Category: Health 2

Disclaimer: This article represents personal views and should be treated as such. Implementation of any ideas contained herein can only be done at own risk. Original article location: http://www.art.eonworks.com
This article describes and explains my current view on what constitutes a healthy diet along with health promoting eating habits. Further, it will give examples of meals based on the suggested diet. The diet is simple to implement and relatively low cost – I spend about US $150/month.
I read a lot about the topics of health and especially diets. I have been experimenting with diets since 1990 and keep journals about my observations. Over time I tried several very different diets – ranging from the politically correct ones to highly controversial, along with diets of my own design. My general observation is that a healthy diet plays an essential role in the overall scheme of well being.
Why eat healthy?
Eating the natural foods humans are well adapted at utilizing, enhances ones ability to cope with the reality of every day life. This in essence improves the probability of living a longer, healthier life. Quality food consumption becomes especially important in the present world of high stress and pollution – making a healthy diet an essential aspect of modern self health care. (Although food is not the only aspect contributing to health or disease, it is significant enough to consider it’s effects seriously.)
I think anybody who seriously tried living healthier through a better diet, proper physical activity, adequate rest, and by addressing mental and spiritual factors have experienced a vast range of natural health benefits. Common benefits are overall better health and a sense of well being, better sleep, improved physical endurance and strength, sharper mental abilities and lower sleep requirements. Further more, no or little time and money and energy is spend on doctors, hospitals and health insurance bills.
What is a healthy diet?
Since this article deals with healthy eating, a question remains to be answered: what constitutes a healthy diet? Unfortunately, there are more opinions about this than there are health experts. To further complicate the matter, dietary concepts change over time, leaving most people confused and uncertain about what or whom to trust. One solution to this problem is to become sufficiently knowledgeable about the relevant subjects and rely on common sense to draw basic conclusions. Along with personal experimentation, such an approach will enable one to establish healthy eating habits. This takes time and energy, but considering the long lasting benefits a healthy diet can provide, the effort is more then well worth it.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your Home
examine human diet over time – the foods humans consumed since the arrival of our species.
examine diets of ethnical groups known for their good health.

Looking at the type of diets humans lived on through out pre-history, provides good insights into the kind of foods human body should be well adapted at utilizing and dealing with. Further, the diets of certain ethnical groups that are well known for good health – the people of Okinawa(Japan), traditional cultures in the Mediterranean region and many hunter-gatherer societies – suggest certain health promoting dietary habits. Upon closer examination, two main denominators emerged:

diets are based on natural, whole or minimally processed foods in accordance to heritage.
diets are lower in calories compared to a typical western diet.

In the context of present time, one can therefore make two general assumptions in regard to the question of what constitutes a healthy diet: 1) generally, the less a food is processed the better. 2) eat less – eat what is adequate, do not over eat.
Generally, the less a food is processed the better.
The reason for this is simple. For 99.9% of human existence, our species lived on foods that were either raw or minimally processed. The technology needed to increase food processing did not exist until very recently. It is therefore reasonable to assume that our bodies are best adapted at utilizing and dealing with the raw or minimally processed foods which sustained us for hundreds of thousands of years: fruits, vegetables, meats, nuts and seeds.
Often, the more recent the food is, the more likely it is to be less beneficial or even directly harmful – possibly due to lack of full adaptation to such foods. For example, it is estimated that food cooking started about 500 000 – 250 000 years ago (depending on the source, the range may vary). During this time frame, it is likely that human species have at least adapted in some way to cooked animal and vegetable foods. On the other hand, the beginnings of grain consumption are much more recent. Evidence of earliest known, systematical collecting of grains for food goes back to about 23 000 years ago – giving less time for adaptation to grain based foods.
Now, let’s fast forward to recent times and consider all the new, human invented, highly processed foods so common today: fast foods, pizza, sweets, chips, convenience foods, canned foods, etc. along with the dramatic rise in heart attacks, high blood pressure, stroke, cancers, diabetes, kidney problems (and all the complications that arose from these conditions) during the past 100 years or so.
Considering the declining health of most western nations as opposed to good health of the ethnical groups described above, it seems reasonable that the most recent food inventions are directly harmful to human health. Further, it has been repeatedly observed that as ethnical groups around the world adopt the modern western diet, their health dramatically declines and they develop the same diseases that are so common to westerners. Not to mention the fact that the above mentioned diseases were far less common among westerners themselves barely 100 years ago.
The more a food is processed – through excessive cooking, pasteurization, homogenization, high heat, mechanical processing, etc, – the less natural and nutritious it becomes to a point of becoming a harmful burden to the body, rather then a useful and health promoting food. Some industrial processing practices deprive food of their nutrients to such a high degree that the food has to be “enriched” by artificially adding some nutrients back into the food. This is especially true of flours where vitamins are added back in after the processing is done.
A good diet is based on natural, whole or minimally processed foods. A large portion of it should consist of foods that can be eaten raw, such as fruits and vegetables. Fermented or cultured, unpasteurized foods such as kefir, yogurt, cheeses, miso, sauerkraut and pickles are considered highly beneficial. Cooking should be minimal and only applied to foods that must be cooked in order to be edible. Ancestral heritage also plays an important role as certain foods may need to be excluded or emphasized.
Eat less – eat what is adequate, do not over eat
During the past several decades, food in the western and westernized nations became increasingly affordable and more readily available then ever before in human history. This very fact combined with the enjoyment food consumption brings, results in all too frequent over eating. Which again leads to the above mentioned health problems.
In the past, as in the traditional way of living among the ethnical groups mentioned earlier, food consumption has always been significantly lower. Food quality, on the other hand, has always been higher. Resulting in a lower food intake, but of nutrient dense foods.
Finally, as an interesting note, it has been repeatedly confirmed through laboratory experiments on animals, including monkeys, that cutting down calories considerably lowers their susceptibility to diseases and prolongs their life up to 50%. It is believed by many, that life long caloric restriction can have similar effects on humans.
Health promoting eating habits
Over time, through reading and experimenting, I gradually arrived at several basic health promoting habits that in my experience are the most important:
Avoid or minimize:

Avoid all junk, sweets, canned and convenience foods – including all foods with added sugar: most commercial yogurts, kefirs and juices, fruit and soft drinks.
Avoid all refined or overly heated fats: margarine, any oil that is not cold pressed, leftover fat from cooking, all foods that contain hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats and trans fatty acids (read the labels). Such fats are considered to be among the most health damaging foods.
Avoid consumption of fish and water animals unless certain they came from unpolluted waters. Especially predators should be avoided as the toxins accumulate in them in far greater quantities.
Keep the intake of foods high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) low – mainly nuts and seeds and any products made from them (mostly oils). PUFAs are unstable, they oxidize readily resulting in harmful free radicals. High PUFA intake have been repeatedly linked with cancer, heart and inflammatory diseases.
Do not cook meat or fat at high temperatures while exposed to air. Such practice will avoid fat and cholesterol oxidation – believed to be responsible for build up of arterial plaque and injury to arterial cells. Grilling and frying is especially harmful. Boiling is probably the safest way of cooking meat.
Minimize or eliminate consumption of foods frequently contaminated with mycotoxins: alcoholic beverages, wheat, rye, barley, corn and peanuts. Mycotoxins are poisonous substances produced by certain molds and fungi which cause a wide range of health problems including cancer, asthma, multiple sclerosis and diabetes.

Emphasize and do:

The more natural and less processed the food the better. Emphasize whole, fresh foods. Replace white rice with brown rice; white bread with whole grain bread; sugar with small amounts of raw honey or dry fruit; pasta with millet or whole grain pasta; canned foods with fresh; candy and other sweets with dry or sweet fruit; etc. Organic foods are best as they are higher in nutrients and do not contain harmful pesticides, hormones or antibiotics found in conventional foods. Always choose fresh over frozen, dried or canned foods. Fresh foods taste better, have more nutrients in them, have no added salt, sugar or unhealthy additives.
Enjoy simple meals. Generally, the simpler the food preparation the more nutrients are preserved and the easier it is to digest. Simple meals are easy and quick to prepare and use fewer resources like electricity and water – thus are more environmentally friendly and less costly.
Only cook foods that need to be cooked in order to be edible (beans, grains and some vegetables). Foods that are edible in a raw state (fruits, most vegetables, sprouts, nuts and seeds) should be consumed on a daily basis and preferably with every meal. Raw foods are higher in nutrients, which to some degree get lost during cooking, and are easier to digest. At least 50% of the diet, by volume, should consist of raw foods.
Steam vegetables that need to be cooked – steaming preserves more nutrients which when boiled leech into the water. Do not overcook. Cooked vegetables should be crunchy when you eat them, not soft.
Chew food well (simply chew it longer) and eat at a comfortable pace. This improves digestion which already starts in the mouth while saliva gets mixed with the food.
Variety in diet is very important – to prevent allergies, malnutrition and to lower exposure to natural and man-made toxins found in many natural foods.
Always properly wash fruits and vegetables before consumption. This lowers the exposure to agricultural chemicals (used to cultivate conventional plants) and harmful microorganisms. Peel the skin if washing is not sufficient.
Nuts and seeds should be soaked before consumption – to lower or eliminate natural anti nutrients like enzyme inhibitors. Soaking makes them much easier to digest. Do not eat more then a few handfuls a week as they are high in PUFAs and difficult to digest.
Grains (except amaranth, millet and rice) and beans must be soaked before consumption. This lowers or eliminates anti nutrients like phytic acid which inhibits mineral absorption that can lead to mineral deficiency.
Fruits are best eaten alone as a snack between meals. To improve digestion only eat one type of fruit at a time.
Regularly consume unpasteurized fermented/cultured foods like sauerkraut, miso, pickles, kefir, yogurt, etc. These are pre-digested foods that are high in probiotics (friendly bacteria) and enzymes which provide numerous health benefits. Start with what your ancestors consumed and later experiment with other foods as well.
Regularly consume enzyme rich foods: sprouts, raw honey, grapes, figs, avocados, bananas, papayas, pineapple, kiwi, mango and fermented/cultured foods (see above). Enzymes obtained from raw foods ease the digestion by reducing the body’s need to produce digestive enzymes.
Consider the diet your ancestors ate for thousands of years – you will most likely do very well on such a diet due to the long period of adaptation to it. For example, the traditional Chinese diet is high in carbohydrates and low in fat and protein; Europeans, on the other hand, have been eating less carbs and more protein and fat; North American Indians did not eat grains.
Drink adequate amounts of liquid through out the day. Water is best. Under normal conditions, most people need 2-3 liters of liquid/day.
Unless very hungry, do not eat for 3-4 hours before bedtime. That way the nightly fast can be prolonged considerably. This gives the body more/adequate time and energy to perform the countless nightly tasks that are so essential to good health. (Rather then digesting the just eaten meal)
Eat only when hungry and do not overeat regardless of food. I found this to be among the most important of all health promoting habits.

