Overeating and Aging

Eating is a way to express who you are. The enjoyment of eating food and the company we keep, family, friends brings us inner joy and happiness. This process is repeated over and over again in our lives. Thank goodness!

As we age, overeating becomes a problem. This goes hand in hand with a decreased amount of exercise and a slower metabolism. The result is becoming overweight, causing: Obesity, High Blood Pressure, Diabetes. It causes weakness and upsets our digestive system. All of this accelerates the aging process.

The Hypothalamus is the part of our brain that produces nerve cells that, when they are activated, they produce a sensation of hunger. Blame it on the Hypothalamus!!!

Habitual overeating, especially of meat and strong flavors, will inflame the lining of the stomach. Excess heat in the stomach cause’s overeating, but when we can break the overeating cycle, one still must change their daily habits. This bad habit can become imbedded in the body’s cells and organs over many years. Overeating is habitual “unconscious eating. ”

Start out by changing your diet to eating raw vegetables and fruits regularly to cool the stomach. Celery is a very good choice. Think of eating “greens, vegetables, ” as a way of giving your body sunshine.

To start with, reduce the consumption of foods that inflame the stomach: meats, fried or oily food, These are acidic foods that become toxic to our bodies. This is what causes inflammation which in turn causes disease.

Practice the art of CHEWING. Eating starts with the basic art of chewing. Chew you food well to polarize your food in order to make digestion easier, and food process better. Carbohydrate digestion begins in the mouth. Proteins, require a longer digestive process, that can actually keep you up at night, if you indulge to late on a nice big steak dinner.

Avoid eating when you are worried, angry, standing, watching TV, and reading. Eating is a time to nurture your body. Give attention to the quality of food that you are eating. I like eating the food that I cook on a white plate. I do that, because it makes the food look more enticing to eat. All of the colors of the vegetables, herbs, and seasonings, even fresh ground pepper show through. It is a great experience to enjoy your food, savor the moment!

When you start to feel full, push your plate away!! No seconds. Try to eat 3 meals per day. Make these meals Breakfast and Lunch, save the evening meal for the smallest. and eat it 3 hours before bedtime. This helps with digestion. Make it a simple meal that consists of a lean protein, scrambled eggs and some veggies, clear broth soups with lots of veggies, (small portion and no meat), or just a simple salad to get you through the night and keep your blood sugars stabilized.

Drinking with meals dilutes your digestive juices, so my advise is to drink some water before eating. As we age we lose the abilities to properly digest our foods.

Drinking water is what purifies our systems, so there is no need to drink to much while eating your food.

The food eating schedule should look like this:

Your first meal should be between 7-9 am (a moderate sized meal containing lots of vegetables, fruits, and protein)

Your second meal should be between 11-1 pm (the largest and the best variety of cooked and raw foods, and lean protein. Grilled salmon, chicken, turkey) Grilled vegetables, and cold vegetables. Fruit should be berries.

Your evening meal should be between 4-6:30 pm (smaller and include a protein)

To ultimately live longer I can promise you that Exercise is the key as we get older! Exercise has been found to increase endorphins, the body’s natural opiate, which makes us feel happy and positive. It decreases the development of Parkinson’s disease, lowers blood pressure, stimulates our immune system, lowers depression, and leads us to a much better sleep at night. Fresh air and exercise, I recommend a brisk walking routine.

It is ultimately our choices to make. If you want to live a long happy life, do the work. Your family and grandchildren will appreciate your efforts, and you will also be setting an example to them as to how to live their lives when they get older.

…remember to make a memory everyday, and don’t apologize for who you are…Rebecca