The Forces of Food and Stress

I haven't been perfect in my avoidance of wheat, as of late. Instead, I've been faithful to regularly ingest some source of probiotics (good bacteria), in an attempt to support my body's natural defenses and maximize my digestive capacity. My hope is that, by doing this, the wheat won't get to me later.

I still think I do better without wheat, but on those days when I haven't prepared enough other whole-foods treats in advance, the seductive convenience of that slice of bread sitting so innocently in the refrigerator, combined with some smooth butter and a little jam, has a powerful effect on me. I've been lucky so far, but I know I need to be better disciplined.

Without proper allergy testing, all my theories on my body's needs are just that, anyway – theories. My thinking that I have a problem with wheat is based primarily on personal experience and intuition, which I like to think are generally close to the truth anyway, but which may be ignorant of many important points. One of these days I'll have to get the real thing done, and compare the results to my previous assumptions.

It does make me wonder about the impacts of stress on the ability of the body to do with ANYTHING with what it is fed. Too much of any one thing can become a burden to the body, if its digestive abilities are compromised. Mix poor digestion with stress and you have a recipe for disaster, such as compromised immunity, illness, and harmful overgrowths of bad bacteria and yeasts, etc. I guess I have managed my stress level and supported my digestion well enough to allow my body to take those dietary compromises in stride.

But my body needs both: A proper management of stress AND good nutrition. I can't expect a compromise in one of those areas to be completed balanced out by extra efforts in the other – that is, I can't expect the effects of a high-stress lifestyle to be completed negated by great nutrition. But it is appears to be true that such attempts DO HELP. Nothing remains in perfect balance, anyway, but continued efforts to obtain adequate play time and rest, and to consume a varied diet, pay off in the end, I think.

So may the forces of food and stress be tuned and directed to create a “harmonious symphony!”