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Not One in One Thousand

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After working in the health field and observing people over many years, I have come to the conclusion that not one in one thousand Seventh-day Adventists are following the complete health reform information that has been given to us as a people in the Scriptures and the writings of Ellen White. We are counseled in Ephesians 6 to put on the whole armor of God so we can resist the devil (verse 13). Numerous times throughout the writings of Ellen White we have been told that the health reform message is the right arm of the gospel. My question for many years has been, How does one put on a suit of armor with one arm? IMPOSSIBLE! Yet that is the condition of the vast majority of Seventh-day Adventists. Since not one in one thousand carefully and prayerfully observe the total health message, not one in one thousand has both arms available to put on the “whole armor of God”.

Although we have more than 2,500 pages written by God’s last day prophet on health and lifestyle, the majority continue to seek guidance from secular sources.

We are told in the book, Medical Ministry, on page “x” in the preface to the second edition that “The promulgation of the health message was for fifty years a topic of major concern to Ellen White. She wrote more in the field of health than on any other single topic of counsel.” Yet still the vast majority of Adventists, especially pastors, continue to believe that diet and lifestyle have nothing to do with one’s salvation. The question was posed by the pastor of my local church to the congregation, “Is diet and lifestyle a salvational issue?” The overwhelming response from the congregation was a resounding, NO!

How blind, deceived and ignorant can we as a people be? We have all heard or read the statement from Christ’s Object Lessons, page 69, “When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.” Then there is the statement in Counsels on Diet and Foods, page 22, “It is impossible for those who indulge the appetite to attain to Christian perfection.” So I ask the question, “If we must have Christ’s perfect character before He can come to receive us to Himself at the second coming and it is impossible to have that character when we are not fully practicing the total health reform message, then how do we expect to be ready for His coming?” IMPOSSIBLE!

We need to take a long hard look at just exactly what comprises the total health message. Top of the list is the consumption of the flesh of animals. Notice this quote:

“Meat should not be placed before our children. Its influence is to excite and strengthen the lower passions, and has a tendency to deaden the moral powers. Grains and fruits prepared free from grease, and in as natural a condition as possible, should be the food for the tables of all who claim to be preparing for translation to heaven.” Testimonies, vol. 2, 352.

Many Adventists look at Leviticus, chapter 11, which discusses clean and unclean meats when it comes to what is acceptable to eat. However, there is much more recorded in the rest of the book regarding meat consumption.

If someone in the camp of Israel ate something that was unclean he was to leave the camp, wash his clothes and himself, wait until sundown, and only then could he return to the camp and to his family. (See Leviticus chapter 22.)

But if someone ate some meat, even clean meat that contained the fat and/or the blood, it says in at least three places in Leviticus, in chapters 7, 17, and 18, that such an individual would be “cut off’ from among his people.

The Hebrew word for cut off used here is karath, the same word that is used in Daniel 9:26, where it says that in the middle of the week Messiah would be “cut off.” We all know what happened to Jesus in the middle of the 70th prophetic week of Daniel 9. He was crucified and suffered the second death. I am pretty sure that a McDonald’s hamburger has not had the fat and blood removed nor has the steak that you buy at the local meat market been ritually slaughtered so as to remove all fat and blood.

When God gave Noah and his family permission to eat animal flesh, it was due to the fact that all plant life had been destroyed in the great flood. The use of animal flesh for food was to only have been for one, maybe two years, until the plant kingdom had reestablished itself on this earth. I would also surmise that as intelligent as the antediluvians were, Noah took quite a large quantity as well as selection of seeds onto the ark so that he could reestablish his vegetable garden after the flood. After that, mankind was supposed to return to the original diet given by God to man.

Let’s consider next animal products other than meat. Top of the list is dairy.

True, dairy in the form of milk and soft cheeses are mentioned in the Scriptures. However, animals were kept by the owners and ate natural foods which had been designated for them from the beginning. As we near the end of time we are told that animals will become more and more diseased as sin increases and that the time will come that it will be unsafe for health to use these products.

“Let the diet reform be progressive. Let the people be taught how to prepare food without the use of milk or butter. Tell them that the time will come when there will be no safety in using eggs, milk, cream, or butter, because disease in animals is increasing in proportion to the increase of wickedness among men.” Testimonies, vol. 7, 135.

I was a child during the Second World War. During that time, if my mother needed something from the grocery store, we would walk a few blocks to a local “mom & pop” store. There was no such thing then as Walmart or any other supermarket. Milk was delivered by a local dairy to your doorstep in glass bottles. Eggs were produced by a local egg farmer. All vegetables and fruits were grown by local farmers, mostly without pesticides.

