Christian Health Matters

By COGwriter

The physical world is governed by natural laws. Being healthy is normally (genetics and accidents, etc. also play a role) a result of cooperation with those principles.

I am not a medical doctor and this article does not provide medical advice.

That said, while the Bible focuses on the spiritual, it also touches on matters of physical health.

The Bible teaches:

33 You shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess. (Deuteronomy 5:33, NKJV throughout unless otherwise noted)

Various commandments and statutes in the Bible actually help protect physical health.

In the Book of Genesis we read:

29 And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. 30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food"; and it was so. 31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day. (Genesis 1:29-31)

The Bible also later teaches:

2 ... eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2)

So, let's look at some food and health matters.

Here is a link to a related sermon: Let's Talk About Food.

Genesis: Eat Fruits and Plants

In the Book of Genesis we see the first instructions about eating given by God:

29 And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. 30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food"; and it was so. (Genesis 1:29-30, NKJV throughout unless otherwise noted)

Now, these were unprocessed, organic, and fresh foods.

Eve mentioned that she and Adam could eat fruit:

2 And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden ..." (Genesis 3:2)

Although some claimed that meat was not allowed then, in the fourth chapter of Genesis we see that clean livestock was raised.

Also, when God told Noah to bring animals on the Ark, He distinguished between clean and unclean animals:

2 You shall take with you seven each of every clean animal, a male and his female; two each of animals that are unclean, a male and his female; (Genesis 7:2)

So, clean and unclean animals were known by the time of Noah. This points to them also being eaten before the flood.

Furthermore, by having sevens of the clean animals, Noah and his family would have had enough of them to be able to eat biblically clean animals on the Ark. Some believe, however, that was not the case until God made a pronouncement in Genesis 9:3:

3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. (Genesis 9:3)

The old Good News magazine published the following:

When God said, "Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things" (Gen. 9:3), He did not include unclean animals. He made it crystal clear what he meant in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14. Many people think this verse in Genesis 9 gives permission to eat any and all meats. Let us look again! God says, "Even AS I have given you the green herb." How has He given the green herb? Do we eat poison ivy and poison oak? Of course not! Even AS we do not eat all green herbs we do not eat the unfit or "unclean" meats. Everything that was created was not created for the purpose of being eaten! (Royer P. Why God Condemns Pork! Good News, May 1967)

That said, whenever humans began eating meat, they were to eat biblical clean ones.

Clean and Unclean Animals

What are clean animals?

Ones humans are told by God that they can eat:

46 'This is the law of the animals and the birds and every living creature that moves in the waters, and of every creature that creeps on the earth, 47 to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, and between the animal that may be eaten and the animal that may not be eaten.' (Leviticus 11:46-47)

God lists which animals can and should not be eaten as follows:

1 Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 2 "Speak to the children of Israel, saying, 'These are the animals which you may eat among all the animals that are on the earth: 3 Among the animals, whatever divides the hoof, having cloven hooves and chewing the cud -- that you may eat. 4 Nevertheless these you shall not eat among those that chew the cud or those that have cloven hooves: the camel, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; 5 the rock hyrax, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; 6 the hare, because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves, is unclean to you; 7 and the swine, though it divides the hoof, having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. 8 Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch. They are unclean to you.

9 'These you may eat of all that are in the water: whatever in the water has fins and scales, whether in the seas or in the rivers -- that you may eat. 10 But all in the seas or in the rivers that do not have fins and scales, all that move in the water or any living thing which is in the water, they are an abomination to you. 11 They shall be an abomination to you; you shall not eat their flesh, but you shall regard their carcasses as an abomination. 12 Whatever in the water does not have fins or scales -- that shall be an abomination to you.

13 'And these you shall regard as an abomination among the birds; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the buzzard, 14 the kite, and the falcon after its kind; 15 every raven after its kind, 16 the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after its kind; 17 the little owl, the fisher owl, and the screech owl; 18 the white owl, the jackdaw, and the carrion vulture; 19 the stork, the heron after its kind, the hoopoe, and the bat.

20 'All flying insects that creep on all fours shall be an abomination to you. 21 Yet these you may eat of every flying insect that creeps on all fours: those which have jointed legs above their feet with which to leap on the earth. 22 These you may eat: the locust after its kind, the destroying locust after its kind, the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind. 23 But all other flying insects which have four feet shall be an abomination to you. (Leviticus 11:1-23)

While some have falsely claimed that Jesus, the Father, or the Apostle Peter changed on this topic, that is not so.

As far as Jesus goes, He stated:

9 Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? (Matthew 7:9-10)

Jesus is clearly teaching here that fish are good for food and serpents/snakes are not. As far as fish go, Jesus even ate some after His resurrection (Luke 24:42-43).

Furthermore, available historical records reveal that early Christians would not eat biblically unclean meat. Even the Roman Catholic Church teaches that this was not officially changed by them until about 150 years after Jesus was resurrected--and the bulk of the Protestants followed the Roman Church on this. Additionally, the Book of Revelation, written well after Jesus' resurrection still points to frogs (Revelation 16:13) and some birds still being unclean (Revelation 18:2). For more detailed information as well as a long list of various clean and animals, check out the article: The New Testament Church, History, and Unclean Meats.

In 250 A.D., Pionius of Ephesus stated that he was part of the catholic church and he refused to eat biblically unclean meat. He was put to death for that refusal (The Martyrdom of Pionius and his Companions, Chapters 3,6, & 9. Text from H. Musurillo, The Acts of the Christian Martyrs, Oxford, 1972, 137-167).

Related to the Nazarene Christians:

Manichean Faustus, {in} the fourth century ... complained. "Such people practice circumcision, keep the Sabbath, then shun swine's meat and other things like that, all according to the Law. And yet they still claim to be Christians" (As cited in Frederickson P. When Christians Were Jews: The First Generation. Yale University Press, 2018, p. 100)

One Protestant scholar, who advocates eating unclean meat, wrote:

For centuries Christians stayed away from pork and other unclean foods. (Ortiz K. Can Christian Eat Meat, Pork, or Bacon? The Biblical Answer. JustDisciple.com accessed 06/08/21)

And true Christians still avoid biblically-unclean meat.

