Restoring the Temple – Diabetes

Question:

My dad has type II diabetes. What is diabetes and what different types of diabetes are there?

—d.b., oregon

Answer:

That is a simple, yet very complicated question. Diabetes and its treatment are quite complex. Large textbooks and thousands of medical articles have been written about this disease, yet its intricacies often overwhelm health professionals. The important thing is that people with the disease, like your father, and their family members, have a basic understanding of diabetes and its treatment. While there is a library’s worth of information out there, I will try to give you a basic overview of diabetes. Remember, each person’s disease is a little different, and how it is treated is up to him or her and their medical or alternative health care practitioner.

Diabetes has been with us for a long time, although historical accounts indicate that it was totally misunderstood. One document, written by Areteus the Cappadocian, between the second and third centuries, a.d., states that diabetes is the “melting down of the flesh and limbs into urine” and is most certainly deadly. Fortunately, Areteus was mistaken on both accounts. Today, with the understanding of what diabetes is, treatments have allowed diabetics to live healthy, productive lives.

Basically, diabetes is a disease involving the pancreas. The pancreas is an organ that sits behind the stomach and produces digestive juices, which are released into the small intestine. The pancreas also produces insulin, which is released into the blood stream. Insulin is a hormone that helps the body use the sugar and fat from the food you eat. Diabetes occurs if the pancreas produces little or no insulin or if the body does not respond to insulin as it should. Diabetes is considered a lifelong disease; however, the prospect of health is greatly dependent upon how well the person adheres to their treatment regimen.

Every cell in your body needs glucose to make energy. Glucose is a simple sugar that is broken down from the food that you eat. Carbohydrates are transported from the intestines to the liver (via the bloodstream) where they are broken down into glucose. The bloodstream then delivers glucose to every cell in your body. Extra glucose is stored in the liver or is converted into fat. When glucose enters your cells, it decreases the glucose level in your blood stream (called blood glucose or blood sugar).

Think of insulin as sort of a membership card. Without the card, the member is not allowed into the building, right? Without insulin, glucose cannot enter the cell. So now you have all this glucose building up in the blood stream with nowhere to go. This is hyperglycemia, or high blood sugar.

There are three types of diabetes: Type I, Type II, and gestational. Type I diabetes is caused by the pancreas producing little or no insulin. Persons with Type I must take insulin injections to control their blood glucose levels. Type I diabetes is pehaps better known as juvenile-onset diabetes. It has been called this because it occurs mostly in youth under the age of 20, but it can occur at any age.

Persons who have Type II diabetes do produce insulin, but they either do not produce enough or it does not work properly. Affecting 17 million people in the United States, Type II is the most common form of diabetes. It is interesting to note that an estimated 91 percent of those cases could have been prevented by lifestyle changes. Type II diabetes is the leading cause of health complications such as blindness, non-traumatic amputations, and chronic kidney failure. Risk factors for this type of diabetes include age (usually over 40) and obesity. There is a rise of Type II diabetes in children related to the increase of obesity in childhood.

Type II diabetes is treated differently in different people. Some may be able to manage their blood sugar by controlling their weight, making dietary changes, and by exercising. This treatment is sometimes not enough for some people, and they may need to take a prescription drug or insulin injections.

Gestational diabetes occurs during pregnancy when hormone changes affect the ability of insulin to work properly. In most cases, blood sugar levels return to normal after childbirth, but women who have had gestational diabetes have a higher risk of developing Type II diabetes later.

Symptoms of Diabetes

The symptoms of diabetes can include increased thirst, increased hunger, dry mouth, frequent urination, unexplained weight loss or weight gain, fatigue, blurry vision, itching, and increased frequency of infections.

Management of Diabetes

The main treatment goals include keeping blood sugar as close to normal levels as possible by balancing food intake with medication (if necessary) and exercise. The person with diabetes should plan their diets carefully, exercise regularly, and monitor blood sugars faithfully.

Diabetes is a lifelong test of watchfulness and self-control. Sometimes even when a diabetic is doing everything exactly right, something, such as an illness or traumatic experience throws the blood sugar out of control anyway. But, with conscientious care, and, most importantly, with our Lord’s help, diabetics can lead a long, healthy, and active life. Don’t we have an even better life to which to look forward?

