This activity is essential from a biological point of view and different specialists used it as a tool to create a new therapeutic method. Not only to generate well-being, but also to achieve a healthier life and improve ties with the environment.
“The preparation and consumption of food is an activity that throughout the evolution of the human species has been invested with different connotations”, Explain Silvia Lema, graduate in nutrition. And she adds: “From the essential for survival to the ritual, from the hedonistic to the therapeutic, from entertainment to the ostentation of wealth and power, human nutrition is both a social and biological instance.”
Taking all these points into account, professionals in psychology, nutrition and gastronomy developed therapeutic cooking or “cooking” workshops. The intention is to use the kitchen as a tool to improve different aspects of life.
For specialists, cooking in itself is a therapeutic activity. Although it has the purpose of making something delicious that nourishes us and fills us with energy, it can also be considered an art because it stimulates and connects the senses, creativity and communication.
What are its benefits?
“Cooking can be an effective emotional management technique for those people who do not feel comfortable in other creative activities” -drawing, writing, music, for example-, he explains in a Article the psychologist Sara Montejano.
Therapeutic cooking stimulates creativity. It gives us the chance to experiment with flavors, textures, temperatures, and also to blend the ingredients and seasonings to achieve great results.
The organization. Cooking requires methods, otherwise it is chaos. You have to know how to organize the ingredients, the order in which each one is cooked, execute the recipes as they are indicated, and in turn, have control over the implements we use.
Patience. Cooking has its time, its methods, and knowing how to wait is essential -especially when you feel very hungry-.
Memory and learning. As one repeats the practice, he memorizes the step by step and perfects the technique. To this we must also add the skill to manipulate the utensils and ingredients.
Finally, we must add the problem-solving capacity to face unforeseen events in the kitchen, improvisation and the sensory awareness that is generated by using all the senses.
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