When to Eat

You cannot build and maintain a perfectly healthy body by mental action alone, or by the performance of the unconscious or involuntary functions alone. There are certain actions, more or less voluntary, which have a direct and immediate relation with the continuance of life itself; these are eating, drinking, breathing, and sleeping. No matter what man's thought or mental attitude may be, he cannot live unless he eats, drinks, breathes, and sleeps; and, moreover, he cannot be well if he eats, drinks, breathes, and sleeps in an unnatural or wrong manner. It is therefore vitally important that you should learn the right way to perform these voluntary functions, and I shall proceed to show you this way, beginning with the matter of eating, which is most important.

You cannot build and maintain a perfectly healthy body through mental activity alone. Nor can you do it through unconscious or involuntary functions alone. Certain actions are more or less voluntary and directly affect your ability to stay alive. These are eating, drinking, breathing, and sleeping. No matter what you think or what your mental attitude is, you cannot live without doing these things. And you cannot be well if you eat, drink, breathe, or sleep in an unnatural or wrong way. So it is vitally important to learn the right way to perform these voluntary functions. I will show you how, beginning with eating, which is the most important.

There has been a vast amount of controversy as to when to eat, what to eat, how to eat, and how much to eat; and all this controversy is unnecessary, for the Right Way is very easy to find. You have only to consider the Law which governs all attainment, whether of health, wealth, power, or happiness; and that law is that you must do what you can do now, where you are now; do every separate act in the most perfect manner possible, and put the power of faith into every action.

There has been a great deal of debate about when, what, and how much to eat, and how to eat it. All this debate is unnecessary, because the Right Way is very easy to find. You only need to consider the Law that governs all attainment, whether of health, wealth, power, or happiness. This law is that you must do what you can do now, where you are now. Do each separate act as perfectly as possible, and put the power of faith into every action.

The processes of digestion and assimilation are under the supervision and control of an inner division of man's mentality, which is generally called the sub-conscious mind; and I shall use that term here in order to be understood. The sub-conscious mind is in charge of all the functions and processes of life; and when more food is needed by the body, it makes the fact known by causing a sensation called hunger. Whenever food is needed, and can be used, there is hunger; and whenever there is hunger it is time to eat. When there is no hunger it is unnatural and wrong to eat, no matter how great may APPEAR to be the need for food. Even if you are in a condition of apparent starvation, with great emaciation, if there is no hunger you may know that FOOD CANNOT BE USED, and it will be unnatural and wrong for you to eat. Though you have not eaten for days, weeks, or months, if you have no hunger you may be perfectly sure that food cannot be used, and will probably not be used if taken. Whenever food is needed, if there is power to digest and assimilate it, so that it can be normally used, the sub-conscious mind will announce the fact by a decided hunger. Food, taken when there is no hunger, will sometimes be digested and assimilated, because Nature makes a special effort to perform the task which is thrust upon her against her will; but if food be habitually taken when there is no hunger, the digestive power is at last destroyed, and numberless evils caused.

Digestion and assimilation are supervised and controlled by an inner part of the human mind. This part is generally called the subconscious mind, and I will use that term here so I can be understood. The subconscious mind is in charge of all the functions and processes of life. When the body needs more food, the subconscious mind makes this known by causing a sensation called hunger. Whenever food is needed and can be used, there is hunger. Whenever there is hunger, it is time to eat. When there is no hunger, eating is unnatural and wrong, no matter how great the need for food may APPEAR. Even if you appear to be starving and are extremely thin, you may know that FOOD CANNOT BE USED if you feel no hunger. Eating would be unnatural and wrong for you. Even if you have not eaten for days, weeks, or months, you may have no hunger. In that case, you may be perfectly sure that food cannot be used and probably will not be used if eaten. Whenever food is needed, the subconscious mind will announce this with a definite feeling of hunger. It will do so if the body has the power to digest and assimilate food so it can be used normally. Food eaten without hunger will sometimes be digested and assimilated. This is because Nature makes a special effort to perform the task forced on her against her will. But if food is habitually eaten without hunger, the power to digest is eventually destroyed, causing countless evils.

