“Nutrition matters for everybody, but you can’t major in it at Harvard. Most top scientists go into other fields. Most of the big studies were done 30 or 40 years ago, and most are seriously flawed. The food pyramid that told us to eat low fat and enormous amounts of grains was probably more a product of lobbying by Big Food than real science; its chief impact has been to aggravate our obesity epidemic. There’s plenty more to learn: we know more about the physics of faraway stars than we know about human nutrition. It won’t be easy, but it’s not obviously impossible: exactly the kind of field that could yield secrets.”

― Peter Thiel

At Mahatman, we cannot stress enough the importance of a good body. Good health is paramount and something that cannot be compromised upon. Our body is the only source of our connect with the world. It is our only means to make sense of the reality around us. It is our only means to perceive and enjoy the cornucopia that life has to offer us. The great Indian saint and mystic Ramakrishna once said “God is not for the hungry and starved”. As a Mahatman we owe ourselves a long healthy life of 100 years. We have to do what it takes to nourish and sustain the apparatus that is going to make phenomenal contributions to the self and society. Here are a few facts that we must understand about our eating habits- If we have more processed foods in our diet, we invariably suffer from lifestyle disorders such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and a third of all cancers are linked to this kind of a diet. People who eat a remarkable amount of traditional diets do not suffer from such lifestyle related disorders.  There is a third category- people who slowly make a transition from processed food to traditional foods see a marked improvement in their health.

With a plethora of eating substitutes at our disposal in the supermarkets, which claim to be called food, eating is a troublesome activity. There is a simple litmus test about what you should eat.  Before you buy anything that is remotely called as food, think, would your great grandmother recognize this as food? If the answer is No then it quietly goes back to the shelf where it came from. Another thing to look for is the ingredients in the food. If you come across even one word which sounds a bit obnoxious and not something you know from a domestic conversation like Ethoxylated diglyceride, then be sure to discard it pronto. When in a supermarket try to shop on the fringe. Do not try to enter the core flanks of the market where all the processed food occupies the key aisles. Most of the fresh vegetables, fruits and dairy and livestock products occupy the peripheral aisles like the least lit corners of the Milky way (ironically our Earth is a part of one such dim alley in the galactic scheme of things.) Another way to go about picking your food is to ensure that it is something that will rot, the sooner better than later. All processed foods are meant to contain artificial preservatives that will increase their shelf life. Try eating old school, budget your food for a day or two, and then consume it before it rots.  The next one is something even kids can do, or rather it is more important for kids to dissuade themselves from eating it. For example in a supermarket if you see an apple and if you see a bar of chocolate, try thinking which one of them have you seen or imagined growing on trees. If you think an apple grows on trees- devour it (make sure you pay for it on your way out). If you think a bar of chocolate growing on a tree is a bit preposterous, then you may toss it back to the shelf you picked it from.

Make sure that you eat something that grew on a plant and not in it.  Clearly we are talking about different setups here. The first kind of plant is the green thing you see all around, outside your window, in the garden, alongside the boulevard etc. and the second is the plant which has conveyor belts and assembly lines and people who appear to be cut from the same sloth doing the same thing again and again. If a food is called the same in every language, then clearly it is a far distant relative of the real thing. Real food will be spoilt for choice when it comes to having names across languages. Also make sure that you try to consume food in the form that is closest to its natural state. So instead of going for that apple juice neatly packaged in tetra pack, run over to the apple counter (not too far away) and nibble away at the juiciest one you can find.  And if you want to east junk food, eat as much as you can, the only condition is, prepare it yourself! Once you set yourself to it you will realize the enormous amount of hard work that goes into putting the food on your plate. That will discourage you enough to cut down on the frequency of such high labour intensive foods.

Now let us look at some good eating habits that will leave your grandma beaming at having passed on the legacy to a conscientious posterity. It is emphasized in all cultures across the world that we must stop eating before we feel we are almost full. Though it might seem like the man in the joke, who says watch where I get down, your stop is the one before me! The body does know and understand when it is about to be full. It has its own internal emailing mechanism, just make sure to read those cues and know you have to stop minutes before you arrive at your first burp. In India, where I come from, they say you must chew your morsel at least 32 times (giving each tooth a fair share I guess), before you push it down your throat. Many cultures emphasize slow eating. This ensures you chew your food enough, also since it prolongs your meal time, it discourages you from over eating by keeping you mindful of the time factor. We have this perception about measuring our satiation with the time we spend on our food. Eating slowly takes care of that. Another simple thing you can do is buy smaller plates, serve smaller portions and try avoid making a beeline for the second serving. Also make sure to eat in setup specifically marked for eating meals. Shut off all the distractions like the TV, your mobile, (the bawling neighbourhood kid if you can in a way that is legal). Have company while you eat. Studies have proven that when one eats alone, one tends to consume more food.

As a Mahatman, one should try to follow “Ayurvedic” eating habits. An Ayurvedic diet is an eating plan that provides guidelines for when you eat, what you eat, and how you eat to boost your health, prevent or manage disease, and maintain wellness. If you follow an Ayurvedic diet, you’ll eat primarily whole or minimally processed foods and practice mindful eating rituals.

We should try to eat organic foods. Organic foods often have more beneficial nutrients, such as antioxidants, than their conventionally-grown counterparts and people with allergies to foods, chemicals, or preservatives often find their symptoms lessen or go away when they eat only organic foods. Organic produce contains fewer pesticides.

It is important to drink adequate water throughout the day. More if you are out in the sun often or if your work is physically demanding. Water helps dissolve minerals and nutrients, making them more accessible to the body. It also helps remove waste products. … Water is essential for the kidneys to function. If the kidneys do not function properly, waste products and excess fluid can build up inside the body.

In addition to maintaining a healthy diet, we must also ingest supplements which fill the deficit that is lacking in our diet. The most popular nutrient supplements are multivitamins, calcium and vitamins B, C and D. Calcium supports bone health, and vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium. Vitamins C and E are antioxidants—molecules that prevent cell damage and help to maintain health.

In India, our traditions have incorporated some very interesting fasting practices. I would like to mention one such practice here. It is called the “Chandrayan Vrat” (literally Moon fasting).The fasting follows the waning and waxing of the moon. On a full moon day one eats a square meal and proportionately reduces the portion of the meal in accordance with the waning moon, till on a new moon day there is complete fasting. The same is followed vice versa in case of a waxing moon. The Indian philosophy says that one should never consume food to satiate the cravings of the taste buds or the appetite. Food is to be treated as the offering to the fire within. Just as we add just enough wood  or coal to the fire to keep it burning, so should we intake only as much food as is necessary to keep the fire within us alive and kindling.

As a Mahatman, it is our responsibility to distil the wisdom from our ancient and time tested traditional sources, at the same time we have to pragmatic about accepting cutting edge research about food. And surprisingly we will see that though both the approaches talk in different languages, they are saying the same thing.

 

Big Bang of Nourish and Sustain-

• • Eat less and less of processed food and more and more of traditional food
  • Eat slowly, and chew properly
  • Drink lots of water
  • Intermittent fasting is good for the body
  • Inculcate the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda into your diet
  • Respect age old eating traditions, but be open to cutting edge research in food technology
  • Take supplements in addition to a healthy balanced diet not as a substitute for a balanced diet.