This is a work in progress and will be updated with more information in the future.
Sweeteners
Favor raw honey instead of refined sugar. Sucanat, Rapidura, and Coconut Sugar are acceptable alternatives. Stevia is a naturally sweet herb but only use pure stevia leaf extracts like Sweet Leaf brand. Most brands have isolated form of stevia which may be diabetic-friendly but isn’t good for you.
I have heard good things about Xylitol but have never used it myself. Stay away from all artificial sweeteners. In general, keep sweet consumption to a minimum. Humans don’t really need much sweet in their diet.
Alcohol
Beer, wine, hard liquor they’re all the same in this regard. There’s no moderation about taking alcohol because any little amount is going to disconnect you from reality to a more or less degree.
No good for body nor for mind. While disconnected your reactivity will increase and even though you have numbed yourself down physically and emotionally to suppress pain, it’ll actually increase your level of emotional baggage while reinforcing metal patterns that underlie arising of those emotions.
Disconnecting yourself from reality even to escape pain is the worst form of self-sabotage in my opinion, just one level above suicide. Don’t do it!
Meals
Eat three well-cooked meals every day. If you want to have a salad, prepare it as usual then toss it in a saucepan over heat. Let the leaves wilt and veggies soften a bit, add some olive oil, vinegar, sea-salt etc to taste and enjoy. Eat three meals a day and get away from snacking as much.
Snacking
If you must snack have a rounded teaspoon of unsweetened organic almond butter or tahini. Both are packed full of nutrients. Slowly wean yourself off of snacking completely and have things like almond butter and tahini with your meals.
The reason to avoid snacking is that as soon as you put something in your mouth (or smell food or even have an intention to eat) your digestive organs spring into action and start producing digestive enzymes. This process, although necessary for the body to function properly, is very resource-intensive. It takes your body’s resources away from regulatory and repair functions. So if you’re always digesting, your body will not have a chance to heal itself or eliminate waste products properly.
Fasting
Eating anything triggers insulin secretion in your blood which you’d want to keep to a minimum. That’s the principle behind intermittent fasting. I do not promote fasting because most people are already deficient in nutrients esp. minerals. However, leaving 4-6 hour gap between breakfast and lunch and lunch and dinner and 12-14 hours between dinner and the next day’s breakfast is a good guideline to follow for intermittent fasting. In other words, don’t skip meals but leave plenty gap between meals and you’ll do well.
Raw foods
Cook your vegetables thoroughly but don’t let them overcook. Raw veggies are not recommended because they require cellulase to break down cellulose and human body doesn’t produce enough of this enzyme to be able to digest raw produce. There are lots of ideas about what a human body was originally designed to eat and they might be valid but we must see what works for us in present times. And raw foods cause digestive issues in most people. Raw fruits are alright though, most fruits do well stewed.
Veganism
Again, some folks believe that human body was designed to thrive on plants only. In current times, with plants being nutritionally deficient having grown in mineral-depleted soils, plants alone can not supply necessary nutrients. So inclusion of meats in your meals is a wise choice. Use farm-fresh meats and make sure your farmer isn’t adding preservatives to the meats and are raising their animals without antibiotics, vaccines, and hormones.
Food combinations
Keep your food combinations as simple as possible. Eat fruits 45-60 minutes before meals, pref. breakfast or lunch – another good thing about that is then it counts as part of the same meal not a snack. Anything that’s cooked together is fine – for example throwing fruits in a stew makes them okay to eat with rest of the ingredients whether veggies or meats. More information on this topic coming soon…
Protein and granola bars
Many people like these for snacking. Even though individual ingredients in protein bars may be nutritious, the combination usually isn’t so good. Also most of the ingredients used are generally highly-processed.
Fried foods
Refrain completely from having deep-fried foods. There are a few things wrong about fried foods. First, you don’t know what kind of oil is being used. Most oils go rancid at frying temperatures. Second, usually ingredients include white-flour based batter etc. Finally, the act of frying not only kills all the nutrients in foods but also changes their molecular structure and makes them harmful to the body.
If you feel like eating fried-foods, use ghee to lightly pan-fry foods. Completely avoid ordering fried foods when eating out.
Oils
I recommend ghee for all cooking needs. Other oils of choice are olive, sesame, and coconut (use sparingly). I have heard good things about cold-pressed, high-oleic sunflower oil but have mostly stayed with the above-mentioned oils for personal needs.