“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Revelation 2:7.

Sheryle Beaudry, a certified teletriage nurse, writes from Estacada, Oregon where she lives with her husband and twin daughters. She may be contacted by e-mail at: sbeaudryrn@hotmail.com. If there is a health-related question you would like answered in LandMarks, please e-mail your question to: landmarks@stepstolife.org, or mail it to: LandMarks, Steps to Life, P. O. Box 782828, Wichita, KS 67278.

Restoring the Temple – Vegetarian Foods, Powerful for Health Part II

World-renowned figures as diverse as philosophers Plato and Nietzsche, political leaders Benjamin Franklin and Gandhi, and pop icons Paul McCartney and Bob Marley have all advocated a vegetarian diet. Science is also on the side of vegetarianism. Multitudes of studies have demonstrated the remarkable health benefits of a vegetarian diet.

“Vegetarian” is defined as avoiding all animal flesh, including fish and poultry. Vegetarians who avoid flesh, but do eat animal products such as cheese, milk, and eggs, are ovo-lacto-vegetarians (ovo = egg; lacto = milk, cheese, etc.). The ranks of those who abstain from all animal products are rapidly growing; these people are referred to as pure vegetarians or vegans. Scientific research shows that health benefits increase as the amount of food from animal sources in the diet decreases, so vegan diets are the healthiest overall.

Preventing Cancer

Vegetarian diets—naturally low in saturated fat, high in fiber, and replete with cancer-protective phytochemicals—help to prevent cancer. Large studies in England and Germany have shown that vegetarians are about 40 percent less likely to develop cancer compared to meat-eaters.1-3 In the United States, studies of Seventh-day Adventists have shown significant reductions in cancer risk among those who avoided meat.4,5 Similarly, breast cancer rates are dramatically lower in nations, such as China, that follow plant-based diets.6 Interestingly, Japanese women who follow Western-style, meat-based diets are eight times more likely to develop breast cancer than women who follow a more traditional plant-based diet.7 Meat and dairy products contribute to many forms of cancer, including cancer of the colon, breast, ovaries, and prostate.

Harvard studies that included tens of thousands of women and men have shown that regular meat consumption increases colon cancer risk by roughly 300 percent.8,9 High-fat diets also encourage the body’s production of estrogens, in particular, estradiol. Increased levels of this sex hormone have been linked to breast cancer. A recent report noted that the rate of breast cancer among premenopausal women who ate the most animal (but not vegetable) fat was one-third higher than that of women who ate the least animal fat.10 A separate study from Cambridge University also linked diets high in saturated fat to breast cancer.11 One study linked dairy products to an increased risk of ovarian cancer. The process of breaking down the lactose (milk sugar) into galactose evidently damages the ovaries.12 Daily meat consumption triples the risk of prostate enlargement. Regular milk consumption doubles the risk, and failure to consume vegetables regularly nearly quadruples the risk.13

Vegetarians avoid the animal fat linked to cancer and get abundant fiber, vitamins, and phytochemicals that help to prevent cancer. In addition, blood analysis of vegetarians reveals a higher level of “natural killer cells,” specialized white blood cells that attack cancer cells.14

Beating Heart Disease

Vegetarian diets also help prevent heart disease. Animal products are the main source of saturated fat and the only source of cholesterol in the diet. Vegetarians avoid these risky products. Additionally, fiber helps reduce cholesterol levels15 and animal products contain no fiber. When individuals switch to a high-fiber, low-fat diet their serum cholesterol levels often drop dramatically.16,17 Studies have demonstrated that a low-fat, high-fiber, vegetarian or vegan diet combined with stress reduction techniques, smoking cessation, and exercise, or combined with prudent drug intervention, could actually reverse atherosclerosis—hardening of the arteries.18,19 Heart diets that include lean meat, dairy products, and chicken are much less effective, usually only slowing the process of atherosclerosis.

