Why Choose Local, Organic & Seasonal Produce?

I'm well into my last year of study as a Vitalist Herbalist Practicioner, and I've been learning so much about health and healing. Really getting into the details of how to live a vibrant healthy life. In today's post i'm talking about one of the corner stones of health: food and nutrition. Food and apropriate nutrition are part of the foundations of our health and vitality. So many, if not all of my patients have had a distorted view and relationship with food. Including myself once upon a time- I've really learnt through this and had health concerns, bad habbits and a distorted view on what it actaully feels like to be healthy and vibrant. I've really come a long way , particularly in the last few years. So I thought it would be helpful to share my knowledge and help you understand why Local, Organic and Seasonal produce is crucial to our health and vitality. We all know that feeling of eating a crappy meal, and feeling so slugish and KO'd afterwards. Many of us know how easy it is to eat a whole pack of biscuits or family pack of crisps when watching the telly. We also know how much time it takes to plan meals, go to the shops, and get a whole week or 2 weeks worth of 'food' to see us through till our next allocated time slot for shopping, around busy lives. I'm not geting to be the first person to say this, and you won't be surprised when I say that none of that is good for you. But I will say that... living a healthy vibrant life, fuelled by nutrient dense, whole foods is a choice. We have an abundance of choices and decisions we make on a daily basis. Your choices design and create your life. Understanding your priorities and your values will help you figure out many things in your life, but food and nutrition wise, what is your priority? Feeling fueled for your lifestyle, having a strong immune system, being able to function well without feeling tired, run down? or is it , just eating what is easy becuase work and life is your priority?

Whatever it is, understanding that, what we eat every day, creates our body's ecosystem. Everything we put into our body has to be processed. What we eat, creates our cellular make up. 70-80% of our immune system is in our gut. Our body is litterally waiting for food to be able to create our natural defence against pathogens,and to be able to repair and replenish cells. (every 7-9 years our body has fully replaced all of its cells) It doesn't do it out of thin air, it does it by molecules' of nutrition, from what we consume. Now if you are eating processed foods, processed carbohydrates, sugars, and things laden with chemical compounds, addatives, binders, regulators, e-numbers etc. There is no nutritional value in any of these- they are a big distraction for your body, having to scan all of this for any nutritional value, decide what can be used and what can't and what to get rid of. This is the biggest burden we put on our bodies, and our ecosystem is left worse off, because it is tired, having used up all that energy processing- but not actually gaining anything- so guess what we feel? Hungry again! We can eat a lot of processed foods in one hit becuase our body is still trying to find nutrient values so it can heal and repair cells, so it can grow and nourish new cells, and so it can build immunity. One thing which really changed my attitude and relationship with food is understanding that food is either poison or medicine. So I started to ask myself every time I was eating and planning my meals- How is this Nourishing me? Is this Nutritionally dense, or am I choosing what I've always chosen because it is what I know and 'like' to eat.

The Annual Harvest of Elderberries for Medicine making

We like routine, we like familiarity, and we are creatures of habit in this respect- trust me, I had spag bol every Monday for 16 years of my childhood, I understand this intrinsically! So Why am I advocating for Nutrient Dense Organic Whole Foods and Produce? Heres how it works: When we consume organic vegetables which have been grown in our local area, they are naturally producing antibodies for the specific environment we live- exactly what our immune system is waiting for- to help us code our own immunity- specific to our environment and locality. When we eat organic produce which is freshly picked- this food is full of vitality- it is still alive. This creates our vitality. When food is processed and the longer it takes to get to us, the vibrancy and life force is depleted- so in turn we have limited to little vibrancy left to fuel us. Eating nutrient dense whole foods which have been grown organically, naturally and seasonally fuel us apropriately and actively heals and repairs us through the seasons, eating the food which grows around you is how to build your immunity and repair and heal your body on a cellular level. The word Immunity litterally means: I am in Unity. Unity with our environment is what fuels and heals us. When we eat Nutrient Dense Whole Organic Foods, we don't need a lot of them. I quickly changed my portion sizes right down as I understood that, my body is satisfied with less, because it is getting what it actually needs to function.

Lamb Heart Salad

The relationship I have, directly with the producers, is something which I value the most, I learn a lot from them about the land they cultivate, their sturggles and successes, I understand their values and how they are showcasing, educating and advocating for regenerative farming, high welfare animal husbandry and organic principles. I am able to choose what I value by really knowing the producers around me. There are many local producers, the farmers markets and deli's are packed with them. Get to know the people behind the products and understand their values- this is how you know if they align with your values.

Which brings me into my final piece of understanding..the quality and energetic environment which our food is raised, grown or cultivated, is the foundation of our energy. Physically in our vibrancy, as well as emotionally... through the water content of the vegetables and emotional wellbeing of the animals. Water holds energy and memory, cellular imprints which directly create our cellular patterns and coding. The energetic imprint of a sick and traumatised aminal, is not destroyed when the burgers or sausages are created. It is held in it's very make up. Likewise with vegetables, being force grown, unnaturally cultivated and treated with chemicals to keep bugs off, is not symbiotic with nature and creates a distortion at a cellular level. The coding is unnatural, forced and fake in nature, meaning we have little we can gain from eating it. This difference is paticularly noticable when you eat locally, natural grown organic produce which is in season, your body actaully enjoys it. You notice its taste and textures are different.

Ultimately this is all a choice, and it depends on your priority's in life. For me, I have been working on myself for years, my priority is living softly and slowly, living vibrantly and without anything holding me back be it emotioanlly, mentally, spiritually or physically. I eat intentionally to fuel my lifestyle. I understand the interconnectedness of nature, and how flowing and learning from the seasons, I will always be the most whole version of myself. I choose to make a difference to my local area, I value animal welfare and choose my producers according to their values and ethics. I am connected to nature, through my way of being and living. Not becuase I am privaliged to do so, not at all, but becuase it is a choice I make, based on my values and how I wish to live.

My Favourite Whole Food and essential Kitchen Ingredient: Ghee! from MamGhee in Caerphilly

I'm sure this has given you some food for thought. Your priorities dictate your choices, your choices create your life, and if something is off with our life, we've got to be open and honest with ourselves in understanding how our daily choices are effecting us. Wether that be the food we eat, the people we choose to be with, the life we choose to live... it is exactly that... chosen and created by us and our Values, every day. Know yourself, Know your Values and evaluate your priorities often.

Love and Light Gorgeous Ones xx Daisy Sacred Health Herbalist