What is Healthy Food?

An Healthy Diet is one that not only benefits you, but also the environment.  Foods aren’t “healthy” if the production or shipping of the those foods is contributing to the destruction of the natural world.  In this time of complicated social and trade networks it is important to look again at our practice of Ahimsa.  Many vegetarians claim moral superiority because they don’t eat animal products, while eating the fruits of big agribusiness, shipping, and oppressive trade relationships.  Energetically, and Karmically this all comes into play.  By it’s very nature, eating is a destructive practice.  As Yogis our practice of eating, must take in to consideration, not only what foods are healthy for our body, but what foods are healthy for everybody.
I can’t tell you what you should eat, that a decision each of us must make on our own.  I do encourage you to avoid 1. all plastics, and things stored in plastic 2. all processed foods 3. soy.
The healthiest foods to eat are local wild foods which require no agricultural practices, toxic chemicals, herbicides, pesticides or fertilizers.  These are plants that have what it takes to thrive in your environment.  Learning the the amazing edible and medicinal “weeds” that surround us, even in our cities, is very empowering.
After wild foods the best foods are the ones grown in your own garden.  Garden foods not only require a minimum of input from the grid, because you have a relationship with the plant they can give you exactly what you need.  The more love and care that you put into your garden the healthier the foods will be for you.  Heirloom varieties are a better choice than more domesticated plants but even hybrids can provide you health, if you treat them right.  For a great video on Super Gardening click here.
After a home garden, the Farmers Market is the next best place to obtain food.  Support your local farmers or they will be gone.  The most important thing for strong cities and strong communities is to have good farms.  Big Agri-business has lobbied very hard to try to eliminate the competition of small farms.  Knowing who grows your food is crucial.  Not only can ask if they spray or use chemicals on their produce, but you can be sure your not funding big agribusiness who values profit over the environment and basic human rights.
When Farmers Markets are not available, organic certification is better than nothing.  It is important to remember that ” Organic” doesn’t necessarily mean healthy.  Organic should be the minimum requirement for the food we eat.  The standards are very weak, and are more a definition of whats not done to food, than what is done.