Can you spot the superfood in this picture? Look closely! Trust me, it’s pretty darn super.Vomit. That’s what you get when you combine two tasty “superfoods” in excess and swallow. The e-mail, brought to my attention by the charming Bag Lady, promised a whole slew of benefits for consuming this “Bam ran medicine” including the grammatically incorrect “saving the patient from heart attack”, the miraculous “curing chronic arthritis”, the dubious “killing germs in the bladder”, and the enigmatic “strengthening the white blood corpuscles,” not to mention everything else from pneumonia to influenza to acne. But the one that got me was, naturally, weight loss. Ready for the recipe?
Daily in the morning one half hour before breakfast on an empty stomach and at night before sleeping, drink honey and cinnamon powder boiled in one cup of water. If taken regularly, it reduces the weight of even the most obese person. Also, drinking this mixture regularly does not allow the fat to accumulate in the body even though the person may eat a high calorie diet.
Bag Lady clarified on her blog that this meant one tablespoon honey combined with one teaspoon cinnamon powder in one cup of water. Cinnamon and honey! What’s not to love?
Those of you who are better cooks than I am (i.e. everyone) are probably slapping your screen right now and yelling, “For the love of little green apples, Charlotte, one whole teaspoon is a lot of cinnamon!” (What – doesn’t everyone curse like I do? No??) You would be correct. But the poorly worded e-mail specifically said I could eat a high-calorie diet and still lose weight! And both honey and cinnamon are known superfoods, with research on the former proclaiming its antibiotic properties and research on the latter extolling its ability to improve insulin sensitiviy. Besides, everyone knows that badly written e-mails just mean the writer is some kind of savant who simply can’t be bothered with grammar. Or fact checking.
Here’s how it went down (and then up): Tasted like dirt. Burned going down. Overly sweet. Nausea. Reappearance. End scene. For the record, not only did it look exactly the same the second time around but it tasted the same too. I suppose I ought to consider myself lucky though. If I’d been looking to “kill germs” in my bladder the prescription is “Take two tablespoons of cinnamon powder and one teaspoon of honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink it.” Nature’s emetic is what that is.
I e-mailed the Bag Lady to tell her of my puke-tastic morning. Her verdict? “I gained three pounds.” I believe this is what the kids call an Epic Fail.
Despite starting my day with a good food that harmed me, paradoxically I ended my day with a bad food that healed me. This afternoon I got a phone call from an old friend I had not talked to in ten years. We had parted under less-than-ideal circumstances. In fact, it doesn’t get much worse than what drove us apart. But then in a fluke of the universe that can be described as downright Providential or the biggest confluence of coincidences since the Lincoln/Kennedy affair (also known as the reason why Snopes was invented) we were brought together again.
The conversation, involving two international phonecalls and the phrase “I wish I’d known that then” repeated at least 100 times, lasted almost two hours. By the time it was finished, I was a jittery shaky worked-up, albeit relieved, bundle of nerves. My normal respite from such anxiety is, of course, exercise. But due to a napping baby and child due home soon on the school bus, this wasn’t readily availble. I sat in a patch of sunlight and meditated until my breathing evened out. And then my body said, “You know what I really want? Buttered popcorn and a good book in this patch of sunlight.”
“But nooooo!” I argued schizophrenically. “What about the kids? And the chores? I am busy! Besides, buttered popcorn is pretty much the apothesis of evil according to every diet in print! The only thing worse would be if I deep fried it, wrapped it in bacon and slapped it on a stick!!” (Someone somewhere has undoubtedly already done this I’m sure.)
My body answered, “This is what I want.”
And so I did. I ate buttered popcorn in the sunlight and immersed myself in a biography of Albert Einstein (fascinating book, totally recommend it) until my muscles unclenched and my thoughts stopped racing. I felt soothed in ways I didn’t even know needed soothing.
