Dietary habits in a monetary society


People in a monetary society often buy their food at supermarkets and convenience stores. As a result, it is commonplace to eat vegetables, meat, and processed foods that contain pesticides, food additives, and white sugar.


Food additives include, for example, yeast food, shortening (vegetable oil and fat), coagulants, flavors, emulsifiers, pH adjusters, expanders, sweeteners, colorants, preservatives, thickening stabilizers, antioxidants, and anti-fungal agents. These are used "to make food look good", "to make it keep for a long time", and "to make it taste good", with the aim of making consumers like, buy, and benefit from them.


White sugar is transported to the bloodstream within a short time after eating, causing a rapid rise in blood sugar levels. If this is repeated, the body will eventually produce less insulin to lower the blood sugar level, making it easier to develop diabetes.


If you grow pesticide-free vegetables in a vegetable garden near your house, you can harvest them there and eat them fresh right away. This would be the simplest, fastest, and least stressful form of eating. However, when the conditions of mass production, long-distance transportation, long-term storage, and consumer acquisition are added, as in a monetary society, the food is transformed into food that is far from its natural state, containing pesticides, food additives, and sugar. Then stress, overeating, picky eating, lack of exercise, overwork, smoking, and excessive drinking intertwine to form lifestyle-related diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and stroke.


What can be seen from fasting?

For example, we have all had the experience of eating too much at a restaurant, getting tired of eating, taking a break at the restaurant, or leaving the restaurant with a heavy stomach. On the contrary, if you eat a meal with little or no oil and less than an eighth of an ounce, you will not feel lethargic, your hunger will be moderately satisfied, and you will be able to move comfortably after the meal. If you compare the post-meal physical condition of a stomach-churning meal and a non-stomach-churning meal, you will intuitively know which is healthier.


On the other hand, if you don't eat at all, what will happen to your body? This brings us to a point worth noting. Hay fever is the bane of many people's existence, but if you skip a meal for a day, you can suppress the hay fever the next day. But when you start eating again, symptoms such as nasal congestion and itchy eyes appear. If you fast for a week, the hay fever will go away, the pimples will disappear, and three hours of sleep will be enough. And when you start eating again, your skin will be smooth and healthy for a period of time.


These results show that food has a great impact on the body, and the relationship between foodstuffs and illness can be seen.


The Way Food Should Be


Next, let's take a look at the macrobiotic way of eating. Macrobiotics is characterized by the use of whole ingredients, cooking without discarding skins or roots, local production for local consumption, using natural ingredients without food additives or pesticides, and cooking without excessive preparation. In addition, the cooking method should be based on traditional Japanese seasonings such as miso, soy sauce, and salt. The basic proportions of a macrobiotic diet are as follows


Grains (staple food) 40% to 60%.

Vegetables: 20% to 30%.

Beans and seaweeds: 5% to 10%.

Miso soup, etc. 5% to 10%.


These vegans who abstain from all food and clothing derived from animals are called vegans. Vegans eat only grains, legumes, vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, and seaweed. They do not eat meat from animals such as pigs, cows, and birds, seafood, eggs, milk, dairy products, or honey. Vegans do not suffer animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose, and do not eat or wear anything of animal origin.


There are many other ways of eating in the world. There are vegetarian, macrobiotic, and vegan diets that focus on grains and vegetables without meat. Natural hygienists and raw food eat raw fruits and vegetables, avoiding cooking as much as possible to obtain more food enzymes. Ayurveda is a traditional Indian medicine that includes cooking. Ayurveda is a traditional Chinese medicine that uses mainly wild plants and medicinal herbs such as pine nuts and mugwort. Fruitarianism, where fruit is the staple of the diet. Liquidarianism is the practice of consuming only liquids such as water and fruit juices for nutrition.


All of these diets have one thing in common: it is better to eat natural foods that are free of pesticides and fertilizers, and avoid meat, white sugar, additives, and artificial foods. It is better to eat foods with digestion in mind. "It is better to eat foods that are easy on the body and that you enjoy. "It is better to eat foods that are natural and not overwhelming to the body. There are other things that are relatively common. It is better to eat in accordance with the body's 24-hour cycle.


4:00 a.m. to noon.
The time of elimination (the appropriate time for excretion of wastes and food debris from the body)

Noon to 8:00 p.m.
Intake and digestion time (the appropriate time for eating and digesting)

8:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m.
Absorption and utilization time (the appropriate time for the body to assimilate nutrients)


Chewing well prevents overeating, stimulates the brain, improves the condition of the stomach and intestines, and brings about a good night's sleep. Abdominal pain, lethargy, constipation, and insomnia can also be caused by chewing too little, and chewing should be continued until it naturally disappears without swallowing. Since food is turned into porridge in the stomach, turning it into porridge in the mouth will reduce the burden on internal organs and improve nutrient absorption.


With this in mind, the food at Prout Village is, in a word, vegan. However, meat eating is not prohibited. There are no nutritional problems without meat, and it is thought that the number of residents who go to the trouble of brutally killing live animals to eat meat will decrease.

And even with a healthy diet, people can still get sick. If you don't regret it when you get sick, there is nothing wrong with continuing to eat what you like. On the other hand, if you want to stay healthy every day, make your body last as long as possible, and enjoy your favorite things to the fullest, a healthy diet is essential.


And about the sugar, salt, rice, and protein used daily. In terms of eating natural foods, sugar should not be white sugar, but rather sugar beets or maple syrup, which is made by boiling down the sap of sugar maple trees. These are less likely to raise blood sugar levels, but you still need to be careful not to eat too much. Natural salt, such as moshio (seaweed salt), which is rich in natural minerals, is good. For rice, brown rice is better than white rice. Brown rice is better than white rice because it has more nutrients, and also because it improves constipation and makes it easier to produce banana-shaped stools. This indicates a good intestinal environment, which leads to good health. Protein can be obtained from soybeans and other sources instead of meat.


Cultivation method


The cultivation of foodstuffs at Prout Village is done in parallel with two methods: natural farming and hydroponics.


Natural farming is a method of cultivation without the use of pesticides and fertilizers that are harmful to the body and the land, and is already in use. The advocate of this method is Masanobu Fukuoka, who believes that land untouched by humans and inhabited by a variety of plants, insects, and other living things is fertile, and from this land, crops rich in nutrients can grow. Mr. Masanobu Fukuoka's rice fields have not been plowed, chemically fertilized, composted, or treated with disinfectants in over 30 years. With this, he said, he was able to harvest nearly 10 bales (600 kg) of wheat and rice per 33-meter square area.


The depth a man can plow with a hoe is 10 to 20 centimeters. However, the roots of grasses and green manure can plow 30 to 40 centimeters or more. The deeper the roots go into the land, the more air and water will penetrate into the ground along with the roots. With the death of those roots and microorganisms, the soil becomes fertile and soft. Eventually, earthworms increase and moles also burrow into the soil. In this way, nature provides a nutritious growing environment, the soil is permanently fertile, and there is no element of pollution. The principles of natural farming are no tilling, no fertilizer, no weeding, and no pesticides.


And indoors, hydroponics is used. Instead of using soil, the roots of the plants are immersed in water containing fertilizer, and the necessary water, nutrients, and oxygen are absorbed by the roots. This produces insect-free, healthy, pesticide-free plants and allows for systematic cultivation regardless of the season. Plants can be grown vertically to save space and allow for more plants to be grown in a residence.


Seeds are collected from the crops grown in this way, cleaned, dried, and stored in containers in the refrigerator.