Psychotherapeutic effect of food: How we are changed by what we eat

Food has become a matter of prestige. Great attention is paid to famous chefs, dieticians' advice, new restaurants and culinary shows. We seemed to be subjected to mass insanity - obsession with what we eat. But the question of what we need from food, in addition to satisfying hunger, rises rarely. This question may even seem strange. But after all, food is not only fuel, it can also satisfy psychological needs. We can say that food has psychotherapeutic potential.

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Each type of food has not only food value (what you see on the label). In addition to calories and nutrients, food carries in itself what can be called psychological value. Any food can have its own individuality, it can turn into a miraculous person. You could attribute her gender, appearance, mood and political views.

Take, for example, a lemon: for 100 g it contains 29 kcal, 2.8 g of fiber, 2.5 g of sugar and so on. But, on the other hand, this fruit calmly, but eloquently speaks about the south, the sun, honesty and simplicity. He calls for action, concentrating your attention. Lemon is strong and honest, kind and simple.
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Food is a philosophy of life that is available during the usual meal. Instead of being limited to physical absorption, you can intuitively comprehend the psychological aspects of products. Then the food will not be just for replenishing energy, but for the development of certain situations.

Tell you how food can help you on a psychological level.

1. To achieve balance

All of us are in some degree in an imbalance. Someone is too rational, the other is too emotional, someone has problems with the balance of masculine and feminine, and it is difficult for someone to determine when peace is appropriate and when it is excitement. The food we love often compensates for this imbalance.

The reason for your eating habits is that this product meets the quality that you so lack. Perhaps you like muesli, because they are filled with the calm that you so admire, but you can not cultivate in yourself. And your favorite person adores peaches, because he lacks romance in your relationship. Food that seems tasty indicates what your soul lacks, not just your stomach. Products can help you become a more complete version of yourself.

2. Reconnect with important qualities of your personality

We are complex, multilevel creatures. And not every essential part of our personality lies on the surface at any time. In the turbulent flow of what is happening around it is so easy to lose touch with yourself.

The ability of certain products to evoke memories makes them powerful channels for creating useful associations. Proper food can give access to forgotten emotions. Perhaps someone is eating fast food from a street kiosk to internally stay in touch with an eight-year-old. And you, maybe, need a special sort of ham to return that energy that you had on a trip to Spain several years ago.

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Through food, everyone can reconnect with the important qualities of his personality, which is so easy to lose in the rhythm of modern life.

3. Change your life

Products bear a philosophical approach to life (be kinder, remember good, learn courage, and so on).
When you try to change your life, and this should happen quite often, food can make its contribution to the act of internal transformation.

This does not mean simply "dieting", as if the only thing that you need to change in life is your weight. You can turn to food for help in living more consciously, have a deeper connection with others or be more involved in the life of your country. Your food can support you on the path to what you want to become.

4. Compensate the lack of faith

One of the useful properties of religion is the presence of rituals: at certain dates you must turn to important ideas and experiences. It is remarkable that many of these rituals are organized around the feast and the menu is often limited to certain products, because they help to concentrate on important points.

For example, Zen Buddhists recall the importance of friendship over a cup of tea, which they are meaningly brewed and drunk very slowly. In ancient times for Christmas, believers served a lamb's table - a noble but vulnerable creature. Jews used fresh matzo and bitter horseradish to remember the courage of those who decided to flee Egypt.

Religion through food teaches us to lead a right life. This is definitely a useful idea: food can inspire you to the right thoughts and feelings.

You can find your own food associations: combine your own life priorities with a specific meal that contains the necessary properties. And then regularly eat such food, creating a ritual.

5. Identify the path to individuality

At the beginning of life you are given food, deciding what is best for you. And often this choice is not entirely correct. For many years you eat at all, not what can make you happier, but what is familiar.

The process of individualization, as opposed to passive existence, involves setting up the environment in accordance with its own inner world. The ability to cook plays an important role in this process, since it helps to bring what is happening in the body, in accordance with what is happening in the soul.

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It is necessary to stop passively swallowing what the world teaches, and to learn to determine what your body really needs.

6. Communicate more effectively

Not everyone can easily handle the words. You want to clearly state the idea, but get confused? Do you want to thank someone, but do not find the right words?

What is difficult to express verbally, you can show by eating at the table. Penne with fresh basil can replace the essay on love. Mushrooms cooked on the grill can tell about your hospitality. Fried chicken will become an excellent symbol of harmony in the family. A sorbet of mango with black chocolate reflects the most utopian views. Like music, food is extremely accurate, it can express the most important things without words.

If you want the food to benefit not only the body, but also the soul, try the recipes offered on the Food as Therapy website.

For example, my day goes awry if I do not eat a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. At the same time, the turmoil of everyday workers makes me tired quickly - usually only in the first half of the day. For this case, usually offered is tomato bruschetta. I really like bruschettes, but I rarely supplement bread with bread. Perhaps, next time I will not deny myself the pleasure of dinner, so that in the second half of the day successfully cope with work matters.

Perhaps, you already have some food rituals that help in everyday life? Share in the comments.

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