During a trip to India in 2012, I was lucky to spend some quality time with an Acharya (Teacher) of Ayurveda and Yoga, named Ed Zadlo. It was a real pleasure for me knowing his many decades of training and teaching experience within the fields of Yoga and Ayurveda (healthy living). One afternoon as we found ourselves with a bit of free time in a beautiful Delhi park, I took the opportunity to ask him about some personal health issues that I had been struggling to understand.
Within a few minutes, after some questions, answers, and a viewing of my tongue, I received the most profound “bite” of health advice… “slow down and chew your food.” Hmph! Nothing fancy in that, no Sanskrit terms, no impressive herbal recommendations, seriously…??? If you’re interested in bringing more of this practical, grounded Ayurvedic wisdom into your daily life, the Ayurvedic Kitchen course offers a deeper exploration of digestion, the six tastes, and mindful nourishment.
A day or two later found me cross-legged on an ashram dining hall mat. I sat with my plate of food facing a delicately worded sign requesting no talking during the meal. Wonderful, I thought, the perfect opportunity to put my new recommendation into action. I will chew and be consciously aware of what I am eating. Ok, it’s tricky to chew dal (a soupy lentil stew), but I get the point. It is in the chewing, the incorporation of the food with the saliva in the mouth, that the digestive process kicks into gear.
Spoonful, swallow, spoonful, swallow as I’m contemplating this new idea… I forget again about what I am eating. I just swallowed a raisin whole. That cannot be good. As Ed explained, the chronic struggle of my digestive system to assimilate what my body needs from food that has not been chewed properly is inefficient and unhealthy. By not eating with awareness, I am sending a message to my body that food (energy, health, and wellness) is not important to me. Even though for years I have been eating an appropriate diet and avoiding snacking and other harmful eating habits, my inadequate chewing could explain my still unresolved chronic mucus problem and ongoing lack of energy.
A quick glance at my tongue (“scalloped” edges) confirmed for Ed a deep-seated absorption issue within the colon. For readers who recognize similar patterns in their own digestion, Wellness Coaching sessions offer personalized Ayurvedic assessment, guidance, and practical support. ” A sign of improper digestion, quite common to those like me with a fire and air mind/body inclination. Chew? There is no time to chew. Eating while on the run or multitasking meals with additional activity (including mundane thinking, TV, or computer work) is a way of life, an art of efficiency. Minutes go by while I’m pondering, and then I realize that I did not even taste what I just ate. I don’t remember chewing. This is going to be tougher than I thought.
I was a latch-key kid, my nanny was the TV. At her feet, I ate copious amounts of food from boxes and cans in Tupperware bowls. Other than the turning on of the television and the ding of the microwave, there was no pre-meal ritual, no blessing or consideration of thanks. I don’t recall Bert, Ernie or Dr. Huxtable telling me to chew properly. These habits are lifelong and deep-seated. I now wonder about the deeper implications of not acknowledging that which “feeds” you. What is also sitting “undigested” within my mind and heart, unacknowledged and unhonoured. What else am I not chewing properly?
My time in India gave me a good start towards the formation of a new chewing habit. Three weeks later, I can notice almost immediately the uncomfortable feel in my stomach if I swallow food I did not properly chew. Now back at home, I have our “favourite” pizza, realizing that although the initial salty, saucy, cheesy taste is “yummy,” it actually doesn’t taste good if you chew it for a while. I would estimate in the past I have probably only chewed my food for a quarter of the time that would be considered adequate for healthy digestion. I also have a new awareness of my compulsion to talk too much during a meal. Habitual talking is much more difficult when you are actually chewing and paying attention to what you are eating instead.
Our dinner conversations at home now include phrases such as “smushy mush,” a 5-year-old-friendly term for “semi-liquid food mass.” I endeavour to educate my son on the importance of chewing and mixing in the “mouth juices” to help the food turn into super-duper skateboarding energy. I hope to establish a new set of eating habits for our family, allowing us to acknowledge and absorb the food we eat, the flow of nature and abundance that physically creates who and how we are…
I think about my tendency to consume food, clothes, knowledge, attention… without thought beyond the initial moment of consumption. In the front door and as quickly out the back, a flow of activity for the sake of activity, without awareness, absorption, or grace. My life is a process of “eating” that has never truly fed me, and so unsatiated, I continue to consume, aching for that next bite that will leave me feeling full and satisfied. Now I will endeavour more towards awareness and gratitude of all that flows through grace into my life: food, clothes, knowledge, and attention… taking the time to chew on what I actually have rather than striving for something I don’t.
Written April 2012.
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