MONDAY: EATING AND DRINKING PATTERNS AND ROUTINES

“The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine.”

Televangelist and minister Mike Murdoch

Our body renews itself on a regular basis using building materials directly derived from what we put into it. We become what we eat, so what you put into your body should be very carefully selected—it will become part of you soon!

If you buy processed foods, you may be compromising your health every time you eat them. I know you have heard of the dangers of trans fatty acids, excessive sugars and salts in most processed foods, and of high fructose corn syrup, which is in almost everything we buy. You may have seen articles on artificial sweeteners, flavors, colors, and what they do to us.

Pay attention to these warnings—they are not written by people who want to destroy you—but they might want to destroy your habit of drinking diet sodas!

Today is the day to observe your eating, shopping and drinking patterns and routines. Where do you shop? Do they have good, fresh foods? Do you look at the ingredient list on every processed item you buy?

Do you prepare and cook food yourself or just buy it all pre-prepared? Do you buy organic or local fresh food when you can? Organic foods are grown without pesticides. Pesticides are toxic and are usually on, or in, the fruits and vegetables we buy—wash any item very thoroughly if it is not organic. Root vegetables and potatoes absorb pesticides in the soil so try to at least buy organic potatoes and root vegetables this week, and from now on if you can.

If you live largely on processed foods, try to change this pattern. It may take more time to buy fresh food and cook it, but you will feel better; bond with your family more (especially if you make meal times a family affair!); teach your children how to cook; give them a better start in life, and be planting the seeds for a much healthier old age for them—and you.

What about lunch—can you find a place that makes organic salads or sandwiches? Try to avoid eating the potato chips that come with sandwiches and ask for fruit instead. Can you make something healthy at home the night before and take this for lunch? Or take leftovers from dinner and save money?

SNACKS

If you snack during the day—do you really need to? And if you must, on what do you snack? Every mouthful you eat can either be beneficial or harmful. Do you choose fruit or candy, cookies or a protein bar with the least amount of sugar you can find, fresh nuts and seeds (walnuts are great!), or vegetable sticks?

Think about what you drink during the day. Is it water, caffeine or soda? Most of us are chronically dehydrated—we need to drink more water, especially if we live in air conditioning all the time. Put some lemon or lime wedges in it if you want flavor!

Do you live on coffee and sodas at work? If you must have something hot, try tea. Buy your own herbal teas so you can enjoy more variety in flavors It is suspected that problems start when people consume several caffeinated drinks a day. Apart from coffee or tea, there are other sources of caffeine like standard sodas and energy bars, so be conscious of how much caffeine you really are taking in. If you go off it and have withdrawal signs—it may be indicating it was too much!

Squeeze your own juices or visit a juice bar—vegetable juices work wonderfully to renew energy.

HOW WE EAT

Also have a look at how you eat! If you are shoving your food down in a hurry, while you’re typing, writing or driving, your body cannot really digest it in the optimal way.

We need to have little rituals while we eat: Stop; sit; bless the food; eat it slowly, and chew each mouthful 30 times. Yes, 30 times! Try doing that and you’ll see how most of us don’t really chew our food at all. We are not even aware that we shove our next mouthful in before we have even swallowed the previous one.

Chewing 30 times allows the sensory systems set up in the mouth to prepare the stomach and digestive system for the food that is about to arrive—the process triggers the release of the appropriate digestion enzymes. (Ideally, we should not watch television either while we eat. Especially if the show is violent or gruesome because that is sure to affect our digestion!)

Avoiding drinking water while you are eating since it dilutes your digestive juices and interferes with healthy digestion.

Many of the bad eating and drinking habits we have are just that—habits. Once we can see the patterns or rituals we are stuck in, we can change them! We can create new rituals and patterns that help our digestion and health.

Here’s a great strategy: Ask yourself, “Does my health want this or my mouth (or appetite)?” Very often it’s thirst or our taste buds that trigger our desire to eat. Stop and decide whether it’s a stomach need or a mouth need or try drinking a glass of water, and you may be able to put off eating something unhealthy.

Do something to make your food exciting—to create an appetite! Set the table beautifully; present the food so it looks wonderful on the plate; have an excited attitude as you present the food. When possible, involve your family so they enjoy the preparation of the food. Let them be involved in some of the decision-making process—make it a fun event. Create, today, a new and much healthier rhythm and routine of eating and drinking for you and your family.

P.S. Remember to prepare your food with love! What you are feeling and thinking as you prepare food can make its way into the final product! Try to be in a loving state and be thankful for the food as you prepare it. Say Grace and thank God for your food and ask him to bless it.

We may not be able to scientifically prove that these things make a difference yet, but I bet we will one day!

(If you’d like to learn more about nutrition and good food choices, you may want to browse through this web site: http://www.healthgoods.com/education/Nutrition_Information/Nutrition_Short_Course/state_of_food.htm)

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