What Foods Are We Naturally Attracted To?
Are we really attracted to this burger, or would a nice juicy peach be better?
As far as food for the human species is concerned, fruit is the most perfect, most beneficial, most health-promoting food on our planet. Anyone who would tell you differently―or would, worse yet, have you avoid fruit altogether, as is suggested in the all-protein death diets―is guilty of the most inexcusable ignorance of the physiological and biological needs of life. A strong case could be made that the very first and most important line of defense that we humans have to protect ourselves against anything harmful entering our bodies is our senses. Is fruit not a veritable celebration for the senses?
If something looks repulsive, would you be inclined to eat it? If something smells foul, would you be tempted to put it in your mouth? If something tastes nasty, would you chew it up and swallow it? Fruit is the exact antithesis of this. It is inviting in every way. Is there anything quite so aromatic and enticing as the sweet scent of a fully ripe peach? Can anything surpass the luscious flavor of a fresh-cut slice of watermelon on a hot day? And, of course, fruit is a feast for the eyes.
Is there anywhere to be found an artist’s palate that can rival the spectacular circus of colors that a table laden with a wide variety of fruit can display? As important as it is for fruit to pass the test of the senses with such high marks, it is only the hem of the garment―there is so very much more.
Because there is a seemingly endless number of different types and varieties of food to be eaten, I think we tend to lose sight of the primary purpose of eating. We are, first and foremost, living beings, and we must eat food in order to remain alive. That is why we must eat. To live! And in an act of pure genius the Grand Creator gifted us with taste buds to make the eating experience enticing and enjoyable, as well as life-giving. We can only imagine what food would be like if we didn’t have taste buds―a nutrient-rich, cardboard-like mush that we would simply shove in as quickly as possible in order to be done with the task. It would all look the same and all be the same since it would have one purpose: to supply our bodies with the nutrients and the energy required to live. If that were the case, we sure wouldn’t need books like this one. I would either be writing on a different subject or be doing stand-up at The Improv.
As glorious a gift as it is to have taste buds in order to enjoy fully the eating experience, those taste buds, without a doubt, have been a source of both pleasure and pain. Because there is what appears to be
Have you ever overheard or participated in a conversation such as this? “I haven’t eaten yet. Want to go to lunch?” “Yes, I’m starving. Where do you want to go?” “There’s a place around the corner that has a menu full of items that nourishes the body with all the nutrients we need, plus it helps flush out built-up toxins from the system.”
“Sounds great, let’s do it.”
Yeah, right. Now, I’m not suggesting that we eat only foods that nourish us and nothing that only pleases the taste buds. Nor am I suggesting that the foods that are most nourishing don’t also tantalize the taste buds, because they do. But let’s face it: The plain fact is, most people think only of what will taste good and rarely, if ever, make their food choices based on what the body needs to function well and survive. And that is why most people eat less than 10 percent living food and more than 90 percent cooked food.
Fruit tops the list when it comes to supplying the living body with everything it needs to carry out all the vital functions of life with the greatest ease, energy and efficiency. Notwithstanding the pleasure we receive from enjoying a delicious meal of savory and flavorful food, to stay alive and thrive healthfully, we must eat in order to obtain the two vital elements that perpetuate life: nutrients and energy. All the vitamins, minerals, amino acids for protein, fatty acids, phytonutrients, antioxidants, in fact, every substance or compound known to support and promote life, are resplendent in fruit.
And if eaten correctly, fruit will provide your body with everything it needs to live healthfully. Energy and persistence conquer all things. ―BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
Note, do NOT become a fruitarian (someone who just eats fruit). You must have plenty of fresh raw vegetables, too.
