WHAT REALLY NOURISHES AND SUSTAINS US

Rav Shimshon Barsky writes in his explanation of Torah 19, "Foods and beverages sustain us because they contain vitality placed in them by Hashem. This vitality is called "Torah letters" because Hashem and the Torah are essentially one<...> It is this Divine vitality alone found in food and drink that nourishes a person when he eats and drinks."

This is a crucial thing to remember in this age of obsession with "healthy eating". Indeed, the Torah obligates us to make a reasonable effort to stay healthy, but we don't have to get fanatical about it, and we shouldn't think that eating healthy is always going to mean staying healthy. The reality is that only Hashem can make us healthy (or not, G-d forbid). It is He alone Who gives to food and drink the ability to nourish and sustain us, and what activates this ability is probably prayer.

I once read a very touching story about a contemporary Breslover chassidah that illustrates this point. She had a large family and very little money, so usually they all subsisted on bread, pasta, and potatoes. Of course, she understood that this wasn't enough, and so she supplemented this meager food with a lot of prayer, asking Hashem to keep her children healthy and happy. And so they were. But sometimes they were given a little tzedakah, and then the mother would run out happily to buy meat, fish, fruit, vegetables, and then prepare an elaborate and festive meal for her family. Yet on those days, she was so busy she forgot to pray for her children's health! And sure enough, they would wake up the following day with runny noses, achy joints, and in a very bad mood.

So, as the passuk says, "Man doesn't live by bread alone." What really gives us life is the Divine vitality in bread (or any other food). And if we regularly ask Hashem to place this life-giving energy into whatever food we have available, then we can always be both healthy and happy, regardless of what is on our plate.