If I were to offer you an all-natural supplement that helps to prevent undesirable clotting, improves your antibody function and mental processing, increases endurance, reduces skin wrinkling, and perks up every cell in your body, how much would you be willing to pay for it? “Well,” you might say, “before I spend money—what is it?” The answer may surprise you—it’s water!

Water is the most abundant molecule on earth and in the body. Without this excellent solvent and suspending medium, the blood could not transport nutrients to the cells, remove byproducts of cellular waste, or even transport your hormones. That would mess up your day, wouldn’t it?

On a cellular level, good hydration helps oxygen penetrate the cell membrane. Without oxygen, your energy production would prove quite ineffective for all the complicated life processes occurring in your body. Water helps all the enzymes in your body to work effectively, including enzymes that assist in boosting energy production. Scientific studies show that sufficient water intake also increases athletic endurance. Because water can combine with viscous molecules, it helps to lubricate your joints and your digestive tract, absorbs heat, and helps to regulate body temperature.¹

Improves Cardiovascular Health

Adequate water drinking helps to thin your blood and thus protect you from developing undesirable clots in your veins, coronary arteries, and blood vessels in the brain. Researchers at Loma Linda University studied 20,297 individuals and found that men who drank five or more glasses of water a day reduced their risk of fatal heart attacks by 54% when compared to those who drank two or fewer glasses per day. Women who drank at least five glasses of water daily decreased their risk of fatal heart attacks by 41%. These results remained unchanged after adjusting for age, smoking, hypertension, body mass index, education, and (in women) hormone replacement therapy.² Why is this?Dehydration elevates blood and plasma viscosity, hematocrit,(a) and fibrinogen,(b) all of which are major independent risk factors promoting ischemic heart disease, a condition in which there is insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle.

Protects from Chronic Disease

Scientific studies show that even mild dehydration, from short periods of fluid restriction, decreases alertness and ability to concentrate and impairs performance. German researchers have found that it contributes to and exacerbates many chronic diseases. For example, dehydration increases the risk of developing urinary tract infections, kidney stones, constipation, asthma during exercise, hypertension, deep vein thrombosis, stroke, chronic lung disorders, and diabetic ketoacidosis. Dehydration is also associated with an increased risk for falling, dental disease, and impaired cognitive functioning and is an independent predictor of mortality in the elderly.³

Scientists at Stanford University note that dehydration with its ensuing insufficient water in the blood can trigger activation of the sympathetic nerves.⁴ Abnormal sympathetic hyperactivity plays an essential role in hypertension, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, sleep deprivation, fibromyalgia, inflammation, and cancer.

Aids the Immune System

Good hydration also increases IgA, a class of antibodies that guards the respiratory mucosa and the intestines and improves lymph flow. Under conditions such as fatigue, stress, infection, lack of physical activity, and dehydration, lymph vessels can become clogged with protein deposits and significantly reduce the flow of lymph even through lymph nodes, which help to filter the lymph and remove bacteria and toxins.

Water can also bolster the immune system in the form of hydrotherapy, the use of water in any of its three forms—liquid, steam, or ice. Taking a hot bath for thirty to forty minutes with a cold compress to the head and over the heart (and raising the body temperature) increases the mobility and efficiency of neutrophils to capture and destroy bacteria.(c)

Dehydration

Dehydration occurs when water loss exceeds water intake. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fever, high blood sugar, exposure to prolonged, intense heat, breathing dry air, and extreme exercise all promote dehydration. Airplane air dehydrates the body more quickly than outside air. Individuals with impaired mobility, who live alone, or who have busy schedules may easily become dehydrated. The very young and elderly can quickly die from dehydration. Caffeine and alcohol also promote water loss by increasing urinary output.

To keep hydrated, follow these guidelines:

1. Drink before getting thirsty.
2. Drink a glass or two of water every morning upon rising.
3. Drink twice as much as it takes to quench your thirst.
4. Buy a water bottle to carry with you.
5. Flavor water with a slice of lemon.
6. Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.
7. As an adult, drink eight glasses of water or non-caffeinated teas to keep hydrated (unless a physician has placed you on fluid restriction).
8. Drink more water in proportion to an increase in physical activity. Your water requirements increase when you sweat.

a) The proportion of the blood that consists of packed red blood cells. The hematocrit is expressed as a percentage by volume. The red blood cells are packed by centrifugation.

b) Fibrinogen is a protein that plays a key role in blood clotting.

c) This hydrotherapy treatment could be done for otherwise healthy individuals fighting a virus. It should not be attempted alone or by one not trained in hydrotherapy. After forty minutes in hot water, the temperature of the water should be gradually lowered until it is lukewarm.Individuals with severe anemia, heart or lung problems, or an autoimmune disease should not try this particular hydrotherapy treatment.

References

¹ Grandjean, A. and Campell, S., Hydration: Fluids for Life. ILSI, North America.

² Chand, J., Water, other fluids and fatal coronary heart disease: the Adventist Health Study. Am J Epidemiol, 155(9):827-33, 2002.

³ Manz, F. and Wentz, The importance of good hydration for the prevention of chronic disease. Research Institute of Child Nutrition. Yung, A.J., et al, Clinical benefits of hydration and volume expansion in a wide range of illnesses may be attributable to reduction of sympatho-vago ratio, Med Hypotheses

In 2005, both CBS and ABC News reported that according to a 1985 survey done by the University of Arizona and Duke University, individuals were found to have an average of three close confidantes. Today, that average has declined from three to two, a decrease of one-third over approximately twenty years. In addition, about 25% of individuals today feel that they have no one in which they can confide. Sociologists conducting this study described this drop as “dramatic”.

Living Alone

In the book Animal Miracles, a story is told about senior citizen Jeff Fyfe who lived alone in Sidney, Australia, and he preferred it that way. He seldom answered the phone, perhaps because he was hard of hearing. His wife had died years earlier, and only six-year-old Trixie, an Australian kelpie-border collie mix, kept him company. He seldom received visitors except the occasional welcome visit from his daughter who tried her best to keep in touch with him.

One day . . . wham! It felt like a baseball had slammed into his head. He tried to get up from his bed but found that he couldn’t move his left arm or leg. Frightened, he desperately tried to make sense of what was happening to him. The phone rang. It was probably his daughter calling to remind him of her scheduled visit in nine days. However, Jeff couldn’t drag himself over to the phone. He was completely unable to move. He concluded that he must have suffered a stroke while he was asleep. Since he was a social recluse, no one would miss him. He began to scream, but no one heard him, no one, that is, except Trixie.

The temperature in Jeff’s house was at least 90°F. With no way of getting water, he realized that he would die a slow, miserable death. He drifted off to sleep and woke up crying for water, only to realize that no one was there to bring him any. Or was there?

It wasn’t a neighbor who eventually figured out the meaning of his hoarse, mumbled cries. Jeff could hear his dog lapping water from her bowl, making him even thirstier. He wished that Trixie could bring him water. In jumbled words he muttered his request. Perhaps an angel interpreted his garbled speech, “Tri…wader.” Trixie jumped up on Jeff’s bed and released a snoutful of water into his mouth. Mouth-to-mouth hydration, you might call it.

For days, each time Jeff would call out for water, Trixie would come. Her water bowl ran dry, but the dog ingeniously got a towel and dipped it in the toilet bowl. Gratefully, he sucked on the soaked towel. Days passed. The phone rang occasionally. After nine days, his daughter did come, and he was rushed to the hospital. In spite of his ordeal, Jeff survived.

The Power of Two

When I read this story I became alarmed. Jeff’s ordeal could have been cut short considerably had he encouraged social connections and had someone checking on him every day. His daughter knew Jeff loved his independence, but either she failed to recognize that independence without regular social support can become dangerous or perhaps a more likely scenario: she was uncomfortable with her dad’s hermit tendencies and did not know what to do about it. Or maybe he was uncooperative and did not want to live with anyone.

Ellen White calls this need for social connections the “law of mutual dependence.”¹ Solomon expressed it this way: “Two are better than one, because they have good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his companion; but woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him, and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.”²

As a community are we reaching out to lonely individuals who are pinned down by mental illness or limited because of some personality quirk? Perhaps they are paralyzed with fear or are in need of encouragement. Although we hesitate to admit it, we have individuals in our church, on our campus, and in our community who are as limited in their ability to reach out for help as those who have more obvious physical impairments. Gentle caring on a regular basis and in a manner they would consider acceptable and appropriate, might afford some comfort to these souls.

Jeff would have received help much sooner had he had available systematic support and relationships. Today, some of us need to go beyond our busy schedules and develop a systematic plan of giving encouragement to those around us. Others of us need to reach out above our pride and stifling, mundane schedules and seize precious opportunities to receive support from others.

Social Isolation, Loneliness, and Health

Scientists have discovered that perceived social isolation or loneliness predisposes individuals to diseases by increasing the body’s reactivity to stress and diminishing repair processes. According to studies, lonely individuals or those without adequate social support or companionship have less efficient sleep and poor wound healing. Researchers at the University of Chicago found this to be true in socially isolated young adults. These young adults rated their everyday stress as more tense and coped with it more passively than those who were socially involved.³

Dr. John Cacioppo from the University of Chicago also discovered in other studies that the social interactions lonely people do have are not as positive as those of other people, hence the relationships they have do not buffer them from stress as relationships normally do. Loneliness raises levels of circulating stress hormones and levels of blood pressure. It can gradually undermine regulation of the circulatory system so that the heart muscle works harder and the blood vessels are subject to damage by blood flow turbulence.⁴ Most surprising of all, in a survey Dr. Cacioppo conducted, doctors, themselves, confided that they provide better or more complete medical care to patients who have supportive families and are not socially isolated.⁵

Loneliness among middle and older age adults is an independent risk factor for physical inactivity and increases the likelihood that physical activity will be discontinued over time.⁶

Irish researchers found that loneliness and social networks independently affect mood and well-being in the elderly and that both loneliness and lack of social support significantly increase their risk for depression.⁷ Swedish researchers found that men and women who are living alone or are divorced are at a significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in their later years. In his study of 1,449 individuals, professor Krister Hakansson and associates found that those living alone in mid-life were 40-50% more likely to get Alzheimer’s. People who lived alone for their entire adult lives had double the risk for dementia while those who divorced in middle age and remained single had three times the risk for dementia.⁸

Isolation Promotes Inflammation

Animal studies show that social isolation produces significant inflammatory response, especially in females. Isolation, perceived or otherwise, increases pro-inflammatory agents in human beings, as well. On the other hand, studies show that those individuals who are socially integrated have fewer inflammatory markers.⁹¹⁰ This is important because inflammation fuels most chronic and autoimmune diseases. Rodent studies also show that social interaction reduces the actual size of an infarct after a stroke.¹¹ In contrast, loneliness increases inflammation even more after a stroke.

Social Support and Heart Attacks

Studies show that social isolation and/or loneliness predict morbidity and mortality from cancer, cardiovascular disease, and a host of other diseases. In fact, the body perceives loneliness as a threat. Research from the University of California suggests that loneliness or lack of social support could triple the odds of being diagnosed with a heart condition. Redford Williams and his colleagues at Duke University directed a study in 1992 on heart patients and their relationships. They discovered that 50% of patients with heart disease who did not have a spouse or someone to confide in died within five years, while only 17% of those who did have a confidante died in the same time period.¹²

The Mayo Clinic found that a low social support network is equivalent to many of the classic risk factors of one-year mortality from a heart attack (i.e. elevated cholesterol levels, tobacco use, and hypertension).¹³ In other words, a lack of friendships increases the risk of dying from a heart attack within one year, and the value of meaningful relationships is as important as lowering cholesterol, controlling high blood pressure, and smoking cessation in preventing a heart attack. Another study showed that after a heart attack, even having a perception of low social support predicted death or another reoccurring heart attack.¹⁴ In Japan, low social support was associated with a higher risk of stroke mortality in men.¹⁵

Friendships Reduce Risk for Periodontitis

Researchers from Harvard School of Health examined the association between social support, anger expression, and periodontitis in 42,523 male, U.S.-based, health professionals. Interestingly, in this study more than half of the men were dentists. They were free of a diagnosis of periodontitis at the start of the follow-up in 1996. Subjects who reported having at least one close friend had a 30% lower risk of developing periodontitis compared with those who did not have a close friend. Men who participated in religious meetings or services had a 27% lower risk of developing periodontitis compared with men who did not participate in religious meetings.¹⁶

Depressed Immunity

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, studied the effect of loneliness on antibodies in healthy freshmen when given a flu vaccine. Antibodies are the immune system’s CIA agents, which help the white blood cells identify germs. They found that “elevated levels of loneliness throughout the semester and small social networks were independently associated with poorer antibody response to one component of the influenza vaccine. Those with high levels of both loneliness and a small social network had the lowest antibody response.”¹⁷

Loneliness also significantly reduces natural killer (NK) cell activity.¹⁸ Like efficient air force bombers, NK cells drop molecular bombs that penetrate viruses’ defenses. Some of their “bombs” attack the virus’ command center. They also destroy cancer cells. Early studies suggest that lonelier medical students and psychiatric inpatients had less efficient NK cell and killer-T* function than their counterparts who reported less loneliness. According to Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser, “The support provided by social relationships can serve as a buffer during both acute and chronic stressors, protecting against immune dysregulation.”¹⁹

Another study found that women with breast cancer who perceived they had substantial social support had greater NK cell activity than those women who also had breast cancer, but little social support. Even in women with metastatic breast cancer, studies showed that greater quality of social support was associated with “lower cortisol concentrations in women,” which indicates healthier neuroendocrine function. However, cortisol levels were higher among patients “who reported less appraisal, belonging, and tangible support.”²⁰ This is also true in women who have ovarian cancer.²¹

Adequate, helpful social support promotes adherence to health regimens and can act as a buffer against negative effects from disease. It also improves the efficiency of the immune system and the prognosis for stroke victims.

Relationships and Youth

Connectedness is essential to children’s well being, as well. A sample of 2,022 students (999 boys and 1,023 girls) ages 12-14 years was measured at two time points twelve months apart on school connectedness and mental health symptoms (general functioning, depression, and anxiety symptoms). After adjusting for any prior conditions that could have led to mental health problems, the authors of the study reported stronger than previous evidence of the association with school connectedness and adolescent depressive symptoms and a predictive link between school connectedness to future mental health problems.²² Early studies suggest that there are substantial percentages of violent youth who do not perceive themselves to be liked by classmates and who report loneliness.

Hospitality Reduces Hospitalization

Our sympathies are to overflow the boundaries of self and the enclosure of family walls. There are precious opportunities for those who will make their homes a blessing to others. Social influence is a wonderful power. We can use it if we will as a means of helping those about us.”²³

A more integrated society encourages the development of an integrated individual. Our happiness and health depend upon the harmonious development of the physical, mental, social, and spiritual aspects. Too much introversion, be it in individuals, families, or social cliques, eventually leads to social disconnection, which limits our outreach and undermines the health of individuals, the church, and society.

References

¹ White, E.G., The Review and Herald, Sept 17, 1889, paragraph 20.

² Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, The Bible, KJV.

³ Hawkely, L.C. and Cacioppo, J., Loneliness and pathways to disease. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 17 (2003) S98–S105.

⁴ Cacioppo, J. and Patrick, W., Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection, New York : W.W. Norton & Co., 2008. ISBN 978-0-393-06170-3.

⁵ Ibid.

⁶ Hawkley, L.C., et al, Loneliness predicts reduced physical activity: Cross-sectional & longitudinal analyses. Health Psychol, 28(3):354-63, 2009.

⁷ Golden, J., et al, Loneliness, social support networks, mood and wellbeing in community-dwelling elderly. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry, Mar 9, 2009.

⁸ Loneliness Sparks Risk of Dementia, http://www.internationalreporter.com/News-3949/loneliness-sparks-risk-of-dementia.

⁹ Steptoe, A., et al, Loneliness and neuroendocrine, cardiovascular, and inflammatory stress responses in middle-aged men and women. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 29(5):593-611, 2004.

¹⁰ Why loneliness may damage the health, news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6991584.stm.

¹¹ Craft, T.K., et al, Social interaction improves experimental stroke outcome. Stroke, 36(9):2006-11.

¹² Williams, R., Social factors impact risk for heart attack and disease, http://www.selfhelpmagazine.com/article/heart-attack.

¹³ Mookadam, F. and Arthur, H.M., Social support and its relationship to morbidity and mortality after acute myocardial infarction. Arch Intern Med, 26(164):1514-8, 2004.

¹⁴ Burg, M.M., et al, Low perceived social support and post-myocardial infarction prognosis in the enhancing recovery in coronary heart disease clinical trial: the effects of treatment. Psychosom Med, 67(6):879-88, 2005.

¹⁵ Ikeda, A., et al, Social support and stroke and coronary heart disease: the JPHC study cohorts II. Stroke, 39(3):768-75, 2008.
fn16. Merchant, A.T., et al, A prospective study of social support, anger expression and risk of periodontitis in men. Harvard School of Public Health. J Am Dent Assoc, 134(12):1591-6, 2003.

¹⁷ Pressman, S.D., et al, Loneliness, social network size, and immune response to influenza vaccination in college freshman. Health Psychol, 24(3):297-306, 2005.

¹⁸ Koenig, H., The link between religion and health: Psychoneuroimmunity and the faith factor, Oxford University, 2002.

¹⁹ Kiecolt-Glasser, J.K., et al, Psychoneuroimmunology and psychosomatic medicine: back to the future. Psychosomatic Medicine, 64:15-28, 2002.

²⁰ Psychosomatic Medicine, 62:337-245, 2000.

²¹ Journal of Clinical Oncology, 23(28), 2005, p.7105-7113.

²² J Clin Child Adoles Pscyhol, 35(2):170-9, 2006.

²³ White, E.G., The Ministry of Healing, 1905, p. 353-4.

You cannot stop the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from nesting in your hair!

When Lord Palmerston, Premier of England, was petitioned by the Scotch clergy to appoint a day of fasting and prayer to avert the cholera, he replied, in effect, “Cleanse and disinfect your streets and houses, promote cleanliness and health among the poor, and see that they are plentifully supplied with good food and raiment, and employ right sanitary measures generally, and you will have no occasion to fast and pray. Nor will the Lord hear your prayers, while these, his preventives, remain unheeded.”

How it is spread? Airborne droplets that reach the eyes, nose or mouth primarily spread influenza virus. It can also spread by touching contaminated surfaces and then touching one’s face. The more viruses you are exposed to the higher your risk of contracting the flu. Environmental precautions and personal protective equipment are designed to reduce the number of viruses to which you are exposed.¹

Rupert Blue, MD, surgeon general during 1918 flu suggested: avoid needless crowding; smother you coughs and sneezes; your nose not your mouth was made to breath through; remember the 3 Cs, clean mouth, clean skin, and clean clothes; food will win the war, help by choosing and chewing your food well, wash your hands before eating, don’t let the waste products of digestion accumulate; avoid tight clothing, tight shoes, tight gloves; seek to make nature your ally not your prisoner, and when the air is pure, breathe all of it you can—breathe deeply.²

Will a mask protect me? For health care workers exposed to infected patients, N95 respirators are recommended. For infected patients surgical masks are recommended to help reduce viral spread.³

Once a pandemic has begun quarantine is not likely to be effective, efforts may focus on “social distancing.” Social distancing includes measures to increase distance between individuals (6ft), staying home when ill unless seeking medical care, avoiding large gatherings, telecommuting, and closing schools.⁴

Once a pandemic influenza virus has been identified, it will likely take 4-6 months to develop, test, and begin producing a vaccine. The supply of pandemic vaccine will be limited, particularly in the early stages of a pandemic. And while vaccines may be helpful, vaccine is not a substitute for a good immune system.⁵

Antiviral drugs such as Tamiflu and Relenza may help prevent infection in people at risk and shorten the duration of symptoms in those infected with pandemic influenza. Reports from China indicate that current antivirals are not as effective as once hoped.⁶ In the absence of vaccines and effective medications for influenza, what are we going to do?

“Pure air, sunlight, abstemiousness, rest, exercise, proper diet, the use of water, trust in divine power—these are the true remedies.”⁷ It is in practicing these health virtues that a strong immune system is developed and disease is averted.
To start with we need to look at how the body fights off an influenza exposure. When the influenza virus reaches the lungs there is an initial exponential growth in number of viruses. Natural killer cells are the first line of defense. When they go to war, as evidenced by a rise in interferon, the viral numbers drop off exponentially, but not to extinction.

Before the infection is completely licked and the patient is out of the woods, B-cells must act their part, which is to produce viral specific IgA. If the immune system is strong and the parts are all working as they should, the infection can be overcome. It should be our study then to determine what lifestyle factors influence the immune system.⁸

Fresh Air

The negative air ions found in fresh air activate natural killer cells and significantly reduce the number of disease causing microbes in the air.⁹

It has been said “…there is health in the fragrance of the pine, the cedar, and the fir. And there are several other kinds of trees that have medicinal properties that are health promoting.”¹⁰ It is of interest to note that pine cone extracts have been shown to suppress the growth of influenza virus in cells.¹¹ Some people even use pine as essence oil.

Citrus has been shown to inhibit influenza A viruses.¹² Citrus essence oil has been recommended by some to reduce viruses in the air.

Air quality can have an effect on your susceptibility to disease. Influenza and pneumonia are significantly increased in people who live in cities with high levels of ozone or sulfur dioxide pollution.¹³ In one study, office workers showed significant declines in number and function of natural killer cells after there office was remodeled exposing them to formaldehyde, phenol and organic chlorohydrocarbons.¹⁴ What’s more, mold exposure in water-damaged buildings reduces natural killer cells and initiates lung damaging inflammatory processes. Living in a home with mold problems increases the risk of respiratory symptoms and infections.¹⁵

Sunlight

In one study, exposure to natural sunlight one hour a day for 12 days, significantly increased circulating immune cells. The effect lasted for up to two weeks after the end of the experiment.¹⁶ It has also been found that influenza viruses can suppress interferon production. Sunlight helps disable the influenza viruses’ ability to suppress the production of interferon.¹⁷ Sunlight’s ultraviolet light is known to kill pathogens and it also kills influenza viruses.¹⁸

Abstemiousness

Abstemiousness or temperance involves the avoidance of things harmful and the moderate use of things that are considered good. Smokers are at 1-1/2 times the risk of catching the flu and are 70% more likely to have to miss work because of the flu.¹⁹ Chronic alcohol consumption has been shown to suppress the activity of natural killer cells.²⁰ What’s more, alcohol or tobacco, when combined even in small amounts, significantly suppress natural killer cell activity.²¹

Intemperance can involve both the amount and quality of food we eat. Obesity and over eating impair natural killer cells activity. Caloric restriction—eating less—has been shown to restore immune responsiveness in overweight individuals.²²

Dietary restriction to 60% of usual increases natural killer numbers fourfold and their activity twofold.²³ Increasing age is also associated with a predictable decline in immune function. Caloric restriction while still maintaining nutrition restores natural killer activity to that found in younger individuals.²⁴

Rest

Studies reveal that people who sleep well have significantly better immune function than people with insomnia.²⁵ To illustrate the effects of missing your sleep, one study showed mice who got the flu vaccine but were sleep deprived contracted the flu as though they had never been immunized.²⁶

Rest and relaxation also encompass mental and spiritual rejuvenation. According to researchers at the University of Wisconsin, meditation improves the immune response to Influenza vaccination.²⁷ Among those who observe the weekly rest according to the Bible, Seventh-day Adventists had higher plasma levels of the immune stimulating antioxidants. Among Seventh-day Adventists, consumption of a vegetarian diet was associated with an even higher increase in immune stimulating
antioxidants.²⁸

Exercise

As individuals age, their immune systems decline. Being physically fit helps attenuate this decline. Natural killer cells respond positively to moderate exercise in both number and function. Over fatigue increases the risk of upper respiratory tract infection, while regular moderate physical activity reduces the risk.²⁹ In one study moderate exercise was associated with a significant reduction in the risk of upper respiratory tract infection.³⁰

If one is to exercise in cold weather, proper clothing is essential. Sufficiently protecting the arms and legs from cold helps prevent inflammation and congestion of lungs and brain thus helping prevent influenza.³¹³²³³ The clothing should fit comfortably without obstructing the circulation of the blood or natural respiration of the lungs. Clad in this way, we can take exercise in the open air, even in the dew of morning or evening, or after a fall of rain or snow, without fear of taking cold.³⁴³⁵

Proper Diet

God gave us wonderful immune systems, one of our first considerations will be to avoid any food that could compromise this first line of defense.

In a study of dietary fat, eating the usual American dietary fat was associated with a 50% reduction in natural killer cell activity, a high fat diet reduced natural killer activity by 79%, and a low fat diet showed no reduction in natural killer cell activity.³⁶ Not all fats were created equal. For instance, a high cholesterol diet depresses natural killer cells to 1⁄4 their usual activity.³⁷ Fish oil has been observed to impair immune function and delays the clearance of viruses from the lungs.³⁸

Milk, the baby food of cows, has drawbacks for the prevention of influenza. Increased milk drinking results in decreased natural killer cell activity. What’s more, tripling your milk protein intake can triple your risk of contracting cancer.³⁹

Many people complain of a “sweet tooth”. This may not be the trait of an influenza survivor. Mice fed a diet containing sucrose (table sugar) had significantly lower immune cell responsiveness.⁴⁰ Sugar consumption weakens the ability of immune system to destroy pathogens. If a person eats no refined sugar for 12 hours, each white blood cell can destroy 14 bacteria. When 24 teaspoons of sugar are consumed, the white blood cells are so compromised that they can only destroy one bacterium each.⁴¹

High protein diets have also been shown to compromise the immune system. A diet comprised of 25% protein hampered natural killer cell function whereas a diet with only 5% of the calories coming from protein enhanced natural killer activity.⁴²

Soybeans are an excellent source of protein. Soy has strong antioxidant properties and is a potent immune stimulant that has shown benefits not only for influenza, but also for cancer.⁴³

I had a friend in high school that put himself on a fresh fruit and vegetable diet. I talked to him not long ago and asked him about his diet. He said that in the last 25 years since being on this diet he has not had a cold or flu once. Science has born this out; fresh fruit and vegetables have been shown to be antibiotic, antiallergic, tumor-protective, anti-inflammatory and stimulating to the immune system.⁴⁴ What’s more, people on plant based diets have been shown to have significantly higher intakes of antioxidants than omnivores: 305% of vitamin C, 247% of vitamin A, 313% of vitamin E, 120% of copper.⁴⁵ Compared with the omnivores, people on a plant based diet have significantly higher blood concentrations of: Beta-carotene, vitamin C, and vitamin E and vegetarian’s natural killer cell activity has been found to be twice that of omnivores.⁴⁶

Remember the old saying, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”? Five or more apples per week actually improves lung function⁴⁷ and apples contain phytochemicals which inhibit influenza viruses.⁴⁸ One of these phytochemicals is quercetin. Quercetin has been shown to protect the lungs from damage by the influenza. Quercetin is also found in, onions, green leafy vegetables and beans.⁴⁹

Garlic has long been recognized as a potent immune stimulator. In one study garlic reduced respiratory tract infections by 63%.⁵⁰ It is reported that during the 1918 flu epidemic, 20 people in one area ate raw garlic daily with their meals. None of the 20 contracted the flu.⁵¹ It has been suggested that 3 to 5 cloves be eaten per day.

Grapes possess a phytochemical (resveratrol) that strongly inhibits the replication of influenza virus within cells and significantly improved survival of influenza infected mice.⁵²

A deficient diet with only 50% of the USRDA of vitamins has been shown to significantly depress natural killer activity.⁵³

Vitamin A deficiency reduces natural killer cell number and function especially in older adults.⁵⁴ Vitamin A deficiency also results in a loss of IgA producing cells.⁵⁵ Remember that IgA is critical for the eradication of influenza from the lungs.

Vitamin A pills have not proven as helpful as just eating good food. Foods high in vitamin A are paprika, cayenne, sweet potato, carrots, kale, spinach, winter squash, cantaloupe and broccoli.

Vitamin E is effective in helping the body reduce the number of influenza viruses in the lungs. It also helps prevent the loss of appetite and weight loss associated with being sick with the flu. What’s more, vitamin E helps lower the damaging inflammation in the lungs caused by tumor necrosis factor alpha.⁵⁶ It is usually the inflammation that starts the downward spiral that ends in death for some influenza sufferers. Vitamin E pills have not proven as helpful as just eating good food.

Foods high in vitamin E include sunflower seeds, almonds, flaxseed oil, wheat germ, olive oil, pine nuts, peanut butter, and ground cloves, just to name a few.

Vitamin C, popularized by Linus Pauline, is also helpful in influenza prevention. Vitamin C actually increases lung macrophage function and helps reduce the number of viruses running around in the lungs.⁵⁷ Taken before or after the appearance of cold and flu symptoms it can relieve or even prevent them.⁵⁸ Vitamin C is also a potent antioxidant that helps reduce damage in infected lungs preserving vital lung tissue.⁵⁹ Vitamin C is also best taken in the form of food. Foods high in vitamin C include strawberries, bell peppers, chives, red cabbage, broccoli, pineapple, oranges, lemons, kale, cauliflower, and peas. I like to juice half a lemon into my first morning glass of water, this should give me about 500mg of vitamin C.

Severe Folate deficiency is associated with a 60% reduction in lymphocyte counts
and significantly impaired natural killer function in one study.⁶⁰

Dietary changes or supplementation, but not both could reverse this effect.⁶¹ If a person was already on a Folate sufficient diet, taking Folate pills only decreased their immune systems function. Foods high in Folate include arrowroot, wheat germ, peanuts, sunflower seeds, spinach, lentils, pinto beans, and parsley.

Selenium increases natural killer activity by 70% while protecting the lung tissues from inflammation.⁶² Selenium is very important for recovery from the flu—infected lung tissues recover more quickly if you aren’t deficient in this element.⁶³

Foods high in selenium include brazil nuts, mixed nuts, sesame seeds, wheat, sunflower seeds, and
wheat germ.

Another nutrient necessary for both natural killer cell numbers and function is zinc.⁶⁴ Foods high in zinc include wheat germ, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, wheat bran, pine nuts, maple sugar, wild rice, and cashews.

Any one have a penny? Antibody titers and natural killer-cell cytotoxicity were markedly suppressed in animals fed a copper deficient diet.⁶⁵ Copper is best obtained from Spirulina, seaweed, sesame seeds, soybeans, cashews, sunflower seeds and mixed nuts, but not pennies.

Magnesium-deficient animals exhibit dramatic elevations of inflammatory mediators that are responsible for the cytokine storm and hemorrhagic pneumonia from which people with the bird flu die.⁶⁶ You can obtain your magnesium from rice bran, wheat bran, pumpkin seeds, soybeans, flaxseed, Brazil nuts, sesame seeds and cashews.

Turmeric is widely used in India for the treatment of inflammation. It inhibits several cytokines responsible for lung damage in viral pneumonia.⁶⁷ It is also an antioxidant through modulation of glutathione levels in alveolar lung cells and it is a potent oxygen radical scavenger.⁶⁸ It is also a good source of vitamin C.

Echinacea purpurea, a plant originally used by Native Americans to treat respiratory infections, has been shown to increase natural killer cytotoxicity by nearly 100%.⁶⁹

Let’s summarize the foods you may want to eat in preparation for the bird flu pandemic. Important vegetables to eat would include garlic, onions, carrots, kale, spinach, and Broccoli. Fruits I would concentrate on are: apples, strawberries, grapes, and citrus. Mixed nuts are very valuable; also make sure you get some Brazil and pine nuts. Seeds are also indispensable, have on had some sunflower, sesame, and pumpkin seeds. Nuts and seeds are best eaten raw rather than roasted and salted. Other foods to concentrate on include soybeans, wheat germ and even turmeric.

Now just think, what have we been describing? The Bible diet! “Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” “and you will eat the plants of the field.” Genesis 1:29; 3:18 (NIV). God has said, “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee.” Exodus 15:26.

The Use Of Water

You cannot underestimate the value of proper hydration. Consequences of dehydration include constipation, urinary tract and respiratory infections, delirium, renal failure, electrolyte imbalance, hyperthermia, and longer time for wound healing just to name a few.⁷⁰

Other uses of water include bathing as well as hot and cold treatments. “Most persons would receive benefit from a cool or tepid bath every day, morning or evening. Instead of increasing the liability to take cold, a bath, properly taken, fortifies against cold.”⁷¹ Taking a cool bath (64°F) before going out in cold weather stimulates the immune system. It augments white blood cell response to cold exposure and increases natural killer cell activity.⁷² The way I practice this particular bit of scientific information is to do alternating hot and cold treatments. If I feel the onset of a cold or flu, I head for the shower. I set the faucet as hot as I can stand and shower until I feel my internal temperature rise. I learned to detect this rise by actually testing my temperature a couple of times till I could correlate the temperature with what I was feeling. When the desired small rise in body temperature is achieved, I then switch to cold, as cold as possible, for one minute. I then repeat the process one or two more times and then jump in bed for about one half hour. This is usually sufficient to stop dead in its tracks any intruder from the virus family—cold or flu. Ending every bath or shower with cold is an excellent preventative measure and is stimulating to the immune system.

Just an aside, another good measure at the very onset of a cold is the use of charcoal. Charcoal binds viruses.⁷³ Drink one to two tablespoons of activated charcoal powder in one glass of water. Sip it slowly and let it coat you throat. This can be repeat this every two to four hours as symptoms persist.

Trust In Divine Power

The relation between health and spirituality has only recently come to light. Religiosity or spirituality has been shown to increase the function of the immune system.⁷⁴

Trusting in Divine power leads to better mental health that helps boost the immune system. Depression is reliably associated with reduction of natural killer activity and a suppression of lymphocyte proliferation⁷⁵ both of which could spell trouble in an influenza pandemic. Loneliness is also associated with poorer immune responses. People with high levels of loneliness and a small social network have the lowest immune activity. Loneliness is also associated with elevations in cortisol, an immunosuppressant hormone.⁷⁶ Depression is a bad enough suppressor of the immune system by itself, add to that alcoholism and the two suppress natural killer function even further.⁷⁷

One of the benefits of trusting God is that the problems of living that usually are the source of stress are now His problems. Increases in stress hormones result in decreased natural killer cell activity and IgA levels,⁷⁸ consequently the number of respiratory infections increases with increasing psychological stress.⁷⁹ Stress that we hang on to ourselves usually drives us to exasperation and anger. A single five-minute experience of anger can significantly reduce IgA levels for up to five hours.⁸⁰ A lack of a sense of humor, worrying about daily problems and experience negative emotions can also significantly decrease IgA levels.⁸¹

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⁵⁰ Josling P. Preventing the common cold with a garlic supplement: a double-blind, placebo- controlled survey. Adv Ther. 2001 Jul-Aug;18(4):189-93.


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⁵⁶ Han SN, Meydani M, et al. Effect of long-term dietary antioxidant supplementation on influenza virus infection. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2000 Oct;55(10):B496-503.


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⁵⁸ Gorton HC, Jarvis K. The effectiveness of vitamin C in preventing and relieving the symptoms of virus-induced respiratory infections. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1999 Oct;22(8):530-3. Related Articles, Links


⁵⁹ Tantcheva LP, Stoeva ES, et al. Effect of vitamin E and vitamin C combination on experimental influenza virus infection. Methods Find Exp Clin Pharmacol. 2003 May;25(4):259-64.

⁶⁰ Kim YI, Hayek M, et al. Severe folate deficiency impairs natural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity in rats. J Nutr. 2002 Jun;132(6):1361-7.


⁶¹ Troen AM, Mitchell B, et al. Unmetabolized folic acid in plasma is associated with reduced natural killer cell cytotoxicity among postmenopausal women. J Nutr. 2006 Jan;136(1):189-94.

⁶² Petrie HT, Klassen LW, et al. Selenium and the immune response: 2. Enhancement of murine cytotoxic T-lymphocyte and natural killer cell cytotoxicity in vivo. J Leukoc Biol. 1989 Mar;45(3):215-20.
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⁶⁴ Ravaglia G, Forti P, et al. Effect of micronutrient status on natural killer cell immune function in healthy free-living subjects aged >/=90 y. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000 Feb;71(2):590- 8.


⁶⁵ Koller LD, Mulhern SA, et al. Immune dysfunction in rats fed a diet deficient in copper. Am J Clin Nutr. 1987 May;45(5):997-1006.


⁶⁶ Weglicki WB, Phillips TM, et al. Magnesium-deficiency elevates circulating levels of inflammatory cytokines and endothelin. Mol Cell Biochem. 1992 Mar 25;110(2):169-73.


⁶⁷ Chan MM. Inhibition of tumor necrosis factor by curcumin, a phytochemical. Biochem Pharmacol. 1995 May 26;49(11):1551-6.


⁶⁸ Biswas SK, McClure D, et al. Curcumin induces glutathione biosynthesis and inhibits NF- kappaB activation and interleukin-8 release in alveolar epithelial cells: mechanism of free radical scavenging activity. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2005 Jan-Feb;7(1-2):32-41.


⁶⁹ Gan XH, Zhang L, et al. Mechanism of activation of human peripheral blood NK cells at the single cell level by Echinacea water soluble extracts: recruitment of lymphocyte-target conjugates and killer cells and activation of programming for
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⁷⁰ Mentes J. Oral hydration in older adults: greater awareness is needed in preventing, recognizing, and treating dehydration. Am J Nurs. 2006 Jun;106(6):40-9; quiz 50.


⁷¹ White EG. Ministry of Healing, Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1942, p. 276


⁷² Brenner IK, Castellani JW, et al. Immune changes in humans during cold exposure: effects of prior heating and exercise. J Appl Physiol. 1999 Aug;87(2):699-710.


⁷³ Clark KJ, Sarr AB, et al. In vitro studies on the use of clay, clay minerals and charcoal to adsorb bovine rotavirus and bovine coronavirus. Vet Microbiol. 1998 Oct;63(2-4):137-46.


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⁷⁵ Irwin M. Immune correlates of depression. Adv Exp Med Biol. 1999;461:1-24.


⁷⁶ Pressman SD, Cohen S, et al. Loneliness, social network size, and immune response to influenza vaccination in college freshmen. Health Psychol. 2005 May;24(3):297-306.
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⁷⁸ Kelly GS. Nutritional and botanical interventions to assist with the adaptation to stress. Altern Med Rev. 1999 Aug;4(4):249-65. Links


⁷⁹ Cohen S, Tyrrell DA, Smith AP. Psychological stress and susceptibility to the common cold. N Engl J Med. 1991 Aug 29;325(9):606-12.


⁸⁰ Rein G, Atkinson M, McCraty R. The physiological and psychological effects of compassion and anger. J Adv Med 1995;8:87-105.


⁸¹ Martin RA, Dobbin JP. Sense of humor, hassles, and immunoglobulin A: evidence for a stress-moderating effect of humor. Int J Psychiatry Med 1988;18:93-105.


⁸² Brown SL, Nesse RM, et al. Providing social support may be more beneficial than receiving it: results from a prospective study of mortality. Psychol Sci. 2003 Jul;14(4):320-7. 83 Luskin F. Review of the effect of spiritual and religious factors on mortality and morbidity with a focus on cardiovascular and pulmonary disease. J Cardiopulm Rehabil. 2000 Jan- Feb;20(1):8-15.

Stressful Life Events

One way to increase your stress is to subject your mind to the impressions being made on television. Two (2) hours a day of television watching increases the risk of hypertension by 40%.³²⁷ As I am sure you are well aware (if you think about it), the main character of the television show plot is either in trouble, getting into trouble or getting out of trouble: life just isn’t that bad.

Difficulty paying medical expenses is associated with increased hypertension.³²⁸ It is also the number one reason for bankruptcy in the United States.³²⁹

Work Pleasure

The rewards of gainful, meaningful employment bear mentioning. People happy with their jobs and their income are more likely to experience happy, healthy blood pressure.³³⁰³³¹ People who enjoy their jobs and are not overworked or depressed have lower blood pressures.³³² Having purpose in life helps moderate blood pressure.³³³

Social Pleasure

Looking at the social aspects of blood pressure control: people with close supportive friends have lower blood pressures.³³⁴ Indeed, sharing a negative life experience with an ambivalent friend raises blood pressure and heart rate. Alternatively sharing the same event with a caring, supportive friend lowers blood pressure and heart rate. Similarly, blood pressure levels are lowest when people are with family and highest when amongst strangers.³³⁵

Pet Power

Does keeping an animal help blood pressure? Yes, loving pets have a blood pressure lowering effect for people with hypertension.³³⁶

Music Magic

Do you enjoy listening to music? Music can help blood pressure.³³⁷ Blood pressures respond positively to classical music, but not jazz or pop.³³⁸

Emerging Urban Danger

Environment plays a significant role in stress. Moving to the city? Expect a 23-point rise in your systolic blood pressure and a 9-point rise in your diastolic blood pressure.³³⁹ There are hazards in just commuting to a city. Traffic related air pollution and noise significantly increases the risk of hypertension³⁴⁰ People living in small rural towns have half the risk of hypertension as people living in large industrialized cities.³⁴¹

Rural Relief

Quietness, solitude and silence sooth the nerves and lower your blood pressure.³⁴²³⁴³ The stillness is remedial, “Be still, and know that I am God:.”³⁴⁴ People living where the din of busy roads never reaches their ears have a 37% lower risk
of hypertension.³⁴⁵ Outdoor walks, enjoying trees, flowers, and other wonders of God’s great nature, lower blood pressure and stress.³⁴⁶ Even bringing the outdoors into the home through houseplants has been shown to improve blood pressure.
[347]³⁴⁸

Life’s Pleasure: Helping Others

If you have some extra time and want to do something beneficial for your blood pressure, volunteering is a wonderful aid in keeping blood pressures normal.³⁴⁹ Find someone else who could use your help and give of yourself to the needs of the world. “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”³⁵⁰

Freedom From Guilt and Resentment

Guilt and resentment cause hypertension. Freedom from guilt³⁵¹ and resentment³⁵² lowers blood pressure. Okay, how do I do that? Easier said than done! Well, it’s not really something you can do on your own. You’re going to need help. Only

God can accomplish this, with your cooperation. Are you ready?

Guilt comes from sin. “Sin is the transgression of the law.”³⁵⁴ Being out of harmony with the loving God of nature and the universe; of this you must first be conscious. You probably already have a sense that something isn’t right, that you could use some more peace in your life?

How do I know if I have guilt? One of two ways: 1. Compare your life to the standard of God’s holy law³⁵⁵ and see if there is a disparity between what you are and what it enjoins, “for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”³⁵⁶ Go to the law, read the first commandment,³⁵⁵ and ask God to reveal to you if you are in harmony with it. Then proceed to the following commandments and ask the same questions. [2]. Compare your life with that of Jesus Christ, “Who did no sin.”,³⁵⁷ meaning that His life was an example of what it is like to be at complete peace with God and keep His law free of guilt. Read His biographies at the beginning of the new testament (Mathew, Mark, Luke, John) of the Bible and ask God to reveal to you the differences between what you are studying and what your life could have been like if you had been like Jesus. This is another way of comparing your life to what the law enjoins and discovering where you may have sinned.

If, after trying this, you find yourself believing that you are problem free, it may only indicate that you have undertaken this comparison too superficially and need to spend a little more time with it. A thorough investigation will reveal that, “all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”.³⁵⁸ And, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”³⁵⁹

God’s Holy Spirit will help you and your conscience will be awakened to see the evil of sin, its power and guilt. Sin separates you from God and peace, and brings you into bondage. It brings feelings of guilt that result in physical symptoms like hypertension. The more you struggle on your own to escape, “the more you realize your helplessness. Your motives are impure; your heart is unclean. You see that your life has been filled with selfishness and sin. You long to be forgiven, to be cleansed and to be set free. Harmony with God, likeness to Him, what can you do to obtain it?”³⁶⁰


“It is peace that you need: heaven’s forgiveness, peace and love in the soul. Money cannot buy it, intellect cannot procure it, wisdom cannot attain to it; you can never hope by your own efforts to secure it. But God offers it to you as a gift, “without money and without price.” Isaiah 55:1. It is yours if you will but reach out your hand and grasp it. The Lord says, “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isaiah 1:18.

“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you. Ezekiel 36:26.”³⁶⁰

Confess your sins, and in heart put them away. Say, “Dear God, I have sinned and have suffered the results of a sense of guilt and have the disease of high blood pressure. Please forgive me and give me a new heart to know you and live free from offence toward you and others.” Resolve to give yourself to God. “Now go to Him, and ask that He will wash away your sins and give you a new heart. Then believe that He does this because He has promised. This is the lesson which Jesus taught while He was on earth, that the gift which God promises us, we must believe we do receive, and it is ours. Jesus healed the people of their diseases when they had faith in His power; He helped them in the things which they could see, thus inspiring them with confidence in Him concerning things which they could not see—leading them to believe in His power to forgive sins. This He plainly stated in the healing of the man sick with palsy: ‘That ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith He to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.’ Matthew 9:6. So also John the evangelist says, speaking of the miracles of Christ, ‘These are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name.’ John 20:31.”³⁶⁰
To maintain peace; freedom from blood pressure raising guilt, “Fight the good fight of faith,”³⁶¹ believe that God has taken care of your past sin(s), read daily His word to learn new things that will help keep (blood pressure raising) guilt away and “press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”³⁶² “To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life:”³⁶³ Rest in the assurance of eternal life and a good afterlife.

