Yes, you read the headline right. Our habits and the food we choose to eat are slowly harming our health. They could be causing us a myriad of illnesses as we age and sometimes even before we age. We all have habits that we know are not in our best interests yet we keep doing them and we all know that much of our food is sprayed or processed in some way and that all this is lowering our immunity as the years go on.

Let’s start with our habits.

There are tests that you can do that will show what vitamins and minerals you are deficient in. At my clinic I have chosen to do saliva tests as hair tests can sometimes carry residuals of pollution, shampoos, hair dyes etc. A good natural test can tell you what foods you are sensitive to, meaning which foods cause inflammation in your body. This is not an allergy test where you have an immediate allergic reaction to the food. This is a test to see what is causing the underlying inflammation in your body which over time will build up and cause you many unforeseen illnesses.

It is such a difficult process sometimes explaining this to my clients. Say [Josie] comes for a saliva test and the test shows that she is deficient in vitamin C and magnesium and her estrogen level isn’t right and she is lactose intolerant as well as wheat, yeast intolerant and also sensitive to grapes, eggplant and carrots all of which she loves. These are usually only a few of the list of things that show up on a test. What this means is that Josie needs to take a month to start to cut out the foods she is sensitive to and this will reduce her bloating, acidity or any other symptoms she may have regarding her health. Of course, this will really take longer than a month but the symptoms will start to go. As well as this Josie needs to take the correct supplements, in the correct balance to rectify what has already been upset in her system over the years.

The problem is that Josie has HABITS that have formed over the years and whilst Josie is health conscious the subconscious pattern that has been driving Josie to eat her bread and cakes over the years is so deep a pattern for her its hard for her to break it. But Josie will try. And in the next weeks she slowly starts to cut the food out and starts to feel better BUT after a few months the die hard patterns sneak back in.

So, Josie’s immunity is going up and down. Josie gets better a bit, then eats her bread and eggplant and a few grapes here and there that she shouldn’t be eating and before you know it, she is not so well again. This is how our habits sabotage us.

Add to this the gluten free mistake so many of my clients make.

They think that gluten free is wheat and yeast free. It’s NOT the same. Supermarkets though will push the gluten free though as being the healthy option because it’s a new source of money for them from the health conscious and this glosses over the fact that you are STILL eating wheat and yeast. Don’t fall for this as it will not get you inflammation free.

Now add to this that Josie uses certain products from the supermarket to clean her house. We all love a clean house but how many chemicals are you inhaling when you spray that mould remover or use the wash up liquid in the kitchen? What about the rain falling on your head as you race to the car? What pollution is in the water in the rain coming down on us and what is in the air we breathe?

This article is not to make you fear what is out there. Fear does nothing for us but freezes us in our motivation and stops us changing or moving forward.

What we need is action!

Not just lip service or an article. We need action.

We need to take action to get healthy and stay healthy.

If we take up this challenge it will work and it’s the best challenge you can take up because its for you, your family, your kids and everyone else you love.

Our health is slowly being harmed by our denatured ways, our fast foods, our supermarket packets and we need to just stop supporting this. You and I are the Josie example. You and I must find out what is right for our health and do it. It is so important to find someone who you can trust with your health to lead you on a natural path to detox and become healthier.

In short, there is no way you can avoid the ‘harmful substances’ in our foods and environment unless you follow the A, B, Cs of your results. The gist of it is that is the kind of environment we live in. The more you look after your health the better your natural immunity will be.

Here are some wonderful immune-supporting herbs and nutrients to consider during the winter months: olive leaf extract and Echinacea, these are especially good at the first sign of a throat tickle, quercetin, and essential vitamins like B and C. If your immunity tends to dip in the colder months, starting your support early can make all the difference.

Also check in with your naturopath and have a saliva test done. Find out what is upsetting your system and causing inflammation and start to work on how to get rid of these intruders in your life once and for all.