Furthermore, it is known that after Church of God Christians moved back to Jerusalem, they refused to eat unclean animals. To try to change that in the 4th century, the Roman Emperor Constantine, who supported a ‘Babylonian’ mixture of religions, ordered the death penalty for those who would not eat pork (Bagatti, The Church from the Circumcision, pp. 13-14).

That said, most people who eat unclean meats tend to eat shellfish and pork.

In the area that I live in, there are signs near the beach that state that it is illegal to sell local shellfish for about six months per year. This is because it is considered to be unsafe to eat by medical authorities then.

Of course, since shellfish tend to be bottom-feeders that eat scum (I have watched many "fish" for crabs with the most rotten baits), no one really should consider these toxin collectors as healthy to eat.

Furthermore, because of these toxins and other factors (such as the exceptionally high iodine content in some shellfish, including shrimp), shellfish are one of the most severely allergic "foods" that humans tend to consume.

But what about pork? The following web-news item may be of interest:

Are There Deadly Superbugs in Your Pork?

Scientists have detected antibiotic-resistant bacteria in pork, pigs and some veterinarians. It is possible that these so-called superbugs could infect farmworkers or even people who eat pork.

Antibiotic-resistant bugs were found in more than 7 percent of over 100 swine veterinarians tested. The same bacterial strains were found in nearly 50 percent of 300 tested pigs.

Perhaps of greatest concern, the bacteria were also found in 10 percent of more than 200 samples of ground pork and pork chops collected from four Canadian provinces.

An estimated 18,650 deaths a year in the U.S. are estimated to be caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/07/12/are-there-deadly-superbugs-in-your-pork.aspx?source=nl

The same site also had the following from Dr. Mercola:

Scientific Backing for the Avoidance of Pork

Bacon, perhaps one of America’s favorite breakfast staples, is in fact one of the worst type of processed meats you could eat for your health. According to a 2006 study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, eating bacon five or more times a week was linked to increasing your risk of bladder cancer by 59 percent. Aside from the processing of the meat, another likely cause for bacon’s negative influence on your health is the heterocyclic amines that form when meat is cooked at high temperatures.

If you cook meat that is loaded with pesticides and hormones at high temperatures, you’re simply asking for trouble. That’s why I limit my meat choices as much as possible to grass-fed and organic meats.

You also need to beware of eating undercooked pork, as it can cause trichinosis. Fortunately, trichinosis affects only 11 people per year in the U.S. and less than 2 percent of those infected actually die from the disease, which means there is one death every five years in the U.S. from this.

As far as MRSA is concerned, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have previously warned consumers about the risks inherent in the ever-popular holiday ham in their Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Turns out the high salt and sugar content of pre-cooked canned hams provides an ideal growth medium for the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

Additionally, if you’re a diabetic or if you have a weakened immune system, you may also do well to steer clear of chitterlings, a dish consisting of boiled pig intestines that are served up as traditional holiday fare in the Southern U.S.

It’s possible for people with poorly controlled diabetes to become seriously ill with enteritis necroticans, a potentially life-threatening intestinal infection. The rare disease causes severe stomach pain, vomiting of blood and low blood pressure. The culprit is the chitterlings-contaminating bacterium known as Clostridium perfringens type C, which produces a toxin that is lethal to tissue in your digestive tract. Even cooking the chitterlings might not rid them of the bacteria.

But wait, there’s more!

The Unsavory Side of Pork

The pork and swine industry has been continually plagued, and continues to be so to this day, by a wide variety of hazardous and deadly infections and diseases, including ...:

The Nipah Virus – Discovered in 1999, the Nipah virus has caused disease in both animals and humans, through contact with infected animals. In humans, the virus can lead to deadly encephalitis (an acute inflammation of your brain). I originally reported on this virus in 2000, but according to CDC data, the Nipah virus reemerged again in 2004.

Hepatitis E (HEV)– According to the Mayo Clinic and an article in the Journal of Clinical Biology, pork may be the reservoir responsible for sporadic, locally acquired cases of acute hepatitis reported in regions with relatively mild climates as HEV has been found to transmit between swine and humans.

Porcine Endogenous Retrovirus (PERV)– According to a study in the journal Lancet, this virus can spread to people receiving pig organ transplants, and according to test tube studies, PERV strains does have the ability to infect human cells. PERV genes are scattered throughout pigs’ genetic material, and researchers have found that pig heart, spleen and kidney cells release various strains of the virus. 

Menangle Virus – In 1998, the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases reported that a new virus infecting pigs was able to jump to humans. The menangle virus was discovered in August 1997 when sows at an Australian piggery began giving birth to deformed and mummified piglets.

What About Pasture-Raised Pork?

In a slightly ironic twist, I can’t even safely recommend consuming pasture-raised pork, because while researching this article I stumbled across a study in the current issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases citing concerns about pastured pigs being vulnerable to Trichinella spiralis infection, due to their exposure to wild hosts that carry the disease.

Pasture-raised pig farming has expanded with increased demand from health conscious consumers, and currently there are 28 U.S. farms located within 50 kilometers of a previously infected site.

Pork parasites can cause brain problems:

California’s Unspoken Health Problem: Brain Parasites

…it is the major cause for epilepsy worldwide. The CDC estimates that there are 1,900 diagnosed cases every year, 386 annual cases in California alone which can cost upwards of $66,000. Often it is paid through Medicare – costing taxpayers thousands. Tapeworms enter the body, normally ingested through pork or beef. The larvae use hook-like teeth to tear tiny holes in the intestines and sometimes travel to the brain.

http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/11962/20120906/californias-unspoken-health-problem-brain-parasites.htm

Brain Parasite ‘Neurocysticercosis’ Cases Increasing In California…

According to the CDC, neurocysticercosis is preventable, but happens with larval cysts of the pork tapeworm enter the brain.

It is the most severe form of cyticercosis.http://www.ksee24.com/news/local/Brain-Parasite-Neurocysticercosis-Cases-Increasing-In-California-169038376.html

California Has A Problem With Brain-Infecting Parasites

Sept 7, 2012 excerpt…

The diagnosis, officially called Neurocysticercosis, is common in the third world (about 50 million people are infected globally). But American doctors often don’t know the symptoms of the 1,900 cases that show up in American hospitals every year.

