It's not breaking news saying that our society is totally mad.

War between religion, actions of humans on the planet, sit-and-screen lifestyle...

There are plenty of issues showing that we are cutting off the branch we are sitting on.

But here, I just want to mention food madness.

 

Why?

1. Food and mind are related to each other. 

Emotions are driving food choices: people eat more in crisis situations because it alleviates the painful emotions associated with it (H. Bruch, 1940). Thus, one in three people would eat more in stressful situations.

In return, food affects behaviour: an interesting study shows that a diet richer in essential nutrients decreased aggressive behaviour of young prisoners (B. Gesch, in The British Journal of Psychiatry, 2002)

 

2. The benefits of food on health and mental balance is a subject that interests me personally, so I did my own experiments. 

As a food lover, I'm curious to discover new tastes from all over the world. Furthermore, while travelling, local gastronomy says a lot about a culture.

 

3. When it is time to eat, the food that's on our plate has a long story.

This story could be the one of the small lettuce seed that had grown up slowly, from the energy of light and love, to end its life among chicken chunks in a gravy Caesar salad, that sadly rots in a bin of a Walmart supermarket because of an expired date... But no. This is not this story.

This one is quite special because it starts with the same thought in the mind of all characters.

And all of us have the same one every day: "What will I eat tonight?"

Yet everything is possible. An entire universe of possibilities...

 

 

 

Thursday 26th January 2017, 19h12, Monoprix, Paris XIeme

 

Patrick has just finished another long sedentary day, his mental energy is underground. He has only one thing in mind: to get his frozen pizza as fast as possible before crashing down in front of his favourite TV show.

As he carries out his belly toward the cash desk, he hits Elisa's shoulder, but he was too disturbed by the bad feeling that the sight of a long queue gave him to realize it.

 

Elisa doesn't notice the shock either. She is deeply absorbed by the wide choice of pasta in front of her. After 6 mins of total confusion, her hand drops the "No-Gluten" pack in the basket, besides the fashion magazine she was reading 20 mins before. Even though she doesn't really know what gluten is, she has heard that it is bad for you. This is enough to make her pay the package price of 5.5€  despite her student's income that doesn't allow her to heat her flat as she'd like to.

As she is heading to grab some sauce, Elisa doubt about her choice, but her blurred mind forgets everything when her eyes meet those of Antoine's.

 

Elegant and athletic the young man seems to have everything for himself. Except for happiness maybe.

Antoine has been on a ketogenic diet for almost a year now. It means that he allows himself only high protein and good fat meals. And on the physical side, this has shown good results. On the physical side only.

While he is filling up his basket with minced beef, his phone rings. His wife wants to meet some friends at a restaurant tonight. The young man knows that it will be hard to share food that isn't recommended in his diet. He lies, breaking her heart, saying that he would rather rest home tonight.

Antoine looks down at the basket to make sure he has picked enough packs of protein for the week: 7,8,9.... when he feels the presence of someone behind him. As he turns back, the person disappears in the corner, like a ghost.

 

Like a ghost, Mikaela is hanging around. Her mind is at sea. She feels so weak that her head is spinning.

As she is bumping into Elisa, the latter feels that the girl looks familiar. "She looks similar to the girl that I thought pretty in my magazine. No, it can't be..." 

The bony young woman looks quite different in her fashion editorial pictures. Thanks to Photoshop which added colours in faces.

Sharing a look with Elisa, Mikaela is thinking: "This girl doesn't know all the frustration that a single picture requires, She must imagine my life as a dream". 

Trying to pick up an apple, Mikaela almost faints, but she pulls herself together:

"I don't have to be tempted now, this is the fashion week! Let's grab a 0% yoghurt and go home..."

 

Praising thinness, diets, phobias, misunderstandings, industrialization, are driving human's food choices.

We are getting disconnected from basic needs, nature, simple values and consistency.

So, what to avoid? What to eat?

 

 

 

What to avoid?

Chemical food has increased cases and types of allergies.

There is scientific agreement stating that chemically processed food is just unhealthy. 

But has a croissant killed someone yet?

Cutting out totally the food that one is deeply craving for, creates a pressure to succumb and a feeling of danger. Deciding that something has to be "strictly avoided", or keeping a rigid diet, can cause big frustration. If these choices are followed too extremely, this could increase the risk of psychological disorders.

