eating often wonder what we should eat each day to ensure optimal health, but contradictory media reports about the latest food research, mixed messages from public health websites and so-called reputable health organizations, biased social media influencers, or ideologically driven diet groups make it difficult to decide which foods are ‘good’ or ‘bad’ for us. One day, eggs are unhealthy, and the next, they’re hailed as a miracle food. Government dietary guidelines have swung wildly – from encouraging us to consume up to eleven servings of carbohydrates a day, to advising us to cut the carbs. It’s a similar story with dietary fat – once demonized, only to be advised decades later that it’s not as harmful as we were led to believe. To complicate matters further, the food industry adds to the confusion with a plethora of ‘healthy’ options, most of which are far from it. A helpful rule of thumb: if a product makes health claims on the label, it’s almost certainly not as healthy as it claims to be.
Part of the confusion arises because much nutrition information comes from sources who aren’t fully qualified. Celebrities, online influencers, and even some supposedly reputable public health organizations contribute to this flood of misinformation. It’s important not to blindly trust authorities, as organizations and individuals alike can be influenced by financial interests. Some health organizations, for instance, have documented financial ties to ultra-processed food companies, receiving funding from industries linked to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Even respected global bodies like the WHO receive significant funding from private foundations with potential conflicts of interest.
With social media’s rise in recent years, more people than ever are relying on influencers for nutrition advice. Where’s the danger in this? Social media content is poorly regulated, and many popular influencers lack adequate training or expertise, making the reliability of their advice questionable at best. Moreover, because their content is monetized, their priority is often popularity rather than accuracy.
Faced with this barrage of contradictory and often questionable advice, you might feel tempted to throw in the towel and indulging in whatever you please. But there’s hope. Not all nutrition information online is misleading; many trustworthy resources do provide accurate, evidence-based guidance. The key lies in developing critical skills: look closely at the evidence supporting claims, evaluate arguments carefully, consider potential biases, and trust logical reasoning alongside your personal experience.
That’s precisely why I created this website – to help you sort through the confusion and ‘unlearn’ the myths around nutrition. I don’t expect you to believe my content. This website should just be a starting point, and therefore I urge you to research and try to put the pieces together for yourself. I am not a teacher, but my aim is to be an ‘awakener’. By challenging misleading claims and replacing them with solid, evidence-based principles, my goal is to empower you to make informed decisions about food. Ultimately, this can lead to better health, greater happiness, and a longer, more fulfilling life.
One Size Doesn’t Fit All: Making Sense of the World of Extreme Dietary Doctrines
To add to all this confusion and uncertainty, there is also the mind-boggling battlefield of competing dietary ideologies. From veganism and raw food to ketogenic, Paleo, and even carnivore diets, the sheer variety of approaches can be overwhelming. With each camp proclaiming to hold the key to optimal health, it’s no wonder so many people are left wondering: Which one is right for me?
The honest answer? Probably none of them – at least not in the all-or-nothing way they are often promoted. While many of these diets offer valuable insights and health benefits, a rigid, one-size-fits-all approach rarely aligns with the diverse needs of individuals. Our species has an extraordinarily adaptable history. Over countless generations, humans have spread to nearly every corner of the planet, surviving – and thriving – on wildly different diets depending on climate, geography, and available resources.
Consider the contrast: the high-carb, plant-based diet of the Pima people of the American Southwest versus the high-fat, animal-based diet of the Arctic Inuit. Both populations maintained healthful, traditional diets rooted in their environments – diets that look nothing alike. Yet, both worked, because human beings are omnivores by design. Our digestive systems have evolved to handle a broad spectrum of foods, and that evolutionary flexibility is part of our strength.
Fortunately, modern science is beginning to cut through the noise. Nutrition research has become more nuanced, helping us focus less on dogma and more on foundational principles of health. In his book Food: What the Heck Should I Eat?, Dr. Mark Hyman captures this idea by coining the term “Pegan” – a tongue-in-cheek nod to the passionate camps of Paleo and vegan followers. The “Pegan” approach emphasizes whole, nutrient-dense foods, balanced macronutrients, and sustainable eating habits – principles that transcend dietary labels.
In the end, the key takeaway is this: healthy eating is not about choosing sides in a nutritional debate. It’s about learning to listen to your body, understanding your unique needs, and creating an eating plan that’s nutritious, flexible, and sustainable.
