Knowledge Sharing
CITY LIVING TODAY
The most common complaints that city dwellers have may not be escalating costs but stress and lack of rest.
Though the green aspiration is taking hold in our minds and practice, our cities are more polluted than ever and we are unavoidably breathing in and are in contact with more toxins from our living environment.
Stress and pollution are surely not doing anything good to our precious body and its health.
As most of us canβt retreat from the noisy yet exciting city to a tranquil mountain resort or sea side villa to heal our damaged health and seek longevity, we have to find a better way to live and deal with the reality of todayβs metropolitan city living.Β How can we be more friendly to our body and live for better health while enjoying the modernity, convenience and excitements offered by our cities?
There are four pillars of health and healthier living: genetic, nutrition, environment and lifestyle. If you envision that health is on one side of the balancing beam, the other side is a basket holding the four pillars. The objective of healthier living is to maintain the balance.
Thatβs not an easy act in todayβs city living.Β Β We at PomeFresh aim to help our patrons achieve and maintain that balance. Thatβs what our products are developed to do for you.
GOOD FOOD
Human diet has gone through more changes in the last 60 years than the accumulated changes occurred in the past 6,000 years. For tens or even millions of years, our ancestors had relied on fruits, nuts, plants, animals, fish - be it wild or reared, as their source of food. Food had always been provided by nature and consumed in its natural form, except that they are cooked or preserved.
After the WWII, our food went through a quiet revolution. Food was transformed from natural produce to processed products. Food has become a lot more abundant, cheaper, more available at all times everywhere, and with a much longer shelf-life. All these can be credited to the inventions of food chemistries. Chemicals are present in every aspect of food, from production to processing, storage and even at the point of consumption. Pesticides, inorganic fertilizers, preservatives, artificial colorings and many invented chemicals now go into our food at every stage, from farming, processing and delivering to cooking. Humans have even created food that does not exist in nature, and have consumed them in large quantities for many years. One such example would be trans fats.
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Many foods are no longer the product of delightful cooking of skilled chefs but the inventions of chemists. Foods have gone far away from their original, natural form. Foods are more of an industrial product than a produce that comes naturally.
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For tens of thousands of years, natural food has nourished humans and helped humans to evolve into the most intelligent and most dominant species on Earth. Humans have also achieved one of the longest life span among mammals. Undoubtedly, natural foods are best for our human body.
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Can we say the same about chemical filled factory made foods?
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The verdict is not out yet. But many have already started pointing fingers at industrial food and citing it as one of the causes of modern illnesses.
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Modern illness can also be called nutritional and lifestyle illness. They generally progress slowly and cause long term pain and suffering. Such diseases send a person on a downward spiral suffering from chronic and degenerative conditions.
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If eating better food and obtaining the right nutrients adequately and timely is the best leverage, eating the right food is where we can start to use this leverage.
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We strongly believe that food should be consumed as close as possible to its original, natural form. It would be of the greatest benefit if it is free from pesticides, preservatives, and artificial coloring and additives. They should not be so highly processed till the soul of the food: nutrients are no longer in the final form. We call such food as βGood Foodβ. Though it is the same term, it is vastly different from the common sense of βGood Foodβ where it mostly means from a well-known food outlet or a famous restaurant.
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Our βGood Foodβ has a few key characteristics:
- βThey are organically or truly naturally grown β thus free from pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizer or growth hormones.
- βThey are not genetically modified.
- βThey grow on land that is full of natural nutrients.
- βThey are slightly processed or not processed at all.
- βThey are based on whole food (grain or otherwise).
- βThey are not laden with chemicals for any purpose.
We believe that consuming such βGood Foodβ will give one the best chance to achieve a better overall well-being and even shake off stalking aliments or worries arising from modern city living.
It is true that Good Food is not as readily available as conventional industrial foods. They could be more expensive too. For a better living, it is worth the inconvenience and costs. After all, what can be more important than a healthier and happy living?
