Food – love it or hate it, we all have to eat. It is not like alcohol or cigarettes. We could give them up for life if we decided to do so. The truth is, food is essential to life and to health, but our relationship with food becomes complicated over the course of our lives. Putting something into our mouths can start out as being done for nourishment, but can then evolve into also becoming a pacifier, a soother, a reward, a treat. Further down the line, many of us are told to eat everything on our plates, to not leave anything, that waste is bad. There may well have also been situations, like school, or when visiting someones’ house, where the food was unpleasant and we were still made to eat it. Often something sweet is proffered as a treat at the end of the meal.
So, over time, mealtimes can become regarded as potentially difficult experiences. Sometimes food may have to be rushed, or we may have to prepare it ourselves and not really know how or what to do. We may be unknowledgeable about nutrition or balanced meals and end up living on quick meals or snacks. Some foods may be avoided altogether because of past associations.
Many health and behavioural problems can be linked to an unbalanced diet and bad eating patterns. Learning to take control of what we put into our bodies can lead to many benefits in the area of general health and well being, both physically and psychologically. Following a few basic rules can make a major difference to our attitude towards food and eating.
- Learn to cook. Living on takeaways, snacks and pre chilled meals maybe okay as occasional standby, but it is unhealthy as a way of life. These bought-in meals are often high in salt, fat and chemical additives.
- Buy a basic cook book and read through to find one or two dishes that sound tasty and fairly straightforward.
- Do the food shop with the recipe handy, so that you buy all the ingredients needed. Over time this helps build up a store cupboard of seasonings and other basic ingredients.
- If it is feasible, plan meals for the week ahead. Some people like to do a big cook over the weekend and freeze meals for the week ahead, so that they are ready to cook at their convenience.
- Make more of mealtimes. Perhaps once a week, set the table, light candles, play some background music, get dressed nicely and enjoy dining as a pleasant sensory experience.
- Take time to sit and eat, even quick meals like breakfast or lunch. By getting up ten minutes earlier the quality of the whole day can be improved. By allowing time to sit and enjoy a few quiet minutes for breakfast can start the day on a better note, or at lunchtime taking ten- fifteen minutes for some soup or a sandwich, can make the afternoon far more productive.
- Buy one good quality snack or treat, rather than lots of cheap sugar products. Make time to enjoy it properly.
- Focus on what you are eating and taste it, savour it, enjoy it. People often overeat when watching television or when reading or working, because they are putting food into their mouths automatically and hardly noticing what or how much they are eating. By paying attention to the whole activity of eating makes the experience more satisfying and fulfilling.
- Cut back on sugar. Sweet foods are highly addictive. It has been proven scientifically that we crave high calories foods, even when we are full, because our bodies produce a hormone called ghrelin. This hormone produces a strong feelgood effect similar to alcohol or cocaine, that makes us seek out these sugar laden foods. Being aware of this can enable us to be more resistant to the temptation.
Making food a pleasurable, balanced part of our lives is an important step to take for managing weight, health and overall well being. Setting a structure in place enables mealtimes to be scheduled and so become less pressurised and stressful events. Food is an important sensory activity and an opportunity for people to relax and for families to connect together at the end of the day. It is good to find a way to enable that to happen.
Susan Leigh, Counsellor and Hypnotherapist
www.lifestyletherapy.net