With the recent media hack job and witch-hunt of celebrity chef Pete Evans – that has an all too familiar flavour of what the highly reputable Universal Medicine has also suffered from the media for promoting healthy living – it feels very timely to express a few things about my food experiences.
Firstly, one does begin to question what is at play when the media challenges the promotion of healthy eating and self-care, especially when you look at the appalling statistics of world-wide obesity, illness and disease that is increasingly on the rise.
How dare one empower themselves to feel what is right for them to eat, and feel so much more vital and healthy as a result!
Now I am not one for diets and I do not follow a ‘Paleo’ diet like Pete Evans advocates because quite frankly ‘diets’ are driven from the head and do not consider how one feels after eating and our relationship with food – such important aspects to look at if one is aspiring to healthy eating. However, if there is a diet that comes the closest to my style of eating, it would be a Paleo diet because of my choice to eliminate gluten, grains, dairy and refined sugar. I also chose to eliminate alcohol and caffeine because I didn’t like the way they made me feel. The choice to make these decisions was because I valued feeling great every day, and it made more sense to listen to my body than any so called ‘expert’ dietician, book or mass imposed dietary guidelines. Surely it makes sense for every individual to stylise their diet based on their individual needs.
Since being introduced to Serge Benhayon and the teachings of Universal Medicine, I have never been told what to eat by them, nor would I let anyone have that power over me.
No one before Serge Benhayon had presented the notion to ‘feel what to eat’. This was a revelation in itself and an empowerment back to me to trust what my body had already been communicating to me.
What Universal Medicine has given me is so valuable – presenting information that made sense about food, the body and energy. As I always do, I simply tried things for myself and let my body tell me what felt right for me. And I knew that what felt right for me wasn’t necessarily what felt right for another… so I could only discover this for myself. It’s a work in progress as I discover and let go of patterns of emotional eating and beliefs about food that I had taken on.
Personally, I have had a fairly healthy diet for most of my life, but couldn’t quite understand why my moods and energy levels would fluctuate on a daily basis. Whilst there would have been many contributing factors as a result of choices of how I was living, I can now really appreciate how important it is to feel what to eat. Food can dramatically impact my day in the way that it impacts how I feel – it can ‘take me out’ or ‘lift me up’.
One hour after eating is a great gauge of what foods are right for my body and which ones are not. The more I listen to what my body is telling me after each meal, the more it teaches me about what is right for my body. Not just what I eat, but how much I eat and the energy I am in when I eat.
From first hand experience I can now confidently say…
- the consumption of alcohol is poisonous to my body and one of the most un-loving things I can do to myself
- gluten makes me tired and just about falling off my chair
- dairy clogs my sinuses and forehead and I can’t think to save myself
- too much sugar gets me fired up for about an hour or so and then I’m useless for the rest of the day because again I’m just about falling off my chair
- caffeine gets me even more fired up with zing, but also makes my hands shake and a few hours later I well and truly have fallen off my chair!
I applaud people like Serge Benhayon for not holding back in sharing information on matters of diet and wellbeing that are very clearly having enormous benefits to so many.
What is really going on when the media attempt to shut down those who are encouraging healthy eating? It doesn’t make sense, right?
But when I look at it from the perspective that what is being attempted to be shut down is the value of what one feels in the body, in favour of textbook theories and dietary guidelines – then I can understand. I understand because those who have vested interests in the plethora of beliefs and ideals held in the food industry stand to lose much should the consumer begin to listen to and care for their body.
To discredit the value of what the body communicates does not make sense to me anymore. To ignore the messages of the body in favour of the many dishes of knowledge we are served by the food and diet industries is allowing the corruption to continue.
A corruption that says what your body feels is not important.
We are living in a world where ‘everything is energy’ first and foremost. How the body responds to food cannot be ignored no matter what a textbook may say.
We live in a world that has a high rate of illness and disease that is not slowing down: this also cannot be ignored and clearly shows that the medical system does not have all the answers.
However, when you look at the students of Universal Medicine who have made lifestyle changes that include their diet, they are going against global trends and looking/feeling very vital indeed. How can this be?
What makes more sense?
- Following the recommended dietary guidelines or a specific rigid diet, that then leads to a way of eating that doesn’t feel great in the body.
OR
- Listening to how the body responds when one eats so as to make food choices that allow you to continue feeling great.
Please excuse my bluntness here, but it really is a no-brainer!
We live in a pluralistic society where everyone has free will to choose what to eat and drink. ‘Live and let live’ is a great motto… and from what I have observed, those who listen to their body are certainly living a far more vital and healthy life than those who do not.