WHY ORGANIC
Faster, More and Cheaper is the motto of the industrialization of food. Instead of waiting for months or years to have a chicken grown to marketable size, we want it to be done in weeks; we want tomatoes to be big, juicy and appear ever fresh; we want the cow to produce far more lean meat than it can do naturally.
Humans have invented so much chemicals and agriculture technologies that it virtually disregards the limitation of the nature ofΒ soil, seasons and crop.
We eat food for their complex compound of nutrients. Where are those nutrients coming from? They are from the genes of the plant, the soil and the Sun. Soil is a major source of the small quantity of macro nutrients such as minerals. If the soil is lacking those nutrients, we canβt expect the plants grown on it to be rich in those nutrients. Before the agriculture revolution, land was often left to rest after some years of production, or natural fertilizers, which itself is rich in nutrients are used to enrich the land. Today, powerful chemical fertilizers are used to feed the plants. Such fertilizers and plants grown from it will not have the same amount of nutrients as those grown on naturally nutrient rich soil.
Plants are evolved to be able to defend against attacks by pests, insects and climates. If it canβt do so, the plant would die naturally. Thatβs part of natureβs ability to select. To overcome such crop failures, human invented chemicals, pesticides, herbicides and ultimately, genetic modification to protect plants. Plants, by nature, produce its own chemicals to defend itself. Those chemicals are mostly antioxidants in the form of phytonutrients. They are one of the key reasons why human needs to consume plants! When plants are introduced to chemicals, they will become βlazyβ to grow such phytonutrients because they have less need to defend themselves. Foods grown under the influence of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides simply lack the nutrients they are supposed to possess.
Chemicals such as pesticides are heavily regulated as scientists and authorities know that they are potentially dangerous to human health. At the same time, scientists and authorities have to assure consumers that those chemicals are safe.
Scientifically, to the best known knowledge, they are indeed safe.
However, simple logic would tell us that they are not good even though they are safe. Taking pesticides as an example, even with a considerably higher dosage are unlikely to cause death in humans. But the reality is that they are powerful enough to kill insects! We humans are much bigger (as compared to insects) and have better body defence to neutralize such chemicals. So pesticides canβt kill us easily. What about the tiny cells in our body? They are a lot smaller than insects! They can be βkilledβ easily by even the smallest amount of such pesticides.
The same logic can be applied to food preservatives, coloring or additives.Β They may not be able to do visible damage to our body, but they may be able to harm our cells silentlyΒ without our knowledge. After a long time or triggered by occasional events, the change become apparent and reversing it becomes hard, if not impossible. This is likely to be one of the reasons for illness.
Organic Food, or truly natural food, are grown and processed with two objectives:
βProvide as much as possible natural essential nutrients our body needs
βReduce or eliminate to the best extent, harmful substances
Thatβs certainly good news for our body. Thatβs why we choose organic and truly natural food over intensive farmed, highly processed food.
FOOD AS THE LEVERAGE
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There is little you can do about genetics β it is inherited and you donβt have any choice (considering the general Gene therapy is still a far fetch dream).
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Everyone of us is urged to do our part for the environment but hardly any change can be felt from an individualβs efforts. We still have to breathe the air filled with pollutants; we have to be dusted by sand storms blown up in the Mongolian desert and be exposed to the sunrays pouring down from the thinning ozone or inhale smoke from wildfire rampage on the Sumatra Island.
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It is possible for one to change his or her lifestyle for the better. But as the old saying goes: habits die hard. Anti-smoking campaigns are a fixture in virtually every country. Heavy cigarette taxes has not made much impact on tobacco companiesβ almost recession proof businesses. More youngsters are drowning their lonely spirit in alcohol well ahead of the weekends. Those who work long hours virtually have no time for sweaty jogs or any form of recreation. Any increase in bank interest rates send millions of peopleβs blood pressure up as this means higher instalments for their house or car mortgage loans.Β StressΒ and lack of sleep are common lifestyle of city dwellers and not much can be changed.