Not a Fad, Not a Fix: From Rules and Restrictions to Balance and Sustainability
When most people hear the word “diet,” they think of temporary restriction – something you start on Monday and abandon by Friday, or a quick fix to drop a few kilos or manage a health scare. But this popular use of the word misses the point entirely.
In its original sense, “diet” simply refers to the food and drink we consume regularly. However, in our modern culture, it’s become synonymous with rigid rules, deprivation, and short-term goals. That’s why terms like “healthy eating plan” are often preferred – they point toward a more balanced, sustainable approach. For simplicity, though, I will continue using the word “diet” here, but with a much broader, more thoughtful definition in mind.
A healthy diet, as defined in this context, isn’t about strict rules or fleeting results. It’s a long-term way of eating that provides all the nutrients and energy your body needs to sustain your specific lifestyle, and nurtures your gut microbiome – all essential components of overall wellness. Importantly, this kind of eating plan isn’t static. What works for you today might need adjusting in the future, as your body, activity levels, and health priorities shift over time.
Healthy eating is a journey, not a destination. And just like any meaningful journey, it requires patience, flexibility, and a commitment to learning what truly works for you. The earlier you begin to nourish your body with intention, the better – but it’s never too late to start. After all, the old adage still holds true: you are what you eat.
So instead of chasing the latest trend or adopting rigid dietary rules, think of your diet as a living, evolving part of your life – one that’s meant to support you, not restrict you. A “diet” that is not a fad, and certainly not a quick fix. It’s the foundation for lifelong health.
You Are What You Eat – Quite Literally
You’ve probably heard the saying, “You are what you eat.” It’s one of those familiar phrases that we often brush off – but when it comes to your health, it’s absolutely true. The nutrients in your food provide the raw materials your body uses to build and repair every single cell – your skin, hair, muscles, bones, digestive system, and even your immune defenses all depend on what you put on your plate.
Even though you don’t feel it happening, your body is constantly at work – repairing, healing, and regenerating itself. Every cell in your body has a limited lifespan – a ‘shelf life’ so to speak. The cells lining your stomach and intestines turn over every 3 to 5 days. Your skin renews itself every 2 to 3 weeks. Red blood cells are replaced about every four months and even bone tissue is constantly being remodelled and repaired throughout life. About 20% of bone tissue is replaced annually, meaning the entire skeleton is replaced roughly every 10 years.
Your body is continually rebuilding itself from the inside out, and the quality of that rebuilding depends heavily on the quality of the food you eat. If your diet is full of processed, nutrient-poor foods, your body doesn’t get the building blocks it needs to maintain strength and vitality. But when you fuel yourself with whole, nutrient-dense foods, you give your body what it needs to build stronger, healthier cells and tissues that are more resilient and better able to fend off illness, inflammation, and early aging.
In short, the choices you make today are shaping the version of you that’s being built for tomorrow.
Healthy Eating: The Way Nature Intended
When you think about healthy eating, it’s easy to assume it must involve strict rules – what to eat, how much, when to eat, and when not to. But when your focus shifts to whole foods, things become a lot simpler – and much more sustainable. Unlike many “traditional” diets that come with rigid guidelines, a “whole-foods” approach is considerably more flexible and intuitive, as well as easier to stick with in the long run.
Ask yourself: What did our human ancestors eat for hundreds of thousands of years? Although the answer is not simple and straightforward, we do know humans evolved to eat a highly diverse, omnivorous diet. Early human populations would have consumed whatever foods were available in their particular environments, determined by climate, geography, and season. But one thing is certain: everything they ate was natural, whole, and unprocessed.
Our ancestors thrived by adapting to their surroundings, eating a wide variety of foods that met their nutritional needs. That’s a helpful starting point for us today. In fact, some people may even benefit from exploring their own genetic roots to better understand what their specific ancestors evolved to eat.
There’s also wisdom in the idea that if a food didn’t exist 100 years ago, it’s probably best to avoid it. Whole foods – those that are close to their natural state – include fresh (or frozen) meat, fish, vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes, some seeds and dairy products. These are the foods that should form the foundation for a nourishing, real-food diet.
While modern wellness advice often leans heavily toward plant-based eating – and there is no doubt that plants, nuts, and seeds have their benefits – strictly limiting animal products will without doubt lead to deficiencies in key nutrients. Important nutrients like complete proteins (essential amino acids), iron (especially haem iron), zinc, iodine, calcium, vitamin B12, vitamin D3, and DHA (an omega-3 fatty acid important for brain health) are found primarily, or exclusively, in animal-based foods.