Shortly after the war ended in 1945, the first supermarket that I ever saw opened in Denver. The big food conglomerates began to appear, which for most people saw the end of pure food grown locally. Now only 4 or 5 mega-conglomerates control the production of almost all foods, animal and plant.

From the very beginning all the way through to your table every aspect of whatever food is being produced is controlled, and most of the time not for your health benefits. The food is to be produced as rapidly and as cheaply as possible—the dollar is paramount, not your health. That is why foods, for the most part, particularly foods of animal origin, are now unsafe for human consumption.

Milk contains at least 57 bioactive hormones. These hormones are mostly female hormones since a cow is female. During the last 100 years, the age when a girl reaches the menarche has dropped from an average of 17 years to 9.5 years, all due to female hormones that cause little girls to develop years before they should. Boys don’t fare much better since one of the most active of these hormones has the designation of IGF-1. This hormone is a growth hormone that is 200 times more potent than natural human growth hormone.

When I was in high school in the 1950s, a big boy might be 6’ tall and weigh 180 pounds. Today it is not unusual to find high school boys that are 6’4” and weigh in excess of 250 pounds, all due to this growth hormone. This is not natural and has proven to be very harmful. In fact, this hormone has been found in the tissue of every one of the nearly 200 different kinds of malignancies known to affect humans. After all, it makes tumors grow fast as well.

Saturated fat and only cholesterol are found in animal products. These substances lead to the most common diseases that affect humans: cancer, heart attacks, strokes, osteoarthritis, diabetes, hypertension, macular degeneration, hearing loss, and a host of others.

These fatty substances not only promote these diseases, but are primary in the need for hearing aids and joint replacement. How? In the eye, ear and joints of one’s body are very tiny capillaries that provide the nourishment for these structures. When they get plugged up with these fatty substances, they cease to work. In every joint of one’s body there is cartilage that makes the joint work smoothly. Surrounding the joint is a sack known as a bursa, composed of a tough sack lined with a synovial membrane that secretes synovial fluid which provides nourishment, oxygen and removes metabolic wastes. The cartilage in the joint has no blood vessels, but is living tissue supplied by the synovial membrane. When the capillaries in the synovial membrane become plugged by fats, the cartilage dies and gradually wears away until one has nothing but bone on bone. That is painful and requires a joint replacement.

Many people think that because they use unsaturated oils that they are safe. Sorry! There have been at least 6 recent studies on the use of olive oil which show that cardiovascular disease (the plugging up of capillaries with fat) progresses at the same rate as it would with the use of solid animal fat. Many have swallowed the advertising campaign of the food companies instead of looking to inspired writings and/or scientific studies. Popular in recent years has been what is called “The Mediterranean Diet,” which is supposed to prevent cardiovascular disease.

Just what is a Mediterranean Diet? Let’s take a little trip around the Mediterranean Sea, starting with Morocco in North Africa. We will travel around the sea in a counter clockwise direction. Next we come to Algeria, then Tunisia, then Libya, then Egypt, then Israel, then Lebanon, then Syria, then Turkey, then Greece, then Albania, then Bosnia/Herzegovina, then Croatia, then Trieste, then Italy, then France, then Spain. Within the Sea we find Cyprus, then Crete, then Sicily, then Malta, then Sardinia, then Corsica, then the Balearic Islands. Now the diet of which of these countries are you going to choose? All are Mediterranean.

In the writings of Ellen White on health and diet, you will find the following statement with slight variations 114 times. It is basically this: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts (sparingly) prepared in as simple a manner as possible, free from grease of all kinds, constitute the best diet for mankind.

Notice that this diet is not a fat free diet, as some who obviously can’t read and correctly assimilate what has been written assume. It is the preparation of the food that is to be grease and oil free. After all nuts, seeds, and many vegetables and fruits have oils and fats in them—for example: avocados, olives, as well as seeds and nuts. Ellen White mentions the benefits of olive oil three times, each time she states that olive oil as taken in the olive is beneficial to the digestive tract—not poured out of a bottle.

