A new way

Food has a highly emotional component to it. What tastes better than mom's home cooked _________ (mac and cheese, lasagna, raspberry pie... you fill in the blank). As I've written before, food has the ability to comfort us when, perhaps, nothing or no one else will. It may be time to change that.

Over the past few weeks, we've been watching Losing it with Jillian on NBC and one theme has stood out each week. The people Jillian has worked with have some sort of emotional issue or past trauma that they have covered up with, among other things, greasy, sugary food. They have sought comfort in such food because it makes them feel good. I can relate, not only on a superficial level (like when I have a stressful day, I crave the sweet goodness of a DQ Blizzard), but on a more serious level. After the birth of my son, I suffered from postpartum depression and, as part of this, craved sugar constantly. There are medical reasons for this (i.e.--lowered serotonin levels), but the bottom line is, there was a stretch where I went to Starbucks daily to get a sugary coffee and then supplemented that with fatty, cheesy foods that temporarily made me feel better. Ultimately it did not help me recover, as it does not for the people on Jillian's show.

If we look at food in a new way, our overall health will start to improve. We have to look at the nutrients in the food, how they nourish our bodies, and bring us to optimal health. It is natural to cook what tastes good, and when you are used to sugary, fatty, salty foods, this is what you will lean toward. When you cut out such foods (because they have zero nutritional value and only serve to fill you up), you begin to open up your taste buds to things you may have thought you disliked before. The healthier and more nutritionally dense the foods are that you eat, the better you will feel and the more of them you will want to eat. When you pick up a food, ask yourself What will this food do for me? Really think about your answer and then make your choice.