Good sources of protein:

any meat that comes from organic, free range animals that are fed their natural diet (hard to find)
when not organic: lean poultry meat (high fat cuts are high in polyunsaturated fatty acids which oxidize readily during cooking and in the body; toxins accumulate in the fat)
beans
fresh, soaked or sprouted nuts and seeds
raw fermented milk products: sour milk, kefir, cheeses, etc (hard to find)
wild game
eggs

Most commercial meats including pork and beef, unless organic and not fed corn/grains/beans, contain antibiotics, hormones and too many polyunsaturated fats – thus should be avoided.
Good sources of carbohydrates:

vegetables
fruits
whole or minimally processed fresh grains: rice, oat, amaranth, millet, barley, wheat, etc.
beans
potatoes

Good sources of fats:

avocados
butter
fresh, soaked or sprouted nuts and seeds (mostly source of omega 6)
coconuts or coconut oil
full fat raw milk products (cheese, milk, cream, etc) from pasture fed cattle
olives or first cold pressed (extra virgin) olive oil

Shopping
I always try to find organic foods to avoid harmful substances like hormones, antibiotics, pesticides, etc. The most contaminated fruits are: raisins, cherries, peaches, strawberries, mexican (winter) cantaloupe, apples, apricots, Chilean (winter) grapes. And the most contaminated vegetables are: spinach, celery, green beans, bell peppers, cucumbers, cultivated button mushrooms, potatoes and wheat. Lean poultry is probably the safest meat to eat if not organic.
Meal examples
What follows are weekly meals that closely resemble my diet at the time of this writing. When planning meals, the key idea is to have variety in diet and to rely on food combinations that agree with ones digestion.
TBS = table spoon tsp = tea spoon / = or

any fruit eaten alone
0.5L sour milk, 300g potatoes, fennel
0.5L kefir, 50-100g oatmeal, 25g raisins
0.5L plain yogurt, 300g grapes/2-3 bananas
50-100g oatmeal, 1-2TBS honey, cinammon
1/2 salad head, 1-2 tomatoes/pepper fruit, 1/2 cucumber/squash, 1-2TBS olive oil
medium avocado, 1-2 bananas, cinammon
50-100g brown rice, 1-2 hardboiled eggs, 2-4 radishes, 25-50g leeks, 1-2TBS ground flax seeds, 50g sprouts
50-100g amaranth, 1-2 steamed parsnips, 1 steamed onion, 1-2 steamed carrots, celery stick, 1tsp freshly grated raw ginger, parsley, 1TBS olive oil
200g mung bean sprouts, 1-2 carrots, 25-50g leeks, 25g soaked pumpkin seeds/almonds/sesame seeds
1/2 steamed broccoli/cauliflower, 1-2 tomatoes/pepper fruit, 1/2 squash/cucumber, 150g turkey/chicken breast, 2-3 cloves of minced garlic, 1TBS olive oil
100g buckwheat sprouts, 2 carrots, florence fennel stick, 25g sprouted sunflower seeds, 25g raisins
50-100g amaranth, steamed onion, steamed asparagus, florence fennel stick, 1tsp freshly grated raw ginger, parsley, 1TBS coconut oil
50-100g millet, celery stick, 2-4 radishes, 25-50g leeks, 25g pumpkin seeds

I plan meals loosely, 1-2 days ahead. The meal preparation is very simple: meat and eggs are boiled in water, vegetables that need cooking are steamed. Since certain food vitamins become more bioavailable once exposed to low heat cooking, it is a good idea to alternate between cooked and raw vegetables. For example, Bio-carotene found in carrots becomes more absorbable after light steaming. I adjust the quantity of food according to how physically active I am during the day.
In addition to the above foods I also take vitamin and mineral supplements and drink bottled water. I use spices and salt. Kefir and sour milk are made at home from organic full-fat, unhomogenised pasteurized milk. Sprouts are home grown as well for maximum freshness. Both are very easy to make and require only few minutes of daily attention.
Final thoughts
Although a healthy diet can enormously improve ones health, it is only one essential part of healthy living. The other parts are proper and adeqaute physical activity, mental and spiritual well being, and adequate rest. All need to be addressed in order to achieve better health.
An important thing I learned while experimenting with diets and other health related approaches is to always pay attention to the signals from the body. It is essential to do this – in order to maintain good health – and adjust accordingly. As one gets better at reading the body, it becomes natural to self diagnose a lot of minor problems (which can become major if not paid attention to) and remedy them by simply adjusting the diet or other aspects of life. Finally, we are all different – what works for one person may not work for another – thus it’s important to experiment with ones diet to find out what works and what doesn’t.
(If you found this article helpful, you may return the favor by buying a poster of one of my images at http://www.art.eonworks.com)
RESOURCES
My favorite health related websites:
http://www.mercola.com – an excellent, bloat free, fast and easy to navigate site of Dr. Mercola. Full of really useful, practical and down to earth health information.
http://www.westonaprice.com – by building upon the work of Weston A. Price, this site provides a rich source of information about health and nutrition. Their recommendations are based on time proven traditional approach to diet and health along with scientific studies, rather then hype or political-correctness.
http://www.beyondveg.com – a superb site dealing with: ” Reports from veterans of vegetarian and raw-food diets, veganism, fruitarianism, and instinctive eating, plus new science from paleolithic diet research and clinical nutrition.” A fascinating read for anybody who has been into health and diets for some time.
Sprouting basics – an excellent introduction to sprouting nuts, grains, seeds and beans by Tom Billings.
Dom’s kefir – a comprehensive guide to kefir making at home.
http://www.wildfermentation.com – fermenting foods links.
USDA National Nutrient Database – find out the nutrient content of many foods. The database files are freely available along with free software.
Books I found especially valuable:
Know Your Fats: The Complete Primer for Understanding the Nutrition of Fats, Oils and Cholesterol by Mary G. Enig, Ph.D.
Mucusless Diet Healing System by Arnold Ehret Natural Health, Natural Medicine by Andrew Weil, M.D.
Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct
Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats by Sally Fallon, Mary G. Enig, Ph.D.
Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A. Price Survival Into The 21st Century by Viktoras Kulvinskas
The Raw Life: Becoming Natural In An Unnatural World by Paul Nison
ZZZZZZ

Many people think that drastic measures are required in order to have flawless, youthful skin. Nothing could be further from the truth. It’s possible to have better looking skin starting with things you already have in your home; no cosmetic surgery or expensive makeup required!
Healthy skin is moist and produces adequate amounts of oil from the sebaceous glands, producing a natural “glow.” Plump skin cells fit together like a carefully constructed mosaic, where each one has its own place. When skin cells dry out, however, they begin to lift and separate at an angle, giving skin a dull, flaky look that makes the skin appear older.
The two main causes for dry skin are environmental factors (weather, chemicals, the use of the wrong personal care products) and poor diet. In order to look great on the outside, you must first treat yourself right from within. A regular balanced diet is the number one defense against wrinkles, outbreaks and dry skin conditions. However, certain foods have properties that are most important for that glow that we crave. Here we’ll talk a bit about some of these foods, and you’ll see how quickly you can achieve radiant skin without breaking the bank.
Most moisture for your skin is provided through your bloodstream. The bloodstream is responsible for pumping nutrients and minerals into your system which are carried through that moisture. Without being properly hydrated, nutrients and minerals in your bloodstream may never reach your skin, making them useless in keeping your skin youthful. The oil that your skin produces is not directly responsible for moisturizing, but instead helps to keep moisture in. An inadequate amount of oil will allow excessive evaporation or the moisture in your skin, allowing it to dry out quickly.
Foods rich in protein are essential for skin regeneration and repair. Not just any protein will do. The Atkins diet, which boasts of it low carb dieting results, allows for many types of protein that can cause damage to your skin. Any kind of processed meat, such as bacon, hot dogs or deli meats are loaded with preservatives and salt that will do nothing but pull moisture from your skin. Better sources of protein would include seafood (salmon in particular is a very good choice), lean fowl (turkey, chicken) and vegetable protein. Veggie protein is often overlooked, as American society is accustomed to “meat with every meal.” Try tofu or beans as a high quality protein source. Morningstar Farms makes an excellent veggie burger that even meat lovers would crave if given a try!
Another healthy practice is to eat lots of raw foods every day. Canned and frozen vegetables may provide some nutrients, but only raw veggies and fruits will contain the enzymes necessary to prevent free radical damage. If you absolutely must cook vegetables, steam them lightly and eat al dente.
Certain vitamins and minerals are crucial to youthful skin, including sulfur. In its natural form from foods such as garlic, onions, eggs and asparagus, sulfur with help to keep skin smooth and youthful. You can also take an L-systeine supplement which will also provide adequate amounts of sulfur for healthy skin. A lack of either Vitamin A or B can make your skin chapped or cracked. Beta-carotene is as good for your skin as it is for your eyes. Don’t limit yourself to carrots; any type of yellow or orange vegetable is loaded with them. Good examples are squashes and peppers.
Alpha-hydroxy acids are responsible for keeping your skin pH balanced. You can get them from foods such as apples, grapes, blackberries, citrus fruits, tomatoes and milk. Essential fatty acids (EFAs) found in fish (especially salmon), dark leafy vegetables (kale, collards, dandelions) and flax seeds are also extremely important for your skin. Lactic acid helps to improve your skin’s moisture content, while glycolic acid removes dead skin cells that make your skin look dry and flaky. Eating foods containing these two EFAs will assist in healthy, glowing skin.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeJunk foods should especially be avoided when trying to maintain healthy skin. Eliminating soda, sugar and other empty-calorie foods will not only improve your skin’s appearance, but will help take off the extra pounds. Fried foods are especially bad, because hot-processed oils (such as those found in the supermarket) actually create free radicals and can destroy that look you’ve been working so hard for. Alcohol and caffeine should also be avoided, as these and other types of diuretics make the body lose fluids and essential minerals, which dries out your skin.
Each of these foods and supplements are easy to find in your local supermarket or health store, and will cost you much less than the myriad of skin care products which promise unrealistic results. In just a few days, you’ll notice that your skin will begin to produce adequate amounts of oil naturally, and will no longer show signs of being dull, scaly, flaky or tight. Chapping and cracking during the winter will be much less likely to occur as well. Most importantly, these tips will help you to slow down the effects of aging, such as fine lines and wrinkles, brown spots, enlarged pores and sagging skin.
ZZZZZZ