The worms are originally tiny: about the size of peas. They come from eating contaminated pork, and fight their way into the small intestines and cling to the flesh there while draining nutrients from their host. They can grow to be 20 feet long and can make tens of thousands of eggs a day, which ride through the bloodstream through the whole body.

http://www.businessinsider.com/california-has-a-problem-with-brain-infecting-parasites-2012-9

Perhaps I should add that quite a few years back, there was a small news item in The Townsend Letter for Doctors that claimed that 2% of the neurological appointments made in the State of California were related to pork consumption. I found that both shocking and astounding. It probably should be noted that because cattle are not always proper raised, parasites can come from them, but the neurological parasitic problems are much more closely associated with pork.

Notice also the following:

January 20, 2015

Vicious tapeworm infestations growing worldwide

CNN Once you consume them, they can move throughout your body -- your eyes, your tissues and most commonly your brain. They leave doctors puzzled in their wake as they migrate and settle to feed on the body they're invading; a classic parasite, but this one can get into your head.

"It had moved from one side of the brain to the other ... very few things move in the brain," says Dr. Effrossyni Gkrania-Klotsas about a British man found to have a tapeworm moving inside his brain in 2013. This form of tapeworm had never been seen before in the United Kingdom. ...

Pork tapeworms

There are many forms of tapeworm, three of which can readily infect the brain. From a public health perspective, there's one in particular to watch out for. "It's mainly the pork tapeworm that's the main brain one," says Helena Helmby from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

The pork species, known as Taenia Solium, can infect humans in two forms. The first is by eating undercooked pork from infected pigs, resulting in taeniasis -- an adult worm residing in the intestine. The second, in the larval form, through contact with the feces of an infected pig or human, which can go on to infect many tissues. If the larval worm enters the nervous system, including the brain, it can result in a condition known as neurocysticercosis. Infection of this kind can often cause epilepsy once inside the brain. Almost a third of epilepsy cases in countries where the disease is native are people who have previously had neurocysticercosis, according to the World Health Organization.

Neurocysticercosis infection arises from poor sanitation and hygiene. "You can actually infect yourself," says Helmby, as poor hygiene, such as failing to wash your hands, could result in you eating the eggs of an adult worm living in your intestine. "Self-infection is common."

The global distribution of pork tapeworms is widespread with high numbers across Latin America, Africa and Asia, according to the World Health Organization. As a result of its higher prevalence and due to increased international travel, Gkrania-Klotsas has three patients in her care in Cambridge who have previously experienced neurocysticercosis.

Cause for concern?

Infections with pork tapeworms are common...

"I'm confident there will be more of this in the future," agrees Gkrania-Klotsas, who has seen patients infected without having traveled abroad. "People are getting infections without going anywhere."

Those who do travel, however, also need greater awareness when visiting regions where infections are commonplace.  http://www.news8000.com/health/the-worms-that-invade-your-brain/30809498

Notice also:

Why is pork bad for you — a look at what the science says

January 24, 2022

The main (but not the only) reason why pork is bad for you is its high content of saturated fats and cholesterol. ...

Even moderate intake of pork can increase the cancer risk, another study found. ...

Some of the health issues associated with pork consumption tend to fly under the radar.

For instance, the link between pork and multiple sclerosis (MS) is known at least since the 1980s, and has been demonstrated across dozens of countries. The link has been supported by multiple studies carried in various environments. It’s more than just an observation: between 2007 and 2009, a cluster of 24 pork plant workers fell mysteriously ill with a disease that triggers MS-like symptoms -- a problem which was ultimately traced back to pork. ...

Surprisingly, pork can also cause liver disease, including cirrhosis and liver cancer. Alcohol is of course a main driver here, but pig meat has been repeatedly proven to play a role in both liver cancer and cirrhosis. ...

Yersinia is another potential risk factor that is often overlooked. In pork that isn’t properly cooked, the Yersinia bacteria can creep in, causing severe symptoms and even contributing to mortality. In the US alone, yersinia kills 35 people and causes 117,000 cases of food poisoning each year. Its main point of access inside the human body? You’ve guessed it -- pork. ...

Multiple conditions have been associated with pork consumption, including but not limited to diabetes, MS, cardiovascular disease, obesity, cirrhosis, and multiple types of cancer. The exact nature of this risk is still a matter of active research, but if you want to be on the safe side, no amount of pork is safe. ...

Oh, and there’s another reason why avoiding pork might be wise, Hunnes notes.

“In the past couple of decades, a couple of disease epidemics (swine flus) have emerged from pigs. Just another reason not to raise animals in confinement.

In short, I do not recommend eating pork. Under any circumstances,” she concludes.

https://www.zmescience.com/science/why-pork-is-bad-for-you-17072020/ accessed 09/01/22

Why You Should Avoid Pork

October 31. 2016

Pork is the most widely eaten meat in the world, making up about 38 percent of meat production worldwide. It’s especially popular in East and Southeast Asia, Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, North America, South America, and Oceania. ... 

There are reasons that the meat of the pig becomes more saturated with toxins than many of its counterpart farm animals. The first reason has to do with the digestive system of a pig. A pig digests whatever it eats rather quickly, in up to about four hours. On the other hand, a cow takes a good 24 hours to digest what it’s eaten.

During the digestive process, animals (including humans) get rid of excess toxins as well as other components of the food eaten that could be dangerous to health. Since the pig’s digestive system operates rather basically, many of these toxins remain in its system to be stored in its more than adequate fatty tissues ready for our consumption.

Another issue with the pig is that it has very few functional sweat glands and can barely sweat at all. Sweat glands are a tool the body uses to be rid of toxins. This leaves more toxins in the pig’s body. When you consume pork meat, you too get all these toxins that weren’t eliminated from the pig. None of us needs more toxins in our systems. ...

 The International Agency for Research on Cancer actually classifies processed meat as a carcinogen, something that causes cancer. Researchers found that consuming 50 grams of processed meat each day raises your risk of colorectal cancer by a very significant 18 percent.

Processed meat is considered to be food items like ham, bacon, sausage, hot dogs and some deli meats. Noticing a theme there? Those are mainly pork-derived food products. How much processed meat is 50 grams? That’s about four strips of bacon. Maybe you’re thinking that you only eat two pieces of bacon regularly. According to this research, that would likely equate to a 9 percent increase of cancer likelihood. ...