On the other hand, plant foods bring something unique to the table: dietary fibre, which is essential for gut health and completely absent from animal products. But they also come with natural (and sometimes synthetic) “toxins.” Since plants can’t run from predators, they have evolved a range of survival mechanisms, including chemical defences – known as phytochemicals or antinutrients – to protect themselves. Seeds (including grains and legumes) are especially well-defended, as they must protect the tiny plant embryo inside from animal predators (such as birds and rodents), insects, as well as fungi and bacteria in the soil. These compounds can be irritating or harmful to individuals with certain food-sensitivities or in large amounts.
That said, some phytochemicals may even be beneficial to your health when properly prepared and consumed in small amounts. Techniques like soaking, fermenting, and cooking can help reduce or deactivate many of these natural toxins – allowing us to benefit from some of those nutrients while minimizing risks. (More on phytochemicals in an upcoming blog post.)
Toxic Bites: How Processed Foods Disrupt Your Health
Unfortunately, much of what we eat today barely qualifies as real food. Many modern products are so heavily processed and altered that they can only be described as “food-like substances” – made up of nutrient-depleted ingredients, and often loaded with pesticides, herbicides, hormones, antibiotics, and other synthetic chemicals.
As a result, it’s not just our digestive systems that struggle – every system in the body can become distressed and confused, unsure of how to cope with many of the foreign substances we regularly put in our bodies these days. The liver and kidneys, in particular, can be negatively affected by these additives. The liver, which plays a central role in breaking down and eliminating both natural and synthetic toxins, can become overwhelmed when processing a constant influx of harmful compounds.
Over time, this toxic load can wear down the body’s natural detoxification and repair systems, leading to a buildup of waste products and inflammation. This low-grade, chronic inflammation is now known to be a major contributor to many modern health issues, including fatigue, brain fog, digestive disorders, autoimmune diseases, metabolic syndrome, and even mood imbalances like anxiety and depression.
When the body is constantly fighting to process poor-quality food, energy that would normally go toward healing, regeneration, and vitality is instead diverted to crisis management. The result? Many people feel persistently tired, sluggish, and unwell—without realizing that their everyday food choices may be at the root of the problem.
It’s Not Just What You Eat… It’s What Your Body Do With It
By now you should be familiar with the phrase “You are what you eat” – but that’s only part of the story. You are not just what you eat…
You are what you digest
You are what you absorb
And yes, you are also what you don’t excrete…
In other words, your health is not defined solely by the foods you consume, but by how well your digestive system (and supporting organs, i.e. the liver, gallbladder and pancreas) can break down, absorb, and eliminate what you eat. That includes your ability – often with the help of friendly gut bacteria – to process bioactive compounds like alcohol, medications, and phytonutrients, and to detoxify and eliminate harmful waste products.
When digestion breaks down, everything else can start to fall apart. Poor digestion means you may not absorb nutrients properly. And when nutrient absorption is compromised, your body struggles to function efficiently.
Worse still, sluggish digestion can impair your body’s ability to eliminate waste effectively. This can lead to a build-up of toxins that disrupt hormone balance, strain your liver, and contribute to inflammation – and that can further damage your digestion, creating a vicious cycle.
Breaking that cycle begins with a healthy, whole-foods diet, rich in fibre, diverse in nutrients, and as close to nature as possible. This kind of diet nourishes not only your body, but also the trillions of microbes that live in your gut and play a vital role in your well-being.
A well-functioning gut is essential – not just for nutrient absorption, but for your immune function, hormonal balance, and even your mental health. In fact, your gut is often referred to as your second brain, due to its powerful link to mood and cognition.
One of the most obvious signs of a healthy gut? Regular, comfortable bowel movements. (More about this in a future blog post)
Eat to Thrive, Not Just Survive
We’ve learned that food provides us with proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals – nutrients essential for growth and repair, and to provide energy (fuel) for life. But food is even more than this – it is also medicine, controlling every aspect of your physical, emotional, and mental well-being.
What you eat can either help your body thrive or burden it with dysfunction. Food can reinvigorate your health, allowing you to lead a vibrant, energetic, and soulful life – a life in which you have the energy to care for yourself, to love your family and friends, support your community, excel in your professional endeavours, and to live your dreams. When you choose real, whole foods, and prepare them simply and thoughtfully, you’re not just caring for yourself – you’re creating a ripple effect that extends to your family, your community, and the planet.