First of all, examine yourself outwardly.
Look at your fingernails. Are they glossy? Do they appear nice and strong? How about your hair. It should be shiny and full of body. Now look at your tongue. Does it have a white coating on it or is it pink? Next your eyes: are they bright or dull…do they appear to be happy eyes or worried or lackluster? Do your eyes have brown flecks in them? If they do, those spots indicate injuries or malfunctions within your body…depending upon the location of the fleck.
How about your skin, which is your largest organ. Does your skin have bumps, moles of various colors, liver spots of varying sizes? Whatever is represented on your skin is represented upon your brain as well (except the spots there are at least twice as large). Do you have any evidence of jaundice (yellowish skin or eyeballs? orange skin or eyeballs?). If so, your liver has overflowed and the toxins are trying to exit your body through your skin!
Let’s consider your internal health.
How about your bowel movements? Do your bowels move after eating each meal or snack? (They should.) Do you have headaches? Are your headaches food related or stress related or reason unknown? Do you have digestive troubles: discomfort or pain or malfunction in your throat, esophagus, stomach, intestines, or rectum? Do you have parasite pain that you’re aware of? (All of us have parasites, usually about 3 pounds worth…) Are you in pain anywhere else?
Do you have a good appetite for natural and wholesome foods or do you crave sweets and packaged or fast foods? Do you drink pure water more than you drink anything else? Do you drink too many hot drinks and have to go pee often? Do you have habits you’d like to be rid of? Do you have repetitious thoughts that you can’t stop?
Are you full of vibrant energy, waking up each morning ready to live creatively and relate well with those around you? Are you tired at all? Do you feel physically awkward or are you agile?
And think about how you relate to others as well as what you think about yourself.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your Home What to do now. Take action.
Now I wonder what your self test has revealed about your outward health and your inner vibrancy? Where do you want to go from here? Do you want to address any of these issues…whether outward issues or inward physical issues or invisible spiritual type issues?
I hope you do. And I’ll tell you right up front that I’m a big advocate of brutal honesty with one’s self and with God. I talk out loud between me and God all the time. I lay it out very plainly for myself to hear at the same time I’m speaking to my Creator. Usually I walk in a place where I can be as loud as I want to and sound as crazy as I want to!
YOU do that too. I want you to address each shortcoming that you have, whether physical OR spiritual. Be transparent for your own sake. It feels so good to get it all out in the open. I think that’s because honest exposure leads to the next step: making a plan, resolving the issue, finding needed relief. Admit to yourself what has been niggling at the back of your mind: you need help! you have some physical problems that need to be solved before they turn into disease…you need to find sweet spiritual peace and happy freedom right on the inside of yourself! You need to take care because it’s just you and God alone in this universe. No one else really knows you and no one else is as responsible for yourself as you are. Don’t let your life slip by. Take action!
If I were you, for part of my recovery plan, I’d check into therapeutic essential oils for my body and my invisible parts. The oils affect our emotions and our personality as much as they do our physical bodies. Who really needs these therapeutic essential oils?

people who lack energy at any time but bedtime
people who work in the public where they’re exposed to germs
people who have back troubles of ANY kind
people who get worried and stressed
those of us who have small children
those of us who relate to one other person or a thousand others
those of us who need to pamper ourselves and relax
students
people of all ages, even little children and the very old
you, who have taken this self test and realize you have several different kinds of shortcomings

You may learn more about essential oils that are therapeutic/medicinal/emotionally healing and soothing.
1. You may purchase any oils or supplements by clicking on Product Catalog (www.essentialimmunehealth.com on the left side bar). If you just don’t know where to begin, choose the Essential 7 Kit which was created so anyone could immediately begin to use the most popular oils. Directions come with the kit, teaching you to use them topically or internally by capsule or to diffuse them at home or the office. This kit is very useful. Remember to use my number 605520 when ordering your products.
2. You may call me and book a consultation by phone. (406) 752-6422
3. You may attend one of my free workshops OR request a transcript of a free workshop. We hold workshops several times a month and the format and content of each one is innovative and interesting. There’s a lot of questions/answering, laughing, hands-on participation… lots to see and smell. Call (406) 752-6422 for instructions and information regarding workshops.
ZZZZZZ

