Natural food, the panacea for all ills

By Ranil WIJAYAPALA

Human civilisation has gifted many things to us which could make our lives more comfortable in a developed society which has distanced us from our natural way of living. If we are sincere in our thoughts we can see that we are heading towards destruction than development.

As civilization and development of the human being has brought ill effects on the earth today the same civilization and development has brought devastation to the human body after changing its natural existence through the food consuming pattern which consists of unwanted stuff for the existence of the human body.

Long queues in the private and public hospitals seen on a daily basis, indicate that something has gone wrong in our lifestyles making us unhealthy due to the ill-effects of development.

Why do our health conditions become weaker instead of becoming healthier with innovation of all these nutritious food in nicely laid supermarkets ?

According to Prof. Gunapala Amarasinghe , an Associated Professor of the Institute of Indigenous Medicine, Rajagiriya, development has not only affected the earth and its living beings but also the human body by changing its natural existence.

"As acid rain is, caused by the emission of carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide into the air, which results in the destruction of biodiversity the human body is also affected due to the consumption of food which are harmful to the body," Prof. Amarasinghe said explaining the way the human body has been affected due to the modern food consumption pattern.

"Naturally the average PH value of the human body is 7.1 to 7.4 and it is more alkaline though the acidity is high in some parts of the human body like the stomach. Therefore, the change of the average PH value of the human body causes problems to human health," he says.

"Acid is formed in our body due to the consumption of short- eats, half boiled food and instant food which are common meals among the public," he added.

Due to this consumption pattern constipation is a common problem among people as the food we consume does not move out of our body within a specific time frame after digestion.

Artificial food

People are consuming more meat, canned and artificial food which takes more time to digest.

"Therefore, the consumed food remains inside our intestines for a long period forming gases inside our intestines and naturally moves out of the human body," he added.

These gases emitted from the body due to the consumption of vegetables and other natural food do not have a bad odour as from consuming meat and other artificial food stuff which form gases like hydrogen sulphide, hydro carbon , hydro prosperous and hydro chloride.

These gases naturally are emitted from body but when we consume similar meals frequently these gases also remain in the body for a long period. When they remain in our body they get mixed with fluids and create acids in the body.

"When hydrogen sulphide is mixed with water it creates sulphuric acid. Apart from that carbonic acid, phosphoric acid and hydrochloric acid are also formed in body. When these acids remain in the body for a long time they turn into acid salts going through chemical reactions and deposit within the internal organs of the body," he added.

When these acid salts deposit in the bladder creating stones and when they are deposited inside kidneys the same thing happens.

"It has also been revealed that increased acidity in the body lowers the flexibility of the blood cells thus creating blockades in many internal organs. When it blocks the vessels in the brain it can cause paralysis and when it affects the heart it can cause heart attacks," he added.

When the body is turning acidic it automatically reacts to the situation and try to make it alkaline. To make the body alkaline it releases the calcium layers of the blood vessels into the blood and try to reduce the acidity of the blood.

"When this process takes place for a long period due to the food consuming pattern it creates some patches in the blood vessels and cholesterol added to the blood deposited on these patches making the blood vessels thin," he added.

The increased acidity of the body also affects the transportation of oxygen within cells, the adding of nutrition to the cells, and the removal of the poisonous stuff formed in the body.

"When human body cells get affected for a long period they get decayed and the immunity of the body gets affected. Finally people are prone to many diseases," he added.

"This is due to improvements in the civilization. Therefore, we call it Civilization Diseases. Diabetics, high blood pleasure, high cholesterol, anemia, infertility, osteoporosis and cancer are the challenges for us," he added.

"To overcome these civilization diseases we have to think of ways to maintain alkalinity in the body. To do this we should mainly consume fresh raw vegetables, leaves, sprouts,, yams, fresh fruits, herbal drinks and honey, " he added.

At the same time exposure to sunlight, rest, at least eight hour of sleep, breathing of fresh air, consuming light food, keeping lightness, having mild exercises, good music and drinking water helps to maintain alkaline in the body.

"Laughing, meditation and self-confidence also makes our body free from acidity," he added.

According to Prof. Amarasinghe, dairy products, fish, meat, eggs, wheat flour, sugar, sweets, instant and short eats, fried foods, additives, snacks, pickles, all varieties of bottled drinks and alcohol makes our body more acidic.

"Restlessness, lack of sleep, lack of fresh air, consumption of more food, stress, exposure to high sounds, over exercising, lack of exercise, anger, jealousy and fear also make our bodies acidic,ö he added.