Lowering Blood Pressure

In the early 1900s, nutritionists noted that people who ate no meat had lower blood pressure.20 They also discovered that vegetarian diets could, within two weeks, significantly reduce a person’s blood pressure.21 These results were evident regardless of the sodium levels in the vegetarian diets. People who follow vegetarian diets typically have lower blood pressure.22-24 No one knows exactly why vegetarian diets work so well, but probably cutting out meat, dairy products, and added fats reduces the blood’s viscosity (or “thickness”) which, in turn, brings down blood pressure.25 Plant products are generally lower in fat and sodium and have no cholesterol at all. Vegetables and fruits are also rich in potassium, which helps lower blood pressure.

Preventing and Reversing Diabetes

Non-insulin-dependent (adult-onset) diabetes can be better controlled and sometimes even eliminated through a low-fat, vegetarian diet along with regular exercise.26 Such a diet, low in fat and high in fiber and complex carbohydrates, allows insulin to work more effectively. The diabetic person can more easily regulate glucose levels. While a vegetarian diet cannot eliminate the need for insulin in people with type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetes, it can often reduce the amounts of insulin used. Some scientists believe that insulin-dependent diabetes may be caused by an auto-immune reaction to dairy proteins.27,28

Gallstones, Kidney Stones, and Osteoporosis

Vegetarian diets have been shown to reduce one’s chances of forming kidney stones and gallstones. Diets that are high in protein, especially animal protein, tend to cause the body to excrete more calcium, oxalate, and uric acid. These three substances are the main components of urinary tract stones. British researchers have advised that persons with a tendency to form kidney stones should follow a vegetarian diet.29 The American Academy of Family Physicians notes that high animal protein intake is largely responsible for the high prevalence of kidney stones in the United States and other developed countries and recommends protein restriction for the prevention of recurrent kidney stones.30

Similarly, high-cholesterol, high-fat diets—the typical meat-based diet—are implicated in the formation of gallstones. The consumption of meaty diets, compared to vegetarian diets, has been shown to nearly double the risk of gallstones in women.31

For many of the same reasons, vegetarians are at a lower risk for osteoporosis. Since animal products force calcium out of the body, eating meat can promote bone loss. In nations with mainly vegetable diets (and without dairy product consumption), osteoporosis is less common than in the United States, even when calcium intake is also less than in the United States.32 Calcium is important, but there is no need to get calcium from dairy products. . . .

Asthma

A 1985 Swedish study demonstrated that individuals with asthma practicing a vegan diet for a full year have a marked decrease in the need for medications and in the frequency and severity of asthma attacks. Twenty-two of the 24 subjects reported improvement by the end of the year.33

Common Concerns

Some people still worry about whether a vegetarian diet can provide all essential nutrients. However, it is very easy to have a well-balanced diet with vegetarian foods, since these foods provide plenty of protein. Careful combining of foods is not necessary. Any normal variety of plant foods provides more than enough protein for the body’s needs. Although there is somewhat less protein in a vegetarian diet than a meat-eater’s diet, this is actually an advantage. Excess protein has been linked to kidney stones, osteoporosis, and possibly heart disease and some cancers. A diet focused on beans, whole grains, and vegetables contains adequate amounts of protein without the “overdose” most meat-eaters get.

Calcium is easy to find in a vegetarian diet. Many dark green leafy vegetables and beans are loaded with calcium, and some orange juices, non-dairy “milks,” and cereals are calcium-fortified. Iron is plentiful in whole grains, beans, and fruits.

Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 is a genuine issue for vegans, although very easy to deal with. Found mainly in animal products, small amounts may be found in plant products due to bacterial contamination.34, 35 However, these plant and fermented foods, such as spirulina, sea vegetables, tempeh, and miso, do not provide an active and reliable source,36 so vitamin B12 must be obtained elsewhere in the diet. Regular intake of vitamin B12 is important to meet nutritional needs. Good sources include all common multiple vitamins (including vegetarian vitamins), fortified cereals, nutritional yeast, and fortified soymilk. It is especially important for pregnant women, breast-feeding mothers, and children to get enough vitamin B12.

Special Concerns: Pregnancy, Infants, and Children

During pregnancy, nutritional needs increase. The American Dietetic Association has found vegan diets adequate for fulfilling nutritional needs during pregnancy, but pregnant women and nursing mothers should supplement their diets with vitamins B12 and D.36 Most doctors also recommend that pregnant women supplement their diet with iron and folic acid, although vegetarians normally consume more folic acid than meat-eaters.

