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Show WHAT to EAT and WHY C. Houston Goudiss Reveals Several. Reasons Why Food Sometimes Disagrees; Warns Against Eating When Tired or Worried By C. HOUSTON GOUDISS A GREAT many people have the unfortunate habit of warning friends and acquaintances against this or that food, on the ground that it is "difficult to digest," or "is almost sure to cause digestive distress, especially if eaten at the wrong time of day or in combination with the wrong foods!" Indeed, to hear some men and women recount the various dishes that are best3 left alone, is to wonder how they manage to find anything to eat at all, in view of the many good foods they consider con-sider taboo! Certainly there is no objection to food as the topic of conversation. It is so basic to p-w. g00C health that it v"i should be upper-I upper-I N most in the mind X of every individual T j who desires to pro- l. J mote physical and I - JC v mentai efficiency. , "f' And it is also nat- kjk - ura or a Person to r, I be guided by past I " k - S experience in de-LiiJkis? de-LiiJkis? $J termining what he, should eat, and what it may be advisable for him to avoid. But it is a grave mistake for one person to warn another against any food or combination of foods on the ground that it will cause digestive distress. For the truth of the matter is that under proper conditions, a normal(-healthy normal(-healthy person should have no difficulty dif-ficulty in digesting almost any food that has a place in the well-balanced well-balanced diet. Food Dislikes Often Unfounded I once met a woman who told me that her contented-looking husband hus-band could, and did, eat most everything ev-erything 'cept horseshoes. Menu planning was simple for her! And how different from the problems of the home-maker who must try to reconcile her menus, both with the food dislikes of various members mem-bers of the family, and with the foods that they declare they can't eat, for fear of digestive distress. It is true, of course, that individuals indi-viduals differ greatly, and occasionally occa-sionally a food that can and should be eaten regularly by most people, peo-ple, will cause distress in an individual in-dividual case. But that is no indication in-dication that the food will have the same effect on another person, per-son, and it is misleading either to proffer or accept advice of this nature na-ture from friends. It may be that the victim has an allergy to the food in question that he reacts to it differently than the majority of people. But there is also the possibility that the prejudice exists because of some previous distress, caused, not by the food itself, but by the circumstances under which it was eaten. Perhaps a clearer understanding understand-ing of some of the mental and physiological factors influencing digestion would dispel many of the bugaboos that cause people to avoid various, wholesome foods and food combinations, and to warn others against them. Emotions Influence Digestion Scientists have established that the stomach is capable of reacting to almost every emotion and sensation sen-sation that is experienced by men and women. Thus, how you eat becomes quite as important as what you eat. And any food or combination of foods consumed when you are tired, worried or angry, may cause acute distress, whereas the same food, when eaten eat-en at another time, may be digested di-gested without the slightest disturbance. dis-turbance. This indicates the folly of jumping jump-ing to the conclusion that you can't eat this or that, and shows that one is scarcely justified in warning friends or relatives to avoid certain articles of diet. There is a large amount of evidence evi-dence that fear, anger or anxiety have the effect of diminishing the gastric secretions, and further, of arresting or slowing down the movement of the intestines. If food is eaten under these conditions, con-ditions, it may remain stagnant in the alimentary canal, with the subsequent formation of gases and decomposition products. But instead in-stead of recognizing the true cause of the trouble, many people erroneously erro-neously blame the food itself! Medical men have frequently noticed that people often develop gastric disturbances when they suffer financial reverses, and oon- tinue to suffer from them until their financial condition improves a striking demonstration of the importance of banishing fear and worry ! Never Eat When Tired Almost any food may cause distress dis-tress when one is suffering from fatigue. So it is unwise to sit down to a large meal when exhausted from too much physicalor mental work. A brief rest before eating will put the body in much better shape to receive and assimilate the food. Then, if the meal is served in pleasant surroundings, and if the food is flavorful and well cooked, the chances are that it will be digested di-gested satisfactorily by all normal individuals. Be Tranquil at Mealtimes In view of the fact that tranquillity tran-quillity of mind is essential to the proper utilization of food, home-makers home-makers should remember never to discuss unpleasant subjects at meal times. Don't nag the children chil-dren about eating, or choose that time to discuss their lapses from discipline. Don't talk about finances or take up real or fancied grievances with your husband. Let such matters wait until the meal has been digested. If these suggestions were more generally followed, it is almost certain that we would hear much less conversation about foods that cause distress, much more wholesome whole-some talk about the pleasures of the table. WNU C. Houston Goudiss 1939 54. |