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Comfort Foods...The Soothers and Balms By- Ragini Chaturvedi Ragini Chaturvedi has been living in New Jersey , USA for the last 3 years. Before that she was in New Delhi and Bombay. Ragini has a 12 years of experience in Print Media in the capacity of transcriber, translator, copy-editor and editor with various reputed publishing houses.

My father used to say, "Enjoy today--you could be hit by a bus tomorrow." Those are words to live by, and, Gosh! how true they are. Though I always tried not to use food as the reason to live but some foods have sure made me feel that life could be so well lived if I could have those very foods each time.

If you look at life from another point of view ---When you come into this world you are slapped by someone---you cry. And then someone gives you milk. You stop crying. From that moment on, food is more than just 'something to eat', it's the thing that makes you stop crying. If put differently food is comfort.

Why do people eat what they eat? In addition to a well-documented craving for sweet foods and salty foods, people eat foods that trigger happy past associations. Brian Wansink classifies such foods as comfort foods.

Comfort foods may be all the rage these days, but some people still aren't sure how to define them. .For most people, however, comfort food is food that reminds them of home. Meaningful connections are often made over the preparation and serving of food, cementing family ties or developing friendships. Certain smells connote those moods, certain foods are associated with specific people and certain meals can send you back in time. They make you recall Mom's home cooking - meatloaf and mashed potatoes, chicken soup, pot roast, or warm and gooey chocolate-chip cookies. They are simple, honest foods with tastes and smells reminiscent of more carefree times, which may account for their spike in popularity.

So what, exactly, is comfort food? Simply put, it is food that offers a temporary escape from daily pressures, food that provides solace. Appetite, food preferences, cravings----all of these can be affected by our feelings and emotions, including those caused by stress from world events and even holidays. And often the foods we choose are so-called 'comfort foods'.

There are some days so bad, so stressful, so overwhelming, that there isn't a friend on this Earth, not a backrub on the planet that could unknot your neck muscles.

It is on days like these we turn to food for comfort. Maybe it's mac-and-cheese, maybe tomato soup, maybe pigs-in-a-blanket, maybe something else. But one thing is clear: Certain meals calm you down and put things in perspective.

It is different for everyone, as specific to the individual as his or her own fingerprints. For some, it's JELL-O for others, it's four-alarm chili.

Underlying the theory of comfort food is the notion that food is supremely evocative. It's not just nutrition, not just calories and protein, but firmly attached to memory. And it is the shelter of memory we are seeking when, after a tough day, we ignore sodium and fat content and sit down to enjoy a meal from the past.

"For example, college life is inherently stressful," Virginia Skorupski, nutritionist for Williams College, says. "We try to ease that stress by serving certain foods that remind students of home." Meals such as grilled cheese and tomato soup have been staples of the menu for years.

In addition to this, every attempt is made to make students feel comfortable in the dining halls. There are long-time employees -- a "squad of moms"-- serving food daily, people who notice when students look particularly ragged and worn, who offer up smiles and advice.

But, as Bob Dylan says, "You can't please all the people, all the time," and there are certain challenges that come with providing comfort food, particularly at a place like Williams College, where the student body is so diverse.

"People come from so many different places, that it's almost impossible to provide comfort food for everyone," Skorupski says. Consider vegans, vegetarians, and international students. "But we try."

One method has had considerable success: the "Recipes from Home" meal, where the food is cooked according to student recipe submissions. If the dish is a success, it is then incorporated into the rotating menu for the rest of the year. This is the origin of such favorites at Williams College as shoyu and voodoo chicken.

Take some advice from college pro Skorupski and dive into your comfort food if you feel overwhelmed by the holidays. After all, you deserve it. Forget for a minute the monthly diet, the skim milk, the bland fiber bar.

They haven't got a thing on your fried okra and grits, haven't got a thing on the ability to remember, with every bite, just how the snow fell outside the window the day you faked a fever, what it felt like to be carried, half asleep, over your father's shoulder.

According to researchers at the University of Illinois Food and Brand Lab, who recently conducted a trio of surveys about America's beloved comfort foods, some of this country's favorites are potato chips, ice cream, cookies, and candy. But snack foods bring only so much comfort. Forty percent of comfort foods fall into the category of "homemade and natural," such as soup, main dishes, and vegetables.

Did comfort foods differ by gender? In a survey of 1,005 consumers, it was found that men and women both selected ice cream as their favorite comfort food, but then differed strikingly, with women naming chocolate and cookies as their second and third-favorite choices, and men naming soup and pizza or pasta. Both sexes picked ice cream as their No. 1 choice, and said that soup is the one food in the group that 'makes you feel good about yourself'.

Don't get the wrong idea-comfort food isn't about gluttony--it's about the comfort and joy that certain special foods can bring us There is no question that comfort foods -- ice cream, mashed potatoes, peanut butter and jelly -- are helpful to many people during stressful times. Everyone should feel free to enjoy the foods that comfort them. You do not have to give up comfort foods in order to 'eat right'. Avoid the urge to eat as a way to quell anger or to overcome depression or loneliness

By not overindulging, you can do much toward keeping control of your health, as well. Eaten in moderation, even the richest foods can be healthful--not to mention emotionally and spiritually uplifting. Just be aware of your portions. Compared with nibbling, physical activity such as a brisk walk or a bike ride offers a more lasting way to resolve moods. Sometimes even a brief change of scenery can do the trick

The truth is that no matter how little fat we eat or how much we run, we're all going to die sometime. It's sad, but true and there's no escaping it. So enjoy yourself.

And, let me tell you I enjoy myself the most when I sit with an ever tempting bowl of soft, creamy, mouthwatering Kozy Shack's Rice Pudding...my all time favorite comfort food in USA. My only wish remains no body should stop me from going for the second helping...but alas!!

Some Advisory tips to go by:_

Photo credits: http://epages.webindia.com/india/almond

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