Food – Eating for health, longevity and high performance.
Food is something which is ideally a source of enjoyment, sustenance and nourishment and social pleasure. But in practice for many people is a source of frustration, confusion and guilt cycles of abstinence and indulgence, or an afterthought at the end of a busy day.
Whether you are driven by pleasure and reward eating, a desire to be healthy, eating for convenience, or fitting in with a family’s desire, food can often be another chore on an already full to do-list. I love Italy and Greece and the Mediterranean culture of food as a source of joy, social connection and pleasure, while giving what many consider to be an ideal diet to follow for longevity and good health. Food can be confusing as there is a lot of conflicting information about what we “should” eat, and as aware consumers we need to be mindful of “big food” corporate interests which influence many official recommendations.
Regardless of what dietary style if any you choose to follow, be aware that it is generally not healthy to choose to eat in a restrictive way that removes major food groups, unless it is processed, artificial “frankenfoods” which are not real food at all.
Broad recommendations:
• Eat locally - ideally fresh and organic or chemical-free direct from the growers at farmers markets
• Eat seasonally, as above, DO NOT buy “fresh” fruit and vegetables imported from overseas. If it was in season, you would buy it from Australia
• Live in alignment with Circadian rhythms – yes I know you probably don’t but it is hugely beneficial to work with the natural cycles of blue light during the day and red light sunrise and sunset. Limit your screen time in the evenings, get outdoors very early in the morning, by first light ideally, turn lights right down at sunset, eat 2-3hrs before going to bed.
• Eat minimally processed wholefoods in a natural state. I cook most everything from scratch, or read ALL labels to ensure it is real ingredients like I would make myself
• Get lots of fibre. I mean a LOT, mostly from plants, vegetables are your best friend! Get a Nutri bullet and blend, (not juice), puree, and grate to aid digestion, and slowly increase intake. Our ancestors ate up to 150 grams of vegetable fibre daily, many people are lucky to eat 15 grams daily. You should be eliminating nearly as often as you eat.
• Eat small to moderate amounts of high-quality protein with each meal. If you eat animal protein aim for a plate that is one quarter protein, one quarter whole grains, and 2/4’s vegetables or salad. If you are vegan getting sufficient protein is challenging, many vegans err on eating too much sugar as the high carbohydrate intake disrupts their blood sugar levels • Cook, or learn how
• Eat for your genetic heritage and blood type – evolution happens slowly and we are designed to eat basically the same as what our ancestors ate 3 generations ago. Modern fad diets are NOT helpful
• What you drink is hugely important – Eliminate drinks containing sugar, especially soft drinks, artificially sweetened anything, fruit juice, sports drinks (if you are an athlete use electrolyte formulas in water) and flavoured milks
• Together with this, aim for a maximum total intake of sugars of 6 teaspoons per day (this is one glass of orange juice!)
• I know this one will be sooo popular – don’t drink coffee, or maximum one per day once you’ve been up and active for a few days. The polyphenol absorption to the brain (which is the only reason to drink it) works best with cream, not milk…..You have no idea of your true energy levels till you give up caffeine
• Get 8 hours of quality sleep most nights – yes I know you think you don’t need that much, but most people do, and you will feel infinitely better for it
• You don’t need to “Biohack” – your body is exquisitely designed and intricately self regulating, just live in alignment with nature. The best Biohack you can do is free, go to the beach, walk barefoot on the sand, swim in the ocean and get early morning sunshine on bare skin. I wrote a scientifically researched paper which highlighted many reasons why this is so – it is available here
• Eat with gratitude, appreciation and enjoyment – I bless my food and give thanks every meal to the plants, trees and animals who provide for us (yes plants are sentient beings too). And especially eat food you enjoy, the healthiest food is cooked with love, eaten with pleasure, shared and savoured. I will happily eat any piece of home baked goodness
Eating for high performance, mentally and physically- Do you have trouble with difficulty concentrating or having creative thought, brain fog, food cravings, energy crashes especially mid afternoon (look at your breakfast), mental stimulation, difficulty with emotional regulation and mood swings? All of these can generally be reversed with dietary and lifestyle changes, and optimal hydration
What I eat – A natural wholefood diet very high in plants (produce, not beans, and not too much fruit) with a combination of broadly Paleo / Ancestral diet. A big “green drink” - blended green vegetables and a little colourful fruit in a base of green tea daily - eggs, organic full cream dairy, fats of grass fed butter, avocado, extra virgin olive oil, lots of fish, small amounts of free range / grass-fed animal protein, in winter some beans and whole grains in stews and soups, (less in summer when I eat mostly salads), herbs, spices especially ginger, Celtic sea salt, cacao and a little dark chocolate, nuts and seeds, organic spelt sourdough bread, raw honey and stevia for sweetening
What I drink – lots of purified water with lemon and a little bit of sea salt, 1 strong cup of organic black tea mid-morning, herbal teas, green drink, no alcohol. We are designed to be about 70% water, but by number of molecules water makes up 99% of our total physiology, optimal cellular hydration is crucial for energy levels, vitality, mental function and long term health.
Food allergies are not normal, nor are skin rashes, digestion issues, hay fever, headaches, constipation and the many other things people go to pharmacies for (I have worked in both Pharmacies and Health food stores over the years). They are symptoms of a deeper underlying issue / issues which your GP is unlikely to uncover in a 10 minute consultation. See someone who will get to the root causes
Understand how important your Microbiome (the total of the bacterial/viral/fungal composition of your body) is – this is a whole blog post in itself, but it may shock you to know that you have approximately 50% more (research estimates vary greatly, but it’s a lot) microbial DNA than you do human DNA. We have evolved over 3 billion years in harmony with these and they are essential elements of our health and well-being, they literally influence everything, especially what we desire to eat and drink. Eat junk food and you get junk food loving bacteria……eat vegetables and you get vegetable loving bacteria, yes it takes only 3 days for your microbiome to change when you change diets, for better or worse. I warmly suggest you make it for the better.