If the foregoing be true—and it is indisputably so—it is a self-evident proposition that the natural time, and the healthy time, to eat is when one is hungry; and that it is never a natural or a healthy action to eat when one is not hungry. You see, then, that it is an easy matter to scientifically settle the question when to eat. ALWAYS eat when you are hungry; and NEVER eat when you are not hungry. This is obedience to nature, which is obedience to God.

If what has been said so far is true, and it unquestionably is, then the conclusion is obvious. The natural and healthy time to eat is when you are hungry. It is never natural or healthy to eat when you are not hungry. So it is easy to settle the question of when to eat scientifically. ALWAYS eat when you are hungry. NEVER eat when you are not hungry. This is obedience to nature, which is obedience to God.

We must not fail, however, to make clear the distinction between hunger and appetite. Hunger is the call of the sub-conscious mind for more material to be used in repairing and renewing the body, and in keeping up the internal heat; and hunger is never felt unless there is need for more material, and unless there is power to digest it when taken into the stomach. Appetite is a desire for the gratification of sensation. The drunkard has an appetite for liquor, but he cannot have a hunger for it. A normally fed person cannot have a hunger for candy or sweets; the desire for these things is an appetite. You cannot hunger for tea, coffee, spiced foods, or for the various taste-tempting devices of the skilled cook; if you desire these things, it is with appetite, not with hunger. Hunger is nature's call for material to be used in building new cells, and nature never calls for anything which may not be legitimately used for this purpose.

We must, however, make clear the difference between hunger and appetite. Hunger is the subconscious mind’s call for more material to repair and renew the body and maintain its internal heat. Hunger is never felt unless the body needs more material and can digest it once it reaches the stomach. Appetite is a desire to satisfy the senses. A drunkard has an appetite for liquor, but cannot have a hunger for it. A person who eats normally cannot have a hunger for candy or sweets. The desire for these things is an appetite. You cannot hunger for tea, coffee, spiced foods, or the various tempting foods prepared by a skilled cook. If you desire these things, you have an appetite for them, not hunger. Hunger is nature’s call for material to build new cells. Nature never calls for anything that cannot properly be used for this purpose.

Appetite is often largely a matter of habit; if one eats or drinks at a certain hour, and especially if one takes sweetened or spiced and stimulating foods, the desire comes regularly at the same hour; but this habitual desire for food should never be mistaken for hunger. Hunger does not appear at specified times. It only comes when work or exercise has destroyed sufficient tissue to make the taking in of new raw material a necessity.

Appetite is often largely a matter of habit. If you eat or drink at a certain hour, you regularly feel the desire again at that hour. This is especially true if you eat sweetened, spiced, or stimulating foods. But you should never mistake this habitual desire for hunger. Hunger does not come at set times. It comes only when work or exercise has destroyed enough tissue to make new raw material necessary.

For instance, if a person has been sufficiently fed on the preceding day, it is impossible that he should feel a genuine hunger on arising from refreshing sleep. In sleep the body is recharged with vital power, and the assimilation of the food which has been taken during the day is completed; the system has no need for food immediately after sleep, unless the person went to his rest in a state of starvation. With a system of feeding, which is even a reasonable approach to a natural one, no one can have a real hunger for an early morning breakfast. There is no such thing possible as a normal or genuine hunger immediately after arising from sound sleep. The early morning breakfast is always taken to gratify appetite, never to satisfy hunger. No matter who you are, or what your condition is; no matter how hard you work, or how much you are exposed, unless you go to your bed starved, you cannot arise from your bed hungry.