While the ability of food to heal physical ailments is widely discussed, one does not often hear of food’s remarkable power over mental illness. Another book I recently read, Michael Greenberg’s Hurry Down, Sunshine, a memoir of his daughter’s psychotic break and subsequent struggles with Bipolar Disorder (fantastic read, totally recommend it), gives a poignant example of the ability of food to help heal the mind. The doctors in charge of Greenberg’s daughter Sally’s fragile mental state recommend she follow “the manic-depressive diet” described as “as little refined flour as possible, but potatoes are okay. Lots of vegetables and protein. Two tablespoons of flaxseed oil per day, nine hours of sleep without interruption, and no naps.”
There is a reason food holds so much power over us.
I’m curious – have you ever eaten something “healthy” that in fact made you sick? Conversely, have you ever found a food that acted as a cure, particularly for a mental problem? And yes, of course, chocolate counts;) (Want an interesting place to start? Reader Dennis just sent me this article about a healing food.)
Awesome post! (But then, what else is new?!)
L-O-V-E the bit about the popcorn!!!!!!!
A couple of days ago I decided to re-start an exercise program I have started and stopped a couple of times before. It comes with a diet plan, but I decided not to follow it. I was a little stressed out at the idea of a meal plan, having been trying to eat intuitively for the past couple of years. So, forget it! I’ll do the workouts and eat what my body, not a booklet, tells me to.
I think it’s SO EASY to get stressed out and guilt-ridden over food!!! If we all were able to just relax and eat what we want, we’d probably all be A LOT healthier and saner.
Oh my God, there is a MOUSE in that picture!!!! That’s not a super food at ALL!!! Hahahaha.
My brother in law told me not to eat the broccoli that had been in my fridge for a week, and I didn’t listen and ate it anyway.
I got diarrhea for a week.
I do wonder about all this stuff. I mean SUPERfood?? Earlier it was food is the new sex. The religion of food? What is the answer, and how did I get in this bread, I mean hand-basket?
oh, popcorn. i will ignore that you said it’s on every don’t list for eating—it’s a calmer for me. i think it’s the combo of the fact you can eat a lot of it without a horrible amount of calories (i mean, when i pop my own in the hot air popper and add butter/salt) and that satisfying crunch to it to melt all my anxiety.
anyway, i used to eat yogurt after every long run and curious why i was then sick for a few hours after. it turns out there IS such a thing as lactose intolerence–early adulthood onset. (lactaid pills work wonders)
i’m so nosy…i kept reading your post thinking, “i wonder what they were talking about for so long…and after so many years…!”
Cheesey Potatoes.
Baked with breadcrumbs on top so it’s kind of crusty.
That’s unhealthy healing food. Plus, you can add a little milk and you’ve got cheesey potato soup.
Comfort foods are good for the soul.
After I received your email about the emetic effect of honey and cinnamon in large quantities, and due to my own experience ( gaining THREE LBS in one day? — sheesh!!) I stopped drinking the stuff…
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. (well, except 3 lbs I didn’t need!)
And thanks for the mention, Charlotte!
Dude, I don’t know WHAT you’re talking about. Popcorn is TOTALLY healthy. And the fat from the butter slows down some kind of absorption of …something.
Anyway. While I’m not pregnant, chocolate is my cure. While pregnant, it’s (mostly) Cap’n Crunch with crunchberries. Cereal is fortified, right?
It always takes a period of adjustment for my body to get used to healthier non-weird random foods after I give birth.
Honey and Cinnamon, interesting. I am not sure if it will taste good but I will try it. Good ideas.
Oh sugar, I thought you were my friend in times of need. Alas, my dear comfort food I still can’t look at you.
The first thing I thought of when I saw that photo was, “oh yeah, I get to eat sushi again!” Mostly I’m glad you followed your heart and ate the popcorn. Big Green Apple Deal. And besides, it wored. Cinnamon Life cereal does that for me. Apparently not enough cinnamon in there to cause barfing…
I have a friend who was insistent on the truth of the honey miracle — and fortunately, it didn’t involve cinammon when he told me about it. Instead, it was just one tablespoon of honey, however you want it (I tried it in milk), right before bed, then blocking out every last bit of light in the bedroom, including LEDs and a blanket over the curtains if they weren’t thick enough. This was meant to prompt some kind of “recovery” sleep where the body immediately burned off every calorie imaginable.
I’ve no idea if it worked for him, I’m just thankful still there was no cinammon involve in case I’d said “hmm, it’s worth a try”.
