Less sugar, more healthy fats, no gluten or dairy proteins, preferably local and organic products, a return to fermented foods, the addition of sprouts and germinations, gentle, slow cooking: discover the basic principles of Cuisine ToniqueTM.
Less sugar
Eating foods rich in carbohydrates (sugar) causes a rapid rise in blood sugar levels (glycemia peak), resulting in a surge of energy. As the body is always seeking balance and stability – a phenomenon known as homeostasis – it reacts to this blood sugar spike by sending a signal to the pancreas to release insulin, a hormone whose role is to eliminate excess glucose from the blood. The body uses the glucose (fuel) it needs immediately. Excess glucose is stored as glycogen in the liver and muscle tissue for future use, and as triglycerides, or fat, in the body.
Since our diet is often rich in carbohydrates, we generally consume more glucose than we expend. When insulin does its job efficiently and quickly, glucose is quickly eliminated from the bloodstream, leading to a drop in blood sugar levels, and therefore a drop in energy. We then feel hungry and tired again.
More good fats
As soon as we burn more glucose than we consume, we enter ketosis, even without a ketogenic diet: once the body has used up its available glucose, it draws on its fat resources. This causes no insulin spike, and therefore no stimulation of hunger. However, to prevent the body from drawing on its muscle mass, lipid intake must be increased, since we don’t want our muscles to atrophy!
It’s best to avoid fat from animals raised in poor conditions, as toxins and hormones present in both humans and animals are stored in fat.
Animals from intensive livestock farms are often fed inappropriate diets. Cattle are generally fed cereals and legumes instead of their natural grass-based diet.
What’s more, growth is often stimulated by hormones, while antibiotics are administered from the outset to prevent certain diseases caused by overpopulation on intensive farms.
Goodbye, gluten!
Gluten, found mainly in wheat, but also in rye, barley, spelt, kamut, and triticale, is made up of two reserve proteins that mammalian enzymes can’t digest perfectly. Many people might be thinking: “Wheat has been the staple of the human diet since the dawn of time. Eating gluten-free is just a fad!” Yet gluten can be a silent pest.
Bodies that haven’t yet adapted to the new – genetically modified – wheat can’t digest it efficiently because of the almost indigestible protein contained in gluten: gliadin. There are several types of gliadin, but the most difficult to digest is gliadin-a. It causes the most damage to the intestines. As a result, poorly digested food fragments can pass through the intestinal mucosa, which has become too permeable, into the bloodstream and be deposited in tissues. These molecules, recognized as foreign by the body, can provoke inadequate immune responses, leading to chronic inflammatory diseases over time. A damaged intestine also absorbs vitamins and trace elements poorly. Yeast and parasites can even develop.
No more dairy proteins
Nowadays, milk no longer resembles that which our grandparents drank, not least because it loses most of its good enzymes through homogenization processes, and pasteurization in particular. What’s more, caseins, the proteins contained in dairy products, cause problems similar to those for which gluten is responsible.
However, dairy proteins and gluten do not (or rarely) trigger allergies but are rather responsible for intolerances that most people put up with or ignore, since the body sometimes reacts very subtly, either through slight inflammation (swelling, bags under the eyes, mental fog, etc.), nasal congestion, intestinal discomfort (bloating, diarrhea, stomach aches), etc., or through a lack of tolerance.
Since there’s a wide variety of plant-based drinks (often called plant milk) on the market (it’s also possible to make your own – recipes in our book) and since other products derived from them are accessible (vegan cheese, nut yogurt, etc.), it won’t be painful to substitute dairy products in our diet. It could even be delicious!
Priority to local products, preferably organic and unprocessed
La Cuisine ToniqueTM is a cuisine of conscience. Where does my food come from? Is it organic? Is it fresh or has it traveled thousands of kilometers to reach my plate? Is my meat full of antibiotics and hormones? Have these animals been treated well, or have they lived in confined spaces with no exposure to sunlight? The answers to these questions define the quality of my food.
As well as boosting our region’s economy, buying locally-produced food ensures its freshness.
Back to fermented foods
Fermented foods remarkably restore and preserve our microbiota. Fermentation is a process as old as humanity itself. Historians have traced signs of fermentation in food and drink preparation as far back as 7000 BC! Almost all cultures, regardless of region, would have adopted fermentation as a method of food preparation and preservation.
Lacto-fermentation (such as sauerkraut, miso, and kimchi – see our recipe here), is a salt-based fermentation. The term “lacto” has nothing to do with milk, but rather refers to the lactic acid created by bacteria. In Cuisine ToniqueTM, as we reduce the amount of carbohydrates in our diet, we happily incorporate vegetable lacto-fermentation, because any vegetable that can be eaten raw can be lacto-fermented!
Sprouts and germinations
We distinguish sprouts from germinations by the method of production: sprouts germinate in the ground, usually in the home, and are grown in trays, while germinations are produced without soil, in jars. Sprouts are harvested before or, in some cases, as soon as the foliage appears.
Live and extremely alkaline, sprouts can contain up to 14 times more vitamins than the plants or seeds they come from. Depending on the seed being sprouted, the enzyme content may be 10 to 100 times higher than that of vegetables and fruit. No other food has a higher content of enzymes, which enable the metabolization of most foods. As well as being highly digestible, sprouts are highly valued for their regenerative properties.
Sprouts considerably enhance the flavor and nutritional value of dishes. They add beauty and freshness to our meals, whatever the season.
Make way for slow baking
When meat and poultry are prepared in stews, casseroles, broths, steamed, confit in fatm or basted constantly during dry cooking, their moisture is preserved. Their fibers don’t fuse, keeping their molecules intact. In large quantities, foods that have undergone molecular fusion, i.e. short, sharp cooking, end up being harmful, particularly to our kidneys and blood vessels.
You are invited to integrate one change at a time, to make your tests, and to try to become aware of the changes. Enjoy eating, discover new flavors and recipes, eat a variety of foods, and, above all, listen to your body – I mean listen to it, it will thank you.
This text is taken from our book La Cuisine Tonique. To learn more about the benefits of this Art of Living and 80 delicious recipes, get it from our online store or your local bookseller.