Resentment and Bitterness

Resentment and bitterness arises out of misunderstanding between people. It comes from not forgiving someone else. It is a form of anger. Resentment and bitterness grow if not checked. Do not allow the wound to fester and break out in poisoned words, which taint the minds of those who hear. Do not allow bitter thoughts to continue to fill your mind. “Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself: I am the LORD.”³⁶⁴

Go to your brother, and in humility and sincerity talk with him about the matter. “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.”³⁶⁵ At this point you have done your part, no matter what the outcome, choose to let God have the feelings of resentment and bitterness and fill your mind with glad saying like from the Bible books of Psalms or
Proverbs.

Patience and Forgiveness Lower Blood Pressure

People who cultivate the characteristic of patience enjoy much more normal blood pressures.³⁶⁶ This reminds me of a very important passage in the last book of the Bible, “Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”³⁶⁷

A spirit of forgiveness has been shown to bring blood pressure down.³⁶⁸ “Forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”³⁶⁹

Religion, Bible Study and Prayer Lower Blood Pressure

In stressful situations, prayer has been shown to lower blood pressure.³⁷⁰ Further, people who attend religious services,³⁷¹ and pray or study the Bible frequently, have a 40% lower risk of hypertension.³⁷² People who substituted religious media (TV or Radio) for personal experience and social contact with other believers suffered elevated blood pressures.³⁷²


Most people find wars and natural disasters like hurricanes and earthquakes stressful. In the wake of earthquakes and other stress raising natural disasters more people come down with high blood pressure.³⁷³ I would advise you to avoid this source of stress, but I would be misleading you if I asserted that these situations were going to become less frequent. “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.”³⁷⁴ In other words, you have not seen anything yet. And as we get closer to the second coming of Jesus Christ these things will be come more and more common. Stress management needs to be God derived to meet such impending devastation.

Does Love Last Forever?

We have already discussed the impact of major stressful life events on the development of high blood pressure. One such major stressful life event is the loss of a loved one. A study out of the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), revealed that older adults who lost a loved one to death, but who believe in a good afterlife were much less likely to develop hypertension.³⁷⁵ This raises an important question; do we have reason to believe in a good afterlife? If not, we’re all headed for high blood pressure. If God is, as many religions teach, just waiting to roast sinners in the fires of hell for eternity, stage II hypertension here we come! But what is the truth about the afterlife?

Jesus was right up front in telling us, that after He left this earth, He would be preparing to have us join Him. “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”³⁷⁶ When are we going to join Him? When do we get this reward? “For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.”³⁷⁷ He will be rewarding everyone at His second coming.

How will He know who to give the good rewards to and who to exclude? “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;” “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”³⁷⁸ God makes a decision on that in a court setting called the judgment.³⁷⁹ Clearly no judgment has been made or reward given at this point in history; it does not occur until His second coming. Even Paul waits for that day to receive his “crown of righteousness”. So all, dead or alive, good or evil, are still awaiting for the judgment and their reward.

What about those who have already died? Jesus said, “Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”³⁸⁰ Jesus has yet to raise the dead so that they can receive their reward. No one is currently burning in hell or enjoying heaven.

What are the dead doing right now? Can I talk to one of them? Will any of them remember me? What says the Scriptures concerning these things? The beloved David declares that man is not conscious in death.

“His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.”³⁸¹ “In death there is no remembrance of thee; in the grave who shall give thee thanks?” “The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.”³⁸² Solomon bears the same testimony: “The living know that they shall die; but the dead know not anything.” “Their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun.” “There is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.”³⁸³

When will this resurrection take place? “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive [and] remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”³⁸⁴ That is really comforting and helps produce good blood pressure.

Even the Old Testament character Job was aware of this future resurrection: “If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands.”³⁸⁵

What change was Job anticipating at the ressurection? Paul answers this for us, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”³⁸⁶ If you are faithful to God, you have the promise of a new body at Jesus’ return, free from diseases such as hypertension.

The outcome of the judgment at the second coming of Jesus is that the righteous go to heaven and the wicked to hell. For some people the resurrection is the beginning of a happy afterlife, these are the ones we discussed earlier who believe in a good afterlife and experience lower blood pressure now. “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”³⁸⁷

And what is the punishment of those who choose to reject God’s offer of forgiveness and mercy? Is hell forever? Contemplating hell is daunting, and the thought of being condemned to go there could certainly raise blood pressure. Why should there even be a hell? “Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:”³⁸⁸ Hell was never intended for you or I. It is for the devil and his angels who oppose God.

But, if we join the devil in sin, in fighting the righteous law of God, then we are choosing to join the devil in his plight. Really, God would rather we repent and choose His way of life: “The Lord is…longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”³⁸⁹

Do the wicked suffer in the fires of hell through all eternity? “For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the LORD of hosts.”³⁹⁰ So really, although it is a fearful ordeal, it is self-limited, it comes to an end, all that is left is ashes. Matthew speaks of this, “Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”³⁹¹ Burned Up!

Has this ever happened before? It has: “Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.”³⁹² These cities were very rebellious against God and His Law so God destroyed them with eternal fire as an example of hell. Are they still burning? Of course not, but they did burn to ashes, to be trodden under foot, as the wicked will be.

Okay, but what if my loved ones choose a life which lead to hell, won’t this be on my mind through all eternity? No, “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes”³⁹³ “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.”³⁹⁴

Will God bring a complete end to all sorrow, pain, the high blood pressure? “What do ye imagine against the LORD? he will make an utter end: affliction shall not rise up the second time.”³⁹⁵

While those who do not embrace God’s ways and law are “as though they had not been.”³⁹⁶, the righteous will be enjoy being with Jesus and eating from the Tree of Life whose leaves are for healing, “In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”³⁹⁷ Perhaps for healing even of hypertension. We know that there will be no disease in heaven. “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.”³⁹³ What a wonderful day that will be! Don’t you look forward to that—Total freedom from death, sorrow, crying and pain? Are you ready to be healed?

Review and Recap

Let’s review: Blood pressure is a produce of the pumping of the heart, the size of the blood vessel through which the blood must flow, the thickness of the blood, and the volume of blood to be pumped.

A fast heart rate pumps more blood than normal and increases blood pressure. We call this tachycardia. Common causes of tachycardia are: stress, having poor cardiovascular fitness (being out of shape), caffeine, tobacco and dehydration.

If the blood vessels tighten up or constrict, making the blood vessel size smaller, higher blood pressure is required to get the required amount of blood to its destination. We refer to this tightening up effect as vasoconstriction. Vasoconstriction is caused by: psychological and physical stress, thermal stress from cold exposure, caffeine, tobacco, and dehydration.

Blood vessels normally expand and relax with each heartbeat. If the blood vessels become hard, their stiffness resists the free flow of blood and up goes the blood pressure. Atherosclerosis is an example of this process, so are sugar glycation, endothelial dysfunction, and stiffness of the blood vessels running through muscles from a sedentary lifestyle.

If the blood becomes thick and sludgy, more pressure is required to carry it through the blood vessels and hypertension results. When blood gets thick we say that the viscosity has increased too much. Examples of the blood thickening threats include: dehydration, overeating, psychological stress, a diet too rich in fat and refined carbohydrates, and high blood cholesterol or triglycerides.

If the blood vessels are being choked by something pressing on them from their sides, the effect is like putting your thumb over the end of a garden hose, the result is increased blood pressure. We call this external compression. Things that press on the blood vessels include tissue swelling, atherosclerotic plaque, sugar coating called glycation (usually from diabetes), inflammation, and especially tight clothing like belts and elastic bands.

Finally, if the volume of blood increases, this increases the amount of blood entering the heart, which in turn increases the amount of blood leaving the heart and with each beat this increases the overall blood pressure. We often refer to this phenomenon as fluid retention. Lifestyle habits causing volume overload include eating too much salt, obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, poorly clad chilled extremities and kidney failure.

Summary: Letting Hypertension Go!

• Keep well hydrated with pure vitalizing water; add a little fresh lemon juice too.
• Take regular time for enjoyable exercise in the great outdoors, far from traffic, pollution, cities and stressful crowds.
• Get plenty of warm sunshine and invigorating fresh air.
• Eat a delicious unrefined whole plant based diet, high in fiber, 
minerals, vitamins and antioxidants; low in salt, with no refined carbohydrates, processed fats, or hypertension causing animal products.
• Avoid the pitfalls of tobacco, caffeine, alcohol, drugs, fried foods, fructose, sodium, MSG and overeating.
• Make weight control a habit.
• Guard your sleep and evaluate its quality for effectiveness.
• Let God know you need Him to release you from stress, guilt, 
fear and hypertension. Rely on Him for guidance as you come more into line with His original plan for diet and lifestyle.

References

³²⁷ Gao X, Nelson ME, Tucker KL. Television viewing is associated with prevalence of metabolic syndrome in Hispanic elders. Diabetes Care. 2007 Mar;30(3):694-700.

³²⁸ Halanych JH, Safford MM, Kertesz SG, Pletcher MJ, Kim YI, Person SD, Lewis CE, Kiefe CI. Alcohol consumption in young adults and incident hypertension: 20-year follow-up from the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults Study. Am J Epidemiol. 2010 Mar 1;171(5):532-9.

³²⁹ Himmelstein DU, Thorne D, Warren E, Woolhandler S. Medical bankruptcy in the United States, 2007: results of a national study. Am J Med. 2009 Aug;122(8):741-6.

³³⁰ Siegrist J. Effort-reward imbalance at work and cardiovascular diseases. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2010;23(3):279-85.

³³¹ Vrijkotte TG, van Doornen LJ, de Geus EJ. Effects of work stress on ambulatory blood pressure, heart rate, and heart rate variability. Hypertension. 2000 Apr;35(4):880-6.

³³² Garcia-Vera MP, Sanz J, Espinosa R, Fortun M, Magan I. Differences in emotional personality traits and stress between sustained hypertension and normotension. Hypertens Res. 2010 Mar;33(3):203-8.

³³³ Mezick EJ, Matthews KA, Hall M, Kamarck TW, Strollo PJ, Buysse DJ, Owens JF, Reis SE. Low life purpose and high hostility are related to an attenuated decline in nocturnal blood pressure. Health Psychol. 2010 Mar;29(2):196-204.

³³⁴ Holt-Lunstad J, Uchino BN, Smith TW, Hicks A. On the importance of relationship quality: the impact of ambivalence in friendships on cardiovascular functioning. Ann Behav Med. 2007 Jun;33(3):278-90.

³³⁵ Spitzer SB, Llabre MM, Ironson GH, Gellman MD, Schneiderman N. The influence of social situations on ambulatory blood pressure. Psychosom Med. 1992 Jan-Feb;54(1):79-86.

³³⁶ Allen K, Blascovich J, Mendes WB. Cardiovascular reactivity and the presence of pets, friends, and spouses: the truth about cats and dogs. Psychosom Med. 2002 Sep-Oct;64(5):727-39.

³³⁷ Zanini CR, Jardim PC, Salgado CM, Nunes MC, Urzêda FL, Carvalho MV, Pereira DA, Jardim Tde S, Souza WK. Music therapy effects on the quality of life and the blood pressure of hypertensive patients. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2009 Nov;93(5):534-40.

³³⁸ Chafin S, Roy M, Gerin W, Christenfeld N. Music can facilitate blood pressure recovery from stress. Br J Health Psychol. 2004 Sep;9(Pt 3):393-403.

³³⁹ Sobngwi E, Mbanya JC, Unwin NC, Porcher R, Kengne AP, Fezeu L, Minkoulou EM, Tournoux C, Gautier JF, Aspray TJ, Alberti K. Exposure over the life course to an urban environment and its relation with obesity, diabetes, and hypertension in rural and urban Cameroon. Int J Epidemiol. 2004 Aug;33(4):769-76. 340 Mordukhovich I, Wilker E, Suh H, Wright R, Sparrow D, Vokonas PS, Schwartz J. Black carbon exposure, oxidative stress genes, and blood pressure in a repeated-measures study. Environ Health Perspect. 2009 Nov;117(11):1767-72.

³⁴¹ Wiecek A, Kokot F. Does industrial environment influence the prevalence of arterial hypertension, plasma cholesterol and uric acid concentration and activity of the renin-aldosterone system? Przegl Lek. 1996;53(4):356-9.

³⁴² Chang TY, Su TC, Lin SY, Jain RM, Chan CC. Effects of occupational noise exposure on 24-hour ambulatory vascular properties in male workers. Environ Health Perspect. 2007 Nov;115(11):1660-4.

³⁴³ Haralabidis AS, Dimakopoulou K, Vigna-Taglianti F, Giampaolo M, Borgini A, Dudley ML, Pershagen G, Bluhm G, Houthuijs D, Babisch W, Velonakis M, Katsouyanni K, Jarup L; HYENA Consortium. Acute effects of night-time noise exposure on blood pressure in populations living near airports. Eur Heart J. 2008 Mar;29(5):658-64.

³⁴⁴ Psalms 46:10. King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁴⁵ Belojević GA, Jakovljević BD, Stojanov VJ, Slepcević VZ, Paunović KZ. Nighttime road-traffic noise and arterial hypertension in an urban population. Hypertens Res. 2008 Apr;31(4):775-81.

³⁴⁶ Hartig T, Evansb GW, Jamnerc LD, Davisd DS, Gärlinge T. Tracking restoration in natural and urban field settings. J Environ Psych 2003 23(2):109-23.

³⁴⁷ Lohr VI, Pearson-Mims CH, Goodwin GK. Interior Plants May Improve Worker Productivity and Reduce Stress in a Windowless Environment. J. Environ. Hort. 14(2):97-100. June 1996

³⁴⁸ Park SH, Mattson RH. Ornamental indoor plants in hospital rooms enhanced health outcomes of patients recovering from surgery. J Altern Complement Med. 2009 Sep;15(9):975-80.

³⁴⁹ Burr JA, Tavares J, Mutchler JE. Volunteering and Hypertension Risk in Later Life. J Aging Health. 2011 Feb;23(1):24-51.

³⁵⁰ Acts 20:35. King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁵¹ Sullivan PA, Procci WR, DeQuattro V, Schoentgen S, Levine D, van der Meulen J, Bornheimer JF. Anger, anxiety, guilt and increased basal and stress-induced neurogenic tone: causes or effects in primary hypertension? Clin Sci (Lond). 1981 Dec;61 Suppl 7:389s-392s.

³⁵² Jamner LD, Shapiro D, Hui KK, Oakley ME, Lovett M. Hostility and differences between clinic, self- determined, and ambulatory blood pressure. Psychosom Med. 1993 Mar-Apr;55(2):203-11.

³⁵⁴ 1John 3:4. King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁵⁵ Exodus ch. 20, Deuteronomy ch. 5. King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁵⁶ Romans 3:20. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁵⁷ 1Peter 2:22. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁵⁸ Romans 3:23. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁵⁹ 1John 1:8. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶⁰ White EG, Steps to Christ p. 49 http://www.ted-adventist.org/sites/default/files/Setps%20to%20Christ- EGW.pdf

³⁶¹ 1Timothy 6:12. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶² Philippians 3:14. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶³ Romans 2:7. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶⁴ Leviticus 19:18. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶⁵ Matthew 18:15-18. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶⁶ Yan LL, Liu K, Matthews KA, Daviglus ML, Ferguson TF, Kiefe CI. Psychosocial factors and risk of hypertension: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study. JAMA. 2003 Oct 22;290(16):2138-48.

³⁶⁷ Revelation 14:12. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁶⁸ Lawler-Row KA, Karremans JC, Scott C, Edlis-Matityahou M, Edwards L. Forgiveness, physiological reactivity and health: the role of anger. Int J Psychophysiol. 2008 Apr;68(1):51-8.

³⁶⁹ Ephesians 4:32. The King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁷⁰ Belding JN, Howard MG, McGuire AM, Schwartz AC, Wilson JH. Social buffering by God: prayer and measures of stress. J Relig Health. 2010 Jun;49(2):179-87.

³⁷¹ Gillum RF, Ingram DD. Frequency of attendance at religious services, hypertension, and blood pressure: the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Psychosom Med. 2006 May-Jun;68(3):382-5. 372 Koenig HG, George LK, Hays JC, Larson DB, Cohen HJ, Blazer DG. The relationship between religious activities and blood pressure in older adults. Int J Psychiatry Med. 1998;28(2):189-213.

³⁷³ Pickering TG. Mental stress as a causal factor in the development of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Curr Hypertens Rep. 2001 Jun;3(3):249-54.

³⁷⁴ Mark 13:8. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

³⁷⁵ Krause N, Liang J, Shaw BA, Sugisawa H, Kim HK, Sugihara Y. Religion, death of a loved one, and hypertension among older adults in Japan. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2002 Mar;57(2):S96-S107.

³⁷⁶ John 14:1-3. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁷⁷ Matthew 16:27. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁷⁸ 2Timothy 4:1,8. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁷⁹ Daniel 7. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁰ John 5:28,29. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸¹ Psalms 146:4. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸² Psalms 6:5; 115:17. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸³ Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6. 10. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁴ 1Thessalonians 4:15-18. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁵ Job 14:14. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁶ 1Corinthians 15:52-58. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁷ Daniel 12:2. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁸ Matt 25:41. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁸⁹ 2Peter 3:9. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹⁰ Malachi 4:1,3. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹¹ Matt 3:12. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹² Jude 1:7. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹³ Revelation 21:4. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹⁴ Isaiah 65:17. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹⁵ Nahum 1:9. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹⁶ Obadiah 1:15,16. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

³⁹⁷ Revelation 22:2. The King James Version of The Holy Bible.

What is osteoporosis?

The National Institutes of Health defines it as, “Skeletal disorder characterized by compromised bone strength, leading to an increased risk of fracture.”¹
What does all that mean? Well, your bones get thin and start to break. Bone structure is much like the architecture of an old steel beam bridge, with girders crisscrossing for strength and stability. When you start across such a bridge, how many of the girders would you be willing to have missing or rusted through and still feel assured of safe passage? So it is with the bones. In the bones the “girders” are called trabecula. Osteoporosis is, “Osteo” meaning bone and “porosis” meaning opening or passage, literally holes in the bone. Osteoporosis is holes where trabecula once existed. This leaves the bone weak and susceptible to fractures.

Epidemiology of Osteoporosis

Osteoporosis afflicts about 10 million Americans: 80% of victims are women. Another 34 million Americans have osteopenia, a milder thinning of the bones that will lead to osteoporosis if nothing is done to stop the dangerous process. Over 1.5 million osteoporotic fractures occur each year, 300,000 hip fractures, 700,000 vertebral fractures, 250,000 wrist fractures just to mention a few.²³

Fractures

Wrist fractures increase with the onset of menarche. Hip fractures increase in the years following retirement when people become less active and quit engaging in weight bearing activities. Osteoporotic spine fractures increase with menopause and further increase with inactivity upon retirement.⁴

Wrist fractures are quite disabling. Besides being in a cast from 4 to 6 weeks, having surgery or needing rehabilitation,⁵ people with wrist fractures are at high risk of developing painful arthritis in the years following injury.⁶

Spine fractures resulting from osteoporosis reduce the quality of life.⁷⁸ Spine fractures result in a hunchback appearance which medically we call kyphosis.⁹ Kyphosis results in an overall loss of height. Spinal fractures are often painful.¹⁰ As the posture becomes more stooped and the contents of the stomach and lungs become compressed, the abdomen starts to protrude, gastrointestinal reflex symptoms develop, and breathing becomes difficult.¹¹ If all this is not bad enough, depression can set in.¹²

Of all fractures resulting from osteoporosis, none are more devastating than hip fractures. Thirty-five percent of post-menopausal white women have osteoporosis of the hip, spine or wrist. Is osteoporosis improving in our nation? By the year 2020 it is estimated that nearly 50% of Americans over age 50 will have osteoporosis of the hip.¹³ The cost of hip fracture care is prohibitive. In 2002 the costs were about $18 billion.¹⁴ It is projected that by 2050, with the increase in osteoporosis and consequent fractures, that we could be spending $131.5 billion a year on hip fractures.¹⁵ The bad news does not end there—up to 1/3 of hip fracture patients die within the first year following injury.¹⁶ Now this is not necessarily because of something that happened with the fracture, but the health of the bones tends to be a reflection of the health of the entire body.¹⁷ These people die of blood clots, heart failure and heart attacks, or pneumonia, etc.

How Osteoporosis is Diagnoses

Bone density is measured by a test we call the DEXA scan. DEXA stands for dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. A DEXA is reported in standard deviations from the mean, how far a person’s score differs from the normal. Osteoporosis, by definition, is two and one half standard deviations below the mean (≤ -2.5t score). For each standard deviation of bone loss there is a 40% increase in mortality from hip fracture.¹⁸¹⁹ One fourth of hip fracture patients become disabled in the following year.²⁰ Two thirds never regain their former level of activity and independence²¹ and 1/5 require long term nursing home care; accounting for about 140,000 nursing home admissions per year.²²

And don’t underestimate the emotional impact of a fracture:

• Sixty-eight percent worry that another fracture would put them in the nursing home.
• Seventy-three percent are concerned that they will have to reduce activities with family and friends.
• Eighty-nine percent live in fear of breaking another bone.
• The bottom line is that you want to avoid osteoporosis at all costs. 


Why Osteoporosis? 


“Disease is an effort of nature to free the system from conditions that result from a violation of the laws of health.”²³ Let’s look at some of the known causes of osteoporosis.


The first item that I will put on the list of things that cause osteoporosis may come as a surprise. Sugar! Sixteen teaspoons of sugar a day increases urinary calcium loss by 124%.²⁴ And most Americans get about twice that amount. Add

Chocolate and the urine calcium increases to 147%.²⁵ 


Salt (sodium chloride) causes fluid retention and increases kidney filtration of calcium. Sodium and calcium compete in the kidneys and calcium is sacrificed. Salt substitutes using potassium instead of sodium are actually helpful for preventing osteoporosis.²⁶ 


Every one talks about vitamin D and osteoporosis, and well they should. Vitamin D deficiency is rampant due to everyone’s hiding from the sun.²⁷ There are other nutrients whose deficiencies increase osteoporosis. These include vitamins K, B12, B6 and folic acid, magnesium, copper, and boron.²⁸

Menopause has a profound effect on the bones. Bone turnover is increased by up to 55% in women with estrogen deficiency.²⁹

Believe it or not, bones make electricity when stressed. It is this electricity that helps the body determine how much calcium to lay down in a given bone to meet the physical demands placed on it. When a bone is unused it is not maintained by the body with as much calcium and becomes osteoporotic. Osteoporosis of inactivity affects men and women equally. Decline in the physical activity level with age is an important risk factor for hip fracture.³⁰

An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but a cup of caffeine certainly won’t.

Caffeine increases the urinary excretion of calcium for at least 3 hours.³¹

What’s more, caffeine decreases bone- preserving testosterone.³²

Drinking alcohol, particularly during adolescence and young adulthood, can dramatically compromise bone quality, increasing the risk of osteoporosis later in life. I’m not sure I know how to break this news, but some research indicates that the effects of alcohol on bone cannot be
reversed, even if alcohol consumption is terminated.³³ In the process of bone remodeling, alcohol tends to poison the little cells that make new bone, leaving the trabecula thin and weak.³⁴

Tobacco use decreases bone mass and quality, making it more susceptible to fractures.³⁵ Tobacco actually acts like a hormone and affects the hormonal system’s action on calcium metabolism.³⁶

What do people do when their stomach is “acid”? Many reach for a “Tum®”—a calcium anti-acid pill. When the body becomes “acid” it reaches for a calcium product as well, your bones. It is calcium from your bones that is used to buffer acid from
your diet. A diet that makes your blood more acid significantly increases urinary loss of calcium from the bones.³⁷ Examples of acid forming foods include grains,³⁸ potatoes and animal products—especially cheeses³⁹.

Animal protein, in contrast to vegetable protein, has a lot more sulfur and phosphorus which are made into sulfuric acid and phosphoric acid when digested. This elevated acid must be buffered by calcium from the bones, which leads to osteoporosis.⁴⁰⁴¹⁴²

Another source of acid comes from sodas, especially the brown ones with phosphoric acid in their ingredients.⁴³ Drinking such soda makes the whole body more acidic and increases calcium excretion in the urine.⁴⁴

Psychological stress is a major obstacle in the fight to maintain bone mass. Chronic stress raises the stress hormones and inflames the body, both of which deplete calcium from the bones.⁴⁵ Elevated stress has been shown to increase osteoporosis.⁴⁶

One particularly well-studied form of stress is depression.⁴⁷⁴⁸ Risk of hip fracture increases with depression. Older people with depression are particularly at increased risk of loss of bone mineral density,⁴⁹ and are more apt to fall and break bones.⁵⁰ Even the Bible makes reference to this association, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”⁵¹

Secondary Causes of Osteoporosis

There are secondary causes of osteoporosis that are beyond the scope of this article to encompass. These include medications such as anticonvulsants, methotrexate, heparin, and steroids, etc. and conditions such as renal failure, hyperthyroid, hyperparathyroid, diabetes mellitus,⁵² hypertension and hypercholesterolemia,⁵³ peptic ulcer disease,⁵⁴ and multiple myeloma, etc.

How Significant Are Each Of These Risk Factors?

To put these risk factors in perspective:

• Smoking – more than double your risk of hip fracture.
• Genetics – if your mother had osteoporosis and broke her hip, your risk of hip fracture doubles, not necessarily because you inherited bad bones, although there is some inheritability of bone structure. But the real problem lies in the lifestyle habits you inherit, or adopt, from your parents. You eat as they ate, you exercise, or don’t exercise, as they did or didn’t exercise, etc.
• Inactivity – a resting pulse rate of greater than 80 beats per minute increases your risk by 80%. “What does a fast heart rate have to do with my bones?” you may be wondering. Athletes have very low heart rates. People in good cardiovascular shape have lower heart rates. Having a fast heart rate is really evidence that you may be a couch potato.
• Falls – any falls during the previous year has been shown to increase your risk of hip fracture by 60%.
• Caffeine – If you currently are using caffeine, (coffee, tea, cola, etc.), 11⁄2 cups of coffee per day will increase your risk by at least 30%.

Some lifestyle factors thought to be helpful actually have very little impact on bone health, and some of them may have dangerous other risks.

• Estrogen – for example current estrogen use has little or no effect, positive or negative as far as the bones are concerned, but as regards cancer, it has a significant detrimental effect.
• Calcium – daily calcium intake is of minimal help, about 10%.
• Obesity – carrying around an extra 20 pounds of weight may actually decrease osteoporosis by 20% but carries with it the negative risks of diabetes, arthritis and cancer. 
The lifestyle factors making the biggest difference are:
• Exercise – walking for exercise, which decreases risk by 30% and being on ones feet more than 4 hrs per day, which drops the risk by 40%.⁵⁵ So, get up and get moving!

Bone Remodeling

Bones are biologically active—always under construction, like the roads around where I currently live. In our town one crew goes around taking up the old pavement and a second crew goes around laying down new pavement. By the way, the paving crew never lays down thick pavement like would sustain a 4 lane freeway on a backwoods country road. That would be a waste. So it is with your bones. One set of cells, the osteoclasts, goes around taking up the old calcium, and another set of cells, the osteoblasts, goes around laying down the new. By the way, the osteoblasts never lay down thick calcium, like would sustain a hard working athlete, on an inactive couch potato. That would be a waste.

By age 25 bones have reached maturity. By age 35 bones have achieved their peak bone mass. By age 40 the bones start to lose mass at about one half a percent per year. By age 45, in those perimenopausal years, bone loss can reach 3% per year, and if that continues for 10 years, a woman can loose 30% of her skeleton.

The Calcium Bank

Bones are the calcium bank. More than 99% of the calcium resides in the bones. The remaining 1% is in the blood and other fluids. The osteoclasts make withdrawals, from the “bone bank”, and osteoblasts make deposits. The goal is to maintain a calcium balance where the deposits are at least as great as the withdrawals. It’s like the good old saying about finances, “If a man’s ‘out go’ exceeds his income, than his up keep will be his down fall.”

Daily Calcium Allowance

How much calcium should be included in the diet to maintain a positive calcium balance? According to the National Academy of Sciences a middle age person needs at least 1000 mg per day. The National Institutes of Health, believing osteoporosis to be epidemic, recommends 1500 mg of calcium daily.⁵⁶ The World Health Organization, monitoring the health of the entire world, finds osteoporosis rare. They state that 500 mg is more than adequate. Who is right?

Calcium Balance

Several things affect the overall calcium balance of the body. We get calcium in food and drink to supply our body’s needs. Some of this calcium is absorbed and some of it passes on and is lost in the stool. That which is adsorbed is transferred to the blood and bones and some of it is excreted in the urine through the kidneys. If our calcium absorption exceeds our losses than we have a positive calcium balance. Of the four components of calcium balance, intake, absorption, stool loss and urine excretion, the only one we can significantly influence is urinary loss. Here is where we need to focus our efforts on tipping the calcium balance in our favor.

To illustrate—someone on a diet consisting of

47 grams of protein and a urinary calcium excretion of 168 mg/day would be in a 31 mg positive calcium balance, (meaning that by the end of that day the total calcium in their body actually increased by 31 mg.) This is good. Double the protein intake to 95 grams and the urinary calcium excretion will jump to 240 mg and the balance at the end of the day will now be -58 mg. Triple the protein (142 mg/day) and the urinary calcium loss will climb to 300 mg/day and the balance will be a -120 mg/day.⁵⁷

“But”, you may say, “How do you know that calcium is coming from the bones? Maybe you just consumed more calcium with that extra protein and it turned up in the urine.”

To further test this question a molecule called N- telopeptide was studied. When calcium is taken from the bone so is N-telopeptide. When calcium appears in the urine along with N-telopeptide we know exactly were the calcium came from—the bones. When the protein in a person’s diet is increased from 49 gm/day to just 70 gm/day, (not even doubled or tripled), the urinary excretion N-telopeptide increases by 33%! The only place that the calcium appearing in the urine could have come from is the bones.⁵⁸

Can the problem be solved by simply taking more calcium? What about 1400 mg of calcium a day. An experiment was done in which subjects were divided in to three groups. Each group was given 1400 mg of calcium per day, but different levels of protein (48 gm/day, 95 gm/day, 142 gm/day). The group on the 48 gm protein diet maintained and positive calcium balance of 20 mg/day. The other two groups had negative calcium balances, -30 mg/day and -70 mg/day respectively.

The message?—you cannot eat enough calcium to offset the effect of other poor lifestyle choice on your bones.⁵⁹⁶⁰

Lets put this in perspective. If you lost 50 mg of calcium a day for 20 years you could loose 365 grams of your skeletal mass. How much did you start out with? The average female has around 821 grams.⁶¹ That would mean that you could loose 44% of your skeletal calcium in 20 years.


How much Protein do you need?

During World War I, Denmark was cut off from the rest of the world. Consequently they instituted a food-rationing program to monitor the distribution of nutritional resources. Their principal foods were bran bread, barley porridge, potatoes, greens, cabbage, some milk and some butter. The people of the cities and towns got little or no pork. Beef was so costly that only the rich could afford to buy it in sufficient amount. And they ate less than before, and often lost weight. No attention was paid to protein requirements. While fat was regarded as a very valuable addition to the diet, it was not considered as being a necessity. Bran was considered to be a very valuable food that was well digested by man. Alcoholic beverages were nearly eliminated, as raw material was not rationed to distilleries. While the rest of the world saw death rates sky rocket from the “Spanish Influenza”, the death rate for Denmark for the year October, 1917, to October, 1918, dropped to 10.4 per thousand. Dr. Hindhede, observing the health improvements on this forced low protein vegetarian diet, put himself on a low protein diet, and finding that he did quite well, published that 40 grams of protein a day is sufficient to maintain good health.⁶²

It was not until the mid 1900’s that researcher William C. Rose described the requirements of the 8 essential acids and determined the total protein requirements to maintain the body’s nitrogen
balance. In his work it was revealed that if the perfect protein were eaten, one that supplied the optimal proportion of each of the 8 essential amino acids, only 12.7 gm of protein per day were necessary.⁶³

Has such a diet been tried with success? In Somalia there is a group called the Bantus. The Bantu women get around 350 mg of calcium a day and their protein intake is only 10% of their diet. They have no calcium deficiency, and they have almost no hip fractures.⁶⁴ On the other hand are the Eskimos. Eskimos consume between 2000 mg and 2500 mg of calcium a day and have high level of weightbearing activity, yet they have the highest rates of osteoporosis in the world! Their protein intake averages 250-400 gm/day.⁶⁵⁶⁶

One of the most telling studies on the effects of a high protein diet on osteoporosis was published by Abelow, et. al. in which they compared the rate of hip fracture in different countries to their per-capita animal protein consumption. Countries like South Africa, with low animal protein consumption, had a low rate of hip fracture. Countries like the United States and England, with high animal protein consumption, had high hip fracture rates. The relationship between animal protein consumption and hip fracture rate for 13 countries maintained a linear relationship, which could send the message, “Need hip fracture? Eat animal protein.”⁶⁷

Animal protein is rich in phosphorus and sulfur as are processed foods.⁶⁸ (Animal products supply about 64% of the phosphorus in the American diet and grains another 19%.) Phosphorus and sulfur are metabolized by the body into sulfuric acid⁶⁹ and phosphoric acid. These acids are then buffered with calcium from your bones. What’s more, as protein is metabolized; excess urea is produced, which acts like a diuretic to hasten the loss of calcium in the urine.⁷⁰

The drawbacks to a high animal protein diet are not confined to calcium loss in the urine. Excess protein consumption has been linked to progressive loss of renal function,⁷¹⁷² kidney stones,⁷³⁷⁴ gouty arthritis from uric acid,⁷⁵ elevated cholesterol,⁷⁶⁷⁷ and increased cancer risk.⁷⁸

Does animal protein include milk protein? Does the consumption of dairy products carry the same level of risk for osteoporosis as other animal products? In a 12 year study of 77 thousand woman, the daily consumption of dairy products increased hip fracture risk by 45%.⁷⁹ In another study of men and women aged 65 years old and older, dairy product consumption, particularly during their 20s, increased their risk of hip fracture later in life by 190%-240%. And why would a high calcium food like milk be such a poor protection against osteoporosis. Typically only about 20-40% of milk calcium is absorbed, depending on the calcium status of the person. Calcium is absorbed better from most vegetable sources than from dairy foods.⁸⁰ What’s more, once milk is digested, it has such high protein⁸¹ and phosphorus⁸² that it causes calcium loss.⁸³ Another factor is the sulfur content. Milk protein has twice as much of the sulfur containing amino acid methionine as soy or wheat protein.⁸⁴ Methionine breaks down to sulfuric acid which must be buffered with calcium from the bones.⁸⁵

There are other benefits to plant protein that go beyond their lower sulfur content. Some plant proteins, such as those coming from soy or turmeric, actually have helpful weak hormonal activity. Studies suggest that dietary soybean protein is effective in preventing bone loss due to ovarian hormone deficiency.⁸⁶ What’s more, soy contains genistein, which has been shown to increase bone mineral density by 6% over a two-year period.⁸⁷

Where Do We Get Our Calcium?

“Okay. So if I eat something with calcium, which is also high in sulfur or phosphorus, I lose the benefit. So what can I eat to get my calcium?” you may be asking. The absorptive efficiency of calcium from most vegetable sources is very good.⁸⁸ Some vegetarian foods high in calcium are dandelion greens, kale, turnip greens, mustard greens, collard greens, lambsquarters, baked beans, sesame seeds, blackstrap molasses, hazelnuts, green soybeans, dried figs, amaranth grain, and carob flour. By the way, lambsquarters have one and a half times as much calcium as milk, without the protein, sulfur and phosphorus problems.

Exercise

Exercise provides mechanical stress to the skeleton. Calcium is added to the stressed skeleton to strengthen it to meet the demands put on it. As they say, “if you don’t use it, you lose it.”

Recall that perimenopausal women lose bone mass at a rate of 3% per year. Researchers wanting to study the effect of exercise on bone mass took two groups of women—one who did not exercise and one which was trained in daily exercise. As expected, the ones who did not exercise lost 3% of their bone mass every year. On the other hand, the exercise group not only cut losses, but also gained a little bone mass each year.⁸⁹ Exercise is one of the main ways of increasing or maintaining bone mass. In another study that looked at woman’s ongoing activity level, women who were the most active had a 55% lower risk of hip fracture.⁹⁰

Vitamin D

Vitamin D works on the small intestine and the kidney. In the small intestine, vitamin D increases absorption of calcium. In the kidney, vitamin D increases the reabsorption of calcium. Thus vitamin D increases the available calcium for the bones.

An18 month study of women in their 80s revealed that the addition of 800 units of vitamin D to their diets increased their bone mass by 2.7% in just 18 months. What’s more, they had 43% fewer hip fractures than expected.⁹¹

Sunlight is the natural source of vitamin D.⁹² Twenty minutes a day out in the sun with at least 25% of your skin exposed to the sun, without the use of sun-block, should be sufficient.

Banking on Your Bones: Recommendations for Bone Health

1. Weight bearing exercise. Thirty minutes a day of weight bearing exercise such as walking, out in the open air and sunshine.
2. Reduce protein and grain consumption. Eat foods that won’t produce acid that has to be buffered by calcium from the bones.
3. Choose to abandon the calcium thieves. Thieves include: sugar, chocolate, salt, caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, sodas, chronic stress and depression.
4. Get at least 20 minutes of sunshine a day on 25% of your body.
5. Eat a plant based diet rich in naturally occurring calcium. In one study increasing the intake of fruit and vegetables from 3.6 servings per day to 9.5 reduced calcium loss in the urine by 30%.⁹³ The biggest animals that walk our earth are vegetarian, and they have strong bones and teeth.

So, what should we eat?

An unrefined plant based diet! The original diet!

Then God said, “I give you every seed- bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” “And you will eat the plants of the field.”⁹⁴

What’s more, God has promises for those who reach out to serve others.
“The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.”⁹⁵

References

¹ National Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Advisory Council was held on January 17, 2006, at the National Institutes of Health.

² National Osteoporosis Foundation http://www.nof.org/osteoporosis/diseasefacts.htm

³ Gass M, Dawson-Hughes B. Preventing osteoporosis-related fractures: an overview. Am J Med. 2006 Apr;119(4 Suppl 1):S3-S11.

⁴ Wasnich RD, Primer on the Metabolic Bone Diseases and Disorders of Mineral Metabolism. 4th edition, 1999.

⁵ Bone Health and Osteoporosis: A Report of the Surgeon General http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/bonehealth/chapter_5.html

⁶ Weiss KE, Rodner CM. Osteoarthritis of the wrist. J Hand Surg [Am]. 2007 May-Jun;32(5):725-46.

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⁹ Osteoporos Int. 1999;9(3):206-13. Number and type of vertebral deformities: epidemiological characteristics and relation to back pain and height loss. European Vertebral Osteoporosis Study Group. Ismail AA, Cooper C, Felsenberg D, et. al.

¹⁰ Melton LJ 3rd. Adverse outcomes of osteoporotic fractures in the general population. J Bone Miner Res. 2003 Jun;18(6):1139-41.

¹¹ Fujimoto K. Review article: prevalence and epidemiology of gastro- oesophageal reflux disease in Japan. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2004 Dec;20 Suppl 8:5-8.

¹² Bianchi ML, Orsini MR, Saraifoger S, et. al. Quality of life in post- menopausal osteoporosis. Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2005 Dec 1;3:78.

¹³ National Osteoporosis Foundation http://www.nof.org

¹⁴ Gass M, Dawson-Hughes B. Preventing osteoporosis-related fractures: an overview. Am J Med. 2006 Apr;119(4 Suppl 1):S3-S11.

¹⁵ Johnell O. The socioeconomic burden of fractures: today and in the 21st century .Am J Med. 1997 Aug 18;103(2A):20S-25S.

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¹⁸ Johansson C, Black D, Johnell O, et. al. Bone mineral density is a predictor of survival. Calcif Tissue Int. 1998 Sep;63(3):190-6.

¹⁹ Trivedi DP, Khaw KT. Bone mineral density at the hip predicts mortality in elderly men. Osteoporos Int. 2001;12(4):259-65.

²⁰ Magaziner J, Fredman L, Hawkes W, et. al. Changes in functional status attributable to hip fracture: a comparison of hip fracture patients to community-dwelling aged. Am J Epidemiol. 2003 Jun 1;157(11):1023-31.

²¹ Willig R, Keinänen-Kiukaaniemi S, Jalovaara P. Mortality and quality of life after trochanteric hip fracture. Public Health. 2001 Sep;115(5):323-7.

²² Melton LJ 3rd. Adverse outcomes of osteoporotic fractures in the general population. J Bone Miner Res. 2003 Jun;18(6):1139-41.

²³ White EG. The Ministry of Healing. Mountain View, CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1942 p.127.

²⁴ Nguyen UN, Dumoulin G, Henriet MT, Regnard J. Aspartame ingestion increases urinary calcium, but not oxalate excretion, in healthy subjects. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1998 Jan;83(1):165-8.

²⁵ Nguyen NU, Henriet MT, Dumoulin G, et. al.Increase in calciuria and oxaluria after a single chocolate bar load. Horm Metab Res. 1994 Aug;26(8):383-6.

²⁶ Heaney RP. Role of dietary sodium in osteoporosis. J Am Coll Nutr. 2006 Jun;25(3 Suppl):271S-276S.

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²⁸ Bunker VW. The role of nutrition in osteoporosis. Br J Biomed Sci. 1994 Sep;51(3):228-40.

²⁹ Riggs BL, Khosla S, Atkinson EJ, et. al. Evidence that type I osteoporosis results from enhanced responsiveness of bone to estrogen deficiency. Osteoporos Int. 2003 Sep;14(9):728-33.

³⁰ Hoidrup S, Sorensen TI, Stroger U, et. al. Leisure-time physical activity levels and changes in relation to risk of hip fracture in men and women. Am J Epidemiol. 2001 Jul 1;154(1):60-8.

³¹ Massey LK, Whiting SJ. Caffeine, urinary calcium, calcium metabolism and bone. J Nutr. 1993 Sep;123(9):1611-4.

³² Ferrini RL, Barrett-Connor E. Caffeine intake and endogenous sex steroid levels in postmenopausal women. The Rancho Bernardo Study. Am J Epidemiol. 1996 Oct 1;144(7):642-4.

³³ Sampson HW. Alcohol and other factors affecting osteoporosis risk in women. Alcohol Res Health. 2002;26(4):292-8.

³⁴ de Vernejoul MC, Bielakoff J, Herve M, et.al. Evidence for defective osteoblastic function. A role for alcohol and tobacco consumption in osteoporosis in middle-aged men. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 1983 Oct;(179):107- 15.

³⁵ Meszaros S, Ferencz V, Deli M, et. al. Effect of cigarette smoking on bone quality parameters in women. Orv Hetil. 2006 Mar 19;147(11):495-9.

³⁶ Kapoor D, Jones TH. Smoking and hormones in health and endocrine disorders. Eur J Endocrinol. 2005 Apr;152(4):491-9.

³⁷ Macleay JM, Olson JD, Turner AS. Effect of dietary-induced metabolic acidosis and ovariectomy on bone mineral density and markers of bone turnover. J Bone Miner Metab. 2004;22(6):561-8.

³⁸ Krapf R. Partial neutralization of the acidogenic Western diet with potassium citrate increases bone mass in postmenopausal women with osteopenia. Interview by Nicola Zitzmann. Int J Prosthodont. 2007 Mar- Apr;20(2):113-4.

³⁹ Remer T, Manz F. Potential renal acid load of foods and its influence on urine pH. J Am Diet Assoc. 1995 Jul;95(7):791-7.

⁴⁰ Abelow BJ, Holford TR, Insogna KL. Cross-cultural association between dietary animal protein and hip fracture: a hypothesis. Calcif Tissue Int. 1992 Jan;50(1):14-8.

⁴¹ Rotily M, Leonetti F, Iovanna C, et. al. Effects of low animal protein or high-fiber diets on urine composition in calcium nephrolithiasis. Kidney Int. 2000 Mar;57(3):1115-23.

⁴² Giannini S, Nobile M, Sartori L, et. al. Acute effects of moderate dietary protein restriction in patients with idiopathic hypercalciuria and calcium nephrolithiasis. Am J Clin Nutr. 1999 Feb;69(2):267-71.

⁴³ Kristensen M, Jensen M, Kudsk J, et. al. Short-term effects on bone turnover of replacing milk with cola beverages: a 10-day interventional study in young men. Osteoporos Int. 2005 Dec;16(12):1803-8.

⁴⁴ Fettman MJ, Coble JM, Hamar DW, et. al. Effect of dietary phosphoric acid supplementation on acid-base balance and mineral and bone metabolism in adult cats. Am J Vet Res. 1992 Nov;53(11):2125-35.