Every symptom has a certain way of being with which it is associated. In order to release a symptom, one must release the way of being associated with it. Thus, the process of healing implies a process of transformation.
Anything can be healed.
One or Two Months to Live
When I had terminal cancer in 1975, I had been told that I had one or two months to live, and that the end might come very suddenly, any moment, if I coughed or sneezed. I was faced with a reality in which each day was possibly my last day, each hour my last hour, and I recognized that for whatever limited time I had remaining, I wanted to be happy.
Living a compromise made no sense to me. Since each meal was possibly the last one I would ever have, I wanted to eat whatever I had an appetite for, whatever my body was asking for. It didn’t make sense to me to eat food I didn’t enjoy just because someone else thought it would be healthy for me. Their loving intentions were recognized, but I knew it was not my way. My path to health had to include a sense of enjoyment in all that I did, and I had to be true to myself, to be real. I had to believe in the recovery process.
Reprieve!
Then, it was suggested to me that the cancer was the result of a process that had been going on in my consciousness, and that I could use my consciousness to get rid of it. My consciousness had been the effect of programming, in the same way that the results that a computer produces are the effects of the way had been programmed. I could reprogram my consciousness.
I was presented with the idea that our perceptions create our reality, and I realized that I had to reprogram my consciousness to create the perception that I was well. I was not prepared for such an abrupt shift from the perception of being terminally ill, but I realized that I could much more easily create the perception that I was getting better and better, until I was indeed well.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeThe Change
I felt a shift in my consciousness, and I knew then that I was in a state of improvement. I also knew the importance of maintaining the integrity of that decision, and of that moment. I knew that all of my perceptions had to reinforce the idea that I was now getting better and better. For example, I could remind myself as I ate whatever food I wanted, that it was exactly what my body needed to accelerate the healing process.
Physical sensations that felt like electric shocks in my body, which before had reinforced the idea that the tumor was growing, now had to be perceived as evidence that the tumor was shrinking. My mind looked for more and more ways of knowing that the improvement was happening.
I knew I had to stay away from those people who insisted on seeing me as still terminal, not from any lack of love, but just to maintain my own positive attitude toward my healing process. I had to be with people who were willing to encourage me on this seemingly impossible task I had set for myself. When I was asked how I was doing, I insisted on answering, “Better and better,” and seeing how that was, in fact, true.
I knew that it was vital to maintain the positive programming, and that putting myself in a relaxed state of mind and talking positively to myself for fifteen minutes, three times each day, was a part of the programming process I should in no way interfere with. There were temptations to not do the relaxations, and then I would remind myself that my life was at stake. Any temptation, then, was something that stood between me and my life, and had to be removed, so that I could live.
Holding the Perception
At first, it was very difficult. I found that the integrity of the moment of change was easily compromised, by my thoughts or words acknowledging anything other than the idea that I was improving, and I had to be honest with myself, and see that, and then know that I had “blown it.” Then, I could tell myself that what had happened was just a practice run, and that the real moment of change was now.
It got easier and easier. I was able to maintain integrity for just hours at first, then a day, then two days, and then I was solid. I knew the program was working. I was able to recognize the doubting voice inside, and know that it did not represent truth. I was able to identify with the encouraging voice. It became my guide, leading me back to stable health. I was more and more able to maintain the single-pointedness of knowing that positive changes were happening. When I was not feeling a symptom, I told myself that perhaps now I would never feel that symptom again. If I experienced the symptom after that, I told myself that the process was just not yet complete, and that indeed I was feeling the symptom less than I had before.
I had to know that positive changes were happening now, possibly just at the threshold of notice-ability, so I could eagerly anticipate evidence to justify my perceptions. Naturally, I was always able to find something, and so assure myself that it was not something I was just imagining, but real, and more strength was added to the process.
The Program
During my relaxation periods, I imagined seeing the tumor which had been located in my spinal cord in the neck, and imagined that I was watching one layer of cancer cells dying, and being released, to be discarded by my body’s natural elimination system. I knew that the change, perhaps not yet noticeable, was still definite. I knew that each time I released waste products from my body, the dead cancer cells were being eliminated, and I reminded myself of that each time. I insisted on knowing that it was true.
I knew that cancer represented something held in and not expressed, and since the tumor was located by my throat chakra (energy center), I had been holding back the expression of my Being. Since I wasn’t quite sure what that meant, though, I decided that it was imperative that I express everything. Every thought, every feeling, whatever was in my consciousness that wanted to come out, I expressed, knowing that it was vital for my health. Before, I had had the perception that expressing led to discord, but now I saw that what I was expressing was appreciated by those around me, that expressing and communicating led to harmony.
Before, I had had the belief that if I expressed what I really wanted to, something bad would happen. I had to reprogram that to the belief that if I expressed what I really wanted to, something wonderful would happen. I made that decision, and it was so.
I found myself having less and less in common with my old friends. It was as though we had shared a common vibrational frequency before, say 547 cycles, whatever that means, and suddenly I found myself at 872 cycles, having few things to communicate with the 547-cycle people. I had to find new friends who were also at 872, to have someone to talk with.
I found myself attracted to the 872 crowd, and them to me, as though I had become selectively magnetic, and certain elements of my reality were being released which were no longer in accord with the new Being I was becoming. I knew the process was inevitable, and should not be interfered with. I developed a sense of compassion and understanding at that time. I knew that my life depended on releasing all elements of my life not in accord with my new vibration. The process was simple, though not always easy.
I began each day as a process of self-discovery, with no preconceived notion of who I was, yet with a willingness to discover the emerging Being, and a sense of delight with each new discovery.
I imagined the scene that would happen in the doctor’s office after my work on myself was done. I could see him examining me, and finding no tumor, being puzzled. He might say, “Perhaps we made a mistake.” I played the scene in my mind each day, in my relaxation periods.
I had heard that within the technology of mental programming, if I talked to myself for fifteen minutes three times each day, within 66 days, I could get myself to believe anything, and that whatever I believed to be true, would be true.
About two months after I started working on myself, I went to be examined by the doctor who had pronounced me terminally ill. On the way to the doctor, I knew that I had to maintain the perception that everything was all right. I replayed the scene in my mind, knowing it would happen like that.
Finally, the moment of truth arrived. The doctor examined me, and found nothing. He said, “Perhaps we made a mistake.” I laughed all the way home.
Transformation
I have transformed my way of Being. My lifestyle has changed dramatically. It no longer makes any sense to work in any nine-to-five job, or to call any other Being my “superior,” since we are all equal Beings, and all with infinite potential. I “retired” from Wall Street at the age of 38 with nothing but the dedication to the idea of doing what I really want to do and not doing what I really do not want to do, and trusting my trip, listening to my inner voice. It’s a decision I have never regretted.
With what I learned of the body/mind relationship from my experience and the research I did during my own healing process, I developed a model of healing as a way to organize in my own mind what had happened for me, and what had worked.
I gradually became involved in healing others when conditions seemed to demand that, and in doing that I saw more and more examples of the body/mind interface covering many other symptoms. The model of healing I was using became more and more coherent and multi-dimensional.
I discovered the joy of sharing my experiences and ideas with others, and watching them benefit as they put the ideas to work in their own lives.
The work I do now as a healer and teacher is meaningful to me, important to others as well, and is of service to humanity, and I feel a “high” when I do it. I have a strong sense of doing my life’s work. I know that I am doing what I came to this planet to do. I know it’s right. It’s not a feeling that I had had before.
The process of transformation is an integral part of the healing process, whether the Being is healing his/her vision or releasing some serious illness, and indeed also even when the out-of-balance condition has not reached the physical level, yet still exists on the mental or emotional level.
It is for those of us who recognize the process to encourage it, and assist it where we can, so that the planetary transformation now taking place within the individuals inhabiting it may be hastened, and made as gentle as possible.
Illness or injury shows on the physical level, metaphorically, what has been happening in the consciousness of the Being experiencing the symptoms. It is related to that person’s way of Being. Once the elements of a person’s Being that relate to their physical out-of-balance condition are identified, they can be changed, and health and balance on all levels can be restored.
When we see the physical body as a map of the consciousness that wears it, and always balanced to it, we can also see that a change in one implies a change in the other. When a healing happens, a change in personality may be expected to reflect the change in the physical Being, and vice verse. The “new” individual will have the same Essence of Being, yet with a different way of interacting with the environment, without what had been excessive tension for that individual. In fact, they will be more themselves, whom they really are.
It may seem as though the individual had awakened from a very real-seeming dream, and things will make sense in a different way. A perceptual filter will have been removed, a filter through which values had been determined, and without that filter, truer values will become evident. The “new” Being may even have different tastes in food and/or clothing, and different personal habits. It will be a welcome transformation.
Approaches to healing which consider the aspect of personality change, transformation, are keyed to the idea of an inner cause to any outer symptom. Without the inner changes, the symptoms may be relieved in the physical reality, but not yet the causes in the inner world, and the symptoms may get re-created again. The Being then considers that part of their energy system an inherent weakness, to be continually dealt with, until they can bring about the inner changes, after which the symptoms no longer manifest. After all, the symptoms were only necessary to give a message to the “old” Being. The “new” one, not having the built-in weakness, has no need of the symptom. As a matter of fact, the formerly weak part may even become the “new” Being’s strongest part. Stories of formerly paralyzed or injured patients who became Olympic stars are evidence of this.
When transformation is focused on in addition to other parts of the healing process, another dimension is added, to accelerate the healing.
The Human Energy System
In the energy system that we each are, the energy is in a constant state of flow. This flow of energy is regulated by seven energy “pumps,” called chakras. Each chakra represents specific emotions and levels of perception, elements of the Being’s consciousness, and is also associated with specific parts of the body, specific functions within the body, specific endocrine glands, and specific nerve groups. Responses to a Being’s perceived universe are reflected in the chakras as well.
The chakras have an optimal state of balance and flow. A healing of the individual balances the chakras. When this happens, in addition to restoring inner balance and a different state of consciousness, as well as physical balance, the rebalancing will also define different responses to the Being’s perceived universe.
In other words, with a given state of balance of the chakras, a certain type of experience will be attracted to the individual, and certain types of people will be attracted, as well. When the energy changes in the chakras, as in a healing, the magnetic effect drawing a particular kind of person or experience is then released, along with the old way of responding.
For example, one Being, having different interactions with his/her mother may respond by blocking the chakra associated with security or trust. The effect would be insecurity as a perceptual filter. The individual would then attract precarious situations to justify the insecurity, as well as females who would remind that Being of his/her mother. When the chakra is cleared, the type of female formerly attracted would be attracted instead to other Beings with the same kind of blocked chakra as that formerly experienced by the Being who was healed, leaving room for interactions for that Being with females of a different energy. In addition, interactions with the mother-archetype will have a different resolution, more satisfying. Situations presented to the Being will also have more of a sense of solidity, or the Being will have a new perspective of confidence with which to resolve the situation..
We can see, then, that not only do the chakras reflect the outer environment, but in a way they also create it.
With minor adjustments in a Being’s energy system, only slight shifts in consciousness would be apparent. In the case of catastrophic illnesses, however, the Being was in desperate need of a major adjustment in consciousness, and then the aspects of transformation would be more profound.
Rebirth
While instantaneous change is always possible and available, most people do not seem to be prepared for so abrupt a shift in their way of Being. Gradual change seems generally more comfortable for the Being involved, as well as for others in the Being’s environment.
With instantaneous change, there is the experience of sudden clarification of what had been obscure, and a sense something like what might be experienced by a Being suddenly finding itself in a body, and watching a movie unfolding around itself, a movie that had just begun. The Being would find itself as one of the characters, with a sense of seeming to be different than what the others seemed to see the Being as, and in fact, would be very different. Others would be holding the perception of the Being who no longer exists.
It would then be important for the Being to maintain his/her new way of Being, the new sense of clarity or enlightenment (yet possibly combined with the confusing sense of sudden newness), and establish quickly the way in which things make sense in the new reality, the new paradigm, with new perceptions. The new Being would have to see its relationship to the old Being’s job, surroundings, home, partner, etc., and evaluate which aspects worked harmoniously, and which parts would have to change in some way.
In the case of a Being who had had a serious illness, and who recognized the relationship between lifestyle and the physical symptoms, there would have to be a willingness to change all aspects of the lifestyle that did not result in happiness, because it would be clear that it was those aspects which were directly related to the illness It would be clear as well that to not bring about the necessary changes would be to recreate the symptoms of the illness.
When it becomes a matter of life and death, the choice becomes a clear one, and simple, although not always easy.
Interactions
To those people close to the Being, it could be a very confusing time, as well. It could seem as though the person they had known the Being to be, had suddenly changed in a way, gone crazy. Habitual patterns of behavior and responding would suddenly no longer be there, and it could be very confusing. For the Being’s health and well-being, however, they would have to be totally supportive of the new Being, since attempts to re-create the old Being would be perceived by the Being involved (correctly) as a threat to its health, and perhaps even to its life.
There must be a willingness to adapt to the Being’s new way of Being.
Gradual change is easier for most people, but it must be emphasized that the magnitude of the gradual change is no less than that of immediate change. It is just spread out over a longer period of time. The same issues must be examined. The same changes must be made. In addition, the Being must maintain a single-mindedness of purpose, and stay on purpose, with a total willingness to release all aspects of their life which are stress-related, and all patterns of interacting which are not success-oriented, until life is again harmonious, and the body’s state of health and well-being indicate that the Being has returned to balance, and may now identify with the way they are. The transformation and healing will then be complete.
Anything Can Be Healed!
When an individual who has been out of balance has made the decision to return to balance, they must make it a high priority project. Nothing else must be more important. Particularly in the case of a catastrophic illness, the return to health necessarily becomes more important than family, friends, or job. When there has been the recognition of a path to health, nothing must interfere with that path. The development and maintenance of a positive mental attitude is imperative.
Each of us is a self-organizing autonomous system of consciousness. Each of us is an energy system. Energy flows through our Being, and is directed by our consciousness. This energy is in a state of movement, flow, and in a healthy organism the energy is harmonious, and flows smoothly. When the flow of this energy is blocked or interrupted, it is experienced by the organism as an imbalance, and the organism’s tendency is to return to balance and harmony, to return to health. This tendency toward harmony is an aspect of love.
All illness, all injury, is energy blocked or interrupted, or a call for love. Each of us, including you, the reader, has the ability to sense energy, detect it, and direct it.
Ultimately, any energy block can be released by your consciousness. It is not a question of whether it can be done, but rather how it can be done.
Within your Being, within your consciousness, is the ability to love, to perceive without judgment or expectation, to care. You have a potential for infinite love, whether or not you choose to recognize it, and whether or not you choose to manifest it. In fact, this love is the very nature of your Being.
You have the ability to love wherever there was a perception of a lack of love, or a call for love. Love heals.
You have in your consciousness the potential and ability to heal anything, on any level, in yourself as well as in any other Being, since it’s all just love and energy. What remains is for you to realize this fully and actualize that potential.
Anything can be healed.
You can heal anything.
Copyright 1988 Martin Brofman
http://www.healer.ch
ZZZZZZ