Now to the two items of diet that are killing more Seventh-day Adventists than any other thing—cheese and ice cream. It takes about 10 pounds of milk to make one pound of cheese or ice cream. All of the harmful substances found in dairy are now concentrated by a factor of 10 times. It was no wonder Ellen White said: “Cheese should never enter the stomach” and “Cheese is wholly unfit for food.” These statements are found in The Ministry of Healing, 302, and in Counsels on Diet and Foods, 368. I now ask the question, “What part of never don’t you understand?” Cheese also has three times the acid producing properties of a steak and is a main cause of osteoporosis, since the body has to pull calcium from the bones to neutralize the acid produced. Eggs are also very high on the list to cause acid production in the body and they are loaded with cholesterol.

The dessert table at an Adventist gathering is next. George Vandeman, of “It Is Written,” wrote me a letter years ago which I still have. In it he said that the dessert table at most Adventist potlucks would put to shame the table of ‘delicacies’ set before Daniel and his friends by Nebuchadnezzar.

Sugar is one of the most detrimental items in anyone’s diet. Numerous studies have been done which show that even a small amount of sugar inactivates one’s white cells, the body’s first line of defense against invading organisms. How much does it take to damage one’s immune system?

An average adult has about 5 liters (5000 ml) of blood. A normal blood sugar has 1 mg of sugar in each ml of blood. So one’s total blood sugar in 5000 ml would be 5000 mg of sugar which amounts to one rounded teaspoon. That is all. A single glazed donut has 6 teaspoons of sugar. A serving of chocolate cake with a scoop of ice cream has 12-15 teaspoons of sugar. A banana split has 25 teaspoons of sugar. Now you can see how sugar has the potential to do damage to one’s immune system. And people wonder why they catch a cold or the flu. It is because they pursued it until they caught it.

Chocolate is actually worse for one than coffee. I have had many ask me, “If it is worse than coffee, then why didn’t Ellen White write about it”? She very clearly states that coffee, tea, alcohol, and tobacco use is a sin. There are many things she never mentioned such as cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines, as well as many other harmful substances. There is a very logical reason why she said nothing about chocolate. It wasn’t until 1904 that Hershey started making chocolate products in Hershey, Pennsylvania. By the time of her death in 1915 chocolate still was not as common as it is today.

Chocolate contains at least 10 substances that are harmful. They are: Sugar (chocolate in its natural state is very bitter and requires a lot of sugar to make it palatable), Caffeine (chocolate has about 1/3 the amount of caffeine that coffee contains), Theobromine (theobromine is a methylxanthine and is a first cousin to caffeine. Chocolate contains more of this substance than any other source), Cocoa Butter (this is a saturated fat which plugs arteries), Phenylethylamine (this chemical is a neuro-excitotoxin and has the same effect as an antidepressant that a psychiatrist might prescribe for a depressed patient), Oxalic Acid (this substance binds calcium and forms calcium oxalate which is insoluble and precipitates out in the kidneys, contributing to kidney failure), Purines (these substances are also found in red meats and are the excitotoxins and stimulants), Tyramine (this is also an excitotoxin that has, in some people, been known to cause dramatic rises in blood pressure), Tannic Acid (this harmful substance is what is used to tan leather. It is very irritating to the stomach lining), Bugs (due to the way that chocolate is harvested, all chocolate averages from 10%-15% insect parts, rat and mouse droppings, bird droppings, dead bugs and worms).

The principle that should govern our lives is not whether the Scriptures or the Spirit of Prophecy say anything about something, but whether or not it is harmful. Also remember the verse in 1 Corinthians 10:31 which says, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” Notice that specifically mentioned here is “eating and drinking” and then everything else that one might do in his life is listed under “whatsoever.” Only “eating and drinking” are specifically mentioned; so this must have been important to God.

Most people are very lax when it comes to the time for eating, with many who are constantly snacking. I have often asked people to name a healthful snack. The correct response is that there are NONE. Anything eaten between meals as a snack is harmful though many think nothing of having some “light refreshments’’ at any number of gatherings and at any time of the day or night. There are dozens of statements by Ellen White as to the harmfulness of eating between meals, after meals, or before going to bed. She says that not even an apple should be eaten between meals. Eating between meals is particularly harmful to growing children.

All meals should be at a specific time and this time should vary by no more than one-half hour. The human body functions best when it has developed certain rhythms known as circadian rhythms. When these activities vary by more than one­-half hour the body suffers to the point that the immune system is affected.

Studies have been done in this area and have shown that when someone eats breakfast and then snacks an hour or two later that digestion stops completely until the new item eaten has been assimilated by what is already in the stomach. Then and only then does digestion begin again. Most have put something else into their stomach before that can occur and thus endoscopically identifiable foods are still in the stomach as much as 14 hours after ingestion. This leads to putrification and fermentation.  Sleep is also disturbed when there is digestion going on during the nighttime hours.

