Is it true “you are you what you eat”? Nutrients from food have long been a form of traditional practices. Planting fruits and vegetables is a popular custom for cultures around the world. Why is this a practice? Well, let us get to the “root” of it.
Nutrients affect the brain chemistry and the immune system. For example, B Vitamin participates in the production of neurotransmitters and the regulation of inflammation. Iron is essential for oxygen delivery and energy production.
Nutrient deficiencies have been associated with conditions of depression and anxiety.
Green, leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, collards, and broccoli may slow cognitive decline.
Flavonoids, which are in the natural plant pigments of berries, help improve memory.
The sheer process of putting your hands in soil and planting these green leafy vegetables wakes up the nervous system. Let us admit being outside in a garden helps with creating a since of accomplishment by watching the fruits of our labor.
In addition to all these wonderful things, planting helps connect us back to our traditional songs, language, dancers, and the caretakers of mother earth. It helps bring back a matriarchy balance with patriarchy. Planting is done each season in relation to the stars. Elder’s sharing traditional stories and language of plants and vegetables remind us about the relationship to the land and animals, healing ourselves naturally as it was once upon a time.
Planting seeds one at a time together, nurturing them, and watching them grow – this is healthy for our brain, just like nurturing our relationships with others.
It’s okay not to feel okay
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