It seems like the mind-body connection is receiving some mainstream attention lately. There’s a recent study that suggests if we imagine every chew and swallow of a food before eating it, we will eat less of that food. This, thanks to habituation, which is the main cue people use to stop eating. According to Michelle May (author of Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat), when you eat while you’re distracted, you’re not fully aware of the appearance, aromas, flavors, and textures of the food. Therefore, you may not habituate to it as you eat it or you may not notice that both your body and your brain have lost interest in the food. Instead, your hand may continue to move to your mouth automatically and unconsciously. At the end of eating, you’ll feel stuffed but strangely unsatisfied.
My personal belief includes a mind component as well: I think what you mentally attach to your food as you’re eating it has more to do with how it will affect you than the food itself. So if you’re eating a cookie and you attach guilt, depression or self-hate to it, that cookie is more likely to do damage than completely enjoying it and enveloping it with positive and joyful energy. We’ve all experienced that moment when someone orders dessert to share and you pick at it, telling everyone how you shouldn’t be eating it. But you continue picking, and continue feeling guilt. I think you’d be better off eating dessert and thoroughly enjoying it, being happy about it and feeling no guilt. Doing so will tune you in to the habituation that will tell you when you’re full or when you’re no longer as excited about the 20th bite.
Even without the focus on the affects of food, we should at least practice enjoying the foods we eat. How many times do we eat out of boredom, sadness or anxiety? It doesn’t matter what we’re eating at that point, because we’re not even tasting it. If you get mindful with eating, you’ll be less likely to abuse foods; it’s a win-win. So instead of thinking about all the reasons you shouldn’t be eating a certain food in front of you, try shifting your focus to all the reasons you should be eating it instead. And enjoy every bit of it!