With that in mind, the following guidelines are not rules to restrict your lifestyle, but principles to help you eat in a way that supports energy, clarity, and long-term wellness…
10 Guidelines for Healthy Eating
- Prioritise nutrient density over calorie density:
Make nutrient-dense whole foods – like quality proteins, healthy fats, and vegetables – the foundation of every meal. Limit energy-dense, low-nutrient foods (especially ultra-processed ones), unless you very high caloric needs, such as athletes or very active individuals. - Pay attention to portion sizes:
Maintaining a healthy weight depends not only on what you eat, but also how much. Learn to recognise appropriate portion sizes and eat mindfully to avoid overeating – even when you’re choosing healthy foods. - Choose healthy fats wisely:
Include healthy fats like those from oily fish (such as wild-caught salmon, sardines, mackerel, tuna and herring), grass-fed animals (such as beef-cattle and sheep), and cold-pressed (“virgin”) fruit oils (olives, avocado and coconut). Limit (or exclude if possible) highly processed seed oils and avoid artificial trans fats (partially hydrogenated oils), often found in margarine, shortening, and packaged foods. However, always keep in mind that even healthy fats are calorie-dense – about twice as many calories per gram as protein or carbohydrates. - Eat plenty of natural fibre:
Aim to include naturally occurring fibre from vegetables, fruits, legumes, and some seeds in your diet every day. Avoid processed foods with “added” fibre, such as commercial whole wheat breads and high-fibre cereals, which do not provide the same benefits. - Feed your gut bacteria:
Fibre-rich plant foods act as prebiotics, feeding your beneficial gut microbes (gut flora). A healthy microbiome supports digestion, immunity, and even mood. Dysbiosis (an imbalance in gut bacteria) is linked to many chronic conditions, including obesity and a myriad of digestive problems. Be mindful of things that may disrupt their harmony, like alcohol, sugar, food additives, and medications like antibiotics and many others. - Maintain regular meal times:
Your digestion, metabolism, and gut bacteria follow a circadian rhythm. Eating at consistent times and avoiding late-night snacking helps your body and microbiome function optimally. Disruptions to this rhythm can raise your risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease. And, in case you were wondering, you don’t have to eat three meals a day. The three-meals-a-day concept is a cultural norm. Individual needs and preferences vary, and many people find that eating fewer meals, or even intermittent fasting, suits them better. Intermittent fasting has been proven to promote a healthy gut microbiome, leading to reduced inflammation and a more resilient gut barrier (more about this in a future blog post). - Minimise ultra-processed foods:
Limit or avoid foods high in refined carbohydrates (like white flour and added sugars) and processed seed oils. These are linked to inflammation, insulin resistance, and a variety of chronic diseases. - Avoid chemical additives:
Artificial colourings, flavourings, sweeteners, flavour enhancers, and trans fats contribute to toxicity, gut inflammation, and have even been linked to some cancers. Always opt for whole, minimally processed foods whenever possible. - Stay properly hydrated:
Your water needs vary based on climate, activity, and body size. A good hydration marker is urine colour – pale yellow is ideal, dark yellow or amber suggests dehydration, and consistently clear urine may indicate overhydration. - Be smart about salt (and sugar):
Salt (sodium) has long been blamed for high blood pressure (hypertention), but the relationship is much more complex. While excessive sodium can be harmful, too little salt may impair insulin sensitivity, increasing other health risks. Aim for moderation, and be aware that added sugars may have an even stronger link to hypertension and metabolic issues. (This controversial topic will be explored in more detail in a future blog post)
Food, Ethics, and the Environment: Sustainable Choices for a Healthier You – and a Healthier Planet
The EPL website also explores various ethical, environmental, and sustainability implications of our food choices. I encourage you to consider not just how food affects your personal well-being, but also how your choices might impact the world around you – our ecosystems, communities, and future generations.
How we grow, produce, and consume food affects nearly every aspect of life on Earth – public health, water use, soil quality, biodiversity, climate change, and more. Research shows that more sustainable, organic farming practices can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, groundwater depletion, pollution of waterways, deforestation and loss of biodiversity – not to mention the enhanced nutritional value of organically farmed foods.
If you’re curious to explore these themes further, I highly recommend reading Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (later subtitled “The Search for a Perfect Meal in a Fast-food World”) – a powerful investigation into the ethics and sustainability of our modern food system.
This website is designed to be a holistic, evolving roadmap – grounded in the best available science – offering practical insight into what to eat, how to live well, and how to make choices for a more sustainable future. What you put on your plate is arguably one of the most important decisions you make each day.
After all… you are what you eat!