You Are What You Eat?
You are what you eat,your magnificent machine is, in fact, a symbiotic collection of diverse, yet related sub-systems, coordinated and operated by a three pound mass of wrinkled gray matter known as your brain. Every minute chemical change in one body system can adversely effect or benefit any or every other system. A small electro-chemical imbalance in our brain, our control system, can mean a near shutdown of our entire body. Precision balance is the standard mode of operation.
Why such a technical description of the human body? Simple; just like a finely tuned piece of electro-mechanical machinery, our bodies are sensitive to changes in inputs and outputs. The analogy is strikingly accurate. Our work quality and quantity output is in direct proportion to our food, drink, medicinal, sleep and other inputs.
The old computer adage of “garbage in, garbage out” is quite literally interpreted when it comes to our human body. Think before eating that fourth donut. What and when we eat has a great deal to do with our ability to learn, concentrate, remember, stay alert and perform tasks.
It has been alleged “human beings are actually a brain with a body to carry it around!” Sleep is for the brain. The brain is an electro-chemical masterpiece of Divine design, operating perfectly in equilibrium. Everything that you consume affects your brain chemistry. Too much simple sugar or saturated fat and you will fall asleep. You must learn to eat sensibly and strategically for whole life and brain health. The quality, quantity and timing of our eating can be critical to our performance. Inordinate quantities of the wrong foods will most certainly hinder our learning capabilities. If our brains are sensitive to small chemical changes, then our eating and drinking habits, causing sometimes huge chemical reactions in our brains, will most certainly affect our ability to learn and perform tasks adequately. Awareness of these elusive facts can aid us in maintaining peak performance.
Our job performance and income will suffer as a result. On the other hand, if we eat and drink strategically, we assure ourselves of maintaining a high-level state of learning and earning. First, get the proper amount of sleep. You will certainly enjoy the added energy a fit body provides. Eat complex carbs like fresh, whole fruit, garden-fresh vegetables and whole wheat bread. Drink soymilk and lots of water to flush out your system. Eat lean meats and fish in reasonable quantities. Limit sweets and caffeine. Eliminate your consumption of simple processed sugar and flour, especially foods containing high fructose corn syrup. Stay clear of trans-fats as well. Look at the labels on foods, paying particular attention to serving sizes. You may be shocked to learn what you actually have been feeding your body and brain. Look at the chemical additives. Many commonly eaten foods lack any substantial nutritional value yet will most assuredly slow you down and add to your girth. Some common examples are french fries, soft drinks, ice cream, potato chips, big cookies, fast food hamburgers and so on. These are not quality brain foods.
By Daniel Sitter
