Disease Proof : Disease Proof : Health & Nutrition News & Commentary : Dr. Joel Fuhrman

What would life be like

if we had no courage to attempt anything?

-Vincent van Gogh

Someone recently wrote on my facebook wall, “When you started (referring to nutritarian eating), what was most helpful?”

I began the journey to get my health back on July 10, 2008.  At that time, what helped me the most was taking the prior month of June to thoroughly study and assimilate Dr. Fuhrman’s book, Eat to Live.  (Eat for Health was not available yet.)  

Now, fifteen months and plenty of battle scars later; plus observing many who have successfully overcome food addiction and made it to their weight loss goal and restored good health, my resounding response to everyone is, “Members’ center, members’ center, members’ center!”

I got free from food addiction and have successfully maintained excellent health because of the ongoing support of Dr. Fuhrman on “Ask the Doctor”.  The hurdles of life have been overwhelming at times, and Dr. Fuhrman’s nutritional and health guidance has helped me navigate the many obstacles that I’ve faced:

• advice during the hospitalization of a child
• guidance in overcoming food addiction, including several relapses
• practical instruction during a weight loss plateau
• advice concerning a major surgery
• navigating pain relief, bloating and continual weight loss after that surgery
• pain management after a serious bike wreck
• and a myriad of other bumps in the road

He gave straightforward and helpful answers that I couldn’t have received elsewhere.

Now I encourage everyone who is serious about living in optimal health to get involved in the members’ center of drfuhrman.com:

• read the tutorials
• listen to the teleconferences
• participate in the member forums, phone chats and Ask the Doctor
• share recipes, success tips, struggles and victories with other members

Dr. Fuhrman’s books and the members’ center are so much cheaper than medications, diabetic supplies, surgeries, frequent visits to doctors’ offices, rise in insurance premiums, weight loss meetings, and missed work due to illness. The investment will maximize and extend the quality and productivity of life for years to come!     

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Preface:  Over the next year or two, I'll be following the weight loss journey of Stephanie, age 39, who is 200% committed to getting her health back.  Her husband died recently and she’s currently raising four young children under the ages of nine, plus attending nursing school.  Stephanie has courageously volunteered to share her thoughts and medical stats with DiseaseProof readers as she undertakes the journey to optimal health.  Welcome Stephanie!

Why have you chosen to commit to nutritarian eating?  I currently weigh 398 lbs (5’10”) and I’m tired all the time.  I cry a lot and get easily irritated and aggravated.  My knees hurt, I have constant headaches and acid reflux.  My local doctor feels that I’m unable to lose weight on my own and is urging me to have gastric bypass surgery.  I want to play at the park, ride bikes and be a fit and healthy mother for my children.  Most importantly, I want to BE HERE for them.

What are some of the events in your life that have led you to this point?  I’ve been overweight my entire life, but have steadily added more pounds each year; especially after having babies.  Last year my husband died after a battle with congestive heart failure and a failed heart transplant.  In an instant, I became a 38-year-old widowed mother of four children ages eight to three, and the stress has been overwhelming.  During this past year I have been diagnosed with premature osteoarthritis in both knees, high blood pressure, ADHD, and major depression. 

Describe a typical day for you:  My alarm goes off at 6:45 am, but I hit the snooze button four times before I drag myself out of bed.  I struggle to pull myself together and prepare the kids’ breakfasts and get them off to school.  I plan my day by prioritizing how much energy and/or steps it will take to do an activity.  It’s difficult to do much with my children, because I’m unable to move fast due to my size. 

                                           I feel like I’m a prisoner in my own body. 

• Weight  398 lbs.
• BMI  57.1
• Blood pressure  140/100
• Waist measurement  58”
• Cholesterol  180
• Triglycerides  98
• HDL  48
• LDL  112
• Fasting blood sugar  87
• currently taking anti-depressants, amphetamines for ADHD, and medication for urinary incontinence

Stephanie’s “official” starting date is November 1,  2009, and I’ll be posting her progress updates the first week of every month.  We are cheering for Stephanie and wish her all the best as she takes this courageous step to get her health and life back!    

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 Alanis Morissette lost weight in a healthy, natural way following my Eat to Live program.

Alanis Morissette was plagued by eating disorders as a teenager, feeling shameful about gaining weight and going to extreme measures to lose it. On her last tour in 2008, she fell into some unhealthy habits - late-night trips to restaurants and high-calorie drinks, and the weight piled on… 

The turning point came when she read Eat to Live, which she calls her “redefining moment” – she equates food with fuel, not “fat” or “thin.” She attributes her successful, healthy weight loss, as well as her ability to choose the right foods to the Eat to Live program.