All of the above reasons and more are why I say that not 1 in 1000 Seventh-day Adventists observe the counsel that we have been given on health reform. That is also why, when we have availability to this information in the volumes written under inspiration, that most Adventists will not be ready for the second coming. Remember, “it is impossible to develop a Christ-like character while indulging in unhealthful practices.”

‘’Sanctification—how many understand its full meaning? The mind is befogged by sensual malaria. The thoughts need purifying. What might not men and women have been had they realized that the treatment of the body has everything to do with the vigor and purity of mind and heart.” “Ellen G. White Comments,” The Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 7, 909.

Gene Swanson was an Adventist pediatric anesthesiologist in a large pediatric hospital. He retired in Montrose, Colorado, before he passed away.

Restoring the Temple – Decreasing Your Risk of Disease

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God, the great governor of the universe, has put everything under law. The tiny flower and the towering oak, the grain of sand and the mighty ocean, sunshine and shower, wind and rain, all obey nature’s laws. But man has been placed under a higher law. He has been given an intellect to see, and a conscience to feel, the powerful claims of God’s great moral law, the expression of what He desires His children to be.” The Signs of the Times, July 31, 1901.

“In the beginning God placed man under law, as an indispensable condition of his very existence. He was a subject of the divine government, and there can be no government without law.” Ibid., July 23, 1902.

In outline form, we will look first at those factors that weaken the body’s ability to ward off disease. These are the habits we want to overcome or avoid. Next we will look at those factors which help the body ward off disease.

Factors Associated with Increased Risk of Disease

1 Certain nutritional supplements.

We do not have complete information on all of the nutritional supplements that might increase the risk of disease, but a few include beta-carotene supplements and large supplements of vitamin A. Beta-carotene supplements have actually been shown to increase cancer risk. It can also cause depletion of vitamin E. Large amounts of vitamin C and vitamin E supplements can actually favor the development of free radicals in the body.

2 Cow’s milk formula for infants.

Infants given cow’s milk formula are over 50 percent more likely to develop diarrhea and ear infections than infants who are breast-fed. With the development of antibiotics, we have become unaware of the dangers of cow’s milk for infants. In a 1930 study of 20,000 infants, before the development of antibiotics, the death rate for infants fed cow’s milk during the first nine months after birth was over 50 times the death rate of infants who were breast-fed. The breast-fed infant receives antibodies and white blood cells from the mother. Human breast milk is usually sterile which is never the case with cow’s milk. The mother’s milk can also help the infant avoid a deadly build-up of E. Coli bacteria in its intestine.

3 Use of cow’s milk by adults.

Cow’s milk has been shown to have a relationship to many serious and deadly diseases, including coronary artery disease, cancer, neurological diseases, allergies, and even Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Multiple Sclerosis.

4 Use of tobacco.

Smokers have twice the risk of colon cancer as non-smokers. Smoking one “joint” of marijuana does the equivalent damage to the lungs as a full pack of 20 regular cigarettes.

5 Use of alcohol.

Even moderate consumption of alcohol can significantly damage the immune system, making the person more susceptible to cancer and other serious diseases. As few as two drinks can reduce antibody production by two-thirds.

6 Excessive exercise.

Exercise to the point of exhaustion, as in competitive sports, can result in a decreased immune response by the body.

7 Meat eating.

Animal protein has been shown to be a cancer-producing substance. Women who eat meat every day have a higher risk of developing breast cancer than those who do not eat meat at all (over eight times in one study). Regular meat eaters have a colon cancer risk of about three to four times those not eating meat at all.

8 Stress.

People who are not coping with major stressors in their lives have a greater chance of developing life-threatening diseases.

9 Use of refined sugar.

Refined sugar reduces the ability of white blood cells to destroy bacteria. For example, one study showed that one white blood cell could destroy 14 bacteria before sugar had been consumed, but after consumption of 24 teaspoons of sugar, only one bacterium could be destroyed.

Factors Associated with Decreased Risk of Disease

1 Sunshine.

One researcher has estimated that regular, moderate exposure to sunshine could prevent 30,000 deaths caused by cancer per year in America.

2 Regular, moderate exercise.

Cancer deaths are significantly lower in those who exercise regularly.