Anyway, in response to your question: tuna. Tuna makes me sick. Not in an allergy way, thankfully, but I just can’t eat it — which sucks, as I love fish.
I need to find some foods that do heal, especially mentally, so I shall check out those books you recommend.
Not sick, but carob powder is the worst tasting bile imaginable, and I bought a whole bag of it at the bio store the other day. Doh!
popcornbaconstick. So funny. you need to sell the idea to Patton Oswald for his stand up routine.
me? oatmeal or (waitforit) popcorn cures all which ails me.
warm & comfy or crunchy & salty.
depends on my needs, errr, desires.
I'm skeptical of all the health claims about honey & cinnamon, but I can't figure out why it would either make you sick or gain three pounds.
It actually sounds pretty good to me.
Have you ever tried Mrs Watkin's cinnamon?
http://www.watkinsonline.com/search.cfm?gCatalogLocale=USA&ECredit=081200N
This stuff is GOOD. I used to buy straight cinnamon at the store and mix it with sugar at home to make cinnamon sugar, but this stuff is so naturally sweet that I use it straight in recipes.
The honey/cinnamon thing is an Ayurvedic remedy and, it’s great for all kinds of things, including infertility. But you have to start slowly and build it up!
There is a lot of documented evidence about food and mental/emotional health. You may be interested in William Duffy’s book, “Sugar Blues”.
LOVE the picture. That mouse is hilarious. 😀
I haven’t had popcorn in FOREVER, but I just bought some at the store the other day. Not the microwave kind, the regular kind. Nerd that I am, I can’t WAIT to mess around with it in a big pot. 😉
“Good” food that I have to be careful with: tomatoes. I LOVE THEM. A LOT. (See all those capital letters? I love them THAT MUCH.) But if I eat them as often as I want them (pretty much at every meal every day in the summer) they give me horrible eczema and rosacea on my face. Yuck.
“Bad” food that makes everything better? Toast. Sourdough, with LOTS of butter. I don’t eat it all that often, but sometimes I’ll have a piece of toast and tea for dinner, and it makes everything right with the world.
I think the most therapeutic “bad food” combo I can think of is ginger ale and saltines after the stomach flu. Post-puking is not a good time for forcing down whole grains, fiber, or even protein too early in the game.
As for “good” food gone evil, I find carrot-raisin salad disgusting; can not force it down. Even though I like carrots and raisins separately.
I will take your advice and avoid the honey cinnamon concoction!
Way to listen to your body!
I’m a big fan of the 90/10 rule, if you do something (like eating healthy) 90% of the time, then the other 10% (like delicious buttered popcorn) doesn’t matter!
-BEE
http://www.BEELifestyle.com
PS Love the pic!
Wow, what Crabby said… ginger ale and saltines. With the bubbles stirred out (or the ginger ale, not the saltines). My childhood post-sickness food.
I have to say that there’s no food that’s ever made me feel magically good, but there are many foods, mostly sugar-related, that make me feel awful.
My mom has kidney stones (from too much calcium, yet she was advised to supplement calcium to prevent osteoperosis) and now can’t even eat spinach because it will contribute to them. How random huh?
One day, I had an apple for breakfast. It started to make me feel really nauseous. I’m not sure why, but something about the apple didn’t react well on my empty stomach. I’m normally fine if I eat them in the middle of the day. The other thing is after a night of drinking…most foods are bad. If I try to make my normal breakfast fruit shake, it chucks right back up.
As much as I enjoy food, I’m not sure that there’s one particular food that’s a cure-all if I’m feeling bad. I love chocolate and sugar and ice cream and all that. But it doesn’t necessarily turn my mood around like my favorite movie and a couple hours of cross-stitching would do.
I read it. I can’t seem to process it though (guess I’m still sick).
Up until my present diabetic condition, I used to think that a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup held properties that would unlock secrets of the universe. I have found that Okra, pea pods and canned spinach have the consistency to turn a grown man into a whimpering child.
Hmmm. I always considered popcorn pretty healthy. Corn is a whole grain, right? Plus it's low cal and has lots of fiber. You can season it in all sorts of different ways too. I like it with cinnamon and cayenne pepper but I'm a bit odd.
