Why Are We So Unhealthy As A Society? (And What Can We Do About It?)

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Human beings living thousands of years ago didn't worry about their heart or liver health. In fact, they probably had no idea what these organs actually did. Instead, they simply went about their lives, eating real foods.

But, today, things are a little different. Even though we are human beings, we don't live lives reflective of our ancestors. Our world is nothing like it used to be, but our physiology is largely unchanged. 

It's this imbalance that's leading to all of the health issues that we face in the modern world. It's not necessarily that progress is bad, it's just that our anatomy hasn't been able to keep up with the changes, particularly in the last century. 

People no longer grow their own food and eat vegetables from the garden. Instead, they get convenience items in the form of drive-thru burger restaurants and packets of salty snacks. 

Then there are changes in culture. These days, everyone is hustling. In fact, the purpose of life seems to be little more than to spend your days earning money, instead of using all the productivity of the modern world to focus more on health and wellbeing. 

Added to that is the stress, something which also affects the body. Given societal expectations, we all feel like we could be doing more or living better lives. The fact that we're not is often what brings us down. 

So what can you do to fight back against this? How can you live a healthy life even if the society around you is hellbent on being sick. Let's take a look. 

Start Cooking From Scratch

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There's almost always a nutritional cost in choosing convenience foods (even ones branded as being healthy). Manufacturers regularly add extra salt, fat and sugar to their meals to make them more palatable, since people don't eat them fresh. 

You can avoid these pitfalls by cooking your food from scratch. Collect all of the ingredients that you need and follow a recipe. Almost always, it will be considerably healthier than processed alternatives. 

Cooking from scratch lets you include ingredients that will keep you healthy. You can add plenty of herbs, spices, greens, and root veggies to your meals, allowing you to maintain the vibrancy of your body. 

Choose The Right Type Of Foods
When it comes to choosing the right type of foods to eat daily, there are two rules that virtually every qualified and accredited nutritionist agrees with:

1. Eat less processed foods 
2. Eat more plants

While you will find some people touting the benefits of a keto diet, they are actually outside of the mainstream and scientific evidence. As apes, our diet should largely be unprocessed plant foods with a small topping of animal products perhaps a couple of times a month, if not less. 

Do Everything In Moderation
Whether it's food or exercise, always apply the principle of moderation. While a little food is good, too much can harm your metabolism. Likewise, with exercise, while regular moderate-intensity exercise is good, pushing yourself to the limit every day probably isn't wise. 

Live Simply
Many people try to live complex lives. But they soon find that this approach takes the joy out of their experience. They spend all their time worrying about their cars and mortgages that they can't really enjoy the moment. 

Living simply helps to push back against society's nonsense. People lived perfectly well in the past without fast cars or beach houses, and you can too. These things might be nice to have, but they pale in comparison to the importance of maintaining a sense of wellbeing. 

Keep It Natural
Society will try to throw all sorts of synthetic things at you, be it food, medicine or ideas. However, the people who live the best tend to be those who keep things natural. They try to mimic nature in their lives whenever they can. 

Brands, like Simply CBD, are trying to bring more naturally-inspired wellness products to the market. They are saying goodbye to the old-fashioned commercialised way of doing things and embracing nature itself. It's better for people and the planet. 

Focus On Sleep
When it gets dark, allow yourself to fall asleep. Don't force yourself to stay in the office until 1 AM working. That sort of thing will leave you feeling exhausted and questioning what your life is all about. 

Adult humans need around 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night. There are some people who can function on 6, but they tend to be quite rare. If you're the sort of person who gets stressed easily, then you'll be closer to 8 hours per night to feel optimal. 

Remember, sleep is critical for a number of reasons. It actually helps repair oxidative damage in your body over time. If you're not getting enough of it, you'll age faster and feel generally tired the whole time. 

Laugh More Often
Researchers believe that people should be laughing for around 10 to 15 minutes per day. Not only does it burn calories, but it also releases a host of feel-good hormones into your system. People who laugh more tend to feel more relaxed than those who don't. 

Do More Meditation
Imagine living in a state in which no unpleasant thoughts are racing through your mind. Well, that's what meditation promises. After a certain amount of practice, you can achieve a profound state of equanimity where you feel less perturbed. It's a sense of spaciousness and bliss that we've largely ignored in our modern society. 

Try meditating for around 15 to 20 minutes every day when you first start. Then, if you notice improvements in your wellbeing, try committing more time to it. It is not uncommon for experienced meditators to lose themselves for 90 minutes or more. 

Keep Moving
Lastly, keep moving. Do whatever you can to avoid living a sedentary lifestyle. Remember, our ancestors would have been on the move all day, every day. That's what our bodies are designed for. Keep moving as much as you can and always look for exercise opportunities.