At the end of the day the proof is in the faces of the people who are glowing with vitality and feeling great, which is why I always say… MY BODY IS THE BOSS!
By Marika Cominos, Yoga and Complementary Therapies Practitioner
Further Reading:
Jane Hansen, Pete Evans and “pseudoscience” – more of the same from Jane Hansen
The Diet Solution
True Nourishment
886 Comments
You know what is really interesting, you can advertise any fast food you like and no-one gets worked up about it even when we know the health effects of this, yet when someone presents something that is healthier, they get attacked relentlessly when it is clear it is much better for you than eating junk food. We do need to question why this happens. Seriously doctors will jump on board claiming it is scientifically not proven yet won’t blink an eye at alcohol or fast food ads- what is going on here?
Exactly…corruption always aligns with what doesn’t make common sense or be at the best interests for the people at large. Another example is the current case with Dr Garry Fetke, a Tasmanian Surgeon, who recommends that diabetic patients cut back their sugar/carbohydrate intake (LCHF) to improve their health. Despite the great results reported by the patients that do this and all the research that is out there that shows the harm that excess sugar does (i.e. Metabolic Syndrome that Dr Robert Lustig describes so well), there is a current AHPRA (Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency) investigation that is trying to shut him down and silence this good advice stating that it is out of his scope to advise such a thing!!! So lets instead not give good common sense advise that has helped so many people, and instead amputate body parts as a result from eating too much sugar/carbohydrates!! I’m so glad that more and more doctors such as Dr Garry Fetke are following common sense and putting their patients wellbeing first.
After giving up sugar some forty years ago I have now found that anything sweet has a similar affect on my body. So like dairy it was a slow evolving process that took many years to understand what my body was truly sharing and even today I have to listen closely to the signals from my body! This is great Marika and the start of a well-deserved discussion that should hold everyone’s interest so we can evolve.
‘How the body responds to food cannot be ignored no matter what a textbook may say.’ hear hear. There is no denying what the body shows, it can be over ridden or ignored but the body always shows us the truth about the foods we choose and eat.
Anything can be said, argued and believed in however, you will be the fruits of your labour – the results of choices and thus what you align to.
We can be sooo good at lying to ourselves and saying we love cakes, we love a glass of wine etc etc yet this is not coming from the body, the body would never agree to anything harmful to it.
Its hilarious that no-one is furious when a new McDonald’s or other fast food chain opens up or runs commercials, everyone is fine with that, even though we have an obesity epidemic, yet openly discuss a healthy way of being with food and you are shot down- its quite funny to observe what the world will avidly defend, we do have to ask why.
‘Food can dramatically impact my day in the way that it impacts how I feel – it can ‘take me out’ or ‘lift me up’ – this is so true. On numerous occasions, I have felt the affects of certain foods on my body, and the difference is more than noticeable. One minute I feel clear and awake, eyes wide open and feeling fresh, then after eating something like almonds my vision is blurred, my head feels heavy and foggy.
“What Universal Medicine has given me is so valuable – presenting information that made sense about food, the body and energy.” And what my body tells me about food, my body and energy is so valuable and just makes sense.
Our relationship with food is such an important element to either truly nurture and nourish our body or to indulge and disregard it. Feeling from our body how we react or respond to food enables us to develop our awareness to truly support ourselves.
As you say Marika, the only way forward is to actually listen to our bodies, because they definitely have a lot to say
‘One hour after eating is a great gauge of what foods are right for my body and which ones are not.’ That’s a great tip Marika, I am going to try that.
I know just the right foods to go to when I don’t want to deal with something, its crazy how cunning we can be in order to not be fully aware.
Choosing to listen to my body rather than my mind has transformed my relationship with food which continues to evolve as I become more sensitive to the messages from my body and continue to let go of ideals and beliefs and hurts that have sabotaged past attempts to eat in a way that supports my body. For me healing my deep seated exhaustion has been key as I still find that when I am tired I am more likely to make unsupportive choices including overeating.
Thank you for calling out the corruption and vested interests in the food industry and the media who have an underlying agenda when they attack people like Pete Evans and Serge Benhayon who are speaking out about the current norms of eating that leave so many numbed to the messages from their bodies with all the attendant medical problems that arise from this.
When people find out that I don’t eat bread or cakes and biscuits, don’t drink milk or coffee, that I don’t drink alcohol they either go into sympathy or shocked disbelief. What do you eat and drink then? they ask as if there is nothing left to choose from. My diet is hugely varied and I love to try new ways of cooking vegetables, meat and fish which I do all the time. I used to have substitutes for gluten and dairy in the form vegetable spread, coconut cream and almond or soya milk, honey or xylitol instead of sugar and did de-caff coffee for a while. I made cakes with free from ingredients but now, as my body becomes more sensitive and I become more respectful of its’ messages my diet becomes more refined. Sometimes I might want something from my former way of eating and it is then that I have to ask myself what’s going on. Have I lost my connection and am wanting something to fill the gap? Is it my body or my mind asking? Am I looking for something to satisfy my taste buds or something to nourish and nurture myself?