"But we also need acidic foods to keep our bodies healthy and we should consume food on 80:20 basis; 80 percent of alkaline foods and 20 percent of acidic food. In the West this is called 80:20 rule," he added.

The fact why people are getting sick due to the consumption of food on attractively laid racks of supermarkets and from restaurants has to be clarified.

"The changing food consumption pattern from natural to artificial food has made people unhealthy", Prof. Amarasinghe added.

The use of artificial and harmful chemicals instead of natural preservatives and taste enhancers have aggravated the problem.

Taste enhancers

"To improve the quality, nutrition and the appearance of food various food preservatives and taste enhancers are being used. Earlier we used things like vinegar, honey, salt, spices which are natural additives for these purposes," he added.

There are many types of additives such as colouring agents, preservatives, anti- oxidants, emulsifiers to keep oiliness, thickeners, stabilizers, gelling agents, flavour and favour enhancers, acid and acidity regulators, sweeteners and enzymes.

"In Europe there are regulations if any artificial additives are added to food it should be stated in the wrapping under a specific number. They are called E-numbers. They should print the E-number in the label to make consumers aware. Not only the E-number they should also mention the name of the food additive," he added.

For each type of food additives separate E-numbers have been allocated. E-100-199 colouring agents, E-200-299 preservatives, E-300-399 anti oxidants, E-400 - 499 thickeners, E-500 - 599 acid regulators, E-600-699 taste enhancers, E-700-799 antibiotics E-800-899 other varieties.

"From these E-numbers consumers can easily identify what type of food additives are included in the food they consume.

For example E-102 is a colouring agent. Consumers should be careful not to buy things with more E-numbers on the wrapping because all the foods with number of artificial food additives are harmful to children,ö Prof. Amarasinghe said.

E-102 Tartrazin - light yellow colouring agent which is being used in bottled drinks, yoghurts, gelly, sauce, biscuits.

"Tartrazin is harmful to children. It is not bad if they eat a yorghurt a month. If children consume yorghurts added with Tartrazin they will become hyperactive and will be affected by gastritis, brochure asthma, kidney diseases and cancers. Therefore, this has been banned in many countries," he added.

"E-319 TBHQ (Tertiary Butyl Hydro Quinone) is used in a variety of margarine. It hampers the growth of the child, create learning difficulties, nerve and kidney problems and cancer," he said.

Very recently a order was given in the Kahatagasdigiliya Courts on a case filed by the Public Health Inspectors Association against a popular brand of margarine manufacturer to state that the product is harmful for children below three years of age.

"In Japan and in many countries in Europe this additive is banned," he added.

According to Prof. Amarasinghe margarine and butter are two different products which people are not aware. Margarine is produced through hydrogenation of the vegetable oil.

Acidic food

"During the hydrogenation a number of harmful chemicals such as trans-fatty acid which increases the cholesterol level, " he added.

"E-621 MSG Mono Sodium Glutamate which is being frequently used in Chinese food, soup cubes, in flavour packets of instant noodles, soya meat, tipi tips, and chips is harmful. This is an additive.

If it is used regularly people get addicted to it. It comes with popular trade name to the market," he added.

"When consumed frequently it creates giddiness, muscle pains, nausea among children. It is known as Chinese Restaurant Syndrome. When children are affected by the syndrome they get headaches making them look reddish, MSG is also cancerous," he added.

"E-622 Mono Potassium Glutamate is also being used as an alternative for the MSG and it is also harmful to health when consumed frequently," he added.

"E-252 Sodium Nitrate which is used to change the appearance of meat and flavour and when we boil or fry meat the chemical creates harmful chemical to the body," he added.

Like this there are several E numbers such as E 102, E 110, E 122, E 123, E 124 , E 127, E 129, E 131, E 133, E 142, E 151, E 153, E 154, E 155, E 210, E 224, E 226, E 227, E 228, E 232, E 249, E 250, E 251, E 252, E 284, E 285, E 320, E 321, E 512, E 621, E 942, E 954 which are harmful to the body.

"The human body has a mechanism to detoxify some toxics harmful to the body. But when we use these harmful additives regularly it will be an extra burden to the lever and it will affect the lever", Prof. Amarasinghe added. "A vegetarian life is the best solution to overcome this problem. We can eat and drink vegetables. Consumption of indigenous food is the best way to be healthy. The Western world which has realized the repercussion of consuming artificial food ise now reverting to raw vegetables and green leaves. As Sri Lankans it is better to revert back to eating rice and fresh vegetables to overcome this problem, " he added.