Quality in foods and eating

Eating isn't only about nutrition, it's also important to enjoy food with comfort and safety. Eating is a basic human need; sometimes we forget that food should be afforded more value than we tend to give.

+ We eat many meals in our lifetime: approximately four times a day multiplied by every day of our lives. However, few times do we stop to reflect about the importance of eating natural and healthy foods valuing the act of eating more can improve our attitude to food in general.

∎ The physical value of nutrients. When we feel hungry, when we go a period of time without eating, and the body needs energy, is what causes us discomfort when we feel hungry.

∎ The value of eating for pleasure. Many times, the pleasure we get from foods is placed before nutritional value. Sometimes our body doesn't benefit from the food we eat. We develop, through culture and convenience, what pleasure we get for food. This is what makes us grab foods that are unhealthy to satisfy our appetites. We generally eat unhealthily because of convenience or because the food is rich in flavor, without keeping in mind that the food is high in carbohydrates (white flour, sugar) and fat. This is one of the paths to becoming overweight.

∎ Real nutritional value. Nutritional value should be the first factor that we keep in mind when eating, although we don't always take this into consideration. What we learn from the ABC of what our bodies need to stay healthy we should use to plan meals accordingly, the body thanks you with a feeling of well-being. And remember, that eating healthily doesn't mean sacrificing flavor or pleasure (see Time to cook box).

∎ Emotional factor. Studies have shown that we don't always eat when we are hungry: sometimes we look for comfort, pleasure, emotion, distraction and understanding in food. Sometimes use food to make us feel better, substituting food for emotional help. This is another path to weight gain.

∎ Safety value. Fresh foods that are prepared correctly contribute to good health, but when foods are mishandled they can put our health at risk. Contaminated food can make us sick and even cause death through FTD (Food Transmittable Diseases) in the following cases: because they contain pathogenic bacteria, because toxins have grown making the food dangerous, even mortally.

Through mishandling food, it has been contaminated with a toxic substance. In some cases contaminated foods can be noticed simply by the way they look, by the color, flavor and any unnatural aspect of the food. However, in many cases it's very difficult to know whether the food has been contaminated. This is why it's especially important to make sure that you choose high quality foods that have been handled properly (see Eating safe food, on page 11).