Without a healthy diet you can’t have healthy emotions and live the life you dream about.
I have been reading about how diet affects not only our health but our happiness level. I am realizing that I cannot ignore the importance of food in reclaiming your true emotions.
Releasing the past is not enough. You need to have a healthy body.
Find out how your diet can increase your physical health and improve your happiness.
How your diet impacts your emotional health
Nora T. Gedaudas (Primal Body, Primal Mind: Beyond the Paleo Diet for Total Health and a Longer Life, 2011) tells us “You cannot have healthy cognitive or psychological functioning without a healthy, properly nourished body.” She goes on to tell us that “What we eat ultimately accounts for 70 percent of our health and longevity.” And I will add happiness to that list.
Our diet has become a source of stress for our bodies. Many of the common foods we eat trigger an inflammatory response in the body, which sets us up for a long list of mental health problems including depression, Alzheimer’s, anxiety, ADHD, bipolar disorder, and even schizophrenia.
If you are eating the standard American diet (also known as SAD) you are setting yourself up for serious physical disease including heart disease, autoimmune disease, fibrmyalgia, and cancer.
How can you create the life you dream about unless you have a healthy body and mind to support you?
Which foods are causing problems?
Unfortunately it is not just one food that is causing problems and not all foods react the same way in every person.
Here are some foods that can cause problems.
1. Food additives
I don’t consider these real food, but they are in many of the things sold as food. According to David Ludwig (Always Hungry? Conquer Cravings, Retrain Your Fat Cells and Lose Weight Permanently, 2016), there are more than 3,000 food additives that are FDA approved and “most artificial additives and pollutants in our food have never been thoroughly tested for long-term health effects.” We simply don’t know how these additives are affecting us.
2. Processed grains
Even though many of you are aware of problems caused by gluten (found in wheat, rye, barley and other grains), I am going to include all grains that have been processed into flour. William Davis (Wheat Belly Total Health: The Ultimate Grain-Free Health and Weigh Loss Plan, 2014) tells us that all processed grains contain “a carbohydrate that raises blood sugar even higher than table sugar. This is true for every grain.”
Wheat is particularly problematic. It is in so many foods as well as supplements and cosmetics. David Perlmutter (Grain Brain: The Surprising Truth about Wheat, Carbs, and Sugar – Your Brain’s Silent Killers, 2013) tells us that gluten is broken down into polypeptides that bind with the brain’s opiate receptors. When some people stop eating wheat they can experience unpleasant symptoms of withdrawal. In other words, wheat is addictive.
3. Sugars
Most of you are aware that sugar plays a role in weight problems and diabetes. Other sweeteners can cause problems, too. According to David Ludwig processed sweeteners containing fructose, such as high fructose corn syrup, can lead to a fatty liver and metabolic problems. He goes on to say “Artificial sweeteners may also cause insulin secretion, driving calories into fat cells and stimulating hunger.”
What can you do?
If you are feeling overwhelmed there are two steps you can take today.
1. Decide why you are eating. I know this sounds like a strange request. Many of us eat to relieve stress, to cover up painful emotions, or as a way to experience pleasure. How many of you eat to nourish your body and mind?
2. Become a conscious consumer. Find out what is in your food and decide if it is something you want to eat. Ask yourself, does this food nourish my body and mind?
According to David Simon (Vital Energy: The Seven Keys to Invigorate Body, Mind, and Spirit, 2000) “We have learned a lot about how to treat illness, but not much about how to create health.”
Eating a healthy diet can also help you create healthy emotions. Share your comments below. I would like to hear from you.
If you want to learn more about how to release emotional wounds from childhood, click on “Are you new to the site?”
(Image: djjewelz @ Flickr)