Vegetarian women have a lower incidence of pre-eclampsia in pregnancy and significantly more pure breast milk. Analyses of vegetarians’ breast milk show that the levels of environmental contaminants in their milk are much lower than in non-vegetarians.37 Studies have also shown that in families with a history of food allergies, when women abstain from allergenic foods, including milk, meat, and fish, during pregnancy, they are less likely to pass allergies onto the infant.38 Mothers who drink milk pass cow antibodies along to their nursing infants through their breast milk. These antibodies can cause colic.

Vegetarian children also have high nutritional needs, but these are met within a vegetarian diet. A vegetarian menu is life extending. As young children, vegetarians may grow more gradually, reach puberty somewhat later, and live substantially longer than do meat-eaters. . . .

Further Reading

For more information on vegetarian diets, PCRM recommends:

  • Breaking the Food Seduction, by Neal Barnard, M.D.
  • Foods That Fight Pain, by Neal Barnard, M.D.
  • Eat Right, Live Longer, by Neal Barnard, M.D.
  • Food for Life, by Neal Barnard, M.D.
  • The McDougall Plan, by John McDougall, M.D.
  • Dr. Dean Ornish’s Program for Reversing Heart Disease, by Dean Ornish, M.D.

[Editor’s Note: We also recommend reading Counsels on Diet and Foods and Counsels on Health by Ellen G. White.]

References

  1. Salie F. Influence of vegetarian food on blood pressure. Med Klin 1930;26:929-31.
  2. Donaldson AN. The relation of protein foods to hypertension. Calif West Med 1926;24:328-31.
  3. Rouse IL, Beilin LJ. Editorial review: vegetarian diet and blood pressure. J Hypertension 1984;2:231-40.
  4. Lindahl O, Lindwall L, Spangberg A, Stenram A, Ockerman PA. A vegan regimen with reduced medication in the treatment of hypertension. Br J Nutr 1984;52:11-20.
  5. 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;5:645-54.
  6. Ernst E, Pietsch L, Matrai A, Eisenberg J. Blood rheology in vegetarians. Br J Nutr 1986;56:555-60.
  7. Nicholson AS, Sklar M, Barnard ND, et al. Toward improved management of NIDDM: A randomized, controlled, pilot intervention using a low-fat, vegetarian diet. Prev Med 1999;29:87-91.
  8. Scott FW. Cow milk and insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus: is there a relationship? Am J Clin Nutr 1990;51:489-91.
  9. Karjalainen J, Martin JM, Knip M, et al. A bovine albumin peptide as a possible trigger of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. N Engl J Med 1992;327:302-7.
  10. Robertson WG, Peacock M, Heyburn PJ. Should recurrent calcium oxalate stone formers become vegetarians? Br J Urol 1979;51:427-31.
  11. Goldfarb DS, Coe FL. Prevention of Recurrent Nephrolithiasis. Am Fam Physician 1999;60:2269–76.
  12. Pixley F, Wilson D, McPherson K, Mann J. Effect of vegetarianism on development of gall stones in women. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1985;291:11-2.
  13. Hegsted DM. Calcium and osteoporosis. J Nutr 1986;116:2316-9.
  14. Lindahl O, Lindwall L, Spangberg A, Stenram A, Ockerman PA. Vegan regimen with reduced medication in the treatment of bronchial asthma. J Asthma 1985;22:45-55.
  15. Herbert V. Vitamin B-12: plant sources, requirements, and assay. Am J Clin Nutr 1988;48:852-8.
  16. Rauma A, Torronen R, Hanninen O, Mykkanen H. Vitamin B-12 status of long-term adherents of a strict uncooked vegan diet (“living food diet”) is compromised. J Nutr 1995;125:2511-5.
  17. Position of the American Dietetic Association: vegetarian diets. J Amer Diet Assoc 2003;103(6):748-765.
  18. Hergenrather J, Hlady G, Wallace B, Savage E. Pollutants in breast milk of vegetarians (letter). N Engl J Med 1981;304:792.
  19. Allergies in infants are linked to mother’s diets. New York Times, 30 August 1990.

