Roots to Health with Dr. Craig Keever

Mindful Eating For Better Health And Calm

• Dr. Craig Keever • Episode 18

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Ever feel like your meals happen to you instead of for you? We dive into mindful eating as a simple, powerful way to slow down, listen to your body, and enjoy food without the stress spiral. Rather than pushing another “plan,” we focus on practical steps you can actually use: short pauses before the first bite, chewing enough to let fullness signals catch up, putting the fork down now and then, and reflecting for a moment after you finish. The payoff is real—fewer binges, better digestion, steadier energy, and a more relaxed relationship with food.

We unpack the difference between mindful eating and dieting, and why that matters for long-term health. Diets rely on rigid rules and deadlines; mindful eating builds internal awareness that lasts. We also talk about how this practice plays alongside personalized nutrition needs—like managing insulin resistance with lower dietary fat—so you can respect both your body’s signals and your body’s conditions. From distracting screens and fast-paced schedules to social pressure to “clean your plate,” we call out common obstacles and share low-pressure ways to navigate them at home, at work, and in restaurants.

You’ll hear realistic strategies for busy days, including making meals device-free, using conversation as natural breaks between bites, and choosing treats without guilt or all-or-nothing thinking. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s presence. Start with one meal, test and measure what changes, and let the results guide your next step. If you’re ready to feel lighter, calmer, and more satisfied after you eat, press play and try the pause-chew-reflect approach with us. If this conversation resonates, subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review to help others find the show.

Thanks for listening to Roots To Health!

The information provided in this video is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have seen or heard in this video. Dr. Craig Keever is a licensed pediatrician, but the content shared here is general in nature and may not be applicable to your individual health needs.

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🎨 Connect with Amy Keever for art, creativity, and inspiration:

Website for plant-based Cuisine : https://www.wildflowercuisine.com/
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📍 Website: amykeever.com

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SPEAKER_00:

All right. I'd like to welcome you to the next episode of uh Roots to Health. Roots to Health. Roots to Health. I am your host, Dr. Craig Keever, and my lovely co-host, Amy. Also happens to be my wife and personal vegan shit. There you go. There you go.

SPEAKER_01:

My title just keeps growing, going, growing.

SPEAKER_00:

So the next topic that we're addressing today is an interesting one that I quite honestly don't know a whole lot about.

SPEAKER_01:

I bet you know more than you think you do.

SPEAKER_00:

I have some presupposed ideas, but I haven't really practiced or studied it much. And that is the topic of mindful eating. Why might this be a big deal? Well, um this is apparently the kind of thing that can really kind of slow things down and uh be make mealtime a healthier thing for you and more enjoyable. Uh again, a little I'm so fond of going back to my own story because it's what I know. Right.

SPEAKER_01:

You know, but uh mindful eating was not in your history.

SPEAKER_00:

It was not my history. We'll just say that right at first.

SPEAKER_01:

I think it's not in a lot of our lives.

SPEAKER_00:

Right. I mean, I am the pretty typical American kind of guy, and we run at fast paces and and uh always busy, always thinking, always doing, and and uh uh uh meal time uh sadly gets caught up in that. Um, and hence um the uh chronic problems that are coming from our food sources with um eating convenient food, which is vast majority of the time processed food in the car, in the car on the run. And just getting something in to curb that hunger pang and drive it on, or boredom, or boredom, or sadness, yeah, or anger, or yeah, you can increase the list at infinite.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I I mean Americans have made it about being a comfort thing, and yes, it is comforting, but it's really not it's its primal role is to be, you know, a nutritious thing for your body.

SPEAKER_00:

That's right. And so uh a little statement here basically uh is that uh, you know, mindful eating is a tool uh that we can use for better health, improved digestion, and a healthier relationship with food. Uh and I think that really says it all. I think um, you know, my relationship with food has not always been of the healthiest nature, you know. He's perfect. Right.