Ben & Jerry's always cures whatever ails me. 🙂
I think if we really and truly are wanting something – it’s because our body is needing something in it. I crave big hunks of meat right before that time of the month, when I was sick, only sugar/fruit/sweet stuff sounded good AT ALL and I usually don’t have much of a sweet tooth…so if I have an overwhelming desire to eat something, and it doesn’t go away right away, I usually try to indulge it in a sensible way.
I’ve said it before – but eggs, like the greatest food ever, make me blow chunks. Can’t do it. They just smell/taste rotten, even if they’re good. And IMO, there are no bad foods, just foods that should be eaten occasionally in smaller portions. 🙂
I can’t bring myself to eat the number one healthy lunch food, canned tuna. When I was in high school I had tuna salad sandwiches while on a sail boat ride, and, as you can imagine, I fed the fish. Ever since then, I can’t stand the thought of eating canned tuna. I’m also having a hard time with Chili’s fajitas for basically the same reason, this time involving a car ride in the mountains.
And I totally medicate with chocolate.
I just ordered this book from the library!
I once ate at a raw food restaurant and was quite sick afterwards. I live for veggies and fruits and even nuts but the sprouted wheat and turnip pasta and guacamole ice cream made me feel too pukey. My raw food friends claimed it was my body’s positive reaction, telling me it wasn’t used to such good-for-me food and had to reject it, but wanted more. Didn’t swallow that kool-aid, tho.
I’ve been reading some blogs about the Nourishing Traditions way of eating – basically these people believe in eating lots of butter and eggs (organic and pastured, please), coconut oil, bone broths, organ meats, low to no grains. And whatever, it’s interesting to hear what they have to say and why, but GAH, it makes me anxious. I mean, I KNOW what’s healthy food, and if I put together THE PERFECT MEAL, here’s this whole school of thinking that would say “ALL WRONG.”
Anyhow, buttered popcorn is not a bad food. Popcorn is a whole grain and butter…well, the Nourishing Traditions people would approve.
I, on the other hand, have been known to comfort myself with a mug of hot Tang. Which NO school of nutritional thinking would approve.
I find foods to be a cure for a lot of things, a single cupcake with vanilla frosting eaten sitting in a coffee shop feels decadent and comforting.
I guess I'm lucky that none of the weird "healthy foods" I've eaten have ever made me sick…Although I'm not about to go trying that Honey and Cinnamon trick! >.< yuck!
Charlotte, I love the thought of you sitting in the sun eating buttered popcorn…I love finding sun ray warmed spots on the floor. Only problem is I have to fight the dogs for them. 🙂
“Healthy” food that made me sick = tofu. I thought my intolerance was gone, but I think not after several days of bloat.
My healing food – sweet potatoes. I ate 1-2 everyday for 2 years. Never felt better, but quit when my skin turned orange. Didn’t like the fake tan look.
I have struggled with depression and anxiety my whole life. And honestly, there are so many food cures!
I firmly believe that emotional eating is one thing – where you just shove the food in to fill the holes. But there is another type of emotional eating – something along the lines of listening to what your body and mind wants, and then giving that to yourself as a gift.
For me, if I’m having a really down and out day, I make macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes. Two things I would never normally eat, but when i’m really sad, they comfort me. I don’t need to eat a lot – I just need to make myself some food, eat it, and feel better! 🙂
That activia yogurt does NOT make me regular, in fact I had just the opposite effect.
I personally think spaghetti heals all things, but that’s just me. 🙂 And this time of year? Cadbury eggs are my dessert of choice!
Loved this post, Charlotte! 🙂 I love how you listened to what your body/mind needed and helped yourself to feel better. Something we all should do more often. My favorite way to “heal” myself w/ food is this: at the end of the day after all my little monkeys are tucked in their beds, I wrap my lavender neck pillow (warmed of course!) around my shoulders and sit down with a little bowl of French-Vanilla granola and milk. Mmmm… Just to sit for a few minutes, soothing my stressed out shoulders, thinking my own thoughts, enjoying MY special end-of-the-day treat does wonders for my mental state! 🙂