Science says eating just one meal per day can improve your health. Learn more at https://highintensityhealth.com/OMAD ----- We caught up with one of North America's leading nutritionists, Josh Gitalis to discuss ways to help you improve digestion and practice mindful eating over the holidays. ➢ Connect with Josh: :http://www.joshgitalis.com/ ➢ Read the Interview Transcript: http://highintensityhealth.com/165 ➢ Read the Interview Transcript: http://highintensityhealth.com/165 --------------------------------------Key Takeaways---------------------------------- 02:12 Starting Diet Changes: In Josh’s practice, at the start eliminating gluten and dairy are non-negotiable. Every food has plusses and minuses. It depends upon the individual. Josh starts with a diet diary for 4 days which includes food and mood. 04:03 Mindless Eating: Our digestive tract does not turn on unless we are in rest and digest mode. If we are in fight/flight, we do not make hydrochloric acid, nor will we activate our digestive enzymes, among other digestive processes. When this is chronic, we are not digesting properly. If you are not digesting, you are not getting the nutrients you need, which can lead to much bigger problems. 05:37 Digestion: Digestion starts outside of the body. Our senses activate our digestion process. Chewing is our only chance at mechanical breakdown. The rest is chemical. Most of us do not chew properly. 08:05 Learning How To Eat: Deep breathing around meal time is helpful. Consuming bitters 10 to 15 minutes before eating helps to stimulate the digestive tract. The act of cooking gets you into the mood. The Window Diet is where we pull up to a window and get our food. There is no activation. We were designed to hunt or gather our food, then cook it and eat it. It was a long process. 10:14 Bitter Food: We have bred our food to take out the bitter. Wild lettuce is very bitter, but it contains strong medicine. The alkaloids have strong medicinal activity as well. Bitter foods, like dandelion greens, frisee, and arugula. Grocery stores provide limited options. In the spring, Josh picks wild leeks. Our taste buds know when we are eating nutritious food. Try to find a local forager and go with them to learn. 14:21 Supplementation: A tincture of digestive bitters prior to a meal is helpful. Poisons taste bitter, so our digestion ramps up to deal with it. Dandelion root, artichoke, gentian, berberine, turmeric and ginger can be combined and consumed about 20 minutes before eating. 18:13 Eating in Community:  Look for likeminded people in your community. Take a cooking class. Eating and sitting with people is almost at a spiritual level. 19:54 Getting Family on Board: Get everyone to participate in the preparation of the meal at some level. Slowly introduce healthy foods, even if you have to sneak it in. Keep adding more slowly. 21:52 Smoothies: Smoothies can be ingested quickly, so your digestive tract may not be turned on. Josh takes time preparing and drinking his smoothie. Eat something small with the smoothie to chew and get the digestion activated. Treat it like a meal. 23:18 Caffeine: There is great division on the topic of caffeine. Josh felt like caffeine drained him over time and he became dependent upon it. Most people don’t thrive on consuming coffee every day. It drains the adrenals and with it, you are working on artificial energy. It depends upon your individual biochemistry whether you are able to tolerate caffeine or not. 29:08 Transitioning Off Alcohol: 35:02 Fermented Foods: 38:44 Combating Thinning Hair: 41:50 Thinning Hair in Women: 43:44 Get Back to the Fundamentals: 48:37 Josh’s Morning Routine: