With all of this raging healthcare debate lately, it seems that the focus (besides the cost I mean) is on medical care and fixing people. While I of course think each person has a right to have affordable medical coverage, I also think the priorities of our health care system (now and in the future regardless of what Congress comes up with) are wholly messed up. We all know that the majority of the money in the system is spent on curing and healing those who are not well. But what you don't hear very often is the word "prevention".

Sure, in some ways you do, as in don't smoke, exercise daily, eat from the major food groups. But if you go to the doctor with high blood pressure, or any of the many issues related to obesity, the doctor doesn't ask how often you eat fast food and how many servings of vegetables you eat daily. And though the course of action may be to lose weight or to change diet, it's usually left at that with no further specifics. And quite possibly that option is skipped over in favor of some sort of pill or medicine.

Everything about healthcare is about fixing health problems. This whole health care debacle would be mostly a non-issue if people would just start taking responsibility for preventing these problems before they manifest themselves. I think that a portion of the money poured into health care should be about health education, and furthermore, I think the government should shift its focus from medicine and curing diseases to preventing them through diet. Start some incentives for organic farming, and tighten up the rules on commerical farming, especially when it comes to what goes into the food that people eat that they think is healthy. A nice salad covered in pesticides? No thanks. A pork chop or steak filled with antibiotics and artificial growth hormones? Not for me.

There are many theories about healthcare, and we've all heard the one about how it's most profitable for the industry if people keep getting sick. But regardless of how much it's true or not, the fact remains that over half of the money spent in the health care system is for treating people who are sick with preventable diseases, including heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, and even certain cancers.

As proof, I use myself. Growing up and even through college I have always eaten a fairly balanced diet. I use that statement loosely, but even when the quality was low and I was eating crap like fish sticks and chicken patties, I still ate side salads, fruits, and vegetables. And on occasion I also ate fast food, or out at restaurants. My health was standard, though nothing to make note of, and like everyone I got sick a couple times per year.

But then a few years ago, I started getting very interested in organic foods, and additionally I started educating myself about the benefits of raw fruits and vegetables, as well as learning the truths about the Standard American Diet. I made a considerable shift, changing my habits to a point where I can confidently say that I now eat probaly 50-75% whole and organic foods, and my intake of fruits and vegetables is way above average. I still do undesirable things like eat out at restaurants, I still have vices and eat crap (though NO FAST FOOD), I still drink alcohol fairly regularly (in moderation), I still hit happy hour for an app now and again, and I still eat red meat, though much less frequently than in the past (probably less than once per week).

But my point is, since I've made this shift to primarily organic and dramatically increased my vegetable intake, I don't get sick any more. I haven't had a true head cold in a couple years, and I survive all of the office sicknesses that go around. Even through this time of flu paranoia and the winter colds and sniffles, I have remained healthy.

I'm not making any guarantees about my long term health, but I can say that without a doubt, making a substancial (though not extreme) change to my diet, while still enjoying my vices, I've significantly improved my health. (As a side note, and probably more suited to another article, this diet shift over several years (including a month long stint of raw eating) cleared me of some mild but sometimes painful acne that had plagued me for nearly 15 years.)

This simple thing, diet, is what could change our entire health care system, and save the government millions of dollars. Support and promote organic fruits and vegetables, whole foods, and educate people about the poisons that they take in daily by eating a crappy diet with no balance. It would save billions of dollars and lives ... though the drug companies wouldn't be very happy.

Labels: diet, drugs, healthcare, organic, raw diet

I am not big on resolutions, as most of them seem to just fade in time. But from time to time I re-assess my life and try to make some positive changes. For this New Year, this is what I thought to myself this morning:

I will learn to speak my mind, follow my heart, and live how I wish to live. I will be healthier and be more moderate with my vices.

Pretty simple, right?

Though I enjoy my life, and am generally pretty healthy, I could really do a lot to positively improve myself as well. There are many days where I wonder how I've gotten to this point and what I can change to improve. Most of these thoughts center on my own growth, as well as my career choices.

I talk a lot about diet, travel, and other things like that. There are many things I'm interested in, but nothing I want to go to any extremes with -- I like a life of moderation and being free to indulge extremes as well. For example, I like travel, but I like home too. I like health and my new explorations into raw eating, but I like to enjoy a few beers and dinners out with my girlfriend as well. I like hiking, exercise, and pushing my limits, but I also like lounging on the couch watching TV or reading a book.

So in the coming year my goal is to continue living a middle path, but to try to align my work and career with my interests, and also to be passionate about what I do, regardless of which extreme I am enjoying at the time.

Related Links:
An experiment with raw diet
Meat, to eat or not
Back from Spain

Labels: health, hiking, inspiration, lifestyle, raw diet, work

Let's face it, changes in diet freak a lot of people out. Raw, vegetarian, vegan ... Many people get freaked out by these terms. Many people don't get it, and when people don't get it there's usually no point in trying to explain it to them. So to clear things up right up front, let me say that I am NONE of what I just mentioned, not raw, vegan, or vegetarian. However I do incorporate all three into my regular diet. I have been doing a lot of raw eating recently, and have always been interested in vegan and vegetarian. But I'm just not ready to give some things up, like Italian sandwiches, an occasional organic hamburger, teriyaki chicken, or even -- gasp -- pizza and beer. So needless to say, I am not 100% raw, and clearly I'm leaving room for cheating, but I am enjoying the benefits of such a modified diet. Some benefits I am noticing are less moodiness when meal time comes close, more energy and mental clarity, a feeling of "lightness", clearer skin, and cleaner "insides" (if you know what I mean).

That said, I've gone out to eat with the guys from work in the past and gotten sideways looks for getting a veggie burger, for ordering tofu, and even had my masculinity questioned for eating a vegetable sandwich that I brought from home. So I know, it gets annoying when trying to eat anything different from the SAD (Standard American Diet). My recent raw ventures of late I'm sure would be even more frustrating for all my 3 times a day meat eating coworkers if they took the time to notice it.

But I think I've stumbled upon a way to avoid all the drama that having a different diet entails. First of all the fact that most of us are reaching or have already reached the over 30 year old mark makes it easier, because now health is a bit more important than it was as a 20 year old, and salads are just as sexy as french fries. But I think the fact that I am making raw alternatives to to traditional dishes is key. No longer am I a hippie eating a veggie patty or that weirdo eating fruit salads and carrot sticks for lunch. Now I have "real" food like linguine and marinara, stuffed peppers, and chili, sometimes I even get crazy and top them with crumbled raw goat cheese! And then tasty fudge and cookies for desert. And the best part .... at first glance no one even knows are living and 100% raw, and no one bothers to ask me "where's the beef?"


Related Links:
Cancer to be world's top killer by 2010
An experiment with raw diet

Labels: 9to5, health, raw diet

I saw this article in the news today about rising cancer rates, and I can't tell you how much it frustrates me to see these headlines over and over. I am no medical doctor, but I have strong beliefs and also have done plenty of reading, and I know that all these articles and studies about cancer are missing the boat. They all talk about cancer detection, smoking, and even the fact that cancer rates are rising simply because there are more people in the world. But all fail to mention any connection between cancer rates and the state of our environment and our modern diet.

People fail to realize that the SAD (standard american diet) can play just as much a role in getting cancer as smoking, drinking, or other more obvious risky behaviors. And also people fail to see the link between cancer and all the pollutants and toxic chemicals that we come into contact with on a daily basis. Too much trust is put into what everyone else is doing and what "experts" tell us. People seem to forget in the face of all these articles that as we as a society get more "modernized" all these health issues seem to increase as well. There are places in the world where cancer is all but unknown, where people live long and healthy lives, and there are also places in the world that have a lot of wealth, medical access, "modern" foods and technologies yet have some of the highest rates of cancer, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.

People who think that the prevention of cancer is an impossibility should note the following articles:

• Studies with mice showed that is in fact possible for our body to kill cancer cells naturally
• A woman with terminal breast cancer turns to a raw diet and her cancer disappears

I realize that these are just two specific cases, but there are plenty more out there if you only look. That said, I do realize that sometimes cancer may just not be able to be prevented or beaten. But I have seen enough to show that there are ways to significantly reduce the chances of getting cancer. Most of what people eat on a daily basis is loaded with junk that was never meant to be in our bodies, and though we may not see any changes or negative effects of it, you can be sure that over time those things are significantly impacting cellular health. Same goes for all the products that we use on a daily basis, from cosmetics to electronics to cleaning products.

Some day the medical community will wake up to the fact that our bodies are capable of amazing things on their own, and that not everything can be fixed or cured with modern technologies and drugs.

Labels: cancer, diet, health, medicine, raw diet

Photo Credit Jeff HillsFor the past week or so I have been experimenting with a raw diet. I say experimenting because 1) I have a lot to learn and 2) I haven't been 100% raw, though I'd say I've been close to 90-95%. I am doing this because I have read a lot about the potential benefits of eating raw, including increased energy, more vivid dreams, less sleep, increased healing, and of course detox.

I have already learned quite a bit, and trust me, it's not all about a salad and fruit. Though that's what a lot of it has been, but my options are already expanding and I have learned to make a few tasty treats that would rival a regular processed sugar desert in taste. Also, I will say that I don't want to continue this 100%, mostly because variety is the spice of life and I also enjoy indulging in things that are not good for me like drinking and happy hour. Though I will say I will incorporate many of the things I am learning into my regular diet, whatever that becomes. (Yes I know, beer doesn't exactly match a healthy raw diet, though I still believe a positive change is a positive change, regardless. I may not get all the benefits of a raw diet if I still have vices, but it for sure still beats most people.)

Another reason I don't want to stay 100% dedicated to this is that I don't believe it is inherently wrong to eat meat. I believe that humans evolved eating many things, of which meat is one of them. That said, I do believe that the meat most people eat which comes from cows that are corn fed and beefed up with hormones and antibiotics is crap and a raw diet would beat that any day. But I am not ruling out eating chicken, turkey, beef, or other meats that are naturally and sustainably raised. In fact though I have always loved cheese, I would probably choose meat over cheese, since I believe meat is more natural for us than animal milk.

It has been a little over a week since I started, and it has not been too difficult. The worst things are the outside temptations, including lunch at work. Thus far I have not had any extreme food cravings, but this is probably because I was already a decent eater prior to this, staying away from processed foods and high sugar treats. I had a headache for a few days, though I would attribute this to giving up my morning coffee, and I did have some pretty extreme body aches for a couple days. My sleep hasn't really changed, nor have my dreams intensified. I do seem to have a bit more energy, but nothing very noticeable, it's mostly when I'm at work, I don't get the urge to doze off anymore.

I have been mostly raw now for a little over a week, and have not had meat or dairy for 5 days. I do think when I ease back into a more "typical" diet I will probably keep a lot of these habits, and I will probably replace cheese with goat or sheep cheese, and possibly raw cheese if it's economically viable.

What else? I guess that's about it. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Or some good food ideas?

Oh I went to Blissfull Food last night and it was really good. There was a portobella walnut pate that was awesome (and could have passed for meatloaf), a great "sushi" roll, some spring wraps, and then sorbets, truffles, and live chocolates for desert!

Labels: health, raw diet

Anyone use organic deodorant? Post a comment with what brand you use and how well it works. I know some don't work very well, and want to find one that does.

*Update 1/15/2009

Here are three organic deodorants I have tried, in order from least effective to most effective.
Avalon Organics Lavender Deodorant
Tom's of Maine Natural Unscented Deordorant
Earth Science Tea Tree Lavender Deodorant

Browse other organic deodorants here.

Also just a note, read this about raw diet and decreased body odor. I can also say that this truly is the case, I very rarely wear deodorant anymore now that I eat more raw, and I also notice increased odor when I eat either meats or heavy cooked foods.

Labels: deodorant, raw diet