Today, a whopping 97 percent of pigs in the United States are raised in factory farms. This means that these pigs never live a healthy life of fresh air and wide-open pastures. ...

If you’re a pork eater, you should know that it’s very likely (only 3 percent unlikely) that you’re eating the meat of a pig that spent all of its time in a crowded warehouses with no fresh air or exercise, fed a steady diet of harmful drugs to keep the pig breathing as producers make pigs grow faster and fatter. These drugs often cause the pigs to become crippled under their own excessive and unnatural weight gain. ...

It’s estimated that 70 percent of factory-farmed pigs have pneumonia when they go to the slaughterhouse. Unsightly factory-farm conditions of filth and extreme overcrowding lead pigs to have an extreme likelihood for serious diseases. The conditions are so bad that the only way to keep these pigs barely alive at times is to misuse and overuse antibiotics.

I’ve talked a lot about what this does in humans. Similarly to humans, pigs are more commonly developing diseases that are resistant to antibiotics. You might like the taste of pork, but do you want to consume a pork product from a pig that had a “superbacteria”?

The bacteria-laden pork story continues. A 2013 Consumer Reports analysis of U.S. pork chops and ground pork samples found widespread (69 percent) presence of a bacteria called yersinia enterocolitica. This bacterium infects about 100,000 Americans a year, especially children, and can cause fever, diarrhea and abdominal pain in humans. https://draxe.com/nutrition/why-you-should-avoid-pork/ accessed 09/01/22

Since pork is a major item that many who eat unclean animals consume, let's specifically look at some scriptural admonitions against eating it:

7 and the swine, though it divides the hoof, having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. 8 Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch. They are unclean to you. (Leviticus 11:7-8)

8 Also the swine is unclean for you, because it has cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud; you shall not eat their flesh or touch their dead carcasses. (Deuteronomy 14:8)

3 "He who kills a bull is as if he slays a man; He who sacrifices a lamb, as if he breaks a dog's neck; He who offers a grain offering, as if he offers swine's blood; He who burns incense, as if he blesses an idol. Just as they have chosen their own ways, And their soul delights in their abominations, 4 So will I choose their delusions, And bring their fears on them; Because, when I called, no one answered, When I spoke they did not hear; But they did evil before My eyes, And chose that in which I do not delight." (Isaiah 66:3-4)

3 A people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face; Who sacrifice in gardens, And burn incense on altars of brick; 4 Who sit among the graves, And spend the night in the tombs; Who eat swine's flesh, And the broth of abominable things is in their vessels; (Isaiah 65:3-4)

17 "Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves, To go to the gardens After an idol in the midst, Eating swine's flesh and the abomination and the mouse, Shall be consumed together," says the Lord. (Isaiah 66:17)

So, in at least three books of the Bible, eating the flesh of pigs is prohibited--and the last two-three references above were prophetic--and still are to be fulfilled. Thus, the prohibitions against pork were NOT nailed to the cross or otherwise done away with (see also Which Laws were Superceded? Which Remain?). Jesus' death did NOT change the flesh of pork or reduce its ability to pass on health problems.

It may also be of interest to note that the New Testament also makes negative comments towards pigs/swine. Notice:

6 "Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces. (Matthew 7:6)

It should also be understood that the carcasses of unclean animals were specifically prohibited from being touched in Leviticus 11:24-31 (though touching live ones, like camels, was not prohibited, nor was wearing items from their hair/fur; cf. Matthew 3:4).

Back in 2006, problems started happening involving workers at a Minnesota pork-processing plant. Here is some of what the New York Times reported:

A Medical Mystery Unfolds in Minnesota

By DENISE GRADY
Published: February 5, 2008 AUSTIN, Minn...

And the disease that confronted doctors at the Austin Medical Center here last fall was strange indeed. Three patients had the same highly unusual set of symptoms: fatigue, pain, weakness, numbness and tingling in the legs and feet.

The patients had something else in common, too: all worked at Quality Pork Processors, a local meatpacking plant.

The disorder seemed to involve nerve damage, but doctors had no idea what was causing it.

At the plant, nurses in the medical department had also begun to notice the same ominous pattern. The three workers had complained to them of “heavy legs,” and the nurses had urged them to see doctors. The nurses knew of a fourth case, too, and they feared that more workers would get sick, that a serious disease might be spreading through the plant...

A man whom doctors call the “index case” — the first patient they knew about — got sick in December 2006 and was hospitalized at the Mayo Clinic for about two weeks. His job at Quality Pork was to extract the brains from swine heads.

“He was quite ill and severely affected neurologically, with significant weakness in his legs and loss of function in the lower part of his body,” said Dr. Daniel H. Lachance, a neurologist at Mayo.

Tests showed that the man’s spinal cord was markedly inflamed. The cause seemed to be an autoimmune reaction: his immune system was mistakenly attacking his own nerves as if they were a foreign body or a germ. Doctors could not figure out why it had happened, but the standard treatment for inflammation — a steroid drug — seemed to help. (The patient was not available for interviews.)

Neurological illnesses sometimes defy understanding, Dr. Lachance said, and this seemed to be one of them. At the time, it did not occur to anyone that the problem might be related to the patient’s occupation.

By spring, he went back to his job. But within weeks, he became ill again. Once more, he recovered after a few months and returned to work — only to get sick all over again.

By then, November 2007, other cases had begun to turn up. Ultimately, there were 12 — 6 men and 6 women, ranging in age from 21 to 51. Doctors and the plant owner, realizing they had an outbreak on their hands, had already called in the Minnesota Department of Health, which, in turn, sought help from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Though the outbreak seemed small, the investigation took on urgency because the disease was serious, and health officials worried that it might indicate a new risk to other workers in meatpacking.

“It is important to characterize this because it appears to be a new syndrome, and we don’t truly know how many people may be affected throughout the U.S. or even the world,” said Dr. Jennifer McQuiston, a veterinarian from the disease centers...

A survey of the workers confirmed what the plant’s nurses had suspected: those who got sick were employed at or near the “head table,” where workers cut the meat off severed hog heads. (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/health/05pork.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1 viewed 12/10/08).