For example, this famous calorie-restriction study reveals the impact of a strict diet on health. 

Respecting ourselves by making healthy (but tasty) everyday food choices and pleasing ourselves if we express the need to, seems to help mental balance.

 

What to eat?

I don't know the truth, I know a truth that fits me, and won't maybe suit everybody but still, I'd like to share it. I'm eating vegetarian food, (based on whole grains, peas & beans, fruits & veg, seeds & nuts) and organic when I can afford it.

The following values drive this choice:

 

Ethic

Humans don't need to eat animals to survive and live happily. Therefore, why kill other species? Why do humans think their life is more important than the lives of other animals?

“The time will come when men such as I will look upon the murder of animals as they now look on the murder of men.”, Leonard de Vinci.

 

Ecological

Meat consumption is a disaster for the whole planet (here).

Locality: Choosing products that come from nearby, has less impact on the planet

"Why going for Spanish tomatoes when some are growing a few km from here? 

Because it is (absurdly) 20cts cheaper?".

Seasonality: Earth gives the food human needs for the season.

"Why cooking tomato & mozzarella salad when it's -10° outside? Do the body and the mind really need/want that? "

 

Economical

Buying products because they are trendy and so-called "healthy".

"Why taking quinoa when millet is twice cheaper? Because it's slightly faster to cook? Because the recipe book told me to do so?"

The success of quinoa is a disaster for the environment and producers.

 

Health

I could mention countless scientific articles that evoke the benefits of vegetarianism. But sometimes one sentence from the best is enough:"I've found that a person does not need protein from meat to be a successful athlete. In fact, my best year of track competition was the first year I ate a vegan diet", Carl Lewis.

Furthermore, unhealthy food choices promote not only weight gain but are also related to increasing the risk factor of mental disorder (depression, dementia), while healthy diet suggests the opposite.

 

Pleasure

We often picture healthy food as raw veggies standing on a plate without dressing. 

But healthy food can be delicious and comfortable...

Ben and Mike were also at Monoprix at the same time.

Even though they don't know each other, they have one thing in common: they will have lasagna tonight.

While Ben is going for white flour lasagnas, beef, tomato can and frozen cheese.

Mike has a different recipe: he will cook wholewheat lasagnas mixed with sweet potatoes, lentils, homemade tomato sauce and organic emmental. Of course, Mike will pay more than Ben that evening. But Mike uses his brain to think. So he will cook a bigger meal to save time and money for the next lunch. Unfortunately, Ben thinks with his belly. During the night, he had a hard time to digest his meal. For the next lunch, Ben will buy a small processed sandwich and a soda at the next cafeteria. 

Ben and Mike spent the same amount of money for the dinner and the lunch, but not at the same time on the toilet.

 

Flexibility

Trying to respect all the principles above in the store, only a few groceries will be bought, or hours will be spent hesitating between products.

Flexibility means pertinence and adaptation.

Buying organic bananas for ecological and health reasons can maybe be reconsidered when they are overpriced. 

 

 

 

Why not vegan?

The dairy industry is nasty and cruel. There are alternatives for milk as soy, rice, oat, almond, hemp, coconut are an ethical and ecological solution. Even though they don't contain as much calcium than cow's milk, you can find calcium in other foods. Nowadays, the plant-based industry is growing really fast, launching a wide range of different cheese, yoghurt, butter that are free from cruelty.

If you are not willing to eliminate dairy products and/or eggs totally for flexibility reasons, choosing organic products contribute greatly to the health and on animal's welfare, even though this is not always the case (1,2). The best would be to know the farmer himself and his way of production (or to start farming yourself maybe!)

 

 

 

 

Where to start?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

REFERENCES

- Bruch, H. (1940). Obesity in childhood: III. Physiologic and psychologic aspects of the food intake of obese children. American Journal of Diseases of Children, 59(4), 739-781.

- Gesch, C. B., Hammond, S. M., Hampson, S. E., Eves, A., & Crowder, M. J. (2002). Influence of supplementary vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids on the antisocial behaviour of young adult prisoners. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 181(1), 22-28.