12 Steps to Whole Foods

Introduction
government standards.) I have mostly looked elsewhere for my own nutrition education and recommend that
you do the same. Know that not all research is equal, and use the practical, basic understanding of research
described in the previous section.
This book does not advocate for vegetarianism but, rather, teaches about the virtues of increasing whole plant
foods in the diet. But the most bioavailable sources of calcium for humans are not found in the milk of other
animals. And protein is manufactured and utilized by the human body very well when the range of amino acids
(the building blocks of proteins) in whole-plant foods are supplied as fuel. We need look no further than our
vegetarian cousins, the primates, for evidence of this.
If you are a young mother, you have the perfect opportunity that mothers of teens and adults do not have: you
have control over your family’s diet. You have the power to direct the course of your family’s health—for
good—forever! Young mothers do not feel very powerful. Many have turned away from other opportunities to
give their children first priority. It can be a thankless job. But the moms of young children are the only people
who can turn the nightmare of the Standard American Diet around!
Mothers of young children can follow the path of least resistance and send overweight children with thinning
bones and massive nutritional deficiencies out into the world with a host of risk factors. You also have the
choice to give them every possible advantage by incorporating the 12 great habits in this book. That way,
they’ll be prepared to be strong, energetic leaders and teach your grandchildren great habits, too.
You young parents are in a powerful position and are educating yourself at a perfect time. If you’re not a parent
of young children and you’re still reading, I hope you’ll undertake to get this book into the hands of someone
who is such a parent.
As of 2007, 35% of children in America are overweight, and half of those are obese. And those numbers will
double by adulthood. Soda consumption for American teen boys has tripled (and has doubled for girls) since
you young parents were born. The high phosphorus content in soft drinks (not to mention 10 teaspoons of sugar
per 12-oz. can) robs calcium directly from the bones at the critical age of childhood and adolescence. During
that time, bone mass must increase to offset bone thinning that begins almost inevitably in one’s 30s.
Children who drink soda are four times more likely to break a bone than those who don’t. Some evidence
suggests that even a 10% reduction in bone mass accumulation in adolescence leads to a 50% higher chance of
osteoporosis only a decade or two later.
Children who are overweight have quality-of-life ratings similar to children with cancer, according to a Yale
study. They are teased by peers and even teachers and parents, and the vast majority of them become
overweight adults with all the attendant physical and emotional risks. The obesity epidemic threatens to
bankrupt us, with $0.87 of every health care dollar spent on obesity-related issues. Cardiac problems are almost
always linked to being overweight, and cardiac problems are our #1 killer.
Now that you’ve absorbed that brief education, let’s move on to the positive and constructive topics of how to
get your kids to buy in.
First and foremost, as a parent, embrace your role as a leader in your home, with everything that entails. You’re
a teacher, a role model and, above all, the single most important leader your children look to for information,
opinions, and advice. You can’t count on the schools to teach your child good nutrition (for the reasons
mentioned above; the deficits in the field of dietetics, in general; and the curricula written with an agenda, in
particular). Nutrition education has to happen in the home—that’s where most food is prepared and served,
anyway.
12 12 Steps to Whole Foods
© Copyright Robyn Openshaw