Since the beginning of our creation, the plants, flowers and trees have been with us. Even at our most primitive, we relied on them for their profound healing abilities. What has changed? Mostly, our lack of personal relationship with them. Our highly technical, over busy, media-drenched lives have us relying on quick fixes with artificial chemicals and antibiotic super bugs. This unnatural reliance combined with the unhealthy air and highly processed foods are all resulting in far less than vibrant health.
So, naturally, we search for what we intuitively feel is missing! Could it be in the plants, flowers and trees? Could the solution be in the natural world around us, which has nurtured and sustained us throughout our evolution?
YES!!
After falling very ill in 1994, just walking down the detergent isle in the supermarket became a nightmare. Perfume sections and artificially scented candle isles, forget it! Confusion, severe debilitating pain, shortness of breath, nausea, headaches, and fatigue beyond belief became my constant companions. Searching for the cause and answers, my Dr. and several specialists put me through a battery of tests resulting in diagnosis of Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Mayo Facial Pain Syndrome, and Multi Chemical Sensitivities. I was so ill that I was pronounced permanently disabled and receive disability from my home in Canada.
My traditional doctor’s were unable to help me beyond giving me a prescription for a “Natural” substance to help me sleep. Their other “solutions” degraded my health further, rather than resolving any of my problems. Reading what Dr. Jean Valnet wrote, “Essential oils are especially valuable as antiseptics because their aggression towards microbial germ is matched by their total harmlessness to tissue—one of the chief defects of chemical antiseptics is that they are likely to be as harmful to the cells of the organism as to the cause of the disease.”(Dr Jean Valnet, 1980), I began to think that; maybe, my body’s ‘sensitivity’ was a reflection of my body’s inherent wisdom, rather than a reflection of its weakness.
Searching for some help and relief, I found an herbalist, who has been of great help to me. Still, pain was my constant companion. Unable to take any over-the-counter pain medication, let alone prescriptions, due to my chemical sensitivities, I tried essential oils. I had some minor success with headaches relief, until I tried Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils. And FINALLY, I found products that are giving me profound relief, without triggering my body’s sensitivities to un-natural chemicals! No additives or fillers, just the pure, therapeutic-grade, essential oil of the plants, flowers and trees.
This company uses impeccable extraction methods. They help with exhaustive and ongoing research with top experts in the field of Essential Oil therapeutic uses! All of this knowledge, care and sensitivity have produced the largest variety of therapeutic-grade essential oils in the world. What a resource me, people like me and for human kind in general!
The more I learn about and use these oils, the more relief I am finding. The ‘side effects’ of the pain relief include increased energy and better quality sleep.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your Home“European scientists have studied the ability of essential oils to work as natural chelators, binding with heavy metals and petrochemicals and ferrying them out of the body” (Essential Oil Desk Reference, Compiled by Essential Science Publishing).
I have also seen some profound benefits for family and friends.
“While helping friends with house construction, I was suffering from a very debilitating sinus headache. My friend had me use her Myrtle oil on my forehead, temples, under my nose and the sinus sites on the back of my head. I went back to work and within 15 – 20 minutes I happily realized that I was working as hard as ever and the headache and pressure was completely gone.” Char N.
“While helping friends, wash windows in their newly built house, my roommate and I were concerned about our arms being very sore since we both suffer from severe tendonitis. By the end of the day, both of our arms had started to hurt and ache. Since I had just purchased Idaho Balsam Fir oil I suggested that we apply some. We did that and the next morning we had NO discomfort what so ever. We even decided to continue to wash windows the next day for a couple more hours. Again we applied the Idaho Balsam Fir on our arms and again did not suffer any discomfort.”
Sandra R.
The opportunities for profound health benefits are almost endless. What would your life look like if you benefited like I did? I have had PROFOUND pain relief, a renewed sense of emotional well being, VIBRANT health and increased ENERGY.
The more I learn about the frightening effects of our overly artificial lifestyles, the more I realize each of us must take personal responsibility for our health. We must learn all we can and use our great intelligence, make informed choices, take care of our bodies with integrity, and question the effects of everything we take in through our mouth, skin, mind and breath.
Discover these organic products that are produced with the greatest of integrity, and meticulous attention to quality.
I am very excited to open the door through which you can gain greater health, vitality and relief. Learn more about therapeutic-grade essential oils with a FREE report at http://www.vibrantoils.com Join the journey of discovery that has made such a difference to me!
ZZZZZZ

There is a reality about weight loss that people need to be aware of. Losing weight requires you to feel hungry from time to time. There is no way to lose weight without feeling some degree of hunger. Believe me, I have exhaustively explored this issue. I have tried appetite suppressants. I have tried food combinations. I have tried meal-timing strategies. I have tried just about everything natural under the sun to eliminate those hunger pangs and food cravings that you get when you are attempting to lose weight and there is nothing that completely eliminates those cravings. Hoodia gordonii helps, as I’ve stated in previous articles, but it by no means turns off your hunger like a light switch.
There are many strategies that help reduce hunger: avoiding refined carbohydrates, getting plenty of natural sunlight on your skin, drinking large amounts of water on a regular basis, and getting plenty of fiber in your diet. But there is nothing that absolutely eliminates hunger. The bottom line is that if you are going to lose weight, you are going to experience hunger at one time or another. This is especially true if you, like me, engage in strength training. Nothing gets your appetite whipped into a fury like the leg press.
The key in all this is realizing there’s nothing wrong with experiencing hunger from time to time. It’s a normal human response to a decrease in your consumption of calories. The problem that most people encounter when they feel hungry is they feel it’s some sort of emergency. It feels like they are dying or wasting away when, in fact, the body is just signaling that it doesn’t have enough calories to add new fat to the fat stores it’s already carrying around. The first feelings of hunger are really more of a false alarm than anything to be concerned about. At least from a logical point of view. (But when you feel like you’re starving, logic goes out the window, right?)
A person who is aiming for a low percentage of body fat learns to manage their hunger so that it becomes something they can live with. In my own experience with losing weight — and remember, I dropped 50 pounds of body fat using absolutely no drugs or pharmaceuticals of any kind — I found that there are several “lifesaving” foods and beverages you can turn to when you are feeling intense hunger pains but you don’t want to consume foods that add significant calories to your daily intake.
These foods and drinks are what I call emergency appetite control foods. What these foods and beverages have in common is that they make your stomach feel like it’s full of calorie-rich foods. But in reality, you are filling your stomach with foods that contain almost no calories or carbohydrates. This way, even though your stomach is full, you are not adding calories to your intake. But your body is temporarily fooled into thinking you’ve just woofed down a triple-plate buffet.
In other words, if you eat two cups of cashews versus two cups of cabbage, your body can’t really tell the difference for the first few minutes. Your stomach will turn off the hunger signals thinking you have eaten a large quantity of food regardless of whether you are eating cabbage or cashews, but in fact the cabbage may only contain 20 calories while the cashews contain as much as 900 or even 1000 calories. Two cups of cashews provides probably half the calories you need for the entire day, whereas two cups of cabbage provides virtually no calories whatsoever. You burn off the cabbage just digesting it. (Raw cabbage is, in fact, an outright cure for ulcers. But that’s another article…)
Emergency appetite control food #1 Fresh drinking water. That’s right: water is a powerful appetite suppressant and if you drink an 8-ounce glass of water when you first start feeling hungry, you will find that it suppresses your appetite in nearly every case. If you just drink a full glass of water and have the discipline to wait 10 minutes, you will find that your appetite is either completely gone or dramatically reduced.
Your next choice, if water does not do the trick for you, is to purchase a 32-ounce quart of natural, organic vegetable broth. You can get organic vegetable broth from Trader Joe’s, health food stores, or even many of the finer grocery stores that have a natural health section. The key is to get organic vegetable broth that does not contain excitotoxins. These are ingredients that cause neurological disorders because they overexcite and harm nerve cells. Those ingredients are MSG, yeast extract, autolyzed yeast extract, hydrolyzed vegetable proteins, and other similar ingredients. Warning: watch out for broth products made by Kitchen Basics. They claim their products don’t contain MSG or yeast extract, but when I tried their product, I experienced a massive “MSG headache” that tells me it contains free glutamic acid that isn’t listed on the label. (I’m very sensitive to MSG.) The brand of broth I buy is Trade Joe’s house brand, which does not contain free glutamic acid.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeEmergency appetite control food #2 The next best strategy is to turn to green vegetables such as lettuce, cabbage, bokchoy, and other leafy vegetables. They have so few calories that in my own diet, I don’t even count them. That’s right: I allow myself to eat an unlimited quantity of any green leafy vegetables without even recording the number of calories I have consumed. In my book, they are “free” foods.
It takes just as many calories for your body to digest them as you get out of the foods themselves. And yet at the same time, they fill your stomach and make you feel full, turning off the hunger signals in your brain. You may have also heard these called “negative calorie foods.”
You can consume these green leafy vegetables in a couple of ways. Most people don’t like to eat them plain. Instead, you can fill up a very large bowl (I am talking about something the size of a family dinner salad bowl) with lettuce and salad greens, then add only 100 calories worth of salad dressing. You will want to find some of the lower calorie salad dressings out there, and of course you want to avoid MSG, high-fructose corn syrup, and other ingredients in salad dressings. There are many very good salad dressings that only have 25 calories per tablespoon. Using those dressings, you can put four tablespoons of salad dressing on your salad and start munching away. In a few minutes, you will feel quite full and yet will have only consumed 100 calories that count. Remember the calories for the green leafy vegetables are free. You only count the calories of the salad dressing itself. This is an excellent way to fill your stomach and turn off your hunger signals while only giving yourself 100 calories.
Another strategy that uses green leafy vegetables is to stir fry them in a pan with no oils whatsoever. Just use water and flavoring such as onions, garlic and soy sauce. Simply stir fry all the green vegetables you want, add the spices and eat it. I do not count the calories in onions or garlic either, nor do I count the calories in soy sauce since none of these spices have very high calorie density. As a result, that entire meal goes in your stomach and counts for zero calories. Once again, it’s a great way to curb you appetite without consuming large quantities of calorie rich food.
Emergency appetite control food #3 This is one of my favorites: I call it my “instant banana pudding” recipe, but of course, it’s nothing at all like store-bought pudding. You’ll need a blender for this one.
Add a quart of soy milk to the blender, then a couple of scoops of unsweetened banana-flavored simply natural spirutein soy protein powder. (Sources are listed in the downloadable book, “Secret Sources.” Add stevia powder as the sweetener. I also toss in some supergreens powders, but you may want to avoid that at first, since it’s an acquired taste (and it turns your banana pudding green).
If you were to blend this up, you’d have a banana-flavored soy protein shake. But we’re not done yet: while the blender is running, put in about 1/2 tablespoon of guar gum powder, plus another 1/2 tablespoon of xanthan gum powder. These are thickeners. Within seconds, your blender will start whining and the whole mixture will attain the consistency of pudding. Now just pour it into a bowl and eat it like banana pudding! The mixture has near-zero carbs, no sugars, and is high in soy protein. Plus, it tastes great and fills you up fast. This is my favorite choice for a late-night appetite emergency.
You can get guar gum and xanthan gum at a health food store, or order online at a vitamin supplier.
Emergency appetite control food #4 The next food is pickles. That’s right, pickles. But I am not talking about the pickles you find at a regular grocery store. Nearly all pickles you find in grocery stores contain artificial food coloring. They have a yellowish tint to them that has been added through the use of chemical colors. This is not a natural ingredient and so it is something you want to avoid purchasing. Instead, you want to buy completely natural pickles like the ones you get at Trader Joe’s that are made without artificial colors or flavors and that have an extremely low calorie count as well. An entire jar of pickles may give you only 50 calories or so and yet they can be quite satisfying and take up a considerable amount of space in your stomach, thereby turning off your appetite cravings.
Just don’t buy pickles containing any added sugars or artificial colors. Some pickles are, believe it or not, loaded with sugar. They’re more like candied cucumbers than pickles. Read the ingredients labels to be sure what you’re getting.
By the way, while you’re eating pickles, it’s an excellent time to take some calcium and mineral supplements, too. The acidity of the pickles will accelerate the absorption of calcium.
Emergency appetite control food #5 Here’s an easy one: apples. Yep, apples. Eat the largest apple you can find. Sure, you’ll get some calories and some carbs, but the apple will fill you up for quite a while, and that will stop you from eating far more calorie-dense foods.
Let me explain why this is such an effective strategy. If you’re crazy hungry, it’s very easy to reach for some processed foods (bag of chips, for example) and start munching away until you’ve consumed 1000 calories or more. And that’s about half the total calories you need for the entire day!
But I dare you to try to eat 1000 calories worth of apples. It’s impossible. You’ll fill up even before reaching 400 calories, probably. Apples are great appetite suppressing foods because the bulky fiber fills up your stomach and turns off your appetite control hormones before you overeat. Plus, apples contain various phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals. They’re even a decent source of folic acid.
How to further suppress your appetite One more supplementary strategy to all of this is that you can multiply the appetite suppressing effects of all foods by swallowing a couple of fiber tablets before you begin eating. Fiber tablets or capsules would include psyllium husk, glucomannan, oat bran fiber, apple pectin fiber, or other natural fibers. You can find fiber supplements at any health food store. Be careful to watch the dosage of the fiber and drink plenty of water as you take these pills because without adequate water, they can gum up in your digestive tract and in extreme cases, they can block your digestive tract. So, you want to drink plenty of water with them.
By consuming both the fiber and the water before you start eating, you’ve already significantly turned off your appetite. Then by consuming these extremely low caloric density foods and beverages, you will further suppress your appetite. You can get an entire meal into your stomach for 100 calories or less and you can trick your brain into thinking you consumed an all-you-can-eat buffet.
But there’s a catch to all this: in about an hour or so, your body will figure out that there isn’t much energy in the food you’ve consumed. Your hunger will begin to return, but at least you delayed the onset of that hunger by an hour or more. If you combine this with physical exercise, you can delay it even further because the very act of exercising releases stored body fat and converts it back into blood sugar, which raises your blood sugar level and suppresses your appetite cravings.
You can also extend the effect of this by taking appetite suppressant supplements. Hoodia gordonii is one I’ve reviewed quite extensively, and it is currently increasing in popularity. My own experience is that hoodia tincture can help, but even hoodia doesn’t shut off appetite completely.
Also, you don’t want to starve yourself by eating these 100-calorie meals all day long. Remember, starvation is the fastest way to train your body to hold on to body fat. These are just items to get you past a difficult time when your appetite is unbearably intense.
Each day, you still need to get nutrition into your body in the form of whole foods and whole food supplements. The kind of meals I consume are soups made with quinoa, salads with low-calorie dressing, raw fruits and nuts, or avocado shakes made by blending avocado with soy milk and stevia. Of course, I also consume my superfood shakes on a regular basis. They are made from superfoods green powders such as Berry Green or The Ultimate Meal.
Overall, keep in mind that weight loss takes effort. You will experience moments of intense hunger, and these low-calorie, filling foods are one excellent way to get through a difficult time without packing on the pounds.
Copyright 2006 Truth Publishing

