Let’s face it; we are all nostalgic about the times gone by. Be it the fresher nature, less stress, lower standards of living and overall happiness, yesteryear are something romanticized by our elders today. However, not everything about previous times was jolly good as is made out, read revolutions, lack of civil right, sexism, lack of access to education etc.

But one thing that certainly cannot be denied is the fact that our ancestors certainly had better health and access to a healthier Eco system to let their lungs breathe and hearts pump better than us.  This combined with abundance of good food made for a pretty jovial time.

So what exactly is it that encouraged and stimulated our ancestors in having a healthier lifestyle?

Many people contribute it to surviving on a diet that mostly consisted of farm fresh produce, throughout their lives. They did not have access to antibiotics fattened animal meat, highly processed, sodium filled, pre-packaged non- food and chemically ingested fruits and vegetables. Food was not treated with additives and chemicals to preserve and increase shelf life. Nor were there drive thru windows to hog at food beyond humanely acceptable times. True, many would argue that the standard of life today is very different and difficult compared to what it used to be. But that does not change the fact that we can all try and change our dietary preferences a bit without usurping our whole life.

Our ancestors also spent a lot of time outside rather than simply binge watching shows on the weekends. Again, many might say that nature does not exactly have characters you can debate about and cry upon. But it certainly does have Vitamin D and other sorts of nutrients that you won’t get from your favorite fictional personalities. For our ancestors, it was a lot about spending time outside, farming, gardening etc. and basking in the beauty of nature. This in turn meant that they used to get a lot of exercise and more natural exposure to sunlight.  They were healthier than us because they had more exposure to natural sunlight which helps de-stress naturally. Vitamin D is also considered to be a natural mood lifter and also strengthens the body's immune system.

Toxins are something our ancestors were not really exposed to. Around 6000 new chemicals are listed each week by the Chemical Society's Chemical Abstracts. This is something our ancestors’ bodies certainly did not have any exposure to. Because they had lesser exposure to such toxins, they had hardly reported instances of hormonal imbalance, immune suppression and various health related problems.

Eating home cooked food also contributed a lot towards a healthier lifestyle. During older times, food was mostly prepared at home and traditional methods of food preservation, fermentation etc. helped maintain a good quantity of nutrients in food.

While it is certainly easier to reminisce about the bygone days; in real life, implementing and following their ways are more complicated than it seems.

But one small step towards attaining the health that our ancestors did is organic farming. Organic farming reduces the harmful environmental affects thereby giving us fresher air to breathe. Organic produce also comes with a lot of health benefits due to the retention of nutrients and non- use of chemicals.

Making its own small contribution towards a healthy life is Orgpick, the friendly neighborhood organic food delivery service. The wide range of organic fruits and organic vegetables available at Orgpick are 100% farm fresh and not stored on the shelf for a long time.