⁴⁵ Kumano H. Osteoporosis and stress. Clin Calcium. 2005 Sep;15(9):1544-7.

⁴⁶ Kiecolt-Glaser JK, Preacher KJ, MacCallum RC, et. al. Chronic stress and age-related increases in the proinflammatory cytokine IL-6. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Jul 22;100(15):9090-5.

⁴⁷ Mussolino ME. Depression and hip fracture risk: the NHANES I epidemiologic follow-up study. Public Health Rep. 2005 Jan-Feb;120(1):71-5.

⁴⁸ Yirmiya R, Goshen I, Bajayo A, et. al. Depression induces bone loss through stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006 Nov 7;103(45):16876-81.

⁴⁹ Robbins J, Hirsch C, Whitmer R, et. al. The association of bone mineral density and depression in an older population. J Am Geriatr Soc. 2001 Jun;49(6):732-6.

⁵⁰ Whooley MA, Kip KE, Cauley JA, et. al. Depression, falls, and risk of fracture in older women. Study of Osteoporotic Fractures Research Group. Arch Intern Med. 1999 Mar 8;159(5):484-90.

⁵¹ Holy Bible, Proverbs 17:22, King James Version.

⁵² Janghorbani M, Feskanich D, Willett WC, Hu F. Prospective study of diabetes and risk of hip fracture: the Nurses’ Health Study. Diabetes Care. 2006 Jul;29(7):1573-8.

⁵³ McFarlane SI. Bone Metabolism and the Cardiometabolic Syndrome: Pathophysiologic Insights. J Cardiometab Syndr. 2006 Winter;1(1):53-57.

⁵⁴ Sawicki A, Regula A, Godwod K, Debinski A. Peptic ulcer disease and calcium intake as risk factors of osteoporosis in women. Osteoporos Int. 2003 Dec;14(12):983-6. Epub 2003 Oct 3.

⁵⁵ Cummings SR, Nevitt MC, Browner WS, et. al. Risk factors for hip fracture in white women. Study of Osteoporotic Fractures Research Group. N Engl J Med. 1995 Mar 23;332(12):767-73.

⁵⁶ National Institute of Health. Osteoporosis: consensus conference. JAMA 1984;254:799-802.

⁵⁷ Anand CR, Linkswiler HM. Effect of protein intake on calcium balance of young men given 500 mg calcium daily. J Nutr. 1974 Jun;104(6):695-700.

⁵⁸ Kerstetter JE, Mitnick ME, Gundberg CM, et. al. Changes in bone turnover in young women consuming different levels of dietary protein. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1999 Mar;84(3):1052-5.

⁵⁹ Linkswiler HM, Zemel MB, Hegsted M, Schuette S. Protein-induced hypercalciuria. Fed Proc. 1981 Jul;40(9):2429-33.

⁶⁰ Allen LH, Oddoye EA, Margen S. Protein-induced hypercalciuria: a longer term study. Am J Clin Nutr. 1979 Apr;32(4):741-9.

⁶¹ Reid DM. Measurement of bone mass by total body calcium: a review. J R Soc Med. 1986 Jan;79(1):33-7.

⁶² Hindhede M. The effect of food restriction during war on mortality in Copenhagen. JAMA 1920;76(6):381–2.

⁶³ Rose WC. II. The sequence of events leading to the establishment of the amino acid needs of man. Am J Public Health Nations Health. 1968 Nov;58(11):2020-7.

⁶⁴ Solomon L. Osteoporosis and fracture of the femoral neck in the South African Bantu. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 1968 Feb;50(1):2-13.

⁶⁵ Mazess RB, Mather W. Bone mineral content of North Alaskan Eskimos. Am J Clin Nutr. 1974 Sep;27(9):916-25.


⁶⁶ Mazess RB, Mather WE. Bone mineral content in Canadian Eskimos. Hum Biol. 1975 Feb;47(1):44-63.

⁶⁷ Abelow BJ, Holford TR, Insogna KL. Cross-cultural association between dietary animal protein and hip fracture: a hypothesis. Calcif Tissue Int. 1992 Jan;50(1):14-8.

⁶⁸ Uribarri J. Phosphorus homeostasis in normal health and in chronic kidney disease patients with special emphasis on dietary phosphorus intake. Semin Dial. 2007 Jul-Aug;20(4):295-301.

⁶⁹ Zemel MB, Schuette SA, Hegsted M, Linkswiler HM. Role of the sulfur- containing amino acids in protein-induced hypercalciuria in men. J Nutr. 1981 Mar;111(3):545-52.

⁷⁰ Lemann J Jr. Relationship between urinary calcium and net acid excretion as determined by dietary protein and potassium: a review. Nephron. 1999;81 Suppl 1:18-25.

⁷¹ Ihle BU, Becker GJ, Whitworth JA, et. al. The effect of protein restriction on the progression of renal insufficiency. N Engl J Med. 1989 Dec 28;321(26):1773-7.

⁷² Pedrini MT, Levey AS, Lau J, et. al. The effect of dietary protein restriction on the progression of diabetic and nondiabetic renal diseases: a meta-analysis. Ann Intern Med. 1996 Apr 1;124(7):627-32.

⁷³ Robertson WG, Peacock M, Heyburn PJ, et. al. Should recurrent calcium oxalate stone formers become vegetarians? Br J Urol. 1979 Dec;51(6):427-31.

⁷⁴ Giannini S, Nobile M, Sartori L, et. al. Acute effects of moderate dietary protein restriction in patients with idiopathic hypercalciuria and calcium nephrolithiasis. Am J Clin Nutr. 1999 Feb;69(2):267-71.

⁷⁵ Choi HK, Atkinson K, Karlson EW, et. al. Purine-rich foods, dairy and protein intake, and the risk of gout in men. N Engl J Med. 2004 Mar 11;350(11):1093-103.

⁷⁶ Sirtori CR, Agradi E, Conti F, et. al. Soybean-protein diet in the treatment of type-II hyperlipoproteinaemia. Lancet. 1977 Feb 5;1(8006):275-7.

⁷⁷ Anderson JW, Johnstone BM, Cook-Newell ME. Meta-analysis of the effects of soy protein intake on serum lipids. N Engl J Med. 1995 Aug 3;333(5):276-82

⁷⁸ Li C, Bai X, Wang S, Tomiyama-Miyaji C, et. al. Immunopotentiation of NKT cells by low-protein diet and the suppressive effect on tumor metastasis. Cell Immunol. 2004 Sep-Oct;231(1-2):96-102.

⁷⁹ Feskanich D, Willett WC, Stampfer MJ, Colditz GA. Milk, dietary calcium, and bone fractures in women: a 12-year prospective study. Am J Public Health. 1997 Jun;87(6):992-7.

⁸⁰ Weaver CM. Calcium bioavailability and its relation to osteoporosis. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1992 Jun;200(2):157-60.

⁸¹ Margen S, Chu JY, Kaufmann NA, Calloway DH. Studies in calcium metabolism. I. The calciuretic effect of dietary protein. Am J Clin Nutr. 1974 Jun;27(6):584-9.

⁸² Reiss E, Canterbury JM, Bercovitz MA, Kaplan EL. The role of phosphate in the secretion of parathyroid hormone in man. J Clin Invest. 1970 Nov;49(11):2146-9.

⁸³ van Beresteijn EC, Brussaard JH, van Schaik M. Relationship between the calcium-to-protein ratio in milk and the urinary calcium excretion in healthy adults—a controlled crossover study. Am J Clin Nutr. 1990 Jul;52(1):142-6.

⁸⁴ Ellinger GM, Duncan A. The determination of methionine in proteins by gas-liquid chromatography. Biochem J. 1976 Jun 1;155(3):615-21.

⁸⁵ Zwart SR, Davis-Street JE, Paddon-Jones D, et.al. Amino acid supplementation alters bone metabolism during simulated weightlessness. J Appl Physiol. 2005 Jul;99(1):134-40.

⁸⁶ Arjmandi BH, Alekel L, Hollis BW, et. al. Dietary soybean protein prevents bone loss in an ovariectomized rat model of osteoporosis. J Nutr. 1996 Jan;126(1):161-7.

⁸⁷ Marini H, Minutoli L, Polito F, et. al. Effects of the phytoestrogen genistein on bone metabolism in osteopenic postmenopausal women: a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 2007 Jun 19;146(12):839-47.

⁸⁸ Weaver CM. Calcium bioavailability and its relation to osteoporosis. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1992 Jun;200(2):157-60.

⁸⁹ Kemmler W, Lauber D, Weineck J, et. al. Benefits of 2 years of intense exercise on bone density, physical fitness, and blood lipids in early postmenopausal osteopenic women: results of the Erlangen Fitness Osteoporosis Prevention Study (EFOPS). Arch Intern Med. 2004 May 24;164(10):1084-91.

⁹⁰ Feskanich D, Willett W, Colditz G. Walking and leisure-time activity and risk of hip fracture in postmenopausal women. JAMA. 2002 Nov 13;288(18):2300-6.

⁹¹ Chapuy MC, Arlot ME, Duboeuf F, et. al. Vitamin D3 and calcium to prevent hip fractures in the elderly women. N Engl J Med. 1992 Dec 3;327(23):1637-42.

⁹² Holick MF. McCollum Award Lecture, 1994: vitamin D—new horizons for the 21st century. Am J Clin Nutr. 1994 Oct;60(4):619-30.

⁹³ Appel LJ, Moore TJ, Obarzanek E, et. al. A clinical trial of the effects of dietary patterns on blood pressure. DASH Collaborative Research Group. N Engl J Med. 1997 Apr 17;336(16):1117-24.

⁹⁴ Genesis 1:29; 3:18 (NIV). Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. The “NIV” and “New
International Version” trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.

⁹⁵ Holy Bible, Isaiah 58:11, King James Version.

Whole Plant Foods

You can eat all you want and still lose weight, if you choose only whole plant foods. In one study eating unlimited amounts of fruits and vegetables led to a fourteen pound weight loss over six months and seventeen pounds over twenty five months.¹⁰⁶

Fruits and vegetables are the mainstay of successful weight loss. In one 2- year study, individuals on a vegan diet lost 3 1⁄2 times more weight than those on just a low-fat diet.¹⁰⁷ Eating more fruit, vegetables, and whole grains improves weight loss and maintenance of weight loss, cholesterol and triglycerides and blood pressure.¹⁰⁸

Low energy dense foods aid weight loss. Weight loss is three times greater for people who eat low energy dense foods than for those who just choose “low-fat” foods.¹⁰⁹ Caloric or energy density is the key to satisfying cravings and weight-loss. Caloric density is a measure of the number of calories per gram in a serving of food. Studies show that normal-weight persons eat lower energy dense foods than obese persons. Persons on a diet high in fruit and vegetables have the lowest energy density values and the lowest amount of obesity.¹¹⁰ Energy density is key to understanding why eating fruits and vegetables can help in a weight management program. Energy density is the number of calories a food has for its weight. Foods with high calories for their weight, such as oils and fats, are high-energy-dense foods. They usually have between 4 to 9 calories per gram. These include snack foods, cheeses, butters, meats, and gravies. Medium-energy-dense foods have fewer calories per gram of weight, usually between 1.5 to 4 calories per gram. These foods include bagels, whole grain breads, hummus, dried fruits, and vegetarian ravioli . Low-energy-dense foods typically range in calorie content from 0 to 1.5 calories per gram and include fresh fruits and vegetables, beans, and whole grains. In one study, people given a low calorie dense, unrefined diet ate 50% fewer calories. What’s more, they took 33% longer to eat their food, increasing satiety (satisfaction).¹¹¹

Make a trade agreement that will boost your health index. Reduce the number of daily calories consumed by substituting low-energy-dense fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes for high-energy-density foods.¹¹² Eat your fruits and vegetables. Fat content increases the energy density of foods.

Water and fiber in foods increase volume and reduce energy density. In their natural state, fruits and vegetables have high water and fiber content and are low in fat and energy density.¹¹³

Feel satisfied on fewer calories. People tend to eat the same volume regardless of the calorie content.¹¹⁴¹¹⁵ It is volume more than calories that makes people feel full.¹¹⁶ Eating low-energy-dense, high-nutrient dense fruits and vegetables brings satisfaction without the calories.

Energy substitutes can slash weight gain. To lower the energy density of foods, such as soups, sandwiches, and casseroles, substitute fruits and vegetables for some of the ingredients that have higher energy density, such as high-fat meats, cheeses, and pasta.¹¹⁷

One high-energy-dense calorie source is juice. Juice drinkers consumed calories eleven times faster than whole fruit eaters. Whole fruit contains fiber while juice has none. Sauce eaters consumed calories three times faster than whole fruit eaters.¹¹⁸ The appetite is satisfied better with whole fruit.¹¹⁹

Canned food is a poor substitute. Frozen or canned fruits and vegetables are good options when fresh produce is unavailable. Choose items without added sugar, syrup, cream sauces, or salt. Salt can make you eat more and go for calorie-laden drinks.¹²⁰

Vegetables dominate the low calorie class. Vegetables tend to be lower in calories than fruit. Substituting more vegetables than fruit for foods of higher energy density can be helpful in a weight management plan.

Don’t get blitzed by hidden calories. Some desserts that include fruit may also have high calorie, fat, and sugar content. Breading and frying vegetables or adding high-fat dressings and sauces greatly increase the calorie and fat content of the dish.¹²¹ You can have variations on the dessert theme. Desserts tend to be very energy dense.¹²² The stomach actually increases in volume when sweet, sugar laden foods are eaten at the end of a meal.¹²³ Fresh fruit makes a good, weight sensitive, dessert substitute. In one study, overweight people were more likely to order dessert if the waitress provided an appetizing description and encouraged them to order it.¹²⁴

You may be wondering, “Should I avoid nuts?” given their high calorie content. And while I would urge moderation, in one study participants who ate nuts two or more times per week had a 30% lower risk of weight gain. Nuts have been found to be cardio-protective¹²⁵ and to reduce diabetes risk.¹²⁶

Fiber: A Dieters Friend

Fiber contains no calories; is not a nutrient, but is vital for good health. A 14 gram increase in daily fiber intake reduces calorie consumption by 10% and promotes weight loss.¹²⁷ Increased fiber consumption from whole grains cuts the risk of weight gain in half. Refined grain products have the opposite effect.¹²⁸ Other benefits of fiber are: enhanced blood sugar control; decreased insulin levels;¹²⁹ lower cholesterol;¹³⁰ reduced calorie assimilation by the body;¹³¹ and reduced hunger.¹³²

Toast cuts blood sugar levels. Toasting bread lowers blood glucose response by 25%, which is a good thing.¹³³

Chew On This

Appetite is reduced by nerve feedback to the brain stimulated by chewing.¹³⁴ The more you chew, the less food it takes to satisfy you.¹³⁵ Choosing foods that require more chewing can help reduce calorie intake.

Food Additives: Better Living Through Chemistry.

Mono sodium glutamate (MSG) may cause obesity.¹³⁶ MSG is used in laboratory animal to induce obesity and diabetes.¹³⁷ Fructose is another culprit.¹³⁸ Fructose ingestion increases obesity—especially abdominal obesity.¹³⁹ It also increases triglycerides and cholesterol,¹⁴⁰ oxidative stress,¹⁴¹ diabetes and diabetic complications such as retinopathy.¹⁴²

Liquids and Liquid Meals

Ditch the soda if you’re trying to lose weight. Sodas decreased the feel of being satisfied and increased subsequent overeating.¹⁴³ One additional soda per day raises the risk of obesity by 60%.¹⁴⁴ The calories of two sodas consumed every day can add 30 lbs in a year.

Dehydration and salt overload are associated with increased obesity.¹⁴⁵ Thirsty people tend to drink soda and eat when what they really need is water.¹⁴⁶ Dehydration increases cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension.¹⁴⁷

Water is still the best beverage. Historically water is the only liquid man consumed after being weaned. Modern man consumes a variety of liquids that require digestion. The body does not handle liquids that require digestion as well as solid food.¹⁴⁸ Our recommendation is that only water be consumed between meals. Digestion is better if a meal has not been diluted with any liquid. Water, taken thirty minutes before mealtime has been shown to significantly reduce calorie intake.¹⁴⁹

Snacking: Is It A Culprit In Your Diet?

Snacking between meals dramatically increases the number of daily calories consumed. Obese individuals consume significantly more sweet, fatty snacks.¹⁵⁰ Snacking women have a 38% higher risk of obesity and snacking men have a 88% higher risk of obesity.¹⁵¹

Trigger Foods That Can Ignite A Raging Appetite

The taste of fat increases the amounts of food people eat.¹⁵² Sugar and fat work by weakening food satisfaction signals to the brain and activating hunger signals.¹⁵³¹⁵⁴ Dietary fat intake affects obesity.¹⁵⁵ Obesity rates of countries can be predicted by how much fat their population eats. In one study, cutting fat intake by 10% (from 37% down to 27%) led to a quarter pound loss per week.¹⁵⁶ One source of high fat, low fiber food is fast food. Watching television three hours/week and eating fast food twice/week increases the risk of obesity and diabetes by 160%.¹⁵⁷ Another source of high fat, low fiber food is meat. This is why carnivores carry more weight. Meat eaters have been shown to weigh significantly more than vegetarians.¹⁵⁸ High fiber cereal, fruit, and overall fiber intake are associated with lower BMI. Hamburger, beef, fried chicken, eggs, bacon or sausage, and hot dogs are all associated with higher BMI.¹⁵⁹¹⁶⁰

“Gotcha” foods that won’t let you go. You need to be aware of some foods that have addictive properties. Addictive foods include chocolate, dairy products (especially cheese) and refined carbohydrates.
Chocolate is just as addictive as drugs.

To increase addiction, chocolate stimulates the same opioid receptors in the brain as morphine.¹⁶¹ Another drawback is the amount of sugar and fat it takes to make chocolate palatable.

The addictive nature of sugar generates phenomenally high levels of obesity.¹⁶² Like cocaine, sugar elevates the addiction hormone dopamine in the brain.¹⁶³ The body can actually get caught in a vicious cycle of sugar consumption.

Refined carbohydrates such as sugar, but not just sugar, elevate insulin. Insulin increases abdominal obesity and carbohydrate craving.

Abdominal obesity increases insulin resistance requiring the body to produce even more insulin. Higher insulin levels stimulate more carbohydrate craving. And the saga goes on as the weight piles up and diabetes ensues.¹⁶⁴

The addictive world of animal products is a real source of obesity. Morphine like substances (beta-casomorphins) in dairy products, especially cheeses, make them very hard to give up.¹⁶⁵

Beer Belly

Everyone should know the facts about alcohol and obesity.¹⁶⁶ Alcohol intake is associated with abdominal obesity and elevated diabetes risk.¹⁶⁷

Birds Of A Feather Flock Together

Eating with others can be a source of uncontrolled calorie consumption. If eating with others, choose dining companions who share your weight control values.¹⁶⁸

For those who like to be aware, the midcycle binge can be a source of uncontrolled calorie consumption. The ovulation phase of the menstrual cycle is associated with significantly more food intake.¹⁶⁹

Portion Size Inflation

Can food sneak up on you? Portion sizes sure have. Portion size inflation has definitely occurred between 1977 and 1996; french fry serving size is up 16% or 70 kcal; hamburger sizes is up 25% or 100 kcal; soft drink size is up 50% or 50 kcal; total calories consumed by Americans is up 11%; and the number of calories eaten away from home is up 53%.¹⁷⁰ Size does matter. Here are some tips on portion size management: all food to be eaten at one meal placed on plate at the beginning of the meal; purposely reduce customary portion sizes; substitute low-energy-dense foods for high-energy-dense foods; and chew the smaller portions for the same amount of time normally taken to eat larger portions.¹⁷¹

One Of Each Please—Variety Stimulates Gluttony (There Go The Potlucks!)

Greater variety is associated with greater food consumption and greater body weight.¹⁷²¹⁷³ Do not have too great a variety at a meal; three or four foods are plenty.

Caloric Restriction

Reducing the number of calories you eat in a day is referred to as caloric restriction. Calorie or energy restriction can restore an immune system impaired by obesity. Obesity impairs the immune system. Caloric restriction has been shown to help restore the immune system.¹⁷⁴ The Okinawan experience has taught us a lot about caloric restriction. The Okinawans eat 40% fewer calories than Americans, have 80% fewer breast and prostate cancers and 50% fewer ovarian and colon cancers.¹⁷⁵ There are some cautions to SEVERE caloric restriction. Some people just eat less of their malnourished diet—the same diet with nutrient deficiencies that leaves them craving food even though they are getting heavier all the time. Side effects of severe calorie restricted diets include: orthostatic hypotension (lightheadedness upon standing), fatigue, cold intolerance, dry skin, hair loss, menstrual irregularities, cholelithiasis (gallstones), cholecystitis (inflammation of the gallbladder) and pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas).¹⁷⁶

Meal Times

Eveningwear: you tend to wear the food you eat in the evening.¹⁷⁷ People who eat in the evening gain more weight.¹⁷⁸

Breakfast precedent: start off on the right foot. People who eat high-energy dense breakfasts eat higher energy dense lunches, whereas people who eat low-energy dense breakfasts eat lower energy dense lunches.¹⁷⁹ Skipping breakfast
increases insulin resistance and raises fasting cholesterol levels.¹⁸⁰ Skipping breakfast increases student obesity 120%.¹⁸¹

Punctuality pays off in meal patterns and frequency. Meal regularity significantly lowers the risk of adolescent obesity.¹⁸² People who eat their meals at the same time everyday; consume fewer calories; have better insulin sensitivity; have lower cholesterol levels and maintain a higher fat burning metabolism.¹⁸³ We recommend two (preferable) or three meals a day, eaten at exactly the same time every day. A two meal a day plan lowers cancer risk. Compared to the two meal a day program, colon cancer risk rises 70% with 3 meals a day, and 90% for 4.¹⁸⁴¹⁸⁵ The risk of colon cancer is increased by snacking. For each time snacking is engaged in throughout the day, the risk of colon cancer goes up 60%.¹⁸⁶

“But I’m hungry, I don’t want to wait till mealtime.” Throw a wet blanket on persistent hunger. Hunger, other than at meal times, can often be quenched with a glass of ice-cold water. If you feel that you must eat at night, take a drink of cold water, and in the morning you will feel much better for not having eaten.¹⁸⁷

Emotions and the Body

Happy, sad, bored, lonely: bring on the food! Some people are emotional eaters, meaning that they eat more when experiencing certain emotions. When these people are stressed or emotional they eat more sweet/high-fat foods and consume meals that have higher energy density.¹⁸⁸ These emotions often have their basis in childhood experiences. A ten year study of 9 to 10 year olds showed that: parental neglect: increased the risk of adult obesity 7 times (700%). Children characterized as “dirty and neglected” had 10 times the risk of adult obesity.¹⁸⁹ Obesity can be triggered by
childhood stress.¹⁹⁰ The obese are more likely: to be depressed; to report childhood abuse histories; to have non-secure attachment styles; and report eating in response to anger, sadness, loneliness, worry, and being upset.¹⁹¹ Abuse raises the risk of obesity 23% higher for verbal abuse; 27% higher for physical abuse; and 34% higher for sexual abuse.¹⁹² In some cases, obesity is an individual’s way of dealing with fear of intimacy. It is a way of keeping others at a distance.

Obesity: feast or famine? Being insecure about the availability of food is associated with a 30% increase in obesity.¹⁹³ Many of us have been programmed, possibly as a result of the great depression of 1929, to save for the future. Fear of want or loss drives a lot of our decisions. The Bible addresses this propensity to trust to what man can do in this way, “And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.”¹⁹⁴ Jesus Christ came to put these fears away and give us peace and rest.

Don’t go crazy: weight loss reduces psychological symptoms. One study revealed that weight loss was associated with improvements in: psychotic traits; paranoid ideation; irritability; interpersonal sensitivity; emotional stability; nervousness and sociability.¹⁹⁵

Dealing with obesity may involve dealing with stress for many people.¹⁹⁶ Stress management is more successful if accompanied by improvements in spiritual health.¹⁹⁷ Maybe this is because of Jesus’ promise, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”¹⁹⁸ Joining a group with a leader and organized activities reduces stress and improves weight loss.¹⁹⁹ Successful stress management has been shown to improve cholesterol, triglycerides, hemoglobin a1c (in diabetics), hostility scores and weight reduction.²⁰⁰

Higher Long Term Success

Studies of people with longterm weight loss success show that they: exercise 30-60 minutes a day regularly, including some weight lifting; plan their meals, maintaining a consistent eating pattern across weekdays and weekends; track calories, fat, and portion sizes; eat low-calorie, low-fat foods; eat breakfast regularly ;and self-monitor weight. Studies of people with longterm weight loss success show that they do not make excuses for not exercising like: no time, too tired to exercise, no one to exercise with, or too hard to maintain exercise routine. People with longterm weight loss do not make excuses for not dieting such as: eat away from home too often, or diet/health food costs too much. Studies of people with longterm weight loss success also show that they do not use over- the-counter weight loss products.²⁰¹²⁰² One of the best predictors of success in weight loss is the monitoring of food and activity. Diary keepers score big.

Brain scans shed light on why people overeat. Self-control is a function of the front part of the brain, the frontal lobes. People successful at restraining their appetites and losing weight have been shown on brain scans to have more active frontal lobes.²⁰³ We have been given the power of choice. With exercise this power is able to help with weight control. “Choose you this day whom ye will serve.”²⁰⁴

TV down time: down the chips, down the cola, down the beer.²⁰⁵ Television viewing while eating increases food intake by an average of 228 kcal.²⁰⁶ Television viewing, two or more hours per day, increases the risk of weight gain by 35%.²⁰⁷

Power To Succeed

Temptations to the indulgence of appetite possess a power that can be overcome only by the help that God can impart. But with every temptation we have the promise of God that there shall be a way of escape. Why, then, are so many overcome by temptation? It is because they do not put their trust in God. They do not avail themselves of the means provided for their safety.²⁰⁸

The standard is Jesus Christ. After fasting for forty days in preparation for ministry he said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”²⁰⁹

One of the principles He taught and lived was to think outside of ones-self. His philosophy as expressed and lived was, “The Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”²¹⁰ One way to think of this in respect to obesity is that in this world we are to be producers rather than just consumers. Is the world going to be a better place for our having lived in it?

We must recognize and own our problems. When we see ourselves in contrast to Jesus, we feel shame and come to Him in repentance and confession. We admit that we did it to ourselves—that our habits and cravings have controlled us and that without His power to overcome we are doomed to obesity.

Yield To Victory: Choose Life. Seeing Him as the great pattern of goodness and temperance we yield our whole heart to Him and choose to serve Him—make Him Lord of our life. In choosing to serve God, in giving Him the choices of our will, our whole nature comes under His power.

Take Life! We cannot of ourselves excuse the past that has brought on obesity or change our hearts; but having given ourselves to God, we believe that He for Christ’s sake does all this for us. By faith we became Christ’s, and by faith we are to grow up in Him—by giving and taking. We give all; our hearts, our wills, our service, give ourselves to Him to obey all His requirements; and we take all; Christ, the fullness of all blessing to abide in our hearts, to be our strength, our righteousness, our everlasting helper; to give us the power to obey, the power to overcome the habits and cravings that leave us obese.

Die to self, appetite, and inactivity. When the craving comes, die to the temptation and choose the power of God to resist. The advice is, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”²¹¹

Have a replacement. When the urge comes to violate your good judgment, be ready with an alternate activity or plan. Ask God for power and when you have an urge to eat; take a walk. When you have an urge to snack, drink cool water. When the urge comes to take more food than is wise, take even less.You will need to come up with your own alternatives with God’s help. “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.”²¹²

Here is a valuable promise, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”²¹³

In this way you will find true satisfaction. If you are not right with God, “ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.”²¹⁴ On the other hand, “The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.”²¹⁵

Once you are on the track to optimal health (and you WILL be on the track to optimal health) find someone else to help, its part of the program. “And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday: And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.”²¹⁶

We are blessed in blessing others. It is more blessed to give than to receive.

The Bottom Line

Obesity is at an all time high, largely because people are eating high calorie foods while engaging in little or no calorie burning physical activity.

The key is to replace high-energy food items with unrefined whole plant food items, replace all beverages with water, and replace sedentary habits with physical activity.

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¹⁵⁸ Appleby PN, Thorogood M, Mann JI, Key TJ. Low body mass index in non-meat eaters: the possible roles of animal fat, dietary fibre and alcohol. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1998 May;22(5):454-60.


¹⁵⁹ Linde JA, Utter J, Jeffery RW, Sherwood NE, Pronk NP, Boyle RG. Specific food intake, fat and fiber intake, and behavioral correlates of BMI among overweight and obese members of a managed care organization. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2006 Nov 26;3:42.


¹⁶⁰ Nicklas TA, Yang SJ, Baranowski T, Zakeri I, Berenson G. Eating patterns and obesity in children. The Bogalusa Heart Study. Am J Prev Med. 2003 Jul;25(1):9-16.


¹⁶¹ Drewnowski A, Krahn DD, Demitrack MA, Nairn K, Gosnell BA. Taste responses and preferences for sweet high-fat foods: evidence for opioid involvement. Physiol Behav. 1992 Feb;51(2):371-9.


¹⁶² Avena NM. Examining the addictive-like properties of binge eating using an animal model of sugar dependence. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol. 2007 Oct;15(5):481-91.


¹⁶³ Citation: Lenoir M, Serre F, Cantin L, Ahmed SH (2007) Intense Sweetness Surpasses Cocaine Reward. PLoS ONE 2(8): e698. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0000698.


¹⁶⁴ Heller RF, Heller RF. Hyperinsulinemic obesity and carbohydrate addiction: the missing link is the carbohydrate frequency factor. Med Hypotheses. 1994 May;42(5):307-12.


¹⁶⁵ Kamiński S, Cieslińska A, Kostyra E. Polymorphism of bovine beta-casein and its potential effect on human health. J Appl Genet. 2007;48(3):189-98.


¹⁶⁶ Risérus U, Ingelsson E. Alcohol intake, insulin resistance, and abdominal obesity in elderly men. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2007 Jul;15(7):1766-73.

¹⁶⁷ Sung KC, Kim SH, Reaven GM. Relationship among alcohol, body weight, and cardiovascular risk factors in 27,030 Korean men. Diabetes Care. 2007 Oct;30(10):2690-4.


¹⁶⁸ Herman CP, Roth DA, Polivy J. Effects of the presence of others on food intake: a normative interpretation. Psychol Bull. 2003 Nov;129(6):873-86.

¹⁶⁹ Johnson WG, Corrigan SA, Lemmon CR, Bergeron KB, Crusco AH. Energy regulation over the menstrual cycle. Physiol Behav. 1994 Sep;56(3):523-7.


¹⁷⁰ Nielsen SJ, Popkin BM. Patterns and trends in food portion sizes, 1977-1998. JAMA. 2003 Jan 22- 29;289(4):450-3.

¹⁷¹ Ello-Martin JA, Ledikwe JH, Rolls BJ. The influence of food portion size and energy density on energy intake: implications for weight management. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Jul;82(1 Suppl):236S-241S.


¹⁷² Raynor HA, Epstein LH. Dietary variety, energy regulation, and obesity. Psychol Bull. 2001 May;127(3):325- 41.

¹⁷³ Rolls BJ, Van Duijvenvoorde PM, Rowe EA. Variety in the diet enhances intake in a meal and contributes to the development of obesity in the rat. Physiol Behav. 1983 Jul;31(1):21-7.


¹⁷⁴ Lamas O, Martinez JA, Marti A. Energy restriction restores the impaired immune response in overweight (cafeteria) rats. J Nutr Biochem. 2004 Jul;15(7):418-25.

¹⁷⁵ Kagawa Y. Impact of Westernization on the nutrition of Japanese: changes in physique, cancer, longevity and centenarians. Prev Med. 1978 Jun;7(2):205-17.


¹⁷⁶ Goldman L, and Bennett JC (eds). Cecil Textbook of Medicine, 21st Edition, W. B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, PA, 1999, pg. 1161.

¹⁷⁷ Thompson OM, Ballew C, Resnicow K, Gillespie C, Must A, Bandini LG, Cyr H, Dietz WH. Dietary pattern as a predictor of change in BMI z-score among girls. Int J Obes (Lond). 2006 Jan;30(1):176-82.


¹⁷⁸ Bertéus Forslund H, Lindroos AK, Sjöström L, Lissner L. Meal patterns and obesity in Swedish women-a simple instrument describing usual meal types, frequency and temporal distribution. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2002 Aug;56(8):740-7.

¹⁷⁹ Warren JM, Henry CJK, Simonite V. Low Glycemic Index Breakfasts and Reduced Food Intake in Preadolescent Children. Pediatrics 2003;112:e414–e419.


¹⁸⁰ Farshchi HR, Taylor MA, Macdonald IA. Deleterious effects of omitting breakfast on insulin sensitivity and fasting lipid profiles in healthy lean women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Feb;81(2):388-96.


¹⁸¹ Croezen S, Visscher TL, Ter Bogt NC, Veling ML, Haveman-Nies A. Skipping breakfast, alcohol consumption and physical inactivity as risk factors for overweight and obesity in adolescents: results of the E- MOVO project. Eur J Clin Nutr. Epub Nov 28 2007.


¹⁸² Oblacinska A, Jodkowska M. Eating patterns of school-aged children and adolescents in Poland – questionnaire investigations. Med Wieku Rozwoj. 2000;4(3 Suppl 1):53-64.


¹⁸³ Farshchi HR, Taylor MA, Macdonald IA. Beneficial metabolic effects of regular meal frequency on dietary thermogenesis, insulin sensitivity, and fasting lipid profiles in healthy obese women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Jan;81(1):16-24.


¹⁸⁴ Franceschi S, La Vecchia C, Bidoli E, Negri E, Talamini R. Meal frequency and risk of colorectal cancer. Cancer Res. 1992 Jul 1;52(13):3589-92.


¹⁸⁵ Benito E, Obrador A, Stiggelbout A, Bosch FX, Mulet M, Muñoz N, Kaldor J. A population-based case- control study of colorectal cancer in Majorca. I. Dietary factors. Int J Cancer. 1990 Jan 15;45(1):69-76.


¹⁸⁶ de Verdier MG, Longnecker MP. Eating frequency—a neglected risk factor for colon cancer? Cancer Causes Control. 1992 Jan;3(1):77-81.

¹⁸⁷ Ellen G. White. Counsels on Diet and Foods (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1946), pg. 177.


¹⁸⁸ Oliver G, Wardle J, Gibson EL. Stress and food choice: a laboratory study. Psychosom Med. 2000 Nov- Dec;62(6):853-65.


¹⁸⁹ Lissau I, Sørensen TI. Parental neglect during childhood and increased risk of obesity in young adulthood. Lancet. 1994 Feb 5;343(8893):324-7.


¹⁹⁰ Gunstad J, Paul RH, Spitznagel MB, Cohen RA, Williams LM, Kohn M, Gordon E. Exposure to early life trauma is associated with adult obesity. Psychiatry Res. 2006 May 30;142(1):31-7.


¹⁹¹ Morse SA, Ciechanowski PS, Katon WJ, Hirsch IB. Isn’t this just bedtime snacking? The potential adverse effects of night-eating symptoms on treatment adherence and outcomes in patients with diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2006 Aug;29(8):1800-4.


¹⁹² Williamson DF, Thompson TJ, Anda RF, Dietz WH, Felitti V. Body weight and obesity in adults and self- reported abuse in childhood. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2002 Aug;26(8):1075-82.


¹⁹³ Townsend MS, Peerson J, Love B, Achterberg C, Murphy SP. Food insecurity is positively related to overweight in women. J Nutr. 2001 Jun;131(6):1738-45.


¹⁹⁴ Hebrews 2:15. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


¹⁹⁵ Laederach-Hofmann K, Kupferschmid S, Mussgay L. Links between body mass index, total body fat, cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, and insulin sensitivity in patients with obesity related to depression, anger, and anxiety. Int J Eat Disord. 2002 Jul;32(1):58-71.


¹⁹⁶ Serlachius A, Hamer M, Wardle J. Stress and weight change in university students in the United Kingdom. Physiol Behav. 2007 Nov 23;92(4):548-53.


¹⁹⁷ Tuck I, Alleyne R, Thinganjana W. Spirituality and stress management in healthy adults. J Holist Nurs. 2006 Dec;24(4):245-53; discussion 254-5.


¹⁹⁸ Matthew 11:28. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


¹⁹⁹ Green MW, Elliman NA, Kretsch MJ. Weight loss strategies, stress, and cognitive function: supervised versus unsupervised dieting. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2005 Oct;30(9):908-18.


²⁰⁰ Daubenmier JJ, Weidner G, Sumner MD, Mendell N, Merritt-Worden T, Studley J, Ornish D. The contribution of changes in diet, exercise, and stress management to changes in coronary risk in women and men in the multisite cardiac lifestyle intervention program. Ann Behav Med. 2007 Feb;33(1):57-68.


²⁰¹ Kruger J, Blanck HM, Gillespie C. Dietary and physical activity behaviors among adults successful at weight loss maintenance. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2006 Jul 19;3:17.


²⁰² Wing RR, Phelan S. Long-term weight loss maintenance. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Jul;82(1 Suppl):222S-225S.


²⁰³ DelParigi A, Chen K, Salbe AD, Hill JO, Wing RR, Reiman EM, Tataranni PA. Successful dieters have increased neural activity in cortical areas involved in the control of behavior. Int J Obes (Lond). 2007 Mar;31(3):440-8.


²⁰⁴ Joshua 24:15. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²⁰⁵ Francis LA, Lee Y, Birch LL. Parental weight status and girls’ television viewing, snacking, and body mass indexes. Obes Res. 2003 Jan;11(1):143-51.


²⁰⁶ Bellissimo N, Pencharz PB, Thomas SG, Anderson GH. Effect of television viewing at mealtime on food intake after a glucose preload in boys. Pediatr Res. 2007 Jun;61(6):745-9.


²⁰⁷ Mendoza JA, Zimmerman FJ, Christakis DA. Television viewing, computer use, obesity, and adiposity in US preschool children. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2007 Sep 25;4:44.


²⁰⁸ Ellen G. White. Counsels on Diet and Foods (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Pub. Assn., 1946), pg. 154.


²⁰⁹ Matthew 4:4. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹⁰ Matthew 20:28. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹¹ James 4:7. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹² Isaiah 59:19. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹³ 1Corinthians 10:13. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹⁴ Leviticus 26:26. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹⁵ Psalms 22:26. King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²¹⁶ Isaiah 58:10,11. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

The Set Up

Brenda did not intend to be a bother. Her mother thought she wanted children, but her career was also very important to her. Her time with Brenda was sweet but short. Then she sought peace and quiet alone. Though Brenda cried from time to time, a bottle always seemed sufficient to quell the tears. Now when Brenda feels troubled, food always seems sufficient to ease the pain. It’s almost as though mother was near.

Obesity is up in food-quieted infants. Babies are often fed to keep them quiet, when their real need may not be hunger. This can become a life long habit, often tied to emotional eating.¹

Overweight girls are at increased risk of premature puberty. Since 1963 the number of 6 to 19 year olds carrying excess weight has risen by 275%.² Eighty percent of obese 10 to 14 year olds, from obese families, end up as obese adults.³

Consequently, childhood diabetes,⁴ osteoarthritis⁵ and premature puberty⁶ are at an all time high.

Obesity runs in families. Even the family dog is fat.⁷ They say, the apple never falls far from the tree – you may be genetically “wired” for obesity. However it is your choices that determine you weight.⁸ It has been said, genetics loads the gun— lifestyle pulls the trigger.⁹

Statistics: Who Has Edge In Latest Polls?

Everyday in the United States 67% of adults are overweight or obese, and 19% of adults smoke. Everyday in the United States smoking is the #1 cause of preventable deaths while obesity is #2 and gaining.¹⁰ The most prominent contributors to mortality in the United States in 1990 were tobacco (an estimated 400,000 deaths), diet and activity patterns (300,000), alcohol (100,000), microbial agents (90,000), toxic agents (60,000), firearms (35,000), sexual behavior (30,000), motor vehicles (25,000), and illicit use of drugs (20,000).¹¹

Obesity is now at an all time high. In the US 67% men and 57% women are overweight or obese. Why? Because of a sedentary lifestyle, poor food choices, obsession with dieting, lack of time, etc.¹²

Poverty drains nutrition from family diet. Low energy dense food cost increased 20% in two years (2004-2006). High-energy dense food prices actually dropped 2%.¹³ It’s relatively inexpensive to get obese.

Looking at yearly maps of the United States from the CDC (Center for Disease Control) with states color coded for the levels of obesity, it becomes very clear that we have an epidemic of obesity in full swing. For example, Mississippi, in 1990 reported that 10%-14% of its population were obese; by 1995 that number had risen to 15%-19%; and by 2005, over 30%.

Dieting is up, but weight loss is down. At any one time, more than two- thirds of US adults are trying to lose weight or are avoiding weight gain.¹⁴ Most of them regain the weight within five years.¹⁵

Obesity costs have soared to $150 billion. Obesity-related health care costs in 2000 were $117 billion.¹⁶ The U.S. diet industry coups $33 billion per year in diet books, diet foods, diet programs and weight-loss gimmicks.¹⁷

Obesity: What Is It?

Obesity is based on Body Mass Index (BMI). The formula for BMI is weight (kg)/(height in cm)2 or 703 x pounds/inches2. A BMI of 18.5 or less is considered underweight; 18.5 < BMI < 25 ideal weight; 25 < BMI < 30 overweight; 30 > BMI < 35, obese (mild); 35 < BMI < 40, obese (moderate); and 40 < BMI obese (severe). There are charts available that make determining you BMI easier. Another useful way to access obesity is waist circumference. For men a waist circumference of greater than 40 inches and for woman a waist circumference of greater than 35 inches indicates obesity.¹⁸ A large waist circumference is more dangerous than a high BMI for many of the diseases we will discuss.

Is It Really Worth It?

Why lose weight? You may be wondering, “If everyone is gaining, why fight the current?” There are a number of good reasons to choose weight loss :

A clearer mind; a healthier body image; the avoidance of pain and depression; to reduce financial burden (health costs); to be around for your children and grandchildren; and to avoid disability and needing to be cared for by others, just to name a few. Life expectancy for the morbidly obese is reduced by 8 years in women and 20 years for men.¹⁹ Shedding a few pounds can diminish the threat. Men participating in successful weight loss programs can reduce their risk of dying by 41%.²⁰ By dropping 20 to 29 pounds, diabetics can reduce their risk of dying by 33%.²¹ It would be well to make weight loss a way of life. Continuous weight loss, approaching ideal body weight, can reduce the risk of diabetes by 30-50%.²² If your health is failing, weight loss just may be the key to recovery. A five percent weight loss in obese individuals can result in improved blood sugar control, blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides.²³

The Bad News

Those tenacious extra pounds can be a little recognized source of disease. Eleven percent of cancer, 14% osteoarthritis, 17% heart disease and hypertension, 30% gallbladder disease and 57% of diabetes can be attributed to obesity.²⁴

To put it another way, the hidden cost of abundant fat can be calculated in the increased risk of other diseases. The risk of diabetes increases 244%- 600%;²⁵ gallstones 400%-500%;²⁶ depression 400%;²⁷ sleep apnea risk increases 77%;²⁸ asthma risk is up 190%;²⁹ reflux 94%;³⁰ deep vein thrombosis (blood clots) 140%;³¹ coronary heart disease 81%;³² gout 200%;³³ female infertility 200%;³⁴ male infertility due to low sperm count 300%;³⁵ premenstrual syndrome (PMS) 180%.³⁶ Being very obese can increase the risk of dying by 140%;³⁷ stroke 70%;³⁸ stool and urine incontinence risk increases 45% and 150% respectively;³⁹ and risk of cirrhosis from fatty liver due to obesity is up 120%.⁴⁰

Increasing body weight is a strong risk factor for diabetes. Eighty percent of patients with Type 2 Diabetes are overweight or obese.⁴¹ To further examine the diabetes risk, it is important to realize that for each 5 pounds of weight gained, the risk of diabetes goes up 10%.⁴² The risk of getting diabetes sometime during a person’s life is 7% for underweight people, 15% for normal weight people, 26% for overweight people, 44% for obese people, and 57% for the very obese.⁴³ The fat most implicated in diabetes and its complications is what is called central, visceral or organ fat.⁴⁴ This is fat that is inside the body surrounding the abdominal organs. This fat is always kept at the higher body core temperature. This fat is the source of oxidized free radicals of fat and cholesterol.⁴⁵ Diabetics tend to have more of this type of fat.⁴⁶ Visceral obesity also leads to elevated triglycerides and reduced HDL levels substantially increasing the risk of coronary heart disease.⁴⁷

The link between higher body fat and cancer risk is also related to the fat cells’ involvement in hormone production. It is very hard to have breast cancer in the absence of estrogen. Excess estrogen production in obese women gives them a poorer prognosis with breast cancer.⁴⁸ Obesity increases the risk of other cancers too:
ovarian cancer14%; non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma 17%; pancreatic cancer 24%; multiple myeloma 31%; breast cancer in postmenopausal women 40%; leukaemia 50%; kidney cancer 53%; colorectal cancer 61%; adenocarcinoma of the esophagus 138%; and endometrial cancer 189%.⁴⁹

Blood pressure also increases with rising obesity. A 13 lb weight gain increases the risk of hypertension by 36%; 24 lbs by 64%; 35 lbs by 132%; 46 lbs by 191%; and 55 lbs or more by 265%. On the other hand, weight loss can decrease the risk.

