The health benefits of mindful eating
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EmailLearn how mindful eating has the potential to improve both your health and relationship with food.
What is mindful eating? According to Harvard School of Public Health, mindful eating is about becoming more aware of our emotional and physical senses in order to fully experience the sensations related to eating. Eating mindfully also helps us learn to listen to what our body is telling us about hunger and satisfaction.
Mindful eating has the potential to improve your health and your relationship with food. Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, medical researcher, psychologist, and author of many books about mindfulness, says, “For the most part, we eat with great automaticity and little insight into its critical importance for us in sustaining life and also in sustaining health.”
If you are interested in learning how to be more mindful when eating, consider using the Mindful Eating “BASICS”, developed by Dr. Lynn Rossy, PhD. Rossy is a health psychologist and author of “The Mindfulness-Based Eating Solution.”
- Belly check before you eat: Take five deep breaths. Notice if you have sensations of hunger. Ask yourself, “How hungry am I? What am I hungry for? Am I eating because I’m bored or stressed?”
- Assess/check out your food: What does your food look like? Notice the colors. Does it look appealing? What does it smell like? Where does it come from/is it natural and unprocessed or highly processed? Is this the food you really want?
- Slow down: This can help you enjoy your food and be able to tell when the body has had enough. Try putting your fork or spoon down between bites, pausing and taking a breath between bites, and chewing your food completely.
- Investigate your hunger throughout the meal: Keep bringing your attention back to eating, tasting and assessing your hunger and fullness throughout the meal. Halfway through your meal, you may discover you are no longer hungry even though there’s food on your plate. Give yourself permission to stop or to continue eating based on your hunger and fullness cues.
- Chew your food thoroughly: Your body will process the food more efficiently. You will notice your hunger dissipating sooner and a sense of fullness will register in the body. The sooner you are aware of satiety, the less likely you will overeat.
- Savor your food: Take time to choose food you really like and will satisfy you right now. Pick food that honors your body and your taste buds. Be fully present for the experience of eating and take pleasure in the experience through your senses.
Michigan State University Extension offers many programs that focus on incorporating mindfulness into your life. Visit our Mindfulness for Better Living website for more information.
