You’re Not What You Eat, But What You Think

Prevalent in the world today, especially the Western world, is the idea that food can and does harm us and that it has some sort of power over us. For example, it is thought that certain foods are ‘bad’ and others are ‘good’. We are always looking out for ‘that’ food which will make us fat, or ‘that’ food which will make us prone to some type of disease or illness. But, before we proceed any further, ask yourself these quick questions. How do you know ‘that’ food causes ‘those’ effects? And how do you know that food can make you fat? Or sick? Or kill you? If you took all the descriptions of food you have ever heard on face value, you would most likely think it is some type of monster, a living entity that has no other aim but to seek your destruction. Now, we obviously don’t look at it that way, but is that really far off how it is currently perceived? All this talk about “good” and “bad” foods gives the impression that food has a mind of its own, that it has power in and of itself to do with us what it wills. You might laugh at this and say something like, “Oh, don’t be silly,” but seriously, ask yourself, how is it I can think of food as being able to harm me and not believe it is a conscious living entity with power of its own? Unfortunately, we live in a world where most people believe anything they hear, with very little discrimination or thought involved at all. As we proceed beyond this point, it is acknowledged that everyone who reads this article will be at different levels of belief and openness, hence, each will get out of it what he is ready to receive. To most people, it is common sense that food can harm us. We don’t think twice about someone saying “stay away from this food,” or “eat as much of this food as you can.” But, what we don’t realise, is that all statements such as these are reflections of belief; they are individual or shared beliefs about the food, they do not represent what the food actually is. Any person can come along and say a food is this, or a food is that. But does just saying that make it true? If I came along and said a banana will make you look 10 years younger, does that mean it will happen? Does that make it a reality? You may not have recognised this before, but all the things we label as ‘this’ or ‘that’ are merely a reflection of our beliefs about it. More importantly though, is the reality that our beliefs supersede and take precedence over what the food actually is and the effects it might have. In other words, your beliefs or thoughts about the food influence the effects it has on you. This is why two people can eat the same food and one person will get sick from it and the other will not. Have you ever noticed how one person supposedly gets fat from eating a certain type of food and yet another person eating the exact same food does not? Here is the problem, if it was actually the food that made you fat, or sick, or whatever, then it would have the same effects on everyone. But it does not; therefore, there must be another cause at play. And there is: our beliefs. You are what you think, not what you eat. Broken down further, your thoughts about the food have a greater effect upon you than the food itself does. What you think about your body, health, and illness will determine how your food is used in your body, and how your body chemistry handles fats, for instance, or carbohydrates. For example, if you believe that the chemicals in certain foods will harm you drastically and bring about disastrous consequences, then even small doses of these will harm you. Yet, another person with completely opposite beliefs about the food will not be harmed one bit by it. It is the same food with the same chemicals, yet there are completely different results, being governed by two different belief systems. In alignment with this, any chemical upsets in the body will right themselves after the inner problems have been worked out. These same principles apply to diets. We typically think that diets are based on the idea that people are overweight because they eat too much. But, in reality, people eat too much because they believe they are overweight. The physical picture always fits because the belief in being overweight conditions the body to behave in that exact manner. Thus, in the oddest fashion, diets simply reinforce the condition, since people diet because they believe so deeply in their overweight condition. The solution is to willingly suspend that belief. The person must make a conscious effort to insert a different belief, or more preferably, let go of all beliefs about it altogether. And this is how it works in all cases. In this case, it is not food that is the problem, but your thoughts and beliefs about it. Change your beliefs about it and it will change how it affects you. As much as we would like to blame food for our health issues, it is not the problem, nor is it the enemy it is made out to be. In truth, there are no enemies, only incorrect and misguided beliefs and perceptions. Change these and you change your life and everything in it simultaneously.