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A very simple truth hit home recently – you are what you eat.

Our bodies are made of cells which with a few exceptions continuously die off and are replaced by other cells – skin, liver, bones, blood all continuously get replaced. Now those vital organs are build of tissue which is build of cells which in return are 96% made of oxygen (accounts for about 65% of your total body mass), carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen. In order for those cells to continue doing the right thing they need the right basic elements – and this is what our digestion does – it breaks down what we eat into those basic elements which then can be carried to those cells so that they can be rebuild and continue working together doing their thing.

The key here is basic elements which the body can recognise and can use as building blocks for new cells.

Now think about the ingredients of your body lotion. Or your ready meal, or your store bought low calorie lunch. What is present in all of those things is highly processed ingredients – molecules which have been altered to the point where the body does not recognise them any more. So what you end up doing is trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. You are trying to build a house with very poor building material – a bit like the three little pigs.

We continue wondering why we can’t lose weight, or why our skin is not looking great. It is very simple – we become what we eat. And this is the difference why people experience profound change in their bodies once they start eating wholesome, fresh, real food. That supermarket whole meal bread with 10 different ingredients and low-calorie spread will be your hair, nails, bones tomorrow.

I am as guilty as everyone else when it comes to eating sugar. And I am certainly not the one to ditch everything in one go. But start making small changes – read the labels, start bringing lunch to work twice a week (those weekend leftovers make a great Monday lunch), make your own dressings for your salad at home, cut down the sugary snacks and drinks.

So when you are reaching out for something in the supermarket next time – read the label and ask yourself – do I want to be made of E numbers or do I want to give my body high quality building material. I am sure the low-calorie spread will very quickly be put away and you will reach out for something wholesome with ingredients which you recognise and know what they mean.