Mechanics of Eating

It is common knowledge these  days  that eating  a diet containing lean meats, wholegrains,  fruit and vegetables,  nuts and seeds,  drinking at least 2 litres of water a day and excluding  processed foods,  refined carbohydrates and trans fats, you will be supplying  your body with all the nutrients it needs to be healthy.   However, often this is not enough, as good digestion is key to good health and  many people suffer from digestive issues, which interfere with the necessary processes that have to take place for optimal health, namely  digestion, absorption, assimilation and elimination.   

According to Horace Fletcher (1849–1919), an influential American food and health enthusiast of the Victorian era,  nicknamed "The Great Masticator", it is not so much what you eat  but how you eat it.    He was more focused on the mechanics of eating than he was on food choices.   He believed that “the most important part of nutrition is the right preparation of food in the mouth for future digestion.  He  taught  that all food must be deliberately masticated, thoroughly tasted and not swallowed until it turned to liquid.   He had a saying  "Nature will castigate those who don't masticate".   He believed that prolonged chewing  precluded overeating, led to better systemic and dental health as well as more efficient nutrient absorption.  

As a man of virtually limitless energy, Fletcher argued that his mastication method also increased the amount of strength and energy a person could have.  Many people believed Fletcher’s laboratory reports, but  the more important eye-opener to doctors and laymen was his series of experiments at Yale University.  It was here that he participated, at the age of fifty-eight, in vigorous tests of strength and endurance versus the college athletes. The tests included: “deep-knee bending”, holding out arms horizontally for a length of time, and calf raises on an intricate machine.  The tests claim that Fletcher outperformed these Yale athletes in all events and that they were very impressed with his athletic ability at his old age. 

Fletcher also cautioned people not to eat except when they were "good and hungry," and to avoid dining when they were angry or worried.   He claimed that there was such a thing as "Head Digestion", and that it is in the field of personal responsibility,  in the mouth and in the brain, that good or bad digestion—right or malnutrition—are inaugurated.  In other words our emotions and thoughts have  a great  influence on digestion, absorption, assimilation and elimination.

“Mindful eating” is based on the Buddhist concept of mindfulness, which involves being fully aware of what is happening within and around you at the momemt.   Applied to eating, mindfulness includes noticing colours, smells, flavours and textures of your food, chewing slowly and avoiding distrations while eating, such as television, reading and especially eating on the run.   

Could mindful eating be the secret to a healthy body?