The well-known postulate that we are what we eat, each of us interprets in his own way – usually implying the quality of products and the ability to cook them deliciously. However, nutritionists have their own opinion on this matter: in order to maintain the health of the body, you need to eat those foods that it is able to assimilate, and at the same time use them in such a way as not to force it to work through force. There are a few simple rules for this.
What do we eat?
One of the first and main rules, the observance of which will help improve the body, is to deal with your food tolerance. Every nation, every ethnic group has its own food culture, which has evolved over thousands of years. It is to this food, familiar in a particular region, that a person has a biological adaptation.
A modern civilized person has long ceased to pay attention to whether the products or dishes of his daily diet correspond to the food culture in which he was born and raised. By the way, parents' genes play a huge role in food tolerance. So, for example, if you were born in the Poltava region, but your father is Tatar, and your mother has Scandinavian roots, then you should not assume that dumplings with sour cream are the best for you. There may be different options – in accordance with the ethnic food culture of the parents, and to occupy their correct "food niche", knowing their nutritional capabilities is even more important than getting good genes from their parents.
What is the risk of non-observance of nutritional possibilities? The fact is that one of the components of a genetically determined food culture is a certain set of digestive enzymes and the composition of the intestinal flora, due to which normal digestion of food occurs. If a person's diet does not coincide with the physiological capabilities of his body, latent food intolerance occurs. The products that enter the digestive system are not fully absorbed, causing the immune system to react to the remaining undigested foreign proteins. As a result, inflammatory processes are formed in various tissues, chronic diseases occur.
The Chinese have an interesting ancient way of diagnosing: they throw a drop of the patient's blood on a hot stone, dry it and see what pattern formed, how it crystallized. So they see the protein composition of the blood. If it is supersaturated with protein, then the immune system is forced to defend itself against some kind of constant invasion of foreign agents, and it's time to ask the patient what he is eating.
How do we eat?
80% of the population of highly developed countries suffer from latent food intolerance to some extent. This unfortunate result is due to two reasons. First – the rapid development of food technology, chemicalization, an unusually wide choice and random combination of products. Second – the modern trend in nutrition: to strive to satisfy hunger, spending the minimum amount of time, effort and money.
The wrong combination and use of products leads to incomplete assimilation, which, again, provokes food maladaptation and health problems.
There is such a thing as the physiology of digestion. It describes fairly general mechanisms of food digestion. Our digestive system is incredibly flexible to different tasks, but incompatible foods require completely mutually exclusive conditions to digest. For some, an acidic environment is needed, for others – more alkaline. For some, a solid portion of bile is needed, for others it is not needed. For some, you need to raise the temperature, for others – no. In order to raise the temperature in the digestive system and attract blood there, it is necessary to somehow free from active work at least the brain. Therefore, something is better digested at rest, and something in an active state. In this regard, we must respect our physiological structure, including biological rhythms, and act in accordance with the daily routine.<
How to build your own menu?Every time you get hungry, you have to decide how to structure your meal the right way. For example, animal protein foods (fish, meat, cheese, eggs) go well with plant foods that are low in starch and sugar. Melon and watermelon are not compatible with anything. But lemon is appropriate everywhere.
In the first half of the day, up to three or four hours, it is better to give preference to vegetarian dishes – this is the time for whole grains and vegetables, a little later – fruits. So you keep the maximum activity during the whole working day. The systems responsible for the digestion of carbohydrates are as active as possible. After 4 p.m., feel free to include protein products – In the evening, protein is easier to digest and absorb. But fruits are already banned – the pancreas is not involved in digestion as actively as in the morning and afternoon. For some reason, there is a misconception that fruits – a light snack, suitable for eating almost at night. In fact, this is not the case and leads to the unwanted appearance of bloating, heartburn and extra pounds. And dairy products – kefir, yogurt, cottage cheese – great for the last meal, but three hours before bedtime! Steak with a light side dish of vegetables – also a good choice for dinner.
It is worthwhile to dwell on the so-called snacks. Cookies, pretzels, cereal bars – not the best way to respond to hunger. The same applies to nuts and dried fruits. Do not take them as a treat – this is your emergency aid on the rare occasions when lunch is delayed. But in no case should they replace a full meal. The maximum number of – five nuts and four to five pieces of dried fruit a day. In the standard case, your menu should include breakfast, second breakfast, lunch and dinner. In portions, at first you can focus on a handful made up of your two palms - this approximately corresponds to the volume of the stomach. Note that the Chinese, wise in medicine, eat from bowls – dishes of this size. Gradually you will not want more. You will learn to hear the saturation signal. Only because of the constant overeating and eternal employment, many of us no longer feel either the calls of hunger, or satiety signals, or the feeling of thirst, which, by the way, people lose first. Those who do not hear or ignore hunger and thirst have a very hard time losing weight.
Speaking of thirst. If you are healthy, you can drink as much water as you like. Try to drink at least two liters of good natural water.
A Few Good Habits
Train yourself to drink a glass of water ten minutes before each meal. Sometimes we just confuse hunger and thirst. This way you will avoid overeating. But after eating, you can drink only an hour later, so as not to disturb the concentration of digestive enzymes and fluids.
Another important – chew food thoroughly. Approximately 30 chewing movements are required for each serving sent to the mouth. Try chewing “on the bill”. Then you will not have a desire to drink food, as saliva – the best digestive juice.
Listen to your body. Do not strive for a varied diet and do not look for something new every day in the supermarket.
EXPERT COMMENT
Viktor Yuzichinsky
Full member of the International Society of Mayer Physicians (Austria)
deputy director for medical issues of the sanatorium "Pushcha Ozernaya"
Genetics should be taken into account, but not to the point of fanaticism. The exception is the intake of absolutely unnatural products for a given population (often and in large quantities!). For example, the Chukchi, who evolutionarily had only meat and fish in their diet, will have a hard time digesting fruits, as well as vegetables and rice, which form the basis of the Asian diet, and vice versa.
The topic of latent food intolerance is very important. In Germany (Munich), a study of blood immunoglobulins is carried out and products that are intolerable to a particular person are determined by their content. Yes, it is quite far and expensive. However, nothing prevents you from trying to deal with this issue yourself.
The appearance of bloating, flatus, belching, heartburn, feeling of heaviness in the abdomen, lethargy, drowsiness, constipation or loose stools after eating are indirect signs of poor tolerance to the product. BUT! Don't jump to the conclusion that this product is not for you.
Let's start with the quantity of the product. Maybe you ate too much of it at one time? It is very important HOW you eat it. If you swallow food "on the fly", without chewing properly, without moisturizing with saliva, you will get intolerance symptoms from taking the most "light" food.
Proper heat treatment of the product is very important. Potatoes grown on the same bush, boiled, baked, fried in oil, mashed, will give a completely different reaction of the body to their use.
Experiment: Eat a small amount (a handful) of the food you claim is intolerant, separate from other foods between meals, chewing thoroughly, and then judge that the food is tolerable. If it is thermally processed, repeat the experiment with the thermally processed product (fresh cabbage in salad / stewed cabbage).
The compatibility of products should also be taken into account by the reactions that the product causes in the body, regardless of its chemical composition. Let me explain: sour lemon (contains citric acid) in the process of digestion and participation in the biochemical reactions of the body contributes to the alkalization of the internal environment. Neutral meat is digested with the formation of uric acid - the internal environment is acidified.
The most important thing is moderation in eating, careful processing of food in the oral cavity, the correct distribution of meals throughout the day, the right combination of products! Stay healthy!
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