Understanding Harmony and Synchronicity
Harmony is defined simply as “agreement in action.”
In Sync, or with synchronicity, is “to play or operate in synchronization with something else.”
Harmony within a symphony is a complex combination of musicians, their instruments, musical scores, and the ability of everyone to follow directions and play together—in sync.
The Symphony of the Human Body
I see our bodies as a miraculous complex symphony composed of ‘instruments’: cells, tissues, organs, and systems. They naturally seek a state of homeostasis or balance depending on, among other factors, how we eat.
The body is in harmony when our inside ‘instruments’ are in sync, and we feed it the right stuff at the right times. When all the ‘players’ are functioning well, able to follow instructions, and are in harmony within the body, we call that healthy!
Improvisation and Balance
In music, especially jazz, it’s ok to improvise. However, each player knows and follows certain parameters: the keys, melody, timing, rhythms within the musical flow, their love of music, and interpretation. So do our bodies. ‘Improvising’ with food can be effective and enjoyable, especially when it’s guided by love, thoughtful planning, and a deep understanding of what nourishes our bodies and keeps them functioning well.
Our organs, (pun intended), appreciate when we keep them well-tuned or feed them well. They gratefully sync harmoniously with the rest of our ‘orchestra’ body, our cells, tissues, and systems, making it easy for us to live well, be active, and enjoy life. When this is happening, we feel and look healthy. Life is good! However, if any instrument in the orchestra is off-key or out of sync, you hear it and feel it. The symphony seems out of balance, and our ears and bodies do not love it.
With the wrong foods, our biochemically individual health and life itself may be challenged.
If our body is out of balance, we know something is wrong. Our head, back, legs, and tummies ache; we ‘get a cold.’ Energy goes kaput; we get depressed, gain weight, get the sniffles, feel dizzy, get brain fog, etc. Any number of unpleasant symptoms may pop up, and we feel and often look terrible. Not fun at all.
The Conductor of Our Symphony
It can be difficult to realize when our body’s rhythms—like our heartbeat—are out of sync, which can be painful. This is when our “conductor” (the brain) steps in to check each part of our body and restore balance, making sure everything works together in harmony.
Our blood, guided by our ‘conductor’ and our healthy heart, circulates throughout the body, delivering essential nutrients to every cell. It should flow smoothly through clean vessels, nourishing us with well-digested food.
The Role of Food in Harmony
When everything is in harmony, nutritionally and naturally, it’s like a beautiful symphony; our cells thrive, and we feel good—just like the Beach Boys sang about “good vibrations.”
We choose to listen to music we like, so let’s take the time to choose the food we like as well.
Food is meant to make us feel good; it gives us energy to nourish and renew our bodies. It keeps us ‘in tune’ with our souls and the world around us. It’s essential to take the time to choose your food with care and attention, considering both your needs and your tastes. Your well-being deserves that effort!
Fascinating Food Factoids
Did you know that a fetus can hear music the mother listens to at 10 weeks and can taste food the mother eats at 14-15 weeks? Food does all that and more!
- A variety of good foods and music helps a baby grow correctly inside a woman’s womb while keeping the mother healthy.
- A mom who dislikes Brussels sprouts often has a child who won’t eat them
The wrong foods may contribute to:
- Malformations or structural defects.
- Inborn disorders such as fetal alcohol syndrome.
- Low birth weight and other problems.
The correct foods:
- Tantalize and please our taste buds, like the crescendo in an overture that leaves us wanting to hear the whole concerto.
- Nourish our bodies with nutrients, vitamins, minerals, pre- and probiotics, digestive enzymes, and all we need for proper growth and normal development.
- Handle urgent situations should they arise.
The symphony of music and food nourishes us:
- Music feeds our souls, making our blood course through our veins and arteries as it stimulates our emotions.
- It connects us to special occasions, meaningful events, wonderful people, and feelings that bring us joy or sadness.
Food’s Impact on Our Systems
Food that harmonizes with our systems feeds our blood: It supplies us with the means to move to music that stimulates our emotions and can make us blush with excitement and sometimes even sweat with passion.