A 14 lb weight loss can reduce the risk by 24% and weight loss of 22 lbs or more can reduce the risk by 53%.⁵⁰

Weight gain increases the risk of back pain and arthritis. Back pain increases significantly with weight gain.⁵¹ Pressure from excess weight flattens the inter-vertebral discs causing them to deteriorate and resist rejuvenation.⁵² An excessive waist with its increased visceral fat may swell the risk of arthritis more than absolute BMI.⁵³ Normal weight people have a risk of arthritis of only 17%; for the very obese the risk climbs to 44%.⁵⁴

Extra large clothes accompany extra large skin problems.⁵⁵ If you find yourself buying those extra large clothes sizes you can be sure you also have a lot more skin that you were born with. Skin diseases increase in the obese from altered skin blood flow and physiology.⁵⁶

Remember Alzheimer’s disease? Diabetes and obesity quadruple the risk of developing Alzheimer’s.⁵⁷ Aggressive weight loss may ease hypothyroidism. About 10% of obese subjects are hypothyroid. Weight gain has been associated with hypothyroidism while weight loss has normalized it.⁵⁸

Depression stalks the obese. Depression doubles the risk of obesity. Depressed people eat about 20% more calories than their non-obese counterparts.⁵⁹ And it works both ways. Obesity quadruples the risk of depression.⁶⁰

Social isolation increases with obesity. Obesity in women is associated with: lower individual earnings, few friends outside the family circle, and long-term unemployment.⁶¹

Illness related work absenteeism is increased in the obese. Obese employees are 80% more likely to experience work absences and are absent 3.7 more days per year than non-obese people.⁶²

The obese population may be living longer with better-controlled risk factors, but are paradoxically experiencing more disability. Obesity increases the risk of serious disability by 175%. Obese individuals have twice the risk of being unable to perform the activities of daily living.⁶³

Conquering Obesity Naturally

You choose! You are a reflection of the choices you’ve committed to. Your life and health habits are yours alone. Be the best you can be. The choice is yours.

Health: healthy weight, not lowest weight. The ultimate goal is health and healthy weight for your entire lifetime. With the right focus you will have increased energy, better self-esteem, more personal control, and a positive attitude. Eat for the long haul; choose a life-long plan.

Are you ready to change? Internal motivation is better than external. What you choose to do for yourself is more lasting and satisfying than what someone else pressures you to do.

Only a fool has to learn everything by his own experience. Be realistic— make small changes over time. Be adventurous—expand your tastes, try new dishes. Be flexible—balance your food and activity over several days. Be sensible—enjoy food in moderation. Be active—walk the dog, ride a bike, push a stroller.

Exercise Can Be Great Fun

Physical activity predicts success. Choose something you enjoy, preferably out doors in the open air and sunshine. Get at least sixty minutes, combined total, most days, and you will enjoy the benefits: healthy weight, healthy heart, strong bones, great sleep, stress relief, increased energy, and a positive and confident outlook!

Why exercise? Weight will reduce with diet alone, but muscle mass and bone density will disappear too. Exercise maintains muscle mass⁶⁴ and bone density⁶⁵ while fat is lost. It also increases aerobic capacity for better cardiovascular fitness.⁶⁶

As already mentioned, sedentary lifestyle accelerates risk of obesity. In fact, an 8-hour sedentary job increases the risk of obesity by 20%, and of diabetes by 28%.⁶⁷

Get your beauty rest. Children sleeping less than 9 hours are at increased risk of obesity.⁶⁸

You can tip the balance in the battle of the bulge. Obesity results from an imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure. Environmental factors, such as the increased availability of high caloric food or the decreased need for physical activity, contribute to its development.⁶⁹ A delicate balance exists within the human body. Weight depends upon the balance of energy input from diet, against energy expenditure through exercise. The balance is also affected by basal metabolic rate. When the total energy input exceeds expenditure, weight gain occurs. Many people eat as though they were going to be doing hard physical labor when if fact they are not. This creates an environment for obesity. You will find success then your eating matches your energy and weight loss needs.⁷⁰

Weight gain is often the result of biological and cultural mismatches to the modern environment where there are strong signals to eat; weak signals to stop eating; increased availability of high calorie dense food; eating is rewarded; there are no viable alternatives at times; and overeating is considered of high status.

On the other hand activity is associated with weak signals to continue and strong signals to stop; reduced availability; inactivity is applauded; inactivity I made a viable alternative and given a high social status.. This plays into the concept of eating to live, versus living to eat. Many people eat as though they were preparing for a long day of heavy physical labor when in reality their lives are pretty sedentary. If we eat to live, we match our energy intake to our expected energy expenditures and this helps keep our weight stable. If we live to eat, our energy intake exceeds our energy needs and obesity ensues. The wise man commented on this principle in this way, “Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!”⁷¹

Do something you like and enjoy. Exercises shown to be beneficial include: walking, running, aerobics (both in water and in the gym),⁷² and intermittent exercise especially on accessible home equipment.⁷³

How much do I need to exercise? You may have limitation that will need to be overcome, but we suggest at least sixty minutes daily. The best times are before breakfast,⁷⁴ and after meals. Exercising after meals results in greater energy expenditure,⁷⁵ while decreasing blood sugar and insulin levels in diabetics.⁷⁶ Moderate exercise is as beneficial as
intense, and short bouts are as effective as long (meaning you don’t have to do all sixty minutes at one time).⁷⁷

Walking is a little appreciated health booster. Each hour of brisk walking per day reduces the risk of obesity by 24% and diabetes by 34%.⁷⁸

A ten year exercise study was conducted which revealed that an active lifestyle prevents weight gain and a sedentary lifestyle with little recreational activity increases the risk of weight gain by 200% for men and 300% for women.⁷⁹

Knee Pain Cripples Weight Loss: Not So According to New Studies

“But I can’t exercise, I have a knee with arthritis and it hurts to walk”, you may be saying, like so many others.

In a study of people with knee arthritis, six months of weight loss and exercise actually improved knee pain, disability,⁸⁰ walking gait and the performance of a six-minute walk distance test, and a timed stair-climbing test.⁸¹ Samples of knee fluid actually showed decreased inflammatory markers.⁸² You “rust” out before you wear out. Most arthritis pain will improve with exercise. Weight loss helps too; a 10% weight reduction improves knee function by 28% in patients with osteoarthritis.⁸³

The Weight Of The Benefits

Exercise yields great dividends in weight loss. Exercise increases: muscle strength and bulk; bone mineral density; insulin sensitivity;⁸⁴ the immune system;⁸⁵ self-control around food;⁸⁶⁸⁷ HDL “good” cholesterol⁸⁸ and maintains weight loss over the long term.⁸⁹ Exercise decreases: visceral or central fat⁹⁰⁹¹ and waist-hip ratio;⁹² the body’s physiological response to stress;⁹³ high blood pressure;⁹⁴ cholesterol and triglycerides;⁹⁵ cardiac risk factors;⁹⁶ oxidative stress;⁹⁷ and the risk of gallstones.⁹⁸ Of particular importance is the way aerobic fitness curbs cardiac deaths. Being cardio- vascularly fit can reduce the risk of mortality from obesity by 75%.⁹⁹

Need slow motion? Eat a western diet. The western diet slows people down physically and makes them sedentary, reducing energy expenditure and increasing weight gain.¹⁰⁰

Bring Out The Fork: We’re Going To Talk Diet Now!

Top diets boast whole plant foods.¹⁰¹ People adopting a whole plant food diet can lose almost three times as much weight in a year as those choosing other diet methods. And people choosing a whole plant food diet as a means of weight loss are four times more likely to stick with their chosen diet.¹⁰²

By the way, a word of caution: when you go on a whole plant food diet, and your health problems start to resolve, you may need to have you medications adjusted. This is especially true for diabetic medications and blood pressure medications.

Avoid Wearisome Diets

It’s not just a diet; it’s a lifestyle change! Be aware of fad diets. Steer clear of these claims: fast, easy weight loss; breakthrough miracle; banish fat; secret formula; new discovery; cure; balances hormones; enzymatic process. Is the author credible? Be cautious about diets that advocate magic or miracle foods; rapid weight loss or quick fixes; no exercise; rigid menus; specific food combinations; recommendations based on a single study or studies published without a peer review; and promises that sound too good to be true.

New research shows that using artificially sweetened foods and drinks to manage weight could backfire. Artificial sweeteners confuse the mind’s ability to judge calorie content, making people who use diet drinks or diet foods crave more calories.¹⁰³ People who use diet drinks have been shown to eat more calories, especially carbohydrates.¹⁰⁴

Some fad diets are especially worrisome. Colorectal cancer risk increased four fold with consumption of high-fat, high-protein, and low-carbohydrate diets.¹⁰⁵ By contrast, low-fat, high-carbohydrate diets of whole plant foods increase intake of: fiber, bio-available calcium; vitamins; minerals; cancer preventing antioxidants and phytochemicals which lower risk for heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Continued in Achieving Your Ideal Weight Naturally – Part 2

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⁶⁵ Hinton PS, Rector RS, Thomas TR. Weight-bearing, aerobic exercise increases markers of bone formation during short-term weight loss in overweight and obese men and women. Metabolism. 2006 Dec;55(12):1616-8.


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⁷¹ Ecclesiastes 10:17. King James Version of the Holy Bible.

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⁷⁴ Ruegemer JJ, Squires RW, Marsh HM, Haymond MW, Cryer PE, Rizza RA, Miles JM. Differences between prebreakfast and late afternoon glycemic responses to exercise in IDDM patients. Diabetes Care. 1990 Feb;13(2):104-10.


⁷⁵ Davis JM, Sargent RG, Brayboy TD, Bartoli WP. Thermogenic effects of pre-prandial and post-prandial exercise in obese females. Addict Behav. 1992;17(2):185-90.


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⁷⁷ Schmidt WD, Biwer CJ, Kalscheuer LK. Effects of long versus short bout exercise on fitness and weight loss in overweight females. J Am Coll Nutr. 2001 Oct;20(5):494-501.


⁷⁸ Hu FB, Li TY, Colditz GA, Willett WC, Manson JE. Television watching and other sedentary behaviors in relation to risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus in women. JAMA. 2003 Apr 9;289(14):1785-91.


⁷⁹ Williamson DF, Madans J, Anda RF, Kleinman JC, Kahn HS, Byers T. Recreational physical activity and ten- year weight change in a US national cohort. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1993 May;17(5):279-86.


⁸⁰ Martin K, Fontaine KR, Nicklas BJ, Dennis KE, Goldberg AP, Hochberg MC. Weight loss and exercise walking reduce pain and improve physical functioning in overweight postmenopausal women with knee osteoarthritis. J Clin Rheumatol. 2001 Aug;7(4):219-23.


⁸¹ Messier SP, Loeser RF, Miller GD, Morgan TM, Rejeski WJ, Sevick MA, Ettinger WH Jr, Pahor M, Williamson JD. Exercise and dietary weight loss in overweight and obese older adults with knee osteoarthritis: the Arthritis, Diet, and Activity
Promotion Trial. Arthritis Rheum. 2004 May;50(5):1501-10.


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⁸³ Christensen R, Astrup A, Bliddal H. Weight loss: the treatment of choice for knee osteoarthritis? A randomized trial. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2005 Jan;13(1):20-7.


⁸⁴ Ryan AS, Nicklas BJ, Berman DM. Aerobic exercise is necessary to improve glucose utilization with moderate weight loss in women. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2006 Jun;14(6):1064-72.


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⁸⁸ Sopko G, Leon AS, Jacobs DR Jr, Foster N, Moy J, Kuba K, Anderson JT, Casal D, McNally C, Frantz I. The effects of exercise and weight loss on plasma lipids in young obese men. Metabolism. 1985 Mar;34(3):227-36.


⁸⁹ Wadden TA, Vogt RA, Foster GD, Anderson DA. Exercise and the maintenance of weight loss: 1-year follow- up of a controlled clinical trial. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1998 Apr;66(2):429-33.


⁹⁰ Mayo MJ, Grantham JR, Balasekaran G. Exercise-induced weight loss preferentially reduces abdominal fat. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2003 Feb;35(2):207-13.


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⁹² Blair SN. Evidence for success of exercise in weight loss and control. Ann Intern Med. 1993 Oct 1;119(7 Pt 2):702-6.


⁹³ Georgiades A, Sherwood A, Gullette EC, Babyak MA, Hinderliter A, Waugh R, Tweedy D, Craighead L, Bloomer R, Blumenthal JA. Effects of exercise and weight loss on mental stress-induced cardiovascular responses in individuals with high blood pressure. Hypertension. 2000 Aug;36(2):171-6.


⁹⁴ Watkins LL, Sherwood A, Feinglos M, Hinderliter A, Babyak M, Gullette E, Waugh R, Blumenthal JA. Effects of exercise and weight loss on cardiac risk factors associated with syndrome X. Arch Intern Med. 2003 Sep 8;163(16):1889-95.


⁹⁵ Weintraub MS, Rosen Y, Otto R, Eisenberg S, Breslow JL. Physical exercise conditioning in the absence of weight loss reduces fasting and postprandial triglyceride-rich lipoprotein levels. Circulation. 1989 May;79(5):1007-14.


⁹⁶ Dengel DR, Hagberg JM, Pratley RE, Rogus EM, Goldberg AP. Improvements in blood pressure, glucose metabolism, and lipoprotein lipids after aerobic exercise plus weight loss in obese, hypertensive middle-aged men. Metabolism. 1998 Sep;47(9):1075-82.


⁹⁷ Rector RS, Warner SO, Liu Y, Hinton PS, Sun GY, Cox RH, Stump CS, Laughlin MH, Dellsperger KC, Thomas TR. Exercise and diet induced weight loss improves measures of oxidative stress and insulin sensitivity in adults with characteristics of the metabolic syndrome. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2007 Aug;293(2):E500-6.


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Fats

Because eating a high amount of fat causes rouleaux, food with saturated fat, (i.e. animal products, butter,¹¹³ margarine, shortening, and/or coconut oil,¹¹⁴ etc) significantly increases the risk of hypertension. In turn, consumption of these products also raise the blood cholesterol, thickening the blood further and raising blood pressure.¹¹⁵ Even God has weighed in on the fat question, “Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Ye shall eat no manner of fat,…”¹¹⁶

Compared to natural occurring vegetable fats, lard significantly increases blood pressure and risk of hypertension.¹¹⁷ This problem is worse as one gets older.¹¹⁸ These scientific facts help explain why God said, “And the swine, because it divideth the hoof, yet cheweth not the cud, it is unclean unto you: ye shall not eat of their flesh, nor touch their dead carcase.”¹¹⁹ One group of researchers wanted to see what would happen if people were place on a animal fat free diet for 10 days. It was discovered that ten days on an animal fat free diet significantly reduced blood pressure.¹²⁰ It is interesting to note that a similar experiment was entered upon around 600 B.C. in Babylon.¹²¹ Daniel was a Jewish captive of Babylon. When offered a diet of meat he requested, “Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse (vegetables) to eat, and water to drink.”¹²² The outcome was that Daniel and 3 other colleagues who shared the intervention arm of the study did ten times better in school than all the other university students.

What about processed vegetable oils? These oils are not free from health risk just because they come from plants. Refined oils, especially canola oil,¹²³ increase hypertension¹²⁴ and the risk of stroke at a younger age.¹²⁵

Another problem with oils is what happens to them when they are subjected to heat. For example, heating oils in a pan causes serious deterioration in their quality turning them toxic so that they contribute to the onset and severity of hypertension.¹²⁶

Do you know how much fat is in the food you eat? Fat in the diet increases blood pressure because it thickens the blood, makes the blood vessels stiff¹²⁷ and causes endothelial dysfunction.¹²⁸ What is endothelial dysfunction? Nitric oxide is used in the body to relax blood vessels. When the blood vessels respond poorly to nitric oxide relaxation we say it is a result of the inner lining or endothelium of the blood vessel being sick or dysfunctional hence; endothelial dysfunction.¹²⁹

Foods that decrease vascular sensitivity to nitric oxide relaxation signals include: high fat,¹³⁰ salt,¹³¹¹³² cholesterol¹³⁴ (especially dietary oxidized cholesterol¹³⁶), overeating,¹³⁷¹³⁸ sugar¹⁴⁰ (especially fructose¹⁴²), and glycation of proteins as happens in diabetes.¹⁴³

The Vaso-Relaxing Diet

On the other hand proper diet has a significant impact on the responsiveness of your blood vessels to nitric oxide relaxation. I call it the vaso-relaxing diet, meaning it makes your blood vessels more responsive to relaxation messages from your body. Dietary changes known to improve vascular responsiveness include: a vegetarian diet,¹⁴⁴ oats (oatmeal),¹⁴⁵ tomatoes,¹⁴⁶diets rich in antioxidants¹⁴⁷ such as vitamin E,¹⁴⁸ and minerals like zinc¹⁴⁹ and copper.¹⁵⁰

Omega-3 deficiency leads to hypertension.¹⁵¹ Flaxseed and walnuts are good dietary sources of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are very antithrombotic and anti-inflammatory. In contrast, omega-6 fatty acids, which are present in refined vegetable oils and meat, are prothrombotic (causing blood clots) and proinflammatory. Omega-3 fatty acids also aid in the treatment of hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and rheumatoid arthritis.¹⁵²

The Deadly Mix: Fat and Sugar

When combined, fat and sugar form a deadly mix. The risk of hypertension from combining these two agents is not just additive, it is multiplicative¹⁵⁴: meaning just small amounts of these two agents mixed together creates an enormous health hazard.

The American Sweet Tooth

Speaking of sugar, (and refined carbohydrates, like white flour, white pasta, white rice, and refined breakfast cereals, which turn immediately to sugar in your blood stream), twenty (20) teaspoons of sugar raises your blood pressure by 2 mmHg, forty (40) teaspoons raises it by 5 mmHg.¹⁵⁵ The average American consumes 47 tsp of sugar each day of their lives.¹⁵⁶ The danger of sugar in the diet is that it ends up in the blood stream. As the blood sugar rises so does the blood pressure.¹⁵⁷

Not all carbohydrates are created equal. Sugar and complex carbohydrates may carry the same theoretical calories per gram, but the impact on the blood sugar, the risk of hypertension and diabetes complications are very different.¹⁵⁸ Complex carbohydrates from an unrefined plant based diet are much better tolerated, decrease the risk of hypertension and provide a nutrient dense diet that improves health.¹⁵⁹ So how do sugar and other refined carbohydrates cause hypertension?

Refined carbohydrates cause hypertension by increased production of norepinephrine, dopamine and epinephrine, and by causing blood vessel wall thickening.¹⁶⁰ The secret is to quit consuming sugar. It works and blood pressure comes down.¹⁶¹

Sugar is an accumulative poison. Refined carbohydrates create a sticky coating of sugar all over your blood cells, blood vessels and other body tissues. The more refined processed foods you eat, the higher your blood sugar goes and the more this sticky sweet substance coats the tissues of your body. This coating is called glycation and accumulates over time, leading to vascular and heart muscle stiffness, atherosclerotic plaque and hypertension. The more refined food you eat in your lifetime the greater your chance of having high blood pressure as you age.¹⁶² People on an unrefined plant based diet enjoy a cleaner cardiovascular system and may avoid high blood pressure all together as they get older.¹⁶³

Eating refined carbohydrates has a downside of leading to a condition called insulin resistance, where the cells of the body no longer take sugar out of the blood stream in response to normal insulin levels.¹⁶⁴¹⁶⁵ Examples of refined carbohydrates shown to increase insulin resistance include: white rice,¹⁶⁶ white flour (as found in pastries and white bread)¹⁶⁸ and processed sugar.¹⁶⁹¹⁷⁰ Of particular concern among refined carbohydrates is fructose, its ability to create insulin resistance and hypertension surpasses table sugar.¹⁷¹¹⁷²

Additional causes of insulin resistance include a high fat diet,¹⁷³ eating between meals or snacking¹⁷⁴ and obesity.¹⁷⁵ The results of insulin resistance are high cholesterol values¹⁷⁶ and of course, hypertension.^177178179 People who never provoke their insulin to overproduction by eating refined carbohydrates also never experience insulin driven hypertension.¹⁸⁰ Eat only as much refined carbohydrates as you would like to see your blood pressure go high.

Speaking of fructose, drinking one fructose-sweetened soda per day can increase the risk of hypertension by 77%.¹⁸¹ In case you were thinking artificial sweeteners were a good alternative, think again. Artificial sweeteners like aspartame give some people very high blood pressure.¹⁸² Stopping these sweeteners can be the secret to lowering some people’s blood pressure.¹⁸³ On the other hand there is a non-sugar sweetener, which has been shown to improve blood pressure and that is stevia.¹⁸⁴ It does this by acting as calcium channel blocker (the mechanism of action of some pharmaceutical blood pressure drugs).¹⁸⁵

Hardening of The Arteries

Hardening of the arteries causes resistance to free flow of the blood. Blood vessels normally expand and relax with each beat of the heart. If the blood vessels become hard, their stiffness inhibits the free flow of blood with each beat of the heart and the pressure goes up.¹⁸⁶¹⁸⁷ Atherosclerotic plaque is an example of this process.¹⁸⁸ If a plaque narrows the diameter of a blood vessel, more pressure is required to get the same amount of blood through the smaller opening.

Other conditions leading to this mechanism of blood pressure elevation include: increased body inflammation¹⁸⁹ (also known as oxidative stress), physical inactivity, and endothelial dysfunction. Endothelial dysfunction is a deadening of the blood vessel wall so that it no longer responds to the bodies relaxing signals. Endothelial dysfunction leads to unresponsive arteries and veins. Unresponsive arteries and veins resist free flow of blood to the tissues raising the blood pressure required to move the same volume of blood. Things that cause endothelial dysfunction include high blood sugars with sugar coating of the endothelium, uric acid with deadening of the endothelium, and high fat which also deadens the endothelium so that it will not relax and allow blood to pass freely.

Inflammation and Endothelial Dysfunction

The role of inflammation in the development of hypertension is multifaceted. Besides causing endothelial dysfunction, it thickens blood vessel walls making blood flow more difficult and raising the pressure required for normal circulation. As a consequence, blood pressure goes up with increasing inflammation.¹⁹⁰ People with more inflammation have a 40% higher risk of hypertension.¹⁹¹ Many people realize that there is an association between salt intake and a rise in blood pressure. In fact, even though arterial hypertension is a major cause of disease- related morbidity and mortality worldwide, it is nearly absent in populations that consume natural foods containing little or no salt.¹⁹² This is partly due to fluid retention,¹⁹³¹⁹⁴ but it is also due to inflammation.¹⁹⁵ Excessive salt intake causes hypertension and kidney injury, in part, by oxidative stress that inflames the blood vessel walls and kidneys.¹⁹⁶

Toxins in the Environment

Lead¹⁹⁷ and arsenic¹⁹⁸ are environmental poisons that raise whole body inflammation and have been shown to cause hypertension. Lead is a common contaminant in old paint, dust around old houses and can even be found in supplements such as calcium.¹⁹⁹ Arsenic often contaminates public drinking water²⁰⁰ and bottled water.²⁰¹ Arsenic is used in chicken and hog feed as a growth promoter and is present in the meats of these animals. Arsenic is an approved feed supplement that farmers use to control intestinal parasites in chickens.²⁰² As a consequence, eggs²⁰³ and chicken meat²⁰⁴ prove to be dietary sources of arsenic. Seafood (because fish swim in polluted waters) has been found to be a significant source of arsenic in those that consume seafood.²⁰⁵ Avoid arsenic and avoid hypertension.

The secret to inflammation management is having a good offense. Antioxidants and phytochemicals from plant foods provide this; they lower the inflammation in your body²⁰⁶²⁰⁷ and normalize your blood pressure.²⁰⁸ You may be asking how much antioxidant do I need? Can I get too much? You may be interested to find out that lifestyle measures are not easily overdosed, they have more marked results in more difficult cases and they do not cause dangerous side effects. Antioxidants only lower blood pressure in people with hypertension, not in normal healthy people.²⁰⁹

Diet is not the only way to have a positive impact on your antioxidant defense system. Exercise helps reduce the body’s inflammation resulting in lower blood pressure.²¹⁰

Since periodontal disease increases inflammation and hypertension, good oral hygiene can also be a key to good blood pressure control.²¹¹

Beauty Rest Prescription

One of your bodies’ own defenses against elevated inflammation is the hormone produced by the pineal gland in your brain called melatonin. Melatonin is a natural antioxidant that reduces blood pressure.²¹² Late evening artificial lighting impacts sleep, disrupts melatonin production, and raises blood pressure.^213214215 People who take regular hours for adequate sleep in total darkness have a healthier supply of melatonin and lower blood pressures.²¹⁶²¹⁷ Consequently, people who subject themselves to the irregularities in schedule afforded by shift work are at higher risk of hypertension.²¹⁸²¹⁹ That extra night’s pay may not be worth the risk high blood pressure. Regular day jobs are friendlier to blood pressure. We recommend a 9:30 p.m. bedtime for adequate melatonin production and healthier blood pressure.

People who go to sleep easily and get plenty of rest experience less hypertension. People who breathe freely at night, without sleep apnea or snoring, have lower blood pressures.²²⁰

Meat and Endothelial Dysfunction

So what raises inflammation increasing blood vessel wall thickness and causes endothelial dysfunction? Animal product consumption. Three or more servings of meat, poultry, eggs, fish, and/or seafood per day increase the risk of hypertension by 67%.²²¹ Of particular concern are pork products. The American Heart Journal notes: “A complete elimination of pork in all forms is a good dietary therapeutic rule in the management of arterial hypertension in all patients.” “The elimination of all forms of pork from the diet of all people may be a good practice for the prevention and the control of hypertension, one of the most common and important illnesses of man.” “Salted pork is even more hazardous to the health of man.”²²² Maybe this is why it was not considered a food item in God’s book, for Leviticus notes, “And the swine…is unclean to you.”.²²³ Even eggs won’t help you lower your blood pressure. Eggs play a significant role in people 40 years old and older in their risk of hypertension.²²⁴ Animal products lack solution oriented antioxidants and if they’re not a part of the solution then they are often a part of the problem. This is definitely the case in eating animal products.

Animal Products Face Acid Test

Acid is no friend of your body’s sensitive tissues. Acid increases endothelial dysfunction leading to hypertension.²²⁵ As a consequence, acid forming foods, particularly cheese and animal protein, significantly increase hypertension.²²⁶ Studying acid in the urine to identify acid forming foods, fruit and vegetables actually lower the amount of acid that is formed in the digestion of food. Grains, fish and red meat increase acid formation, but cheese almost triples the amount of acid produced by comparison.²²⁷ One of the offending acids produced is uric acid. Anything that raises uric acid in the blood raises the risk of hypertension.²²⁸ Foods that raise uric acid include: meat (particularly organ meats)²³⁰, seafood,²³¹ fructose²³³(often as high fructose corn syrup or agave sweetener), beer and alcoholic beverages.²³⁴ As a consequence, the same diet helpful in lowering the risk of gout from uric acid elevations can simultaneously lower the risk of hypertension.

Foods known to help lower uric acid levels include fruits such as lemons²³⁵ and other citrus, cherries,²³⁶ strawberries,²³⁷ grapes, apples, tomatoes, bananas, and pomegranates; vegetables such as celery, potatoes, beets, and endive; and most tree nuts, especially chestnuts.²³⁸ For that matter, any food with diuretic properties has the potential to relieve high blood pressure that is being caused by high uric acid levels. Foods valued for there enhanced urine production properties (diuretic) include: artichoke, celery, eggplant, cauliflower, green beans, grape, apple, peach, pear, melon and watermelon.²³⁸ When you increase the amount of urine you produce, you potentially increase the amount of uric acid lost in the urine, thus lowering the levels in your blood.

Strong Drink

The impact of alcohol on the rise in blood pressure is not limited to it’s propensity to elevate blood uric acid levels. There is a linear relationship between the amount of alcohol consumed and the rise in blood pressure²³⁹ (the more alcohol you drink the higher your blood pressure goes²⁴⁰). A two drink a day person can lower their risk of
hypertension by one third simply by abstaining.²³⁹ The wise man says “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.”²⁴²

Choosing A Blood Pressure Sensitive Dietary Lifestyle

Diet plays a significant role in hypertension, after all you are what you eat! In a study comparing common diets, it was discovered that non-vegetarians (consumers of animal products like meat, eggs and dairy) eat 50% more fat, have 30% higher total cholesterols, have 32% higher blood sugars and are six (6) times more likely to develop hypertension.²⁴³ Indeed, in rural populations still practicing their traditional largely vegetable based lifestyle, free from the effects of the western diet, hypertension is unheard of and there is no age related rise in blood pressure.²⁴⁴ Their average blood pressure is around 110/60 mmHg, average cholesterol 129 mg/dl, blood sugars 55 mg/dl and body mass index is 20 (kg/cm2).²⁴⁵

Really, blood pressure is not supposed to go up with age! In choosing a dietary lifestyle you will be interested to know that people adopting total plant based nutrition only have a 5% incidence of hypertension, those vegetarians including dairy and eggs with their meals a 10% incidence, fish eating vegetarians a 12% incidence, and meat eaters a 21% incidence.²⁴⁶ Studied from another angle, people on total plant based nutrition have one fourth the risk of developing hypertension as meat eaters.²⁴⁷

In considering adopting a health promoting lifestyle, the vegan (plant based nutrition) diet has many blood pressure lowering advantages. In one study hypertensive patients, on blood pressure medications for 8 years, were given a vegan diet for one year. Blood pressures came down and the majority were able to stop or drastically reduce their medications.²⁴⁸ Just eating more fruits and vegetables is helpful, compared to those who do not eat many fruits or vegetables; those who eat largely of fruits and vegetables have a 77% lower risk of hypertension.²⁴⁹ Vegetables lower blood pressure and keep it from creeping up over the years.²⁵⁰

Vegetables known to be helpful in lowering blood pressure include: green leafy because they are high in magnesium and potassium,²⁵¹ spinach²⁵²because it is rich in folate, celery²⁵⁵ (eat it or drink it!), carrots,²⁵⁶ ginger²⁵⁷ and broccoli²⁵⁸because they relax blood vessels, beets,²⁵⁹ basil,²⁶⁰ garlic²⁶²(supplement or whole), onions (eaten raw, but not cooked) significantly reduce hypertension.²⁶³

Not to be left out, fruit also lowers blood pressure.²⁶⁴ Fruits especially shown to have a positive impact on blood pressure include eggplant²⁶⁶, tomatoes,²⁶⁷ pumpkin or squash²⁶⁸ (which are high in potassium and low in sodium), cranberry (which has ACE inhibitory activity mimicking a popular blood pressure pill),²⁶⁹ an apple a day,²⁷⁰ pomegranates,²⁷¹ grapefruit²⁷² (which protect arteries, has diuretic activity and improves blood fluidity) and finally olives²⁷³ (which have calcium channel blocking and nitric oxide mediated vasodilatation benefits).

Deficiency of certain minerals in the diet increases the risk of hypertension. Iron: people eating a nutritious vegetarian diet providing sufficient intake of iron enjoy lower blood pressures. Iron from meat, know as heme-iron, is not helpful in this regard.²⁷⁴ Potassium: lowers blood pressure,²⁷⁵ but the most common blood pressure pill, a diuretic, lowers potassium.²⁷⁶ Calcium is needed to maintain normal blood pressure.²⁷⁷ Copper deficiency, a common result of eating refined carbohydrates,²⁷⁸ has been shown to cause high cholesterol (hypercholesterolemia), high triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia), hypertension, and glucose intolerance (diabetes).²⁷⁹ Magnesium deficiency precipitates hypertension.²⁸⁰ Mineral levels are decreased by alcohol, salt, phosphoric acid (sodas), coffee intake, by profuse sweating, by intense prolonged stress, by excessive menstruation and vaginal flux, by diuretics and other drugs, by certain parasites (pinworms), by sugar (refined carbohydrates) and by use of tobacco.

What’s For Breakfast?

Breakfast eaters experience lower blood pressures than breakfast skippers.²⁸¹ In planning breakfast be warned of the “cereal killer”. Most processed breakfast cereals (dry or hot) have a hard time sustaining life and cause hypertension in laboratory animals.²⁸² Choose whole plant based unrefined foods for a healthy, blood pressure friendly breakfast. If you cannot, by looking at the breakfast food, determine its identity (such as “O”s or flakes which do not resemble their origin), don’t put it in your mouth. It is much better to eat identifiable cereals such as granola, oatmeal, and other whole grain cereal foods.

The reason why refining foods causes so much hypertension is that fiber and minerals are removed in the process.²⁸³ Fiber from grains has been shown to reduce the risk of hypertension by 40%.²⁸⁴ Vegetable fiber, 65 gm/day, can reduce your blood pressure by 12-14 points.²⁸⁵

Beans help lower blood pressure because they are low in sodium, have healthy fiber and contain the blood pressure lowering minerals potassium, magnesium and calcium.²⁸⁶

Even nuts are beneficial. A daily serving of nuts can reduce the risk of hypertension by 18%.²⁸⁷ The preferred variety is raw or dry roasted with little or no salt. Even “soy nuts”, a roasted soybean product, have been shown to positively impact blood pressure.²⁸⁸

One important antioxidant vitamin for addressing blood pressure is vitamin C. When blood levels are maintained from natural dietary sources, blood pressure drops,²⁸⁹ but not when blood levels are attempted through artificial (pill supplementation) sources.²⁹⁰ Diets high in this and other naturally occurring vitamins from fruit and vegetables lower blood pressure.²⁹¹ One such diet is the Hawaiian diet. This diet is high in complex carbohydrate (77% of calories), low in fat (12% of calories), moderate in protein (11% of calories), and has been shown decreases in blood pressure as much as 10 points.²⁹²

One research group, wanting to maximize dietary impact on blood pressure management, put their patients on a six month 62% uncooked, fresh fruit and vegetable diet. The result was an 8 pound weight loss and a 18 mm Hg blood pressure decrease. In passing, the researchers noted that 80% of those in this study who smoked or drank alcohol abstained spontaneously. They reported increased sensitivity to alcohol, cigarette smoke, chemical odors, and medication. Several also had nausea, vomiting, and malaise after typical restaurant or banquet dinners.²⁹³ What kind of diet are we talking about? This is the original diet! “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.” “and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;”²⁹⁴ “Grains, fruits, nuts, and vegetables constitute the diet chosen for us by our Creator. These foods, prepared in as simple and natural a manner as possible, are the most healthful and nourishing. They impart a strength, a power of endurance, and a vigor of intellect that are not afforded by a more complex and stimulating diet.”²⁹⁵

Why Eat So Much?

“And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.”²⁹⁶ Hypertension increases with overeating.²⁹⁷²⁹⁸ Don’t overeat! “…eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!”²⁹⁹Eating less food (caloric restriction) reduces blood vessel stiffness, improves vascular relaxation and lowers blood pressure.³⁰⁰³⁰¹

Taking it a step farther, fasting has been shown to be an effective modality is lowering blood pressure. You can jump start your blood pressure reduction with a water only fast.³⁰² Fasting effectively reduces stubborn hypertension.³⁰³ Fasting one or two days a week may be more effective than pills.³⁰⁴

Have Some Lemon In Your Water!

With dehydration as one of the causes of hypertension,³⁰⁵ what is the best way to get my water? Adding fresh squeezed lemon to water maximizes its impact on hypertension.³⁰⁶ We recommend that you squeeze the juice of one lemon into
your first quart of water for the day and drink it at least 30 minutes before breakfast to lower blood pressure. We recommend that the water be lukewarm; not hot or cold.

Tachycardia: Increased Heart Rate

If the heart beats faster, a higher volume of blood is pumped and the blood pressure rises.³⁰⁷ We call this tachycardia. Anything that causes the resting heart rate to increase accelerates the risk of hypertension. In fact for every 10 beats/min increase in heart rate the risk of hypertension increases by 42%.³⁰⁸ You see, athletes have very low heart rates. People who have not been exercising have a high heart rate, and a high risk of hypertension. Stress also raises the heart (pulse) rate.

Does Stress Run In Your Blood?

Are you easily startled? This is part of your response to stress and is an early sign you may be headed for hypertension.³⁰⁹ Besides raising the heart rate and tightening the blood vessels, another way stress causes hypertension and blood clots is that it thickens the blood so that it requires more pressure to pump it through the blood vessels.³¹⁰ People who never get anxious have a significantly lower incidence of hypertension.³¹¹ “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.”³¹²

Another way to look at it is that people who handle stressful life events more effectively have greater success maintaining healthy blood pressure.³¹³ This may have something to do with personality. The easy- going type B personalities go easier on blood pressure than their type A counterparts.³¹⁴ Easy-going, laid-back, calm, relaxed responses to life’s challenges predict normal blood pressures.³¹⁵ People with cool tempers experience calmer blood pressures³¹⁶ and fewer heart attacks.³¹⁷ “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.”³¹⁸ What’s more, happier more cheerful people have lower blood pressure.³¹⁹

Having trouble coping? Stress management training, including hostility reduction and anger management have been shown to be effective at lowering blood pressure.³²⁰

Of course, stress is how you perceive your risks, not the risks themselves. People who experience events as negative have a higher risk of hypertension.³²¹ The question then is; how can I steer clear of, or get over stress? How do I change my perceptions of risk away from the negative toward the positive? The first step is to be aware when stress is playing a role in your life. Does your pulse rise? Are you physically tense? Do you experience headaches or anxiety? Are you nervous?

Does fatigue dog your steps? Do you have high blood pressure? Being in touch with your emotions is key because stress is an emotional experience.

When you discover that you have stress, your next step is to realize or remember what thoughts surround or accompany your stress. Evaluate the validity of those thoughts. Are they rational? Are they negative or are they positive? Once you have flushed out the thoughts underlying your stressful feelings the next step is to determine what these thoughts tell you about what you believe. Beliefs underlie thoughts, thoughts underlie feelings and feelings drive actions or behaviors like hypertension. Take a closer look at your secretly held beliefs, especially the ones underlying stressful feelings. Most often you will discover beliefs that set you up for unreasonable fear, worry or anger. You need to challenge these beliefs and replace them with rational ones. “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”³²²

Beliefs that you will find most helpful for achieving good health are ones to be obtained from the Bible where we learn that, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.”³²³

One common stress provoking fear is one of financial failure. But when we have turned our lives over to God we can expect His care. “And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment. Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls? And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit? If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest? Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is today in the field, and tomorrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith? And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.”³²⁴

People who put the past behind them, not ruminating about past anger-provoking events are at lower risk for hypertension and its complications.³²⁵ “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”³²⁶

Continued in Hypertension: Taking the Pressure Off – Part 3

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²³⁵ Aras B, Kalfazade N, Tuğcu V, Kemahli E, Ozbay B, Polat H, Taşçi AI. Can lemon juice be an alternative to potassium citrate in the treatment of urinary calcium stones in patients with hypocitraturia? A prospective randomized study. Urol Res. 2008 Dec;36(6):313-7.


²³⁶ Jacob RA, Spinozzi GM, Simon VA, Kelley DS, Prior RL, Hess-Pierce B, Kader AA. Consumption of cherries lowers plasma urate in healthy women. J Nutr. 2003 Jun;133(6):1826-9.


²³⁷ Tulipani S, Mezzetti B, Battino M. Impact of strawberries on human health: insight into marginally discussed bioactive compounds for the Mediterranean diet. Public Health Nutr. 2009 Sep;12(9A):1656-62.

²³⁸ Pamplona-Roger, GD. ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FOODS AND THEIR HEALING POWER, Hagerstown Maryland, Review & Herald Publishing association, 2004.


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²⁴² Proverbs 20:1, King James Version of the Holy Bible.
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²⁴⁴ Carvalho JJ, Baruzzi RG, Howard PF, Poulter N, Alpers MP, Franco LJ, Marcopito LF, Spooner VJ, Dyer AR, Elliott P, Stamler J, Stamler R. Blood pressure in four remote populations in the INTERSALT Study. Hypertension. 1989 Sep;14(3):238-46.


²⁴⁵ Pavan L, Casiglia E, Braga LM, Winnicki M, Puato M, Pauletto P, Pessina AC. Effects of a traditional lifestyle on the cardiovascular risk profile: the Amondava population of the Brazilian Amazon. Comparison with matched African, Italian and Polish populations. J Hypertens. 1999 Jun;17(6):749-56.


²⁴⁶ Appleby PN, Davey GK, Key TJ. Hypertension and blood pressure among meat eaters, fish eaters, vegetarians and vegans in EPIC-Oxford. Public Health Nutr. 2002 Oct;5(5):645-54.


²⁴⁷ Fraser GE. Vegetarian diets: what do we know of their effects on common chronic diseases? Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 May;89(5):1607S-1612S.


²⁴⁸ Lindahl O, Lindwall L, Spångberg A, Stenram A, Ockerman PA. A vegan regimen with reduced medication in the treatment of hypertension. Br J Nutr. 1984 Jul;52(1):11-20.


²⁴⁹ Alonso A, de la Fuente C, Mart-Arnau AM, de Irala J, Martez JA, Martez-Gonz疝ez MA. Fruit and vegetable consumption is inversely associated with blood pressure in a Mediterranean population with a high vegetable-fat intake: the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) Study. Br J Nutr. 2004 Aug;92(2):311-9.

²⁵⁰ Dauchet L, Czernichow S, Bertrais S, Blacher J, Galan P, Hercberg S; SFHTA. Fruits and vegetables intake in the SU.VI.MAX study and systolic blood pressure change. Arch Mal Coeur Vaiss. 2006 Jul- Aug;99(7-8):669-73.


²⁵¹ He K, Song Y, Belin RJ, Chen Y. Magnesium intake and the metabolic syndrome: epidemiologic evidence to date. J Cardiometab Syndr. 2006 Fall;1(5):351-5.

²⁵² Forman JP, Rimm EB, Stampfer MJ, Curhan GC. Folate intake and the risk of incident hypertension among US women. JAMA. 2005 Jan 19;293(3):320-9.


²⁵³ D. Tsi and B. K. H. Tan Cardiovascular Pharmacology of 3-n-butylphthalide (found in celery) in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Phytotherapy Research, Dec 1997, 11(8), 576–582.

²⁵⁵ D. Tsi and B. K. H. Tan Cardiovascular Pharmacology of 3-n-butylphthalide (found in celery) in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Phytotherapy Research, Dec 1997, 11(8), 576–582.

²⁵⁶ Gilani AH, Shaheen E, Saeed SA, Bibi S, Irfanullah, Sadiq M, Faizi S. Hypotensive action of coumarin glycosides from Daucus carota. Phytomedicine. 2000 Oct;7(5):423-6.


²⁵⁷ Tapsell LC, Hemphill I, Cobiac L, Patch CS, Sullivan DR, Fenech M, Roodenrys S, Keogh JB, Clifton PM, Williams PG, Fazio VA, Inge KE. Health benefits of herbs and spices: the past, the present, the future. Med J Aust. 2006 Aug 21;185(4 Suppl):S4-24.

²⁵⁸ Wu L, Noyan Ashraf MH, Facci M, Wang R, Paterson PG, Ferrie A, Juurlink BH. Dietary approach to attenuate oxidative stress, hypertension, and inflammation in the cardiovascular system. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2004 May 4;101(18):7094-9.


²⁵⁹ Ferreira LF, Behnke BJ. A toast to health and performance! Beetroot juice lowers blood pressure and the O2 cost of exercise. J Appl Physiol. 2011 Mar;110(3):585-6.

²⁶⁰ Umar A, Imam G, Yimin W, Kerim P, Tohti I, Berké B, Moore N. Antihypertensive effects of Ocimum basilicum L. (OBL) on blood pressure in renovascular hypertensive rats. Hypertens Res. 2010 Jul;33(7):727- 30.


²⁶² Sobenin IA, Andrianova IV, Fomchenkov IV, Gorchakova TV, Orekhov AN. Time-released garlic powder tablets lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure in men with mild and moderate arterial hypertension. Hypertens Res. 2009 Jun;32(6):433-7.

²⁶³ Kawamoto E, Sakai Y, Okamura Y, Yamamoto Y. Effects of boiling on the antihypertensive and antioxidant activities of onion. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo). 2004 Jun;50(3):171-6.


²⁶⁴ Utsugi MT, Ohkubo T, Kikuya M, Kurimoto A, Sato RI, Suzuki K, Metoki H, Hara A, Tsubono Y, Imai Y. Fruit and vegetable consumption and the risk of hypertension determined by self measurement of blood pressure at home: the Ohasama study. Hypertens Res. 2008 Jul;31(7):1435-43.


