How to Eat a Clean, Natural Diet

Last Updated on November 29, 2023 by Cathy

A clean, natural foods diet is nutrient-dense, anti-inflammatory, and healing for your body. It is rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytonutrients, fiber, and healthy proteins. Natural foods consist of unprocessed foods. Healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and healthy fats.

They are as close to the original in which they were grown or raised. There is nothing extra added and the ingredient list is recognizable and very short. You can usually find clean, natural foods on the outer perimeter of the grocery store aisles. Eating a clean diet of whole foods isn’t really a diet, it’s a lifestyle for the better.

The standard American diet leads to:

• Autoimmune diseases
• Cancer
• Heart disease
• Obesity
• Type 2 diabetes
• Stroke

Unfortunately, most people don’t eat enough vegetables. Only 13% of the population consumes the recommended amounts (french fries don’t count).

Load Up On Veggies

Eat more plant-based foods than meat. You don’t need to be a vegetarian but it’s best to eat mostly vegetables. Eat a wide variety of different types of vegetables to get the most nutrients. In the book The Wahls Protocol, Dr. Wahls recommends eating nine cups of vegetables each day.

Dr. Wahls recommends 3 cups of each:

• Dark leafy greens 
• Cruciferous (sulfur veggies)
• Colorful all the way through like beets, broccoli, and carrots

Example of Eating Nine Cups of Veggies in One Day

Nine cups sound like a lot but it’s easier than you would think. Especially if you drink a smoothie or juice your vegetables. I’ll show how easy eating nine cups of vegetables each day can be.

Breakfast

• Sweet potato hash with seasonings = 1 cup
• Breakfast smoothie = 1-2 cups
• Protein leftovers from dinner the night before like Spinach Turkey Burger

TOTAL = 2+ cups

Lunch

Image by user14908974 on Freepik

• Romaine or other dark leafy greens = 2 cups
• Cucumber = 1/2 cup
• Red onion = 1/2 cup
• Celery = 1/2 cup
• Tomatoes = 1/2 cup
• Garlic (1 clove), minced = 1/2 cup
• Cilantro = 1/4 cup
• Top with seasonings, seeds, and nuts

TOTAL = 4.75 cups

Snack ideas

• Avocado
• Baby carrots
• Broccoli florets 
• Celery sticks with almond butter
• Cucumber slices
• Zucchini slices

Dinner

This is when you finish up the day with the remaining number of vegetables to hit nine cups. As you can see from the list above this won’t be hard to do. I usually like to chop up the vegetables and steam them together in one pan. Then add herbs like cinnamon, garlic, rosemary, sea salt, and turmeric.

• Bok choy = 1 cup
• Carrot including green tops = 1 cup
• Celery = 1/2 cup
• Garlic (1 clove), minced = 1/2 cup
• Red onion = 1/2 cup
• Dark leafy greens (chard, kale, spinach) = 2 cups
• Parsley = 1/2 cup
• 1 clove of garlic, minced = 1/2 cup

TOTAL = 6.5 cups

If you were to eat everything on this list in one day you would exceed MORE than 9 cups of vegetables in one day! By consciously adding more vegetables to every meal, it will be very easy to get your daily nine cups of vegetables.

But it’s too expensive

Not eating clean, natural foods because it’s expensive is a poor excuse. Granted, buying natural foods is more expensive than buying processed foods. But… when you cut out coffee shops, fast food restaurants, pizza delivery, and vending machines you end up saving a lot of money. Over one-third of U.S. food dollars is spent on eating-out services.

When you stop spending your money on food that causes diseases then you will have more money to spend on healthy foods. Staying organized and shopping with a list will help you save money.

It’s best to eat all organic produce to avoid pesticides. But, if money is an issue the Environmental Working Group has a Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen list. It shows which produce has the most pesticide residues. If the product is on the Clean Fifteen list you don’t necessarily need to buy organic.

Eating non-organic vegetables is better than eating processed foods.

Ways to save money on natural foods:

• Buy in bulk
• Buy produce that is in season
• Look for clearance items
• Grow a garden vegetable garden
• Shop at farmer’s markets
• Sign up for store loyalty cards for discounts
• Stock up on pantry items and meat when it is on sale

Tips For Starting 

Changing from the standard American diet to eating natural foods can seem overwhelming. You don’t need to go “cold turkey” or you may feel frustrated and give up. You can start by taking baby steps but you need to remember to keep moving forward.

Start by adding more fruits and vegetables to everything you eat. Eat vegetables and herbs for breakfast instead of stopping for an Egg McMuffin. Bring a big salad for lunch instead of a sandwich. Make a cauliflower crust pizza at home. Top it with lots of vegetables instead of ordering one with cheese and processed meats.

After you get used to adding in more vegetables, hopefully, it won’t take too long and move on to the next category. Next remove grains or dairy, whichever one is easiest for you. For me, removing dairy wasn’t that hard it was removing grains I found more difficult.

Eventually, you need to remove:

• Gluten
• Dairy
• Legumes like beans, peanuts, and soy
• Fast food meals
• Fruit juices
• Pizza from a restaurant or frozen
• Processed meats like bacon, deli meat, sausage, pepperoni, etc.
• Processed foods like bread, cookies, chips, boxed meals, ice cream, etc.
• Ready-to-eat foods
• Refined sugar and carbohydrates 
• Refined vegetable oils like canola oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, soybean oil, etc.
• Soda

Plan Ahead

Having a meal plan for the week makes it a lot easier to stick to your new eating style. It is also a good idea to always double the recipe for nights that you’re too busy or you don’t feel like cooking. 

Always keep healthy foods available in your home and your desk at work. If you are planning to go out to eat call the restaurant or look at their website to see what you can eat. If you are going to a party it’s a good idea to eat before you leave your house in case there isn’t anything you can eat. 

You don’t want to start getting hungry and there is nothing for you to eat. It will only become too tempting to reach for something you shouldn’t eat. Cheating only hurts yourself and it will set your healing process back. Always plan ahead!

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Resources:

https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/chart-gallery/gallery/chart-detail/?chartId=58354