Walk the extra mile for the Lord

A discussion on Christian diet from the perspective of health

In September 2004, former President Clinton, who was only 58 years old, was admitted to the hospital for cardiovascular bypass surgery. After the news came out, countless middle-aged people flooded into hospitals across the country for health check-ups. Some people find it strange that although the former president is a lover of fast food and pizza, he has paid attention to healthy food and exercised regularly since he became president. How could this be so?

His doctor pointed out that the damage was caused over a period of twenty years, and if surgery was not performed immediately, the former president's life might be in danger at any time because several of his blood vessels were 90% blocked.

Although God has given us a durable and practical body, we hope that such a sudden day will not happen to us, because by then, no matter how much we pray, it will be too late to ask God to give us a healthy body.

The precision of God’s creation

Our body is an activated factory that reflects God’s highest wisdom. He has placed two characteristics in it: one is the ability to stabilize the body’s original state (Homeostatic ability), and the other is the ability to self-defense and healing (Self defense and healing power). In Psalm 139 verses 13-19, the psalmist said: “You formed my inward parts; you protected me in my mother’s womb. ⋯⋯For I am fearfully and wonderfully made, ⋯⋯My unformed constitution , your eyes have already seen it..."

We should be grateful and take good care of the work of His hands, but the reality is just the opposite, to the point of neglect to the point that the body cannot glorify God. I hope that for this temple of the Holy Spirit, we will walk many more miles on this earth for the Lord. One of the best ways to take care of your body is through diet.

The shape of today’s society

In a society that values efficiency and speed, most people believe that eating is a waste of time. In order to save time, instant meals, TV meals, canned foods, etc. flood the market. According to consumption statistics, the United States spent about $6 billion on fast food in 1970, which rose to $111 billion in 2000. Our next generation is growing up in this situation.

Most of the patients I see in my clinic in Texas have chronic diseases. During the treatment process, after careful questioning, observation, and statistics, it was found that more than 90% of the patients did not understand that eating habits were related to their illnesses. For example, not paying enough attention to the compatibility or moderation of eating can lead to nutritional imbalances or disorders of the hormonal and endocrine systems, which can damage the body's immune system and even lead to all kinds of diseases.

Some medical statistics

The blood of healthy people should be weakly alkaline (index between 7.35 and 7.45), because weakly alkaline blood can maximize various biochemical functions in the body and can quickly and completely eliminate harmful substances from the body. However, the pH of the body is closely related to the pH of the blood. According to statistics, most people in Taiwan have an acidic constitution. The characteristic of an acidic body is that the better you eat, the higher the chance of developing chronic diseases. Because the body becomes acidic, enzyme functions are hindered, endocrine disorders are affected, and hormones are also affected. Such people eating big fish and meat will make things worse, which can easily lead to organ failure and various diseases over time.

A study on the body fluid distribution of 600 cancer patients showed that 85% of the patients had an acidic body constitution. The physiological characteristics of an acidic body include dull skin, athlete's foot, body odor, easy fatigue or asthma, etc. There are many reasons for the formation of an acidic body, such as staying up late, eating late night snacks or enduring mental stress for a long time, but the main reason is the long-term intake of too many acidic foods. Therefore, the way to maintain health is to increase alkaline foods to help restore the slightly alkaline nature of physical strength.

Protein Myths

Protein is an indispensable part of the human body, including hormones, blood, and muscles. First of all, from the perspective of biochemical functions, proteins contain sulfur-phosphorus bonds, which are acidic foods. After entering the human body, they will be decomposed into phosphoric acid and sulfuric acid. After these acids reach the kidneys, they will be absorbed by the kidneys because they have the function of regulating the acid-base balance in the body. Alkaline calcium neutralizes it, causing calcium loss in the body. Secondly, if we eat a large amount of protein food, the body will need extra energy (ATP) to perform the work of decomposition, which will easily cause fatigue after meals, thereby affecting the metabolic functions of various parts of the body.

These excess proteins will also be converted into sugar, which will increase insulin secretion or inhibit work, making it easy to get type 2 diabetes. Therefore, long-term excessive protein intake is the main cause of acidic body constitution. When human cells are immersed in this acidic environment for a long time, not only will their functions decrease, leading to the accumulation of toxins in the body, a weakened immune system, but also easy to induce cell mutations. These are all potential causes of cancer.

It is a wrong idea that drinking more milk can prevent osteoporosis. The real way to prevent calcium loss is to consume moderate protein to make the body weakly alkaline. If you continue to eat high-protein foods as your main diet, no matter how much you reduce your sugar intake, you will not be able to improve your diabetes.

The average adult only needs 0.8 grams (0.8g) of protein per kilogram. In other words, a person weighing 70 kilograms only needs 56 grams (56g) of total protein intake per day. Recently, some people in the medical field have lowered this index to 30 grams (30g). It can be seen that most people consume too much protein, because the main job of the protein we eat is to repair cells.