²⁶⁶ Kwon YI, Apostolidis E, Shetty K. In vitro studies of eggplant (Solanum melongena) phenolics as inhibitors of key enzymes relevant for type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Bioresour Technol. 2008 May;99(8):2981-8.


²⁶⁷ Paran E, Novack V, Engelhard YN, Hazan-Halevy I. The effects of natural antioxidants from tomato extract in treated but uncontrolled hypertensive patients. Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2009 Apr;23(2):145-51.


²⁶⁸ Kwon YI, Apostolidis E, Kim YC, Shetty K. Health benefits of traditional corn, beans, and pumpkin: in vitro studies for hyperglycemia and hypertension management. J Med Food. 2007 Jun;10(2):266-75.


²⁶⁹ Apostolidis E, Kwon YI, Shetty K. Potential of cranberry-based herbal synergies for diabetes and hypertension management. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2006;15(3):433-41.


²⁷⁰ Sasaki N. Life styles and blood pressure: the protective effect of apple-eating habits on high blood pressure in a high-salt population. Nippon Eiseigaku Zasshi. 1990 Dec;45(5):954-63.


²⁷¹ Aviram M, Rosenblat M, Gaitini D, Nitecki S, Hoffman A, Dornfeld L, Volkova N, Presser D, Attias J, Liker H, Hayek T. Pomegranate juice consumption for 3 years by patients with carotid artery stenosis reduces common carotid intima-media thickness, blood pressure and LDL oxidation. Clin Nutr. 2004 Jun;23(3):423-33.


²⁷² Díaz-Juárez JA, Tenorio-López FA, Zarco-Olvera G, Valle-Mondragón LD, Torres-Narváez JC, Pastelín- Hernández G. Effect of Citrus paradisi extract and juice on arterial pressure both in vitro and in vivo. Phytother Res. 2009 Jul;23(7):948-54.


²⁷³ Gilani AH, Khan AU, Shah AJ, Connor J, Jabeen Q. Blood pressure lowering effect of olive is mediated through calcium channel blockade. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2005 Dec;56(8):613-20.
fn274. Galan P, Vergnaud AC, Tzoulaki I, Buyck JF, Blacher J, Czernichow S, Hercberg S. Low total and nonheme iron intakes are associated with a greater risk of hypertension. J Nutr. 2010 Jan;140(1):75-80.


²⁷⁵ Krishna GG. Role of potassium in the pathogenesis of hypertension. Am J Med Sci. 1994 Feb;307 Suppl 1:S21-5.


²⁷⁶ Dyckner T, Wester PO. Potassium/magnesium depletion in patients with cardiovascular disease. Am J Med. 1987 Mar 20;82(3A):11-7.


²⁷⁷ Hajjar IM, Grim CE, Kotchen TA. Dietary calcium lowers the age-related rise in blood pressure in the United States: the NHANES III survey. J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2003 Mar-Apr;5(2):122-6.


²⁷⁸ Temple NJ. Refined carbohydrates – a cause of suboptimal nutrient intake. Med Hypotheses. 1983 Apr;10(4):411-24.


²⁷⁹ Aliabadi H. A deleterious interaction between copper deficiency and sugar ingestion may be the missing link in heart disease. Med Hypotheses. 2008;70(6):1163-6.


²⁸⁰ Johnson S. The multifaceted and widespread pathology of magnesium deficiency. Med Hypotheses. 2001 Feb;56(2):163-70.


²⁸¹ Sakata K, Matumura Y, Yoshimura N, Tamaki J, Hashimoto T, Oguri S, Okayama A, Yanagawa H. Relationship between skipping breakfast and cardiovascular disease risk factors in the national nutrition survey data. Nippon Koshu Eisei Zasshi. 2001 Oct;48(10):837-41.


²⁸² Caster WO, Parthemos MD. Growth, hemoglobin, cholesterol, and blood pressure observed in rats fed common breakfast cereals. Am J Clin Nutr. 1976 May;29(5):529-34.


²⁸³ Ascherio A, Hennekens C, Willett WC, Sacks F, Rosner B, Manson J, Witteman J, Stampfer MJ. Prospective study of nutritional factors, blood pressure, and hypertension among US women. Hypertension. 1996 May;27(5):1065-72.


²⁸⁴ Alonso A, Beunza JJ, Bes-Rastrollo M, Pajares RM, Martínez-González MA. Vegetable protein and fiber from cereal are inversely associated with the risk of hypertension in a Spanish cohort. Arch Med Res. 2006 Aug;37(6):778-86.


²⁸⁵ Anderson JW. Plant fiber and blood pressure. Ann Intern Med. 1983 May;98(5 Pt 2):842-6.


²⁸⁶ Miller WL, Crabtree BF, Evans DK. Exploratory study of the relationship between hypertension and diet diversity among Saba Islanders. Public Health Rep. 1992 Jul-Aug;107(4):426-32.


²⁸⁷ Djoussé L, Rudich T, Gaziano JM. Nut consumption and risk of hypertension in US male physicians. Clin Nutr. 2009 Feb;28(1):10-4.


²⁸⁸ Welty FK, Lee KS, Lew NS, Zhou JR. Effect of soy nuts on blood pressure and lipid levels in hypertensive, prehypertensive, and normotensive postmenopausal women. Arch Intern Med. 2007 May 28;167(10):1060-7.


²⁸⁹ Block G, Jensen CD, Norkus EP, Hudes M, Crawford PB. Vitamin C in plasma is inversely related to blood pressure and change in blood pressure during the previous year in young Black and White women. Nutr J. 2008 Dec 17;7:35.


²⁹⁰ Kim MK, Sasaki S, Sasazuki S, Okubo S, Hayashi M, Tsugane S. Lack of long-term effect of vitamin C supplementation on blood pressure. Hypertension. 2002 Dec;40(6):797-803.


²⁹¹ Hsieh YC, Hung CT, Lien LM, Bai CH, Chen WH, Yeh CY, Chen YH, Hsieh FI, Chiu HC, Chiou HY, Hsu CY. A significant decrease in blood pressure through a family-based nutrition health education programme among community residents in Taiwan. Public Health Nutr. 2009 Apr;12(4):570-7.


²⁹² Shintani TT, Beckham S, Brown AC, O’Connor HK. The Hawaii Diet: ad libitum high carbohydrate, low fat multi-cultural diet for the reduction of chronic disease risk factors: obesity, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and hyperglycemia. Hawaii Med J. 2001 Mar;60(3):69-73.


²⁹³ Douglass JM, Rasgon IM, Fleiss PM, Schmidt RD, Peters SN, Abelmann EA. Effects of a raw food diet on hypertension and obesity. South Med J. 1985 Jul;78(7):841-4.


²⁹⁴ Genesis 1:29; 3:18, King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²⁹⁵ White, EG. Counsels on Diet and Foods, Hagerstown Maryland, Review & Herald Publishing association (1938). http://wordoftruth.seedoftruth.net/downloads/counsels_on_diet_and_foods


²⁹⁶ Proverbs 23:2, King James Version of the Holy Bible.


²⁹⁷ Antic V, Dulloo A, Montani JP. Short-term (5-day) changes in food intake alter daily hemodynamics in rabbits. Am J Hypertens. 2003 Apr;16(4):302-6.

²⁹⁸ Ren J. Leptin and hyperleptinemia – from friend to foe for cardiovascular function. J Endocrinol. 2004 Apr;181(1):1-10.


²⁹⁹ Ecclesiastes 10:17 King James Version of the Holy Bible.


³⁰⁰ Dolinsky VW, Morton JS, Oka T, Robillard-Frayne I, Bagdan M, Lopaschuk GD, Des Rosiers C, Walsh K, Davidge ST, Dyck JR. Calorie restriction prevents hypertension and cardiac hypertrophy in the spontaneously hypertensive rat. Hypertension. 2010 Sep;56(3):412-21.

³⁰¹ Sharifi AM, Mohseni S, Nekoparvar S, Larijani B, Fakhrzadeh H, Oryan S. Effect of caloric restriction on nitric oxide production, ACE activity, and blood pressure regulation in rats. Acta Physiol Hung. 2008 Mar;95(1):55-63.


³⁰² McCarty MF. A preliminary fast may potentiate response to a subsequent low-salt, low-fat vegan diet in the management of hypertension – fasting as a strategy for breaking metabolic vicious cycles. Med Hypotheses. 2003 May;60(5):624-33.

³⁰³ Goldhamer AC, Lisle DJ, Sultana P, Anderson SV, Parpia B, Hughes B, Campbell TC. Medically supervised water-only fasting in the treatment of borderline hypertension. J Altern Complement Med. 2002 Oct;8(5):643-50.


³⁰⁴ Andersson B, Wallin G, Hedner T, Ahlberg AC, Andersson OK. Acute effects of short-term fasting on blood pressure, circulating noradrenaline and efferent sympathetic nerve activity. Acta Med Scand. 1988;223(6):485-90.


³⁰⁵ Gharbi N, Mornagui B, El-Fazaas S, Kamoun A, Gharib C. Effect of dehydration on nitric oxide, corticotropic and vasopressinergic axis in rat. C R Biol. 2004 Jan;327(1):12-20.


³⁰⁶ Miyake Y, Kuzuya K, Uen0 C, Katayama N, Hayakawa T, Tsuge H, Osawa T. Suppressive Effect of Components in Lemon Juice on Blood Pressure in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Food Sci. Technol. Int. Tokyo, 4 (1), 29-32, 1998.


³⁰⁷ Inoue T, Iseki K, Iseki C, Kinjo K, Ohya Y, Takishita S. Higher heart rate predicts the risk of developing hypertension in a normotensive screened cohort. Circ J. 2007 Nov;71(11):1755-60.


³⁰⁸ Piwońska A, Piotrowski W, Broda G, Drygas W, Głuszek J, Zdrojewski T, Kozakiewicz K, Stepaniak U, Bandosz P. The relationship between resting heart rate and atherosclerosis risk factors. Kardiol Pol. 2008 Oct;66(10):1069-75.


³⁰⁹ Tan Y, Gan Q, Knuepfer MM. Central alpha-adrenergic receptors and corticotropin releasing factor mediate hemodynamic responses to acute cold stress. Brain Res. 2003 Apr 4;968(1):122-9.


³¹⁰ Tomoda F, Takata M, Kagitani S, Kinuno H, Yasumoto K, Tomita S, Inoue H. Different platelet aggregability during mental stress in two stages of essential hypertension. Am J Hypertens. 1999 Nov;12(11 Pt 1):1063-70.


³¹¹ Markovitz JH, Matthews KA, Kannel WB, Cobb JL, D’Agostino RB. Psychological predictors of hypertension in the Framingham Study. Is there tension in hypertension? JAMA. 1993 Nov 24;270(20):2439-43.


³¹² Matthew 6:34 . King James Version of The Holy Bible.


³¹³ Lal N, Ahuja RC, Madhukar. Life events in hypertensive patients. J Psychosom Res. 1982;26(4):441-5.

³¹⁴ Guo ZC. The matched case-control study of the risk factors associated with edema-proteinuria hypertension syndrome (EPHS). Zhonghua Liu Xing Bing Xue Za Zhi. 1992 Dec;13(6):351-4.


³¹⁵ Gasperin D, Netuveli G, Dias-da-Costa JS, Pattussi MP. Effect of psychological stress on blood pressure increase: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Cad Saude Publica. 2009 Apr;25(4):715-26.


³¹⁶ Everson SA, Goldberg DE, Kaplan GA, Julkunen J, Salonen JT. Anger expression and incident hypertension. Psychosom Med. 1998 Nov-Dec;60(6):730-5.


³¹⁷ Player MS, King DE, Mainous AG 3rd, Geesey ME. Psychosocial factors and progression from prehypertension to hypertension or coronary heart disease. Ann Fam Med. 2007 Sep-Oct;5(5):403-11.


³¹⁸ Proverbs16:32. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


³¹⁹ Blanchflower DG, Oswald AJ. Hypertension and happiness across nations. J Health Econ. 2008 Mar;27(2):218-33.


³²⁰ Linden W, Lenz JW, Con AH. Individualized stress management for primary hypertension: a randomized trial. Arch Intern Med. 2001 Apr 23;161(8):1071-80.


³²¹ Theorell T, Emlund N. On physiological effects of positive and negative life changes—a longitudinal study. J Psychosom Res. 1993 Sep;37(6):653-9.


³²² John 8:3. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


³²³ 1John 4:18. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


³²⁴ Luke 12:22-31. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


³²⁵ Gerin W, Davidson KW, Christenfeld NJ, Goyal T, Schwartz JE. The role of angry rumination and distraction in blood pressure recovery from emotional arousal. Psychosom Med. 2006 Jan-Feb;68(1):64-72.

³²⁶ Philippians 3:13. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


National Water Shortage

“My eighty-three year old mother called me last week, ‘Brenda!’ her voice sounded alarmed, ‘I just took my blood pressure and I am worried, it is 160/100’”

Brenda, was worried too, but knew something about blood pressure. “Mom, just sit down, drink 3 big glasses of water, and I’ll be over in about 45 minutes and we’ll take your blood pressure again.”

Arriving 45 minutes later, Brenda retook mom’s blood pressure. It was now 130/70.

Americans are chronically dehydrated. People who drink plenty of water have lower blood pressures.¹ Many people suffer from high blood pressure; the cause of which is inadequate consumption of water. Constant dehydration forces the body to tighten the blood vessels and speed up the heart to maintain adequate blood flow to the brain and over time hypertension results.² Not all hypertension is the result of not drinking enough water, but more of it arises from this cause than is realized.

Contrast the impact of this “national water shortage” with the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) guidelines for treatment of hypertension.³ Let’s say your water intake has been dismally inadequate and your brain is crying for better blood supply. The body responds with a faster heartbeat and tighter blood vessels to squeeze the blood more effectively up to the top of your head.⁴ The doctor takes your blood pressure and (of course) discovers you have blood pressure that is higher than is considered safe. In line with practice guidelines the first line treatment is a diuretic; a “water pill”. You go home, the dehydration is worse (compounded) and on a return trip to the doctor you are again discovered to be not only hypertensive, but your heart rate is up. Guidelines now recommend a beta-blocker. What does a beta- blocker do? Slows yours fast heart rate. With that you go home, your heart is now slow, but the brain is still crying out for blood so all the blood vessels in your body get even tighter to squeeze the remaining blood to the top of your head. Back to the doctor you go for follow up; low and behold the pressure is still up. The next recommended pill to fix the “resistant hypertension” is a calcium channel blocker. What does a calcium channel blocker do? It relaxes all the blood vessel in your body. You mean the ones that tightened up to get the blood to the top of my head? Yes. Now I must hand it to the NIH, the first line therapy is really supposed to be lifestyle modifications, but in my estimation the modifications listed and the extent to which they are applied or encouraged lacks enthusiasm. Okay, so, you can see that I am not “real big” on treating diseases you get from poor lifestyle practices with any other thing than correct lifestyle practices.

Save The Brain

People with normal blood pressure live longer,⁵⁶⁷ and what’s more, their thinking is clearer. Studying the brains of people with high blood pressure, also called hypertension, researchers have discovered an association between hypertension, brain white matter defects, and difficulty thinking and remembering.⁸ People with high blood pressure develop white matter lesions in their brains at ten (10) times the rate of the normal population.⁹ Controlling blood pressure with medications does not stop brain deterioration. Some blood pressure medications make the brain deteriorate even faster.¹⁰ In order to stop brain deterioration, lifestyle habits responsible for both hypertension and dementia need to be addressed.

“Safe” Magic Potions?

Some people are quick to look to alternative medicine for a magic potion to fix their lifestyle related diseases, thinking they will find a safer cure in supplements, herbs, or vitamins. Some of these over-the- counter pills contain agents with pharmacological action just like medications, but does it make any sense to take magic potions to treat disease while continuing to practice the lifestyle habits that cause the illness in the first place? It’s not that people have not found benefit from some of these pills. Agents with some evidence of benefit include coenzyme Q10, fish oil, garlic, vitamin C, L-arginine,¹¹ grape seed extract,¹² quercetin,¹³¹⁴ rosemary,¹⁵ cranberry,¹⁶ fennel,¹⁷ mistletoe,¹⁸¹⁹ saffron,²⁰ hawthorn berry²¹ and valerian.²² But none of these supplements change the reasons or causes as to why your blood pressure went up in the first place.

No Substitution

I am not against pills just because they are pills, but some pills (and supplements) have serious drawbacks. For example, people already on blood pressure pills respond more poorly to lifestyle changes.²³ They are somewhat trapped. What’s more, Parkinson’s disease is a side effect of some blood pressure medications.²⁴ What about Alzheimer’s? People with low to normal blood pressure are protected from brain diseases like Alzheimer’s.²⁵ Artificial low blood pressure, with medications, does not always avert progression to dementia.²⁶ People whose good lifestyles give them a healthy blood pressure are much more likely to be mentally acute (sharp/bright) as they get older.²⁷ I recommend making a healthy lifestyle your defense against dementia, not medications.

While medications are generally prescribed to address some disease from which a patient suffers, hypertension is a side effect many medications. Oral contraceptives rise blood pressure 8 points on average.²⁸²⁹ Antidepressant use doubles the risk for hypertension.³⁰ Anti-inflammatory drugs cause high blood pressure through kidney dysfunction.³¹³²³³ Acetaminophen (aka Tylenol) increases blood pressure³⁴ especially in patients with coronary artery disease (most Americans).³⁵

What is Hypertension?

What is Hypertension? The National Institute of Health is clear on the classification of blood pressure. Blood pressure is recorded as systolic pressure over diastolic pressure. Systolic is a measure of the highest pressure the heart develops during its beat and diastolic is the lowest pressure when the heart is refilling with blood for another beat. Normal blood pressure goes no higher than 120/80. To go over 120/80, but no higher than 139/89 is to have pre-hypertension. Blood pressures over 139/89 are classified in two stages. Stage 1 hypertension is from 140-159/90-99. Any pressure of 160/100 or more is considered stage 2 hypertension.³ The higher your blood pressure the higher your chances of experiencing other life threatening complications of hypertension.

Global Impact

Hypertension affects approximately 50 million people in the United States and 1 billion worldwide.³ Fully 29% of US adults have hypertension, around 68% are taking antihypertensive medication, but only 64% of those taking medication have
their blood pressure controlled.³⁶ Nine out of ten 55 year olds, in the United States, with normal blood pressure will develop hypertension before they die.³

Types of Hypertension

There are two major types of high blood pressure, primary and secondary.³⁷ Primary blood pressure is generally considered to have an unknown cause, but as you continue to learn the facts about hypertension you will discover that most primary hypertension is lifestyle related—it is caused by our habits relating to eating, drinking and exercising. Secondary hypertension can be linked to other medical diseases such as thyroid disease, kidney disease, parathyroid disease, metabolic syndrome (diabetes), etc.

The Silent Killer

High blood pressure is called “the silent killer” because the majority of people with hypertension are unaware of its presence. Nevertheless some people with hypertension do report symptoms, these can include: tiredness, sudden hot flashes, headaches, reduced energy, heart beat palpitations, sudden sweating, reduced physical performance, dizziness, shortness of breath, chest pain, sleepiness, blurred vision, tinnitus (ringing in the ears) and/or muscle tension.³⁸

Be Alert For Signs Of Cardiovascular Danger

Hypertension might not be so bad if it were not for all the other diseases it causes. Of these heart disease tops the list. Achieving normal blood pressure reduces the risk of congestive heart failure by 36%,³⁹ of coronary heart disease by 72%, and of heart attack by 75%!⁴⁰ Because hypertension is so hard on the heart, if you can reduce the blood pressure by just 20 points, you can cut the risk of heart disease in half.³ Researchers have determined that lowering the average blood pressure in the United States by just 5 points would reduce the number of stroke deaths by 23,000 per year.⁴¹ Further, lowering your blood pressure from 140/90 to a more normal 120/75 reduces your risk of stroke by 74%.⁴² Bleeds are a common cause of stroke and can occur when an aneurysm bursts in the brain. If blood pressure is kept within normal limits, brain aneurysms are much less likely to enlarge and rupture.⁴³

Another study reported that normalizing blood pressure can reduce strokes by 35–40%, myocardial infarctions by 20–25% and heart failure by more than 50%.⁴⁴

Controlling blood pressure also reduces the risk of peripheral vascular disease: injury to blood vessels in your arms and legs that can lead to and physical disability.⁴⁵

Adding Insult To Injury

Hypertension can damage any part of your body because every part of your body is dependent upon blood for life. People with normal blood pressure save themselves much grief.

People with normal blood pressure can avoid the second leading cause (behind diabetes) of kidney failure.⁴⁶

A surprising consequence of high blood pressure is high cancer risk! For example, normal blood pressure decreases the risk of endometrial cancer by 70%.⁴⁷

Do you remember your last blood pressure numbers? Are you having difficulty thinking and remembering? People with hypertension are more apt to get Alzheimer’s in their latter years, a disease of the brain that affects the ability to think and remember. People with normal blood pressure have superior blood flow to their brains improving thought and memory.⁴⁸⁴⁹ Normal blood pressure protects you from brain deterioration especially in the frontal lobes.⁵⁰ People who do not have hypertension perform better on test of memory, attention and abstract reasoning.⁵¹ Normal blood pressure can actually reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s by 40%.⁵²

Diabetes and hypertension are often closely related. When combined with low HDL cholesterol, high triglycerides and central obesity they are given a diagnosis of syndrome X.⁵³ Syndrome X is not a good diagnosis to have, but lifestyle interventions are most effective at treating this disease.

Osteoporosis is a thinning of the bones leading to an increased risk of fractures. People with normal blood pressure have 1/3 the risk of osteoporosis as those with hypertension.⁵⁴

Retinopathy and Macular Degeneration are leading causes of blindness. Keeping blood pressure within normal limits cuts the risk of blindness from retinopathy and/or macular degeneration in half.⁵⁵

Erectile dysfunction: the pressure in performance anxiety! Having trouble pleasing your wife? Thirty-two percent more men with normal blood pressure “get it up” than men with hypertension.⁵⁶

Where Are We Headed: Outline

Lets talk about where we are headed with our hypertension discussion. Blood pressure is a product of the pumping of the heart, the blood vessel size, blood thickness and blood volume. If the heart beats faster, more blood is pumped and the pressure goes up. We call this tachycardia. If the blood vessels tighten up, making the space for the passage of blood narrower, it takes greater pressure to get the same amount of blood through to its destination. We refer to this tightening up effect as vasoconstriction. Blood vessels normally expand with each beat of the heart and then relax. If the blood vessels become hard, their stiffness inhibits the free flow of blood with each beat of the heart and the pressure goes up.

Atherosclerosis is an example of this process. If the blood becomes thick and sludgy, more pressure is required to push it through the blood vessels and hypertension commences. When blood gets thick we say that the viscosity has increased too much. If the blood vessels are being choked by something pressing on them from their sides, the effect is like putting your thumb over the end of a garden hose; this results in increased blood pressure. We call this external compression.

Finally, if the volume of blood increases, this increases the amount of blood entering the heart, this in turn increases the amount of blood the heart pumps with each beat increasing the overall blood pressure. We often refer to this phenomenon as fluid retention.

Volume Overload!

Lets start by talking about the problem of volume overload. Volume overload can be the result of obesity, where it takes more blood to feed an increased mass of fat tissue. Salt causes fluid retention effectively producing volume overload.

Volume overload results when the kidneys fail because the kidneys are responsible for dispensing with excess fluid volume. Muscles have many large blood vessels and require lots of blood when exercised. Big muscles left unused become stiff and their blood vessels become stiff resisting blood flow and causing volume overload at the heart. Thus inactivity leads to hypertension. Blood does not like to be cold (you are not cold blooded) and if your legs or arms are cold, the blood vessels in these extremities tighten up sending all of the blood flooding to the heart thereby overloading it and causing hypertension.⁵⁷

US Sodium Intake Exceeds Dietary Guidelines

It is a well-known fact that dietary salt plays a significant role in the evolution of hypertension. Salt causes your body to hold on to excess fluid; causing volume overload at the heart, and subsequent hypertension. It is estimated that reducing sodium intake in America to 1300mg (about 1⁄2 teaspoon of salt) per day would reduce the yearly death rate by 150,000.⁵⁸ Our recommends are that total salt consumption not exceed 1/4 to 1/8 teaspoon per day, or 600mg to 300mg of sodium total.

Salt is a popular ingredient in fast food restaurant menu items. Salt and hypertension are key ingredients for the occurrence of a brain stroke. A national statistic reveals that the more neighborhood fast food restaurants a community has, the higher will be the stroke rate in that given community.⁵⁹

Okay, so test your salt savvy: which has more sodium Rice Chex cereal or potato chips per one ounce serving each? The Rice Chex cereal at 249 mg has nearly twice as much as potato chips at 147 mg. How did you do? Lets compare tortilla chips and canned tomato sauce: The tomato sauce tops the chips at 147 mg / oz, the chips contain 118mg of sodium per ounce. What about Kraft Valveeta processed cheese or a hot dog sandwich? Ounce for ounce the Valveeta has nearly twice as much sodium at 420 mg compared to the hot dog’s 221 mg.⁶⁰ Read your labels! Don’t get caught off guard. Or, better yet, buy food without labels, like corn on the cob, which has one-tenth the sodium as canned corn.⁶¹ In Japan, soy sauce is a significant source of excess sodium. In Japan, most (63%) dietary sodium comes from soy sauce and is a big cause of hypertension.⁶²

Let’s suppose your sodium intake is within safe limits but you still seem to be having salt related hypertension. It may be due to other things in your diet that cause you to retain sodium. Refined carbohydrates and saturated fats increase salt retention and lead to hypertension.⁶³⁶⁴

Psychosocial factors can also affect the body’s propensity to hold on to excess sodium. People under stress retain sodium.⁶⁵ Thus, people who don’t stress out, retain less salt and have lower blood pressures. We will be revisiting this factor in detail under the fast heart rate discussion section further on in this paper.

Blood pressure raising sodium is not unique (or limited) to table salt; it also appears in sea salt and in mono sodium glutamate (MSG). It should come as no surprise then that MSG consumption increases the likelihood that a person will get high blood pressure.⁶⁶

Escalating Obesity Raises Pressure Concerns

Think twice before shopping for a larger dress: clothing size correlates directly with increases in blood pressure.⁶⁷ According to the World Health Organization, more than one billion people worldwide are overweight and more than 300 million people are obese resulting in high rates of hypertension, kidney disease and cardiovascular disease.⁶⁸ What we eat in America, the (S)tandard (A)merican (D)iet, makes the liver sick with “fatty liver disease” and triples the risk of hypertension.⁶⁹ A “pot belly” is a bad omen for hypertension. Thinner is better, tighten that belly for a drop in pressure! The more abdominal (visceral fat) you sport, the greater your risk of hypertension.⁷⁰ One serving of cheese per day can significantly increase a man’s waist circumference, body mass index and blood pressure.⁷¹ Indeed, each inch you can tighten your belt lowers your risk of hypertension by 15%.⁷² To relate it to absolute weight gain in pounds, a 55 lb weight gain over your ideal body weight raises your risk of hypertension by 265%.⁷³ It is estimated that in up to 50% of the adults in the United States whose hypertension is being managed with pills, the need for drug therapy could be alleviated with modest reductions in body weight.⁷⁴

Inequality Among The Protein Giants

While many see protein as essential, excessive intake has been linked to hypertension.⁷⁵ Specifically, animal protein especially decreases kidney function increasing the risk of hypertension.⁷⁶ On the other hand plant protein has been demonstrated to lower blood pressure. Increased intake of plant protein, fruits and vegetables significantly lowers the risk of hypertension.⁷⁷ As a practical example, two groups of people were compared. The first group used milk, a source of animal protein, and the second group was given soy milk, a source of vegetable protein. Those on the soy milk experienced 18 mmHg lower blood pressures than those on the cows milk.⁷⁸ What’s more a switch to soy can improve kidney function and insulin sensitivity,⁷⁹ and lowered serum total cholesterol levels.⁸⁰

Vasoconstriction

Let’s now turn our attention to the impact of vasoconstriction on the development of high blood pressure. If the blood vessels tighten up, making the space for the passage of blood narrower, it takes greater pressure to get the same amount of blood through to its destination. What makes the blood vessels tighten up? Psychological stress!, cold; especially in the arms and/or legs; failing to maintain adequate water intake and then there are the substances which stimulate the blood vessels to constrict such as caffeine from tea, coffee, colas, etc, and tobacco.

Putting Pressure On: Substance Abuse

Caffeine makes the heart react as it would if you were in a real life- or-death, stressful, flight-or-fight situation.⁸¹ What actually happens is that caffeine acutely raises blood pressure by raising circulating concentrations of the stress mediators epinephrine and norepinephrine. In addition caffeine increases arterial stiffness and inhibits the relaxation of blood vessels.⁸² The impact of caffeine consumption on blood pressure is dose dependent; the more caffeine you consume, the higher your blood pressure increases.⁸³

Chocolate contains caffeine as well as other similar vasoactive substances such as theobromine.⁸⁴ Some have crafted studies (which lack any disclaimer to industry involvement, funding or researcher bias) designed to give chocolate apparent positive effects on high blood pressure.⁸⁵ But in studies of real people eating chocolate available from stores it does not lower blood pressure, it only tends to encourage eating between meals and weight gain.⁸⁶

The nicotine in tobacco is also a vasoconstrictor and pressor—a substance which raises blood pressure. Non-smokers have 12% lower risk of developing hypertension than smokers.⁸⁷

Environmental Hazards

Remember the people who got sick from the FEMA trailers used to house victims of hurricane Katrina that hit Louisiana?⁸⁸ Environmental chemicals such as formaldehyde and acetaldehyde, which are found in building materials and cigarette smoke, increase hypertension tightening blood vessels and increase the amount of blood the heart pumps.⁸⁹

Vasoconstriction can be the result of electro-magnetic bombardment. For example 40 minutes on the mobile phone can raise your blood pressure by 10 points.⁹⁰

Weather and Clothing

When your arms or legs get cold the blood vessels in them tighten up to reduce the amount of blood coming to them so that you will not lose too much heat. Poorly clad, chilled extremities force blood back to the heart, doubling its work and raising blood pressure.⁹¹ It is interesting to note that blood pressure increases in the winter, especially in the elderly,⁹² but so does the consumption salt and fat.⁹³

On the brighter side, don’t underestimate the benefits of sunshine! Sunshine relaxes blood vessels lowering blood pressure⁹⁴⁹⁵ and increases vitamin D of which also has been shown to lower blood pressure.⁹⁶

Move Those Muscles!

Don’t take life sitting down! Active people have lower blood pressures; sedentary ones get hypertension.⁹⁷ Inactivity leads to increased vascular resistance to blood flow,⁹⁸ decreased blood flow to large muscles,⁹⁹ and increased blood pressure.¹⁰⁰ Regular use of your muscles keeps them supple and well supplied with blood, this in turn lowers blood pressure.¹⁰¹¹⁰²

The benefits of exercise in the treatment of hypertension are often overlooked. Exercise is important for all aspects of health. If you keep wiggling, they won’t put you in a box! As a mode of exercise, walking is hard to beat. In fact, walking 10,000 steps or more per day can lower your blood pressure by 10 points.¹⁰³ That would be about 4 miles. Weight lifting or resistance training can provide additional benefit. Indeed, 20 minutes per day in the gym can lower you blood pressure by as much as 10-12 points.¹⁰⁴

Relaxation

Feel the need of a massage? A back massage brings relaxation and lowers blood pressure.¹⁰⁵ A nice soothing warm bath is also beneficial.¹⁰⁶

External Compression

External compression, the choking off of the blood flow by something pushing on the blood vessel from it’s outside, causes hypertension. The effect is like putting your thumb over the end of a garden hose, the result is increased blood pressure.

If some one grabs your neck and chokes off your air and carotid arteries, not only will your eyes bulge, but also your blood pressure will probably go up. Physical things which produce an external compression of the blood vessels include swelling or edema, inflammation, sugar coating of the vessel walls called glycation, tight clothing and obesity.

Tight Clothing

Tight clothing, like belts and elastic, compress blood vessels and raise blood pressure. Clothing that hangs from your shoulders leaves your waist free of compression and aids in lowering blood pressure. Wearing loose clothes allow for more free blood flow and more normal blood pressure.¹⁰⁷ Instead of wearing a belt to hold up pants, suspenders are helpful to avoid the tightness.

Breathe Correctly

Deep abdominal breathing, in contrast to shallow chest/neck breathing, brings blood pressure down.¹⁰⁸¹⁰⁹

Blood Viscosity, Thick Blood

If the blood becomes thick and sludgy, more pressure is required to carry it through the blood vessels and hypertension commences.¹¹⁰
When blood thickens we say that the viscosity has increased too much. What actually happens is that the red blood cells stick together in a series or chain. We call this phenomenon rouleaux.¹¹¹ Factors known to influence blood toward increased viscosity and rouleaux include stress, dehydration, consuming refined foods, high blood cholesterol, high fat diet, overeating, and the accumulation of waste products in the intestines.

Refined foods, such as oils and sugars, make red blood cells stick together in clusters or chains called rouleaux that can be seen under a microscope. Higher blood pressure is required to circulate this thickened blood.¹¹²

Continued in Hypertension: Taking the Pressure Off – Part 2

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⁹² Collins KJ. Low indoor temperatures and morbidity in the elderly. Age Ageing. 1986 Jul;15(4):212-20.


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⁹⁴ Opländer C, Volkmar CM, Paunel-Görgülü A, van Faassen EE, Heiss C, Kelm M, Halmer D, Mürtz M, Pallua N, Suschek CV. Whole body UVA irradiation lowers systemic blood pressure by release of nitric oxide from intracutaneous
photolabile nitric oxide derivates. Circ Res. 2009 Nov 6;105(10):1031-40.


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⁹⁸ Demiot C, Dignat-George F, Fortrat JO, Sabatier F, Gharib C, Larina I, Gauquelin-Koch G, Hughson R, Custaud MA. WISE 2005: chronic bed rest impairs microcirculatory endothelium in women. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2007 Nov;293(5):H3159-64.


⁹⁹ Just H. Peripheral adaptations in congestive heart failure: a review. Am J Med. 1991 May 29;90(5B):23S- 26S.


¹⁰⁰ Novo S, Pinto A, Alaimo G, Galati D, Strano A. Calf blood flow and vascular resistance in borderline hypertensives in comparison with control subjects. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 1986;8 Suppl 5:S122-4.


¹⁰¹ Leung FP, Yung LM, Laher I, Yao X, Chen ZY, Huang Y. Exercise, vascular wall and cardiovascular diseases: an update (Part 1). Sports Med. 2008;38(12):1009-24.


¹⁰² Yung LM, Laher I, Yao X, Chen ZY, Huang Y, Leung FP. Exercise, vascular wall and cardiovascular diseases: an update (part 2). Sports Med. 2009;39(1):45-63.


¹⁰³ Iwane M, Arita M, Tomimoto S, Satani O, Matsumoto M, Miyashita K, Nishio I. Walking 10,000 steps/day or more reduces blood pressure and sympathetic nerve activity in mild essential hypertension. Hypertens Res. 2000 Nov;23(6):573-80.


¹⁰⁴ Mota MR, Pardono E, Lima LC, Arsa G, Bottaro M, Campbell CS, Simões HG. Effects of treadmill running and resistance exercises on lowering blood pressure during the daily work of hypertensive subjects. J Strength Cond Res. 2009 Nov;23(8):2331-8.


¹⁰⁵ Meek SS. Effects of slow stroke back massage on relaxation in hospice clients. Image J Nurs Sch. 1993 Spring;25(1):17-21.


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¹⁰⁷ Rafacz W, McGill SM. Wearing an abdominal belt increases diastolic blood pressure. J Occup Environ Med. 1996 Sep;38(9):925-7.


¹⁰⁸ Wang SZ, Li S, Xu XY, Lin GP, Shao L, Zhao Y, Wang TH. Effect of slow abdominal breathing combined with biofeedback on blood pressure and heart rate variability in prehypertension. J Altern Complement Med. 2010 Oct;16(10):1039-45.


¹⁰⁹ Jefferson LL. Exploring effects of therapeutic massage and patient teaching in the practice of diaphragmatic breathing on blood pressure, stress, and anxiety in hypertensive African-American women: an intervention study. J Natl Black Nurses Assoc. 2010 Jul;21(1):17-24.


¹¹⁰ Linde T, Sandhagen B, Hg A, Mlin C, Wikstr B, Danielson BG. Blood viscosity and peripheral vascular resistance in patients with untreated essential hypertension. J Hypertens. 1993 Jul;11(7):731-6.


¹¹¹ Cicco G, Vicenti P, Stingi GD, Tarallo, Pirrelli A. Hemorheology in complicated hypertension. Clin Hemorheol Microcirc. 1999;21(3-4):315-9.

¹¹² Bogar L. Hemorheology and hypertension: not “chicken or egg” but two chickens from similar eggs. Clin Hemorheol Microcirc. 2002;26(2):81-3.


¹¹³ Burstyn PG, Firth WR. Effects of three fat-enriched diets on the arterial pressure of rabbits. Cardiovasc Res. 1975 Nov;9(6):807-10.

¹¹⁴ Beegom R, Singh RB. Association of higher saturated fat intake with higher risk of hypertension in an urban population of Trivandrum in south India. Int J Cardiol. 1997 Jan 3;58(1):63-70.


¹¹⁵ Borghi C, Veronesi M, Cosentino E, Cicero AF, Kuria F, Dormi A, Ambrosioni E. Interaction between serum cholesterol levels and the renin-angiotensin system on the new onset of arterial hypertension in subjects with high-normal blood pressure. J Hypertens. 2007 Oct;25(10):2051-7.

¹¹⁶ Leviticus 7:23. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


¹¹⁷ Tamaya N, Uemura K, Yoshioka S, Ueda M, Hattori A, Kuzuya M, Ohmoto Y, Muraguchi M, Nakamura J, Iguchi A. Noninvolvement of hypertriglyceridemia and hyperleptinemia in blood pressure increases induced by dietary lard in rats. Drugs Exp Clin Res. 2001;27(5-6):177-84.


¹¹⁸ Tamaya-Mori N, Uemura K, Tanaka S, Iguchi A. Aging accelerates dietary lard-induced increase in blood pressure in rats. Exp Gerontol. 2003 Aug;38(8):905-10.


¹¹⁹ Deuteronomy 14:8. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


¹²⁰ Slavícek J, Kittnar O, Dohnalová A, Trojan S, Novák V, Tichý JA, Trefný ZM. Effect of a 10-day animal fat-free diet on cholesterol and glucose serum levels, blood pressure and body weight in 50-year-old volunteers. Sb Lek. 2001;102(4):519-25.


¹²¹ Stolberg HO, Norman G, Trop I. Randomized controlled trials. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2004 Dec;183(6):1539-44.


¹²² Daniel 1:12. King James Version of The Holy Bible.


¹²³ Naito Y, Yoshida H, Nagata T, Tanaka A, Ono H, Ohara N. Dietary intake of rapeseed oil or soybean oil as the only fat nutrient in spontaneously hypertensive rats and Wistar Kyoto rats – blood pressure and pathophysiology. Toxicology. 2000 May 5;146(2-3):197-208.


¹²⁴ Kaufman LN, Peterson MM, Smith SM. Hypertensive effect of polyunsaturated dietary fat. Metabolism. 1994 Jan;43(1):1-3.


¹²⁵ Naito Y, Nagata T, Takano Y, Nagatsu T, Ohara N. Rapeseed oil ingestion and exacerbation of hypertension-related conditions in stroke prone spontaneously hypertensive rats. Toxicology. 2003 May 3;187(2-3):205-16.


¹²⁶ Soriguer F, Rojo-Martinez G, Dobarganes MC, Garcia Almeida JM, Esteva I, Beltan M, Ruiz De Adana MS, Tinahones F, Gomez-Zumaquero JM, Garcia-Fuentes E, Gonzalez-Romero S. Hypertension is related to the degradation of dietary frying oils. Am J Clin Nutr. 2003 Dec;78(6):1092-7.
fn127. Gosmanov AR, Smiley DD, Robalino G, Siquiera J, Khan B, Le NA, Patel RS, Quyyumi AA, Peng L, Kitabchi AE, Umpierrez GE. Effects of oral and intravenous fat load on blood pressure, endothelial function, sympathetic activity, and oxidative stress in obese healthy subjects. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2010 Dec;299(6):E953-8.


¹²⁸ Giannotti G, Doerries C, Mocharla PS, Mueller MF, Bahlmann FH, Horvath T, Jiang H, Sorrentino SA, Steenken N, Manes C, Marzilli M, Rudolph KL, Luscher TF, Drexler H, Landmesser U. Impaired endothelial repair capacity of early endothelial progenitor cells in prehypertension: relation to endothelial dysfunction. Hypertension. 2010 Jun;55(6):1389-97.


¹²⁹ Cugini P, Baldoni F, De Rosa R, Pandolfi C, Colotto M, Buccarella PA, Zamparelli C, Berti D, Passini B, Roncoroni V, Sabino D, Capria A. Higher blood pressure load (baric impact) in normotensives with endothelial dysfunction: a paraphysiological status of “pre-hypertension”. Clin Ter. 2002 Sep- Oct;153(5):309-15.


¹³⁰ Blendea MC, Bard M, Sowers JR, Winer N. High-fat meal impairs vascular compliance in a subgroup of young healthy subjects. Metabolism. 2005 Oct;54(10):1337-44.


¹³¹ Sofola O, Knill A, Myers D, Hainsworth R, Drinkhill M. High-salt diet and responses of the pressurized mesenteric artery of the dog to noradrenaline and acetylcholine. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol. 2004 Oct;31(10):696-9.


¹³² Fiore MC, Jimenez PM, Cremonezzi D, Juncos LI, García NH. Statins reverse renal inflammation and endothelial dysfunction induced by chronic high salt intake. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol. 2011 Aug;301(2):F263-70.


¹³⁴ Lind L. Lipids and endothelium-dependent vasodilation—a review. Lipids. 2002 Jan;37(1):1-15.


¹³⁶ Moriel P, Sevanian A, Ajzen S, Zanella MT, Plavnik FL, Rubbo H, Abdalla DS. Nitric oxide, cholesterol oxides and endothelium-dependent vasodilation in plasma of patients with essential hypertension. Braz J Med Biol Res. 2002 Nov;35(11):1301-9.


¹³⁷ Sasaki S, Higashi Y, Nakagawa K, Kimura M, Noma K, Sasaki S, Hara K, Matsuura H, Goto C, Oshima T, Chayama K. A low-calorie diet improves endothelium-dependent vasodilation in obese patients with essential hypertension. Am J Hypertens. 2002 Apr;15(4 Pt 1):302-9.


¹³⁸ Vaag A, Brøns C, Appel JS, Toubro S. Metabolic consequences of overeating. Ugeskr Laeger. 2006 Jan 9;168(2):183-7.


¹⁴⁰ Gomes MB, Affonso FS, Cailleaux S, Almeida AL, Pinto LF, Tibiriçá E. Glucose levels observed in daily clinical practice induce endothelial dysfunction in the rabbit macro- and microcirculation. Fundam Clin Pharmacol. 2004 Jun;18(3):339-46.


¹⁴² Tran LT, Yuen VG, McNeill JH. The fructose-fed rat: a review on the mechanisms of fructose-induced insulin resistance and hypertension. Mol Cell Biochem. 2009 Dec;332(1-2):145-59.


¹⁴³ Winer N, Sowers JR. Vascular compliance in diabetes. Curr Diab Rep. 2003 Jun;3(3):230-4.


¹⁴⁴ Lin CL, Fang TC, Gueng MK. Vascular dilatory functions of ovo-lactovegetarians compared with omnivores. Atherosclerosis. 2001 Sep;158(1):247-51.


¹⁴⁵ Katz DL, Nawaz H, Boukhalil J, Giannamore V, Chan W, Ahmadi R, Sarrel PM. Acute effects of oats and vitamin E on endothelial responses to ingested fat. Am J Prev Med. 2001 Feb;20(2):124-9.


¹⁴⁶ Suganuma H, Inakuma T. Protective effect of dietary tomato against endothelial dysfunction in hypercholesterolemic mice. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 1999 Jan;63(1):78-82.


¹⁴⁷ Sato J, O’Brien T, Katusic ZS, Fu A, Nygren J, Singh R, Nair KS. Dietary antioxidants preserve endothelium dependent vasorelaxation in overfed rats. Atherosclerosis. 2002 Apr;161(2):327-33.


¹⁴⁸ Ribeiro Jorge PA, Neyra LC, Ozaki RM, de Almeida E. Improvement in the endothelium-dependent relaxation in hypercholesterolemic rabbits treated with vitamin E. Atherosclerosis. 1998 Oct;140(2):333-9. 149 Browning JD, Reeves PG, O’Dell BL. Zinc deficiency in rats reduces the vasodilation response to bradykinin and prostacyclin. J Nutr. 1987 Mar;117(3):490-5.


