Is avoiding certain food help you achieve better Mediation?

Some experts believe avoiding meats, eating a vegan diet and not eating GMOs helps have a better Mediation life. Is anyone seen this to be a proven fact?

I don't know anything about GMOs (in fact I've seen stuff that suggests there is no scientific/medical reason to believe it is harmful to eat), but I certainly feel a lot better on a vegetarian diet. Then again, "feeling good" isn't exactly proven fact. I think the current idea around eating meat is that it should be well-cooked (little to no redness) and should be balanced (as opposed to the dominant part of the meal).

I have not read any studies that confirm this as fact.

In my own practice, I find an empty stomach (minimum of two hours before meditation) to be most conducive to meditation and energy work. When the body is digesting, your energies are doing all sorts of weird things, and the distortion in your blood sugar can alter the ability to work with your energies because you feel differently. You get a little "high", a little bit more sedated... Energy work requires intense focus and clarity. Now, eating a handful of nuts before meditation? Maybe perfect. Each body is different.

I prefer to work energy and meditation without food in me. Otherwise, my body is doing all sorts of things and it is easy to get distracted.

I know that wasn't the direction you were hoping for. I do not think the "kinds" of food you eat matters... Moreso when you eat them in relation to practice.

Probably yes, but it might not matter for beginners so much!? Avoiding things which irritate your immune system and gut might mean its easier to meditate, and that might include slow digesting things such as meats. It takes awhile for food to pass through the pipeworks downstairs, and carrying 'poop' around is probably a bit irritating for your system, forcing excess toxins etc to be shuffled into body fat. Some of the stringent spiritual Yoga paths do seem to require empty stomach and empty bowels. These are doing Yoga as an adjunct to meditation and I think they are seeking a closer connection to their body which could be facilitated by a calmer and cleaner digestive system perhaps. I dunno about GMO though... depends on the impact the mods have to the body perhaps.

Sven One wrote: Some experts believe avoiding meats, eating a vegan diet and not eating GMOs helps have a better Mediation life. Is anyone seen this to be a proven fact?

I believe that eating in moderation is the key to good bodily and mental health. Eating too much sugar can kick your mind into racing mode - which isn't good for meditation. Obviously, drinking alcohol really isn't good for meditation. Those are the two I have direct experience with.

I've never heard that switching to a completely vegan diet will have a beneficial effect on the mind. As far as I know, the brain needs an ample amount of animal protein to work properly. That said - I recently read in an article about Alzheimer's research that certain meats are better for the brain than others - fish and chicken are great, red meats not as much.

I have two vegans in my family and both are in and out of the hospital constantly because of malnutrition issues. A lot of vegan food products contain a worrisome amount of chemicals and sugar to make up for the ingredients that were left away - so if you choose to eat vegan, you really need to dedicate yourself to this, do your research, cook food yourself (rather than buying replacement cheese, replacement meat, replacement milk, replacement this or that) and schedule regular checkups with your doctor, at least initially, to make sure your body can take it. Anything your body can't take will not be good for meditation.

Generally speaking: mens sana in corpore sano. Keep your body healthy and you'll also keep your mind healthy.

"To practice amidst distraction while remaining unmoved, one has achieved mastery..."

Body types and the fuel they run on are extremely varied- almost infinitely varied if you want to go that far. I've seen experienced practitioners run the gamut of Taco Bell to a 6-pack and still make it to the cushion- so I'm sure food types and amounts really don't have too much to do with meditation per-se, but for the novice such things are easily identifiable if they are cnsistent with their practice.

Personally, I like to eat a little something; it doesn't really matter what in particular, as long as it doesn't make me fart or my insides gurgle. :woohoo: Stinky foods aren't great either- I had a sardine sandwhich once right before zen and smelled fish oil the whole time!! :sick: :sick: :sick: :sick:

I'm not sure about types of foods but yesterday I tried to meditate on an empty stomach and it did not go well. All I thought about was what I was going to have for dinner. On the other hand I have also tried to meditate while very very full. Also not a great plan. Balance, like with all things, balance.

