EATING TO LIVE OR LIVING TO EAT?

The Connection Between Nutrition & Disease

Death is a part of life.  We are all going to die at some point.  In 2013, 2,515,458 people died in the U.S.  The life expectancy in 2013 was 78.7 years.  But there are far too many people who die from very avoidable causes.  Poor lifestyle habits and choices have been attributed to hundreds of thousands of deaths.  Out of the top 7 leading causes of death, 5 were directly related to poor lifestyles habits, more specifically poor nutrition.  Out of the over 2.5 million deaths in 2013, almost half can be directly linked to poor diet.  Nutrition is just that important.

There’s a saying I once heard about our approach to eating and it goes like this,

“Are you eating to live or living to eat?”

I think if we were honest, far too many of us would say that we live to eat.  What I mean by this is we eat for taste, we eat for comfort, and we eat because we are hungry.  These factors usually drive the way in which we make our food choices.  But this approach to eating usually results in eating too many unhealthy calories or not enough calories.  I will discuss a little later the effects of not eating enough calories each day.  So how exactly does nutrition factor into our overall health?  Let us take a look at the impact nutrition has on the following chronic diseases.

• Cardiovascular Disease:  Cardiovascular Disease, or CVD, is a common term used to describe all types of heart and blood vessel diseases.  One of the most common forms of CVD is atherosclerosis, which is when plaque builds up along arterial walls.  So how does plaque form in the arteries? Mainly it has to do with diet.  A diet that is high in saturated fats causes the liver to produce cholesterol.  Cholesterol is the waxy substance that sticks to artery walls.  Eating foods high in saturated fats increases LDL cholesterol, which stands for low-density lipoprotein.  This is the bad cholesterol in our bodies and we should try to keep it low.  Now there are some things we can do with our nutrition to keep our bad cholesterol low and our good cholesterol high.  Eating a high fiber diet is a great defense against CVD.  Also, eating good fats such, or monounsaturated fats, such as avocado, almonds, olive and canola oils, and peanut oil. 

• Hypertension:  Hypertension, or commonly referred to as high blood pressure, is basically the force of blood against the artery walls.  This can be a very scary condition because there are virtually no symptoms.  A person can have high blood pressure for years and never know it.  This is why it’s referred to as the “silent killer”.  Hypertension and CVD together can be disastrous.  The combination of high blood pressure and clogging arteries will most always lead to heart attacks or strokes. Nutrition can play a vital role in the control and reduction of hypertension.  One of the most common causes of hypertension is eating foods high in salt.  The average American eats over 4000 mg of sodium each day.  It is recommended that we eat less than 2,300 mg per day.  This is basically a teaspoon of salt.  It is important to avoid adding salt to foods, as salt is already included in many foods.  Cutting out processed foods will help as well.  To positively affect hypertension, the DASH diet, or Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension is recommended.  The DASH diet puts emphasis on eating fruits, veggies, and whole grains along with eating low-fat dairy. 

• Cancer:  Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the U.S. only behind heart disease.  One of the most effective ways a person can nutritionally reduce the risk of cancer is through reducing overall caloric intake.  Overall unhealthy lifestyles lead to obesity, which can increase the risk for some types of cancer such as colon, pancreatic, and kidney.  Avoiding excessive alcohol intake can positively reduce the risk of getting cancers of the liver, mouth and esophagus.  Including fiber in our diets has been proven to reduce the risk of cancer.  Lastly, including a diet rich in folate and antioxidants will also prove to protect against cancer.  You can find these nutrients most often in vibrant color fruits and vegetables as well as whole grain foods. 

• Diabetes:  I believe that diabetes, more than any other chronic illness, is most directly related to poor diet.  After years of inundating our bodies with excessive carbohydrates, sugars, and fats, we become overweight and obese.  This poor diet also takes a major toll on our liver and pancreas.  Sooner or later, the body will stop producing insulin at a normal rate.  This will cause an imbalance of glucose in the bloodstream, which can lead to multiple medical conditions ranging from blindness, to leg amputations to death. 

References:

Centers for Disease Control.  (2013).  FastStats.  Death and Mortality.  Retrieved

from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/deaths.htm

Sizer, F. & Whitney, E. (2013).  Nutrition: Concepts and Controversies (13^th ed.).

Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.

 American Diabetes Association.  (2014).  Diabetes Basics.  Retrieved from

            http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/