3 Foods rich in carotene (pro-vitamin A).

The high-level carotene foods are those that are deep orange in color—such as carrots, yams, pumpkin, cantaloupe, apricots, mangos, persimmons, sweet potatoes—and those that are dark green, such as spinach, kale, turnip greens, broccoli, collard greens, and beet greens.

4 Foods rich in vitamin E

The high-level vitamin E foods are nuts, seeds, and the germ of grains—wheat germ, sunflower seeds, and almonds and the dark greens as mentioned above in the rich carotene foods.

5 Foods rich in vitamin C.

These vegetable foods include bell peppers, Brussel sprouts, broccoli, potatoes, tomatoes, and cabbage. Fruits such as kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and citrus fruits are also
beneficial.

6 Foods containing natural chemicals.

Only a few of these phyto-chemicals are presently known, but if you use a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and grains, you will get all of these chemicals—even the ones that are not well-known. The secret to helping the body resist disease is not in finding the protective elements in a food and mega-dosing on those through supplements, but consuming foods that contain a balanced form of many compounds. This balance will help the body, but the artificial use of supplements often unbalances the chemistry of the body.

7 Trust in God.

It has been statistically demonstrated that unresolved stress can both cause and exacerbate some of our most serious health problems, such as cardio vascular disease, cancer, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, hypertension, ulcers, and, of course, depression. God has given the answer to stress in Matthew 11:28–30.

8 Adequate water drinking.

Adults generally need eight glasses or more of water per day, depending on their activity and the climate conditions.

9 Cleanliness of person, clothes, and living environment.

About 100 years ago, Ellen White published the following counsel, which, if heeded, would decrease infectious diseases throughout the world approximately 85 percent (according to the estimates of some researchers)!

“Every form of uncleanliness tends to disease. Death-producing germs abound in dark, neglected corners, in decaying refuse, in dampness and mold and must. . . . Nothing unclean or decaying should be tolerated within the home. In towns or cities regarded perfectly healthful, many an epidemic of fever has been traced to decaying matter about the dwelling of some careless householder.” The Ministry of Healing, 276.

10 Adequate rest.

The exact amount of needed rest varies with different individuals, but the vast majority of human beings need between seven and nine hours of sleep per day.

Many people are looking for the miracle food or the miracle vitamin, mineral supplement, or herb that will cleanse the body of all problems and disease. “Miracle foods” come in and out of vogue. The secret of health and long life does not reside in finding the miracle potion, medicine, or herbal supplement but in following, in moderation and with good judgment, all the laws of health that the Creator has made and provided for our use.

Restoring the Temple – Diet and Diabetes

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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.

Restoring the Temple: Physiology of Digestion

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Respect paid to the proper treatment of the stomach will be rewarded in clearness of thought and strength of mind. Your digestive organs will not be prematurely worn out to testify against you. We are to show that we appreciate our God-given intelligence by eating and studying and working wisely. . . . We are to appreciate the light God has given on health reform, by word and practice reflecting clear light to others upon this subject.” Counsels on Diet and Foods, 101.

“God holds you responsible to obey the light He has given you on health reform.” Ibid., 102.

Clogs the Machinery

“You indulge your appetite by eating more food than your system can convert into good blood. It is sin to be intemperate in the quantity of food eaten, even if the quality is unobjectionable. Many feel that if they do not eat meat and the grosser articles of food, they may eat of simple food until they cannot well eat more. This is a mistake. Many professed health reformers are nothing less than gluttons. They lay upon the digestive organs so great a burden that the vitality of the system is exhausted in the effort to dispose of it. It also has a depressing influence upon the intellect; for the brain nerve power is called upon to assist the stomach in its work.

“Overeating, even of the simplest food, benumbs the sensitive nerves of the brain, and weakens its vitality. Overeating has a worse effect upon the system than overworking; the energies of the soul are more effectually prostrated by intemperate eating than by intemperate working.

“The digestive organs should never be burdened with a quantity or quality of food which it will tax the system to appropriate. All that is taken into the stomach, above what the system can use to convert into good blood, clogs the machinery; for it cannot be made into either flesh or blood, and its presence burdens the liver, and produces a morbid condition of the system.” Ibid., 102, 103.

Digestion Aided by Moderate Exercise

“Exercise is important to digestion, and to a healthy condition of body and mind. You need physical exercise. . . . Healthy, active exercise is what you need. This will invigorate the mind. Neither study nor violent exercise should be engaged in immediately after a full meal; this would be a violation of the laws of the system. Immediately after eating there is a strong draft upon the nervous energy. The brain force is called into active exercise to assist the stomach; therefore, when the mind or body is taxed heavily after eating, the process of digestion is hindered.” Ibid., 103.

