Diet Cures Disease
Why didn’t we listen to Hippocrates for the last several 1000 years when he said his famous quote: "Let food by thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food?" The guy is brilliant!
As we had breakfast with Ella this morning and I watched her eat cottage cheese, pomegranate seeds, wheat germ, cinnamon, and applesauce, I was thinking about the importance of teaching her great habits. She’s 17 months and while she surely has an occasional treat or two, we are trying to introduce her to a variety of different foods at a young age. Sometimes she loves what we give her. Sometimes she adamantly says NO and turns her head away. Both are fine, we’ll keep trying.
After all, at this age, she doesn’t know what sugar, trans fat, fast food, soft drinks, sweets, etc are … so why even introduce them regularly? They’ll surely be plenty of times she’ll be asking for that junk when she gets older.
But it’s scary to me to think that the New England Journal of Medicine said that those born in the year 2000 forward will be the first who will not outlive their parents …
Dr. Richard Carmona, former Surgeon General of the United States, said this in 2003: "Obesity – it’s the fastest growing cause of disease and death in America. And it’s completely preventable."
Is is predicted that by 2015 (4 years from now) — 75% of Americans will be overweight and 41% will be obese
This is preventable.
It is projected that at the rate we’re headed, 50% of the population will have diabetes by 2020.
This is preventable.
A new report out showed that the health care costs of not eating fruits and vegetables is $56.2 BILLION per year. Billion, with a ‘B’
This is preventable.
Eating too much sodium is the #1 dietary cause of preventable death according to a recent study. Eating too few omega-3 fats is #2.
These are preventable.
Studies suggest diet and exercise have a more powerful effects on diabetes prevention than the most common diabetes drug prescribed, Metformin.
Are these statistics alarming to anyone else?
Pick up an apple instead of Doritos. Put down the soda and pick up a bottle of water. Open a can of tuna and add it to salad for lunch. Swap out the salt shaker for some herbs and spices.
We’re not asking for people to live on boiled tofu and steamed veggies each day. These very small dietary changes will SAVE YOUR LIFE.
In the year 2000, $117 Billion of Health Care costs and 300,000 deaths were directly correlated to overweight and obesity.
We don’t ask for much — make ONE positive change every single week. That’s it. One.
Diet cures disease. Exercise cures disease. Medications can’t say the same. They simply mask the symptoms as you get worse overtime.
Nutrition is the medicine of the 21st century.
