---
title: How does the food we eat directly impact our health?
description: Nutrition and health go hand-in-hand. Explore the direct connections between the quality of the foods you eat and your body's ability to fight and prevent disease. At Pravan Clinic, we believe you will feel your best when you are eating well and offer unlimited nutrition access to our members.
image: https://blog.pravanhealth.com/hubfs/nutrition01.jpg
---
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Pravan Clinic Blog
# How does the food we eat directly impact our health?
2 minute read | Posted by [Leyda Figueroa RD, LND](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/author/leyda-figueroa-rd-lnd) on Mar 10, 2018, 9:30:00 AM
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Did you know food can help prevent and in some cases even reverse disease? I emphasize a whole foods diet for my patients which focuses on quality of nutrients instead of quantity. Some of the results I have seen in my years of experience as a result of my patients' commitment to these diet changes include body transformations, healthier social lives, increased activity levels, and overall improved health and vitality.
**Connection Between Food and Health**
Food is medicine that allows our bodies to function properly. What exactly makes up that medicine? A variety of natural compounds found in plant-based foods called phytonutrients. You see phytonutrients in the colors you eat (think the red of a strawberry, the green of kale, the purple of beets). Why do these colors matter? These colorful compounds have anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-oxidant, and antibiotic properties. Eating phytonutrients can address clinical imbalances and support health optimization.
In addition to being medicine, food is our energy source, like gasoline for a car. It provides us with the nutrients necessary to turn on biochemical reactions in our body to maintain normal cellular function. A healthy cell functions like a manufacturing center; energy is created, biochemical reactions happen, growth, regeneration, healing, and development all happen there.
When we opt to eat not-so-healthy foods, our internal cellular manufacturing center is shut down or production is slowed (our cells may not regenerate, we get older more quickly, and may experience interruption in healing processes). It may take longer to heal or you may even develop a more serious condition because your body does not have the mechanics to bring you back to health.
**The Problem with Processed & Refined Foods**
Refined flours, refined sugars (think juice, soda, ice cream, syrup), refined cooking oils, saturated fats (found in foods like milk and meat), processed meats (ham, corned beef, sausages, hot dogs), are among many refined and processed foods. These foods create inflammatory processes in our body because they are stripped of their nutrients and man-made ingredients like chemicals, fillers, sugars, and fats are added. Man-made is the opposite of what mother nature provides us, and your body cannot recognize these unnatural additives.
The futher we stray from mother nature, the closer we get to a nutritional imbalance and in the end undesirable conditions may develop.
**How is nutrition at Pravan Clinic different?**
| | - Real-life application. Grocery shopping. I'll take a trip with you to the supermarket and help you choose healthier options and open your eyes to foods you didn't know exist! - Personalized nutrition services. I do not recommend any single standard diet. Rather than giving you a diet plan and sending you out the door, my purpose is to help explain the 'why' behind the improvements we will make together to your food intake, so you can internalize how you are going to eat on a daily basis. - Resources to take your health optimization to the next level. In addition to the blood work and exams included in the annual membership, many of our members opt to complete additional tests to identify deficiencies and reactions to foods that may be causing inflammation or disease. Some of these tests we help coordinate for our members include genetic testing like 23&Me, food sensitivity panels, vitamin levels, among others. - Medical grade supplements with a purpose. Depending on your nutrition analysis and health status, I can collaborate with your primary physician to recommend **[supplements](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/boost-your-health-with-the-right-supplements)** that specifically address your personal deficiencies. - Unlimited access. You can enjoy unlimited texts, video calls, and in-person visits with me! - Long term relationship. It usually takes the body around three weeks to adapt to a change. We want the changes you make to last forever, not just a few months. The Pravan Clinic membership is one year, which allows you to make nutrition changes a part of your habits and work on goals one at a time. | |
| --- | --- | --- |
Call us for an orientation at 787.339.2639 or [visit our website](https://pravanhealth.com) for more information about what Pravan Health and my nutrition services can do for you.
In the meantime, here's a tip to chew on..., **"Eat fresh, eat colorfully, eat real food, eat mostly plants and don’t eat too much!" - Leyda **
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Topics: [health tips](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/tag/health-tips), [nutrition](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/tag/nutrition), [Whole Foods](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/tag/whole-foods), [diet](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/tag/diet), [lifestyle](https://blog.pravanhealth.com/blog/tag/lifestyle)
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