Health Gem 9/17/2021
"I'm starving!!! I'm going to die if I don't eat soon!" Have you ever said that or heard some one say that? I know that I have made one or both of those statements and heard others make them too. But rarely, very rarely is that ever true. Almost all of us could skip a meal or two and be just fine. (Not those who are diabetic though.)
Most of us have no concept of what real starvation is.
Do you like bread? I do and there aren't many people I know that don't like bread. There are so many different kinds, made with different ingredients and made in different shapes and sizes. There has to be one that each person can appreciate. But there is only ONE Bread of life! The bible says in John 6:35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
And in Matthew 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
And to borrow a line from a song, I was reminded recently that:
"It's what the Bible says that really matters most, It's what the Bible says that counts".
And why is that? Because the Bible is the word that has proceeded from the mouth of God. To really digest the word of God there is a need to spend time in it. Reading an occasional passage, or following along with the Pastor in church during his sermon, is not really spending time in God's word. We must dig deep, comparing scripture to scripture allowing the Holy Spirit to teach us. For we must be weaned from the milk and study line upon line, precept upon precept. (Isaiah 28:9,10 paraphrased) If we do not spend time with God studying His word, eating the bread of life we are starving ourselves spiritually which can lead to a spiritual death.
But did God mean that we were only to eat bread? No, of course not He was using it as an illustration. If we only ate one thing we would not be getting all of the nutrition that our bodies need. (Unless of course we were eating the Mana that God provided in the desert for the Israelites.) So then what do we need for proper nutrition?
Our original prescribed diet was fruits, grains, nuts, seeds:
Genesis 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. (Meat in this verse is oklah which means food, eating.)
And after sin vegetables were added to the diet:
Genesis 3:18, 19 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; 19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
It would stand to reason then that if we are to have complete nutrition we should be eating something from each of these groups of food.
Dr. Michael Greger who wrote How Not To Die recommends that your plate look something like this:
He also recommends a daily dozen. A daily dozen of what exactly? Well 10 groups of foods, drinks (water) and exercise!
Now it is important to remember that each person is different. I don't know that I have any food allergies, but I have friends that do. So within these groups we have to make choices that best fit us.
I have ALWAYS been a picky eater. But in the last several years in trying to become healthier I have been making myself try new things. Just yesterday I made this:
This is Stuffed Portabella Mushroom with Mushroom Gravy. I went all of my growing up years and over half of my marriage HATING mushrooms...but I have learned that there are many things out there that are very good for me and I need to at least give things a try. It was actually pretty good. And in eating just that, I could count and mark off 6 of those groups in the chart above! They were, beans, greens, other vegetables, flaxseeds, nuts & seeds, herbs & spices.
Our benevolent heavenly Father made us and knows just exactly what is good for us. He blessed us with such a variety of food that are so beneficial to help us fight off disease. And we must eat a variety because different foods fight off different diseases. For example Dr. Greger mentions that brussels sprouts, cabbage, curly cabbage, kale, garlic, green onions, and leeks have been tested and proved to be some of the most effective in fighting...Cancer. He further stated that there are two superfood families that are tops in fighting cancer, the cruciferous vegetable family and the Allium family. He quoted the researchers as saying this:
"the inclusion of cruciferous and Allium vegetables in the diet is essential for effective dietary-based chemopreventive [cancer-preventing] stratagies."
In a future post I will tell you a little bit more about these two food families, what veggies they include, and what types of cancer they help to fight.
May we each take time to thank God for His blessings in the temporal foods that He has given to help us grow healthy and ward off starvation and in the spiritual bread of life that He has so graciously given us to feed us spiritually. These are His precious health Gems!
**These are beneficial health suggestions. These statements are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This is not a substitute for speaking with your health professional.