You Are What You Eat

“Let Food Be Your Medicine and Medicine be Your Food”

Interesting thing about this adage is, it is found in almost all cultures. Obviously it true universally. My grandma used to sort thru the foods she eats that day. She just skips some of the foods saying, it will cause bloating, this will generate lot of heat, eggplant would make your skin itchy etc, etc., She lived close to 100 years. Even though we used to make fun of her, it makes sense she is aware of the effects of different foods on human body! Ain’t it Amazing! No medical research can beat that traditional wisdom! This is subject is vast, so I wanna touch base on some of the aspects of it without being lost.

Nourishment and Health

We cannot deny the fact that our physical growth, development and milestones all are affected substantially, by diet we consume. While it is not possible to perfectly nurture your body, you can control your health outcomes by eating a well balanced food. How you make those choices depends on what you imbibe from your culture and, of course, the environment you grow in. What I meant is, the physical environment. Nature bestows all regions well providing the same nutrition in a different format. So, you eat well, you grow well & be healthy!

Body Constitution & Identity

The fact that a person is lean, overweight or obese is partly affected by the diet s/he consumes. Modern research suggests, obesity can be caused by supplying less than required calories to body as well. It indicates, less diet doesn’t mean lean. Balanced diet, right portion, correct frequency of diet intake is the key along the important counter balance of physical activity. People judge others by how they look. Even though we do not subscribe to this notion, it is commonly observed that being lean is being healthy, being fit and hip. So, how you look is a part of you identity in the society. And a good part of it is controlled by what you consume.

Healthy Outcomes & Longevity

We hear about Mediterranean diet as a magical diet for health. We also hear the stories of exceptional longevity of some of the populations like Japanese. A research conducted on all the cultures where longevity is common, revealed that they all consume certain foods in common. Beans, seafood, greens etc, etc., We cannot look longevity in isolation. Chances are, most of them are healthy too.

It also goes without saying that some of the plant based foods have healing and medicinal benefits as well. Turmeric, Ginger, Garlic, Cumin and the list goes on. Even today, a pepper decoction with ginger & mint leaves works wonders to cure my cold, rather than an over the counter medicine. So, for common ailments we choose use natural remedies than running to the medical store. We believe in the traditional wiscom that “Let Food Be Your Medicine and Medicine be Your Food”!  In Homeopathic (Ayurvedic) medicine system, a great emphasis is placed on controlling one’s diet to control one’s illness. And more often, many plant based medicines are prescribed for treatment of disorders and diseases.

General Well Being And Enjoyment of Life

Food we consume determines our health outcomes. It should not be given too much weight in the equation though, as other aspects like exercise and physical activity would play an equally important role along with the portion size of the food. But for now, we’re treating the food aspect of health.