Nutritional therapy
If health is to be optimised, many nutritional components are required within the diet. Some of them are essential, which means that the body is not capable of producing them itself in necessary quantities. The role of nutritional therapy is to bring the body back to balance and harmony by supplying it with the nutrients that it needs. As the body can not function optimally without essential nutrients delivered in adequate forms and amounts, there are circumstances where nutritional therapy is required to help the body heal and recover health along with general wellbeing.
Nutritional therapy benefits
Nutritional therapy can bring many benefits and some of them are (1,2):
- Improved digestion, which influences intestinal health, that further improves the condition of the whole body and brain(3)
- Better sleep, that also improves the functioning of the organism
- Improved body composition through loss of excess fat and increased lean body mass if combined with regular resistance exercise
- Reduced stress through minimising consumption of pro-inflammatory foods and increased consumption of anti-inflammatory foods
- Improved immunity through the delivery of all required micro and macronutrients in appropriate quantities and ratios that improves the function of the whole body, including the immune system
- Detoxification through the delivery of nutrients supporting the metabolic processes that increase the anti-oxidative capabilities of the body and support liver functioning (the liver is the organ responsible for dealing with toxins)
- Improved energy levels through providing necessary micro and macronutrients (some of the micronutrients, such as most vitamins from the B group support energy metabolism), which further helps to deal with chronic stress and fatigue
- It helps in managing and preventing chronic diseases (it can slow or even reverse their symptoms), such as diabetes, digestive problems, heart disease, cancer and many more by providing foods that reduce the risk of these diseases
- Reduced health care costs as healthy individuals simply do not require such care
To sum up, nutritional therapy is a great way to reduce symptoms of chronic diseases, prevent the occurrence of such diseases, improve the general quality of life and health, improve longevity, cognitive function and many more. There is an old saying “you are what you eat” and it refers to the fact that foods consumed impact the body in many ways. It simply means that human reacts to foods consumed in many different ways, of which some might be negative, some positive and some neutral. Choosing appropriate products and incorporating them into nutritional habits can improve the overall quality of life and health, thus influencing the human organism in many ways. A simple example of the foods that can improve cognitive abilities would be referring to the cocoa seeds which not only have neuroprotective effects and boost cognitive performance(4) but can also boost mood (5).
References:
- Irrefutable Health, 5 Benefits of Nutritional Therapy, accessed on 10/05/21, available at: https://www.irrefutablehealth.co.uk/5-benefits-of-nutritional-therapy/
- Between the Bridges Healing Center, Benefits of Nutritional Therapy, accessed on 10/05/21, available at: https://www.bridgeshealingcenters.com/benefits-of-nutritional-therapy/
- Healthline, The Gut-Brain Connection: How It Works and The Role of Nutrition, accessed on 10/05/21, available at: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/gut-brain-connection
- Br J Clin Pharmacol (2013), The neuroprotective effects of cocoa flavanol and its influence on cognitive performance, UK: British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3575938/
- Green Goddess, How Raw Cacao Helps With Anxiety & Mood, accessed on 10/05/21, available at: https://www.greengoddesswellness.com/blogs/wellness/how-raw-cacao-helps-with-anxiety-mood