yes
eating habbits affect everything, mental functioning included
there is some slight variability among individuals - exactly how much this variability is about being in touch with whats going on in ones body compared to how is about being hardy or tough,i dont know. but people more sensitive to whats going on with their bodies are going to be more aware of how foods affect them

also, young people tend not to be as aware
i never was
and i believe it was partly because the effects of food werent as pronounced but also i believe i just wasnt paying attention - i think thats pretty normal

as far as exactly what any person should eat, all i want to say here is eat healthy

for like 90% of people, if you make a serious effort to eat totally healthy for three months, when that time is up you will notice the difference in how you feel after eating certain foods, which will include congititive proccessing

and
i dont want to hijack the thread with this but i want to comment on the gmo thing because i feel it is important: i want to point out that monsanto has a long track record (by "long track record" i mean it goes back for generations) of causing large amounts of sickness and death, even among its own employees, of knowing that they are doing it and lying about doing it, and continuing to do it andlie about it and seemingly not making any effort whatsoever to reduce the harm they are causing

again, they have done this even when it was their own people dying of cancers developed as a result of working for them

now, besides the very weird and inherently unpredictable nature (NATURE LoL) of splicing a gene from some exotic fungus into that of a tomato, and assuming this is safe, without actually testing it

which gmos really never were tested, not seriously;
the best test theyve been given is that they were secretly introduced into the food supply of multiple nations,
but this probably wasnt done with any kind of scientific control, so, good luck getting actionable date

and the fact that the law was deliberately manipulated and (yes, manipulated is an appropriate word) to prevent labeling, that every effort was made to keep the conversation about gmos off the table, such as all kinds of law suits and general intimidation tactics

besides the weirdness of gmos in and of itself, when a company thats known for killing people starts tampering with the genetic structure of food and then does everything they can to prevent anyone from knowing whats going on, including lawsuits and intimidation tactics, while feeding this food to as many people as possible, imo, the right way to view this situation is with, to be mild, a substantial dose of skepticism

So I realized I didn't answer the second part of your question about meditation.

I find that eating or not eating depends on what you eat and when. If I were to eat a pizza right before meditation, I might not be able to concentrate because my belly is so full that I'd be more likely fall asleep. If I eat a bowl of dry cereal (can't stand soggy cereal), I'd probably be fine because it isn't going to make me feel bloated or give me that full-stomach sleepiness. I don't really think GMOs have much to do with this (I'm pretty sure you could eat a banana, which is a GMO fruit, and you'd be fine).

Cyan Sarden wrote:

Sven One wrote: Some experts believe avoiding meats, eating a vegan diet and not eating GMOs helps have a better Mediation life. Is anyone seen this to be a proven fact?

I believe that eating in moderation is the key to good bodily and mental health. Eating too much sugar can kick your mind into racing mode - which isn't good for meditation. Obviously, drinking alcohol really isn't good for meditation. Those are the two I have direct experience with.

I've never heard that switching to a completely vegan diet will have a beneficial effect on the mind. As far as I know, the brain needs an ample amount of animal protein to work properly. That said - I recently read in an article about Alzheimer's research that certain meats are better for the brain than others - fish and chicken are great, red meats not as much.

I have two vegans in my family and both are in and out of the hospital constantly because of malnutrition issues. A lot of vegan food products contain a worrisome amount of chemicals and sugar to make up for the ingredients that were left away - so if you choose to eat vegan, you really need to dedicate yourself to this, do your research, cook food yourself (rather than buying replacement cheese, replacement meat, replacement milk, replacement this or that) and schedule regular checkups with your doctor, at least initially, to make sure your body can take it. Anything your body can't take will not be good for meditation.

Generally speaking: mens sana in corpore sano. Keep your body healthy and you'll also keep your mind healthy.

Thank you. I never planned to go vegan just research from so called "seers" of mediation have said. The last four five months I have been prepare all my foods raw meats, vegetables, straight water, with my cup of green tea in the morning of course but, I gave been drinking my no super, low carb energy drinks which, I am kind of ashamed to admit I broke that habit and now trying to get off them again. I feel like theyre not good for you but, I like the caffeine effect especially for thi se wonderful 4 am shifts.

I find that it is when I am neither hungry nor full that I can meditate the easiest. I also find that slow burning foods like clean proteins work better for me however I am still new to medication so this could be a fluke.

Yes. avoid stimulants like coffee and caffeine. I would suggest avoiding cigarettes because they are vasoconstrictors which can reduce the amount of O2 to your brain and cells.

I generally prefer to meditate on an empty stomach or after I had time to digest my food. Digestion takes time, energy and concentration. I feel my thoughts wonder more and go to my stomach. However, if I am simply doing a relaxing meditation that focuses on my breathing, I find that can help with digestion.

Have you heard of "cheese dreams". I have read and I have experienced interesting dreams and thoughts after eating cheese so I generally try to avoid it before meditation.

