Food Greatly Influences Our Behavior!

by Erleen Tilton 

In 1970, probation officer, Barbara Reed, began a diet therapy program with many probationers who appeared before her.  What she had learned was that:
• Of all those caught in acts of crime and violence, 100% were on diets high in sugar and starches, having little or no nutrition – and all were hypoglycemic!
• Of all those who followed her prescribed high-nutrition diet, they no longer committed crimes, stayed clean, and were able to live normal lives out of jail.
• There was an 80% success rate of the probationers she dealt with.  Those 20% who did not stick with the prescribed diet ended up committing more crimes with more jail time.
 
Barbara describes most of those with whom she worked with as physical and emotional wrecks.  Most suffered from mental confusion, uncontrollable emotions, depression, suicidal tendencies, mood swings, as well as had developmental deficiencies.  Most had done poorly in school – often not completed high school, had been diagnosed with some form of mental condition (ADD, schizophrenia, etc.), had psychiatric counseling, and/or had been prescribed tranquilizers.
 
We, as a people, must understand that:
• Vitamins and minerals are key components in the proper functioning of our physical, mental, emotional, and psychological self.  A diet high in fruits and vegetables, and fiber (from whole grains, raw veggies and nuts), provide the nutrients our bodies need.
• Sugar, not only contains no micro-nutrients, it can cause nutrient depletion.  In order to burn sugar into energy, it must use up a wide range of nutrients; therefore, it robs nutrients from the body and the brain contributing to nutrient deficiencies and creating hypoglycemia (low-blood sugar).  And if the diet is already low in nutrients, added deficiencies are created.
• If we are not eating foods with high-nutrients as a priority, then we simply eat for dysfunction – and that dysfunction comes out first and foremost in our behavior.
 
Last summer, one of my children was a part of a Pioneer Trek - a great program for youth to experience what our pioneer ancestors did.  At a meeting for parents prior to the event, parents were asked if there were any of the youth that would require medications.  I was absolutely shocked to see over half of the parents asking for medication approval for their children! 
 
The truth of the matter is that we have never in the past been more unprepared than now...........and the way we are most unprepared is emotionally and mentally!  There has never in history been more medications needed for depression, ADD, ADHD, bi-polarism, mood swings, anxiety, aggression, irritability, lack of focus, schizophrenia, and more!  Our people (youth and adults alike) are not only unprepared physically, but more importantly, emotionally!  It's interesting to note that most families in our midsts have one or even several members on emotional or mental medications. Why?  

1) The foods most people eat are virtually void of nutrients - vital nutrients that are required for normal brain function.

2) Many of the foods eaten are filled with chemicals which create (adverse) chemical reactions in the brain - producing "bad" behavior.

3) The foods people eat, because they lack nutrients themselves, rob the body of its nutrient stores in order to be digested, thus creating an even more nutrient deficiency and more "bad" behavior.  

Now there are many spending a great deal of time with physical preparations in case of a world disaster.  But if you can't survive a night without your mental or emotional medication, are you really prepared?  Do you and your family have the emotional stability to endure the seemingly calm events of the day, and more so, the intense stresses that might accompany a world disaster?  

Furthermore, studies show that 100% criminals are junk food eaters - they don't think and act straight because they simply can't!  Their brains are so dysfunctional because they don't get enough nutrients in their foods to create a normal state of thought or action.  Many of our children are suffering in the same manner - they want to behave normally but they simply can't because their brains are lacking the nutrients to make them think and function properly! 

Food greatly influences our behavior!  Our food is our fuel, it influences our moods, our emotions, our attitudes, our energy levels, our conversations, our actions, our beings!  It only stands to reason – our world is full of those suffering with depression, mental confusion, mental disorders, and crime – and it’s largely due to the fact that we as a society eat so poorly!  What we eat does make a difference in how we act, think, and behave!