©2007 Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine; all rights reserved. Reprinted by permission.

Restoring the Temple – Diet and Diabetes

Glucose, a simple sugar, is the body’s main fuel. It is present in the bloodstream, but in people with diabetes it cannot get into the cells where it is needed. In type 1 diabetes (which was once referred to as childhood-onset diabetes), the problem is an inadequate supply of insulin, the hormone that ushers sugar into the cells of the body. Without insulin, the cell membranes keep sugar out. About 5 to 10 percent of people with diabetes have this type.

The more common type of diabetes, type 2, usually does not occur until adulthood. In this form, there may be plenty of insulin in the bloodstream, but the cells are resistant to it. Glucose cannot easily get into the cells, and it backs up in the bloodstream. Over the short run, people with uncontrolled diabetes may experience fatigue, thirst, frequent urination, and blurred vision. In the long run, they are at risk for heart disease, kidney problems, disorders of vision, nerve damage, and other difficulties.

Dietary Approaches to Diabetes

Food can be powerful in preventing and reversing diabetes. However, dietary approaches have changed as we have learned more about the disease.

The traditional approach to diabetes focuses on limiting refined sugars and foods that release sugars during digestion—starches, breads, fruits, pasta, etc. With carbohydrates reduced, the diet may contain an unhealthful amount of fat and protein. So diabetes experts have taken care to limit fats—especially saturated fats that can raise cholesterol levels—and to limit protein for people with impaired kidney function.

The new approach focuses more attention on fat. Fat is a problem for people with diabetes. The more fat there is in the diet, the harder time insulin has in getting glucose into the cells. Conversely, minimizing fat intake and reducing body fat help insulin do its job much better. Newer treatment programs drastically reduce meats, high-fat dairy products, and oils. At the same time, they increase grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables. One study found that 21 of 23 patients on oral medications and 13 of 17 patients on insulin were able to get off of their medications after 26 days on a near-vegetarian diet and exercise program. During two- and three-year follow-ups, most people with diabetes treated with this regimen have retained their gains. The dietary changes are simple, but profound, and they work. Low-fat, vegetarian diets are ideal for people with diabetes.

A 2006 study, conducted by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine with the George Washington University and the University of Toronto, looked at the health benefits of a low-fat, unrefined, vegan diet (excluding all animal products) in people with type 2 diabetes. Portions of vegetables, grains, fruits, and legumes were unlimited. The vegan diet group was compared with a group following a diet based on American Diabetes Association (ADA) guidelines. The results of this 22-week study were astounding:

  • Forty-three percent of the vegan group and 26 percent of the ADA group reduced their diabetes medications. Among those whose medications remained constant, the vegan group lowered hemoglobin A1C, an index of long-term blood glucose control, by 1.2 points, three times the change in the ADA group.
  • The vegan group lost an average of about 13 pounds, compared with only about 9 pounds in the ADA group.
  • Among those participants who did not change their lipid-lowering medications, the vegan group also had more substantial decreases in their total and LDL cholesterol levels compared to the ADA group.

This study illustrates that a plant-based diet can dramatically improve the health of people with diabetes. It also showed that people found this way of eating highly acceptable and easy to follow.

Exercise plays an important role in diabetes management. Through regular exercise, the need for insulin injections or oral medications can often be reduced. This holds true not only for people with type 2 diabetes, but also to some extent for those with type 1. Exercising muscles have a voracious appetite for fuel. When an individual is engaged in regular aerobic exercise, glucose is able to enter the cells without the need for as much—or perhaps any—insulin.

While people with type 2 diabetes can often reduce (and sometimes eliminate) medications when their weight is reduced and food and exercise are better controlled, those with type 1 diabetes will always need a source of insulin. The cause of type 1 diabetes remains elusive. Several studies have implicated cow’s milk consumption as a possible contributor. When milk consumption patterns were examined across various nations, there was a strong correlation with the incidence of type 1 diabetes. It may be that milk proteins cause an autoimmune reaction in which the body mistakenly attacks its own insulin-producing cells. Even so, a good diet and regular exercise can minimize the amount of insulin required.

The New Dietary Approach to Diabetes

This new and effective approach to diabetes is remarkably simple. Here are four simple steps to managing your blood sugar (and weight, blood pressure, and cholesterol) with diet.