Diet from the Bible

God created man not only to demonstrate His wisdom, but also His carefulness. He prepared recipes for mankind. He said, "Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed that is on the face of the earth, and every tree bearing fruit with seed in it, for your food." (Genesis 1:29)

It can be seen that human beings were originally vegetarians, and the consistency can also be seen from our physiological structure. First, let’s look at the structure of the teeth. We have twenty molars for crushing and grinding plant foods, eight incisors for biting fruits and vegetables, and the remaining four canines for eating meat. At the same time, our upper and lower jaws can operate vertically and horizontally to grind food; while the upper and lower jaws of carnivores can only operate vertically because they only need to tear food.

Secondly, human intestines are about four to five times as long as human body height. Generally, the intestines of carnivores are about one-third or one-fourth as long as humans, and their gastric juices are several times more than those of humans. Therefore, they are suitable for digesting meat and are not suitable for digesting meat. will remain in the intestines for too long. If humans eat too much meat, not only will they suffer from indigestion, but they will also produce toxins if they accumulate in the intestines for too long.

After the flood, God allowed people to eat meat. He may have been concerned about the time it would take for plants on the earth to grow, but He also listed restrictions on meat in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. The author believes that there is a difference in the survival years of human beings before and after the flood, and this is related to diet. Moreover, since the flood, human life span has ranged from Abraham's 175 years to Moses' 120 years, and today the average life span is 70 to 80 years. This change is closely related to human eating habits.

Food compatibility and combination

Experts agree that the dietary habits of the Mediterranean coast are the healthiest examples because they were developed based on biblical views on food. Refer to the biblical diet chart on the attached page. The modern USDA (US Department of Agriculture) food pyramid was also made with reference to this picture.

In the biblical diet chart, animal proteins and meats and dairy products account for small amounts, but there is an emphasis on unprocessed foods, such as whole grains, and not processed grains. Because natural cereals can provide the protein, fat, fiber, minerals, etc. needed by the human body, together with fresh vegetables, beans and fruits, they should all be the main food on the table.

Recently, the Harvard School of Public Health teamed up with a group of nutrition experts to develop a food pyramid to make up for the shortcomings of the USDA's oversimplification. It can be seen that this revised version of the chart coincides with the view of diet provided by the Bible. The top red meat and refined foods (such as white rice, white bread, etc.) belong to the cautious use zone, that is to say, try not to eat them if you can. As for oils, the author believes that vegetable oils should be mainly olive oil and linseed oil. Because it is rich in good fatty acids, which are monounsaturated fats.

Of course, these recommendations are mainly provided for healthy people, and sick patients still need to follow the doctor's instructions for eating. We also need to make some adjustments when preparing food according to this pyramid chart, because people's saliva, gastric juice and intestinal juice have different properties and functions, as well as different pH levels. The digestion process of various foods and the required environment and time are also different. As for general principles, the author would like to provide the following health care methods:

1. Do not drink soup, water or drinks during meals. If you are thirsty, drink one or two spoonfuls after meals. Because the body has a fixed amount of digestion secreted for each meal, drinking too much water will dilute and slow down the digestion process.
2. It is best not to use fruits or juices immediately after meals (especially melons), because too much fruit will stay in the stomach until the food is digested. The original sugar content ferments due to being retained for too long, and may even produce gas, causing gas, abdominal pain, acid vomiting, belching and other discomforts.
3. Protein is best used alone. Because it needs to be decomposed in strong acid, it is especially forbidden to eat it with starch, such as steak and potatoes, or beef burgers. Because they require different digestive conditions, starch is easily destroyed in strong acid. Protein and sugar are also not a good combination, as sugar can affect the secretion of gastric juice and make it difficult to break down protein.
4. Vegetable salad can be eaten with any food.
5. You can eat some lettuce salad before and after the main meal, preferably dark green, to keep the mouth slightly alkaline.
6. Eat more whole grains, fresh vegetables, a variety of beans and nuts.
7. Eat only small amounts of animal protein two to three times a week.

Also, changing your food shopping habits is a good idea.

1. Re-examine the food stored in the kitchen and refrigerator, and remove as much canned or processed food and drinks as possible.
2. Do not store foods high in sugar or made with hydrogenated oils. For example, various cakes, snacks, cookies, desserts or potato chips, etc.
3. Use olive oil and linseed oil when cooking and dressing salads whenever possible.

When you establish such a eating habit, you will find that not only your body is healthy, but your mind is also harmonious, and you can even infect happiness to the people around you.

The formation of any disease is time-dependent. In order to leave no room for disease, we must return to nature’s earliest biblical concept of diet and make up our minds to abide by the Lord’s teachings. Remember the principle of eating only natural foods and not processed foods, because He has given the best recipes to the humans He loves, instructing us to absorb various balanced nutrients for our bodies from the natural foods He created. I hope that we can bear witness to the Lord through this lesson and become role models for the next generation. It also enables us all to become soldiers of Christ, fighting the good fight for the Lord. Because only soldiers with strong bodies can win the battle on the battlefield.

The Lord Jesus said in his prayer: “…Give us this day our daily bread…” There is a profound meaning in it.

Postscript: Since everyone's body constitution and situation are different, this article is only for health care common sense and education purposes, and is not intended for self-diagnosis or treatment. For acid and alkaline food lists, please contact myhealth@gmail.com

Author profile

The author is from Texas, has a doctorate in natural pathology and is a licensed acupuncture and Chinese medicine practitioner in Massachusetts and Texas.