¹⁵⁰ Schuschke DA, Saari JT, Miller FN. A role for dietary cop

March 1, 1954. The United States tested the largest nuclear device ever tested in the Marshall Islands of the Pacific. It was 1000 times larger than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. It sent a cloud of fire 100,000 feet into the air. The heat created gale force winds that blew vegetation from surrounding islands. The Marshallese were not amused. Enraged, they raced to court and sued the United States government. The United States conceded and money started rolling into these remote South Sea Islands.

But what does an islander do with money on an isolated island? Soon stuff had to be imported to spend cash on. People who once subsisted on tropical fruits, vegetables and fish, now became enamored with Spam and frozen turkey tails, (as well as our other convenience foods high in fat, salt and sugar, and low in nutrition.) The health results of such lifestyle changes quickly became apparent. Type II diabetes, almost unheard of in the Pacific islands before these dietary changes, now rendered 30% of the people over age 15 diabetic, and also high rates of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, kidney failure, eye disease, and amputations.¹

“But I thought diabetes was inherited.” someone may be thinking. Inherited from the grocer, I might caution.

World Wide Epidemic

Sadly diabetes proliferation is not limited to the Marshall Islands. World wide, diabetes is expected to increase by 46% in the next 10 years. The largest increases will be in the developing countries of Africa, China and South America²—countries that can ill afford the increased medical complications and costs associated with such a disease.

Nor is the United States immune to such increases in the number of diabetics. According to the CDC the U.S. had 5.8 million diabetics in 1980. By 2005 this number had jumped to an all time high of 20.8 million³, and we know the population has not tripled during that same time. If diabetes were inherited we would have to conclude that diabetics are having far more babies than the rest of society! This is not actually possible because diabetics have difficult pregnancies.

“What are my chances of getting diabetes?” someone may be wondering.

Lifetime risk of getting diabetes in the United States for Caucasians is 39% for women and 33% for men. Hispanics suffer a little higher incidence at 53% for females and 45% males.⁴

The American Diabetes Association estimates the 2002 total cost for diabetes in the United States at $132 Billion. With the rise in diabetes they calculate that by 2020 we will be spending nearly $200 Billion on diabetes.⁵

Complications Of Diabetes

Diabetes causes multiple complications if blood sugar is not controlled. Complications can take many forms and can occur in various places throughout the body.

Heart disease⁶ and stroke⁷ kill 80% of diabetics.

Three out of four diabetics have high blood pressure.⁸

Diabetes is the number one cause of blindness accounting for 24,000 new cases each year.⁹


In 2005 there were 46,000 new cases of kidney failure resulting from diabetes, and an ongoing total of 179,000 cases.¹⁰

Thirty to 50% of diabetics suffer nerve damage that results in carpal tunnel syndrome,¹¹ pain or numbness in the feet or hands (peripheral neuropathy),¹² and slowed digestion of food.¹³

Diabetes is one of the greatest causes of amputations in the United States. A diabetic has ten times the risk of amputation. There are over 80,000 amputations per year in diabetics alone.¹⁴ Diabetics who experience amputations on both legs never get back to walking like they once did.
Diabetics are 10 to 34% more likely to become depressed.¹⁵ They experience more mood and memory changes and studies show that their brains actually shrink.¹⁶

Infections occur more frequently in diabetics making them more likely to die with a pneumonia or influenza. Life expectancy of diabetics is reduced by 12-14 years.¹⁷ Not only does diabetes shorten ones life but it more than triples the risk of ending up in a nursing home in middle age.¹⁸

History Of Diabetes

The earliest recorded history of diabetes comes from Egypt in 1552 B.C.¹⁹ It is interesting to note that this would have been around the time that the Israelites were enslaved in that country. Upon emancipation, scripture records that God told them, “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.”²⁰ Apparently, if the Israelites followed God’s instructions they would be spared the metabolic syndrome embarrassment.

What Is Diabetes?

Diabetes is too much sugar in the blood and urine. Blood sugar is tested on a fasting blood test. Normal blood sugar should be between 70-99 mg/dl. A blood sugar after fasting of between 100-125 mg/dl is defined as pre-diabetes. Any fasting blood sugar above 125 mg/dl diagnoses diabetes.²¹

What Causes Diabetes?

In an effort to answer this question, Dr. James Anderson, renowned diabetologist, decided to feed healthy young men two pounds of sugar a day and check for signs of diabetes. Thirteen weeks into the study there were still no signs of diabetes.²²

“I thought diabetes was too much sugar in the blood and urine,” you may be thinking.

Recent research has confirmed the real culprit—fat. People on a low fat diet, (10-15% of calories), where the fat comes from a vegetable source, have a relatively low risk of getting diabetes. On the other hand, people eating 46% of their calories as fat have a 40% higher risk of diabetes. Certain fats are especially dangerous. Just 3% of calories coming from trans-fat will raise the risk of diabetes by 44% , and 270 mg of cholesterol, little more that that found in one egg, will increase the risk by 60%. If the majority of fat in the diet, (36% of calories), comes from saturated fat (usually animal sources) the risk of diabetes goes up to 64%.²³ Animal studies have shown that increasing the fat intake to 65% of calories increases the incidence of diabetes by 350%.²⁴ Fat makes a difference!

Various fats have different physiological effects on the body. Saturated and trans-fats tend to increase cholesterol, raise blood pressure, and diminish the good HDL cholesterol levels. They also increase the risk for heart disease, stroke, certain cancers and diabetes.²⁵²⁶ Unsaturated fats, taken in their moderate amounts, (10%-15% of calories), tend to lower cholesterol, help maintain healthy HDL levels, provide essential fatty acids, and lower the risk for heart disease, stroke and diabetes.²⁷²⁸

Some of the healthiest fats come from natural plant sources. Five servings of nuts (raw or dry roasted) a week have been shown to decrease the incidence of diabetes by 30%.²⁹ The unhealthy fats tend to come from fast foods that are high in fat and low in nutrition. Two or more fast food meals per week will not only increase obesity but also can double the risk of diabetes.³⁰

Fat is not the only culprit in fast foods; one sugar-sweetened soft drink per day can increase the risk of diabetes by 83%.³¹

There are other causes of diabetes. Remember the old “four food group” posters hung on grade school classroom walls, dairy, meat, grains, and plant foods? These posters were not an initiative of the National Institute of Health or National Academy of Sciences. Studies show that milk and red meat consumption increases insulin resistance leading to the development of obesity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.³²

Stimulants can also increase diabetes. Smoking increases the risk of diabetes by 60%.³³ Caffeine increases diabetic blood sugars by 28%³⁴ and decreases the effectiveness of exercise in lowering blood sugar.³⁵ Alcohol increases obesity and destroys the pancreas’ ability to produce insulin.³⁶ Narcotics increase insulin resistance within the cells.³⁷

Drugs And Diabetes

There are certain prescription drugs that increase the risk of diabetes. Blood sugars tend to be harder to control with the use of some blood pressure medications (thiazide diuretics and beta-blockers, etc), atypical antipsychotic drugs (Clozapine, Zyprexa, Seroquel, etc), steroids such as prednisone,³⁸ and oral contraceptive pills.³⁹ Alternatives may need to be discussed with a physician.

“Diabesity”

Obesity is one of the most powerful risk factor for type 2 diabetes.⁴⁰ While people that are considered underweight have a 7% lifetime risk of acquiring diabetes, those who meet the criteria for “very obese” have a 57% lifetime diabetes risk.⁴¹ In fact, just 2 pounds weight gain can increase the risk of diabetes by 4%.⁴² As more and more Americans become obese, the number of diabetics goes up proportionately. The most dangerous fat is that which accumulates inside the abdomen around the belly by the organs— what we call central fat or visceral fat. An increase in this fat increases resistance to the action of insulin and increases the risk of heart disease⁴³ and other complications.

Stress: Diabetes And Obesity

People with type A personality tend to have more stress. Type A personalities have more than twice the risk of diabetes.⁴⁴⁴⁵ Psychosocial stress unbalances the body’s hormones promoting central obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.⁴⁶

Why Is Diabetes A Problem?

When fat cells are too full, as in obese people, they lose the ability to respond to insulin. The fatigued pancreas eventually loses its capacity to produce enough insulin and blood sugar rises even higher.

Each fat cell has insulin receptors. When these receptors are stimulated by insulin they facilitate the passage of sugar into the cell. Think of insulin receptors as door knobs and insulin as the doorkeeper who opens the doors. The way the cells regulate how much sugar they take in is by increasing or decreasing the number of insulin receptors (door knobs) available for insulin to activate (open the door to sugar). For example a normal cell puts some of its insulin receptors (door knobs) out into the blood stream where insulin can activate them (open sugar doors). Sugar then moves out of the blood stream into the cells lowering the blood sugar. Overfed fat cells pull all of their insulin receptors into the cell (leaving no doors to open). As a consequence the sugar accumulates in the blood stream increasing blood sugar to dangerous levels. When the diabetic starts to exercise, the cells get hungry and start putting more receptors into the blood stream thus making way for more sugar to enter the cells lowering the blood sugar.⁴⁷

Glycemic Index And Glycemic Load

Glycemic index indicates the effect specific carbohydrates have on blood sugar levels in comparison to the effect of pure sugar. High glycemic index foods raise blood sugar and insulin levels much higher and more rapidly than low glycemic index foods.⁴⁸ For example 50 gm of glucose has a glycemic index of 100, it enters the blood stream 100% as fast as pure sugar. A bowl of corn flakes and milk has a glycemic index of 92, meaning that the sugar in a bowl of corn flakes and milk enters the blood 92% as fast as pure sugar. Broccoli has a glycemic index of around 15, meaning that the carbohydrate in broccoli has 15% the effect of pure sugar on blood sugar.

The amount of food consumed is a major determinant of blood sugar. Glycemic load takes into account the amount of a certain glycemic indexed food eaten.⁴⁹ High glycemic load foods include calorie dense foods such as snack foods, fast foods, pastry, cookies, sweets, soda pop, white bread and white rice, refined carbohydrates and white potatoes. Low glycemic load foods include whole-grain breads and cereals, including oatmeal and brown rice, legumes, peas, beans, garbanzos, soy, tofu, fresh fruit and vegetables, nuts, protein rich foods and healthy fats.

We were not made to eat high glycemic load meals. Rats fed a high glycemic diet develop marked obesity in 32 weeks.⁵⁰ Fat rats are generally not seen out in nature. Humans fed high glycemic meals eat a larger volume of food, feel less satisfied, and get hungry sooner.⁵¹⁵²

Consequences Of High Blood Sugar

High blood sugar causes the triglycerides go up.


“Why would triglycerides go up?” Someone may be wondering, “I thought triglycerides were fats!”


The body has no little box in which to store sugar cubes. That’s right. In order to store excess sugar the body needs to convert it to something it can store, like fat. So up go the triglycerides.

High blood sugar causes proteins to be glycated.
“Glycated! What’s glycated?” you may be wondering.
Glycated is when sugar sticks to or coats the proteins in the body, like blood cells and blood vessels. Sugar clogs the system.


High blood sugar provokes insulin to rise.


Insulin is not just for chasing excess blood sugar into cells; it’s also a growth factor. As a growth factor it needs building blocks for growth. Cholesterol is one of these building blocks. Elevated insulin results in elevated cholesterol. Elevated insulin also increases blood pressure.⁵³ Insulin not only makes the abdomen grow (in central obesity) but it also can make tumors grow increasing the chance of cancer.⁵⁴⁵⁵

Sugar weakens the body’s white blood cell’s ability to destroy bacteria.

Studies show that on a good day, one white blood cell can kill 14 dangerous disease causing bacteria. With the intake of just 12 teaspoons of sugar, the amount contained in most soft drinks, each white cell can only destroy 5-1/2 bacteria.

Double the soft drink intake and the number of bacteria a white cell can destroy drops to just one!⁵⁶ Most Americans consume more than 52 teaspoons of sugar a day!⁵⁷

Blood Sugar Response To Whole Foods

The more carbohydrates are refined the higher their glycemic index. For example orange juice is the refined product of oranges. Not only is the fiber removed, but also in the process of preservation the juice is “pasteurized”, meaning that it has been heat treated in an effort to reduce the number spoilage causing microbes. This process of heat-treating has a further refining influence on the carbohydrate in oranges breaking it down in to shorter chain starches and simpler sugars.

Commercial orange juice is little different that soda pop in its effect on the body.⁵⁸ As a consequence drinking commercial orange juice elevates blood sugar very rapidly and to an excessive degree. What’s more, once the body responds with
insulin, the blood sugar drops precipitously leaving the individual faint and craving more refined carbohydrate. By comparison, eating a whole orange has a very different effect. The whole orange has not only sugar, but fiber, vitamins, phytochemicals, and minerals which help slow the passage of sugar into the blood stream and help the body more efficiently use the sugar. Because the sugar enters the blood more slowly and over a longer period of time, a precipitous fall in blood sugar that triggers hunger and faintness does not occur.⁵⁹

Diabetics tend to eat foods of higher glycemic index.⁶⁰ The effect is that their blood sugar goes up quite quickly. The body responds with a surge of insulin to take care of the emergency. Insulin can rise rapidly but it cannot drop as rapidly as blood sugar. Consequently, before long the sugar runs out and the person becomes hypoglycemic—low on blood sugar—faint and hungry. They then look for food, probably long before the next scheduled meal. The foods they choose to fulfill their low blood sugar needs are usually junk foods that compound the process and the problem.

In order to ameliorate this problem, diabetics are told just to eat many little meals all day long.⁶¹⁶² Does this work? Yes. For two reasons, first, if little meals are eaten all day long, eventually all the blood sugar spikes will coalesce into one long sugar swell with less variability and there will be no more dangerous peaks and troughs. If it weren’t that frequent meals more than doubled the risk of cancer maybe it might have some merit.⁶³⁶⁴

The problems with eating more often are not limited to increased cancer risk. The stomach is a bit like the common household washing machine. A load of clothes is started washing. Halfway through the cycle some unruly person comes with more dirty clothes and adds them to the load. If the clothes are to be cleaned the whole cycle must be started over and perhaps more soap added. This is just the way the stomach works. If more food is added before it finishes its work, it has to start over and add more digestive juice.⁶⁵ Thus the machinery is jammed, sugar digestion impeded, and the diabetic controls this blood sugar at the cost of the delicate digestive organs.

What is the real solution? If the diabetic eats an unrefined whole grain breakfast—high in fiber (low glycemic index)—the blood sugar rises slowly, the sugar supply is steady, and there is no precipitous fall in blood sugar at the end of digestion.

By lunch time the diabetic is just starting to feel hungry. Lunch is a meal of whole vegetables and legumes and the sugar is held at a manageable level all day long.

Sugar Clogs The System.

Glucose (blood sugar) is the preferred fuel of the cell. But, too much glucose in the blood clogs blood vessels and coats the blood cells with sugar. As blood sugar rises, excess sugar begins to stick to proteins—blood cell and blood vessel walls.

These sugar coated blood cells are called hemoglobin A1c or HbA1c. HbA1c predicts increased risk of heart disease and overall mortality even for people without diabetes. HbA1c indicates the average blood sugar concentration over the past three months. A HbA1c of 7.0 or higher may indicate diabetes. An increase of just 1% in HbA1c is associated with roughly a 30% increase in mortality from all causes and a 40% increase in mortality from coronary heart disease. In one study 70% of non-diabetics over 45 had a hemoglobin HbA1c of 5% or greater. Thus 82% of excess mortality due to blood sugar elevations then is in non-diabetes.⁶⁶ And here we were all patting ourselves on the back because we are not diabetic.

Living the lifestyle of a diabetic may not make everyone diabetic, but it may still provide us with a full complement of diabetic complications.

When HbA1c goes up, so does glycation of the vessel walls. Thus not only do the blood cells have trouble functioning, due to the sugar coating, but the sugar-coated blood vessels pose an additional barrier to nutrients reaching body tissues.

When this happens, body tissues starve for oxygen and nutrients making them more susceptible to fatigue, damage, and infection. This explains some of the complications listed earlier such as the elevated risk of amputation.

On the other hand, a 1% reduction in HbA1c lowers the risk of stroke by 17%, fatal heart attack by 18%, diabetic deaths by 25%,⁶⁷ amputation,⁶⁸ kidney failure, and diabetic retinopathy that leads to blindness each by 30%.⁶⁹

Signs Of Diabetes

What are the signs of diabetes?

The signs of diabetes include:

• Low energy.
• Fatigue.
• Extreme thirst.
• Frequent urination.
• Blurred vision.
• Irritability and mood changes.
• Weight changes.
• Tingling and numbness in hands or feet.
• Frequent infections.
• Extreme hunger.
• Cuts and bruises that are slow to heal.
• Nausea and vomiting.
• Dehydration.
• Reduced conscious level. 


Reduced consciousness! I was in the emergency room one day. In the stall next to where I was working an ER doctor was trying to awaken someone. 


“Wake up! Wake up! Can you hear me?”


“What, who me? Where am I?”


“Did you know you blood sugar was 300? Are you a diabetic?” “What? Who me? A diabetic?”


Sad to say this is the way all too many people discover they are diabetics. Their blood sugar goes too high, they pass out, and someone finds them and sends them to the hospital emergency room. This is not the way to discover diabetes. By this time the complications of diabetes are well on their way. 


Can People Reverse Their Diabetes? 


Kit Carson was taking 85 units of insulin daily. He was a big guy – 6’8” and 440 lbs. He relied on his pickup to go even short distances. Two days into the “Reversing Diabetes” lifestyle program his blood sugar, which had been as high as 500, returned to normal. In two years he lost 135 lbs. He never used insulin again. He says, “This program has changed my life.”⁷⁰ 


Can lifestyle changes really have that great of an effect on diabetes? The New England Journal of Medicine answered this question. They reported on an intervention trial to prevent diabetes in pre-diabetics that compared the effects of placebo (doing nothing), pharmacological medications, or lifestyle interventions. The results? Medications reduced the incidence of diabetes by 31% and lifestyle modification by 58%!⁷¹ This demonstrates that lifestyle change is a much stronger medical intervention than medications. Well, it makes sense; lifestyle caused the diabetes in the first place, not pills.

And what were the lifestyle interventions? Lifestyle intervention included weight loss with a goal 7% of weight; daily exercise with a goal 150 minutes per week; improved eating including higher fiber intake, lower saturated fat, and lower glycemic load. After 3 years, the incidence of diabetes was 58% lower in the lifestyle intervention group.

Lifestyle Interventions

What lifestyle changes was Kit Carson asked to make?

Change the diet to the “whole plant food whole” diet. Okay, so aren’t there too many “wholes” in that sentence? The point to be made is, eat plant foods and eat them in their entirety—don’t let any one “refine” them.⁷² So, what are some examples of “whole plant foods whole”? –brown rice, whole wheat flour products, fresh carrots, broccoli, spinach, and granola, etc. What are some examples of foods that are not whole plant foods whole?- cows milk, eggs, pancake mixes, crackers that have refined flour, fast foods, most foods that come in crinkly packages, sugar and oil, fish, anything with oil as an added ingredient, etc.

One reason refined foods are dangerous is their lack of fiber.


Only about 5% of Americans get as much fiber as is recommended. Fiber plays an important roll in diabetes prevention and management. Fiber protects against constipation, high cholesterol, heart disease, high blood sugar, diabetes, certain cancers, and obesity.⁷³

In Harvard’s Woman’s Health Study, eating low fiber, high glycemic index foods more than doubled the risk of getting diabetes.⁷⁴ In another study oat bran bread reduced blood sugar response by 46% and insulin response by 19% compared to refined white bread in the diet.⁷⁵

A patient came in with gestational diabetes (diabetes resulting from the changes that pregnancy does to the body) who did not want to take drugs or insulin for fear of what they might do to her unborn child. She was adamant—no pills, no shots.

She was advised to eat 1⁄2 cup of oat bran three times a day. And she did eat those three half cups of oat bran – oat bran cookies, oat bran cereal, oat bran bread, oat bran in drinks. Her blood sugar was totally controlled; she delivered a normal healthy baby and her diabetes was gone.

Fiber slows the rate at which sugar enters the blood stream. Even more fiber than is recommended for the average American is recommended for diabetics, 50 gm or more of daily fiber.⁷⁶

Another great benefit of the whole plant food diet is whole grains. Replacing refined grains in the diet with whole grains can reduce the risk of diabetes by 70%.⁷⁷ Increasing whole grains to 3 servings per day can decrease the risk of diabetes by 50%.⁷⁸

Another benefit of eating whole plant foods is that they actually require chewing. Thorough chewing increases the early insulin response to eating, decreases blood sugar,⁷⁹ and helps reduce food intake.⁸⁰ Reduced food intake helps with weight control and increases insulin sensitivity.⁸¹⁸²

A healthy breakfast plays a major role in diabetes reduction. People who eat breakfast tend to eat less total calories for the entire day; have lower cholesterol levels; and end up with less diabetes.⁸³ One study shows a 37%-55% reduction in risk of diabetes in people who eat a regular breakfast compared to those who don’t.⁸⁴

Refined food products generally have had many nutrients removed from them that are necessary for life and for the processing of carbohydrates. If a person eats a food that is totally devoid of a nutrient that is necessary for life, the body has to take from its own stores just to survive, thus depleting its own reserves of that necessary nutrient.

Chromium is an example. Diabetics generally have no tissue chromium.⁸⁵ Consumption of refined carbohydrates, such as refined sugar, tends to deplete chromium stores. In diabetics, increasing chromium has been shown to decrease fasting glucose levels, improve glucose tolerance, lower insulin levels, decrease total cholesterol and triglycerides, increase HDL-cholesterol levels, and ameliorate the symptoms of hypoglycemia.⁸⁶ Whole wheat has eight times the chromium of white flour. Brown rice has four times the chromium of white rice.

Diabetes,⁸⁷⁸⁸ coronary heart disease,⁸⁹ hypertension and high triglycerides⁹⁰ are all associated with low dietary zinc. Whole wheat flour has four times the zinc as white flour. Pumpkin seeds and lentils are also good sources of zinc.

Magnesium levels are significantly lower in diabetics⁹¹— especially diabetics with complications such as poor glycemic control, retinopathy, obesity and hypertension.⁹² The major dietary sources of magnesium include whole grains, legumes, nuts, and green leafy vegetables.⁹³

A word of caution, the longer a person has been a diabetic, the longer it may take to respond to dietary changes.⁹⁴

Benefits

Remember earlier we said that exercise makes the cells hungry again, reducing insulin resistance? Exercise lowers blood sugar and insulin, but it also helps to control weight. More than that, a good walk out in the fresh air and beautiful sunshine improves mental outlook, helping to deal with the diabetes promoting stress.⁹⁵ Compared to those who live a sedentary lifestyle, those who are highly active have a 46% lower incidence of diabetes.⁹⁶ It has been said, if you can’t find time for exercise, you will have to find time to be sick. And, more people die for want of exercise than through over fatigue….

Make Weight Loss A Habit

The most dangerous fat for the diabetic is the central fat or what is called visceral fat—that fat which settles in the abdomen around the organs. This fat is always at a higher temperature and releases toxins that increase diabetic complications. One thing the diabetic has in their favor is that all the fat reduces simultaneously—any reduction includes abdominal fat.⁹⁷ The goal then is not only to lose a little weight but also to make weight loss a habit. As long as weight is not gained back, the visceral fat will continue to melt away. Continuous weight loss, approaching ideal body weight, can reduce the risk of diabetes by 30-50%.⁹⁸

Sunshine, Vitamin D and Diabetes

Part of the program for reducing diabetes involves getting adequate sun exposure. This helps maintain vitamin D levels. Studies show that vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of diabetes⁹⁹ and that vitamin D supplementation can actually reduce the risk.¹⁰⁰ Diabetics are at increased risk of osteoporosis. This risk is also reduced by sunshine and vitamin D.

Water: Elixer Of Life

Which is sweeter, a raisin or a fresh grape? Usually a raisin is. So it is with blood, drinking more water thins the blood and lowers blood sugar by sheer dilution,¹⁰¹ protects against ketoacidosis (the condition that sends diabetics to the emergency room with alter consciousness),¹⁰²¹⁰³ and decreases diabetic neuropathy.¹⁰⁴ Humans need between 8 and 12 eight ounce glasses of water daily. Diabetics are no exception and benefit greatly from drinking water.¹⁰⁵

Reversing Diabetes Summary

• Regular exercise in the open air and sunshine (a little is better than none).
• Eat an unrefined plant based diet, low in fat, high in fiber.
• Make breakfast a healthy habit.
• Make weight control a habit.
• Drink plenty of water.
• Get adequate sleep.
• Avoid stimulants such as coffee, alcohol and tobacco.
• Turn stress over to God who alone can handle it. 


Has This Program Worked? 


It has. In the “Reversing Diabetes” program, diabetic patients were studied for 25 days on a special diet, exercise program with adequate sunshine, rest and pure filtered water. Patients were fed an unrefined plant based diet, low in fat (10%-15%), high in fiber with no cholesterol. 
The average weight loss was 11 pounds. One fourth of diabetics no longer needed insulin or drugs to control blood sugar. Those who still needed insulin saw their requirements cut nearly in half. Blood
pressures dropped from an average of 155/81 to 132/77, and 81% had complete relief of peripheral neuropathy.¹⁰⁶ 


One example from the “Reversing Diabetes” program is John Rowe, R.N., E.R. nurse and a diabetic for eleven years, who was injecting up to 144 units of insulin a day. Within two days of adopting the “Reversing Diabetes” lifestyle, his blood sugar returned to normal without medication. He lost thirty-five pounds in four months. His blood pressure fell to normal and his vision greatly improved.¹⁰⁷ 


And exactly what dietary program are we really talking about? – the original Bible diet!


Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” “And you will eat the plants of the field.”¹⁰⁸ 


Recall that the earliest record of diabetes comes from the pyramids of Egypt during the time that the Israelites were liberated, and that God said, “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.”¹⁰⁹

Why die of diabetes? Why not make it a point to exercise regularly and eat only a whole plant based diet?

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⁹⁷ Hallgreen CE, Hall KD. Allometric relationship between changes of visceral fat and total fat mass. Int J Obes (Lond). 2007 Dec 18 [Epub ahead of print].

⁹⁸ Moore LL, Visioni AJ, Wilson PW, D’Agostino RB, Finkle WD, Ellison RC. Can sustained weight loss in overweight individuals reduce the risk of diabetes mellitus? Epidemiology. 2000 May;11(3):269-73.


⁹⁹ Boucher BJ. Inadequate vitamin D status: does it contribute to the disorders comprising syndrome “X”? Br J Nutr. 1998 Apr;79(4):315-27.


¹⁰⁰ Pittas AG, Lau J, Hu FB, Dawson-Hughes B. The role of vitamin D and calcium in type 2 diabetes. A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2007 Jun;92(6):2017-29.


¹⁰¹ Lorenz I. Retrospective study of serum glucose concentration in cattle with mucosal disease. J Vet Med A Physiol Pathol Clin Med. 2000 Oct;47(8):489-93.


¹⁰² Burge MR, Garcia N, Qualls CR, Schade DS. Differential effects of fasting and dehydration in the pathogenesis of diabetic ketoacidosis. Metabolism. 2001 Feb;50(2):171-7.


¹⁰³ Jayashree M, Singhi S. Diabetic ketoacidosis: predictors of outcome in a pediatric intensive care unit of a developing country. Pediatr Crit Care Med. 2004 Sep;5(5):427- 33.


¹⁰⁴ Andersen H, Jakobsen J. Diabetes mellitus. Curr Opin Neurol. 1997 Oct;10(5):376-80.

¹⁰⁵ Sawka MN, Cheuvront SN, Carter R 3rd. Human water needs. Nutr Rev. 2005 Jun;63(6 Pt 2):S30-9.


¹⁰⁶ Crane, MG and Sample, C: Regression of diabetic neuropathy with total vegetarian (vegan) diet. J Nutr Med 1994; 4:431-439.


¹⁰⁷ http://www.reversingdiabetes.org/?cat=hiw&page=testimonies


¹⁰⁸ Genesis 1:29; 3:18 (NIV). Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. The “NIV” and “New
International Version” trademarks are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by International Bible Society. Use of either trademark requires the permission of International Bible Society.


¹⁰⁹ Exodus 15:26 King James Version of the Holy Bible.

The Diseases Of Oxidized Cholesterol

Oxidized lipids are associated with earlier and more severe atherosclerosis especially in the presence of dietary cholesterol.¹³¹¹³² Atherosclerosis is not limited to the heart, it can occur any where there are blood vessels, like the penis. Every 1 mg/dL increase in total cholesterol increases the risk of erectile dysfunction by about 1%.^133134135136 The brain suffers, too, because lipid oxidation increases Alzheimer’s disease risk.¹³⁷

A high cholesterol diet depresses natural killer cells activity by 75%, making cholesterol a dangerous food if you want your immune system to fight off viruses responsible for pandemic flu, cancer or autoimmune diseases.¹³⁸ In fact, oxidized
cholesterol increases the risk of skin cancer, colon cancer,¹³⁹¹⁴⁰ ulcerative colitis leading to cancer, breast disease leading to cancer, and prostate hyperplasia leading to cancer.¹⁴¹

The blood is usually anti-inflammatory; Relatively brief periods (days) of elevated cholesterol can result in the blood becoming pro- inflammatory increasing the risk of autoimmune diseases like Multiple Sclerosis.¹⁴²¹⁴³

Gallstones are increased by oxidized cholesterol.¹⁴⁴¹⁴⁵

Drug Pitfalls

Caffeine, 200 mg intake of per day, (about 2 cups of coffee) can increase total cholesterol by 11 mg/dL.¹⁴⁶¹⁴⁷

Daily caffeine consumption also increases LDL,¹⁴⁸ increases triglycerides,¹⁴⁹ increases the risk of heart attack,¹⁵⁰ and decreases HDL.¹⁵¹

“Pack a day” smokers can expect: 18 mg/dL triglycerides increase per pack, 3.5 mg/dL HDL decrease per pack.¹⁵²¹⁵³ Second hand smoke also lowers HDL similarly.¹⁵⁴

Triglycerides can be elevated by even small amounts of alcohol; one drink per day increases triglycerides by 10 mg/dL.¹⁵²

Use of oral contraceptives has been shown to increase LDL by 47% and VLDL by 57%.¹⁵⁵¹⁵⁶

Cholesterol drugs (statins): are they safe? Some of the most noted problems with the statins are muscle pains, rhabdomyolysis (a disintegration of the muscles) and liver toxicity.¹⁵⁷¹⁵⁸ Not all brain failure is due to aging or high cholesterol, statins have been found to play a role as well. Statins have been found to cause cognitive impairment¹⁵⁹ and memory loss.¹⁶⁰¹⁶¹ Statins also seriously decrease coenzyme Q10,^162163164 a powerful anti-oxidant involved in prevention of heart disease.¹⁶⁵ This may also be why statins can worsen congestive heart failure.¹⁶⁶ Statins are such powerful suppressors of the immune system¹⁶⁷ that they are being tested and considered for use in organ transplant immunosuppressive chemotherapy¹⁶⁸¹⁶⁹ and for autoimmune diseases.^170171172 Most things that suppress the immune system leave way for the development of cancer:

“In some randomized trials, notwithstanding their short duration, statins have been found to increase cancer incidence especially in the elderly and women. In these situations, the decrease in cardiovascular mortality can be matched by an equal increase in cancer mortality, leaving all-cause mortality unchanged.”¹⁷³

Dietary/lifestyle interventions [diet high in plant sterols, soy protein, fiber, and almonds] have been shown to lower cholesterol by 28%.¹⁷⁴ Compared to lifestyle interventions, the statin drug therapy offers no cholesterol lowering advantage.

Lifestyle Caused The Problem, Why Not Trust Lifestyle To Fix It?

Choosing a high complex carbohydrate, whole plant food diet over the typical American diet has been shown in studies to lowered total cholesterol by 30 mg/dL and LDL cholesterol by 26 mg/dL.¹⁷⁵¹⁷⁶ One such diet is the Hawaii Diet, based on their traditional foods, is high in complex carbohydrate (77% of calories), low in fat (12% of calories), moderate in protein (11% of calories). It lowers cholesterol by 50 points.¹⁷⁷ Incidentally, just replacing white rice with brown rice, whole grains and beans in coronary artery disease patients, increases their: fiber intake by 25%, vitamin E intake by 41%, other antioxidants by 11%-40%; and reduces: lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress by 28%, homocysteine concentrations by 28% and blood sugars by 24%.¹⁷⁸

Restriction of fat intake, especially saturated fat and dietary cholesterol, has been shown to reduced total cholesterol by 20 mg/dl, triglycerides by 40 mg/dl, and increase HDL-cholesterol by 5 mg/dL.¹⁷⁹ Patients with lower blood antioxidants levels have more atherosclerosis.¹⁸⁰ Lifestyle modifications have been shown to increase antioxidant levels and reduce oxidative stress in coronary artery disease patients.¹⁸¹

There are plant nutrients that can block the re-absorption of “soap” (cholesterol) from the small intestine. These nutrients in plants are called sterols, or, phytosterols, since they come from plants.¹⁸² Two grams of phytosterols can lower LDL cholesterol by 10%.^183184185 Foods highest in these phytosterols include: Nuts such as brazil, pecan, pine, pistachio, cashew,¹⁸⁶ macadamia,¹⁸⁷ walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts;¹⁸⁸ Seeds—sesame seeds are very high in phytosterols;¹⁸⁹ Beans, such as soybeans and peas; Whole grains like Amaranth;¹⁹⁰ Fruit such as navel oranges, tangerines, and mangos; and vegetables such as, cauliflower, broccoli, and romaine lettuce.¹⁹¹ Refining and/or processing foods decrease their phytosterol content making hypercholesterolemia more likely.¹⁹²

Good Oils and Good Sterols

Avocados are an excellent source of monounsaturated fat and have been shown to significantly lower total cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides.¹⁹³¹⁹⁴ Walnuts lower total cholesterol and LDL while fish raise total cholesterol and LDL.¹⁹⁵ Daily consumption of 80 gm of walnuts for two months can reduce LDL levels by 16%.¹⁹⁶ Raw almonds, 100 gm of per day, can reduce total cholesterol by 20 mg/dL.¹⁹⁷ Pistachios improve HDL lipid ratios.¹⁹⁸ Sunflower seeds are high in natural occurring unsaturated oils and have been found to lower cholesterol levels.^199200201

Does something seem “fishy” about salmon oil capsules for cholesterol problems? Salmon oil capsules are less effective than olive oil in preventing lipid peroxidation, hypercholesterolemia and arteriosclerosis.²⁰²²⁰³ Daily fish oil supplementation can raise your total cholesterol by 9.1% and LDL by 4.8%.²⁰⁴²⁰⁵ Olive oil, a source of omega-3s and phytosterols, increases HDL-cholesterol levels, while decreasing LDL-cholesterol levels, LDL susceptibility to oxidation and lipid per oxidation.²⁰⁶ I recommend getting your olive oil by eating the actual olive not the factory produced oil.

Flax, a rich source of omega-3 monounsaturated oil, helps lower cholesterol.²⁰⁷ Omega-3s, 1.5 mg per day, have been shown to lower triglycerides by 37%.²⁰⁸ Maybe you have been trying to lower your cholesterol through the use of omega-3 oils but seem to be making no progress. If your still eating cholesterol, omega-3s won’t lower your LDL.²⁰⁹

Replacing cheese with vegetable fat can lower: Total cholesterol by 23 mg/dL, and LDL by 17 mg/dL. Replacing cheese with nuts can lower: Total cholesterol by 41 mg/dL, and LDL by 33 md/dL.²¹⁰ Eating whole plant foods is the most effective way of lowering cholesterol.

Absorbents

Cholesterol can be adsorbed from the intestine by certain foods and substances. These adsorbents carry cholesterol out in the stool so that it does not get re-absorbed into the body. Charcoal is one of these. As a supplement, it has been shown to significantly lower cholesterol.²¹¹²¹² Eight grams three times per day can lower total cholesterol by 25% and LDL by 41%, while raising HDL by 8%.²¹³²¹⁴ Fiber absorbs cholesterol in the intestine preventing its re-entry into the body. Each additional gram of water-soluble fiber in the diet lowers total cholesterol by 1.1 mg/dL.²¹⁵ For each gram of a particular fiber, total cholesterol decreases by; 1.0 mg/dL for guar gum, 1.1 mg/dL for psyllium (e.g. Metamucil), 1.5 mg/dL for oat bran, and 2.7 mg/dL for fruit pectin.²¹⁶ Each addition of 10 g of fiber to the diet reduces the risk of dying of a heart attack by 17%.²¹⁷

There are many good sources of fiber. Grains are high in fiber that absorb cholesterol. Oats and oat bran contain fiber and phytochemicals that adsorb bile salts and cholesterol from the intestines carrying them out in the feces. Twelve weeks of 14 g/d oat bran can lower LDL by 2.5% and triglycerides by 6.6%.²¹⁸ Barley contains approximately 10% dietary fiber²¹⁹ that can significantly reduce cholesterol and triglycerides.²²⁰²²¹ Rice bran not only lowers cholesterol, it also has some antioxidants that reduce oxidized cholesterol.²²² Regular buckwheat consumption reduces cholesterol.²²³²²⁴ One caveat, while whole wheat products may be considered a valuable source of fiber, for some reason a diet high in wheat products has been shown to raise total cholesterol by about 10 mg/dL.²²⁵

There are other good plant sources of cholesterol lowering fiber. Prunes lower total and LDL cholesterol,²²⁶²²⁷ decrease oxidative stress, fight inflammation and have been discovered to decrease atherosclerotic plaque in blood vessels.²²⁸²²⁹

Grapefruit, especially red grapefruit, contain bioactive compounds which lower cholesterol.²³⁰ Four weeks of grapefruit pectin can lower LDL cholesterol by 11%.²³¹ Grapefruit pectin also lowers the risk of arteriosclerosis by 50%.²³² Beet fiber, 30 g/day can lower cholesterol by 10%.²³³ Psyllium (e.g. Metamucil), 5.1 g twice daily, can lower total cholesterol 8.9% and LDL-cholesterol 13.0%.²³⁴

The combined effects of plant sterols, vegetable proteins, and fiber have been shown to reduce LDL by 29.0% and the ratio of LDL to HDL by 26.5%. Near maximal reductions have been seen in two weeks.²³⁵ What if I don’t get results in two weeks? Maybe you are cheating? One high fat food item eaten during those 2 weeks will reset the liver’s soap factory back to maximal production! This is a lifestyle change commitment, not a short-term quick-fix diet.

Beans (Besides Soy Mentioned Earlier)

Beans, 120 g per day, can lower cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations by 10.4%.²³⁶ Four cans of garbanzos per week can reduce total cholesterol by 8 points and LDL by 7.²³⁷

Vegetables

Vegetables have lots of fiber and antioxidants such as carotenoids, polyphenols and vitamin C. This explains their protective effects against cardiovascular diseases. Carrots have been shown to lower cholesterol, triglycerides, reduce cholesterol re-adsorption in the bowel, and improve blood stream antioxidant status.²³⁸ Garlic counteracts atherosclerosis and lipid oxidation.²³⁹ Regular garlic consumption can reduce total cholesterol by 7%,²⁴⁰²⁴¹ and reduce blood lipid per oxidation.²⁴² Red onions are more effective than garlic at lowering blood lipids.²⁴³ Daily onion consumption can reduce plasma triglyceride levels by as much as 15%.²⁴⁴ Turmeric is an effective antioxidant in combating lipid per oxidation.²⁴⁵ Studies show that alfalfa sprouts reduce cholesterol levels both in the blood and in the liver where it is produced and stored.²⁴⁶²⁴⁷ Celery consumption has been found to significantly reduce total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides.^248249250

Fruit

Low dietary vitamin C intake has been shown to result in increased blood cholesterol levels²⁵¹²⁵² and increased risk of heart disease.²⁵³ On the other hand, increased dietary vitamin C intake has been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels.²⁵⁴²⁵⁵

Foods high in vitamin C include strawberries, bell peppers, chives, red cabbage, broccoli, pineapple, oranges / lemons, kale, cauliflower, peas, etc. (Notice no fish, coffee or tea are on the list. If you’re eating foods that are totally deficient in a vital nutrient, your body must draw from it own reserves just to survive and in time you will totally deplete your own hard earned supplies!)

There are many helpful fruits we could mention in addition to the ones already talked about. Pomegranates help combat lipid peroxidation and cholesterol oxidation.²⁵⁶ Apples contain quercetin,²⁵⁷ a phytochemical, that helps combat heart disease by reducing the effects of oxidized cholesterol on blood vessels.²⁵⁸

Sugar/Refined Carbohydrates And Cholesterol

Increased blood sugar combined with increased blood cholesterol multiply the risk of atherosclerosis.²⁵⁹ Elevated blood sugars (as seen in diabetics) lead to elevated triglycerides.²⁶⁰ A rise in blood insulin is followed by a rise in cholesterol production and this increases the risk of coronary artery disease.²⁶¹²⁶² Elevated insulin also lowers HDL.²⁶³ Elevated HbA1c levels correlate with elevated cholesterol and triglycerides.²⁶⁴²⁶⁵ Eliminating all foods with refined sugars from your diet can reduce triglycerides by 20%.²⁶⁶²⁶⁷

Fructose, a sugar often obtained from corn, is a very dangerous chemical. Dietary fructose specifically increases: LDL by 14%, oxidized LDL cholesterol by 13%, total cholesterol by 10% and visceral fat by 9%.²⁶⁸²⁶⁹ Soda pop is often sweetened with this chemical. Soda consumption, one or more cans per day, increases risk of: metabolic syndrome 45% (diabetes is included in this syndrome), low HDL by 32%, central obesity 30% and high triglycerides 25%.²⁷⁰

Honey does not carry the health risks of sugar, high fructose corn syrup and highly refined, high glycemic index foods. Compared to these honey can reduce; total cholesterol by 3%, LDL 6%, triglycerides 11%, blood sugar 4%, inflammation 3%, and increased HDL by 3%.²⁷¹

Carbohydrates fried with oil create Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs), toxins which activate the body’s inflammatory mediators.²⁷² Advanced Glycation End Products, are chemical combinations of sugars with fats or proteins, and they accelerate atherosclerosis via enhancement of oxidative stress.²⁷³²⁷⁴ Some foods have far more of these dangerous chemicals, for example, a slice of 100% whole wheat bread has 536 units of AGEs, whereas one glazed doughnut can have a much as 425,740 units of AGEs.²⁷⁵ Going on a low calorie diet for two months will markedly reduce dangerous Advanced Glycation End Products.²⁷⁶

Lifestyle Improvements

People who eat breakfast regularly have significantly lower cholesterol levels.²⁷⁷

Scheduled regularity improves cholesterol, lowers total and LDL cholesterol, and raises HDL.²⁷⁸ Daily irregularity, such as shift work, raises cholesterol.²⁷⁹ What’s more, shift workers are 174% more likely to have elevated triglycerides and 81% more likely to have abdominal obesity than workers on a routine schedule.²⁸⁰

Cholesterol rises after a meal and is more prolonged after an evening meal than meals taken during the day.²⁸¹²⁸²

When you snack, food stays in your stomach much longer. The longer it takes to empty your stomach the more cholesterol will be adsorbed.²⁸³ Eating between meals (snacking) also reduces HDL cholesterol.²⁸⁴

Pure water is a key to controlling the body’s oxidative stress and inflammation. Distilled water lowers the risks associated with high cholesterol levels while tap water raises the risks.²⁸⁵²⁸⁶ Dehydration causes relative elevation in the blood lipids such as total HDL and LDL cholesterol.²⁸⁷

Obesity is a risk factor for increased blood cholesterol levels. A body mass index (BMI) of 25, categorized as over weight, increases the risk of hypercholesterolemia by 250%, being obese (BMI of 30) increases that risk to 540%.²⁸⁸ Waist circumference is also a negative indicator of health, triglycerides go up and HDL goes down with increasing waist circumference.²⁸⁹

Vitamin D is a potent inhibitor of damage caused by lipid per oxidation.²⁹⁰ Vitamin D is synthesized from cholesterol during sun exposure. Twice weekly sunbathing can significantly improve LDL/HDL ratios lowering heart disease risks.²⁹¹ Because gardeners get more sun and fresh air, they have higher vitamin D levels, and enjoy lower cholesterol levels.²⁹²

Athletes have significantly lower total cholesterol and significantly higher HDL cholesterol.²⁹³ In fact, the more vigorous you exercise the lower your risk of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and diabetes.²⁹⁴ Endurance training significantly: lowers total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol at the same time it increases HDL cholesterol.²⁹⁵ Resistance training or weight lifting reduces triglycerides by about 18%.²⁹⁶ Exercise therapy, at a heart rate of around 135 bpm for 30 minutes 3 times/week, can decrease triglycerides by 20 mg/dL and increase HDL by 10 mg/dL.²⁹⁷ Choosing the stairs over an elevator 5 times a day can lower LDL cholesterol by 8%.²⁹⁸ Walking for exercise, 30 minutes a day, significantly lowers triglycerides and total cholesterol and increases HDL cholesterol.²⁹⁹ Walking 6,000 or more steps per day has been shown to lower triglycerides 10 mg/dL and raise HDL 3 mg/dL.

