How do we form lasting healthy and sustainable habits?
Traditional approaches to diet, nutrition, health and sustainability have focused on trying to change people at the obvious and observable behavioural level - all working from the assumption that if you provide people with enough information, they will act on it.
Want to lose weight? Just change your diet and exercise regularly. Want to help avert the climate crisis? Just make the most sustainable choice with every single decision you make. Use some will power, change how you live and who you are, go on!
This has failed miserably at the personal, public and planetary level. A ‘Dieter’ has a 3% chance of losing weight and keeping it off for longer than 3 years.
Over 2 billion people are overweight or obese, and millions are dying every year from preventable diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Our World In Data's chart, Share of deaths by cause, shows the breakdown of global deaths by cause, given as the share of annual deaths, rather than the absolute number.
And despite the past 40 years spent discussing and pledging to mitigate climate change to prevent the catastrophic implications of even 1.5°C of global warming, 2018 was our worst on record in terms of greenhouse gas emissions.
Perhaps it’s time to take a different approach… a new approach that tackles the complex interconnectedness of deep internal systems and external Food and Diet Systems, rather than just focusing on the observable unhealthy behaviours, which are merely a symptom of the underlying issues.
In collaboration with Dr. Martin Juneau MD, Cardiologist and Head of the Prevention Division at the Montreal Health Institute, we have developed a way of eating to tackle the metabolic and cognitive dysfunction caused by our modern diets.
Let’s be clear about something - Suste is not a diet, because diets simply don't work. It's a process of incremental and sustainable change from the cellular level up. The vicious cycle of our modern diets creates metabolic and cognitive dysfunction, as we discussed earlier. Suste uses the transformative powers of intermittent fasting and low glycemic loading to propel you into a sustainable cycle of behavioural change.
Intermittent fasting involves a period of not eating - it’s as simple as that. Fasting restores our cognitive and metabolic systems, by reducing inflammation and increasing cellular clean-up and regeneration (autophagy). Low glycaemic loading, which involves reducing overconsumption of refined carbohydrates and animal proteins, further works towards the restoration of body and mind.
Unlike most approaches that only look to reduce weight our approach gets at the deeper cause - your elevated body set weight (covered previously in Food - The Vicious Cylce of Modern Diets if you need a refresher). Reducing your internal weight setting reduces your body’s energy needs, leading to reduced hunger signals and less cravings for high-calorie, easily absorbed foods.
Unlike traditional diets that solely rely on your will power to change unhealthy behaviours, the Suste approach aligns your body, mind and behaviours making it much easier to eat less, fast more and move more.
This is a revolutionary approach and goes against current approaches – which, as discussed, have failed us miserably. It's time to take back control over our body and minds, and importantly have a positive impact on the looming climate crisis we all face.
Suste is here to support you along this journey and we expect to deliver personal benefits of reduced body fat, increased energy levels and improved mental clarity and self control. Longer-term benefits include a slowing of the aging process, reduced risk of preventable diseases, improved quality of life, and longer life span.
All the while, as a revolutionary movement we help contribute towards the UN sustainability Development Goals of Climate Action; Life on Land; Life Below Water; Zero Hunger; Good Health & Well-Being, Responsible Consumption & Production; and Reduced Inequalities.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), are a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. Read more on https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/
