Changing Habits has always been based on two principles that guide our ingredients and our message. The first is Anthology (historically eating) and the second is Vitalism (synchronicity of the innate intelligence of food and the body).  With these two values guiding us we can know what is best for the human body.

As Autumn slowly makes its way to The Australian and southern hemispheres and in the northern hemisphere spring comes into force, the food in our local area begins to change.  Living on the Sunshine Coast and having a farm I can see what grows in my local area and what thrives in the different seasons. If you don’t have land or a garden you may have local farmers market where you see mangos arriving in the summer, citrus in the winter, apples in the autumn and berries in the spring.

Depending on where you live on the planet will depend on what food is available to you at this time of year.

Historically there may have been salt roads, spice, grain and legume trade which enabled these foods to be shipped and traded around the world, these to me are yearly foods if you can tolerate grain and legumes.

As for fresh fruit, herbs, nuts, seeds, and vegetables look around and become aware of the seasonal availability.  When we eat seasonally, we tend to reduce the chance of overeating a certain food.  For instance, plant-based foods have certain elements that help the plant defend itself from predators.  Things like oxalates, salicylates, gluten, lectins to name a few.  While cultural preparation and a well-functioning gut can mitigate problems with these plant chemicals its best to play it safe and to stay for the most part with the seasonal and local foods.  With our modern lifestyle we seek out ultra-processed foods, quick fixes and chemically laden agricultural products which is making it harder and harder for people to tolerate plant chemicals.  I believe we should be able to tolerate them but I’m seeing things that say the contrary and it’s our modern living that is pushing this.  Still live in a modern world but fake an historical path by consuming seasonally.

People do not realise how intelligent the body is.  It knows where it is in time and space. Seasons, food, sunshine, night and sleep give it the cues and the food available in that area creates a harmony that most people don’t understand exists.  So, if we live by the laws of nature when it comes to our fresh seasonal foods then perhaps we can create a harmony of health instead of a disease or sickness.

I also make sure that the animals and animal products I eat are local and farmed regeneratively.  This means that the seasons will also dictate the feed the animal is eating as well as the amount of fat it lays down.  For instance, in some places where the food is scarce for the animal they may not have as much fat on them, whereas in times of plenty of food for the animal there will be more fat layed down.  The fat serves a purpose to humans to indicate a type of good insulin resistance in times of plenty for us to lay our own fat down to survive the times of not so plenty.  This is and was for the survival of humans.  It’s when we abuse this, and insulin resistance becomes unhealthy that we must turn our attention back to the seasonal factor.

There is a lot that is stopping this type of eating I’ll dive into another time, but it falls under the category of food addiction and food availability, but just knowing that seasonal eating not only improves your health and your circadian rhythms but also goes a long way to help reduce food miles and therefore improve planet health.