Eating less food, “caloric restriction” by 25% lowers triglycerides 31 mg/dL. Together with exercise, caloric restriction has been shown to lower LDL 16 mg/dL.^300301302

Too little sleep raises total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol.^303304305 Longer sleep duration is related to higher total cholesterol level and a higher total/HDL cholesterol ratio.³⁰⁶ Both under sleep and over sleep increase triglycerides and lower HDL cholesterol.³⁰⁷

People showing other clinical signs of stress have a 180% higher risk of elevated cholesterol.^308309310 On the other hand, laughter may boost HDL by as much as 23%.³¹¹

Religious observance has a lowering effect on total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL while elevating HDL.³¹²³¹³ This may be a testimony to its impact on stress. Jesus said, ““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”³¹⁴ “You cannot eat your way into heaven, but you can eat your way out of heaven.”—Ed Reid. A mind bogged down with excess fat or cholesterol is in no position to interact with our loving Creator.

Summary

• Avoid food that require much soap to digest (i.e. fats).
• Avoid animal protein because it stimulates your liver to produce cholesterol.
• Eliminate all oxidized cholesterol from your diet.
• Maximize your whole plant food, fiber, and pure water intake in your diet and lifestyle.
• Exercise regularly.
• Turn your stress over to God.

References

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²⁹¹ Carbone LD, Rosenberg EW, Tolley EA, Holick MF, Hughes TA, Watsky MA, Barrow KD, Chen TC, Wilkin NK, Bhattacharya SK, Dowdy JC, Sayre RM, Weber KT. 25-Hydroxyvitamin D, cholesterol, and ultraviolet irradiation. Metabolism.
2008 Jun;57(6):741-8.

²⁹² Grimes DS, Hindle E, Dyer T. Sunlight, cholesterol and coronary heart disease. QJM. 1996 Aug;89(8):579-89.

²⁹³ Lippi G, Schena F, Salvagno GL, Montagnana M, Ballestrieri F, Guidi GC. Comparison of the lipid profile and lipoprotein(a) between sedentary and highly trained subjects. Clin Chem Lab Med. 2006;44(3):322-6.

²⁹⁴ Williams PT. Relationship of running intensity to hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and diabetes. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2008 Oct;40(10):1740-8.

²⁹⁵ Halverstadt A, Phares DA, Wilund KR, Goldberg AP, Hagberg JM. Endurance exercise training raises high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and lowers small low-density lipoprotein and very low-density lipoprotein independent of body fat phenotypes in older men and women. Metabolism. 2007 Apr;56(4):444-50.

²⁹⁶ Shaw I, Shaw BS. Relationship between resistance training and lipoprotein profiles in sedentary male smokers. Cardiovasc J Afr. 2008 Jul-Aug;19(4):194-7.

²⁹⁷ Hata Y, Nakajima K. Life-style and serum lipids and lipoproteins. J Atheroscler Thromb. 2000;7(4):177-97.

²⁹⁸ Boreham CA, Kennedy RA, Murphy MH, Tully M, Wallace WF, Young I. Training effects of short bouts of stair climbing on cardiorespiratory fitness, blood lipids, and homocysteine in sedentary young women. Br J Sports Med. 2005 Sep;39(9):590-3.

²⁹⁹ Murphy M, Nevill A, Neville C, Biddle S, Hardman A. Accumulating brisk walking for fitness, cardiovascular risk, and psychological health. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2002 Sep;34(9):1468-74.

³⁰⁰ Lefevre M, Redman LM, Heilbronn LK, Smith JV, Martin CK, Rood JC, Greenway FL, Williamson DA, Smith SR, Ravussin E; Pennington CALERIE team. Caloric restriction alone and with exercise improves CVD risk in healthy non-obese individuals. Atherosclerosis. 2009 Mar;203(1):206-13.

³⁰¹ Kudchodkar BJ, Sodhi HS, Mason DT, Borhani NO. Effects of acute caloric restriction on cholesterol metabolism in man. Am J Clin Nutr. 1977 Jul;30(7):1135-46.

³⁰² Skripchenko ND, Sharafetdinov KhKh, Plotnikova OA, Meshcheriakova VA. Influence of caloric restriction diet on clinical and biochemical parameters in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Vopr Pitan. 2002;71(4):13-7.

³⁰³ Kerkhofs M, Boudjeltia KZ, Stenuit P, Brohée D, Cauchie P, Vanhaeverbeek M. Sleep restriction increases blood neutrophils, total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol in postmenopausal women: A preliminary study. Maturitas. 2007 Feb 20;56(2):212-5. 304 Bjorvatn B, Sagen IM, Øyane N, Waage S, Fetveit A, Pallesen S, Ursin R. The association between sleep duration, body mass index and metabolic measures in the Hordaland Health Study. J Sleep Res. 2007 Mar;16(1):66-76.

³⁰⁴ Bjorvatn B, Sagen IM, Øyane N, Waage S, Fetveit A, Pallesen S, Ursin R. The association between sleep duration, body mass index and metabolic measures in the Hordaland Health Study. J Sleep Res. 2007 Mar;16(1):66-76.

³⁰⁵ Kerkhofs M, Boudjeltia KZ, Stenuit P, Brohée D, Cauchie P, Vanhaeverbeek M. Sleep restriction increases blood neutrophils, total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol in postmenopausal women: A preliminary study. Maturitas. 2007 Feb 20;56(2):212-5.

³⁰⁶ van den Berg JF, Miedema HM, Tulen JH, Neven AK, Hofman A, Witteman JC, Tiemeier H. Long sleep duration is associated with serum cholesterol in the elderly: the Rotterdam Study. Psychosom Med. 2008 Nov;70(9):1005-11.

³⁰⁷ Kaneita Y, Uchiyama M, Yoshiike N, Ohida T. Associations of usual sleep duration with serum lipid and lipoprotein levels. Sleep. 2008 May 1;31(5):645-52.

³⁰⁸ Kitaoka-Higashiguchi K, Morikawa Y, Miura K, Sakurai M, Ishizaki M, Kido T, Naruse Y, Nakagawa H. Burnout and Risk Factors for Arteriosclerotic Disease: Follow-up Study. J Occup Health. 2009;51(2):123-31.

³⁰⁹ Wattoo FH, Memon MS, Memon AN, Wattoo MH, Tirmizi SA, Iqbal J. Estimation and correlation of stress and cholesterol levels in college teachers and housewives of Hyderabad-Pakistan. J Pak Med Assoc. 2008 Jan;58(1):15-8.

³¹⁰ Muldoon MF, Bachen EA, Manuck SB, Waldstein SR, Bricker PL, Bennett JA. Acute cholesterol responses to mental stress and change in posture. Arch Intern Med. 1992 Apr;152(4):775-80.

³¹¹ Berk L. Laughter May Lower Heart Attack Risk in Diabetics. HealthDay News, Friday, April 17, 2009

³¹² Friedlander Y, Kark JD, Stein Y. Religious observance and plasma lipids and lipoproteins among 17-year-old Jewish residents of Jerusalem. Prev Med. 1987 Jan;16(1):70-9.

³¹³ Friedlander Y, Kark JD, Kaufmann NA, Stein Y. Coronary heart disease risk factors among religious groupings in a Jewish population sample in Jerusalem. Am J Clin Nutr. 1985 Sep;42(3):511-21.

³¹⁴ Holy Bible, Matthew 11:28, King James Version.

Why High Cholesterol?

Believe it or not, cholesterol is your body’s soap! Your body runs on water, you are about 70% water, and when you eat fat or oil, it takes lots of soap for those dietary fats (saturated fats, trans fats, refined fats, high fat diet) to become soluble in the water environment of your body.¹ If you are accustomed to washing dishes at home by hand, I am sure you find some fats harder to “wash” off your plates than others. Just realize that the fats that are the hardest to wash off your dishes are also the fats that will take the most cholesterol “soap” to dissolve in your body. Cholesterol dissolves the fats or oils you eat into the water environment of your blood. Hard fats, like animal shortening, hydrogenated vegetable oils and oils that have been browned by heating, are more difficult for the body to dissolve. These fats cause the liver to make more cholesterol “soap”. This ultimately results in increased blood stream cholesterol.²³⁴ The more fat of any kind you eat, the more cholesterol it will take for your body to process it. For each additional 1% fat you include in your diet, your total cholesterol will go up 11⁄2 points.⁵

Enterohepatic Circulation: The Liver Soap Cycle

The source of cholesterol “soap” is the liver, and the soap bottle or reservoir is the gallbladder. The cholesterol soap mixture is called bile. This bile is squirted into the small intestine when the need for soap is detected, i.e. fat in the digestive tract. This “soap” then tries to make the fat compatible with absorption into your water-based blood stream. The cholesterol component of the “soap” is re- absorbed in the small intestine and returned to the liver for processing. There are several things that can reduce “soap”/cholesterol in the system. Eat less fat, so less “soap” is called for. Eat more fiber, which will soak up some of the “soap” and carry it out in your stools so less “soap” is reabsorbed and returned to the blood stream and liver.

Eat more plants that are high in sterols.

These plant sterols compete with “soap” for re-absorption, thus reducing “soap” re-absorption.

Cholesterol In Many Forms

Cholesterol is cholesterol, but its packaging tells you its role. LDL or low density lipoprotein is the packaging marked for export form the liver to the tissues. HDL or high density lipoprotein is the clean up crew that takes cholesterol from the tissues back to the liver. LDL trucks it out into circulation and HDL retrieves it, removing it from the blood and tissues. As you might imagine low HDL is predictive of mortality form heart disease—without sufficient clean up crews working, junk piles up.⁶

Recently there has been discussion about the size of LDL and the impact of that size on health. Larger LDL particle size is associated with greater longevity.⁷ Smaller, denser, LDL particles have been shown to be associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events.⁸ While all this size discussion makes for more laboratory testing, positive lifestyle approaches to heart disease risk factors can improve LDL particle size, which will reduce heart attack risks.^9101112

The Fats We Eat

Trans-fat, a byproduct of hydrogenation of vegetable oils,¹³ increases the risk of high cholesterol by 65%.¹⁴ In one study, heart attack victims had 13% more trans fat in their cell walls.¹⁵ Trans fat lowers the “good” HDL-cholesterol more than saturated fat and decreases anti-oxidant activity in the body. This makes patients more susceptible to atherosclerosis and heart attacks. Additionally, trans fat increases the harmful LDL cholesterol.¹⁶ You may not be aware of where the trans fat in your diet is coming from. Sources of trans fat in the American diet by percentage include: cakes, cookies, crackers, pies, bread 40%; animal products 21%; margarine 17%; fried potatoes (like French fries and hash browns) 8%; Potato chips, corn chips, popcorn 5%; household shortening 4%; other (breakfast cereals, candy, etc.) 5%.¹⁷ Avoiding trans fat may take some investigation on your part.

The saturated fat found in milk, cheese, egg yolks, meat and sausage has an even more deleterious effect on cholesterol and coronary heart disease than trans fat.¹⁸ High saturated fat diet can raise total cholesterol by 23%.¹⁹ When cholesterol is a part of the diet, the total blood cholesterol will be worse if the other fats in the diet are saturated than if they are unsaturated.20 For example, because of its high fat and cholesterol content, 40gm of butter per day will raise
your cholesterol by 20 points.²¹ Palm oils differ little from other saturated fats in raising blood stream cholesterol.²²²³

Compared to the harder fats, monounsaturated oils tend to lower cholesterol.²⁴ Polyunsaturated fats tend to favorably affect cholesterol, but be less resistant to oxidation.²⁵

Another factor, which is often overlooked, is the form of the fat or oil consumed. Refined oils absorbed early in the small intestine are esterified with cholesterol and enter the lymphatics to be deposited in the heart.

Oils residing naturally in whole foods are digested and absorbed later in the small intestine as phospholipids and enter the portal circulation where they are conducted directly to the liver. Thus they have less of an impact on total blood cholesterol.²⁶

Animal Product Consumption And Cholesterol

People who consume animal products every day experience higher cholesterols, and have on average, a total cholesterol of 255 mg/dL. Those who limit their consumption of animal products to once weekly have a total cholesterol of around 205 mg/dL.²⁷ Compared to vegetarians, animal product users (meat, eggs and dairy) eat 50% more fat, have: 30% higher total cholesterols, have 42% higher LDL cholesterols, have 38% higher triglycerides, have 32% higher blood sugars, and are five times more likely to have high blood pressure.²⁸ People who drink cow’s milk or eat dairy products such as yoghurt and cheese everyday have 7 mg/dL higher total cholesterols and 5 mg/dL higher LDL cholesterols.²⁹ A diet with animal protein and low fiber intake has been shown to significantly increase cholesterol levels.³⁰ Casein, the protein in milk, makes your liver produce more cholesterol.³¹³² People on a unrefined, high fiber, high carbohydrate diet have significantly lower LDL cholesterols than those on a refined carbohydrate diet or a low carbohydrate, high protein diet.³³ On the other hand, substituting 30 to 50 grams of soy protein for animal protein in the daily diet produces a 13% reduction in LDL, 10% reduction in triglycerides, 9% reduction in cholesterol, and a 2.4% increase in HDL.³⁴ This nutritional advice has also been shown to be helpful in cases considered to have a “genetic” predisposition to high cholesterol.³⁵

Refined Foods For Refined People?

Refined (processed) foods tend to make your blood sugar rise precipitously—making it go very high at a very rapid a rate. We categorize foods by their effect on the blood sugar according to the “glycemic index”.³⁶ Glycemic load quantifies the amount of a high glycemic food you eat. High glycemic index or load foods make your blood sugar rise higher and faster then low glycemic index or load foods. Most refined foods are high glycemic load foods. High glycemic load diets drive LDL cholesterol up and HDL down.³⁷³⁸ On the other hand, reducing the glycemic load, by eating more whole plant foods, has the affect to reduce LDL levels.³⁹ We recommend a high complex carbohydrate diet, a diet without refined/processed foods.

Disease and Elevated Cholesterol

The more cholesterol, (the higher your average cholesterol), you harbor in your blood stream, the higher will be your risk of dying of a heart attack.^40414243 In fact, one high blood cholesterol measurement in your lifetime can mean a higher risk of coronary heart disease the rest of your life!⁴⁴ The more cholesterol you carry in your blood the sicker your heart becomes.⁴⁵ When your cholesterol goes up cells lining the blood vessels, called macrophages, fill up with fat and contribute to plaque formation.⁴⁶ When you lower the fat (cholesterol and triglycerides) in your blood it virtually halts the progression of lesions in your blood vessels.⁴⁷ People with genetically low LDL live 5-12 years longer and almost never have heart attacks.⁴⁸⁴⁹ The more fat and cholesterol you tolerated in you blood stream the shorter your life will be.⁵⁰⁵¹ Here are some numbers that illustrate increase in risk: Cholesterol above 280 mg/dL increases likelihood of angina 5 1⁄2 times.⁵²

Cholesterol above 240 mg/dL increases the risk of death from heart attack by 350%.⁵³ On the positive side, each 2 mg/dl drop in cholesterol reduces the risk of heart attack by 1%.⁵⁴ One of the reasons for this rise in heart disease and fatal heart attacks with increased blood cholesterol, besides the obvious increase in atherosclerosis, is that when your cholesterol goes up it impairs the heart’s ability to form collateral blood vessels which could help you survive a heart attack.⁵⁵

Triglycerides also play a role. Elevated triglycerides are associated with increased risk of heart attack and death.⁵⁶⁵⁷ Triglycerides greater than 200 mg/dL significantly increase the risk of stroke or transient ischemic attack.⁵⁸⁵⁹

Caldwell Esselstyn, Jr., MD, of the Cleveland Clinic has shown on angiography that blockages in coronary arteries can be reversed by changes in diet. “The optimal diet”, according to him, “consists of grains, legumes, vegetables, and fruit, with less than 10%-15% of its calories coming from fat.” He goes on to say that, “This diet minimizes the likelihood of stroke, obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and cancers of the breast, prostate, colon, rectum, uterus, and ovary.”⁶⁰ Did

Medicare ever promise anything like that? This sounds like a real insurance program!

What about cancer and cholesterol? Elevated cholesterol and triglycerides significantly increase breast cancer risk.⁶¹ The risk of breast cancer rises 88% when one eats foods with cholesterol, 125% for high intake of animal protein, 143% for high saturated fat intake, and 169% if you eat more calories than you need!⁶² Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer death with a five-year relative survival rate of less than 4%, making it one of the most fatal cancers.

Eating cholesterol increases the risk of pancreatic cancer 50%. Eggs, a rich source of cholesterol, increase the risk by 60%.⁶³

Other disease risks escalate with cholesterol. Elevated cholesterol and triglycerides together with low HDL significantly increase the risk of autoimmune inflammatory arthritis like rheumatoid arthritis.⁶⁴ High cholesterol is a significant risk factor for macular degeneration and resultant blindness.^65666768 A cholesterol of 240 mg/dL increases the risk of macular degeneration by 80%.⁶⁹ A cholesterol level of 220 mg/dL or more increases the risk of migraine by 280%.⁷⁰ Having elevated cholesterol levels increases the risk of high blood pressure 90%.⁷¹ Even hypothyroidism can result from elevated cholesterol levels.⁷²⁷³

The brain and nerves are not happy when cholesterol increases. Hypertension and hypercholesterolemia work together to increase brain dysfunction.⁷⁴ When rabbits, confirmed herbivores, consume cholesterol, they develop Alzheimer’s disease-like lesions in their brains.⁷⁵ Patients with elevated LDL Cholesterol have a 106% higher risk of cognitive impairment.⁷⁶ Obesity and high triglycerides produce cognitive impairment.⁷⁷ Elevated triglycerides predict increased peripheral neuropathy in diabetics.⁷⁸ Elevated cholesterol levels are significantly associated with major depression.⁷⁹⁸⁰ Lowering cholesterol levels through lifestyle changes, has been shown to decrease depression, hostility, and severity of psychological symptoms.⁸¹

Dietary Cholesterol: The Cholesterol Entering Our Mouths

When you eat cholesterol, eventually some of it will end up in you blood stream. It has been said, “we are what we eat.” However, cholesterol is the soap, so, while eating cholesterol does not raise the soap level dramatically like eating fats does, dietary cholesterol still results in increased blood stream cholesterol.⁸² Eating 100 mg of cholesterol per day can increase total cholesterol concentrations by 2.2 mg/dL.⁸³ Most people eat far more than 100 mg of cholesterol per day.

What foods have cholesterol? Nearly all animal foods have some cholesterol in them, some have more than others. Plant based foods do not have cholesterol. This is because it takes a liver to produce cholesterol and plants do not have livers!

Fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, beans and grains do not contain cholesterol. One cup of 2% Milk has 18 mg of cholesterol. One half cup of ice cream has 29 mg, most of which is oxidized. One tablespoon of butter would have 31 mg, and 3 ounces of clams 57 mg. In a three ounce serving, chicken breast has 73 mg, pork 76 mg, sirloin beef 80 mg, oyster 84 mg, shrimp 165 mg, one large egg 213 mg, beef liver 410 mg, and beef brains, which often end up as animal shortening, 1697 mg.⁸⁴ Your body does not need a dietary source of cholesterol, it makes its own, fresh.

Cholesterol levels are not lowered when you replace beef, lamb, or pork in the diet with chicken or fish. Why? Because poultry’s proportion of cholesterol is similar to that of red meat even though it contains less fat.⁸⁵

Dietary Cholesterol and Disease

Dietary cholesterol together with elevated blood cholesterol dramatically increase oxidized cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol results in increased whole body inflammation, atherosclerosis and plaque formation.⁸⁶⁸⁷ The more cholesterol you eat, the more calcified plaque you can expect in your coronary arteries.⁸⁸ When you make cholesterol a part of your diet, it increases inflammation in: the lungs leading to asthma;⁸⁹⁹⁰ the liver leading to non-alcoholic fatty liver diseases and cirrhosis;⁹¹⁹²⁹³ and the prostate leading to pain, enlargement and cancer.⁹⁴⁹⁵ Cholesterol in the diet can bring about permanent microscopic damage to the kidneys causing them to loose 6 times more protein in the urine than acceptable levels.⁹⁶⁹⁷⁹⁸ “But I was eating the extra animal products to increase my protein intake….” When you stop eating cholesterol, blood vessel inflammation actually does subsided and coronary artery plaques become more resistant to rupture.⁹⁹

Need osteoporosis? A high-cholesterol diet stimulates bone resorption causing osteoporosis.¹⁰⁰

Dietary cholesterol seriously decreases mental performance.¹⁰¹¹⁰² Six hours after consuming a high fat meal the brain oxygen falls below 70%. What’s more, it does not return to normal for 3 whole days— which means some people have never had fully functioning brains!¹⁰³

Oxidized Cholesterol In The Blood

“Why me?” a gentleman in his late 50s asked me. My total cholesterol has always been around 140 and my HDL is usually very good. He had had a heart attack and cardiac bypass surgery and was now wondering what he could do to avoid a repeat. As I got to know the gentleman better it became very apparent that the source of his cholesterol included foods high in oxidized cholesterol such as ice cream, pizza, and processed foods, while his diet was not high in fruit and vegetables.

For the same cholesterol level, people who eat fewer fruits and vegetables have a higher risk of a fatal heart attack.¹⁰⁴ This is because of the effects of oxidized cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol can be stabilized by the anti-oxidants found in fresh fruits and vegetables.

My uncle died of heart disease at age 39. He was an anesthesiologist at the University of Texas. He left a wife and two teenage sons behind. His nightly supper: ice cream. Within 24 hours of eating oxidized cholesterol, rabbits and monkeys develop vascular lesions which, if not repaired, would lead to arthrosclerosis and heart attacks.^105106107108 Common sources of oxidized cholesterol include custard mixes such as ice cream, pancake mixes, because dried eggs are included,¹⁰⁹ Parmesan cheese, and any food where cholesterol, or oils for that matter, come in contact with air and/or oxygen.⁸⁴¹¹⁰ Serum oxidized cholesterol markedly accelerates atherosclerosis.^111112113 Arterial injury caused by oxidized cholesterol leads to arterial wall cholesterol accumulation and plaque enlargement.¹¹⁴

Cholesterol oxidized by the body is negligible compared to oxidized cholesterol obtained from the diet.¹¹⁵¹¹⁶ Oxidized dietary cholesterol increases blood stream cholesterol and is the predominant source of tissue oxidized cholesterol.¹¹⁷¹²⁵

Oxidized cholesterol favors platelet clot and plaque formation.¹¹⁸¹¹⁹ The more LDL is oxidized, the more cholesterol it transports to the tissues. The more HDL is oxidized, the less cholesterol it removes from the tissues.¹²⁰¹²¹ Oxidized cholesterol markedly delays the clearance of chylomicrons, which transport cholesterol from the intestine to the liver, from the blood.¹²² The more fast foods; cheese puffs, potato chips and hydrogenated fat you eat, the worse your cholesterol will be, both in oxidation and in quantity.¹²³ Cheese contains high levels of oxidized cholesterol.¹²⁴¹²⁵ Compared to vegetable oils, butter and cheese are very atherogenic—causing heart disease.¹²⁶ Frying, grilling, even just cooking foods with high cholesterol content, such as meat, egg yolk and full fat dairy products, creates massive cholesterol oxidation.¹²⁷¹²⁸ As prepared consumer foods are becoming increasingly popular, the consumption of higher levels of oxidized cholesterol in foods is inevitable. Processes, such as pre-cooking, freeze-drying, dehydration and irradiation, have all result in increased production of oxidized cholesterol. Factors known to oxidize cholesterol in foods include: heat, light, radiation, oxygen, moisture, low ph, pro-oxidizing agents, and storage of food at room temperature.¹²⁹ Cigarette smoke increases LDL cholesterol oxidation and lipid per oxidation.¹³⁰

Continued in The Cholesterol Story: Are You Fighting Heart Disease? – Part 2

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Summary of Cancer Causes

To summarize: each cell in the body is regulated by code (DNA), much like a computer. If the code goes bad, so does the cell. As we’ve seen, there are a number of things that can derail the DNA code. DNA damage results from: viruses, toxins, oxidative stress, and radiation. Cancer arises when the immune system fails to identify and deal with cells running on altered DNA. Too many hormones, and chronic healing and inflammation, initiate the development of cancer and accelerate its growth.

The Solution

“Okay”, you’re thinking, “So what do I do now? Every thing causes cancer, I’m doomed!”

Please don’t throw in the towel just yet. Thus far our approach has been to show the avoidable causes of cancer. Now we are going to show you that the answer to the cancer problem.

“The only hope of better things is in the education of the people in right principles. Let physicians teach the people that restorative power is not in drugs, but in nature. Disease is an effort of nature to free the system from conditions that result from a violation of the laws of health. In case of sickness, the cause should be ascertained. Unhealthful conditions should be changed, wrong habits corrected. Then nature is to be assisted in her effort to expel impurities and to re-establish right conditions in the system.”¹⁰⁷

“Pure air, sunlight, abstemiousness, rest, exercise, proper diet, the use of water, trust in divine power—these are the true remedies”¹⁰⁸, “Gratitude, rejoicing, benevolence, trust in God’s love and care—these are health’s greatest safeguard.”¹⁰⁹

A good understanding of these laws of health is essential to minimizing cancer’s risk factors. Let’s look at each of these principles of health and what their impact is on cancer.

Fresh Air

Pure, fresh, outdoor air is a wonderful stimulant to the immune system. This is because of the negative ions present in outdoor air, which significantly decrease the incidence of cancer and inhibit tumor growth by the enhancing natural killer cell activity.¹¹⁰ Some toxins come from mold (mycotoxicosis and aflotoxins).¹¹¹ Mold toxins are felt to be responsible for liver¹¹² and lung¹¹³ cancer growth. Keeping the premises and basement of your homes free from mold help prevent cancer. Outdoor air has much less toxins.

Thrash and Thrash in their book Hope For Cancer report, “A group of rats with cancer were allowed to breathe negatively charged (outdoor) air, while an equal number breathed common indoor air. After one month the cancer in the rats breathing the indoor air was twice the size of the cancer in the rats breathing the negatively charged air.”¹¹⁴

“When the weather will permit, all who can possible do so ought to walk in the open air every day, summer and winter. But the clothing should be suitable for the exercise, and the feet should be well protected. A walk, even in winter, would be more beneficial to the health than all the medicine the doctors may prescribe.”¹¹⁵

Sunlight

Sunlight is a precious gift from God, which brings us a sense of wellbeing from the endorphins it creates. We have already mentioned that vitamin D is essential to the prevention of cancer. Everyone should get at least 20 minutes of sunshine a day with at least 25% of their skin exposed to the sun. This 20 minutes should be with out sunscreen, (which blocks synthesis of vitamin D). Vitamin D is a potent inhibitor of cancer growth and protects against prostate, breast, pancreas and colon cancer. Colon tumor growth rate increases by 60% when there is a deficiency in Vitamin D.¹¹⁶

Temperance

Temperance or abstemiousness is avoiding all things that that are harmful and using wisely those things that are good.

An example for need for total abstinence would be tobacco or alcohol. Is there any hope for a smoker or drinker? Lung cancer risk decreases and survival improves the moment you quit. But the longer the time since smoking, the better the survival outcome.¹¹⁷ Similarly esophageal cancer risk declines with time since last drinking.¹¹⁸

An example of appropriate moderation is in the area of diet. We all have to eat, but we don’t necessarily have to all eat as much as we are accustomed to. Much research now exists pointing to the fact that caloric restriction, (eating less food), actually helps fight disease and promotes better health. Calorie restriction decreases cancer by keeping the normal cell cycle under tight regulation and by keeping in check growth factors, hormones, and stress hormones like cortisol.¹¹⁹ Studies now show that caloric restriction both reduces DNA damage and enhances DNA repair (thus reducing cancer risk).¹²⁰ Okinawans have taught us a lot in this area. They eat 40% fewer calories than Americans yet they have 80% fewer breast and prostate cancers, and 50% fewer ovarian and colon cancers.¹²¹ We mentioned that increasing age is associated with a decline in the immune system making cancer more prevalent as people get older. Caloric restriction, while maintaining good nutrition, restores immune function to that found in younger individuals.¹²² Obesity also impairs the immune system’s ability to find and destroy cancer cells, but again, caloric restriction has been shown to restore immune responsiveness.¹²³

Rest

I’m sure we can all testify to the necessity of proper rest. Jesus Christ said, “Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while:”¹²⁴ People who sleep well have significantly better immune function than people with insomnia.¹²⁵

Getting between 7 and 8 hours of sleep each night significantly reduces the risk of dying from cancer and other diseases. Sleeping 6 hours or less, or 9 hours or more, increases the risk of dying by 70%.¹²⁶ Another aspect of rest is regularity.

You should go to bed at the same time and get up at the same time everyday. It is important not to disturb the sleep wake cycle. Disrupting the sleep wake cycle disrupts your circadian rhythms. Disruption of circadian rhythms is associated with accelerated growth of malignant tumors.¹²⁷¹²⁸

Yet another aspect of cyclic rest is a weekly rest. A study in Georgia discovered that Seventh-day Adventists have higher levels of immune stimulating antioxidants. The study went on to show that vegetarian Seventh-day Adventists have even higher levels of immune stimulating antioxidants.¹²⁹ While it was interesting that vegetarians have higher antioxidant levels, what interested me was that even the non-health conscious Sabbath keepers showed health improvements over the general population.

Exercise

Now that we’ve written about rest, we’re going to talk about just the opposite—exercise. As individuals age their immune system declines. Being physically fit helps attenuate this decline. The immune system responds positively to moderate exercise. Studies have shown that people who cultivate healthy lungs and hearts, (cardiopulmonary fitness), have one-half the risk of mortality from cancer as people who don’t take fitness seriously.¹³⁰ Observe though that over fatigue increases the risk of viral infections, (of which cancer can be one).¹³¹ Regular moderate exercise reduces risk of breast cancer by up to 66%^132133134135 and also reduces the risk of cancers of the ovaries,¹³⁶ uterus,¹³⁷ prostate,¹³⁸ colon,¹³⁹¹⁴⁰ and lungs.¹⁴¹ Exercise minimizes cancer by reducing serum estradiol¹⁴² and insulin like growth hormone¹⁴³ which, we showed earlier, cause cancer. It has been said that those who can’t find time to exercise will have to find time to be sick.

Proper Diet

We will now discuss proper diet. This is the section that people tend to fixate on, to the exclusion of all others. But let me say right here that while diet is very important, all the other components of a cancer free lifestyle are equally important, and should not be over looked. Your lifestyle should be examined as a whole.

A fresh uncooked fruit and vegetable diet has been shown to invigorate the immune system, reduce inflammation, lessen allergic diseases, heal infections and help fight cancer.¹⁴⁴ This is partly because fruit and vegetables are filled _*with micronutrients that help prevent and combat cancer.¹⁴⁵¹⁴⁶ As constant inflammation often produces cancer, you will be happy to know that naturally occurring flavonoids and phytochemicals found in fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds and nuts contain *_anti-inflammatory properties. Flavonoids and phytochemicals are micronutrients as important to your body as vitamins.¹⁴⁷

Antioxidants are additional micronutrients found in fruit and vegetables. They help boost your immune system and restore it if it has gotten out of shape.¹⁴⁸ Oxidation is the word we use to describe what happens when something, (usually a chemical such as a protein or a fat), interacts with oxygen. This oxidized chemical can now oxidize another body part. It’s kind of like a game of tag. Tag, you’re it! A body part that you definitely do not want to get oxidized is your DNA, because this would lead to the formation of cancer cells. Antioxidants stop the process long before it reaches the DNA. They also promote the repair of oxidized DNA.

Fruit

Fruit is especially high in antioxidants; vitamin C, flavonoids, limonoids, fiber, pectin and phytochemicals that [149] neutralize cancer-causing agents entering the body.

Vitamin C is an antioxidant found in fruit and vegetables that reduces the risk of kidney cancer,¹⁵⁰ breast cancer,¹⁵¹ and leukemia,¹⁵² a type of blood cancer. Oranges, grapefruit and lemons are a great source of Vitamin C. Vitamin C also helps neutralize the cancer-causing nitrosamines found in red meats.¹⁵³

Citrus fruits also contain limonene that actually neutralizes cancer-causing substances that cause stomach and breast cancer. [154]¹⁵⁵ Pectin, a soluble fruit fiber, found in citrus and other fruit, prevents the spread or metastases of cancer.¹⁵⁶

If I were looking for a super fruit to help fight cancer I think it might be kiwifruit. Kiwifruit provides protection against DNA damage by enhancing antioxidant levels and actually stimulating the repair of damaged DNA.¹⁵⁷

Pineapple prevents stomach cancer because it inhibits the formation of the nitrosamines that come from meat.¹⁵⁸ Perhaps it would be well to eat a pineapple with each well-done beefsteak in order to be safe!!

Many people eat prunes, or dried plums to help them with their bowel movements because they know these foods are high in fiber. What they may not realize is that the fiber from these plums or prunes decreases colon cancer by mopping up toxins, such as bile acids, coming out of the liver.¹⁵⁹

We’ve all heard it said, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” And while that may have been a commercial advertisement by the fruit growers of America for their product, apple pectin has indeed been discovered to strengthen the immune system and prevent growth of cancerous tumors in the colon.¹⁶⁰

Studies coming out of Italy, (and other countries where the “Mediterranean Diet”, high in tomato products, predominates), reveal that high consumption of tomatoes protects against cancers of the mouth, esophagus, stomach, colon, rectum and prostate.¹⁶¹¹⁶² This protection may come from the phytochemical lycopene found in tomatoes.¹⁶³

Vegetables

High in vitamin A, vitamin C, phytochemicals and fiber, vegetables have the ability to oppose the action of carcinogens,¹⁶⁴ and are very important in the fight against cancer.¹⁶⁵

Cruciferous vegetables, (which include broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, and cabbage), are extremely valuable for cancer prevention. They can actually keep cancer-causing toxins from binding to DNA in the cell, thereby reducing DNA damage.

What’s more they increase the elimination of cancer causing toxins from the liver and intestines.¹⁶⁶ Remember all those hormones and hormonally active substances that cause cancer? Phytochemicals in cruciferous vegetables increase the urinary excretion of estrogens.¹⁶⁷

Carcinogens are substances that can cause cancer. Powerful anticarcinogens are found in cauliflower.¹⁶⁸¹⁶⁹ These anticarcinogens inhibit the formation of malignant tumors.¹⁷⁰ High levels of vitamin A and phytochemicals give broccoli high anticarcinogenic properties as well.¹⁷¹

Cabbage is a key food in the prevention of pancreatic¹⁷²¹⁷³ breast and ovarian cancer.¹⁷⁴ Cabbage contains phytochemicals that can reduce the carcinogenic effects of benzopyrene, a cancer-causing chemical found in tobacco smoke.¹⁷⁵

The phytochemicals in cabbage prevent, as well as have a curative effect on, tumor growth.¹⁷⁶

The bulb foods, (onion and garlic family), are also known to have anti-cancer properties. They lower the risk of stomach cancer,¹⁷⁷ prevent the development of tumor cells,¹⁷⁸ and are helpful in the treatment of cancers of the stomach and colon.¹⁷⁹ Garlic is especially helpful in the prevention of cancer of the stomach,¹⁸⁰ breast,¹⁸¹ prostate,¹⁸²¹⁸³ endometrium,¹⁸⁴ and bladder.¹⁸⁵ It works to combat cancer by stimulating the immune system, detoxifying carcinogens, and by a direct toxic effect on cancer cells.¹⁸⁶

There are other vegetables which aid in the fight against cancer. Spinach prevents cancer of the throat, breast, colon, and bladder. [187] The Vitamin A, carotenoids, and fiber in carrots give them powerful anticarcinogenic effects.¹⁸⁸ Don’t be fooled though—taking vitamin A pills does not provide this same protective effect.¹⁸⁹ It’s hard to reproduce nature in the laboratory. Eating pellets created in a commercial factory can in no way substitute for good whole food. Yellow orange vegetables all contain beta-carotene, vitamin A and other “carotenoids” which have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer of the lungs, prostate and pancreas.¹⁹⁰

Squash contain beta-carotene, vitamin C, and fiber that counteract the effects of carcinogenic substances on the colon.¹⁹¹¹⁹²

Radishes have valuable properties that impede DNA changes that lead to cancer.¹⁹³

Beets have properties that are anticarcinogenic.¹⁹⁴

Peppers are high in antioxidant vitamins A and C which are powerful anticarcinogens.¹⁹⁵¹⁹⁶

Legumes (beans) are good cancer fighters too. Regular consumption of beans is associated with a significant decrease in cancers of the pancreas,¹⁹⁷ prostate,¹⁹⁸¹⁹⁹ and endometrium,²⁰⁰ (the lining of the uterus). One legume that has come to special attention is the soybean. Soy has strong antioxidant properties and is a potent immune stimulant.²⁰¹ It has shown benefits for viral illnesses, particularly cancer.²⁰² Soy products also possess anti-inflammatory properties that decrease the potential for cancer development.²⁰³²⁰⁴ Soy products have been shown to protect against cancer of the prostate, breast, colon, rectum, stomach and lung.^205206207

Soy, as well as the common seasoning turmeric, help counteract the estrogenic effects of hormones and hormonally active environmental toxins on breast tissue.²⁰⁸²⁰⁹ We call the substances in soy and turmeric phytoestrogens.

Phytoestrogens, such as those contained in soy, have been shown to counter the carcinogenic effects of estradiol on the cells of the body, reducing not only the risk of breast cancer, but lung,²¹⁰ prostate,²¹¹ and endometrial^212213214
cancer as well. Since soy phytoestrogens only weakly stimulate the estrogen receptor they are not cancer-causing.²¹⁵ And since they bind the estrogen receptor, other estrogens cannot bind to the receptor. Thus the weak phytoestrogens replace the strong estrogens, (such as estradiol), protecting the cells from being stimulated to cancer formation.²¹⁶ It’s like having a weak politician in public office rather than a strong one who can get things done. Whereas in politics this would not be desirable, in the body is preferable.

Fiber

Research indicates that diets high in fat and meat, and low in fiber, markedly increase oxidative stress in the digestive system, which in turn increase the risk of colorectal cancer.²¹⁷ High fiber intake effectively reduces the oxidative stress caused by high-fat and high-cholesterol intake.²¹⁸²¹⁹ Grains, (such as wheat, rye, and oats), are a good source of this fiber.²²⁰ Rye helps reduce the carcinogenic effect on the intestines of toxins processed by the liver.²²¹ Wheat and wheat bran have antioxidant and anticarcinogenic properties.²²²²²³ One way fiber prevents cancer is by acting as a sponge to mop up and remove excess hormones from the body.²²⁴²²⁵ As a result, diets high in fiber can reduce the risk of breast cancer.²²⁶

While diets high in animal, trans, and oxidized fats cause cancer, natural fats high in omega-3s are anti-inflammatory, and have anticarcinogenic properties.²²⁷ In addition to promoting blood flow, omega-3 fatty acids, found in walnuts, flax and olive oil, have anti- inflammatory properties.²²⁸ Olive oil has been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer by up to 33%.²²⁹

There is abundant research that a diet of fresh fruit, grains, nuts and vegetables provides the best protection against cancer.


Some may be wondering why meat is not as beneficial. The cow, for example, consumes wheat grass and barley green so that he will not get heart disease, cancer, diabetes and arthritis, but she does not pass these benefits along to the consumers of her body. Meat has very little in the way of nutrition capable of cancer prevention. When you come down to it, the biggest reason people come down with cancer is because they fail to eat enough fresh fruits and vegetables.²³⁰

Should it be any surprise that what we have been talking about is the original, Creator’s diet,

“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.” “And thou shalt eat the herb of the field”.²³¹

Water

Water is the fluid life sails on. Water carries nutrition from the blood to the cells. It then carries waste products from the cells to the blood for excretion by liver, kidneys, lungs, and sweat glands. Daily water needs including drinking water, water in beverages, and water in food. You need between 8 and 12 eight ounce glasses of water a day. Strenuous physical exercise and heat can greatly increase daily water needs, and there is substantial variability between individuals.²³²

In modern times, with the advent of convenience machines and antiperspirants, perspiration has been nearly eliminated from our societies. As a consequence more stress is placed on the kidneys, liver and lungs to eliminate cancer-causing toxins from the body. If we know what toxins are involved in our particular cancer, we should make every effort to eliminate it. One useful way to accomplish this by sweating. Drinking water, exercising, and taking saunas to produce sweat, expel toxins
from the body.²³³

Trust in God

Trust in God’s love and care, can have a positive effect in several ways.

Trust in God is a part of good spiritual health. Those with good spiritual health, have longer life expectancy, greater well-being and life satisfaction. They deal better with illness, have fewer hospitalizations and shorter hospital stays. They suffer less anxiety and depression, and enjoy better immune system function that helps in the fight against cancer.²³⁴

God has said that all healing comes from Him and that listening to His voice and obeying His commands brings health. Trusting Him is part of the healing process.

“And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.”²³⁵

Trusting God brings the benefit of social ties at church. On the other hand, socially isolated people are more likely to die of cancer.²³⁶

Most people who enter into a full trusting relationship with God are led to a life of service to others. Studies reveal that giving support to friends, relatives, neighbors, and family, significantly reduces mortality, while merely receiving support does not improve mortality.²³⁷ A study from the university of Michigan revealed that volunteers of community organizations are 2-1/2 times less likely to die than those who do not become involved in volunteer work. voluntary work, more than any other activity, dramatically increased life expectancy.²³⁸ Haven’t we always known that, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”²³⁹ Although merely attending religious services is beneficial, one surprising study showed that among religious
people, volunteers, had 60% less mortality.²⁴⁰

Gratitude

Studies show that gratitude—an attitude of thankfulness, significantly improves long-term breast cancer survival.²⁴¹ Our health would be greatly improved if we made a list of ten things for which we are thankful every day of our lives.

Rejoicing

Research confirms that happy people have better physical health, increased longevity, and fewer illnesses. If they do get sick, they have less pain.²⁴² Happy people have more IgA, (an immune system antibody), in their saliva and less cortisol in their blood.²⁴³

Summary

In summary: cancer is most often the result of a failure of the immune system to destroy bad cells. Bad cells are created by viruses, toxins, oxidative stress, hormones, poor nutrition and/or radiation. Once cancer begins it is often driven on by hormones or inflammation.

The solution is to maximize our health and expel toxins through the natural remedies: pure air, sunlight, abstemiousness, rest, exercise, proper diet, the use of water, gratitude, rejoicing, benevolence, and trust in God’s love and care.

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¹⁹⁶ Nakamura Y, Tomokane I, Mori T, et. al. DNA repair effect of traditional sweet pepper Fushimi-togarashi: seen in suppression of UV- induced cyclobutane pyrimidine dimer in human fibroblast. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2000 Dec;64(12):2575-80.


¹⁹⁷ Bueno de Mesquita HB, Maisonneuve P, Runia S, Moerman CJ. Intake of foods and nutrients and cancer of the exocrine pancreas: a population-based case-control study in The Netherlands. Int J Cancer. 1991 Jun 19;48(4):540-9.

¹⁹⁸ Kolonel LN, Hankin JH, Whittemore AS, et. al. Vegetables, fruits, legumes and prostate cancer: a multiethnic case-control study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2000 Aug;9(8):795-804.


¹⁹⁹ Messina MJ. Legumes and soybeans: overview of their nutritional profiles and health effects. 2: Am J Clin Nutr. 1999 Sep;70(3 Suppl):439S-450S.

²⁰⁰ Goodman MT, Hankin JH, Wilkens LR, et. al. Diet, body size, physical activity, and the risk of endometrial cancer. Cancer Res. 1997 Nov 15;57(22):5077-85.


²⁰¹ Rufer CE, Kulling SE. Antioxidant activity of isoflavones and their major metabolites using different in vitro assays. J Agric Food Chem. 2006 Apr 19;54(8):2926-31.

²⁰² Guo TL, McCay JA, Zhang LX, et. al. Genistein modulates immune responses and increases host resistance to B16F10 tumor in adult female B6C3F1 mice. J Nutr. 2001 Dec;131(12):3251-8.


²⁰³ Chacko BK, Chandler RT, Mundhekar A, et. al. Revealing anti-inflammatory mechanisms of soy isoflavones by flow: modulation of leukocyte-endothelial cell interactions. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2005 Aug;289(2):H908-15.

²⁰⁴ Dijsselbloem N, Vanden Berghe W, De Naeyer A, Haegeman G. Soy isoflavone phyto-pharmaceuticals in interleukin-6 affections. Multi-purpose nutraceuticals at the crossroad of hormone replacement, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory therapy. Biochem Pharmacol. 2004 Sep 15;68(6):1171-85.