ZZZZZZ

I recently heard of an older couple that eats salmon every day for breakfast. To my finicky palate that does not sound as appetizing as waffles. Why do they do it? They argue that salmon is the most perfect food on the planet, full of protein and omega-3 fatty acids. They do it because they plan on living a long time.
Most of us know that fish makes for a healthier dinner than steak. It is lower in bad cholesterol and a few other things. But numerous studies support the hypothesis that the omega-3 fatty acids in fish oil have positive effects on a whole list of chronic disorders. Among these are high triglycerides, arthritis, Chrohn’s disease, cancer, hypertension, Alzheimer’s disease, coronary artery disease and the neural development of children. To say it would be difficult to cover all these topics in a single essay is an understatement. But here are a few examples.
Japanese women have a much lower risk of breast cancer than do their American counterparts. However, Japanese women who move to America and adopt its dietary patterns have an equal risk of contracting breast cancer as American women within one generation. Women living in Japan have a high ratio of omega-3 fatty acids compared to omega-6 fatty acids in their breasts. Studies have shown that women with breast cancer have up to a five-fold higher ratio of omega-6 to omega-3. Omega-6 imbalance has been shown to promote tumor growth.
Breast tissue changes in response to diet shift within about three months. Supplementing with three grams of fish oil a day (equivalent to eating two large salmon) has demonstrated a four-fold increase in the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 in the blood and a similar ratio increase in breast tissue thus decreasing the risk of contracting breast cancer.
The 1991 Rotterdam Study considered the incidence of chronic diseases among the elderly on a test population of 5,000 participants at least 55 years of age. In particular the study focused on the effects of dietary fat intake in relation to these chronic ailments. Dietary profiles were collected including statistics of total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and polyunsaturated fats. Particular attention was directed toward fish consumption because fish is high in the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
Of the total study population 1.1% suffered with Alzheimer’s disease. The statistics indicated a relation between Alzheimer’s and high saturated fat intakes. Fish consumption was associated with a low incidence of dementia, especially Alzheimer’s. Autopsies indicate that a decreased level of DHA in the hippocampus and frontal gray matter of the brain are associated with Alzheimer’s.
Saturated fats and cholesterol may negatively influence dementia because they affect cardiovascular health. Adverse cardiovascular events are associated with Alzheimer’s disease. In addition to this, omega-3 has anti-inflammatory properties and has been shown to play a role in brain and neurological development in infants. Omega-3 may have dementia preventing powers as well.
Some studies have indicated that there is an adverse relationship between lowering blood cholesterol levels by dieting and medication and the emotional health of the individual. Increases of depression, suicide and homicide have been linked to dieting. But it may not be hunger pangs that are the influencing factor. The quantity and distribution of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids may play a significant role by influencing serum lipids and altering biophysical and biochemical properties of cell membranes. Epidemiological studies in various countries and in the United States in recent years suggest decreased omega-3 fatty acid consumption correlates with increasing rates of depression. This is consistent with the established relationship between coronary artery disease and depression. Omega-3 deficiency may also be related to the depression associated with alcoholism, post-partum depression and multiple sclerosis.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeA 1995 study involved 96 boys in Indiana schools, 53 of which had been diagnosed with ADHD. Dietary intake statistics of essential fatty acids were established based on 3-day surveys of each boy. There were no significant differences between the ADHD boys and the others in relation to consumption of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. An additional 22 measurements were taken designed to establish the lipid and fatty acid levels in each group.
It was found that the ADHD group possessed significantly lower amounts of specific lipid fatty acids in plasma, and lower concentrations of total fatty acids in red blood cells than did the non-ADHD group. Since omega-3 is the primary polyunsaturated fatty acid found in the retina and cerebral cortex it was postulated that low levels of omega-3 might negatively affect proper brain function and therefore the ability to concentrate. What was not determined was whether the omega-3 deficiencies were due to inadequate intakes of the fatty acids or the individual ability to metabolize them. In either case, however, higher intakes of omega-3 through eating fish or taking fish oil supplements could help to raise omega-3 levels and therefore help counteract to effects of ADHD.
For more information on fish oils and heart health see:
http://www.optimal-heart-health.com/fishoils.html
http://www.optimal-heart-health.com/fish-oils.html
ZZZZZZ

Despite the way people actually eat, most of us have an idea of how we should eat. Marketers have ingeniously leveraged this concept. For example, a group of women might be talking about what they for dinner the night before. One ate carrot sticks; another had low-fat cottage cheese. But one had a four course meal including dessert. And she did all this without any of the guilt. How outrageous! Dessert without any guilt? Personally I never understood the guilt part. I thought guilt had to do with real moral issues, but that should be reserved for another essay.
What’s the point? We think we should be eating the carrot sticks and not the dessert, but we eat the dessert. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. Another example of this is we think we should be avoiding fat but we eat it anyway. What if we could eat all the fat we wanted? Now there is a commercial that would sell. Well here is some news: we can have all the fat we want. Now before you metaphorically wad up this electronic sheet of paper and toss it into the reserved part of your hard drive known as the recycle bin hear me out. We truly can have all the fat we want because not all fats are the same. Early nutritional concepts made the mistake of classifying all fats as equivalent. But in fact there is a class of fats which are essential to health and most of us get way too little of them. As a group they are cleverly called essential fatty acids.
Essential fatty acids are called ‘essential’ for two reasons. The first reason, as you probably have guessed, is because they are essential to life and health. Simply put, without sufficient essential fatty acids (EFAs) we cannot be healthy. More on this in a moment. The second reason these fats are called ‘essential’ is because our bodies cannot manufacture them. They must be ingested through what we eat.
Fats are basically chains of carbon atoms with a little oxygen and hydrogen at one end. Along the chain hydrogen atoms are bound to the carbon atoms. When a fat chain contains as many hydrogen atoms as it can hold it is said to be saturated. These are the fats we should not eat in abundance because of their negative impact on health, especially heart health.
When a fat chain does not contain all the hydrogen it could possibly hold it is said to be unsaturated as in ‘polyunsaturated’. Among these polyunsaturated fats is the class known as essential fatty acids.
Some essential fatty acids are foundational to the proper building and maintenance of the reproductive, immune and nervous (including the brain) systems. In general EFAs are necessary for the proper manufacture and repair of cell membranes. They aid the cells in obtaining optimal nutrition as well as the dispelling of harmful waste products. One primary function of essential fatty acids is the production of prostaglandins which are potent mediators for a diverse group of physiological processes. These processes include, but are not limited to, the regulation of heart rate, blood pressure, blood clotting ability, vasoconstriction, fertility, and immune function.
Of particular interest to those of us who are parents and grandparents are the effects of essential fatty acid deficiencies in children and infants, (Even the ones not yet born). EFAs are imperative for neural development and maturation of sensory systems in these little ones. Omega-3 (a very significant EFA) deficiencies in particular are linked to decreased memory and mental abilities, poor vision, increased tendency of blood clot formation, diminished immune function, impaired membrane function, learning disorders, irregular heartbeat and growth retardation. Infants can become omega-3 deficient because of inadequate supplies in the mother’s milk as well as infant formulas. Because of this some formula manufactures fortify their products with omega-3 supplements.
There is a wide range of essential fatty acids which are important to health. But there are two in particular that deserve special attention. One was mentioned above, omega-3. The other is omega-6. Both of these EFAs have gained the focus of much research and have been tested in relation to a plethora of chronic conditions. We even buy dog food fortified with DHA (an omega-3) so our little puppy will grow up smart.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeBut what about low-fat diets? They are still good. Normally when we talk about low-fat we understand that to refer to eating less saturated fat. We have become a race of fast-food junkies. The meats used in such ‘foods’ are saturated fats. Diets replete with saturated fats are destructive to health. Further ‘high-fat’ diets are normally low in essential fatty acids simply because we are filling up on one type of fat leaving no room for the other.
So I want to go on record for being an advocate of high-fat diets. That is, diets high in essential fatty acids. The particulars of such diets are beyond the scope of this essay. For more information on essential fatty acids, especially in relation to heart health, please use the links below. But generally speaking let’s salute high-fat diets for good health. Got fat?
For information on essential fatty acids and heart health please use the links below.
Essential Fatty Acids: http://www.optimal-heart-health.com/essentialfattyacid.html
Triglycerides: http://www.optimal-heart-health.com/triglycerides.html
Omega-3 and Triglycerides: http://www.optimal-heart-health.com/omega-3.html

