What if the next bite you ate determined your outlook for the next three to six hours or six years? What if every time you ate you could eat in such a way that made you a more amazing person? Well, you can. The food you eat could remove biological and emotional barriers that are preventing the “real” you from showing up.
READ: Learn To Decode Your Food Cravings
I know that seems ludicrous and extreme, but how you respond and interact with the world is directly related to many factors, including your diet. Think about it. In the areas where crime is the highest or areas where children are generally performing below average in school, what do you find? You guessed it: poor food options. Research has shown that the quality of food you eat directly affects your outcomes in attitude, focus, emotions, weight, attention, your immune system, and energy, to name a few.
One of the interesting facts about fast food choices is that they often lack the essential vitamin folate. In fact, not only fast foods but most foods that have been thoroughly cooked. Folate is a necessary B vitamin used to help manage your mental and biochemical function.
It’s commonly found in leafy green vegetables, among other healthy plant-based choices. According to the Global Healing Center, ”Folate has a positive action on cardiovascular, neural and psycho-emotional health.” That being said, if there’s a lack of it in our diets, then no wonder we see more violence and poorer educational performance.
READ: Why You Should Drink More Than ‘Enough’ Water
If we take folate as one example and combine it with foods that are nutrient-empty, like bread or high fructose corn syrup, we’re making the problem even worse. Basically, we’re absorbing more drugs (man-made food) as experiments into our lives as subjects, not proven science.
READ: 11 Nutrients You’re Probably Not Getting Enough Of
Plan one full week of meals that contain leafy greens that are either raw (e.g., a salad) or lightly sautéed before every meal, including breakfast, and see how you feel at the end of the week. Provided you drink ample water, you will notice some differences in your thinking, body and even your stools.
Friends, this is real. We must garner a sense of urgency about our diets. Food has the power to drive us to death or awaken us to opportunities for our skills, gifts, and talents to shine.