SPEAKER_01:

I think most of my cheat cheese pizzas that's not, yeah, at all. And I mean, think about how you felt when you ate that way. Right. I mean, it just absolutely miserable.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, yeah. I mean, so many times I'd push away from the table way overstuffed with things that just made my system sluggish and I want to go take a nap.

SPEAKER_01:

Which I that thinks. This is why going fast is even worse because you don't have that time to you just uh be able to know, am I full?

SPEAKER_00:

Right. That's right. So what what is mindful eating? Well, it's uh defined as bringing full awareness to the experience of eating without judgment.

SPEAKER_01:

Hmm. Interesting.

SPEAKER_00:

I have to ponder.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Without judgment. Its origins, of course, uh is that it's connected to mindful meditation practices. Um, hopefully that doesn't scare anybody away. It shouldn't. It shouldn't.

SPEAKER_01:

It's okay. It's okay. We're all different, but this like that's just a a way to slow your life down.

SPEAKER_00:

Slow your down self down and be deliberate and and understand what it is I'm doing and why am I doing it. Yeah, yeah. Right? Um, this is different from dieting. Yes. Okay. Uh I this I really do abhor that word or that phrase, I'm going on a diet.

SPEAKER_01:

Uh this is it sounds temporary.

SPEAKER_00:

It is temporary. That's exactly right. It's like, I'm gonna eat this way until I get whatever goal I want to get, and then it won't matter anymore. I'll be okay.

SPEAKER_01:

And to your point about being lifestyle, lifestyle is that it's not temporary, it's not about this is a total shift of your life in the best ways.

SPEAKER_00:

That's right. Um, and also makes a point here to say there are no strict rules with mindful eating. So, in other words, there are quote unquote no good foods or bad foods. Now, that's a bit of a stretch for me. Me too. Uh, only because uh what I know about the way I need to eat for my health problems includes limiting fat dramatically. You know, I think the average American diet probably could have as much as 50 to 60 percent fat in the diet. And for me to control my diabetes, my insulin resistance, I need to have probably less than 15%. One five.

SPEAKER_01:

I think yeah, I think with my eating, it reminds me, I was on a call with Ocean Robins organization today, and they they gave the greatest analogy of it's not about the blueberry, it's about getting the blueberry in the bowl. So, mindful eating is about how do you how do you just do this well, and we're not gonna so focus on what that food is. It's about how do we do this well?

SPEAKER_00:

How do we how do we, you know, yeah mindfully so as part of of mindful eating, you don't necessarily have to think about good food, bad food, but I think at some point that does um come before the actual process of mindful eating because you've got to know they collaborate, they collaborate, but you have to know if you're do particularly if you're struggling with any health issues related to this uh diet and and and all of that, that you have to know what foods are gonna be right for you to take in. Right. And not to necessarily put a quote unquote label on it as good or bad, but my body doesn't metabolize this very well, and so it should be something that I probably avoid.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Right. Absolutely. So they're focusing on the action, not necessarily what is mindful eating uh tends to try to shift the focus from the external rules to the internal cues. What is my body telling me?

SPEAKER_01:

Which is why the food is so important, though, because just as we talked in the last podcast, if you don't get some of those addictive foods out, you think, oh, I'm supposed to really feel like I need this cheese. Right. Because it's doing it. It's the driver.

SPEAKER_00:

It's the driver, yes.

SPEAKER_01:

And it really is true that the more I I don't interrupt you, but it is true that as you wake up to alive foods, you can tune into that so much more to your on-the-oh.

SPEAKER_00:

So much so much of work. Yeah, yeah, that's for sure. Well, why does mindful eating matter? Um, it it plays a big role in uh reducing overeating um by recognizing hunger and fullness signals. When you take your time and think about what's going in, yes, we can take our time and process, and it gives our bodies time because our bodies respond to ingesting food by releasing certain hormones and chemicals in our body that it takes a little while, a few minutes, for that to register, and we realize, oh, okay, I'm full now. Yeah. Right? And so if you're like me and classically wolfing down a sandwich as fast as you can, because I got this big hole, I gotta fill it right next.