Sven One wrote:
Thank you. I never planned to go vegan just research from so called "seers" of mediation have said. The last four five months I have been prepare all my foods raw meats, vegetables, straight water, with my cup of green tea in the morning of course but, I gave been drinking my no super, low carb energy drinks which, I am kind of ashamed to admit I broke that habit and now trying to get off them again. I feel like theyre not good for you but, I like the caffeine effect especially for thi se wonderful 4 am shifts.

If you're used to caffeine, it probably won't have a huge effect on the meditation. The verdict on caffeine + meditation is still out. Buttered tea and green tea is apparently consumed in larger quantities by Tibetan monks - to aid staying awake for longer meditation session. But on forums, I often read that it should be avoided. I guess it depends on what effect caffeine has on your body. Some people barely notice it and can drink an espresso at 8 pm without getting their sleep impaired, others can't sleep anymore if they drink a tea at noon.

From what I have learned about Buddhism in Bushijin temple, you have to avoid anything that takes their concentration or change your perception. I will give examples: alcohol changes the perception, drugs also being hungry draws its concentration, overeating will cause discomfort that will take your concentration and so on. Personally when I meditate I make sure that all my physiological needs are well (all), I feed, brush my teeth, go to the bathroom, etc. In doing so I guarantee that nothing will hinder me or inwardly or outwardly.

Really there are so many opinions on what food is good or bad, healthy or unhealthy. Just as there are opinons on what meditation is. If considered the mere observation of your present being then technically if you stuff yourself you can still observe the resulting sensations through that observation. If you're channeling different emotions and feelings then you get into which foods may influence those emotions and feelings.

In general I think it's best to avoid all processed foods. By processed I mean whatever comes in a package for the most part. I think the best diet consists of fresh, whole, ripe, raw, organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, a plant based diet. Why? Because animal products and artificial ingredients are the leading causes of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases as well as environmentl exposure to heavy metals and petrochemical byproducts found in your everyday processed foods, bodycare and cleaning products. A plant based diet is actually the only diet that will activate the body's inner healing capacity, allowing it to clean out built up animal fats and such in your heart and arteries, as well as stimulate your immune system enough to get it to even fight off cancer.

Don't get me wrong, I love meat and cheese, but if I eat it I'm making sure it's grass fed, free range, no antibiotics, hormones, GMO (studies showed fertility problems in later generations of mice, organ damage and other weird things, plenty of info out there on this as well as being totally ineffective for their intended purposes and they are still sprayed with Round Up there's plenty of info on that out there too), certified organic by multiple organizations not just the USDA. All you have to do is watch Food Inc, Farmageddon, Food Matters, Gerson Therapy, etc., and look into the factory farms and the conditions those animals live in. You do not want to eat that meat. Grass fed beef contains higher omega 3's that reduce inflammation, corn fed beef contains excess omega 6's that cause inflammation. Arsenic is added to the chicken feed. They rinse the meat with ammonia and stuff at these factory farms because it's all full of e coli.

A lot of people who go vegan and vegetarian may do it for the wrong reasons and just don't know what their doing and yes it can lead to just as serious of problems as those who stuff themselves with the processed garbage. Don't be fooled though there are RAW VEGAN bodybuilders and olympic athletes who are just as muscular and have just as much endurace and someone eating meat and dairy, the raw vegan way is just way cleaner and more efficient. I'll tell you my average day is I wake up and drink water or tea, then I'll make a smoothie using bananas as a staple and switch off between berries, mangos, pineapples, etc. While eating whole fruits like apples and oranges, few handfuls of nuts or seeds, large vegetable salads with lots of spinach and kale. Other staples like rice, beans, quinoa, lentils give the bulk sensation I like to have and I just mix in different veggies and seasonings. The main problem most vegans face are not getting enough calories as you have to eat A LOT MORE fruits and veggies to make up for not eating the dense meats and dairy. 300 calories of fatty oils will fill 1/5 your stomach whereas 300 calories of fruits/veggies is like packing your stomach full.

So yeah we all are free to decide for ourselves what we eat and what works for us, what may help my meditation may not help yours, and what helps yours may not help mine. But in general I think it's best to avoid 80% of what you see in your local grocery stores unfortunately. I realize this may make things difficult, not everyone has access to fresh, clean produce and it gets expensive.

In the mountains, working hard, this is what I eat over 1-2 weeks plus quinoa/lentil/bean/rice lunch/dinners with veggies. Most of this is blended as smoothies. My digestion is so smooth and easy when I eat like this, and I'm very clear headed, light and energized. There is no food coma from eating a large cooked meal full of meat and cheese, there is no disrupted or slowed digestion, there is no wasted energy in just trying to break down such dense meats, fats and proteins, less stress on the heart and colon is less stress on the mind and body.