Of course, since we in the Continuing Church of God do not eat pork, we are less likely than pork eaters to be affected by diseases in it.  However, once people get infections, they can often pass them on to others.

It also appears that pigs can be a factor in passing on another deadly disease:

Deadly Swine Flu Outbreak Linked to U.S.

NBC Dallas-Fort Worth - April 24, 2009

A strain of pig flu found in eight people in California and Texas is linked to the deadly bird flu that has killed as many as 61 people and sickened more than one thousand in Mexico...

"We are very, very concerned," WHO spokesman Thomas Abraham. "We have what appears to be a novel virus and it has spread from human to human."

"It's all hands on deck at the moment," he said.

President Obama had been informed and is following the outbreak closely, an administrative official said Friday.

http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/us_world/NATL-Deadly-Flu-Outbreak-Linked-to-US-.html

Pigs seem to be "flu factories":

Scientific American: U.S. Pig Farms May Be ‘Flu Factories’

December 23, 2010

by Eliza Barclay

Last year’s H1N1 pandemic was a wake-up call to many scientists to how unpredictable and dangerous viruses circulating in the animal world can be if they jump to humans. The outbreak of avian flu in 2006 was our first clue.

Since then, there’s been a lot of talk about monitoring the health of the animals most likely to pass on a flu virus with pandemic potential — pigs and birds.

But an article just published in Scientific American says our pig monitoring is pretty bad. So bad that American pigs farms are virtually “flu factories,” according to author Helen Branswell, a Nieman Fellow in global health reporting at Harvard University.  http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2010/12/23/132256243/scientific-american-u-s-pig-farms-may-be-flu-factories

Because people eat pigs, we get various strains of the flu that we would not have to deal with otherwise-- the annual flu shots are normally developed by seeing what is going on with pigs and other animals in south-east Asia each season.

The US White House put of the following from a briefing by Dr. Ashish Jha:

September 6, 2022

I really believe this is why God gave us two arms -- one for the flu shot and the other one for the COVID shot. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2022/09/06/press-briefing-by-white-house-covid-19-response-team-and-public-health-officials-88/

No, God gave us two arms to work, eat, and live our lives. He did not do that for vaccinations. The scientific fact that government health officials around the world seem to always want to not state is that if no one ate unclean animals, it is likely that neither of those diseases would even exist--and at minimum there would be less variations of them.

That said pigs, themselves, are also suspected as being significant carriers of the form of the ebola virus that can kill humans (Pigs May Spread Deadly Ebola Virus).

Notice also something that is being done to pork:

If it's true that you "are what you eat," then millions of Americans are walking, talking, ticking health time bombs full of toxic virus-mimicking prions that were injected into the pigs they've been eating since 2018. Without telling consumers across America, certain state governments and Big "Farma" have been injecting pigs with mRNA "technology" for more than 5 years. In other words, swine have been "vaccinated" with the very same foreign proteins that more than 50 million Americans are avoiding like the plague (or at least thought they were). ...

So-called mRNA technology literally turns OFF genes that fight cancer, so by injecting cattle and swine with these shots, their meat is littered with billions of spike prions that humans are consuming regularly, https://www.naturalnews.com/2023-08-21-vaxxed-swine-americans-have-been-eating-toxic-spike-protein-prions.html

Yes, scientists are trying many things to the food supply that have unknown and other risks.

Notice something from Dr. Mercola:

Pig Beans – The Latest GMO Frankenfood

July 13, 2023

One of the latest GMO Frankenfoods is Piggy Sooy, a soybean genetically engineered to contain pig protein. One or more undisclosed pig genes are spliced into conventional soya to create a soybean with 26.6% animal protein. Moolec, the U.K.-based company that developed Piggy Sooy, is also working on developing a pea plant that produces beef protein. The company claims these transgenic hybrids will provide similar taste, texture and nutritional value as meat, without the high cost of cultured or lab-grown meat alternatives. June 21, 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture authorized the sale of cell-cultivated chicken from Good Meat and Upside Foods. Both plan on rolling out their synthetic chicken to “high-end” restaurants across the U.S. first, while they scale up production. Researchers have discovered that CRISPR-Cas gene editing wreaks havoc in the plant genome, causing several hundred unintended genetic changes to occur simultaneously “in a catastrophic event” that ripples across large parts of the genome. Because these changes are impossible to predict, gene edited plants cannot be assumed safe without extensive testing … https://twitter.com/mercola/status/1679510163592445956?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1679510163592445956%7Ctwgr%5E12fda83f71188bcef460b07eeb04863cfa399702%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Fquery%3Dhttps3A2F2Ftwitter.com2Fmercola2Fstatus2F1679510163592445956widget%3DTweet

Apparently, GMO soy was not enough, now they put pig protein in it. Pigs, of course, are biblically unclean.

Notice also:

July 4, 2024

Bill Gates has decided that the slave class needs to drink maggot milk. He’s launched a food-like product that’s supposedly similar to real milk, but made out of maggots. His goal is to introduce this product into the food supply.

The new “EntoMilk” is described as a “dairy alternative” that is made from “black soldier fly larvae” or maggots. The maggots are blended into a “rich and creamy liquid which looks and acts just like dairy,” according to its creators. “It’s got a very creamy mouthfeel,” the promotional video claims. https://www.sgtreport.com/2024/07/bill-gates-has-launched-maggot-milk/

The Apostle Paul warned:

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; (Romans 1:28-31)

Yes, the untrustworthy have been doing a lot.

GMOs, lab grown meats, maggot milk, and piggy soy seem to qualify as an evil invention.

Notice an ancient warning from God:

6 And the Lord said, "Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. 7 Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech." (Genesis 11:6-7)

This language confusion from God has delayed the ability of humans to invent and corrupt more things than they have. But now, as we near the end of 6000 years of human civilization, we are seeing humans do horrible things that some have proposed.