SPEAKER_01:

Feelers me 50 minutes may well that's a good thing. Yeah, it's just like you know, it takes me a while to prep my food and do all those kind of things.

SPEAKER_00:

So, other things that mindful eating does to help us, it does improve digestion. When you chew your food completely, that helps break it down to where your body can absorb and digest it much better. Um, and again, with the more intentional, okay, this is what I'm doing, rather than just throwing something in the pie hole, right? You know, we're paying attention to, oh, this is what my body needs. And yeah, yeah. And it can help uh uh the mindful eating process can help with emotional eating and cravings. Definitely. Uh, very much so. Um, the research is suggesting that mindful eating can be linked to lower BMI, uh, less binge eating, and improved mental well-being.

SPEAKER_01:

Because so much of that is sometimes being on autopilot and just like wanting to numb your not necessarily, you know, at all, enjoy it, just numb my feelings. That's right.

SPEAKER_00:

Oh, absolutely. Yeah. And so what are some of the barriers to mindful eating? Okay. Uh one of the biggest I would say would be um either our phone or a TV.

SPEAKER_01:

Phone's just right at their own.

SPEAKER_00:

That's right. It is. That's exactly right. So eating while distracted. Okay. Uh, when we eat, it's probably better to sit down and okay, this is my meal.

SPEAKER_01:

Which is hard for that mom out there that's got three kids going crazy.

SPEAKER_00:

And this is not something that I think we need to pound ourselves to thinking we have to do it every meal.

SPEAKER_01:

It's not about judgment. No, this is not about judgment. This is about judgment.

SPEAKER_00:

This is to my way of thinking, this is all about introducing, like I said, this is a relatively new concept.

SPEAKER_01:

Same thing for meditation. If you can't, if you can't do 30, do five.

SPEAKER_00:

That's right. You know, yeah. So we're talking about starting to think about these things and maybe, oh, I can do this a couple times a week, and then, you know, see how it affects for sure.

unknown:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

So other barriers, uh, as we've already talked about, the the fast-paced lifestyles and the grab and go kind of meals that you can get in any fast food place, which is killing this country. Yeah, absolutely. And we've also already mentioned emotional triggers, uh, stress and boredom and sadness. Uh, you know, all of these things are helped with uh, you know, actual mindful eating and paying attention to what we're doing during the mealtime. And lastly but not least, social freshers, you know, whether we're at a party or in for the kids, you know, boy, you better clean that plate.

SPEAKER_01:

Boy, this is my my parents. My mom was like, my father was poor growing up, and he would always say, you know, I I was raised to believe this way. My mom would always say, She needs to eat till she's full. And she didn't serve that at that restaurant. They they served her, you know. So it's very important to listen to those cues.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

And it also actually helps stress to be able to detach from your life and just focus on something else other than your for real.

SPEAKER_00:

Your issues. Yeah, for real. So, how do we start to practice mindful eating? What does this look like? Well, um before eating, take a little pause. Doesn't have to be long. 30 seconds, a minute, whatever feels right to you. Just pause a little bit, think about your hunger level, you know, think about why are you really hungry? Are you really hungry? Yeah, just think about all these things uh in that little pause. Um and then during eating, um, eat without multitasking.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, that's a big deal.

SPEAKER_01:

It's still uh that's still a challenge for me.

SPEAKER_00:

It it is, it's a challenge, it's always a challenge, right? Chew slowly. Uh this is a big one for me. And chew enough.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

I'm uh used to, you know, five the saliva in your uh your mouth is actually going to work to that. That's why you're digesting as soon as it hits your mouth. That's right, right? Uh, you know, so yeah, it's some I've heard some people talk about I chew my food 20 times or 30 times before I swallow. I don't know if I can do 30, but I know I've hit 20 because I started to think about this a little. I have.