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The only thing that you can change with relative ease and quickly is your nutrition intake. Though not always the case, majority of our nutrition is from daily food. Thatβs right! We believe food is your most powerful leverage that you can use effectively to balance your health! You can change your next meal within hours. It is entirely your choice on what to eat, how much to eat and when to eat. You are what you eat. What you eat has a decisive impact on your inner and outer beauty.
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So leverage your food intake now for a healthier living, longer life and brighter days ahead.
CITY LIVING TODAY
The most common complaints that city dwellers have may not be escalating costs but stress and lack of rest.
Though the green aspiration is taking hold in our minds and practice, our cities are more polluted than ever and we are unavoidably breathing in and are in contact with more toxins from our living environment.
Stress and pollution are surely not doing anything good to our precious body and its health.
As most of us canβt retreat from the noisy yet exciting city to a tranquil mountain resort or sea side villa to heal our damaged health and seek longevity, we have to find a better way to live and deal with the reality of todayβs metropolitan city living.Β How can we be more friendly to our body and live for better health while enjoying the modernity, convenience and excitements offered by our cities?
There are four pillars of health and healthier living: genetic, nutrition, environment and lifestyle. If you envision that health is on one side of the balancing beam, the other side is a basket holding the four pillars. The objective of healthier living is to maintain the balance.
Thatβs not an easy act in todayβs city living.Β Β We at PomeFresh aim to help our patrons achieve and maintain that balance. Thatβs what our products are developed to do for you.
FOOD VS DRUG
Food is not medicine. Food is food β you can take in any conventional way at any time you please.
But food can be closely linked to medicine. This is especially true in Chinese or Eastern context. In Chinese medicine, meditation and practice for well-being, food is featured prominently. The old saying goes: food and medicine are from the same source (θ―ι£εζΊ); sickness is from the mouth οΌη δ»ε£ε ₯οΌγ They are age old wisdoms but are still valuable philosophy as good guidance to maintenance of health and well-being.
Food is better than medicine.
If one has an acute condition, you should run for your doctor and take medication and follow through faithfully. But if you are in a sub-healthy state β you are not ill but also not in pink of health. What should you do?
Make exercise a priority. We donβt recommend excessive or over exercising. Moderate exercise can be beneficial for your physical and mental health and is always necessary to maintain health and well-being.
Make a determined effort to change your lifestyle: stop smoking, relief your stress βput your body and mind into a more balanced state.
Take care of what you eat. Learn more about food and nutrition, get to know what food is beneficial for your body β especially if you have a specific condition which you want to take care of through food.
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Food is the best leverage to maintain balance, health and well-being.
Food nutrients can be categorized into seven groups: carbohydrates, fats, fiber, minerals, protein, vitamins, and water. Scientific researchers have lately discovered that other micronutrients including antioxidants and phytochemicals play vital roles in maintaining health too.
In our view, the general population living in metropolitan cities is having huge imbalance in their diet: they consume too much carbohydrates, fats and protein, yet not enough minerals and vitamins. Many have started taking mineral and vitamin supplements to correct the deficiency of those nutrients.
We believe that consuming more of those nutrients through delicious meals is an easier and more natural way.
The awareness of Good Fat vs Bad Fat, Good Protein vs Bad Protein is still low. Fat is probably one of the least understood nutrients of all. The general belief is that fat is bad. The hate for fat has overwhelmed the fact that it is essential for life! Fat is everywhere in our body. It is the main element of our brain and protects every organ. The desire for a slim silhouette and the misconstrued function of fats has given fats a bad name.
Scientifically, fats are critically important to life and well-being. There are Good Fats and Bad Fats. On top of that, some fats can be manufactured by our body and some can not. Those which are needed by our body and yet canβt be manufactured are called Essential Fatty Acids (EFA). There are two families of EFAs: Ο-3 (or Omega-3 or nβ3) and Ο-6 (Omega-6, nβ6).
We believe that a vast portion of the city population is critically deficient in their intake of Omega-3, Antioxidants, Fibre, Minerals andVitamins.Β We develop, make and distribute foods that are rich in those nutrients.