As far as posk goes, interestingly, some scientists reported in 2012 that they concluded that human beings were "genetically-programmed" to dislike the smell of male pork:

If you find the smell of pork revolting, it could be because that’s how you’re genetically programmed to perceive it, according to a new study. Scientists found that there’s a gene responsible for how a compound in pork smells to humans ... Androstenone is also found in other male animals, but it’s found in particularly high amounts in swine, Matsunami said. (Carollo K. Pork and Genes: How Pork Smells Genetically Determined, Says Study. ABC News, May 2, 2012. http://abcnews.go.com/Health/smell-pork-genetic-component-study/story?id=16261564#.T6G9vFJz_uY)

And while many do like the smell and/or taste of pork, one of the reasons for this is that male swine are normally castrated in Western countries, so this reduces the otherwise more objectionable smell. (Other reasons include invidual variations as well as the spices and/or smoking processes used on pork.)

Much pork is the USA is also contaminated with one or more forms of harmful bacteria:

Nov 28, 2012

Study Finds Most Pork Contaminated With Yersinia Bacteria

Yersinia enterocolitica, a lesser-known food-borne pathogen, was present in 69 percent of the pork products tested, according to a study released today by Consumer Reports.

More than 100,000 Americans are affected by the bacteria a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For every case that is confirmed with a laboratory test, about 120 more cases escape diagnosis. The bacteria can hit hard. Symptoms can include fever, cramps and bloody diarrhea.

In the Consumer Reports study, ground pork turned out to be riskier than pork chops. In the samples taken, 69 percent tested positive for Yersenia and 11 percent for enterococcus, which can indicate fecal contamination.  http://www.kolotv.com/news/nationalnews/headlines/Study-Finds-Most-Pork-Contaminated-With-Yersinia-Bacteria-181162001.html

Unclean meats are simply not safe or biblically appropriate to eat. More and more, scientists are finding more issues with some of them.

The Apostle Paul wrote:

3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; 6 that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. 7 For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. 8 Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit. (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8)

We are not just to eat anything we want--we are not to obey our lusts. We are to not eat unclean animals are are to reject those who teach otherwise.

The Apostle Paul was inspired to also write:

17 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people." Therefore "Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you" 18 'I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty."

7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Corinthians 6:17-7:1)

The idea of being separate is also mentioned in the Book of Revelation:

4 And I heard another voice from heaven saying, "Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. ( Revelation 18:4)

Hearing all the diseases associated with pork is another reason to be separate and not eat it.

The Apostle Paul also wrote:

19. WHAT! Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, which you have within you from God, and you are not your own? 20. For you were bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, AFV)

Eating unclean meats does not glorify God. Christians should not do it.

Consumption of bats is associated with a variety of viruses.

And it was a problem before COVID-19. Notice the following from before COVID:

February 6, 2013

When it comes to carrying viruses that can jump to other species — so-called "zoonotic" viruses — bats may be in a class of their own. The flying mammals are reservoirs for more than 60 viruses that can infect humans, and host more viruses per species than even rodents do, new research shows.

"There seems to be something different about bats in terms of being able to host zoonotic infections," study researcher David Hayman, a wildlife epidemiologist at Colorado State University (CSU), told LiveScience.

In recent years, bats have received a lot of attention for their virus-hosting abilities. They've been shown to carry a number of harmful infections, including rabies and viruses related to SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome). Moreover, research suggests bats may be the original hosts of nasty viruses such as Ebola and Nipah, which causes deadly brain fevers in people. https://www.livescience.com/26898-bats-host-human-infecting-viruses.html

21 June 2017

Is there something special about bats? The question has been hotly debated among researchers studying the origins of deadly viruses. Marburg, Ebola, severe acute respiratory syndrome: They have all been linked to bats, leading some scientists to argue that something about the mysterious mammals makes them especially likely to harbor viruses dangerous to humans. "Bats are special," is their motto. But others argue that the bat order is very well-studied and very big—one in five mammalian species is a bat—biasing results.

That debate may finally be over. A broad look at all viruses known to infect mammals suggests that bats are, indeed, more likely to carry unknown pathogens that can wreak havoc on humans. Surprisingly, the study comes from researchers who until now were bat doubters. "As a scientist, you accept the results of your own study—even if they prove you wrong!" says disease ecologist Peter Daszak of the EcoHealth Alliance in New York City, a senior author on the new study. https://www.science.org/content/article/bats-really-do-harbor-more-dangerous-viruses-other-species

Whether or not there was a laboratory or natural origin of COVID, it has been associated with biblically-unclean animals--and likely their consumption.

Related to COVID, the Continuing Church of God (CCOG) put together the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

Here is a link to the video: COVID, Pandemics, and Unclean Meat

That said, let me add that the Bible warns against over consumption of meat (Proverbs 23:20) and science backs that up.

No Blood

The Old Testament teaches:

4 But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. (Genesis 9:4)

11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.' 12 Therefore I said to the children of Israel, 'No one among you shall eat blood, nor shall any stranger who dwells among you eat blood.' (Leviticus 17:11-12)

22 ... a gazelle or a deer. 23 ... you shall not eat its blood (Deuteronomy 15:22-23)

The New Testament shows that Christians were told:

20 ... to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. (Acts 15:20)

So, consumption of blood from any animal, even clean ones, was prohibited as are creatures that were strangled.

Tertullian taught in the early third century that professing Christians considered the consumption of blood unlawful when he wrote to those who accused Christians of eating human blood (because of the symbol of wine as the blood of Christ and/or held meetings separate from the heathen, some claimed Christians drank human blood):

To clench the matter with a single example, you tempt Christians with sausages of blood, just because you are perfectly aware that the thing by which you thus try to get them to transgress they hold unlawful. And how unreasonable it is to believe that those, of whom you are convinced that they regard with horror the idea of tasting the blood of oxen, are eager after blood of men (Tertullian. Apology. Chapter 9. Translated by S. Thelwall. From Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 3. Edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe. Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1885).

Live Science reports:

Is it safe to drink blood?

By Benjamin Radford published June 06, 2016 ...

The strange fact is, blood, when drank, is toxic. When confined to places where blood is supposed to be — such as the heart, vessels, and so on — it is essential for life. But when ingested it's a very different story. Of course all toxins have doses, and just as a tiny bit of poison won't necessarily harm you, the more you eat or drink, the greater the danger. ...