ZZZZZZ

Fat Loss in General
This morning I conducted a search engine “search” on the word fat loss. “Fat Loss” and “Fat Loss Supplements”, being the most popular keywords, came up with a combined 1800 links, in one search engine. I went to the next search engine I ran a word count on “fat loss” rather than a link count. The results came up as 46106! WOW! Why is it that fat loss / losing body fat related information and products are so much in demand, yet obesity and being overweight are on the up and up, and are actually at the highest rate ever. With the health and fitness industry booming it seems absurd that this is occurring. Doesn’t it?
Temptation and Obstacles Effecting Your Attempts at Fat Loss
The fact is that losing body fat or fat loss is not easy. We are tempted every day with fast fatty and sugary foods with super deals of quick easy meals involving drive through access and home delivery. These fast food meals are “fast” and often “affordable” with meal deals for a family of four sometimes costing under $10 – $12. Who wouldn’t pass this up! Before you know it, it’s the end of the day, the family is hungry, dinner time is drawing nigh and your beat. I can fully understand why people choose this option when our lifestyles are so hectic.
The Alcohol “Social and Relaxation” Temptation
An odd heading for this paragraph, I know, but I needed to draw your attention to the fact that alcohol will not help your fat loss efforts. I know we hear the saying so often that “doctors say that it’s healthy to have one or two wines per day”, however this is in regards to the properties of red wine assisting in the prevention of clogged arteries – not a fat loss miracle! If red wine is necessary for medicinal purposes and perscribed by a doctor then obviously your health comes first. However the topic here is fat loss……………………
My views are “everything in moderation”. BUT I DO KNOW THAT if you want to make a genuine effort to lose body fat that a couple of alcoholic drinks per day could easily effect your fat loss attempts. So unless your’s is the case above then I would seriously think about “cutting back”.
Since I began as a trainer years ago I have found that it is usually junk food or alcohol that prevents my clients from losing body fat. Just going without those few EXTRA drinks after work or consuming less alcohol at social gatherings will make a considerable difference to how much body fat you lose.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeDo not fool yourself by thinking that if you just fat burn or exercise for one extra session per week you can rid yourself of all those extra calories and fat from alcohol and food. Unfortunately our bodies aren’t that easily fixed.
Why Most People Don’t Succeed at Losing Body Fat
Other than the temptations mentioned above people tend not to succeed at fat loss because they are either not committed, not well informed on fat loss or they are committed for the wrong reasons. In other words you either aren’t abiding by the rules, or have been mislead by some other belief or you are trying to lose body fat because you are trying to keep other people happy by doing so rather than yourself.
Making Sure You are Trying to Lose Body Fat to Please YOU, Not Everyone Else.
Think about why it is you want to lose body fat. Make sure you really want to put in 100% effort.. You want to feel great about making this decision not obliged to do it. Losing body fat can help increase your self-esteem as well as boosting your health so giving it your best shot with a positive frame of mind is always the “way to go”.
Things that You Should Do Before You Get Started!
First you may want to make notes on what time of the day, when and where that you will most probably find it the most difficult to stick to this program. If, say for instance, “calling in at the drive thru for fast food on the way home from work or picking the children up” is where you find that you are most likely to go wrong then be prepared for it by making the appropriate changes. eg Having a meal which is already partly prepared in the fridge so that it will only take an extra 10 – 15 minutes to cook. Being organised with food preparation is very very important. It is exhausting coming home after a long day and realising you have to then organise something for dinner (amongst other things) You can bet the children would jump for joy if you offered them Mac’s – so you do – at least there is no washing up the dishes after dinner either…Sound familiar?
Re-orgnanising Your Lifestyle – Don’t Make it Difficult on Yourself!
Re-orgnanising your lifestyle may be quite a challenge for most people and families. But if you want to succeed at fat loss I am sure you want to be able to do it without tearing your hair out. Your goal is to re-arrange and plan your day so that you, your family and your new lifestyle can run smoothly. Such as planning your low-fat meals and recipes in a diary. Planning your grocery shop with a shopping list to prevent you from buying unnecessary junk food is also a great idea. Pre-preparing meals, making appointments for your exercise time slot etc all needs to be written into your appointment book or diary. You can tick each appointment off as the day progresses. When planning your shopping list remember, that unless you have the time, don’t go getting all creative with lowfat banquets etc for lunches and dinner. Choose simple to prepare ingredients and meals.
What Exercise Should I be Performing to Burn Body Fat?
There seems to be alot of controversy over what to do and what not to do when it comes to “fat burning” exercise. Mostly it depends on your fitness level and if you have any type of injuries, back pain or medical conditions that may affect what you can and can’t do. Make sure you check with your doctor first before starting any type of exercise or eating program, so he / she can indicate and provide you with a letter verifying that it is “ok” for you to start exercising and at what level.
Different Types of Exercising for Fat Burning
Treadmills, indoor cycles, cardiovascular machines etc any of these are great for performing fat burning exercise, provided your doctor says it’s cool to go ahead with it. If you enjoy being outdoors then walking and cycling are also great. Finding a program that suits your bodies needs and fitness level is important. Make sure you add variety to your fat burning program as you advance adding hills, inclines and speed rather than increasing the time. A reasonable time for fat burning is approx 20 – 30 mins.
You should also know that if you increase the time of your fat burning session, and not the intensity and other variations, you will find that as you advance your program your sessions may become too long. This will only encourage you to think that your exercise is becoming too time consuming and a chore – which will lead you to “throwing in the towel”. So keep up the variety to keep it interesting.
The Wrong Program for You: A Common Mistake that Leads to Lack of Fat Loss
Have you ever read a successful fat loss story that you, and everyone else you know, tried only to find that it didn’t work that well for you or them? Did you stop to think that maybe the person in the success story had their program specifically designed for their body type, not yours! If you really want to “kick some fat loss butt” you need a program that is designed to suit your body type and fitness level. Don’t expect super results from a program that someone else used, remember they may have had a different metabolism, fitness level, body shape and eating program to you, which makes it very difficult for you to reach the same levels of fatloss as they did.
FREE FAT LOSS EXERCISE Sample Program:
http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com/articles/Fat_Loss_Cardio_Program.htm
This program is a sample program to give you an idea of the variations you can use for your fat burning programs.
Where to go from here………….
After reading this article you should have a greater knowledge of where you may be going wrong with your fat loss or how to get started on a new fat burning program.
If you are keen to get started on your own personally designed health and fitness program please feel welcome to visit my web site: http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com.
I look forward to seeing you again soon.
Happy Training!
Kind Regards
Yours in fun, health and fitness
Mandy Gibbons
Virtual Fitness Trainer
http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com
Persons who are of good health, suspect of their health or are aware of any conditions, physical deficiencies or diseases should always consult a physician before undertaking any eating or exercise program. Mandy Gibbons, Virtual Fitness Trainer, http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com.au and http://www.virtualfitnesstrainer.com disclaims any liability or loss in connection with the above program or advice given in this article.
The above article (in it’s entirety) is free for use on other health and fitness related web sites and newsletters on the condition that the following section below is copied and pasted to the base or top of the article.
ZZZZZZ

