Commit to Your Health in the New Year
We all get older — but we can decide how we want to age. The process of aging can be accompanied by chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, memory impairment and diabetes, but aging itself is not the primary cause of these common illnesses; the cause is predominately one’s diet. Those types of diseases develop over many years of eating a less than ideal diet.
In this, as in other developed countries, too much of the food that is consumed has almost no nutritional value. I am talking about highly processed foods that are loaded with sugar, white flour, salt and oils. Foods that are commercial man-made products, not real natural human food; such as commercial baked goods, snack foods, luncheon meats, ice cream, soda, and cooking oils. Our addiction to these high-calorie, low-nutrient foods have led to astronomically high rates of obesity, cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes and mental illness.
Watch What You Eat
It doesn’t have to be this way. Heart disease, dementia, diabetes, or even cancer does not have to be the inevitable consequence of aging. These conditions are almost totally avoidable. It is possible to live a long life, free from significant disability and chronic disease if we eat a nutrient-dense, plant-rich diet, without refined foods, and little if any animal products. I call this way of eating the Nutritarian diet; it is the healthiest, most lifespan promoting way to eat. This style of eating is rich in micronutrients without providing an excess of macronutrients (carbohydrate, fat, and protein), promoting good health, increasing vitality and reducing the risk of later-life disease.
When you eat low-calorie, high-nutrient foods, you can eat generous portion sizes. These foods keep you slim and defend against cancer. I encourage everyone to eat liberally amounts of leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables and other colorful vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and fruit, especially berries and pomegranates. Eat powerful anti-cancer foods – G-BOMBS (greens, beans, onions, mushrooms, berries, and seeds) – every day. Make salad the main dish. Eat big salads that contain lots of greens, tomatoes, onions or scallions, with a dressing made from nuts and seeds, to facilitate absorption of the beneficial anti-cancer compounds..
Understand Food’s Connection to Your Health
Chew your foods thoroughly to break down its cellular walls to release as many of the nutrients as possible. Avoid excessive amounts of animal products – if you do use them, don’t eat them often — not ore than 2 ounces, two or three times a week and use these foods like condiments, to add flavor to other foods rather than making them the entrée or centerpiece of your meals.
My goal in advocating for the adoption of the Nutritarian lifestyle is to give you scientific, tested and veted information about food and your health. When you begin to incorporate this information into your life, and as you change your eating habits, the effect will be miraculous.
We have a unique opportunity in human history to live longer and healthier than ever before. We can age gracefully, free of the common diseases associated with aging. Thousands of scientific studies have been published to support eating this way, and these advances in nutritional science have allowed many people to reverse their chronic disease, and to restore their health and vitality. It is never too late to begin.
Resolve to Eat a Superior Diet
I urge everyone to learn the principles of the Nutritarian style of eating. More information on how to eat this way can be found on my website DrFuhrman.com and in my many books. This is not a diet of deprivation. It is a delicious, satisfying and sensible way to enjoy healthy foods and increase our ability to live a fuller and healthier life.
You cannot be healthy without paying attention to what you eat. My advice: Consume a diet that delivers a broad array of micronutrients in as wide a spectrum of healthy whole foods as possible. Commit to your health. It’s a journey, and it can begin now.