Unlike humans, the bodies of animals that digest blood have adapted specialized digestive mechanisms. According to Katherine Ramsland in her book "The Science of Vampires" (Penguin Putnam, 2002) the vampire bat, "requires an enormous intake of iron, which helps make hemoglobin for carrying oxygen from the lungs to the body tissues. Yet the iron intake is generally higher than what the bat needs, so it has a special process for secreting the excess. When ingested, the blood goes through a tract that's adapted for extracting nutrients. Research on this system suggests that bats have a mucous membrane along the intestinal tract that acts as a barrier to prevent too much iron from getting into their bloodstreams."

You, however, are not a vampire bat. (Radford B. Live Science, originally published Sept. 2, 2011)

Notice also something from HealthLine:

Bloodborne illnesses

As with raw meat, blood can contain harmful bacteria and pathogens that can cause food poisoning and pass on diseases such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, norovirus, or HIV. ...

Drinking human or animal blood can pose health risks such as severe diseases and foodborne illnesses. https://www.healthline.com/health/drinking-blood#takeaway accessed 08/19/22

So, no it is not good for your health to drink blood. But because many on the internet promote it, hopefully the scriptural and health warnings will stop more people from doing it.

Enzymes

While most people realize that the human body needs water, calories, air, protein, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals, many do not understand that enzymes can often aid their health.

How many enzymes are in the human body?

To date, approximately 75,000 enzymes are thought to exist in the human body—all divided into three classes: metabolic enzymes that run our bodies, digestive enzymes that digest our food, and food enzymes from raw foods that start our food digestion. A reason exists for so many enzymes: various metabolic functions may require a whole complex of enzymes to complete hundreds of reactions. In general, individual enzymes are named by adding the suffix “-ase” to the name of the substrate with which the enzyme reacts; for example, the enzyme amylase controls the breakdown of amylose (starch).

https://www.papertrell.com/apps/preview/The-Handy-Biology-Answer-Book/handy%20answer%20book/How-many-enzymes-are-in-the-human-body/001137031/content/SC/52caff2582fad14abfa5c2e0_default.html accessed 08/22/22

What Are Enzymes?

Enzymes are biologically active proteins found in all living cells.  Metabolic enzymes catalyze and regulate every biochemical reaction that occurs within the human body, making them essential for cellular function and overall health.  Digestive enzymes turn the food we eat into energy which may be utilized by the body for various biological processes.  Our bodies naturally produce both digestive and metabolic enzymes, as they are needed.

Enzymes are protein chemicals, which carry a vital energy factor needed for every chemical action, and reaction that occurs in our body. There are approximately 1300 different enzymes found in the human cell. These enzymes can combine with coenzymes to form nearly 100,000 various chemicals that enable us to see, hear, feel, move, digest food, and think. Every organ, every tissue, and all the 100 trillion cells in our body depend upon the reactions of metabolic enzymes and their energy factor. Nutrition cannot be explained without describing the part that enzymes play.

... Food Enzymes are introduced to the body through the raw foods we eat and through consumption of supplemental enzyme products. Raw foods naturally contain enzymes, providing a source of digestive enzymes when ingested. However, raw food manifests only enough enzymes to digest that particular food. The cooking and processing of food destroys all of its enzymes. Since most of the foods we eat are cooked or processed in some way and because the raw foods we do eat contain only enough enzymes to process that particular food, our bodies must produce the majority of the digestive enzymes we require, unless we use supplemental enzymes ... https://enzyscience.com/pages/enzyme-faq#:~:text=Our%20bodies%20naturally%20produce%20both,found%20in%20the%20human%20cell. accessed 08/22/22

Let it be noted that most B vitamins as well as vitamin C and K also function as coenzymes or precursors for coenzymes.

As far as enzymes go, a study of dogs found that those in the wild had larger brains and small pancreases than domesticated ones (Howell E, MD. Enzyme Nutrition, 1985). This is believed to be because domesticated dogs tended to eat cooked foods devoid of enzymes, whereas wild ones were consuming an entirely raw diet. Furthermore a review of a book, Stephen Blauer, wrote:

Enzyme Nutrition points out that each one of us is given a limited supply of bodily enzyme energy at birth. This supply, like the energy supply in your new battery, has to last a lifetime. The faster you use up your enzyme supply, the shorter your life. A great deal of our enzyme energy is wasted haphazardly throughout life. The habit of cooking our food and eating it processed with chemicals; and the use of alcohol, drugs, and junk food all draw out tremendous quantities of enzymes from our limited supply. Frequent colds and fevers and exposure to extremes of temperature also deplete the supply. A body in such a weakened, enzyme-deficient state is a prime target for cancer, obesity, heart disease, or other degenerative problems. A lifetime of such abuse often ends in the tragedy of death at middle age.

That said, some have claimed that going to a 100% raw diet will cure the human body of just about everything. However, while increasing the amount of enzymes in the diet (as well as in freeze-dried bovine glands, for example) can aid in many situations, it is not a cure-all.

A chiropractor I knew in WCG and GCG recommended having 25% of your diet raw. Getting at least some raw foods in the diet can be helpful.

You should--if you can get them safely--consume some raw foods.

That said, the different enzymes help different organs and different functions related to the organs. Enzymes are biological catalysts. That means that their presence basically encourages the body to build up, repair, or digest something--basically like a supervisor being present encourages many to work.

As it turns out, many governments fail to see the importance of the consumption of enzymes by humans, and hence recommend more heat-processed items than are optimal for health.

My first nutrition class was on enzymes--but that was in a non-accredited program. Yet, the lack of governmental acceptance of something does not mean it is not true.

Enzymes are important to human health.

Processed Foods Can Be Dangerous

NPR today:

The U.S. diet is deadly. ...

August 31, 2022

The data are stark: the typical American diet is shortening the lives of many Americans. Diet-related deaths outrank deaths from smoking, and about half of U.S. deaths from heart disease – nearly 900 deaths a day – are linked to poor diet. The pandemic highlighted the problem, with much worse outcomes for people with obesity and other diet-related diseases. "We're really in a nutrition crisis in this country." says Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University ...

The U.S. can't "fix" hunger by just feeding people cheap, high-calorie, processed foods – the food that's so abundant in our food supply, they say. Instead, it's got to find ways to nourish people with healthy, nutrient-dense foods. https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/08/31/1120004717/the-u-s-diet-is-deadly-here-are-7-ideas-to-get-americans-eating-healthier?utm_source=pocket-newtab

My clinical experience suggests that the deaths caused by poor diet exceed the 900 per day NPR reported about. But also, the USA's fix for hunger has been to promote a lot of highly proccessed, high caloric, foods.

