Pillar 3: Nutrient Selection
Inputs to the Human System
Nutrient selection is concerned with inputs to the human system; the components that make up our biology.
In an effort to maximize "happiness" both short and long term (a concept known as "utility"), food plays an integral role. Specifically, food provides short-term pleasure through taste, and ought to provide long-term pleasure through sustenance. Many experience the short term pleasure of food, but neglect the long term health that food provides. As with any system, if the inputs are low quality, then the construction, as well as the outputs of construction, will also be low quality.
The Point of Maximization
Believe it or not, consuming flavorful food is of paramount importance for a healthy lifestyle. With its roots in psychological function, initiating a pleasure response in the presence of healthy food communicates to the body the food is wholesome and desirable; it creates a sustainable habit to eat more nutritious food. From this point forward, vow to never stick tasteless bland food in your mouth!
Of course, flavor acts as a vehicle to impart the body with the resources it requires to not only survive, but thrive. Thus, we must carefully select our ingredients and meals to include these factors.
Dietary Freedom
Dietary freedom, or dietary flexibility, is an important consideration. There are many diets on the market that are intelligently designed with respect to biology. Their undermining factor, however, is that these diets are highly restrictive. The common characteristics of highly restrictive diets are:
Severe Calorie Restriction
If you starve yourself day after day, your body will switch to an undesirable “eco-mode.” Long story short, the body will siphon all energy expenditures to the bare essentials. This results in muscle loss, brain fog, and negligible fat loss. I need not mention that this style of eating is not dissimilar to slavery.
Macronutrient Elimination
Any diet that suggests completely eliminating protein (beef, chicken, etc.), carbohydrates (bread, pasta, etc.), or fat (butter, cheese, etc.) does not have sustainability nor flexibility in mind. What if there was a way to accomplish the same objective, but with every macronutrient? Unequivocally, there is.
Forbidden Foods
Food is a treasure of generations; it is a point of bonding between cultures; it is one of life's greatest pleasures. While it is true that eating certain foods in excess will lead to disastrous results, exclusion is not the answer. Rather, a moderate approach to consuming all in appropriate amounts is the key to dietary idealism.
Dietary Intelligence
Food knowledge is an extensive domain; many experts make various claims regarding the healthiness of certain foods. It is a daunting task to sift through a large body of knowledge surrounding the topic. In order to effectively access the nutrition of food, the following process must be followed:
- 1. Research a large body of evidence surrounding the food in question.
- 2. Use logic to determine if the claims make sense.
- 3. Assess whether such claims adequately translate to real life.
This is called dietary intelligence. The more intelligent your diet is, the more effective and sustainable your diet becomes. Sadly, many individuals stick to simple dietary heuristics, like "just do X," or "stop doing Y."
True dietary freedom will never be accomplished in this manner. Humans are unique from animals in that we have a greater capacity for intelligence. Thus, it stands to reason that our creations and systems ought to be a product of intelligence. And since health underlies all actions, it is a necessity that our nutritional systems are intelligent to the highest degree.
The Dietary Matrix
So then, what is the perfect nutrition plan? It is one that is both unrestrictive and highly intelligent; one that understands food and works with it. All else is unsustainable and a form of slavery. What good is it to obtain health yet forfeit the enjoyment of your life? Learn to enjoy the process of health, and nothing will stop you.