Aided by Pure Air

“The influence of pure, fresh air is to cause the blood to circulate healthfully through the system. It refreshes the body, and tends to render it strong and healthy, while at the same time its influence is decidedly felt upon the mind, imparting a degree of composure and serenity. It excites the appetite, and renders the digestion of food more perfect, and induces sound and sweet sleep.” Ibid., 104.

Avoid Very Hot or Cold Food

“The stomach is greatly injured by a large quantity of hot food and hot drink. Thus the throat and digestive organs, and through them the other organs of the body, are enfeebled. . . .

“Food should not be eaten very hot or very cold. If food is cold, the vital force of the stomach is drawn upon in order to warm it before digestion can take place. Cold drinks are injurious for the same reason; while the free use of hot drinks is debilitating. . . .

“Many make a mistake in drinking cold water with their meals. Food should not be washed down. Taken with meals, water diminishes the flow of saliva; and the colder the water, the greater the injury to the stomach. Ice water or ice lemonade, taken with meals, will arrest digestion until the system has imparted sufficient warmth to the stomach to enable it to take up its work again. Masticate slowly, and allow the saliva to mingle with the food.

“The more liquid there is taken into the stomach with the meals, the more difficult it is for the food to digest; for the liquid must first be absorbed.” Ibid., 106.

Caution to Busy People

“Take time to eat, and do not crowd into the stomach a great variety of foods at one meal. To eat hurriedly of several kinds of food at a meal is a serious mistake.

“In order to secure healthy digestion, food should be eaten slowly.” Ibid., 107.

Limit Variety

“For those who can use them, good vegetables, prepared in a healthful manner, are better than soft mushes or porridge. Fruits used with thoroughly cooked bread two or three days old will be more healthful than fresh bread. This, with slow and thorough mastication, will furnish all that the system requires.” Ibid., 108.

“Do not have too great a variety at a meal; three or four dishes are a plenty. At the next meal you can have a change. . . .

“There should not be many kinds at any one meal, but all meals should not be composed of the same kinds of food without variation. Food should be prepared with simplicity, yet with a nicety which will invite the appetite.” Ibid., 109, 110.

War in the Stomach

“Disturbance is created by improper combinations of food; fermentation sets in; the blood is contaminated and the brain confused.” Ibid., 110.

“It is impossible for the brain to do its best work when the digestive powers are abused. Many eat hurriedly of various kinds of food, which set up a war in the stomach, and thus confuse the brain. . . .

“When fruit and bread, together with a variety of other foods that do not agree, are crowded into the stomach at one meal, what can we expect but that a disturbance will be created?” Ibid., 111.

Fruits and Vegetables

“There should not be a great variety at any one meal, for this encourages overeating, and causes indigestion.

“It is not well to eat fruit and vegetables at the same meal. If the digestion is feeble, the use of both will often cause distress, and inability to put forth mental effort. It is better to have the fruit at one meal, and the vegetables at another.” Ibid., 112.

Sugar and Milk

“Far too much sugar is ordinarily used in food. Cakes, sweet puddings, pastries, jellies, jams, are active causes of indigestion. Especially harmful are the custards and puddings in which milk, eggs, and sugar are the chief ingredients. The free use of milk and sugar taken together should be avoided. . . .

“Sugar and the milk combined are liable to cause fermentation in the stomach, and are thus harmful.

“The less that condiments and desserts are placed upon our tables, the better it will be for all who partake of the food. All mixed and complicated foods are injurious to the health of human beings. Dumb animals would never eat such a mixture as is often placed in the human stomach. . . .” Ibid., 113.

Afflict the Stomach, Afflict the Soul

“If men and women would only remember how greatly they afflict the soul when they afflict the stomach, and how deeply Christ is dishonored when the stomach is abused, they would be brave and self-denying, giving the stomach opportunity to recover its healthy action. While sitting at the table we may do medical missionary work by eating and drinking to the glory of God.” Ibid., 111.