INTRODUCTION
It is my pleasure to introduce to you, a new Diabetes Prevention Education, Public Relations Campaign established under the name Fannie Estelle Hill Grant, started by me, Lyndia Grant-Briggs, after the loss of my mother who succumbed to Type 2 Diabetes on Christmas Day, December 25, 2000. I noticed a fire burning in the Diabetes health arena, and it is still burning out of control. The diabetes prevention and education public relations campaign was started in an effort, to “Fan the Flames”, and put out the fire.
Fannie Grant was 73 years old, a homemaker, who loved her family very much, and she believed in preparing wonderful home-cooked meals for the family. You name it, and we had it. We would have desserts any day of the week. Mama enjoyed cooking, cleaning and washing clothes, and although she raised nine children of her own, she always had room for other needy children.
In our early years, from 1945-1965, Mother was the wife of a sharecropper in North Carolina, but they moved the family to Washington, D.C. in 1965. So for more than 30 years, Mother Grant, our father and all of us children called the Washington Metropolitan Area home.
Our family learned that Mother had Type 2 Diabetes after a major stroke she had back in 1988-89. She lived 11-12 years after the diagnosis. Lyndia and her Sisters, (The Grant Sisters) pledged to begin the educational prevention campaign while they visited with and/or cared for their mother during her last year of life.
After moving back home to North Carolina, Mother Grant enjoyed her latter years in a very peaceful way. Us children purchased her a new home, took over all of the mortgage payments, and she was happy. Mother Grant enjoyed living on this wonderful 227-acre farm, near Kinston, North Carolina. She was one of the heirs to this wonderful farm left to her family by their father, and my grandfather, Floyd Hill.
She enjoyed walking around the farm, following my father, Bishop Benjamin Grant, around the garden as he worked. She enjoyed shopping with her sisters going to yard sales. Shopping gave her considerable joy near the end of her life.
Mother suffered numerous strokes, seven to ten to be specific. During one stoke, she lost the use of her tongue and couldn’t speak at all. Mother Fannie’s kidney failed, she was receiving kidney dialysis for the last two years of her life, she had high blood pressure for many years, and both of her legs were amputated above her knees.
Click here for more information on The Best 8 Quiet Blenders of 2022 With 14 Delicious Recipes. Or click here if you’re looking for information on 23 Best Heavy Duty Degreasers for your HomeWe wanted to know more about the disease that took our mother in such a brutal fashion. There was so much pain and suffering prior to her death. Mother Grant was a Christian, she was an Evangelist who preached the gospel in churches throughout the Washington D.C. Area, and everyone loved her and called her Ma.
Our mother was very special, and as her oldest daughter, I promised to carry out a public awareness campaign, to educate millions of people regarding the causes and preventions of Type 2 Diabetes. In educating the general public, I feel a lot better, because my mother’s living shall not be in vain. My sisters and I have been blessed over the past 20 years, we’ve had lots of success in publicizing several major events, we coordinated a major festival, called Georgia Avenue Day in Washington, D.C. The festival and parade attracted more than 200,000 people, major corporate sponsors and celebrities. We worked for two Presidential Inaugural Committees, one was for the Republicans, George Herbert Walker Bush and for other for the Democrats, President Bill Clinton, for two D.C. Mayors, Marion Barry and Sharon Pratt Kelly, and three D.C. City Councilmembers, Charlene Drew Jarvis, Frank Smith and Eyde Whittington. Another major achievement was an appointment that I received as project director by Councilman Frank Smith, to erect the Spirit of Freedom Memorial, a new national African American Civil War Memorial located in Washington, D.C. This monument pays tribute to 209,145 United States Colored Troops who fought in the American Civil War.
As you can see, Mother Grant passed down some strong self-worth values. She taught us that we can do anything that we want, and that we can be the best at whatever we choose. The business of public relations is “in my blood.” There was no way that I could see the devastation caused by Diabetes and understand this disease, and do nothing about it. I wanted to know “what happened to Mother, how did this happen, could we have done something differently, if only we had known that an improved diet and regular physical exercise could have made a difference.”
I know that I’ve been chosen to get the word out regarding this disease that’s burning “out of control” in the African American community. It has been extremely hard to continue to live without our Mother, but in sharing this information with others, it gives me some relief from my grief.
So, what exactly is Diabetes? Diabetes mellitus is a group of diseases characterized by high levels of blood glucose. It results from defects in insulin secretion, insulin action, or both. Diabetes can be associated with serious complications and premature death, but people with diabetes can take measures to reduce the likelihood of such, according to recent studies found by the National Institute of Health. Some researchers believe that African Americans, (Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders were also included in the study) inherited a “thrifty gene” from their African ancestors. Years ago, this gene enabled Africans, during “feast and famine” cycles, to use food energy more efficiently when food was scarce. Today, with fewer such cycles, the thrifty gene that developed for survival may instead make the person more susceptible to developing type 2 diabetes.
The problem dates back to the beginning of the slave trade, documented as beginning in 1790, and for those enslaved ones, food was still scarce, thus the “thrifty genes” protected them. If you research the documentations found on record at the National Archives and Records Administration, slaves received rations. It really doesn’t matter what the diets were of African people hundreds of years ago, as they roamed around freely on the African continent, in townships like Johannesburg, Freetown, Rwanda, Sudan, South African and Sierre Leone. What does matter is the fact that those Africans who managed to survive the slave trade here in America, arrived on the shores very strong. The majority of them worked in the fields from sun-up to sundown, six days per week, and in many cases, seven days/week. Slaves ate scraps, like hog mauls, chitterlings, pigtails, pig feet, pig ears, and they drank milk from a trough along side other animals.
African people became Americanized, they were no longer in their homeland, so to live, they had to eat whatever was made available to them, they were fed last, after the horses and the pigs had been taken care of, whatever was left was given to those enslaved people — scraps, left-overs, garbage. In an effort to create a delicious meal, the women worked at creating recipes that they could all enjoy. They loved collard greens with fat back meat, and learned to bake sweet potato pies, cleaned chitterlings and made them into a delicacy to be eaten on special occasions. They made pots of beans seasoned with ham hocks, or pigtails, and they seasoned with pork.
They made home-made biscuits from self-rising, white flour and lard, and they learned to make hush puppies, candied yams, lots of potatoes, and they ate plenty corn bread, so even until this day, African people who became African Americans beginning in the late 1700’s, had a very different diet than Euro-Americans. Even though this wasn’t a “good” and “healthy” diet for the slaves, they ate it, they enjoyed it, and they were able to sustain themselves easily. They worked so very hard in the fields 12-16 hours a day. But of course, since they had the so-called “thrifty genes” which allowed their bodies to preserve food in an appropriate manner, when food was scarce, seems that was probably a good thing, since the enslaved didn’t always have ample food supplies.
There is a bright side to this though, as they worked, they were receiving strenuous daily exercise, which kept them healthy. It really didn’t matter what the slaves ate, because what they ate, in today’s standard would have fattened them too, but it didn’t, because they burned it off every day out in the fields working. It was a vicious cycle. They ate, and they worked off the carbohydrates. They ate and they worked off more carbohydrates, and they didn’t die from diseases back then, as they do today, diabetes or cancer, and don’t think that their bowels didn’t move regularly as well, thus eliminating all of the colon cancer, they eliminated the toxins from their bodies through sweat and perspiration. They may have been tired, but they had healthy bodies. So all of these diseases that are out of control today, like Diabetes came along later due to the many lifestyle changes of Americans.
Let us all learn a very important lesson from this bit of history: According to all legislations and laws today, African Americans can Be whatever they want to be, they can Do whatever they are capable of doing, and they can Have whatever they can manage to work hard enough to achieve. We know that this is a true statement, when you look around and you see such role models as Oprah Winfrey, the queen of talk shows, Bill Cosby, Michael Jordan, we have had several black Miss America’s, including the current reigning queen, we have Tiger Woods, the best golfer of all times and The Williams Sisters, who have broken all records. The list goes on and on. Today, we live in fabulous homes; our children can now go to college, (sidebar: yet we have more African American men in prison today, over 900,000 than we have in college today, only 600,000, that’s another article.)
The trouble with this whole thing is, African Americans continue to enjoy many of the delicious foods handed down to us by our ancestors, our diets haven’t changed very much, but we’ve forgotten one very important ingredient, our ancestors worked 12-16 hour days, performing physical labor. They received the necessary exercise daily, therefore, they didn’t get sick with diabetes, and all of the fat was burned off in blood, sweat and tears.
Today, in order for us to get proper exercise, we must plan to have physical exercise at least 30 minutes daily, one-hour is preferable, but no less than 30 minutes. That’s not a lot, compared to the amount of time our forefathers worked, but according to studies done by the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive & Kidney Diseases, the little time we manage to put in, while exercising for 30 minutes, 3-4 days/week can prevent the occurrence of Diabetes.
Today, we continue in the tradition of eating our “soul food” diets, very much the same as we did 200 years ago, except today, most of us don’t use lard, and we can eat all we want. We’ve graduated to vegetable oils like Crisco and other vegetable oils. (Olive Oils are better for us, less cholesterol). Families today still enjoy foods, which include far too many carbohydrates like macaroni and cheese, desserts, and lots of bread. We have enjoyed these foods for hundreds of years, but now, we sit at computers, walk out to our cars, drive everywhere, including to the grocery stores, we don’t have to walk to school for miles any longer, we can ride the school buses, and exercise has all but been eliminated. America is overwhelmingly FAT, even our children in many cases are overweight and/or obese.
It’s a simple problem, bad diets that includes too much junk food from fast food restaurants, and a lack of strenuous exercise. How many times have you pigged out, after a hard day, then, you fell asleep? That food is fattening you up, just the way that it does for newborn babies. Remember how babies eat and sleep, and soon, you notice their little legs beginning to get a little meat on their bones. But you can almost look at them grow and gain weight. But they are still babies, and that’s what they need, nutrition to grow.
For adults though, it’s a different story, we have already grown up, and all we can do now is grow OUT!!! We just keep getting BIGGER and BIGGER and BIGGER! We look bad to ourselves and to others, we can’t fit into our nice clothing, we have to keep buying fat clothes. And worst of all, our hearts cannot stand this, and neither can the rest of our organs. (I give a speech entitled “Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled” – How to have a healthy mind, body & spirit). It’s no wonder that our starvation genes are reacting the way that they have, this so-called “thrifty gene” that is found in African Americans seems to store even more of this foreign food that we continue to ingest into our bodies. We came from strong, lean backgrounds, Africa has never been a “fat” nation, but as African Americans, we have Americanized our bodies so badly, that our health problems are out-of-control!
If you take a look at the stats provided by the National Institute of Health, Today, diabetes mellitus is one of the most serious health challenges facing the United States. The following statistics illustrate the magnitude of this disease among African Americans.

2.8 million African Americans have diabetes.
On average, African Americans are twice as likely to have diabetes as white Americans of similar age.
Approximately 13 percent of all African Americans have diabetes.
African Americans with diabetes are more likely to develop diabetes complications and experience greater disability from the complications than white Americans with diabetes.
Death rates for people with diabetes are 27 percent higher for African Americans compared with whites
National health surveys during the past 35 years show that the percentage of the African American population that has been diagnosed with diabetes is increasing dramatically. The surveys in 1976-80 and in 1988-94 measured fasting plasma glucose and thus allowed an assessment of the prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes as well as of previously diagnosed diabetes. In 1976-80, total diabetes prevalence in African Americans ages 40 to 74 years was 8.9 percent; in 1988-94, total prevalence had increased to 18.2 percent–a doubling of the rate in just 12 years.
Prevalence in African Americans is much higher than in white Americans. Among those ages 40 to 74 years in the 1988-94 survey, the rate was 11.2 percent for whites, but was 18.2 percent for African Americans
Regular physical activity is a protective factor against type 2 diabetes and, conversely, lack of physical activity is a risk factor for developing diabetes. Researchers suspect that a lack of exercise is one factor contributing to the high rates of diabetes in African Americans. In the NHANES III survey, 50 percent of African American men and 67 percent of African American women reported that they participated in little or no leisure time physical activity.

Conclusion
In furthering the causes of this Diabetes Educational Prevention Campaign, the first order of business has been to make my very own Lifestyle Change. My Mother was buried on December 30th, 2000. When I returned home to Silver Spring, Maryland, it took a few months before I could go on, the grief period was extremely hard, but the first order of business, was to begin a regular exercise routine. Walking became my exercise of choice — two to four miles three to four days each week. Some weeks I walked, and continue to walk, five days, even six days a week, and recently, I’ve added “walking up and down the stairs in five minute increments, for 12-15 minutes. There is an extreme difference in the way that I look and feel. The pounds and inches have been steadily coming off.
I’ve changed my diet. I’m now drinking green mineral drinks each morning, (you can buy green drinks at organic stores); and I’m no longer eating white bread. In fact I don’t eat very much bread at all, but when I do, it is whole grain or wheat bread, brown rice, more fresh fruits and green leafy vegetables. I enjoy using my juice machine for fresh green spinach and carrot drinks.
Recently, I found myself with excellent health results from my physical examination. My cholesterol level was low, at 126, and my glucose levels were average. My blood pressure was 120/80, which is fine for me, and I feel wonderful too. There is one area that I’m still working on, and that is my Ideal Body Mass, IBM. I’m still overweight, but I’ve lost 30 lbs., and still counting.
If you are reading this article, and you’re at risk for Type 2 Diabetes, consider making a major Lifestyle Change. It’s very simple: 1-Change your diet, eliminate most of the carbohydrates from your diet; 2-Exercise regularly for the rest of your life, and 3-Get rid of the extra pounds, work toward maintaining your ideal body weight. If you make this promise to yourself, to change your life, you will be “Fanning the Flames of the Diabetes Epidemic in America,” and soon the fire will be put out, but it will take millions of people to join this fight. Won’t you begin today? You don’t have to get Diabetes, it can be prevented, you don’t have to lose one limb to this vicious disease, nor do you have to lose your kidney. Change your life, and enjoy your Thanksgiving Dinner – with all of the trimmings, but the next day, get back to the business of getting fit and staying healthy.
## END ##
ZZZZZZ