SPEAKER_01:

You've been counting.

SPEAKER_00:

Well, yeah, one of our one of our YouTube uh uh people that we like to listen to, Derek Simnet, talks about um, you know, how he chooses, he's gotten in a habit of just chewing it. I think it's 20 times.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

Right? And uh too could get rigid. So it's like yeah, yeah, yeah. I this isn't about rigidity for me. This is about I'm I'm just trying to think about these principles. And and the fact is, the better we chew our food, the easier our digestion is.

SPEAKER_01:

It's kind of like saying what happy birthday or something while you're washing your hands.

SPEAKER_00:

You well, and uh what I'm really likening this to or applying this to, my morning breakfast now consists of a thing called buckwheat groats, and um, which is uh essentially a grain um that's whole food totally intact, totally intact, right? And uh if we don't boil them, then they're pretty hard.

SPEAKER_01:

They're gonna break a tooth.

SPEAKER_00:

You break a tooth, right? And so I prepare that, but even after boiling, um, there's still uh there's a lot of good texture there, and and they're small, they're real small grains, and I realize, you know, if I just swallow this, which would be very easy to do, my body's gonna take a lot more time to actually digest it and break it down. And you might not get the full nutrition, and I might not get the full that's where I was exactly right.

SPEAKER_01:

Yes, you're reading my mind. Well, certain fibers can just go right through that's exactly right, chia, a flax.

SPEAKER_00:

That's exactly right. And so I've tried to make it a point to try to feel all the little groats before they go down and make sure. Have I chewed that one before?

SPEAKER_01:

Well, this is the news. I know that. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00:

And I owe that to Derek Simon. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

And I forget I shouldn't even mention it because I forget the term, but they talk about that where you put another habit by, like someone will say, Okay, while you're brushing your teeth, you do something, I don't know. But it's it's a way to get into another habit is to kind of when I do this, I do this.

SPEAKER_00:

Paradigm meals, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah. Mindful of the atomic habits guy.

SPEAKER_00:

So as you're learning to chew more slowly and more, thinking about the textures and the aromas and the flavors, and and just as with that pause before the meal, just kind of think about while you're yeah, you it will create a whole new sense of enjoyment and and use that time to just kind of get a a break from anything else condortion your life. And another thing it suggests here is putting your utensils down between bites. Right? I know, and that's my first thought. Hey, it's yeah, okay, but that can that can help in terms of if you're really trying to get into this mindful eating, and it may not be between every bite, but you know, sometimes put the utensils.

SPEAKER_01:

This reminds me, because an efficient person is thinking, well, that's just a lot of extra, you know, whatever. But it reminds me of my chiropractor in East Texas years ago. And I was like, he's like, What about yoga, Amy? And I said, I just don't get it. And like, there's just not, and he goes, That's because you're the very person that needs yoga in life. Like, he's like, That's the reason, you know. So it's like yeah, the very person that thinks, oh, come on now, might need it more than anybody else.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And then for the last little part of how you practice mindful eating, so you've got your pause before, you're pausing and being more deliberate while you're eating, and then afterwards, pause to reflect. How do you feel? Satiated? You know, yeah. And it doesn't have to be long, it's not saying a 20-minute meditation on this. This is like, you know, 30 seconds to a minute. Yeah. Just a little pause to think.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, I definitely see the the reason to be slower when you eat and taking that pause because it does help me realize, oh, okay, I really don't. And and even like we're taught to like just stuff. I mean, not maybe taught, but you know, even get to a point where you might not even feel like you're full and then just wait and just see.

SPEAKER_00:

Yep. All right. So thinking about mindful eating in real life, like, right? Like when you're going out to eat. How does how does this look? Well, you know, fortunately, uh, taking these little pauses doesn't make you stand out.