When flowing well, our life-blood carries the food to all our systems at a cellular level to create energy or drain our tanks, as a musical theme carries through several movements, sometimes slowly, like the adagio movement in a symphony, and at times more quickly, like the andante or “lively” movement.
Of course, physical movement is one of the keys to helping the blood move through the body. Dance anyone?
Or, food can slow us down and make us sleepy rather than alert. Think about the typical American Thanksgiving or Christmas meal: potatoes, nuts, sugary desserts, and of course, turkey that contains tryptophan. Tryptophan is an essential amino acid from which the body makes serotonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates mood, sleep, appetite, and pain. In some people, when tryptophan increases serotonin, it may act as a mild antidepressant and can increase ‘agreeableness’ and improve mood. In most of us, it can help us smile, relax, and enjoy some ‘down time.’
On the other hand, food also has the power to create health concerns and problems. Literally.
In the case of tryptophan, several factors like inadequate intake of dietary protein, high sugar intake, low vitamin B6 levels, and excess alcohol consumption contribute to low levels and inhibit the production of serotonin.
If you’ve ever eaten something that disagreed with your system and your head ached or your stomach let you know by cramping and making you double over, you know how unpleasant it can be. Especially if you’ve eaten something to which you have a sensitivity or allergy that’s resulted in anything from a mild tummy ache to regurgitating a plateful of the delicious appetizer you didn’t know contained mushrooms—to which you are highly allergic.
A Quick Allergy Story—with a Moral
- The Story:
Years ago, a dear friend went on her first date with a guy she admired. During dinner, she unknowingly ate something her body rejected. In a dramatic twist, she vomited on the tablecloth, turning the romantic evening into an embarrassing memory. - The Outcome:
Despite the incident, they eventually got married and now laugh about their “captivating” first date. - The Lesson:
- Always ask about ingredients, especially with specialty dishes.
- Self-care matters, particularly when it comes to food and potential allergens.
The Connection Between Music and Food
With music as with food, we need certain levels of the right stuff that makes us perform well. Knowing how to read music, play our instrument productively, follow the conductor, and stay in sync with the rest of the orchestra keeps the music flowing. Eating the right stuff for our particular needs and tastes, at the right times and in the right proportions, with or without others around, makes a difference in how our body responds, with energy or sluggishness.
Variations in Eating Habits and Preferences
Variations on the human theme, like ethnicity, gender, age, and activities, gratitude for all we have, or being under stress, all influence our eating habits and health. We choose the themes and arrangements (breakfast, lunch, dinner), surroundings (home restaurant, picnic, etc.), and instruments (food and drink). We feel in harmony with some and out of sync with others—music and food.
What makes us feel satisfied, energized, and harmonious is the right food at the right time. Preparation varies according to tastes, conditions, availability, culture, environment, friends, time frame, etcetera.
Cultural Diversity and Seasonal Adaptations
Like culturally diverse music, foods bring forth different aromas, thoughts, and feelings. Our body’s tempo also changes with the seasons. We go through seasonal changes and food desires. Sometimes, depending on where we live, choices and preparation can be different: hot, cold, raw, and cooked, adapting to the seasonal foods available as well as our feelings. Moods change too.
Although in today’s markets, we can get almost any vegetable or fruit at any time of the year, ideally, we should eat those fruits and veggies that are in season or at the time they naturally ripen.
A healthy body adapts to the changing seasons easier than one that’s out of balance. An unhealthy one has a more difficult time adjusting to the changes in climate, food, or water.
In all seasons and climates, our bodies prefer and perform best with REAL food and an overall diet (which refers to anything you eat) that is balanced, sensible, convenient, and easy to follow.
The Impact of Food Trends and Science
The fads and ‘trends’ for no fat, low fat, fake fat, or genetically modified foods, keto, paleo, or whatever the current ‘weight loss craze’ is endorsed by the favorite celebrity or professional athlete, come and go with the mood of the crowd or whose team won whatever bowl. Food fads develop; keto, paleo, intermittent fasting methods, food substitutes, additives, and weirdly modified foods appear and disappear.
