feed your wild soul.

i've recently been very interested in food as medicine. i've been reading about alternative medicine. organic food has power. although i think that alternative medicine gets plenty of things wrong, i have to admit that mainstream medicine is corrupt. the healthcare system in america IS broken. although i hope to see change, i don't anticipate the systematic corruption will ever truly be eliminated. any time you mix people and money, you will find corruption.

i am developing a new approach to healthcare: i am my own doctor. i don't want to wait until i am sick to care about my health. it's deeply important to me to live a lifestyle that breeds vibrancy and goodness.

big pharma, or corporations like health insurance, hospitals, and pharmaceuticals, need people to be sick. mainstream medicine's approach to health is to feed people poisonous foods (gmo's, empty sugar, non-nutritive grains and meats), wait until they get sick, then prescribe drugs to mask the symptoms of disease. this is backwards. the key to health is prevention. the presence of disease is the evidence of too many toxins in the body. too many toxins in the body are a result of a poor diet, not enough exercise, too much stress, breathing pollution, and the general result of modern life.

foods today have nowhere near the nutrient value and quality they had fifty years ago. they have been stripped of their nutrients as soils have been destroyed and weakened by pesticides and herbicides (for no other reason than to increase profit and make the 1% even more wealthy), genetically modified foods have been introduced (for no other reason than to increase profit and make the 1% even more wealthy), and people and animals are treated worse than ever in the production of food (for no other reason than to increase profit and make the 1% even more wealthy). it is much more difficult, but mostly expensive, to obtain nutrients from food than it used to be. not only that, but basic staples of the american diet are loaded with toxins that simply did not exist in foods fifty years ago.

exercise has always been important to me, but it has become even more important in recent months. i have exercised more consistently in 2014 than i have in any previous year of my life. i plan to keep becoming better at this in 2015.

i prioritize sleep. period. i don't take early morning classes and i don't take jobs if they require me to consistently wake up early. if i'm going through a period where i don't feel restful upon waking, i analyze my life to determine what needs to change to improve my sleep. it is very important to me.

i meditate. it really helps me manage stress and anxiety. i know that most people have more stressful lives than i, and many people have clinical anxiety that far exceeds anything i've experienced. but anyone dealing with stress and anxiety will be benefitted by meditation. i really believe in the power of meditation.

utah's pollution is out of control. i am certain it is negatively affecting my health. i'm sure it's harmful to everyone who breathes it everyday. there really isn't much we can do to manage exposure to pollution while living in salt lake city, but i am counting the days until we live in a city with cleaner air all year round.

i haven't read too much about cosmetics, but i already know the stuff i put on my face most days can't be good. the problem is that i love gaudy makeup and i've yet to find a really great organic makeup. damn it, haha.

it's good to visit farmer's markets. it's really something i want to weave into my everyday life in 2015. they offer quality, local, organic produce at amazing prices. how awesome is that? and by spending dollars locally, you empower and enrich your community. i picked up most of the produce in these photos at the farmer's market this weekend.

i've already been making diet and overall lifestyle changes. but i'm resolving to go completely organic and non-gmo in 2015. this feels good.

oh, and by the way, i'm currently on day three of a fourteen day parasite and colon cleanse. you read that right. i think i might have parasites. i guess i will update with the results if i find out that i did or did not have any parasites.

i want to keep writing about my recent thoughts surrounding this subject, but i suppose this is a good start. give me a bit to let these ideas stew.

ps. jared got me a blendtec blender for christmas. and amazon said it should be here tomorrow. and i'm soooooo excited to use it, that i probably won't wait until christmas. i'm an adult, i can do what i want! right?

power to the people! empower individuals, not corporations. let's get healthy, empowered, and ALIVE--in 2015!