A warm welcome to the first 2025 edition of Smiley Blue, our weekly newsletter exploring healing, ancient wisdom, and personal stories.
True wellness lies beyond your food plate. It’s your emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being.
As we begin this new year, I'd like to share a journey that shaped my understanding of wellness, it begins in a simple vegetable garden.
The ancient Greek philosopher Hippocrates said: "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food." This wisdom has never felt more relevant than it does today.
From the Garden to the Plate
When I was a little kid, some of my favourite memories were of planting seeds in the vegetable patch with Dad. Together, we'd grow beetroots, broccoli, carrots, and the most incredible summer tomatoes. The family shopped locally for fresh ingredients like meat, bread, butter, and eggs, our meals were simple and wholesome. Cooking was a family passion, our Sunday roasts were unbeatable.
The Changing Landscape of Food
Growing up I observed the simple approach to food shift dramatically as our world changed. There came a fascinating transformation as large supermarkets began appearing near our village. Sadly, local village shops began giving way to the long aisles and countless food choices.
The arrival of the microwave oven felt like a revolution at the time, promising convenience to families everywhere. Meal preparation was changing, and slow cooking gave way to fast solutions.
There's usually a price to pay for quick and easy solutions, and perhaps nobody thought of the longer-term health and well-being implications of eating fast and conveniently.
"A healthy body is a guest chamber for the soul; a sick body is a prison." - Francis Bacon
Questioning and Learning
Growing up, we were taught the importance of curiosity and critical thinking. My mum, despite disliking having her authority questioned, ironically taught us to always to question and think independently. I soon discovered that some information sparked genuine interest and growth, while other advice, especially when concerning the body and health, is best examined with great care.
"The part can never be well unless the whole is well." - Plato
Personal Health Insights
Over the years, I have explored various approaches to nutrition, experiencing different dietary paths, weight gain, and loss. Transitioning from being vegan to resuming meat consumption has been a deeply personal and intuitive journey in learning what works best.
The current approach to wellness has evolved into an intuitive practice. There is greater simplicity and peace in consuming whole, unprocessed foods while maintaining an active lifestyle that includes walking and strength training. Daily prayer and meditation ground, while natural foods - from grass-fed meats to Celtic sea salt and organic dairy - provide fuel and nourishment. By studying functional medicine we learn to address the root of health issues rather than treating symptoms with medications.
Observations and Today's Challenges
Modern food environments can be really challenging for many. Supermarket shelves today are filled with brightly packaged processed foods containing highly questionable ingredients, and marketing often obscures their nutritional value. Sugar's huge impact on our well-being cannot be understated. It is hidden in seemingly healthy foods, driving inflammation and affecting both physical and mental health. Understanding our relationship with sugar becomes vital for overall wellness.
A Gentle Invitation to Wellness
Nutrition is more about simplicity and eating natural foods that fuel your body effectively. Individual health needs may vary, but the principles are simple: balance and mindful eating matter. There's no desire to crave more than you need when eating simple whole foods.
Wellness is never about following any difficult rules or trends. Like the animals in nature, who instinctively choose what nourishes them, we also possess the same inner wisdom about what our bodies need. It's more about rediscovering and quieting the noise of modern food marketing and reconnecting with that natural human intelligence.
Reader Question of the Week: What's one simple wellness practice you're committed to? Do share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
Upcoming in Smiley Blue!
Next week, we'll shift our focus from nourishing the body to feeding the soul, exploring that feeling of 'something missing' in your life.
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