Author: Karolina Trzeciak, PhD

The world we live in is constantly changing. Some of this changes improve our well-being, others, the disadvantageous ones, we should eliminate if it is possible for us. Therefore, it can be said that our health is not a state but a dynamic process. A process which we can influence consciously. Taking care of 5 areas of our life, we can definitely impact on its length and quality. According to the 5S strategy, these 5 elements are: Sustainable Nutrition, Superior Fitness, Supplementation, Sufficient cleansing of the body of toxins and Stress Management, which means working with the mind. In this article we will look at the first of these elements.

The right diet has an impact on our health and well-being. But what does “the right one” mean? Here the situation becomes a little more complicated. First of all, a diet in this context does not mean a radical way of eating aimed only at weight loss. What we eat should provide the basic building, energetic and regulating elements for our body in the right quantities and proportions. However, it is difficult to speak of a single correct and universal model of nutrition. A professional athlete needs different proportions of nutrients than a person who spends most of their time working at a desk. Age, gender or climate zone are also important. At the same time, with the current state of knowledge, we have access to many research results showing that certain eating habits are beneficial, while others may be harmful and contribute to the development of various diseases. Nowadays, there is no doubt that vegetables and fruit should be the basis of a balanced diet. The best is to eat as little processed fruit and vegetables as possible, as this is the form in which they contain the most nutrients and non-nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals and regulatory substances. At the same time, meat consumption should be limited to 0.5 kg. per week. It is a common mistake in some countries to eat a lot of meat on a daily basis, which can lead to overloading of the kidneys, among other things. An improperly balanced diet, containing an excess of carbohydrates (especially simple sugars) and saturated fats (these are mainly animal fats), leads to civilisation diseases such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Interestingly, fat is not the same as saturated fat. Good quality vegetable oils support, among other things, the functioning of the nervous system, reduce cholesterol levels, and are a transporter of fat-soluble vitamins.

Conscious nutrition also means adequate hydration. Water constitutes 50-75% of the human body mass. It is present in the intracellular and extracellular spaces, and is necessary for most of the processes occurring in the body. Additionally, water contains minerals, which is a supplementary source of elements such as magnesium, calcium, sodium, fluorine, iodine, iron and sulphates.

It is worth knowing that by preparing your meals thoughtfully, you can prevent diseases that have run in the family for generations, even despite genetic predisposition. Proper nutrition is also the basis for treatment and prevention of most diseases, from the common cold, through civilisation diseases, to cancer and even depression. A correctly selected diet in a given disease improves wellbeing and enables the healing process.

Nutrition alone is already a lot, but still not enough. No organ or process in our body exists in isolation from the whole. The prerequisite for health and well-being therefore seems to be a state of balance in our body and mind. In the same way, none of the elements of the 5S strategy exists in isolation from the others. However, this does not change the fact that working on even one area will certainly bring beneficial effects, and in the future it may also motivate further positive changes.

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