How Much Do We Really Need?

Thanksgiving ushers in the season for indulgences -- food, presents, parties. Our society saturates us with the message that consumption -- be it cookies, clothes or computer gadgets -- is the key to a better life. But before we rush into our holiday routine, it's worth contemplating how much we really need. Yoga Journal Online talks about how too much of a good thing can be bad for our health. "Greed comes from a poverty mentality," says Cyndi Lee, founder of OM yoga in New York. "A poverty mentality is feeling like you don't have enough, so you try to get more. If you go out to dinner and somebody wants to taste your food when they haven't even tasted their own yet, that's a poverty mentality. It causes a person to want more — more food, clothes, compliments, attention, anything." Yet consuming more only fuels the hunger.