From Amanda's very early writing (1990s to early 2000s), shared as it was originally written.
Break the Fast.
Eating breakfast may stop you having a heart attack. Doctors and research have been telling us this for a long time, but many of us seem to have missed the message!
I know, it's a problem waking up and getting dressed, let alone eating. And what's more, eating in a relaxed way. The usual picture of someone in the morning is rush, rush, - quick, stuff something in our mouths while we are dressing, shaving or putting on make up. This is not smart - or a wellness habit!
Not only is it important to eat breakfast, it's also important to eat it in a relaxed and calm way, actually concentrating on the act of eating. And we are supposed to chew each mouthful at least 30 times for proper digestion! Let me share with you the reasons behind this theory.
Firstly, why is eating breakfast important? Because it is the break from the overnight fast - it restores blood sugar levels and makes our blood thinner. Research suggests that after we have eaten breakfast, we have more platelets surging through our blood stream. Platelets are not , as they sound, little plates frisbeeing around our body! They are microscopic round things that actually help thin the blood in our bodies and stop blood flowing when we cut ourselves. The thinner our blood is, the easier our heart's job becomes because pumping thin blood is a lot easier than pumping thick, sticky stuff.
If we laid a person's blood vessels end to end we would (roughly) have a line going from Sydney to Perth and back again! We have kilometres of blood vessels taking the blood and nutrients to all the parts of our body. Imagine our heart is in Sydney and it goes "PUMP" and the blood zooms out and shoots off to Perth - nothing else pumps it along the way so our heart's oomph is important. By the time the blood has hit Perth and come back to Kalgoorlie it's starting to slow down! It needs our muscles to work and pump it back to the heart ( as in exercise).
So if your blood is as thick as honey, your heart has to work much harder - think of your heart as a weight lifter. With breakfast you are lifting weights that are easy for your heart to manage for 24 hours. No breakfast and your blood is thicker and your heart has to lift very heavy weights that become heavier and heavier, and your heart becomes more and more tired. And finally , explodes.
Usually at 9.00am on Monday mornings! Seriously! More heart attacks occur on Monday mornings at 9.00am than any other time. (Make sure you enjoy your work and look forward to the day!)
So eat breakfast; thin your blood and keep your heart happy. Make sure you eat food that's worth eating. Muesli and/or fruit and/or wholemeal toast and/or baked beans or other pulses are good. Every so often, (once a month) lash out and treat yourself with eggs and bacon and tomato and other goodies - hey! life's about balance and fun as well 'doing the right things'- it's not meant to be a prison camp and you're not meant to be paranoid about everything you do or don't eat.
You can eat big breakfasts all the time if you do a lot of exercise or you are in a really active job that requires hard physical yakka for 8 hours. And if you are a pretty relaxed sort of a person.
Did you know that rabbits who were fed very high fat/cholesterol diets, but stroked and loved and cuddled as they were being fed did not develop bad cholesterol problems? It seems that the way we eat our food is a critical factor in how it is digested and absorbed.
Eating can be a very sensual experience - as in stimulating many senses. The textures, the smells, the tastes, the sight - but we often ignore all these aspects because we are busy doing five other things. Like dressing, shaving, reading the paper, driving, walking, talking etc. Try focusing on eating next time you eat. Just the eating. This will help your body prepare for the process it has to undertake to digest and absorb the food. It can release the appropriate chemicals and your stomach gets ready for an exercise session!
How many times have you had something to eat but you couldn't remember what the taste was - or in fact what it was you ate? Or it had no taste. Did it really have no taste? Or were you paying attention to other things and you forgot to notice the taste?
When we are full of stress chemicals , our whole body is affected including our alimentary system. (That's a big word meaning what connects our mouths to our other ends!) To avoid indigestion, burping, heartburn, gas, and lots of the other little gut problems people complain about these days , try being relaxed and calm as you eat - and only eat while you are eating!
Make it a habit to wake up 30 minutes earlier, and set up a little ritual to sit down, and take a couple of deep breaths before you eat; play some beautiful, soothing or energizing music and eat - chew 30 times and enjoy the experience of your food. Stimulate all your senses. Try to make the food look attractive (I know, it's not easy with muesli!); smell it; savour the taste and flavour. (Warning: do not listen to the news. The news is a hazard to your health and can depress you and your immune system. Blood, guts and violence do not marry well with digestion).
If this becomes a habit for you , you may feel better all day. You may even lose weight. You'll certainly have thinner blood. And a happier heart. You'll probably grow hair and change your personality as well! Who knows!
