Just in the last couple of weeks I have had numerous conversations about food. There have been questions about what I think about certain food plans or ‘diets’ and whole groups of foods like bread and how much to eat. Personally I grew up with bread, but what I class as real bread-a bread that keeps me full and feeling awesome. Yes, such a bread exists- naturally fermented sourdough bread. That used to be our staple in Germany. I never heard of any intolerances, yeast allergies or feeling bloated.
The other day I picked up a book on fermented food, because my in my heritage we always had fermented foods – sourdough bread fits well into this category. And we were never sick (other than the then standard childhood diseases like mumps, measles and chickenpox).
Fermented foods don’t seem to be very prevalent in the typical modern western diet. In fact I often get strange looks when I mention how much I like sauerkraut, pickled herring and just lately the Korean Kimchi.
In the quest to produce bigger and better food, and more of it at a cheaper price it seems that we have lost our care for wholesome nutrient dense foods. As a result we crave for all sorts of foods since our body still thinks it is starving. That means the belly is full but our cells are not getting sufficient nutrition.
What do I actually eat?
I eat sourdough bread if I eat any bread (strangely enough I can eat bread all day- that is for all my meals- and still feel great at the end of it). I eat raw as often as possible- 2-3 times fruit with raw egg, yoghurt and nuts/seeds and a few other super foods for breakfast, most days a big raw salad with some meat or canned or pickled fish for lunch and a bigger amount of veggies than meat and potatoes on my dinner plate. The remaining meals are usually some form of sourdough bread, sourdough toast or the like. I do like something sweet for afternoon tea (coffee) and a little something for desert with a cup of organic cacao, drunk black. I make my own afternoon tea in the form of a wholesome cake or muffin (organic floor, butter, coconut sugar-often less than the recipe suggests and whatever else is needed). I only have have a bit, usually with whipped cream. Dessert often looks like yoghurt with frozen berries and activated buckwheat crunch.
I do listen to when I am full and usually don’t try and fix any emotional pain with food or alcohol. I’m sure we all go through the emotional thing at times, so we may as well admit to that fact. It just helps to be mindful about what goes into our mouth. Really, I make as much of my own food as possible. That way I know I am in control.
I have found that eating in this fashion-and remembering that my heritage is European which means that most of my food should be of that heritage, has kept me really feeling well and full of energy.
I do strongly believe that it is important to eat according to your cultural heritage, because that is how our bodies have evolved. Asian people need to eat mostly traditional Asian foods, Indians mostly Indian (Curries, naan, lentils etc) and any indigenous and islander people really need to look for their traditional foods to be keeping as well as as they can.
We can all appreciate each others food and share it, but in the end it comes down to what our bodies need.
Just one thing in closing- the energy balance has to still be right no matter how healthy the food. If we eat more than we use, what we don’t use will still get stored around our middle as fat. That means: we can’t out-work poor portion control.