Food as Medicine

Food as Medicine

We nourish ourselves by converting the energy and information of plants and animals into the biological intelligence of our body.

Just as weak foundations results in an unsound building, poor nutrition leads to an unhealthy body. To create and maintain a healthy physiology our food must be nourishing, our digestive power strong and our elimination efficient.

Ideal nutrition results from consuming a variety of foods that are appropriately prepared and eaten with awareness. A balanced diet containing a medley of tastes provides nourishment for our body and mind.

Key Points

•Our digestive power is comparable to an internal fire that governs the breakdown and metabolism of the food we eat. When our digestive fire is strong and healthy, we are able to extract the greatest level of nourishment from our diet. If our digestive power is weak, even the healthiest substances may not be properly utilized.

•When our digestive power is not adequate to completely metabolize the food we eat, a residue of undigested substances is left behind in our physiology. This toxic residue weakens the efficiency of our digestive system, leading to problems such as constipation, fatigue, bad breath and low energy.

•The strength of our appetite reflects the underlying state of our digestive fire. A strong appetite is necessary to help us digest and absorb the food we eat. The following suggestions will help you cultivate a healthy appetite, improve digestive efficiency and reduce the amount of toxicity in your system.

Let food be your medicine

and medicine be your food.

-Hippocrates

•Don’t eat unless you’re hungry. Think of your capacity for food as an “appetite gauge” – where I on the dial means you are famished and 10 means you are completely full. Eat when your appetite drops to 2-3.

•Stop eating when you’re satisfied, or when your “appetite gauge” is 6-7.

•Remember that food is for nutrition. Continuing to eat after the point of satiety overloads the digestive system resulting in a build-up of toxicity in your physiology.

•In her infinite wisdom, Nature has packaged all possible food sources into six tastes as a way to inform us about each food’s influence on our mind-body physiology. All six tastes should be eaten at every meal for us to feel satisfied and to ensure that all major food groups and nutrients and represented.