Americans spend billions of dollars, (billions with a B) every year on diet paraphernalia. Between pills that promise weight loss without changing the way you eat, supplements that will "block the fat", sprinkling powder over the food you eat, packaged food that arrives on your doorstep pre-measured, weighed, calculated, etc., and all the "diet" books on the market that states their way of dieting is the absolute best we don't know what to spend our money on. We are over inundated with diet "stuff" that promises you a lean, sculpted body with hardly no effort. REALLY?? The diet industry is a thriving, booming business, and has been for years and years. We all want that "magic bullet" that melts our weight away, AND still eat whatever we to. There is no such thing....
Unfortunately, the most heavily promoted and bestselling diet books are the most dangerous. Americans have somehow come to believe that a diet high in protein and low in carbohydrates is the best way to lose lots of weight. I cannot begin tell you how dangerous this is for you. Of course, it's just as harmful eating a diet that's full of white flour, sugar, and corn syrup, but many, many people believe the high protein diets are healthy for you. THEY ARE NOT! I have personally witnessed what this type of diet can do to people from colon cancers, breast and prostate cancers, to kidney failure, gallstones, heart disease, not to mention the documented link between increased risk of lung cancer, pancreatic cancer, stomach and esophageal cancer, and bladder cancer.
Americans are so misinformed by nutrition and health. Unfortunately, people can claim anything and have it published without any real scientific evidence to prove what they are stating. This is very scary. If the risk of heart attacks and cancers aren't enough to scare you, science is conclusive that high protein diets cause kidney damage, kidney stones and gout. Many people develop kidney problems at a young age due to a high protein diet. This causes so much stress on the kidneys. This has also been documented in body-builders who consume excess protein in an attempt to pack on more muscle. What's even more scary is the blood tests that monitor kidney function do not begin to detect problems until more than 90% of the kidneys have been destroyed. Diabetics are at an increased risk of kidney disease and are extremely sensitive to the stress of a high-protein diet.
I am here to tell you the good news....you can eat a REAL WHOLE FOOD, PLANT BASED DIET, and not have to worry about kidney issues, calories, fats, carbs, measuring and weighing food, etc. This is truly the secret to optimal weight loss and more importantly, HEALTH. It does not matter what you want to achieve, weight loss, lowering your cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar, get rid of indigestion, headaches, constipation, etc., the CURE is the food on the end of your fork...how simple is that!!
A Whole Food Plant Based diet is truly a diet of nutritional excellence. All this means is a diet that involves eating plenty of vegetables, fruits, and beans with some whole-grains added in. Once you begin eating this way, your body will start shrinking, your cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and blood sugar levels will drop, not to mention how wonderful you are going to FEEL. In my mind, being HEALTHY should be our ultimate goal...as the saying goes, without your health you have nothing....this is so true. It's not just about weight loss, (believe me you will lose weight eating this way), because we can lose weight snorting cocaine and smoking cigarettes.....to me it's all about being healthy and doing the things you love to do now and straight through into your 80's and 90's! That's what I want to be doing....being in my 40's and 50's but running around like I'm 20 or 30...being in my 80's or 90's and running around like I'm 50 or 60. I know people that are living this way...IT CAN BE DONE, and done with pleasure. It's not about what we are taking out of our diet, but it's about all the real food we are adding in.
In his book, Eat to Live, Joel Fuhrman, MD, states if every American:
- ate a large bowl of green salad daily
- had a large serving of steamed greens daily
- ate a cup of beans daily
- had an ounce of raw nuts or seeds daily
- ate at least 3 fresh fruits daily
- had some tomatoes, peppers, onions, mushrooms, herbs and garlic daily
our health-care costs would drop like a rock, our epidemic of obesity, cancer, heart disease, diabetes and all the other diseases and chronic conditions would be of little concern. Can you imagine that??
Ok, so what's for dinner? How about:
HEARTY STEW
2 onions, sliced
2 stalks celery, thickly sliced
2 carrots, thickly sliced
3 potatoes, chunked
1 green bell pepper, cut into strips, (use any color pepper you have, or even better, a mixture)
1/2 - 1 pound of mushrooms, quartered (I find you will not miss the meat with lots of mushrooms)
2-3 cloves of garlic
2 cups of water
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup tomato juice
1/2 T grated fresh ginger
1/2 t marjoram
1/2 t thyme
1/2 t paprika
3-4 T cornstarch or arrowroot, mixed with 1/2 cup of cold water
Combine all the ingredients, except the cornstarch/arrowroot mixture, in a large pot. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 1 hour, or until the vegetables are tender. Add the cornstarch mixture to the stew. Stir until thickened.
NOTE: This can also be made in a slow cooker. Follow the above directions. Cook on high for 6 hours or on low for 12 hours. Add the cornstarch mixture just before serving and stir until thickened.
You could serve this with a big green salad loaded with vegetables, and WA LA, a perfect, healthy meal!
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