Deborah Kesten is a nutritionist who gives seminars and workshops on the connections between food, spirituality, and health. She is the author of Feeding the Body, Nourishing the Soul. In this brisk and wide-ranging interview with Michael Toms, she talks about the dangers of treating food as a fuel and ignoring the link between eating and soul.
All of the world's religions offer wisdom about this important subject. Kesten discusses the food-based spiritual practices of Judaism, Hinduism, Islam, and Buddhism. "Every world religion and tradition expresses bringing moment-to-moment mindfulness and non-judgmental awareness to every aspect of the meal." If we were to follow the six steps of enlightened eating, peoples' lives would not be ravaged by anorexia, overeating, and other food-related issues. Kesten also offers her assessment of vegetarianism, food as an industrial artifact, fasting, and soul food.