Here I am back at the keyboard with so much in my head I can’t get it out fast enough.
I’ve been doing some thinking about how to get more nutrition out of the food available to most of us. And I have [lots of] questions I’d love to get your feedback on.
When we consume food that is not homemade (let’s say we’re at a restaurant), how are we affected by how the preparers were feeling at the time they made the food?
Does food “feel” different if we’re at a hoity-toity restaurant? Fast food? Freshly prepared at a grocery deli?
How does the food affect your mood when you eat quickly versus having a slow relaxed meal?
How does the quality of the food affect your mood? Your energy, your enthusiasm for life?
Have you ever thought about this stuff before?
Imagine making a meal when you’re angry and the same meal when you’re feeling warm and fuzzy. Which would YOU rather eat? Why?
Which feels better before you sit down to a meal? An argument or a hug? What do you notice?
Remember “here’s a topic” from Saturday night live? Ok, discuss.
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Jake
444 days ago
Great post and I feel really cvcointed since I have been complaining about my children’s attitudes for this exact reason lately and though I don’t give in often, I do sometimes because it is easier.The rule in our home is that our kids must take a no thank you bite. They have to try one, normal size, bite, chew it, swallow it, and if they don’t like it, they can say no thank you. When there is dessert to be had, they only may have some if they eat all their food but I usually will refrain from giving them something I KNOW they don’t like, or only give them a little of something if I am unsure if they like it.They may have seconds, but only if they eat all the food on their plate, or, have at least eaten a no thank you bite of the disliked food, and eaten everything else. I only serve healthy foods for dinner as well, so that way if they dismiss one item, there are still eating nurtritionally sound. I worry too, that my kids aren’t getting enough to eat somedays, and they are both skinny minnies, so I try to avoid sending them to bed without dinner however, when I occassionally DO give in to giving them something else it is always something plain, and blah because we do have the rule that if you don’t eat what I make for dinner, you don’t eat. This isn’t a restaurant. If they are genuinely hungry though, and they don’t like what I made after trying a few bites, and there is no other alternative item with the dinner (I will sometimes make one dish meals when in a hurry like chili, or certain soups) then I will allow them to have something like a plain piece of bread, or a mozzerella cheesestick. Nothing exciting, nothing special, just something to fill a little space in their tummy. Something else that I always like to remind people of too is that it takes SEVERAL (some studies I’ve read say 21 or more!) exposures to new foods for the child/person to accept/like them sometimes. So, just because your child turns away carrots once or even 10 times, does not mean they don’t like them. Now, an older child, who tries them 5 times, and REALLY tries them, can probably be assumed that they just don’t care for the taste, but a younger child needs to continually be presented with the food so that they do not have an extermely limited (and most likely un-healthy) diet when they are adults. Thank you for this post. I had forgotten that I wanted to start teaching the kids to be gracious guests when in other’s homes as well, so thank you for the reminder!