You are what you eat. This popular saying is so true. What it means, from a scientific point of
view, is that what we consume daily is directly used by the body to replenish cells. Since our bodies are composed mostly of water,
we need water first of all. In addition
to oxygen and hydrogen, we are largely made up of carbon and nitrogen. The better the food, the better our health. Food also influences our minds. Virginia Woolf noted, "One cannot think
well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well." If we are deprived of vitamins and minerals,
or if we are too fond of junk food, we will suffer for it. We might even get sick, as with diabetes,
cancer or clogged arteries. The effects
of diet start in the womb. If a mother's
diet is poor, or if she is a substance abuser, her baby will bear the
consequences. Bad eating habits, dependencies,
obesity, hyperactivity and even allergies are the tip of the Mind-Body iceberg. Mental disorders such as anxiety, depression and
dementia might be helped by attention to diet.
Alas, few Western doctors are formally trained in Nutrition. Psychologists might not even consider that
the brain, first of all, needs proper nourishment. When it comes to diet, many people assume
their bodies are mere vehicles that can take any quality of fuel so long as the
tank never reads Empty. We eat careless
food combinations in absurdly large quantities or else we starve ourselves in
order to "look good." We are
afflicted with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia while many on the
planet are dying of want. We devour diet
books and diet aids, and pay dieticians to tell us what any Mexican peasant
could. When it comes to food, we are crazy,
afflicted with cravings and given to binges.
The third circle in Dante's Inferno
is crowded with tormented souls who gave in to gluttony. Their punishment is to lie in stinking water
under the elements and be eaten alive by Cerberus, the three-headed dog. In Eastern philosophy there is another
painful dimension called the Hungry Ghost Realm, reserved for souls who are too
attached to their cravings; they suffer from non-stop hunger and thirst but are
never satisfied. I think of the obese
people who crowd America's "all-you-can-eat" buffets, a concept now
spreading in Italy. Criticizing fat
diners is as easy and cruel as shooting moose.
They are stuffing their "pie holes" (vulgar slang for mouths)
out of deep-seated need which can't be filled by overeating. "Food is emotion," I've just read in
the "Special Diet Section" of an Italian paper. Indeed, food and feeling loved are connected,
an association which began when we were infants, expecting, if not demanding,
milk from our mothers. Before we could
speak, we cried for attention, for the satisfaction of the nipple or pablum. Some mothers give too little, others too
much. It seems that what's going on in
our subconscious is what drives us.
Thoughts and emotions constantly contribute to our choices. What makes anybody crave anything, apart from
obvious triggers such as caffeine, nicotine, and chemical stimulants? It could be the comfort or company one hopes
to find in chocolate or ice cream, for example, or the constant rewards of ten
trips to the buffet. Yet for many of us,
enough is never enough. We consume our
oral gratification and are soon ready for more.
The dopamine effect quickly wears off.
Where do we place our attention when it comes to food? Do we care where it comes from or how it is
distributed? I myself am still haunted
by the sight of a cow weeping in a slaughterhouse, seen long ago on RAI
TV. Nor can I forget a scene from a documentary
about displaced Africans: When a mother
finally got hold of some pap to feed her emaciated child, he shook his head. Hours later, that poor child died beside the
road, unable to endure another painful day.
Are we constantly thinking about food?
Our figures? Chic new
recipes? Perhaps we need to start
watching our motives instead. Our bodies
are temples, not mannequins or machines.
Realizing that, we will eat right, and maybe even want to feed the less
fortunate. It wouldn't hurt us to learn
to fast either, lest we become slaves to our stomachs. Look at the birds of the air who neither sow
nor reap nor gather into barns, yet they are sustained, Jesus said. Are we not worth as much or more? His sacrifice is our answer. Praise God for living water and bread! Happy Easter, everyone. UN'AMERICANA A VENEZIA
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