For some reason I always find March to be the most difficult time of year when it comes to sticking to my New Year's resolutions. Whatever the reason for this mental hurdle, I am determined to overcome it this year. My main goal is to form healthy habits. I am not interested in sacrificing things because eventually I will feel deprived and fall back into making unhealthy choices. Humans are biologically predisposed to routine. As such, the best way to improve what we eat, what we crave, how often we eat, and when and how frequently we exercise is by making the desirable choices habitual. Years of ritual cannot be altered over night. According to a study performed by the University College of London, published by the European Journal of Social Psychology, it takes on average 66 days to make an action habitual. However, the deviation from that average is extremely high, ranging between 18 and 254 days.
It takes less time to implement habits that function in keeping us alive. For example drinking a glass of water with each meal. It is more difficult to make a habit of exercising for 20 minutes a day because we are biologically wired to do so only in attempt to acquire food or escape from danger. It is also partially due to our biological predispositions that we struggle to establish habits like healthy eating. In a time where hunting and gathering were the only options, food was hard to come by. We are programmed to desire sweet and fatty foods because they provided the most bang for the buck. These inclinations have largely contributed to our existence as a species therefore they continue to guide our behaviors. Relying on evolution is futile because nature's habits take even longer to alter. But now we no longer need to consume excessive amounts of sugars and fats at a single meal to nourish our bodies and prepare for a time where we may not have access to food. Rather, we need to consume these types of foods because our minds are convinced there will be a time where we need that energy.
Let's also point out that after years of eating processed sweets and fats the veggies and fruits just do not taste as good, initially. I can tell you from past and recent experience that if you cut the processed foods out of your diet and then reintroduce them, they simply do not compare to the wholesome, nutrient-dense, natural foods. So why do we struggle to stick to a natural and wholesome diet? That is the age old issue, and fascination, of mind over matter. In today's world Americans, along with most citizens from developed nations, are dying primarily from lifestyle diseases. Four of the top ten leading causes of death (heart disease, cancers, strokes, diabetes mellitus) are due to lifestyle choices that we consciously make. As a multifaceted discipline, nutrition focuses on studying food, nutrients, other chemical substances, the above's relation to health and disease, the process of ingestion through excretion and the social/economical,/cultural/psychological implications of food and eating. We used to eat to survive but now we eat for enjoyment. The two do not have to be considered independent of one another.
March is National Nutrition Month and I challenge you to savor your food, enjoy eating with friends and family, and lastly be grateful that you have food for sustenance.
Here is a link to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Webpage that has tips on how to clean up your plate and beat lifestyle diseases:
