True healing is achieved by our entire self. Each part of our self is important and each part contributes to the whole of being well. When I say each part I am referring to all of the things that make up the whole of who we are. Our relationships, our creative life, our work life, our spiritual life and our relationship with our body. Since I am talking about food here I am going to focus a little more on the body but it would be incorrect to say that food is only about the body. It is really deeply connected to all the other parts of us as well.
Food and the nourishment that it gives is one of the foundation pieces of vibrant health. When we eat we are bringing into our body the necessary components for all the millions of chemical processes that our physical body runs on. An example of this is getting adequate protein. Proteins are the source of amino acids which in turn are the building blocks of some of the thousands of different substances needed to run a human body. They are an essential part of running our detox pathways, and insure that we have adequate neurotransmitters or brain chemicals. This is just one example out of millions of processes that happen daily, even hourly in our body that are dependent on our having the macro and micro nutrients the we get from eating high quality food.
The foundations of a diet that supports and builds excellent health begins with eating organic food free of toxic chemicals, lots of vegetables and adequate protein and fats. This is a great place to start a delicious relationship with food. But what about the fact that each of us is different. Its true, each of us is different and we each have our own particular nutritional quirks and needs. Often there are acute situations that need to be addressed with an individually crafted diet and sometimes there are foods that an individual just doesn’t do well with for the long haul. This takes some work and guidance to figure out.
There’s more. Food isn’t all about balancing protein carbs and fats. There is the pleasure aspect of food, how it tastes, the enjoyment and creativity of cooking and sharing a meal and conversation with your people. Then there is the absolute beauty of a well grown head of Romanesco Broccoli. The benefits of relating to food in this way are real and have a measurable impact on our whole being. So excellent nutrition and an alive relationship to food in all its aspects is one of the real foundations and bedrocks of glowing good health.