A Mindful Eater
By Kate Stone

一个注意饮食的食客

你最后一次吃饭的是什么时候？ 你还记得吃的是什么吗？ 你能回想起吃它的感觉吗？ 在一天中的24小时中，美国人平均花费大约两个半小时进食，但一般来说我们通常会同时做其他事情。我们是忙碌的人，所以我们在开车，看电视，看书时吃饭，而且经常同时在玩手机。根据哈佛大学营养学系主任丽莲•张博士说法，这使人们对我们正在消费的东西缺乏认识，这可能是我们在美国看到的肥胖流行病和其他健康问题的原因之一。

这就是注意进食，关注当下时刻的过程，以及做出合理的饮食选择。它不仅包括你吃的东西，还包括你吃的东西如何影响整个世界。注意饮食意味着要全神贯注于您正在消费的食物。也许有一整个星期，你只吃一次或整整一个月不吃快餐。 记得从小做起，慢慢来，只有这样才会注意饮食成为终生的习惯。

When was the last time you ate? Do you remember what it was? Are you able to recall the sensation of eating it? Of the 24 hours in a day, the average American spends about two-and-a half hours in eating, but in general we are usually doing something else at the same time. We are busy people, so we eat while we drive, watch television, read, and often while we are playing on our phones. This creates a lack of awareness to what we are consuming, which may be one of the causes of the obesity epidemic and other health issues that we are seeing in the United States, according to a Harvard professor, Dr Lilian Cheung.

This is where mindful eating comes in, the process of focusing on the present moment, and making mindful eating choices. It encompasses not only what you eat, but also how the food you are eating affects the world in general. Mindful eating means being fully attentive to the food you are consuming, the way you buy, prepare, serve, and consume it.

This begins with how you shop for your food, from fast food restaurants to our back yard, but usually people find themselves in a grocery store. Considering the value of what you are adding to your cart, is it something full of nutritional value, or is it something that is processed and you saw an ad for it on television? What may be helpful at first is to start with a list and stick to it. Decide what healthy meals you are going to make for the week, write down what ingredients you need to buy, and only get what you have written down on your list. When shopping, stick to the outer edges and fill most of your cart with produce items. Avoid the centre aisles as much as possible, because they contain a large amount of processed foods. Don’t fall into a trap of chips and candy that may tempt you at the check-out counter either.

When eating it is important to enjoy your food. Come to the table with an appetite, but don’t be so hungry that you forget to enjoy your food. Take your time eating, enjoy the different aromas of your food, be attentive to the colour and texture, and even the sounds of the meal you are preparing. While eating, take smaller bites, try to identify the ingredients as you eat it, taste your food completely. Chew thoroughly in order to taste the essence of the food. The more you chew, the more depth of flavour you will achieve. Keep in mind to eat slowly and thoughtfully, even if you are with friends, take a few moments after you have started your meal and appreciate what it all took to prepare and bring it all together.

Once you start this process you may find that you are drawn to more natural ingredients and pull farther away from processed foods. This includes fast-food, the more you think about what you are eating, the more you realize that the cheeseburger and fries are bland, or too salty. Try to centre your shopping and eating around fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seeds, nuts, and vegetable oils. These foods are full of nutrients that are not only good for your health, but are deep in flavour.

This process of mindful eating will not happen overnight, give yourself some time to adjust the way you approach meals and snacks. Start with small goals, perhaps focus on making one meal a week completely vegetarian or start packing your lunch for work. Once you get used to that, do more, maybe have a whole week in which you only eat once, or go a whole month without eating fast food. Remember to start small and take your time, only then will mindful eating become a lifelong habit.