I wish Alanis continued success on her nutritarian journey, and I’m cheering her on as she trains for her first marathon!

 View the entire article here.

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Stress.    

We’ve all been there. Done that. Bought the t-shirt. 

It’s a part of life. 

Kids get sick. Job lay-offs happen. Loved ones die. Mundane responsibilities of life get overwhelming. Life gets too busy for fun.

It’s during those times, which may be chronic, we usually reach for ways to somehow pamper ourselves. 

Pamper (verb) – to treat with extreme or excessive care and attention (Merriam-Webster dictionary)

We rationalize, "Life’s been hard. I deserve a break. I deserve to be pampered. It's okay. Everyone will understand. No one will care if I dig into a huge bowl of ice-cream and hot fudge. I’ll skip exercise and do whatever I want. Forget health. When life gets easier, I’ll focus on it again.”

STOP! 

WAKE-UP AND BUST THE LIES!

It’s in moments like these that “excessive care and attention” are required the most!  

It’s in times of stress that excellent nutrition, exercise and rejuvenation are crucial to restore optimal health and well-being.

Excellent nutrition will nourish the cells with much needed micronutrients, minerals and phytochemicals. 

Exercise will oxygenize and rejuvenate the mind and entire body. 

An empty stomach will cleanse toxins and provide deep, restorative rest.

Let’s wake up to reality. Let’s make the choice to pamper our bodies with kindness during times of stress. 

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Preface by Emily Boller: Last fall, after a few months into my weight loss journey, friends and complete strangers would ask, “How are you losing so much weight?!”  It was a bit time consuming to explain to each person Dr. Fuhrman’s books, so I decided to schedule a public meeting room at my local library to “tell-everyone-at-once” and be done with the various questions.  Ha. 

That first little meeting room was filled, and many in attendance that day wanted me to schedule another one so they could come back and bring their family and friends.  The rest is history. 

I ended up scheduling a large meeting room in our city’s downtown library, and that room was filled.  I’ve had several “library talks” now, and Fort Wayne, Indiana is a buzz with excited people on their journeys to health!  Rod attended that first meeting, and now he shares his own weight loss story and success tips at the library talks.  Welcome to Disease Proof, Rod! 

Tell us about yourself and the events that led up to getting your health back?

I had just received the results of my annual physical.  For the fourth straight year, my cholesterol was over 215.  This time it was 231.  The doctor called and wanted me to start Lipitor.  I was not excited about putting a drug into my body that would have negative side effects.  This left me with the question, “What do I do to avoid taking medicine and reduce my cholesterol?”

In addition to having high cholesterol, my doctor told me that I was obese at 215 lbs.  Wow, what a blow to someone who considered himself an athlete and not a couch potato. 

How did you hear about the library talk?

One evening while checking my email, I received a message that was forwarded to me from my sister-in-law.  Her neighbor, Emily, had lost a lot of weight and her cholesterol level had dropped drastically without medication. That was when I realized that I had received the answer to my dilemma.

How did you feel before starting ETL?

I had low energy, constant bloating, continual cravings for food, and trouble with breathing when I tried to run a couple of miles or sleep at night.  My wife thought I had sleep apnea, and I could not get a new life insurance policy. 

How do you feel now?

My energy level is higher than ever and I seldom take a nap!  The bloating is gone, and I no longer have food cravings.  My breathing is fine now when I’m sleeping, and I qualified for the highest level of Life Insurance at the lowest premium rate.  Plus I’m currently training for a marathon, and I just completed a half-marathon in a surprisingly great time!

After approximately eight weeks of nutritarian eating, I returned to the doctor’s office to have my cholesterol rechecked.  My overall cholesterol dropped from 231 to 127; LDL cholesterol dropped from 168 to 82, and my triglycerides dropped from 142 to 56. 

I now weigh 170-175 lbs.

Success tips you’d like to share with others in the journey to health:

• Find someone else that wants to get their health back also so you have support, eating ideas and an exercise partner.
• Focus on what you can eat and not on what you can’t have to eat. There are so many wonderful food choices with nutritarian eating.
• Be creative. Learn what foods you can eat, and put together combinations that you like. I make a vegetable soup and chili that I eat for lunch. I even mix together the soups to change the taste or add the leftover vegetables from our evening meals (saves money too.)
• Start an exercise program or a sport you enjoy.
• Make a game out of it – I want my cholesterol to go down “this much by this amount of time.”