SPEAKER_01:

It's conversation. You have a conversation with your loved one, right? Yeah. We hope.

SPEAKER_00:

So it's not like you're taking a neon sign and saying, right? So at a restaurant, it would be fairly easy to do to do that, you know. Um, and and just uh think about when you're ordering, you know, what it is you're putting in your body, you know, just again be mindful of what we're eating and how we're eating it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01:

It's such a great concept, but I can see why people would be like, hmm, I can see there's a there's a group out there that's like, okay, whatever.

SPEAKER_00:

This is kind of a hippie-dippy thing.

SPEAKER_01:

It's not for everybody, and this is not for everybody. But I think these are it is for everybody, but not everybody will get right.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah, I do think these are principles that could help everybody, yeah, for sure. But um, actually getting, you know, hippie boom.

SPEAKER_01:

Like I go back to East Texas and I tell half of my crew, like, okay, whatever. Yeah, that's okay. That's no reflection on East Texas. I love you guys.

SPEAKER_00:

Um, one suggestion here is make mealtime a device-free zone. I like that. Yeah. Indeed. At work taking short breaks to savor a snack or something like that.

SPEAKER_01:

Go outside. I saw somebody today, like outside on their patio. It's like, just go outside and go to nature, go have a picnic with yourself.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. And then on the uh issue of treats, you know, I think we all deserve a treat once in a while. That's right. And for those of us struggling with health issues, you know, you can pick different treats. But if you happen to pick one that may not be so good for you, like Dr. Neil Barnard said, you know, enjoy it, get up, dust yourself off, and say, Okay, I'm back on the bandwagon now.

SPEAKER_01:

It can be that, or it can also be something that you really make room for. We do, uh, and it's it's not, it's everything we eat's gonna be vegan, but um, we might have a a little bit of vegan burger or something like that, and it's such a real treat. And maybe you aren't at a place where you can do that. It's like if you're new in this journey, it that may be very you're like dipping your toe is too dangerous, but you will get to a point where you can, and to me, that's that's something I really look forward to.

SPEAKER_00:

Yeah. So in closing, uh, you know, just to recap a little bit, I think mindful eating is a um is really all about uh awareness and presence. Um and it's also uh I think a little bit about self-compassion. You know, um being good to yourself, even if it's just for that few moments of that meal.

SPEAKER_01:

Yeah, you know, and it's also that mindset as well. Everything, everything about this is about a mindset, very much so.

SPEAKER_00:

You know, if you're listening to this and thinking, no, why? You know, but but if you see value and the potential of this, start small.

SPEAKER_01:

Right.

SPEAKER_00:

Uh pardon me. Start with only like um one meal.

SPEAKER_01:

You oil water?

SPEAKER_00:

No, I'm good. Thanks. And and you know, slowly, this is we're not talking about a massive change all at once. This is going to be like um switching to a whole food plant-based diet. Right. It's a slow process, and it's uh like we've mentioned in podcasts before, this is very much about test and measure.

SPEAKER_01:

And how you do things, you know, like for me, I was so sick, I was so ready to get well, but I just dove it on and I went off of everything. And so that's fine if you need to do it that way. If not, do it slow, just don't blame the diet. I always said that. If you're if you're gonna just dip your toe in it, don't don't say, well, it didn't work out for me.

SPEAKER_00:

Right. Yeah, you got to give it enough try to say, yeah. Well, I want to thank everybody for listening. Any other parting words?

SPEAKER_01:

I I think I just check out our websites at the end. Uh, we'll have those marked in show notes. If you have any questions about, we have the plant-based resource page on Ozark Pediatrics, that'll be listed. And then wildflower cuisine is my culinary um information about classes that I give.

SPEAKER_00:

So it's fabulous and currently under development to some degree as well. Yeah, we're growing it. Yes, sir. Very much. Thanks for tuning in. We'll see you next time. All right, take care.

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Amy Keever

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