²⁰⁵ Kennedy AR. The evidence for soybean products as cancer preventive agents. J Nutr. 1995 Mar;125(3 Suppl):733S-743S.

²⁰⁶ Adlercreutz H, Markkanen H, Watanabe S. Plasma concentrations of phyto-oestrogens in Japanese men. Lancet. 1993 Nov 13;342(8881):1209-10.


²⁰⁷ Jacobsen BK, Knutsen SF, Fraser GE. Does high soy milk intake reduce prostate cancer incidence? The Adventist Health Study Cancer Causes Control. 1998 Dec;9(6):553-7.


²⁰⁸ Verma SP, Goldin BR, Lin PS. The inhibition of the estrogenic effects of pesticides and environmental chemicals by curcumin and isoflavonoids. Environ Health Perspect. 1998 Dec;106(12):807-12.


²⁰⁹ Verma SP, Goldin BR. Effect of soy-derived isoflavonoids on the induced growth of MCF-7 cells by estrogenic environmental chemicals. Nutr Cancer. 1998;30(3):232-9.


²¹⁰ Schabath MB, Hernandez LM, Wu X, et. al. Dietary phytoestrogens and lung cancer risk. JAMA. 2005; 294(12):1493-504


²¹¹ Hedelin M, Balter KA, Chang ET, et. al. Dietary intake of phytoestrogens, estrogen receptor-beta polymorphisms and the risk of prostate cancer. Prostate. 2006 Oct 1;66(14):1512-20.


²¹² Horn-Ross PL, John EM, Canchola AJ, et. al. Phytoestrogen intake and endometrial cancer risk. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2003 Aug 6;95(15):1158-64.


²¹³ Xu WH, Zheng W, Xiang YB, et. al. Soya food intake and risk of endometrial cancer among Chinese women in Shanghai: population based case-control study. BMJ. 2004 May 29;328(7451):1285.


²¹⁴ Lian Z, Niwa K, Tagami K, et. al. Preventive effects of isoflavones, genistein and daidzein, on estradiol-17beta-related endometrial carcinogenesis in mice. Jpn J Cancer Res. 2001 Jul;92(7):726-34.


²¹⁵ Zhang Y, Song TT, Cunnick JE, et. al. Daidzein and genistein glucuronides in vitro are weakly estrogenic and activate human natural killer cells at nutritionally relevant concentrations. J Nutr. 1999 Feb;129(2):399-405.


²¹⁶ Nebe B, Peters A, Duske K, et. al. Influence of phytoestrogens on the proliferation and expression of adhesion receptors in human mammary epithelial cells in vitro. Eur J Cancer Prev. 2006 Oct;15(5):405-15.


²¹⁷ Erhardt JG, Lim SS, Bode JC, Bode C. A diet rich in fat and poor in dietary fiber increases the in vitro formation of reactive oxygen species in human feces. J Nutr. 1997 May;127(5):706-9.


²¹⁸ Venkatesan N, Devaraj SN, Devaraj H. A fibre cocktail of fenugreek, guar gum and wheat bran reduces oxidative modification of LDL induced by an atherogenic diet in rats. Mol Cell Biochem. 2007 Jan;294(1-2):145-53.


²¹⁹ Diniz YS, Cicogna AC, Padovani CR, et. al. Dietary restriction and fibre supplementation: oxidative stress and metabolic shifting for cardiac health. Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2003 Nov;81(11):1042-8.


²²⁰ Rezar V, Pajk T, Marinsek Logar R, et. al. Wheat bran and oat bran effectively reduce oxidative stress induced by high-fat diets in pigs. Ann Nutr Metab. 2003;47(2):78-84.


²²¹ Korpela JT, Korpela R, Adlercreutz H. Fecal bile acid metabolic pattern after administration of different types of bread. Gastroenterology. 1992 Oct;103(4):1246-53.


²²² Graf E, Eaton JW. Suppression of colonic cancer by dietary phytic acid. Nutr Cancer. 1993;19(1):11-9.


²²³ Alabaster O, Tang Z, Frost A, Shivapurkar N. Effect of beta-carotene and wheat bran fiber on colonic aberrant crypt and tumor formation in rats exposed to azoxymethane and high dietary fat. Carcinogenesis. 1995 Jan;16(1):127-32.


²²⁴ Bhargava A. Fiber intakes and anthropometric measures are predictors of circulating hormone, triglyceride, and cholesterol concentrations in the women’s health trial. J Nutr. 2006 Aug;136(8):2249-54.


²²⁵ Sowers MR, Crawford S, McConnell DS, et. al. Selected diet and lifestyle factors are associated with estrogen metabolites in a multiracial/ethnic population of women. J Nutr. 2006 Jun;136(6):1588-95.


²²⁶ Baghurst PA, Rohan TE. High-fiber diets and reduced risk of breast cancer. Int J Cancer. 1994 Jan 15;56(2):173-6.


²²⁷ Trichopoulou A, Katsouyanni K, Stuver S, et. al. Consumption of olive oil and specific food groups in relation to breast cancer risk in Greece. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1995 Jan 18;87(2):110-6.


²²⁸ Babcock TA, Helton WS, Anwar KN, et. al. Synergistic anti-inflammatory activity of omega-3 lipid and rofecoxib pretreatment on macrophage proinflammatory cytokine production occurs via divergent NF-kappaB activation. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 2004 Jul- Aug;28(4):232-9;


²²⁹ Martin-Moreno JM, Willett WC, Gorgojo L, et. al. Dietary fat, olive oil intake and breast cancer risk. Int J Cancer. 1994 Sep 15;58(6):774-80.


²³⁰ Aggarwal BB, Shishodia S. Molecular targets of dietary agents for prevention and therapy of cancer. Biochem Pharmacol. 2006 May 14;71(10):1397-421.


²³¹ Genesis 1:29; 3:18 King James Version.


²³² Sawka MN, Cheuvront SN, Carter R 3rd. Human water needs. Nutr Rev. 2005 Jun;63(6 Pt 2):S30-9.


²³³ Cecchini M, LoPresti V. Drug residues store in the body following cessation of use: impacts on neuroendocrine balance and behavior— use of the Hubbard sauna regimen to remove toxins and restore health. Med Hypotheses. 2007;68(4):868-79.


²³⁴ Miller CA. Nursing for Wellness in Older Adults: Theory and Practice. 4th ed. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2004 P. 148.


²³⁵ Exodus 15:26 King James V ersion.


²³⁶ Reynolds P, Kaplan GA. Social connections and risk for cancer: prospective evidence from the Alameda County Study. Behav Med. 1990 Fall;16(3):101-10.


²³⁷ Brown SL, Nesse RM, Vinokur AD, Smith DM. Providing social support may be more beneficial than receiving it: results from a prospective study of mortality. Psychol Sci. 2003 Jul;14(4):320-7.


²³⁸ Musick MA, Herzog AR, House JS. Volunteering and mortality among older adults: findings from a national sample. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 1999 May;54(3):S173-80.


²³⁹ Acts 20:35. King James V ersion.


²⁴⁰ Luskin F. Review of the effect of spiritual and religious factors on mortality and morbidity with a focus on cardiovascular and pulmonary disease. J Cardiopulm Rehabil. 2000 Jan-Feb;20(1):8-15.


²⁴¹ Carter BJ. Long-term survivors of breast cancer. A qualitative descriptive study. Cancer Nurs. 1993 Oct;16(5):354-61.


²⁴² Pressman SD, Cohen S. Does positive affect influence health? Psychol Bull. 2005 Nov;131(6):925-71.


²⁴³ Barak Y. The immune system and happiness. Autoimmun Rev. 2006 Oct;5(8):523-7.

What Causes Cancer

Cancer has now surpassed heart disease as the number one cause of death for Americans below 85.¹ More than 10 million Americans have a history of invasive cancer. Two and one half million Americans will be diagnosed with cancer this year, (one million skin cancers). Cancer will claim over half a million victims this year.² Why all this cancer? What causes cancer? Can it be avoided? What is the answer for cancer?

As a medical student, I was presented one day with a patient who had a lesion on his lower leg.

“Dr. Clark, examine Mr. Doe’s leg and tell the class your diagnosis.”

The leg was well developed and muscular with clean skin, except an ugly purple raised area.

“Does Mr. Doe have Kaposi’s sarcoma?” I queried, mostly guessing.

“Yes”, came the affirming reply, “And…”
“Oh no,” I thought, “here comes another question.”
“Why do you think Mr. Doe has Kaposi’s sarcoma?” 
To my limited knowledge Kaposi’s sarcoma occurred only in people with AIDS as a consequence of HIV infection, so I asked, “Is the patient HIV positive?”

“No”, came the reply, “but that is a good guess. Mr. Doe has had a kidney transplant and so is on drugs that suppress his immune system.”

This was my awakening to the fact that cancer often arises when the immune system is compromised or suppressed for any reason. It is true that Kaposi’s sarcoma is 1300x more likely to occur in AIDS patients, but lymphoma, (a cancer of the lymph glands throughout the whole body), is 135x more likely, and lung cancer about five times more likely to occur in HIV positive individuals. Just to give you a perspective, ALL cancers are more than twice as common in people whose immune system is disabled or compromised by HIV infection.

Some years ago a series of studies examined how sugar consumption weakens the immune system. Results showed that if a person ate no sugar for 12 hours, each white blood cell could destroy 14 dangerous bacteria. When 24 teaspoons of sugar were eaten (the amount in 2 cans of soda), the white blood cells were so compromised that they could only destroy one bacterium each.³

“But what does the immune system’s ability to eat bacteria have to do with cancer?” you may be asking. A diet high in refined carbohydrates such as sugar, starch, etc. suppresses the immune system, leaving the body unprotected from diseases like cancer. In fact studies show that a person on a high glycemic index diet (high in refined carbohydrates) has a significantly increased risk of acquiring breast,⁴ prostate,⁵ colorectal,⁶ endometrial,⁷ gastric,⁸ ovarian,⁹ or pancreatic¹⁰¹¹ cancer. Malnutrition is another cause of a poor immune system. Malnutrition comes in two forms, severe caloric starvation and consumption of empty calories.¹² Additionally as people get older their immune systems tend to age, losing the power to fight diseases like cancer.¹³

Cancer and Viruses

You may be wondering why cancer crops up in the absence of an active immune system. For this puzzle piece, let’s return for a minute to the AIDS/Kaposi’s association. Kaposi’s sarcoma is now known to be the result of a viral infection with either human herpes virus number 8 (HHV-8) or a virus known as Kaposi’s Sarcoma- associated Virus (KSV).¹⁴ More and more, infectious agents are being identified in relation to cancer.

So where do people get exposed to these infectious viruses? More and more, animal products such as beef, pork, chicken, turkey, milk and eggs are infected with cancer-causing viruses. Blood of workers in meatpacking plants show evidence of these viruses. These workers have an increased incidence of cancer, including cancers of the lung, mouth and throat, colon, bladder, and kidney.¹⁵ Poultry slaughterhouse workers have an increased incidence of throat cancer, liver cancer, lymphoma and leukemia.¹⁶

Animal products are known to increase the risk of cancer. The “Adventist Health Study” revealed that prostate cancer was 41% higher in meat eaters, colon cancer¹⁷ was 85% higher and ovarian cancer¹⁸ was 130% higher than in people who were vegetarians.

The Animal Connection

A study out of Harvard revealed that consumption of meat and dairy products doubles the risk of metastatic prostate cancer. Meat by itself increases metastatic prostate cancer by 66%. Processed meats such as bacon, beef, pork or lamb also increase the risk of metastatic prostate cancer.¹⁹

The increased risk of getting cancer from animals is not limited to the consumption of their bodies. In a 4 year case control study in Italy, the consumption of cheese was found to increase the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma by 66%.²⁰

Compared to normal breasts, cancerous breasts have 3 times the incidence of infection with bovine leukemia virus, (a virus common in milk and meat). [21] There are other reasons for the meat/cancer association.

One of these is the way meat is prepared for marketing and the way it is cooked. Red meat is associated with increased formation of N- nitroso compounds. These compounds cause DNA damage which results in increased colorectal cancer.²² When people cook meat “well-done” at high temperatures, in an effort to kill all the trichina or “mad cow” disease, they produce mutagenic compounds called heterocyclic amines, which significantly increase the incidence of colorectal cancer.²³

Animal foods prepared by frying, broiling or microwaving have been shown to increase the risk of cancer by the formation of toxins called heterocyclic amines.²⁴

Protein, as much as we need it, is safe only in low quantities. Too much protein tends to suppress the immune system. Compared to a low protein diet (5%), a high protein diet (25%) like ours has been shown to both promote tumors and increase metastasis to the liver and lungs.²⁵

Let’s take a minute to look a little closer at dairy products. To begin with, it will help you to know that one of the important parts of your immune system is a white cell called the “natural killer cell”. Milk is immunosuppressive—the more you drink, the worse your natural killer cells will function. What’s more, tripling your milk protein intake triples your cancer risk.²⁶ One of the reasons for this is that cows are fed high protein diets and given growth hormones.²⁷ Cows today produce more milk than they did 100 years ago. Three servings of milk per day significantly increase insulin like growth factor in humans.²⁸ Insulin-like growth factor elevation is linked to cancer of the prostate,²⁹ breast,³⁰³¹ and lung.³²

Hormones and Cancer

At this point it would be well to understand the role of hormones in breast cancer initiation and progression. Anything that increases or prolongs a woman’s exposure to estrogen increases her risk of breast cancer. Estradiol, one of the estrogens, is a potent cell growth stimulator, which is why it also can promote cancer. Thus there is a greater incidence of cancer associated with: early onset of menarche, late menopause, (because the woman is exposed to more years of elevated hormones), hormone replacement therapy, postmenopausal obesity, (because fat cells can produce estrogen) and history of an abortion (because after the loss of the fetus the woman is exposed to the estrogens that were meant to support the pregnancy).³³

One often unrecognized source of large doses of growth hormones comes from the use of animal foods. Estradiol is used as a growth promoter in farm animals. Estradiol can actually induce tumors in rats, mice, and hamsters. When levels become artificially elevated in humans there is a corresponding increase in breast and uterine cancer.³⁴ Postmenopausal women with estradiol levels > 9 units (in their entire blood volume) had a 7-fold higher rate of breast cancer than that of women with undetectable levels.³⁵ If a level of nine or greater is bad, you may ask, what would be a source of estradiol that might send my hormones that high? I was interested to find that one American beefsteak had 20 units, one liter of milk 18 units, 2 eggs 13 units, 50 gm of butter 4 units, and 100 gm of cheese 3units!³⁶

Another food that will drive up your hormones is fat. Studies show that high dietary fat intake is associated with elevated serum estrogens and androgens.³⁷ In 1975 Carroll and Khor produced charts showing increased rates of breast, colon, and prostate cancer with increased calorie, fat, and protein intake, country by country. There was a linear relationship between a country’s per capita fat intake and the death rate from cancer.³⁸ Some fats are more dangerous than others. High saturated fat intake triples the risk of dying from prostate cancer.³⁹ Another dangerous fat is the chemically produced fat known as trans-fat. Trans-fat intake has been shown to increases breast,⁴⁰ prostate,⁴¹ and colon cancer.⁴²

My first clinical experience was in gynecology/obstetrics. Besides delivering babies and attending surgeries, much of my time was spent in clinic. Within a few days it became very apparent that from the day a girl came in complaining of discomfort with the onset of menses to the time that a middle aged women came in to tell of her discomfort with hot flashes, we had women on pharmacological doses of hormones.

“And what are the consequences?” you may ask.

In a study of 37,000 women, oral contraceptives significantly increased breast cancer risk.⁴³⁴⁴ Perimenopausal hormone-replacement therapy with estrogen alone increases the risk of endometrial cancer by 45%.⁴⁵ And when estrogen is combined with progesterone, breast cancer increases.⁴⁶ Some replacement hormones are from “natural” sources such as pregnant horse urine. But many are simply chemicals from the laboratory.

Vitamin D and Sunshine

Vitamin D has received a lot of attention recently as an immune stimulator and an anti-cancer agent. Its primary source is ultra-violet light striking the skin.

“But”, you may say, “sun causes skin cancer.”
Here is where the discriminating mind will discern the real cause of skin cancer. In a study of precancerous skin lesions, it was found that people on a high fat diet developed three times the number of lesions compared to those on a low fat diet. Thus, in order to get your anti-cancer vitamin D from the sun, you need also to limit the fat in your diet.⁴⁷

Weighty Matters

We have been talking about the fat that you eat, but now we need to make mention of the fat that you wear. Fat cells are actually involved in estrogen production. Excess estrogen production in obese women gives them a greater risk of dying with breast cancer.⁴⁸ Obesity is also a risk factor for pancreatic cancer⁴⁹, not to mention diabetes and arthritis. Don’t underestimate the contribution of overeating of any kind to the development of cancer.⁵⁰ When you consume extra food, it tends not only to make you grow, but to make cancer grow also.⁵¹

Obesity is usually linked with elevated triglycerides and cholesterol. Elevated cholesterol and triglycerides are associated with significant increases in breast cancer. On the other hand, high levels of HDL, the good cholesterol, significantly decrease breast cancer risk.⁵²

Chemical Toxins

This brings us to out next topic—chemicals in our environment. Chemicals can act like hormones, increasing the risk of cancer.⁵³ Insecticides such as DDT and DDD have hormonal activity⁵⁴ suppressing the immune system,⁵⁵⁵⁶ and increasing the risk of cancer.⁵⁷ Chemicals tend to accumulate in our environment. Plants can take on small portions of these chemicals. Small creatures eat the plants and then are eaten by larger ones. As you go up the food chain a process called biomagnification occurs. For example sea otters tested for PCBs and DDT showed up to 240x greater levels than that found in their prey.⁵⁸ The closer to the beginning of the food chain (eat from the garden) the safer your food.

The body is constantly surveying its DNA for damage and making repairs. When DNA damage accumulates, cancer can result. It has been found that lung cancer patients have suppressed DNA repair.⁵⁹ One commonly encountered substance, which prevents repair of damaged DNA, is caffeine.⁶⁰ Consequently, two or more cups of coffee per day more than double the risk of ovarian cancer.⁶¹ What’s more, when caffeine is combined with a high fat diet, it significantly increases breast cancer risk.⁶²

In this age of scientific discovery, the lung cancer/tobacco connection need hardly be mentioned. But few realize the extent to which other cancers are affected by this poison. Tobacco’s influence can be seen in many malignancies, including cancers of the lip, mouth, throat, voice box, trachea, esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, bladder, kidney, cervix, leukemia, colon, skin, and penis.⁶³

Alcohol, a poison to the cells, is involved in 75% of esophageal cancers, 50% of mouth and larynx cancers, 30% of liver cancers, as well as colon, rectal and breast cancer. All totaled, 60,000 deaths per year are related to, not traffic accidents, domestic violence or homicides, but alcohol related cancer.⁶⁴

New building materials are a common source environmental toxins.

Workers in a newly remodeled office were found
to have increased chemicals in their blood stream and significant decline in their immune function.⁶⁵ Cancer causing chemicals found indoors include: chloroform, acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, dichlorobenzene, styrene, methylene chloride.⁶⁶

Another source of environmental toxins is the chemicals added to food as preservatives or flavor enhancers.⁶⁷ There are many additives to food for which side effects are unknown. Others are questionable or have produced cancer in animals such as BHA,⁶⁸⁶⁹ BHT,⁷⁰⁷¹⁷² and potassium bromate,^73747576 etc.

In our modern age of plastics more and more of our food is being presented to us in poly containers. Today we get products such as milk, peanut butter, bottled water, apple sauce, and some jams, just to name a few, in plastic containers. It might cause concern to realize that the people making these containers—workers at plastic factories, have 5x the risk of pancreatic and liver cancer.⁷⁷

A lot of the toxic chemicals in our environment that have carcinogenic potential are halogenated polycarbons. The most common halogens in these substances are fluoride,⁷⁸⁷⁹ bromide, or chloride. In these compounds, a halogen such as chloride is attached to a carbon structure, like gasoline, which makes the carbon structure more toxic and poisonous. Should it be any surprise to discover that these halogens are not much better for us if put in our water? A study in Canada revealed that consumption of chlorinated water increases the risk of cancer of the esophagus and stomach and leukemia.⁸⁰⁸¹

When I was a medical student I did research with the General Surgery Department. I was looking at the previous five years of pancreatic cancer patients. To my surprise, none of them was still alive. All had died, and this usually after several surgeries and much pain. The risk of pancreatic cancer is significantly increased by obesity⁸² and high consumption of: salt, smoked meat, fried food, refined sugar, food with preservatives or additives,⁸³ and coffee.⁸⁴⁸⁵⁸⁶ Salt also increases the risk of brain cancer.⁸⁷ Knowing the risk factors helps us understand what lifestyle changes we can make to improve our chances of avoiding this killer disease.

We all have seen a diesel truck grinding its way up a hill belching black smoke from its exhaust pipe. Products of combustion surround us even in our everyday life (exhaust from cars, gas stoves, etc.) all of which have carcinogenic potential.⁸⁸ Railroad workers exposed to diesel fumes have a 40% increase in mortality from lung cancer.⁸⁹

In recent years the phrase “oxidative stress” has become popular. Oxidative stress is merely a measure of the inflammation in the body. Measuring the number of free radicals in the blood often assesses this. Oxidative stress damages DNA that leads to the development of cancer. Chronic inflammation increases the risk of cancer in the gastrointestinal tract.⁹⁰ For example gastro-esophageal reflux can cause esophagitis, known as Barrett’s Esophagus. In Barrett’s Esophagus, cancer develops because the esophagus is constantly healing itself and just can’t stop healing.⁹¹ Cancer is basically cells that are growing or healing out of control.

Melatonin

Melatonin is a protective, anti-cancer hormone and strong antioxidant.⁹² Light at night suppresses melatonin and increases cancer cell growth rates. Evidence now links exposures to light at night to elevated breast⁹³ and colorectal cancers in night workers.⁹⁴

Stress

Stress and depression increase cancer because they decrease the immune system’s ability to find and destroy cancer cells.⁹⁵⁹⁶ In a ten year follow up study, in which social coping skills, along with the traditional risk factors; smoking, drinking and medical diseases were considered, people with greater stress from poor interpersonal skills had a 40% higher death rate from cancer.⁹⁷ In another study, divorced or separated women had a 126% higher risk of getting breast cancer, and widowed 100% higher.⁹⁸ Cancer develops more commonly and grows faster in people with suppressed anger.⁹⁹ These mental / emotional causes of cancer are some of the most powerful risk factors known to man.

Radiation

One threat to DNA integrity is all the modern sources of radiation. Sources of radiation include radioactive elements, X-rays, gamma rays, microwaves, radio transmitters, electromagnetic fields, ultraviolet light, solar radiation, and nuclear radiation. For example children living within 2 km of an AM radio station have more than double the chances of getting leukemia as those 20 km or more away.¹⁰⁰

Another modern source of radiation is the cell phone. Cell phones significantly increase astrocytomas (brain cancer) in the temporal area of the brain (right where you hold your cell phone). There is also an increase in acoustic neurinomas (ear cancer).¹⁰¹

Electric blankets can also be a significant source of radiation. Breast cancer risk associated with electric blanket use increases with the number of years of use, the number of seasons of use, and the length of time of use each night.¹⁰² It has been suggested that if you want your bed warmed, turn on the electric blanket or heating pad until the desired temperature is reached, then unplug it before getting into bed.

The relation between breast cancer and electromagnetic field exposure has been the object of much study. For women telephone installers, repairers, and line workers, the risk of breast cancer goes up 117%; for system analysts and programmers 65%; for telegraph and radio operators 40%; and for telephone operators 27%.¹⁰³

Children are affected by radiation as well. For example the risk of leukemia is elevated in: children whose mothers used an electric blanket or an electric mattress pad during pregnancy; children who themselves use electric blankets or electric mattress pads, hair dryers, video machines in arcades, or video games connected to a television.¹⁰⁴

Heavy Metals

Elevated levels of heavy metals including: iron, nickel, chromium, zinc, cadmium, mercury, and lead have been found in tumorous tissues of cancer patients.¹⁰⁵ These heavy metals increase oxidative stress and DNA damage, which result in cancer. Mercury, when combined with chloride, produces cancer by acting as a hormone, binding to and activating estrogen receptors.¹⁰⁶

Continued in Cancer: What’s Eating You? – Part 2

References

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² U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group. United States Cancer Statistics: 2002 Incidence and Mortality. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Cancer Institute; 2005.


³ Kijak. E.; Foust G; Steinman R.R.; Relationship of Blood Sugar Level and Leukocytic Phagacytosis; Southern California Dental Association 1964; 32(9):349-351

⁴ Augustin LS, Dal Maso L, La Vecchia C, et. al. Dietary glycemic index and glycemic load, and breast cancer risk: a case-control study. Ann Oncol. 2001 Nov;12(11):1533-8.


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⁷ Augustin LS, Gallus S, Bosetti C, et. al. Glycemic index and glycemic load in endometrial cancer. Int J Cancer. 2003 Jun 20;105(3):404- 7.


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⁹ Augustin LS, Polesel J, Bosetti C, et. al. Dietary glycemic index, glycemic load and ovarian cancer risk: a case-control study in Italy. Ann Oncol. 2003 Jan;14(1):78-84.


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Enriched!

A diet high in refined carbohydrates negatively affects the balance of free radical generation and antioxidant defense leading to inflammation overload.^121122123 A breakfast consisting of a bowl of corn flakes with skimmed milk, a piece of toast and a glass of orange juice converts almost instantly to 16 teaspoons of sugar. Sixteen teaspoons of sugar will increase the body’s oxidative stress and inflammation by 240%.¹²⁴ A can of soda has 12 teaspoons of sugar.

Refined grain products, (e.g. white bread, white rice, white pasta), tip the body’s oxidant / anti-oxidant balance toward oxidation, increasing inflammation and the risk of autoimmune disease.¹²⁵¹²⁶

The Gluten Connection

Patients with autoimmune inflammatory diseases have a high incidence of sensitivity to wheat gluten, as high as 10 times higher than normal individuals.¹²⁷

Animal Antigens

Individuals with autoimmune inflammatory disease show higher than normal sensitivities to animal product antigens: 1200% higher for dairy, 600% for eggs, 460% for pork, and 400% for fish.¹²⁷ If you have autoimmune disease or know you should be taking precautions to avoid autoimmune inflammatory disease it might be prudent to stay away from these sources of disease.

More On Milk

The link between dairy and autoimmune inflammatory diseases is multifactorial:¹²⁸¹²⁹ milk is immunosuppressive,¹³⁰ it has many hormones which increase disease risk,¹³¹ milk is the source of many infectious agents (viruses and bacteria) that precipitate autoimmune inflammatory disease,¹³² it contains many antigens which initiate the autoimmune process,^133134135136 and milk provokes and aggravates¹³⁷ the inflammatory process.¹³⁸

Go Big Red

Why is red meat red? Heme iron makes red meat red and red cells red. Heme iron increases the body’s sensitivity to oxidative stress and inflammation.¹³⁹ Consumption of red meat increases the risk of autoimmune inflammatory disease by 130%.¹⁴⁰ Epidemiological studies comparing the amount of meat eaten in countries around the world with how much autoimmune inflammatory disease the have show that with increased meat consumption there is increased disease.¹⁴¹ The message of course is, if you need an autoimmune inflammatory disease, eat more meat.

Protein Portions

Many people these days are worried about whether or not they are eating enough protein in their diet. It is a bit of a mania. In fact it is actually hard to achieve a low protein diet. Protein, eaten in excess of body needs, increases the risk of autoimmune inflammatory diseases by 190%.¹⁴⁰ (For more information on protein, please refer to our handout and presentation on osteoporosis.)

Many people these days are worried about whether or not they are eating enough protein in their diet. It is a bit of a mania. In fact it is actually hard to achieve a low protein diet.

Variety, The Spice Of Life?

Most people in developed countries like to eat a large variety of food at each meal as though they had to balance their entire life’s nutritional requirements at one sitting. Excessive antigenic load, as encountered in a complex meal comprised of multiple diverse foods, can provoke autoimmunity, allergy and inflammation.¹⁴²

Eat To Live, Or Live To Eat?

Another instigator of the autoimmune inflammatory process is overeating. Overeating provides fuel for a bigger fire then can be healthfully managed. Excessive caloric intake is associated with increased body oxidative stress¹⁴³ and increased incidence of autoimmune inflammatory diseases. On the other hand reduced caloric intake decreases autoimmune inflammatory disease risks.¹⁴⁴

Weight Management

For the avoidance of these diseases, carrying extra weight is not ideal. Studies show that whole body inflammation increases with increasing body weight.¹⁴⁵¹⁴⁶ Being overweight increases the risk of acquiring an autoimmune inflammatory disorder by 275%.¹⁴⁷

As a person gains weight, fat tends to gather about the abdomen. While much of this fat is external, a large portion of it is also internal, around the organs. This internal fat is termed organ or visceral fat. Visceral fat is another source of inflammation¹⁴⁸ and oxidized fat. For each 1% increase in visceral fat, the risk for increasing inflammation goes up an additional 140%.¹⁴⁹

A Case Of Mistaken Identity

Worms: could there be a case of mistaken identity? Trichinellosis, a parasite acquired from eating pork and bear, is associated with increased inflammation.¹⁵⁰¹⁵¹ Musculoskeletal symptoms include muscle pain, joint pain, muscle weakness, and restriction of joint movements.¹⁵²¹⁵³

Trichinellosis is not the only infection implicated in autoimmune inflammatory conditions. Viral and bacterial infections are being implicated more and more in the development of autoimmune inflammatory diseases.^154155156157 Autoantibodies increase with the number of infections a person has suffered in their lifetime.¹⁵⁸ Numerous infections agents, including Salmonella,¹⁵⁹ E. Coli, Streptococcus and Mycobacterium,¹⁶⁰ have been linked to autoimmune inflammatory diseases. The most abundant source of these infectious agents is animal products.^{161162163164165}

Needling The Immune System

There are some risky behaviors that may need to be avoided. One of these, about which more and more scientific evidence is emerging, is vaccination. For example receiving measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) vaccination significantly increases the odds of acquiring chronic inflammatory arthritis.¹⁶⁶ Compared to receiving the common tetanus vaccine: receiving a hepatitis B vaccine increases the odds of acquiring multiple sclerosis by 420%, systemic lupus erythematosus by 810%, and rheumatoid arthritis by 1700%!¹⁶⁷

Exercise

It has been said, If you don’t find time to exercise, you will have to find time to be sick. When one sits around, its like a car idling; smoke and fumes build up. For the sedentary individual, inflammation builds up, increasing the risk for autoimmune inflammatory disease.¹⁶⁸

Strict Schedule

How regular are you? I mean in your schedule? Studies show that extended and irregular shift work confers an increased risk of contracting an autoimmune inflammatory disease.¹⁶⁹

Outcome Of Perturbing The Immune System

Once the immune system becomes off balance it can really fall a long way from normal resulting in signs and symptoms that culminate in autoimmune inflammatory disease. Besides all the well recognized autoimmune inflammatory diseases listed earlier there are other unhappy outcomes to letting the immune system fall into disarray. We will list just a few.

The presence of an autoimmune inflammatory disease is a good sign that the immune system is probably going to have trouble performing its usual function with success. Most autoimmune disease is associated with immune suppression or dysfunction. People with autoimmune inflammatory disorders are 85% more likely to acquire serious life threatening infections. The most common sites of infection include, joints, skin, soft tissues and the lungs.¹⁷⁰

Despite increased medical treatment options, patients with autoimmune inflammatory diseases do not enjoy lengthy lives.¹⁷¹ Pneumonia, tuberculosis, and liver disease are significantly increased as causes of death in these patients.¹⁷²

Chest pain: should autoimmune inflammatory disease patient be worried? Inflammatory disease not only affects bones, connective tissue and joints, but blood vessels and heart muscle as well. Patients with autoimmune inflammatory disease are 90% more apt to have congestive heart failure,¹⁷³ 95% more likely to die of sudden cardiac arrest, and 220% to have a heart attack.¹⁷⁴

Many autoimmune inflammatory disease patients suffer from osteoporosis, (thinning of the bones), making them more susceptible to fractures. The inflammatory process involved in autoimmune disease is also a major player in osteoporosis.¹⁷⁵

Many of the medications with which autoimmune inflammatory disease are treated also cause osteoporosis.

Cancer is also often the result of a deficient immune system. Immunity is a function of white blood cells. As a consequence of inflammation and immune compromise, the risk of leukemia (blood cell cancer) increases 150%.¹⁷⁶

Restoring And Maintaining The Immune System

Let’s change gears now and talk about how to restore a failing immune system and maintain it in a condition to assure the avoidance of further inflammatory disease, its complications, and its pain.

Fresh Morning Air

Occupations involving physical work in the open air are protective, while working in artificial, air conditioned environments increase the risk of contracting an autoimmune inflammatory disease.¹⁷⁷¹⁷⁸ One of the most effective immune boosters is an early morning walk in the fresh air near a body of water as the sun is just coming up.¹⁷⁹

Have You Seen The Smiling Sun Recently?

Sunlight exposure reduces inflammation in the body.^180181182 Sunlight exposure is a major source of vitamin D.¹⁸³ Vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of many common cancers, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, hypertension, cardiovascular heart disease, and type I diabetes.¹⁸⁴ It is recommended that at least 25% of your skin be exposed to the sunlight for 20 minutes each day, and longer if you have darker skin.

What About Exercise?

But I can’t exercise, I have pain! you may be thinking. Exercise tips the inflammatory / anti-inflammatory balance in favor of reduced inflammation and reduced disease risk.^185186187188 With few exceptions, sufferers of autoimmune inflammatory diseases benefit significantly from physical activity, which leads to significant improvements in strength, pain, and fatigue without making the disease worse.^{189190191192193}

As individuals age their immune systems declines. Being physically fit helps to slow this decline. The immune system responds positively to moderate exercise, while too much exercise tends to suppress it.¹⁹⁴

While you are out exercising, as I know you will be, loose clothing is of greater benefit than clothing that restricts movement and blood flow. Tight clothing has been shown to interfere in body temperature variations, blood flow and hormone levels, factors implicated in autoimmune inflammatory disease.¹⁹⁵

Circadian Rhythms: The Bodies Internal Clock

Our bodies run on clocks. The anti-inflammatory / inflammatory balance cycles on a clock called your circadian rhythm.¹⁹⁶¹⁹⁷ The anti- inflammatory circadian clock malfunctions when: meal times are varied or meals are taken late in the evening,¹⁹⁸¹⁹⁹ sleeping times are varied,²⁰⁰ insufficient or shifted to a late bedtime and/or late rise time, a job requires shift work where daily schedules vary on some days, such as on days off or weekends.²⁰¹ Regularity in sleeping hours improves overall sleep quality and anti-inflammatory effect. For the autoimmune inflammatory patient, we recommend a strict schedule for sleeping hours with a set nightly bedtime no later than 9:30 p.m., and a set regular rise time between 7.5 and 8 hours later on all weekdays and weekend days.²⁰² We recommend regular mealtimes every day of the week not varying by more than 5 minutes with no meal later than 5:30 p.m. We recommend regularity in exercising every day of the week including days off and weekends.

Dietary Choices

A study was performed comparing four diets: (1) fats and processed meats diet (fats, oils, processed meats, fried potatoes, salty snacks, and desserts) the western diet, (2) beans, tomatoes, and refined grains diet (beans, tomatoes, refined grains, and high-fat dairy products) a Mediterranean like diet, (3) vegetables and fish diet (fish and dark-yellow, cruciferous, and other vegetables) sea food diet, and (4) whole grains and fruit diet (whole grains, fruit, nuts, and green leafy vegetables) vegetarian vegan diet. The western diet raised three markers of inflammation, the Mediterranean diet raised one marker of inflammation, the seafood diet lowered one marker of inflammation and the vegetarian vegan diet lowered four markers of inflammation; showing the superiority of the vegan diet in addressing autoimmune inflammatory diseases.²⁰³

Vegetarian Advantage

A vegetarian diet has been found to have an anti-inflammatoryeffect on patients with active autoimmune inflammatory disease.^204205206207 A vegetarian diet stimulates the immune system, improves tolerance to noxious antigens found in less ideal diets,²⁰⁸ and is loaded with anti-oxidant anti-inflammatory vitamins and phytochemicals. Another advantage to the vegetarian diet is its high content of natural anti-oxidants. Studies show that patients suffering from autoimmune inflammatory diseases eat significantly fewer anti-oxidant foods.²⁰⁹ On the other hand studies show that high anti- oxidant intake decreases the bodies inflammation.²¹⁰

There is a real advantage to eating fruit and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables are high in flavonoids,²¹¹ phytochemicals and anti-oxidants that have been found to lower the oxidative stress, inflammation and oxidation of lipids (fats) in the body.²¹² Fruits and vegetables are high in vitamin A. Deficiency in vitamin A leaves the body unguarded against oxidative stress and autoimmune inflammatory disease.²¹³²¹⁴ Good sources of vitamin A include sweet potatoes, carrots, kale, spinach, winter squash, cantaloupe and broccoli.

Whole grains and fiber are also a part of an autoimmune inflammatory disease fighting diet. Diets high in whole grains have been shown to have a protective effect against systemic inflammation reducing the risk of autoimmune inflammatory disease.²¹⁵²¹⁶ Fiber, as found in whole grain products and bran, reduces inflammation in patients with inflammatory disorders.²¹⁷

What about a low carb diet for reducing inflammation? To the contrary, low fat, high carbohydrate diets have been shown to significantly reduce whole body inflammation.²¹⁸

What diet provides the maximal amount of anti-oxidant, anti- inflammatory benefits? Fresh food, that taste of Eden, is most effective. Fresh food is an uncooked vegan diet consisting of berries, fruits, vegetables and roots, nuts, germinated seeds and sprouts, i.e. rich sources of carotenoids, vitamins C and E, (some call this a raw food diet). People on a fresh food diet have been shown to enjoy improvements in symptoms of autoimmune inflammatory disease including: pain, joint stiffness, quality of sleep, health quality, cholesterol and weight management.²¹⁹²²⁰

Another consideration is the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids are associated with decreased inflammation, improvement in disease symptoms and reduced risk of acquiring autoimmune inflammatory disease.²²¹²²² Good sources of omega-3 fatty acids are a vegetarian diet, olives, and flax seed. Olives and olive oil, with their high levels of anti-oxidants, omega-3 fatty acids and phytochemicals, have been found to be helpful in the prevention and treatment of autoimmune inflammatory disorders.^223224225226 The most preferable way to obtain the olive oil is from the eating of whole olives. Results are not immediate but usually felt within 12 weeks.²²⁷

Another single food we want to mention is lemon juice and citrus. Citrus contains many bioflavonoids, phytochemicals, and anti-oxidants that have been found to reduce inflammation^228229230 and improve symptoms of autoimmune inflammatory disease.^231232233

We mentioned that too much protein has deleterious effects for the would-be autoimmune inflammatory disease survivor. But not all proteins are created equal. Soy protein reduces the risk of autoimmune inflammatory disease by 60% compared to a diet high in animal protein.²³⁴²³⁵

Are you a python? Do you swallow your food whole?

Chew Your Food

Are you a python? Do you swallow your food whole? A better method is to chew your food well and savor every bite. The immune tissue in the mouth and throat (tonsils), tests substances coming into the body to let the body know what is food.^{236237238239240} Allergy and autoimmune inflammatory diseases are more likely to flair up when food is not chewed long and well, when the body has not had a chance to recognize the antigens.²⁴¹²⁴²

Temperance: Abstinence From Things Harmful, Moderation In Things Good

A program designed to benefit patients with autoimmune inflammatory disease will most surely include methods for eliminating the use of such stimulants as tea, coffee, caffeine, tobacco and alcohol.

Another aspect of temperance is the eating moderate amounts of food. When more calories are consumed than are needed, inflammation increases. On the other hand, reducing calorie intake reduces the body’s inflammatory responses.²⁴³²⁴⁴ The goal is to match caloric intake to body energy needs.

Taken a step further, fasting is a quick way to get an energy imbalance under control.²⁴⁵ Fasting has been found to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, and improve symptoms of autoimmune inflammatory disease.²⁴⁶²⁴⁷

The outcome of caloric restriction could have another desirable result for some; that being weight loss. Being overweight is associated with increased risk of autoimmune inflammatory disease. Weight loss is associated with a decrease in oxidative damage to lipids (fats) and proteins and decreased inflammation.^248249250

Water Consumption: I’ll Drink To That

Studies show that optimal water intake can lower the risk of autoimmune inflammatory diseases by as much as 60%. On the other hand, dehydration (being low on water) enhances the inflammatory response of the body to hostile antigens.²⁵¹

We recommend 8-12 eight ounce glasses per day.

What water should I drink? We have a saying; friends don;t let friends drink tap water. Contaminated water is also a source of inflammation.²⁵²²⁵³ Water should be obtained which is pure and free from all substances, which can potentially induce inflammation. Depending on your water condition, filtering, distilling or other treatment may be necessary.

Drinking it is not the only beneficial use of water. Many people have discovered the benefits of hydrotherapy; the use of water for treatment of disease and maintenance of health. Acute inflammatory pain can be treated with either superficial heat for reducing guarding (fear and tensing) or with cold for reducing pain.²⁵⁴ The application of heat or cold to inflamed joints tends to improve pain, joint stiffness and joint function. The application of cold tends to raise the pain threshold.²⁵⁵ Contrast (alternating hot and cold) hydrotherapy tends to improve circulation, greatly lowering inflammation.²⁵⁶²⁵⁷

Avoiding The Obvious

The avoidance of heavy metal exposure is key to reducing the risk of and/or symptoms of autoimmune inflammatory disease. If a high level of exposure has been experienced in the past, it may be necessary to take steps to eliminate these toxins from the body.

Vaccination Burnout

Repeated over stimulation of the immune system, as in immunizations, can result in immune fatigue and burnout resulting in increased risk of autoimmune inflammatory disease.

Should I Do A Cleanse?

When toxin accumulation is the cause of immune dysfunction, toxin elimination may be the only way to get the immune system back in balance. Sweating, something we don’t like to do in this day and age, may be just what is needed to expel the aggravating toxins.²⁵⁸ Skin brushing (exfoliation) can also be a part of this elimination process. Chelation is another effective way to get rid of especially heavy metals.²⁵⁹ This can often be accomplished with dietary modifications. Sometimes a diet totally devoid for a while of the toxin to be expelled can accomplish the same goal.²⁶⁰ Some have even found a colon cleanse beneficial.²⁶¹ I knew of a patient who was successful at managing their inflammatory arthritis if they did a colon cleanse once a quarter (which made me wonder what they were doing the rest of the time to pollute their colon again).

Another useful modality for the removal of toxins and inflammation is charcoal. Charcoal can be used for inflammation as an oral supplement,²⁶² and as a topical treatment.²⁶³²⁶⁴ Studies show that it is effective²⁶⁵ in reducing the symptoms and signs of autoimmune inflammatory disease.

Mind Body Connection

Trust in Divine power: spirituality is associated with less depression and increased feelings of health in patients with autoimmune inflammatory disease.²⁶⁶²⁶⁷ Studies reveal that religious intervention such as intercessory prayer increases immune function, improves rheumatoid arthritis, and reduces anxiety.²⁶⁸ In a study of autoimmune inflammatory patients, six hours of one-on-one intercessory prayer was associated with significant overall improvement in disease that lasted the entire subsequent year of the study’s duration.²⁶⁹

Given the relationship between stress and autoimmune inflammatory disease, stress reduction should be a priority with autoimmune²⁷⁰²⁷¹ disease sufferers. The dietary changes we advocate have also been found to reduce the psychological symptoms of stress.²⁷² Improved spiritual health has been shown to be a valuable aid in stress management.²⁷³ Has not God said, Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.²⁷⁴ He is the great burden bearer; trusting in Him alleviates stress.

And what dietary program are we really talking about? The original Bible diet! Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And you will eat the plants of the field.²⁷⁵ Should it be any surprise that the Maker of this marvelous immune system, which is designed to protect this marvelous body we have been given, should have the best lifestyle prescription necessary for its upkeep?

In Summary

As you engage in an autoimmune inflammatory disease recovery program you will find it helpful to eliminate all:

• Animal products including dairy and eggs.
• Possibly wheat gluten.
• Oxidized oils or cholesterol.
• Refined foods: sugars, starches, grains, and oils.
• Excess dietary calories.
• Foods or drinks created by aging or fermentation.
• Stimulants: coffee, tea, tobacco and alcohol.
• Strong irritating spices.
• Excess body weight.
• Tight clothing and clothing that does not provide adequate and evenly distributed warmth.
• Excessive meals (fasting may be helpful).

As you engage in an autoimmune inflammatory disease recovery program you will find it helpful to:

• Have a regular schedule throughout the day for sleep, meals and exercise.
• Eat a whole plant food diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, omega-3s and fiber.
• Chew your food thoroughly and swish it around your mouth.
• Make use of pure water: drink plenty, bath often, and perform hot and cold treatments.
• Make wise application of charcoal as poultices and taken by mouth.

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