  1. Begin a Vegan Diet: Avoid Animal Products

Animal products contain fat, especially saturated fat, which is linked to heart disease, insulin resistance, and certain forms of cancer. These products also contain cholesterol and, of course, animal protein. It may surprise you to learn that diets high in animal protein can aggravate kidney problems and calcium losses. Animal products never provide fiber or healthful carbohydrates. A vegan diet is one that contains no animal products at all. So, you will want to avoid red meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, and eggs.

  1. Avoid Added Vegetable Oils and Other High-Fat Foods

Although most vegetable oils are in some ways healthier than animal fats, you will still want to keep them to a minimum. All fats and oils are highly concentrated in calories. A gram of any fat or oil contains nine calories, compared with only four calories for a gram of carbohydrate. Avoid foods fried in oil.

  1. Favor Foods with a Low Glycemic Index

High-glycemic-index foods include sugar itself, white potatoes, most wheat flour products, and most cold cereals.

  1. Go High Fiber

Start slowly. Load up on beans, vegetables, and fruits. Choose whole grains (try barley, oats, quinoa, millet, whole wheat pasta, etc.). …

To put these guidelines to work, … choose unlimited amounts of grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables. …

Grains: pasta, rice, high-fiber cereals, corn, oatmeal, couscous, bulgur wheat, millet, barley, rye, etc. …

Legumes: beans (black, pinto, kidney, garbanzo, white, etc.), peas, split peas, lentils, nonfat soy products.

Fruits: . . . Bananas, apples, grapes, pears, peaches, oranges, melons, grapefruit, kiwi, and berries, among others, are all good choices.

Vegetables: all, except white potatoes. Examples include tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, kale, collards, squash, green beans, bok choy, sweet potatoes, and artichokes.

©2007 Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine; all rights reserved. Reprinted by permission.

Food – Obesity, A Growing Epidemic

Problems ensue when temperance, one of the eight laws of heath, is not followed in every area of our life. One of the more obvious ways in which intemperance is displayed is obesity. The statistics related to obesity in the United States of America are shocking. There are 58 million people overweight, 40 million obese, and three million morbidly obese. Eight out of every ten Americans over 25 years of age are overweight. Metropolitan weight tables show the “ideal” weight for longevity. A Google search will find the BMI, body mass index. Weighing in excess of your ideal weight with a BMI greater than 25 can be an indication of future health problems and decreased longevity. Contributing factors to obesity may include medical problems, such as a low thyroid level, what we eat, how much we eat, when we eat, how we burn calories, and our heredity. Of these, only our heredity is something over which we have no influence.

Eighty percent of Type 2 diabetes is related to obesity, as is 70 percent of cardiovascular disease. Forty-two percent of diagnosed breast and colon cancer are among obese individuals; 30 percent of all gallbladder surgery is related to obesity, and 26 percent of obese people have high blood pressure.

Our children are not immune to this growing epidemic. According to pediatric endocrinologist, David S. Ludwig, early childhood obesity may produce changes in metabolism, hormones, or the brain that oppose weight loss. Adolescents who are obese have seven times the risk of being morbidly obese (BMI greater than 40) than adults. Obese teens are increasingly steered toward riskier measures to prevent future health problems, including various weight loss surgeries. The severely obese are now rising faster in the United States population than those who are moderately obese. It is therefore critical that childhood weight problems are addressed before poor lifestyle habits are deeply ingrained.

These health issues have an untold effect on the lives of the individuals, families, and society. This problem needs to be addressed not only as a health problem but as a spiritual problem, because we are told whether we eat, drink, or whatever we do, we are to glorify God (I Corinthians 10:31). The Bible has very specific counsel regarding moderation and diet. “Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.” Philippians 4:5. “Put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.” Proverbs 23:2.

Please know that this problem goes much deeper than the social stigma associated with appearance and poor health. It is related to many problems in our world. “And yet with scarcely a thought or care, men and women of the present generation indulge intemperance by surfeiting and drunkenness and thereby leave, as a legacy for the next generation, disease, enfeebled intellects, and polluted morals.” The Adventist Home, 173.

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1.