Back to Basics
By Rae Hatherton ND
According to the US Department of Agriculture, Americans just eat more food than they used to. From 1976 to 2010, the average American ate 484 more calories per day than they did in 1975. Here are a few not so new ideas from my book Alive! An Energy Plan for Life with eating and lifestyle tips that always work. They don’t work on calorie reduction but they do work on how the body processes work:
- Keep processed food out of your daily plan - eat freshly prepared food that you know the source of with no additives, colorings, cans or packages.
- Shop locally – you will then know the people who grow the food and their principles and values which will translate into more responsible natural food choices on your part.
- Moderate your intake of stimulants – sugars of all kinds, chocolate caffeine (a coffee in the morning is fine for most people). FACTS: Sterols in coffee inhibit thyroid function which slows metabolism. Chocolate is highly stimulating and hard on the digestive tract.
- Three meals a day eaten at regular eating times works -it has for centuries and it does now (and not after 7 at night not even if you are Latin)– yes that means no snacks other than teas.
- Eat until you are comfortably full – most of us don’t know what that is, we are so used to eating volume – have smaller plates, breathe, and put your knife and fork down between bites.
- Sip don’t drink with your meals, preferably wine, beer, or water, sparkling or flat. Stay away from fruit juices and carbonated soft drinks.
- Eat 50 percent of your food as vegetables and don’t mix starches (potatoes, pasta and breads) and proteins (meats, poultry, fish) helps food to digest and decreases, gas, bloating and reflux.
- Slow down – chew each bite of food 30 times, it will bring you to satiety sooner and you will desire less food.
Food is meant to be enjoyed not just consumed. Love your food. In other cultures meeting over food is a ritual of social connection and nurturing. Let’s adopt that ritual and intent.
Rae Hatherton ND