Food Your Best Medicine

[Boblee]

Thank you Richard.  For perspective, let me share my story on the nuts.  I had read Harvey Diamond's book and thought eating raw foods before noon sounded like a good idea (more enzymes early in the day that way).  So what do I eat.  Aha, fruit.  But wait a minute, fruit is very sweet and I have trouble with sugar.  I need something to dilute the sweetness. Hmmm, how about nuts.  So for years, my breakfast was fruit and nuts, lots of nuts.  That's beside the peanut butter I always put on the sandwiches I ate for supper.

I also got to thinking about the warning we have about milk, how the time would come when it would not be fit to drink.  With all the antibiotics and hormones they are feeding cows, I thought maybe the time had come.  So except for an occassional yogurt or cottage cheese for their vitamin B12 and calcium, I switched to soy milk.  From my above posts, you can see I was setting myself up for a good case of shingles.  Actually I followed that rather extreme diet for four or five years before it finally caught up with me.  (Now I eat fruit and cereal for breakfast and take a lysine tablet when I indulge in a peanut butter sandwich).

Bob Lee

[Suzanne Sutton]

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES BOOST BONE DENSITY

Fruits and veggies can help keep our bones strong, according to researchers at the Univ. of Surrey. Their study evaluated 62 healthy women aged 45 to 55 who underwent bone mineral density screenings and completed detailed diet questionnaries about the foods they consumed in the past 12 months as well as in childhood. The women who ate the highest amounts of fruits and veggies had higher bone density scores and less evidence of bone loss.

Lead investigator Dr. Susan A. New notes that although most studies on osteoporosis have focused on calcium, "intakes of nutrients found in an abundance of fruits and vegetables--namely potassium, beta-carotene, vitamin C, and magnesium--were positively associated with bone health." Researchers believe that potassium slows the excretion of calcium while it and vitamin C increase rates of bone formation.  --Reprinted from "GOOD MEDICINE, Spring-Summer 2000, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.

[Suzanne Sutton]

Tomatoes Cut Heart Attack Risk in Half!

Tomatoes are red-hot. First came studies showing that those who ate the most tomato products had less prostate and colon cancer. Now, studies also show that they can prevent heart attacks. In Europe, men with the highest tissue levels of lycopene--the compound (antioxidant) in tomatoes that is protective against cancer--were only half as likely to suffer heart attacks as men with the lowest levels. --American Journal of Epidemiology, Oct. 1997.

Our home grown tomatoes are just now ripening and we are feasting on them. It seems that they also contain coumaric and chlorogenic acids, other antioxidants that block cancer causing nitrosamines from cigarette smoke and certain foods.

Let's be thankful that the Lord has provided us with such a bountiful harvest of healthful foods!

[Suzanne Sutton]

Natural Blood Pressure Control

Shed some pounds--and your prescription!

A study presented in Obesity Research, Oct. 2002, showed that losing an average of 16 pounds acted like a natural ACE inhibitor, a commonly prescribed blood pressure drug, by reducing the blood levels of pressure-building angiotensin-converting enzyme by 18 percent. Systolic pressure dropped by 10 points, diastolic by 8.

"If you lose just 5 to 10 percent of your body weight while on an ACE inhibitor, you may be able to decrease your dose or stop the medications altogether," according to study author Joyce Harp, MD.  --adapted from Prevention, March 2003.

Of course, losing weight with exercise and a correct diet always go together in battling almost any health problem. And when you utilize the other health measures outlined in the Spirit of Prophecy good health is practically assured. Remember the 8 doctors presented therein: pure air, sunlight, abstemiousness, rest, exercise, proper diet, the use of water, and trust in divine power--these are the true remedies.

"Man's plan is to medicate; God's plan is to educate."

~Suzanne~

[This message has been edited by Suzanne Sutton (edited 07-14-2003).]

[Sister Glass]

My son brought home a dehydrator the other day. So I have been dehydrating carrots, cucumbers, zucchini, and herbs so far. All from the garden except the carrots. I really feel good about this because the food is not known to loose any vitamins or minerals when storing it this way. Any info on this? I am really new at it.  

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With Christian Love,
Sister Marie

[Sybil]

The right food is, indeed, our best medicine.

The autopsy report just came in for one of my dearest friends: She was 51 and had a heart attack because her arteries were 90% blocked. She died Saturday night. Just recently she adopted a vegetarian diet but it was not soon enough to reverse the damage of a typical Western diet. The information in these threads about the importance of a plant-based diet cannot be stressed too strongly. I pray all who read will heed its counsel.  

[Richard Myers]

Dear sister Sybil, we sorrow with you in your  loss. You are right about diet.

Atherosclerosis, the narrowing of the arteries causes many deaths each year in the US and around the world, primarily in the "developed" countries. Heart disease is the leading killer in the US closely followed by cancer. Both are diet related and can be prevented. Atherosclerosis is reversible attested to by scientific studies (if that what it takes to change one's lifestyle).

My father died at 39 from a heart attack. The doctors had put him on a high protein diet after his first heart attack. He was eating meat three times a day. I suppose there was some kind of medical study they followed since all they do is according to scientific evidence.

The Bible is the best source of wisdom we have for all areas of life. The original diet that God gave to man is the best. When followed with trust in Him who gave it, blessings will follow.

[Vicki]

Atherosclerosis, the narrowing of the arteries causes many deaths each year in the US and around the world, primarily in the "developed" countries. Heart disease is the leading killer in the US closely followed by cancer. Both are diet related and can be prevented. Atherosclerosis is reversible attested to by scientific studies (if that what it takes to change one's lifestyle).

Does anyone know if there are specific foods that can reverse the damage already done or is it just an overall eat healthy & follow the other laws of health we've been given that gives the desired results?