FOOD IS MEDICINE
Back in the day, when I was an aspiring actress in Tampa, I had the good fortune of a few good friendships. One couple in particular, slightly older than me, looooooved hosting monthly Sunday Brunches at their townhouse. Each guest brought a dish, I brought dessert. We laughed, sang show tunes, and had smart, sometimes catty conversation. And always cheap champagne. These moments of conviviality and community around the fabulously laid out tablescape were the highlight of every month for me.
Several years later I’m in Denver, learning the ropes of management in a busy downtown restaurant. The GM gave me a piece of advice that informed the rest of my career in hospitality.
“Every night at the restaurant, we are hosting a dinner party. You need to see each of these people coming through the door as though they are a guest in your home, treat them accordingly.”
My friends in Florida knew this intuitively; the law of hospitality – and community building – ran deep in their DNA.
LONELINESS CAN BE LETHAL
I tell my clients that the nourishment around their table is every bit as important (perhaps more so) as the nourishment on their plates. And this brings me to the importance of community and social health/wellness. After 2 years of on-again-off-again lock downs, we’re all recognizing the importance of gathering, and from an Ayurvedic perspective, food is a community event.
The University of Oxford published a national survey showing that increased feelings of well-being and connectedness are a result of eating in community. As a matter of fact, despite a clear correlation between social eating and wellbeing, one of every five people acknowledged they hadn’t had a meal with a good friend or family member in over 6 months. Additionally:
- More than two thirds (69%) of those questioned had never shared a meal with any of their neighbors.
- 37% had never eaten with a community group.
- A fifth of people said it had been more than six months since they had shared a meal with their parents.
This study was conducted 2 years before a global pandemic had the entire planet on lockdown. However, not everyone had the resources to establish a bubble with family for 18 months. Regardless, we all undoubtedly felt the dark power of loneliness to some degree. Many of us with elderly parents missed holidays, Sunday dinners, and games of Dominoes around the kitchen table (with large servings of pie of course). And were especially crushed to celebrate birthdays with handmade signs placed at the windows of retirement centers.
Post-Covid studies have shown that loneliness has the same impact on mortality as smoking up to three cigarettes a day.
Evidently, loneliness
“has such a negative impact on physical and mental health that it’s recognized as a public health risk. For example, Japan and the United Kingdom have appointed a minister of loneliness to try to combat the risks of loneliness and isolation.”
COMMUNITY IS MEDICINE
I recently watched the documentary Belle Vie, therefore I am thinking hard on this topic. Available on Amazon Prime, Belle Vie offers a tender and intimate glimpse into the life of LA-restaurateur, Vincent Sanmarco, who is determined to do everything he can to keep not only his restaurant open, but also his community together during Covid. It is a beautiful illustration of how community develops around food. Food, and the community it fosters, is undeniably good medicine. Our paleo ancestors gathered around that which was central to their community and their survival: the fire. Similarly, we gather in our kitchens. certainly the warmest place in the house both physically and emotionally. The table is the center of our society today. And central to our survival as well.
What can we do to combat social isolation, tend to our community, and share this good medicine? Herewith, a few ideas to get you started:
- Establish weekly or monthly meals with your parents if they are still alive
- Host a small dinner party, or picnic, with a few neighbors
- Volunteer at a food pantry weekly or monthly
- Bake a dozen cookies for a neighbor you haven’t seen outside in awhile
- Host a Soup Swap with friends
- Join a book club, there’s always food at book club!
Food is medicine. Likewise, the community you cultivate is equally potent therapy. Let’s share it.
