We Are What We Eat - The Doctrine of Signatures
We are what we eat. Well, not literally — we don't turn into a bag of potato chips when we smash that bag of Salt & Vinegar, but there is a direct relationship between how our body reacts to the foods we choose to eat.
Think about it for a moment...how do you feel after you chow down on a burger with fries and a soda, perhaps followed by a cookie or some sort of sweet treat? Now, what about after you have a fresh salad or vegetable stir fry with fish and a big glass of water or even a green juice? One meal can really bog us down and the other can actually energize us. Not to say, don't ever have that burger ‘n’ fries meal if that's what you want, but understand that if that is your "go-to" sustenance, there may be consequences both in the short term and most definitely in the long-term. What we eat DOES matter.
A curious and playful way of teaching, and learning, how the foods we eat affect us in different ways is to look at those foods that actually resemble the body part that they are beneficial for. This is called The Doctrine of Signatures. Let's take a look at some of these wonder foods...
Tomato for Heart Health
If we take a look at the cross-section of a beautiful, juicy tomato, what do we see? We see four red chambers, just like the four chambers of the human heart. Tomatoes contain a nutrient called lycopene - this is an antioxidant that also gives fruits and vegetables their bright red color. Lycopene improves vascular function and contributes to the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular disorders, according to a study by the Frontiers in Pharmacology (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5974099/). Tomatoes look like the heart, and one of their key nutrients is heart healing. Cool eh?
Carrot for Eye Health
Do you remember being told to 'eat your carrots for healthy eyes'? That was sound advice because carrots are indeed very beneficial for our eye health. If we slice a carrot, we can see the striking resemblance to the eye — there is a dark center (the pupil), surrounded by striated lines (like the iris) and you can even see tiny vessel-like lines in the core of a carrot, much like the blood vessels in our eyes. Carrots are a rich source of lutein and beta-carotene which is converted to vitamin A in the body. These are antioxidants that protect the eyes against long-term free radical damage and age-related degeneration of the eyes. Extra tip: to get optimal utilization and absorption of beta-carotene, it is best to have cooked carrots and for the vitamin A conversion and absorption, add a spoon of ghee as this vitamin is fat-soluble. (If you’re looking for a little tutorial on how to make your own ghee at home check out this video!)
Avocado for Womb Health
Avocados are referred to as the "fruit of the womb" and if you take a look at an avocado you can see the fruit is a similar shape to the uterus with the seed in the center, just like a baby nestled in the womb. The really neat coincidence here is that it takes exactly 9 months for an avocado fruit to ripen, just as it takes for a baby to develop to full term. Avocados are a good source of folic acid, the number one nutrient recommended for women trying to become pregnant. If you are pregnant, folic acid aids in both womb health and the healthy development of the fetus, and it can prevent cervical dysplasia. Avocados, as a healthy source of fat, also help to balance hormones in the body, and that is certainly helpful during and after pregnancy as hormones are ebbing and flowing up and down and all around. Time to up the guacamole intake, mamas!
Walnuts for Brain Health
Let's talk brain food. Walnuts are an excellent source of DHA (an Omega 3 fatty acid), making them the top nut for brain health. They enhance the production of neurotransmitters for brain and memory function, and they also improve cognitive function in adults and help prevent age-related cognitive decline. Take a look at a whole walnut, where you crack open the hard shell (the human skull) and you will see the striking resemblance to the human brain inside. There is a right and left hemisphere and even the folds and wrinkles on a walnut resemble the cortex of the brain. Given that the brain is 60% fat, it also makes perfect sense that such a healthy fat-containing nut is the perfect brain food.
Isn’t this fun? And the list goes on; Ginger root for stomach aid, Celery for bone health, grapes for the lungs, kidney beans for the kidneys, and many more. Of course, there are foods that are good for brain health, that don’t look like your brain, or good for your heart that doesn’t resemble the heart. The Doctrine of Signatures is a fun and practical tool to help us remember that the foods we eat nourish our bodies.