(NaturalNews) Would you knowingly eat rat poison or drink gasoline? Obviously not, as it will harm and perhaps kill you. Yet many people today are consuming the poisonous foods I list in this article without giving it a second thought. They are doing this because they've been successfully deceived by the media, the culture or family traditions into thinking that these ingredients don't require a second thought.

Regardless of the reason, the "garbage in garbage out" principle is still true. The illnesses that people you know and love suffer from are just the result of their body being fed this garbage. Prevention is still the best medicine. Therefore, the way we achieve the health and healing that the body was designed for is to prevent this junk food garbage from going in our body in the first place; then we won't have to deal with the garbage coming out (in the form of disease, etc.).

All food is not created equal

One of the popular yet toxic foods is caffeine. Coffee is fine, but the caffeine is the problem. Why is caffeine so toxic? Research shows that caffeine is one of the toxic chemicals produced by some plants as a defense mechanism against being eaten or disturbed. In fact, these chemicals (of which, caffeine is one) work to produce neurological damage in plant-eating animals. Yet, companies harvest and package this addictive chemical as an ingredient in various foods and sell it to the public. But if it can promote neurological damage in animals, just imagine what it's doing to humans over the long term. Herbal coffee (i.e. real coffee) and herbal tea are healthier alternatives.

White table salt and white sugar are some more toxic ingredients. Consuming these can weaken the immune system's defense against a cold or flu as well as lead to type 2 diabetes, arthritis, obesity, emotional problems, tooth decay, dehydration, kidney failure, hypertension, heart disease, cancer, etc. If the ingredients label just says "salt," "sugar" or "evaporated cane juice," it's safe to assume that it's the processed kind. Now the body does need salt, but it needs the natural, unprocessed salt (still containing its trace minerals) which is pink in color. A source of healthy natural sugar (which the body also needs) comes from fruit and vegetables (preferably organic). Stevia, xylitol and raw honey are healthier sugar substitutes as well.

Consuming processed grains such as white flour, white rice and packaged cereals can contribute to heart disease, abdominal fat, constipation and more. Look for sprouted and whole grains (quinoa, brown rice, etc). In addition, numerous studies like the China Study show that consumption of dairy and excessive animal products has contributed to physical problems like cancer, osteoporosis, heart disease, obesity and more.

Due to space constraints for this article, I can only mention one more category of poison foods: genetically modified (GM) foods. This is a broad topic, but suffice it to say that studies show a strong link associating the consumption of GM crops (e.g. corn, soy, alfalfa) and the animals that eat these crops with the rise of food allergies, pregnancy complications, reduced fertility in humans and more. In addition, evidence shows that some GMOs produce their own built-in pesticides which have caused health problems in laboratory animals. Unless the food/ingredient is non-GMO-verified or organic, it may be a GM food.

Your responsibility

Though they should, ultimately it's not the job of the food industry to warn consumers of the dangers of toxic food/ingredients; it's your responsibility. Read the ingredients labels, and get informed so you can avoid the toxins that will put you on a path away from optimal health.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.annualreviews.org

http://www.biologyreference.com

http://www.globalhealingcenter.com

http://healthtip.hacres.com

http://healthwyze.org

http://healthtip.hacres.com

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com

http://www.responsibletechnology.org

http://www.foodmatters.tv

http://www.hacres.com

http://science.naturalnews.com

http://science.naturalnews.com

About the author:
Jay Ricci is a resident of Massachusetts, gospel minister, certified health minister/coach and has been a health writer, researcher and lecturer for years. He has taught one day health seminars and Hallelujah Acre's nine week health course called Get Healthy Stay Balanced. Jay continues to educate all interested parties about empowering our self-healing bodies and experiencing the optimal health we were created for as outlined in 3rd John 1:2 in the New Testament.

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