Food – Sweet Temptations

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Have you ever been tempted because of some sweet delicacy? I am sure that each of us has experienced this type of appeal to intemperance or overindulgence. We must ask ourselves in regard to sweet delicacies, What kind and how much is alright and what is too much? Here are some facts and problems related to sugar consumption. The yearly consumption of sugar per person in America has risen from about 40 pounds one hundred years ago to nearly 170 pounds of sugar today. This can have profound effects upon our bodies and minds. Problems associated with increased intake are: tooth decay, elevated cholesterol, triglycerides, heart disease and obesity, irritation of the lining of the stomach. Eight cancers are linked to sugar intake, which is a major cause of degenerative diseases. Sugar causes mineral imbalances within the body, affects mood, activity, and the nervous system, platelets become sticky, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes, and greatly decreases the ability to fight infection. The white blood cells (WBCs) in our blood stream are constantly fighting bacteria. Each WBC, under normal conditions, will destroy about 14 bacteria. Excess sugar makes the WBCs sluggish and the consumption of 24 teaspoons of sugar, not as much as is in a 32-ounce soda, would cause each WBC to destroy only 1 bacterium. Soda is actually the number one source of excessive sugar intake in America. So you can see how ineffective our immune system is in the presence of elevated sugar. For a list of 146 problems associated with excess sugar consumption go to www.healingcancernaturally.com/sugar-health-effects-risks.html

It has been estimated that 80% of the health problems in America are related to diet. Sugar could be compared to any poison, drug or narcotic for at least three reasons. One is that the damaging effects can begin before a baby is born. Many babies are exposed to increased sugar levels for nine months and the exposure continues at birth in the form of formula with sugar or breast milk contaminated with too much sugar. It is also dangerous because it is seen as a taste enhancer, food, and is taken in almost unlimited quantities because it is found in almost everything. Nearly 95% of people are addicted to it to some degree. Probably two of the biggest long-term health risks for Americans today are smoking and too much sugar. Both of these risks can be eliminated by practicing temperance. “True temperance teaches us to dispense entirely with everything hurtful and to use judiciously that which is healthful.” Patriarchs and Prophets, 562.

 

Food for Life – More this Month About Sugar

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“We should not be prevailed upon to take anything into the mouth that will bring the body into an unhealthy condition, no matter how much we like it. Why? Because we are God’s property. You have a crown to win, heaven to gain, and a hell to shun. . . .

“It is better to let sweet things alone. Let alone those sweet dessert dishes that are placed on the table. You do not need them. You want a clear mind to think after God’s order.” Counsels on Diet and Foods, 328.

Let us review, from a scientific viewpoint, some of the effects of sugar on the system:

  • Excess sugar affects the health of the teeth, causing decay.
  • Excess sugar lowers one’s resistance to disease.
  • Refined sugar is a high calorie, concentrated food with little or no nutritive value.
  • High sugar intake can cause liver damage undistinguishable from liver damage due to alcoholism.
  • High sugar intake is associated with mature-on-set diabetes.
  • High sugar can contribute to constipation.
  • High sugar intake can cause vitamin B deficiencies.
  • Some nutritionists feel that a high sugar intake is responsible for a malfunctioning appetite, contributing to overweight.
  • Too much sugar, in any form, clogs the system, resulting in mental depression, and can cause sleepiness and mental confusion.

According to England’s noted nutritionist, Professor John Yudkin of the University of London, sugar may be the etiologic factor in atherosclerosis, or heart-vessel disease. He believes that there is a clear association between sugar intake and heart disease. (Medical Tribune, July 10, 1969.) Most of us find it hard to believe that we are consuming as much sugar as we do, but remember that more than two-thirds of our sugar intake is hidden in prepared food products and beverages. Learn to read the labels when you go to the grocery store and you will be amazed to find what you have been eating. Remember that the contents are listed in order according to the amount used in the ingredients. Notice especially breakfast cereals.

I am very partial to dates as a sweetener. They are a natural, unrefined product and almost universally obtainable. You will find that you can use dates for almost everything. Remember that the nearer you can come to the simple, unrefined foods, the better your health will be. Keep in mind that “a clogged stomach means a clogged brain.” Counsels on Diet and Foods, 46.

For those of you who are not familiar with Fruit Source, it is a sweetener made from grapes and whole grain rice and can be obtained in either granular or syrup form. If you have problems obtaining it from a local health food store, we will furnish you with distributor names. The syrup tastes like a high-grade molasses—delicious!

“I saw that our heavenly Father has bestowed upon us the great blessing of light upon the health reform, that we may obey the claims which He has upon us and glorify Him in our bodies and spirits, which are Him, and finally stand without fault before the throne of God.” Ibid., 51. May we be ready to meet Him whenever He calls us.

