For many people, especially women, desserts that are exquisitely shaped like works of art are an irresistible temptation. We usually think that this is a sweet addiction caused by the demand for heat accumulation hidden in ancient human genes. However, whether it is expensive hotel afternoon tea or exquisite cakes in online celebrity shops, at first glance, people feel very eager to eat, but when they really eat, they often feel that the taste is far less special than the appearance, and it is easy to get bored if they eat too much. But the next time I see it, I will still be deeply attracted, and then I will experience the gap between the expectation brought by vision and the actual taste again.
Then, I had an idea: our thirst for dessert is usually caused by vision, but the factor of taste is not that great. Many desserts actually taste the same, and their satisfaction comes more from the psychological pleasure of eating a beautiful thing in their stomachs, as if they have this beauty, just as some people feel that they have knowledge when they buy products that pay for knowledge. However, through this process, we consume a lot of sugar and calories that the body doesn't need. The saccharification of the body will accelerate aging, cause obesity, and ultimately run counter to beauty.
Our usual demand for food is often subjective, thinking that what we need is actually what the brain wants to eat, not what the body needs; I don't think I need anything, but I don't like the taste, but it's good for my health, such as vegetables and boiled water. Coupled with the eating habits developed since childhood, the weight of each meal is measured by bowls. When I was a child, I was prescribed by my parents how much to eat before I finished eating. When I grow up, I will set myself an unexpected fixed weight, or stick to the principle of CD-ROM, and ask myself to finish the food in front of me as much as possible, even if I am full, I will not waste it. When eating at home or out, I will eat more food than I need because of the kindness of the chef or guests.
Therefore, we should consciously examine what we eat every day and its weight, adjust many eating habits that are just out of inertia, and at the same time, we should be brave enough to refuse others' intervention in our diet in a clever way, and we should have our own persistence and ideas.
In mindfulness meditation, there is a kind of diet meditation, which guides us to focus on the feeling of chewing food in our mouth and even the feeling of flowing into the depths of our bodies after swallowing. I have read the book "Genius on the left, Madman on the right". There is a chapter called "The Taste of Apples", which tells the story of a man who once shut himself in a dark room for a few days, closed his five senses, completely broke through the valley and lived only by water. At the end of the exercise, he will wake up his senses with an apple. The book records in detail the subtle and wonderful feelings experienced by the dry taste buds when the apple is bitten in the mouth, which makes people feel as if they have never really tasted the taste of the apple.
Therefore, if we can eat mindfully, have a high awareness of what we eat, and carefully taste every bite, we can enjoy the enjoyment brought by delicious food to the maximum extent, without relying on quantity to satisfy, without stimulating the brain one by one to maintain dopamine secretion, or even eating the whole meal. I have enjoyed it seriously, and my body and mind have remembered that wonderful feeling, so I have no regrets.
There is also the speed of eating. The researchers found that when eating, the brain releases dopamine at two different times: food intake and stomach intake. This mechanism may increase the desire for food and delay the brain's signal of "satiety". Therefore, we should consciously chew slowly, chew fully, swallow a bite of food and then take a bite, so that we can not eat too much food before we feel the signal of "fullness".
I hope we can all get rid of instinctive manipulation and form healthier eating habits through rational introspection and cognition.