Physical Nutrition and Spiritual Nourishment

I've recently realized some interesting correlations between physical nutrition and spiritual nourishment. And since I'm linking this site to others, where people may not be aware of my diet changes, I will go ahead and reiterate a few things.

I've started to "Eat Clean" which means getting rid of all high fructose syrup in your diet, limiting simple, refined grains and sugars, and purging yourself of all processed and packaged foods. Tosca Reno, the author of the book The Eat Clean Diet and the face of Eating Clean, refers to these foods as "Anti-Food" because of its lack of life-sustaining nutrients and abundance of calories, fat, and sodium. When one consumes "anti-foods" they think they are supplying their bodies with adequate nutrition, when in reality they are only supplying it with the bare minimum to keep the body building cells.

The primary purpose of eating, in fact, is NOT to stave off hunger, but to supply the body with amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and of course water, to build cells. Hunger, is virtually a symptom of starvation, of your body's need for nutrients to build cells. Since anti-foods do not have the proper balance of nutrients and is filled with non-nutrients, they are converted to fat that the body stores. In fact, the body thinks it is starving because the cell production is in fact starving. The good cells in our body are starved for proper nutrition. So our body craves. And because we've been conditioned to think that sugar is a nutrient, thats what we feed it again.

And the real problem with anti-food is that it supplies the body with something we all like. Instant Gratification. Sure, along with instant gratifcation comes the impending crash. After such a sugar high, the bodies insulin levels rise and then fall, in the worst case resulting in a diabetic coma, but typically just resulting in sluggishness or grogginess. But that's what more sugar is for. In fact, now there are supplements and "medications" just for that feeling. Products like Nodoze, 5-hour Energy, and Red Bull, all exist because of our cultures dependency on instant gratification food.

But when you supply your body with a balanced mixture of lean protein and complex carbohydrates from whole grains, fruits, and vegetables and plenty of water at regular intervals of 2-3 hours, HUNGER STOPS. Cravings Stop. Fullness and vitality, energy and wellness start.

Now, lets compare this to religion and spirituality. How much "anti-food" are we feeding our spirits? In fact what is the "anti-food" of our spiritual bodies? Entertainment like television, movies, and music? Activites like sports, shopping, and sex? Material things like clothing, cars, houses? All of these are forms of instant gratification that sate our tastebuds, perk up our emotional insulin, and can result in devestating crashes.

I would even go so far to say that "Christian" entertainment, activities, and material objects can be forms of "anti-food." Really, it depends on how these things are used. It's not that all these things are bad. And in moderation some of these things are necessary (unlike high fructose corn syrup). But if one is properly nourished, cravings won't occur, or will occur with less frequency.

So the question becomes what would happen if we found real spiritual food, and fed ourselves every 2-3 hours? What kinds of changes would occur? When I switched to Eating Clean, just two months ago, I began losing weight. I've lost a little over 10lbs and a few inches. My once tight pants are now loosening, and I'm feeling more confident about my appearance. What kind of parallels could be found in the spiritual body? Would our spirits lose the weight of depression, low self esteem, and stress?

Of couse, throughout this process, there have been symptoms of detox. Headaches and digestion issues have tempted me to stop. What kinds of spiritual headaches could happen? Then there's peer pressure. It's awkward enough having to explain my new diet to my friends and family. What about explaining religion and spirituality? And of course there's also the sheer inconvenience of it all. It takes a lot of work to change. A lot of planning has to happen on a daily basis to make sure that I have everything I need to get me through the day. I carry larabars (awesome, awesome fruit and nut bars!), and if it weren't for having a full-sized refrigerator at work, I'd be lugging around a cooler all day. Imagine how much less fun it would be to lug a bible? (Of course, with my iPhone, I pretty much have a bible with me at the touch a screen...) But I think these downsides are worth it, at least as far as my diet is concerned. And they may very well be worth it spiritually.

In reality, I believe that the Eat Clean lifestyle can set an example for your whole life. Once such a major lifestyle change has happened, one can see how easily changes can be made in other areas of ones life. Just think about what would happen if you applied this way of change to other aspects, housekeeping, bill pay, homework/studies, work, exercise, and of course your spiritual walk with God.