(We would not understand the Spirit of Prophecy to condemn the use of all sugar, but the free use that is all too common today. See Manuscript Releases, vol. 15, 246. Testimonies, vol. 2, 383, vol. 3, 21, Counsels on Diet and Foods, 197, and Ministry of Healing, 299-301. Editors)

Cashew Topping

1 cup white grape juice

1/4 cup granular Fruit Source

2 cups cashews

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon white vanilla

Peanut Butter Balls

Mix together:

1 cup (homemade) peanut butter

1/4 cup carob powder

1/4 cup mashed banana

2 teaspoons vanilla

Shape into balls and roll in sesame seeds. Press a walnut or pecan half in each ball. Refrigerate.

Food for Life – Sugar, Sugar, Sugar!

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From the smallest child to the aged, sugar is one of the most addictive pleasures that we as a people seem so unable to eliminate from our diet. We brag about being vegetarians, at least 49% of us, and a small part of us have even eliminated all animal products from our diet. A few more have given up caffeine in its various forms, but what about sugar? A few years ago we were up to about 130 lbs. per year, per capita. Now the average is 150 lbs. What are we doing to the temple which God has given us to use for Him in His service?

First let us review what God in His great mercy revealed to Ellen White in order to prepare a people to stand before Him, a perfect people without blemish.

“Sugar clogs the system. It hinders the working of the living machine.” Counsels on Diet and Foods, 327. “The free use of sugar in any form tends to clog the system, and is not infrequently a cause of disease.” Ibid., 197. “Sugar is not good for the stomach. It causes fermentation, and this clouds the brain and brings peevishness into the disposition.” Ibid., 327. From the Natural Health Bulletin I quote, “If we jailed sugar instead of criminals, we might well have less crime in our society.” This study was done by a group of food-behavior specialists in Los Angeles County, headed by Dr. Bernard Mason of the County task Force on nutrition and behavior. They reported that a change from sugary “junk” food to “health food” helped control criminal tendencies. Basic Rule. “As little sugar as possible for the imprisoned,” says Dr. Mason. “The reason is that we believe it is responsible for many bizarre behavioral attitudes—even homicidal and suicidal.” He explains that 90% of criminals in custody have hypoglycemia, low blood sugar, because of the modern junk foods, alcohol, and dope that most criminals are on.” Dr. Mason made a diet change among the confined. No soft drinks and French fries wee given. Instead, the inmates were given raw zucchini, fresh fruit, broccoli, apples, bananas, peaches, and yogurt. Cooks were instructed how to use tofu in combination with brown rice, spaghetti, and meatless enchiladas. Dr. Mason reports, “There has been a change in the actions and attitudes of criminals, leading to increased stability, a more cooperative attitude, and a willingness to improve their lives.” He feels it was the “no sugar” rule, which resulted in correcting their hypoglycemia, which led to reduced mental disturbance and less crime.

According to a Scottish study conducted by G. Hems from the Department of Community Medicine, Foresterhill, Aberdeen, we read that “woman who eat less refined sugar, less total fat, less animal protein, and fewer animal calories have the best chance of avoiding breast cancer.” He analyzed breast cancer rates in relation to child-bearing, various differences in diet, and other factors in forty-one countries. For the first time, sugar was implicated as a possible cancer-causing substance.

When we refer back to God’s original diet for the human race, we find that “Adam and Eve came forth from the hand of their Creator in the perfection of every physical, mental, and spiritual endowment. God planted for them a garden, and surrounded them with everything that was lovely and attractive to the eye, which their physical necessities required. . . . A benevolent Creator had given them evidence of His goodness and love in providing them with fruits, vegetables, and grains, and in causing to grow out of the ground every variety of tree for usefulness and beauty.” Confrontation, 10. God created us with taste buds that we might enjoy the food we eat, but we have perverted those taste buds. Can they ever be normal again? Give God a chance, and you will see that in a short time those abnormal cravings cease and there will be true enjoyment in eating wholesome, unrefined, and nutritious food.

Christ is soon to return to take His faithful ones home. Forever remember that, “True conversion to the message of present truth embraces conversion to the principles of health reform.” Letter 62, 1909.

February’s Recipe:

Sugar Free Sunflower-Oat Waffles

Place in blender:

1-1/2 cups water

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/4 cup sesame seeds

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 Tablespoons date sugar

Whiz until well blended, and then slowly add 2 cups quick oats. Let stand for 5 minutes. Bake in medium-hot, non-stick waffle iron for 8-10 minutes. Do not test before waffle is ready. For a special treat as well as nutrition, add ½ cup walnuts or pecans. This recipe can also be used for pancakes.