In the early 1990’s I formulated Ten Steps to Strengthening Health. My first step was: Sit Down to Regular Meals Every Day. In many ways it is the most important step because it sets the stage for everything that follows. Interesting enough, it is the most difficult step for many people to follow these days. We have lost the order of day and night and meal times in our society. Meals have become an inconvenience or after-thought for most of us.

When I formulated these steps I decided to not document them. I only wanted to speak in terms of common sense. I thought that the proof and research would naturally appear over time. Recently I came across this article on late night snacking.

In my latest book, The Great Life Diet, a practical guidebook to your macrobiotic practice, I further refined and clarified these ideas. Our digestive system is not on call 24 hours a day to process foods and absorb nutrition. There are certain times when we can digest foods efficiently. These are starting times for healthy meals. Try to begin your breakfast by 9 am, lunch by 1 pm and dinner by 7:30 pm. Earlier is better when possible.

I am using metabolism to mean a three stage process; our ability to digest our food, then absorb and process the nutrients, and finally to eliminate the unused excess. Starting our meals at these times activates our metabolism so that our bodies work more efficiently on all levels and develop the ability to naturally detoxify. When we start our meals at times later than these, it actually has the opposite effect of stagnating our digestion and metabolism. Skipping meals also stagnates our metabolism.

Sitting down to regular meals regulates all of our physical, emotional and mental processes and abilities. This sounds like a bold statement. The only way you will know if it is valid and true is to eat at regular times, in the time frames that I mentioned, regularly for three weeks. Keep notes on how you feel, your vitality, mental clarity, emotions and productivity. Then start to skip meals and eat at random times again and see if there is a difference.

It has been my long-time observation that how we eat is just as important as what we eat. Eating habits set the stage for better digestion and greater enjoyment and satisfaction from our meals. Sharing our meals with family and friends amplifies all of the benefits of eating healthy foods.