In our contemporary era food has been a massive dopamine inducer for all people. Today there are so many varieties of food, beverages and drinks and each and every food item gives a great sense of satisfaction. Some cuisines have cultural value and are artistically expressed in extraordinary ways for many reasons. In a way food has become idolised.
But though there are different foods and dishes to choose from, there comes a hefty price for indulging in it and getting addicted. A lot foods now are artificially produced and most are marketed as “healthy” for consumption or “nutrient dense”. These terms are thrown around solely for appeal and convince people there these foods are fine to be eating on a daily basis.
Many foods we consume shouldn’t be eaten as much. And a lot of foods are not even meant to be eaten at all because of the long-term Heath detriments that come with it that often lead to life threatening health issues, death, obesity and much more. The accumulation of these diseases of the span of years often go unnoticed because for the most part, those who indulge in these foods take them at an early age when they are still growing. Typically teenagers and pre-teens. A lot of these young people find themselves battling with health problems and life in general, even as early as a decade or two.
The standard Nigerian diet (swallow, rice, pastries) should not be consumed unless appropriately moderated and accompanied with daily exercise. Those who are simply sedentary, desk-bound or generally have low-activity lifestyles eating any form of Diets high in carbohydrates are setting themselves up for an early death. And it is no surprise that such people often border along obesity, diabetes and other chronic diseases.
Many common foods loved in Nigeria are also not healthy even though they are said to be and presented as such. Bread is loved by many Nigerians. However many don’t know that bread is purely an artificially produced that isn’t actually a food humans should be consuming . Food like this are packaged to be “healthy” or fortified with “vitamins and minerals”. When such is food undergoes processing, most if not all of its original nutrients are stripped away. The nutrients they refer to are artificial or synthetic nutrients that has no benefit to the human body. The same goes for almost all packaged foods like cereals, cooking oils, yoghurts, snacks, fruit juices etc. all of these foods are marketed by companies to be “healthy” when in fact it’s just a guise for profit and financial gain.
Since many cultures have foods like this that include such foods and diets that are high in carbohydrates, the only best thing to do is exercise, eat a high protein diet and try to moderate carbohydrates as much as possible to prevent an early death or a lifetime of tragic health issues.