Eat, Eat! But Don't Be a Glutton
Of course you've all heard of the Italian urging, "Mangia! Mangia!" It's almost as well-known as pizza.
Yes, it is important to eat well. Eating is one of the great pleasures of life. As Pavarotti said in the book, Pavarotti, My Own Story, (by himself and William Wright), "One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating."
It's something to look forward to three times a day. Just don't overdo it when you sit down at the table. Be like the Italians and eat with gusto. But don't be a mangione, or glutton.
A good rule for a healthful life can be found in the following proverb:
Eat well, drink in moderation, sleep sound.
In these three, good health abounds.
Moderation is essential. Because the Italians have another proverb:
Ne ammazza piu la gola che la spada.
"Glutton kills more than the sword."
It's not for nothing that glutton is one of the Seven Deadly Sins. We all know it, but we don't like to think about it. The variety of healthy challenges overeating causes is astounding and is bring down the American life span. And it's all so preventable.
A sedentary lifestyle is one of the main reasons for weight gain. The other is eating too much -- particularly of the wrong kinds of foods.
Obesity is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States next to smoking, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Former U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona has said that the younger generation could turn out to be the unhealthiest in history and the first to live fewer years than their parents.
Don't you think we ought to change that? It's bad enough that we do this to ourselves, but let's not pass it on to the next generation. Instead let's set an example. Let's show them how to eat like healthy, slim Italians!
The Italians, for better or worse, are a body-conscious people. They invented the paparazzi, those photo-snapping maniacs who follow all the "beautiful" people. Consequently, Italians wear things with zippers and buttons, not just elastic band waists. They want to look good -- and trim -- should some wandering shutterbug (including friends or family) capture their image.
But how do you keep from being a glutton in American culture, where, unlike in Italy, cars take you everywhere, including to restaurants, where the portions are big enough to rupture a rhinoceros?
One thing you could do is to dine only at home or in fine restaurants. At home you get to control your portions. At a fine restaurant, portions are notoriously small, and you don't get seconds. You're expected to take your time and savor the delectable taste of quality food (which is actually good training for your at-home dining.)
Gluttony sometimes comes from a deeply-seated fear that there will never be enough. It can also come as a reaction to feeling controlled by others. It can be stimulated by anxiety or even, I hear, from fungal overgrowth (caused by overuse of antibiotics, birth control pills, or too much sugar.)
Counseling and stress reduction can help ease gluttony triggers. From a logical standpoint, there's no need to feel greedy when it comes to food. Most people reading this have not and never will experience famine. The feeling of scarcity is n illusion. One thing you can do to lessen greedy feelings is to promise yourself that you'll eat good, wholesome food at regular mealtimes, like pasta and roasted vegetables, and juicy, delicious fruit for dessert.
There's no need to feel greedy when you know that your next meal is coming from a healthy, well-stocked Italian-style kitchen! If you keep your pantry stocked with things like pasta, garlic, olive oil and tomatoes (plus maybe some anchovies, onions, basil, parmigiano-reggiano cheese and a little red wine,) you'll be able to stare down those hamburger joints that try to reel you in with calorie-laden shakes and greasy fries on the way home from work.
Take a deep breath and step on the accelerator. There is enough. And you will get to eat. And it will be wonderful. Pasta is much more satisfying than fast food,which is often a low-nutrition diet buster that leaves you hungry a short time later.
That doesn't happen with pasta. Cooked al dente, the way Italians like it, it sticks to your ribs.