If you could sum up what nutritarian eating has done for you, what would it be?

Not only has the quality of my health and life improved, but nutritarian eating has given me so much freedom! It feels so good to be free!

NOTE:  A year ago Rod was obese, unhealthy and could barely jog.  Now, at the age of 46, he just completed his first marathon in 4 hours and 9 minutes; placing 416th out of 1005 runners.  We are so proud of him!

Go eating for health!

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A Glass of thick, yellow human fat, marbled with blood vessels, is NY's latest weapon to fight obesity. "Are You Pouring on the Pounds?" targets the billions of hidden calories which Americans consume each year in sodas and other sugary drinks. It is scheduled to run throughout the New York subway system for 3 months. It's a good thing too because Americans do pour a lot of the fat-promoting fizz, drinking 15 billion gallons of it each year.

New York health officials say the images used in the campaign are intended to be "ugly" and are designed to give people a jolt. Mayor Bloomberg's administration has also forced cafes, restaurants and fast-food outlets to post calorie content information on menus, deployed fruit vendors to poor neighborhoods and given corner shops incentives to sell fresh fruit and vegetables.

Finally a local government is doing something worthwhile, relating nutrition to health . No matter what they do, it can't be shocking enough. Unless you have worked in hospitals yourself, seeing children with cancer and men and women with lost limbs due to diabetes or stroked out and undergoing futile revival attempts while their families are sobbing and screaming in the waiting room, you most likely have separated yourself from the human suffering eating American junk food can cause.

Then when you consider that bad childhood diets create adult cancers, and childhood cancers and even newborn heart defects are primarily related to the pregnant mother's poor diet, you get even more frustrated with our society's self-deception that consuming and feeding junk food and fast food is not criminal.

If I were Attorney General or the Health Commissioner of New York City, I would advertise the fact that junk food kills people. And, I would do something to make nutrient-rich natural foods, like greens, beans and seeds available and affordable to the needy. I would prevent food stamps from being used for junk. I would make Disease Proof Your Child required reading for all government officials.

Just imagine if white flour, sugar and corn syrup were completely out of the American dietary landscape. What would American children eat?

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I recently met Isabel, who’s been a nutritarian since the first Eat to Live book was published in 2003.  The following is a brief interview that I had with her:

What was happening in your life at the time you discovered the Eat to Live book?

It was the Christmas season of 2002, and I was terribly depressed. I’m only five feet tall and weighed 203 lbs., which is a lot of extra weight to carry on my frame. My back hurt, I had migraine headaches, acne, and was a couch potato. I was facing holiday work parties, and dreaded dressing up to go anywhere because I didn’t have anything pretty to wear, and didn’t want anyone to see me obese. Plus, I had two young children and I wanted to be healthy for them.

In desperation I was surfing the internet that December and discovered that Dr. Fuhrman’s newest book, Eat to Live was going to be made available to the public in January. After reading positive reviews about it I pre-ordered it. My copy arrived on January 4, 2003.

So then what happened?

I read the book and was impressed by Dr. Fuhrman’s scientific research and knowledge, plus everything made a lot of sense. I started to follow his nutritional guidelines right away and lost 50 lbs. by that summer. However, I didn’t have much support so over time I made wrong choices and gained back 25 lbs.

At that point, I was so discouraged and afraid that I would be fat forever so I decided to join the members’ center on drfuhrman.com for the support that was lacking in my life. That decision changed everything! I learned so much from the other members; things like how important it was to plan ahead to make sure I had healthy foods to eat, and how important it was to establish a routine of food preparation. Because of the ongoing support, I was able to lose a total of 77 lbs. That was four years ago, and I have kept it off all these years

Tell us how your life has changed.

[Big laugh!]  Oh my, where do I begin?!

I feel like a new woman!

I have energy now to be active! I can do things that I had absolutely no desire to try before.  Now that I feel great, I want to help others feel better so I’m a certified personal trainer, and next week I’m testing for certification in a special exercise program.

I’m not embarrassed to wear a bathing suit in public anymore.  When I was obese I wore men’s large water shorts and a tank top.  As you can imagine I only waded up to my knees; I never swam.  

I can fit comfortably into the seat of an airplane, and I no longer dread going places.  In fact, I love to get dressed up now and go out dancing with my husband!  When we’re out, people will say, “Hi” to my husband, and look at me like I’m his new girlfriend or something!

What would you like to share to give others hope who are reading this interview?

• Join the members’ center at DrFuhrman.com for support! You need ongoing support.