“My body is the boss” this is so true and when I try to be the boss and eat foods I know my body does not want, but I eat anyway because of the addictive added properties to some food, my body lets me know at a later stage. ” the body is the marker of all truth ” as presented by Universal Medicine. The body holds the truth of been nurtured and cared for or the truth of been over fed and un-nutured, The body lets us know whats the best choices are. No book will change this.
I fully agree Marika, my body is boss. Sometimes my head still thinks he is the boss, but this boss in charge leads to trouble each and every time.
I love the humour in this as for me it shows that claiming what my body feels is right for it even though others may disagree need not be a fight or a defending of my bodies feelings from attack. It can actually be light and joyous as the more I listen the more amazing I feel and I need not get defensive about such. If anything my body doesn’t like it when I tense up to defend myself.
A particular diet means that we use a set of rules instead of following our body’s intuition. That makes sense with a medical diet or when we are not able to discern but following our body’s lead can be much more powerful when we have learned how to do that.
It’s a shocker when someone doesn’t eat something like chocolate or chips out of choice, however as you’ve described Marika our relationship to food can be as simple as eating what we love, and not eating things that make us feel dense, bloated or heavy. Why compromise?
Yes, the body rewards us when we don’t compromise by having more energy and feeling better.
“My body is the Boss” – I love that. Our bodies speak very loudly to us when it comes to food, choosing what to eat and when to eat and what the body truly needs as nourishment is a science, and not a science you can study in a book but a science in which your body and day to day experiences are the manual.
Having never followed a recipe in my life and convinced I cannot cook, I have come to realise the greatest chef is the one that cooks from their body. The body just knows and great food that is healthy does not need to be boring!
Is it any wonder that we are confused when there is so much information out there that is saying do this do that in order to loose weight, and that promise dangling at the end of the stick that promises when you have lost the weight your life will magically be perfect – I know I used to think like this.
The best thing I ever did was stop dieting and to listens to my body, yes I listened very slowly and the weight did come off, very very slowly but my health improved enormously and life suddenly seemed less of a struggle as my health improved. Now my weight has been the same for four years and having gone from a UK size of 16 to 8/10 I feel I have reached my natural weight, as I was when a teenager but without the constant conversation in my head about dieting, exercise and loosing weight.
Our relationship with ourselves directly influences and affects our relationship with food. Listening to our body is crucial so that with awareness we have the clarity to know what feels supportive and nurturing for our body to maintain true health and well-being.
I have not tried the paleo diet, as I too now eat according to what I feel I need rather than being told what to eat by a diet. This can change each day depending on what my body needs for the stage of my cycle, the seasons and how I have been running my body. I really like the tool you use to assess if foods are good for you or not, by observing how you feel an hour after eating. I suspect that most people, like I used to be would not put 2 and 2 together an hour after eating. If we start to feel down or tired again, that’s when we mostly reach for another pick up. Instead it makes so much sense to start to observe what food does and make adjustments accordingly.
Our body is always the boss of what we eat, whether we like it or not. When you defy the boss and eat what your head says, or someone else says, the body is still the boss and it will respond accordingly if not listened to, with nausea, bloating, indigestion, heartburn, sluggishness, fat gain and so on.
I loved the blog Marika thank you for sharing, how huge is the food industry and its impact on our daily lives showing that with the increase in obesity and diabetes to name just a few that what they offer is not working, because it keeps us in our heads away from the intelligence the body offers. When we connect and listen to our bodies wisdom we become masters of our own healing and health.
Pete Evans and Serge Benhayon – Sarah Wilson is another – need to be applauded for their willingness to publicly question the role of certain foods in our lives, not denigrated. What they propose has health (and ultimately societal and economic) benefits that have the potential to radically alter the path of death by poor food choices we’re currently on.
If the current food pyramid and dietary recommendations were one of sound truth, we wouldn’t be experiencing globally growing waistlines. Our bodies speak more loudly than books when it comes to our choice of foods and what does and does not agree with us.
When we listen to our body it certainly has a lot to say, it tells us when to rest and sleep and when to eat and play ☺
A truly esoteric approach to food does not have rules, it has observation, feeling and making choices.
Go Harrison 🙂
Rules are strict, rigid and no fun. observation, feeling and making choices can be approached playfully when we allow ourselves to make mistakes.