Science wins when it comes to the best recommendations for taking good care of our bodies. And even that changes with new information about the body, nutrition, and how it functions with different food intake.
Aging and Cellular Miscommunication
And before the music ends, a little about the aging process here may help explain why we age. There are two ways, biologically and chronologically. The most important thing to understand about biological aging is that most diseases and dysfunctions are the result of miscommunication—among the many cells that make up our body, our personal orchestra.
“We are a collection of 15 to 20 trillion cells and 9 to 10 times that many bacteria, all of which ultimately have to work harmoniously and collectively as one.” That requires a LOT of extremely intricate communication. Sadly, those sites of communication become corrupted, especially as we age biologically.
The Breakdown of Body Harmony
For example:
- As it becomes resistant to leptin (a protein hormone that regulates energy and metabolism), the brain doesn’t know how much fat a person has and what cells can’t properly listen to insulin.
- The liver doesn’t know how much glucose is circulating; therefore, it doesn’t know how much it should be making for energy.
- The body doesn’t know how to turn off inflammation. It no longer knows when to store fat and when to burn it. It’s unsure of what is foreign and what is part of oneself, which leads to autoimmune disease.
- Calcium builds up in arteries rather than our bones, or possibly in the kidneys.
- The ability to trigger our internal repair mechanisms becomes snarled.
To sum it up, one cell doesn’t know what another cell is doing. The brain doesn’t know what the body is doing and vice versa.
Slowing Biological Aging Through Food
The cohesion of our bodies, (instruments), begins to disintegrate (lose interconnection), and that, ultimately, is what causes biological aging; the “out of sync” of the basic rhythms that make beautiful music breaks down.
Food can slow down this biological disintegration and change our biological age—keeping us healthier longer.
Music and Food: Changing with the Times
Music too, changes with the times and moods of our societies. Different genres appear and disappear: swing, jazz, blues, classical, rap, reggae, hip-hop, ska, and others. Listening to new music, as well as savoring the “old” or what we still love to hear, keeps us younger and more in touch with what’s happening today. This doesn’t mean we have to love all the new stuff or listen to it constantly. Choose your music, choose your food.
Staying in Tune with Your Body
We all can learn what keeps us healthy and in tune with our body rhythms. There are simple and essential requirements and recommendations from doctors, researchers, nutritionists, and a variety of health professionals from whom we can learn the latest scientific facts. Then check out what works best for YOU and your individual system. Do what keeps you happy as well as healthy—biologically fit and feeling good.
Food as a Symphony for Health and Well-Being
Like your favorite music, your favorite foods, perhaps with some modifications, can give your body its best chance for optimum health and are what will keep your personal symphony playing well. Food can prevent or reverse medical conditions, keep you harmonized by reducing the need for some medications, and enable you to live life to the fullest, dance to your favorite music, and enhance your healthy mind, body, heart, and soul.
Bonus Recipe: Sweet Potato Salad
Ingredients:
Ingredients:- 2 lbs sweet potatoes, baked until just tender
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced
- 4 Tbsp raisins (or craisins)
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
- 3 Tbsp parsley, chopped
- 4 Tbsp organic olive oil
- 3 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary leaves (or 2 Tbsp dried)
- 1/3 cup sliced raw almonds (sunflower or pumpkin seeds)
Procedure:
- Peel and carefully cut potatoes into bite-size pieces and place them in a large serving bowl.
- Add all ingredients except almonds and mix gently. Top with sliced almonds.
- Serve at room temperature or refrigerate for about 30 minutes to an hour before serving.
NOTE: Potatoes should be just a bit “underbaked” so they are not mushy but a bit firm.
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25 Years experience as a Functional Nutritionist/Health & Life Coach, Speaker, Author, Chef: Guiding you to wellness naturally with food. Natural, non-drug remedies for reversing chronic maladies.