• Forget the scales and “deadlines.”

• Get into a routine which will support an upward cycle of success.

• Do something to get regular exercise.

• Don’t be afraid to say, “No” at social gatherings. Health and feeling good should come before pleasing others.

• It really DOES work! If anyone is struggling or contemplating, just go for it! Do as much as you can and NEVER give up!

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For what its worth, pitch the "on-the-wagon-off-the-wagon" mentality. That mindset will only set you up for failure, because when you "blow it" the brain automatically says, "okay, since I'm *off the wagon* anyway, I might as throw in the towel for the rest of the day and blow it big time." All or nothing has got to go!

To be honest, the wagon mentality is a most welcome excuse for major binge eating. The sad part is the binge can last for a day, two days, two weeks, three months or even years before the mind gets psyched up again to "get back on the wagon."

Don't involve any wagons! They are for ponies and children and hayrides, but not for getting your health back and staying healthy!

At the slightest slip up, recognize it, yet don't make a big deal out of it.

So you blew it. Big deal. It only proves you are a human being. Keep moving forward immediately in your journey to health. Don't give blowing it another thought. Delete it from your cranium. It's no big deal in your overall journey to optimal health.

You are making progressive changes whether you can see them or not. Forget the scales for this week. Forget the mirror. Is your waist a bit smaller? Is it easier to get out of a chair? Is it less tiring to climb a flight of stairs? Is it easier to roll over in bed at night?

Focus on the positive. Minimize the negative.

You'll get there. I know you will!

Cheering for you today! You have many cheering for you today!

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Our hunger drive craves volume. A key skill that you are developing for your health is the ability to eat large volumes of raw and cooked, high-nutrient, low-calorie foods every single day. This means eating lots of vegetables.

When you are actively trying to lose weight, you should strive to satisfy your volume requirements first, before addressing the other dimensions of hunger. This may feel strange at first because you may not immediately feel satisfied by the higher volume of food. This is because you are accustomed to eating large quantities of high-calorie foods that cause a dopamine rush, a rush that low-calorie foods don’t deliver. However, your body will adjust, be less dependent on the dopamine surge in the brain, and will gradually become more and more satisfied with fewer calories. Give yourself time, and use the knowledge you have gained. Striving to fulfill your body’s volume and nutrient requirements can help you resolve food cravings and your toxic hunger.

The trick to get you to desire fewer calories faster is to eat lots of these high-volume, high-nutrient foods. You are already familiar with these, but many of the foods that you have been incorporating into your diet because of their nutrient values are also great tools in meeting your volume requirements. They include:

• Raw Vegetables: lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, celery, anise, snow pea pods, carrots, beets, cucumbers, water chestnuts, red cabbage, onion

• Most Fresh Fruits: melons, oranges, grapefruits, apples, kiwis, berries, papaya

• Cooked Green Vegetables: Brussels sprouts, string beans, artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, Chinese cabbage, bok choy

• Other Non-Green Vegetables: mushrooms, eggplant, sun-dried tomatoes, onions, bean sprouts, cauliflower, spaghetti squash

Especially on holidays and days when you know that you will be around a lot of unhealthy foods, pre-fill with these high-nutrient, low-calorie foods. Never go to a party or event with an empty stomach. Eat a large salad with assorted raw vegetables and a bowl of vegetable soup before going to the places that may tempt your desire to eat unhealthily. Being healthy is about being in control. You must control your hunger, and the more low-calorie, high-volume foods you consume, the less high-calorie food you will be able to eat. When you increase these super healthy foods in your diet, you will feel less temptation, and you will be in control of your food cravings and appetite.

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Omega-3 fatty acids, the good fats recently found to improve heart health and help prevent prostate cancer, are now being associated with lower bodyweight.

Published in the British Journal of Nutrition, scientists observed that overweight or obese people had blood levels of omega-3s roughly 1% lower than healthy people.

For the study, 124 people of varying bodyweights—21 were classified as healthy weight, 40 overweight and 63 obese—had blood samples taken, with results showing an inverse relationship between omega-3 levels and participants’ waist size and hip circumference.

Obese people had omega-3 levels of 4.53%, but healthy people had levels of 5.25%.

Sure, it’s only a small difference, but healthy bodyweight is just one perk of omega-3s. Other reports have shown omega-3 fatty acids offer protection from stroke, depression linked to pregnancy and help lower young children’s risk of type-1diabetes.

Good sources of omega-3 include flaxseed, walnuts and micro algae-derived supplements.

Via Food Navigator.

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