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How to take the first step

Once we have decided to change our living habits, the first step is generally the most difficult, as we do not know when or how to start. However, once the first step has been taken, subsequent steps become much easier. The following discussion use the example of a change in diet as an illustration:

Step1: How do we begin the first step? Start from the easiest: In our lunch or dinner everyday, add a bowl of fresh vegetable salad. Begin with ingredients we like best and do not force ourselves to eat what we dislike. Eat some brown rice or wheat bread. Reduce meat dishes (e.g. chicken, duck, fish, poultry, and seafood) by half. Increase the consumption of vegetables, bean and grains. Minimize the use of oil, salt and sugar. Avoid cooking in high temperature.

Step2: After a week, month or a year, reduce the consumption of meat by another half. Eat unpolished rice and other kinds of grains. Stop using white sugar and processed salt, and switch to red sugar, miso or saltless soy sauce (e.g. Bragg's Liquid Amino) to add flavour to our food. Everyday, one third of our meals should be fresh raw vegetables.

Step 3: Completely use whole grains, fresh vegetables and fruits as our diet. Half of our daily meals should comprise fresh raw vegetables and fruits. Use the various detoxification methods according to the needs of our bodies. We can also take rejuvelac, energy soup, and wheatgrass juice to supplement our bodies' needs.

 

Why is potassium so important to health?

In order for the cells to function normally, we must take in potassium and expel sodium. The potassium/sodium ratio in typical cells in our body is about 10; if a cell become damaged and loses its potassium, it will divide and multiply immediately. Thus, the inhibited multiplication of cancerous cells is probably directly connected to a deficiency in potassium. According to recent data, the incidence of cancer is inversely proportional to the intake of potassium. That is, the intake of potassium from natural sources helps to prevent cancer.
Generally speaking, hypertension is due to an excess of sodium. Potassium intake can reduce the blood pressure. Thus, if vegetarians abstain from eating too much salt, they will tend to avoid hypertension. A normal individual should take in more potassium than sodium, and the ratio should be about 2:1. However, the average intake is currently about 0.7. Thus, it is not surprising that cancer, heart disease, etc. are currently very common.
Plants are the best sources of potassium. As people become wealthier they eat fewer fruits and vegetables and more chicken, duck, fish and meat cooked with added salt. Often the sodium intake from a "rich" diet is ten times higher than potassium. For the sake of health it is necessary to maintain a high potassium/sodium ratio in the diet.

Foods which are high in Potassium:
Apricot Corn meal
Banana Whole rye
Date Wheat germ
Orange Pumpkin
Peach Soybean
Raspberry Soybean powder
Almond Potatoes
Brazil nut Pecan

Diet- what should I eat?

I have wanted to change my diet to achieve better health. But the more I investigate this topic, the more confused I become. None of the nutritionists seem to agree on anything. Changing eating habits in order to improve life can be the best way to activate the body’s immune system. Here are some of my suggestions on healthy diet.

Eat a Balance Diet –
The food you eat should appeal to your senses and agree with your body. Eating is one of life’s great pleasures, and a healthy diet does not require too much sacrifice.

Eat slowly and chew your food properly. -
It is a good habit to eat only when hungry, allowing at least 5 hours between meals. Pay attention to the food while you are eating. If you eat while you are angry, anxious, or distracted, your body will not process the food well, no matter how good the food is.

Eat a wide variety of food–
By varying what we eat, we protect our health in two ways. First, we ensure that we get all the nutrients we need. If we eat the same food day after day, we are more likely to deprive ourselves of the needed vitamins, minerals, and other elements.

Consume foods low in fats because fats tend to depress the immune system.The second reason for varying our diet is that it is the best way to avoid eating too much of anything that is not good for us.
Surprisingly there are many toxins in the food we eat both natural and artificial. Celery, basil, the common cultivated white mushrooms (A garicus bispous), chicken peas, and many other vegetables contain natural toxins; most but not all are destroyed by cooking's heat. Alfalfa sprouts, which are loved by health food enthusiasts, contain a natural toxin called canavanine, which is definitely not good for health. It doesn't mean that we should not eat alfalfa sprouts. It means that it is better not to eat them on a daily basis.

Peanuts and peanut butter are usually contaminated with traces of aflatoxin, which is a very potent natural carcinogen found in mold that grows on peanuts and other seeds. Does that mean we should exclude peanut butter from our diet? No, but it means we should not eat them too often or in large quantities. The best general safeguard against taking in unhealthy food of dietary toxins, (natural or unnatural) is to select the food we eat from a wide variety of food rather than concentrating on limited items.

Eat a diet low in red meat-
The type of fatty acid contained in red meat works against the beneficial actions of the fatty acid found in fish. Reduce refined carbohydrates. Sugars and alcohol do not supply nutrients. They will rob away vital nutrients from the body for their own digestion and assimilation.

Eat Fresh food –
Canned, frozen dried and preserved foods contain too much fat, salt, sugar and unhealthy additives, and they rarely taste as good as fresh foods. If you must eat processed food, make sure fresh food is included with it in the meal. Restrict the use of salty foods for example, ham, bacon, chips, salted nuts, pickles, Chinese sausage, salted eggs and salted vegetables. If you do not limit the salt intake, you could get high blood pressure as a result. If possible, stay away from food chemicals such as preservatives, colours and other additives.

Eat less rather than more –
It is easy to say, but it is hard to put into practice, but it is worth trying. One possibility is to eat smaller meal but more frequently. Another practice is to abstain from food occasionally. Sometimes, it is good to abstain from food in order to give your intestinal tract a rest for a day or so. It is a good practice to reduce the calorie intake of the food we like. We should learn to appreciate the pure taste of fresh, natural food.

Learn to appreciate Simple food –
Learn to enjoy simple food, prepared quickly and properly without fancy adornment for example steam, lightly stir – fried, pressure cook. Eat at least 3-4 hours before bedtime, so that there is time for your food to digest, and it is less likely for your food turn into fat while you sleep.

Exercise daily.

Eat a hearty breakfast-
it will give you the energy you need to start your day and keep you going.
Eat more high-fiber foods such as vegetables and fruits that contain additional anticancer chemicals, whole grain, (Fiber tends to bind toxins and eliminate it. As fiber cannot be absorbed, so having the toxins bound prevents their re-absorption) and drink plenty of water to aid proper elimination of waste matter. The best time to drink water is before or after meals, so your digestive juices won’t get diluted. Colon cancer can be avoided by following this simple health rule.

Eat fruits before or 1 – 1½ hours after the main meal, as fruits take lesser time to digest.
Eat not more than eight servings of meat per week. It’s important to eliminate meat or chicken that’s been fed with hormones, because breast cancer can be estrogen dependent.

Increase cold-water fish, theses fatty fish contains fats called omega-3 fatty acids. This form of fat can strengthen the immune system. These can also reduce estrogen levels.

Do not get overweight, because excess fat –
especially in the belly area will increases the levels of unhealthy estrogen in the body. Also, excessive fat increases the production of insulin growth factor in the body, another substance that can promote tumour growth. Lean people have more resistance to chemical toxins, because pesticides and other pollutants are stored in the fat. So less fat on the body means a lower risk of a number of life-threatening illnesses, and also improves my mobility and overall quality of life.

This is a easy eating plan to follow. It is healthy, nutrition and a food foundation to build a healthy immune system. It is necessary to have sufficient protein to use as building blocks for the immune system, so it is important to get the balance right.