For example, if a person ate enough the day before, they cannot feel genuine hunger after waking from refreshing sleep. During sleep, the body is recharged with vital power and finishes absorbing the food eaten during the day. The body does not need food immediately after sleep unless the person went to bed starving. If people eat in a way that even reasonably approaches a natural diet, they cannot feel real hunger for an early breakfast. Normal or genuine hunger is simply impossible immediately after waking from sound sleep. An early breakfast is always eaten to gratify appetite, never to satisfy hunger. No matter who you are or what your condition is, you cannot wake up hungry unless you went to bed starving. This is true no matter how hard you work or how much you are exposed to the elements.

Hunger is not caused by sleep, but by work. And it does not matter who you are, or what your condition, or how hard or easy your work, the so-called no-breakfast plan is the right plan for you. It is the right plan for everybody, because it is based on the universal law that hunger never comes until it is EARNED.

Hunger comes from work, not sleep. The so-called no-breakfast plan is right for you, no matter who you are, what your condition is, or how hard or easy your work is. It is right for everyone because it is based on a universal law: hunger never comes until it is EARNED.

I am aware that a protest against this will come from the large number of people who "enjoy" their breakfasts; whose breakfast is their "best meal"; who believe that their work is so hard that they cannot "get through the forenoon on an empty stomach," and so on. But all their arguments fall down before the facts. They enjoy their breakfast as the toper enjoys his morning dram, because it gratifies a habitual appetite and not because it supplies a natural want. It is their best meal for the same reason that his morning dram is the toper's best drink. And they CAN get along without it, because millions of people, of every trade and profession, DO get along without it, and are vastly better for doing so. If you are to live according to the Science of Being Well, you must NEVER EAT UNTIL YOU HAVE AN EARNED HUNGER.

I know that many people will object to this. They "enjoy" their breakfasts, and breakfast is their "best meal." They believe their work is so hard that they cannot "get through the morning on an empty stomach," and so on. But all their arguments fail in the face of the facts. They enjoy breakfast as a habitual drinker enjoys his morning drink. It satisfies a habitual appetite, not a natural need. Breakfast is their best meal for the same reason that the morning drink is the habitual drinker's best drink. And they CAN get along without breakfast. Millions of people in every trade and profession DO get along without it, and they are vastly better off for doing so. If you are to live according to the Science of Being Well, you must NEVER EAT UNTIL YOU HAVE AN EARNED HUNGER.

But if I do not eat on arising in the morning, when shall I take my first meal?

But if I don't eat when I get up in the morning, when should I have my first meal?

In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred twelve o'clock, noon, is early enough; and it is generally the most convenient time. If you are doing heavy work, you will get by noon a hunger sufficient to justify a good-sized meal; and if your work is light, you will probably still have hunger enough for a moderate meal. The best general rule or law that can be laid down is that you should eat your first meal of the day at noon, if you are hungry; and if you are not hungry, wait until you become so.

In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, noon is early enough to eat, and it is generally the most convenient time. If you do heavy work, you will be hungry enough by noon to justify a good-sized meal. If your work is light, you will probably still be hungry enough for a moderate meal. The best general rule is to eat your first meal of the day at noon, if you are hungry. If you are not hungry, wait until you are.

And when shall I eat my second meal?

And when should I eat my second meal?

Not at all, unless you are hungry for it; and that with a genuine earned hunger. If you do get hungry for a second meal, eat at the most convenient time; but do not eat until you have a really earned hunger. The reader who wishes to fully inform himself as to the reasons for this way of arranging the mealtimes will find the best books thereon cited in the preface to this work. From the foregoing, however, you can easily see that the Science of Being Well readily answers the question: When, and how often shall I eat? The answer is: Eat when you have an earned hunger; and never eat at any other time.

Not at all, unless you are hungry for it, and have genuinely earned that hunger. If you do get hungry for a second meal, eat at the most convenient time. But do not eat until you have really earned your hunger. If you want to fully understand the reasons for arranging mealtimes this way, see the preface. It cites the best books on the subject. From what has been said, you can easily see that the Science of Being Well answers the question: When and how often should I eat? The answer is: Eat when you have earned your hunger, and never eat at any other time.