Dr. Mozaffarian is correct that they are not the answer.

In its 1975 booklet, Principles of Healthy Living, the old Ambassador College stated:

To be sick is to be out of harmony with natural law. ...

The dietary habits of many people in the Western world has to go down as one of the supreme ironies of modern history.

While millions in the underdeveloped world are malnourished because of necessity, many Westerners are often on the short end nutritionally purely due to choice.

A recent study conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture revealed that roughly one half of all Americans subsist on substandard diets. Junk foods account for some 35% of a typical American family's food budget. Fifty-five percent of what Americans eat is processed food-laden with dyes, preservatives, moisture controls, thickeners and the like. Sugar consumption in the affluent West is at an all-time high. In 1750 the average Englishman consumed only four pounds a year. Today sweet-toothed Americans gulp down 120 pounds per person annually. Sugar now constitutes half of the average American's total calorie intake. The rapid rise in sugar consumption is just one more indicator that there has been a fundamental shift in our dietary habits.

Notice some studies from 2022 and 2023:

New research gives more reasons to eat less-processed food

Two studies provide evidence of link between consumption of highly processed food and risk of serious disease

31 August 2022

Eating lots of highly processed food such as ready meals is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, bowel cancer and premature death, according to two large studies.

The research offers more reasons to limit intake of ultra-processed foods and instead consume more unprocessed or minimally processed foods to reduce the risk of death, disease and ill health. The findings were published in the BMJ. ...

Ultra-processed foods include packaged baked goods and snacks, fizzy drinks, sugary cereals, and ready-to-eat or heat products, often containing high levels of added sugar, fat, and/or salt, but lacking in vitamins and fibre.

The first study suggests high consumption of ultra-processed foods in men and some subgroups of ultra-processed foods in men and women is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer. The second study found a link to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and death. https://www.theguardian.com/food/2022/aug/31/highly-processed-food-consumption-risk-disease-evidence accessed 09/01/22

Cognitive decline linked to ultraprocessed food, study finds

August 1, 2022

Eating ultraprocessed foods for more than 20% of your daily calorie intake every day could set you on the road to cognitive decline, a new study revealed.

We all know eating ultraprocessed foods that make our lives easier – such as prepackaged soups, sauces, frozen pizza and ready-to-eat meals – isn’t good for our health. Nor is gobbling up all the pleasure foods that we love so much: hot dogs, sausages, burgers, french fries, sodas, cookies, cakes, candies, doughnuts and ice cream, to name just a few.

Studies have found they can raise our risk of obesity, heart and circulation problems, diabetes and cancer. They may even shorten our lives.

Now, a new study has revealed eating more ultraprocessed foods may contribute to overall cognitive decline, including the areas of the brain involved in executive functioning – the ability to process information and make decisions.

In fact, men and women who ate the most ultraprocessed foods had a 28% faster rate of global cognitive decline and a 25% faster rate of executive function decline compared with people who ate the least amount of overly processed food, the study found. ...

Dr. Claudia Suemoto, an assistant professor in the division of geriatrics at the University of São Paulo Medical School.

“Fifty-eight percent of the calories consumed by United States citizens, 56.8% of the calories consumed by British citizens, and 48% of the calories consumed by Canadians come from ultraprocessed foods,” Suemoto said.

Ultraprocessed foods are defined as “industrial formulations of food substances (oils, fats, sugars, starch, and protein isolates) that contain little or no whole foods and typically include flavorings, colorings, emulsifiers, and other cosmetic additives,” according to the study. https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/01/health/ultraprocessed-food-dementia-study-wellness/index.html accessed 09/01/22

{The following was was first published by Harvard Public Health magazine, accessed 03/06/23:}

Federal food law is clear: It bans “any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render [a food] injurious to health.”

For decades, regulators have used that provision mostly to crack down on food contaminated with toxic chemicals or microbes such as Listeria and Salmonellathat can make us acutely ill. It’s important to protect people from these harms, but let’s also put them in perspective: These regulated contaminants kill an estimated 1,400 Americans per year. By contrast, 1,600 Americans die every day from chronic food illness, such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

In recent years, evidence has mounted that these chronic illnesses are caused by deleterious substances in ultra-processed foods. From heat-and-eat meals such as frozen pizza to sweetened breakfast cereals, ultra-processed foods are industrial formulations of ingredients from substances extracted from foods or synthesized in laboratories. They are also staples of our diets. …

In addition to deaths, poor diet causes tremendous suffering. For instance, two-thirds of severe COVID cases resulting in hospitalization have been attributed to four diet-caused diseases: obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and heart failure. In other words, these hospitalizations could have been prevented if the patient didn’t have these diseases. All told, the economic cost of nutrition-related chronic diseases has been estimated at $16 trillion over the period from 2011 to 2020.

Mounting evidence suggests that ultra-processed foods are causing much of this harm. …

In a recent study conducted by the National Institutes of Health to discover the cause of sharp increases in obesity in the U.S., volunteers were randomly assigned to either eat minimally processed foods or ultra-processed foods matched for daily nutrients like carbohydrates, sodium, fat, and sugar. Investigators thought weight gain would be the same in both groups, since nutrient composition was equivalent. They were wrong.

While on the ultra-processed diet, people ate an additional 500 calories per day and began to rapidly gain weight. When the same people were later assigned to eat the minimally processed diet, they lost weight.

This is an important finding, because it raises the possibility that it’s the additives and processing—not just the percentage of fat or sugar in a diet—that make us sick. 03/06/23 https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2023/03/processed-foods-are-making-us-sick-its-time-for-the-fda-and-usda-to-step-in/

{In 2023, the BBC asked, “Could ultra-processed foods be harmful for us?” Here is some of its report about that:}

5 June 2023

Twenty years ago, no-one had heard of the term ultra-processed foods – or UPF – but about half the things we now eat in the UK are made that way.

From sliced brown bread to ready meals and ice cream, it is a group of foods made with varying – but often substantial – levels of industrial processing. Ingredients used, such as preservatives, artificial sweeteners and emulsifiers, do not typically feature in home cooking.

“Ultra-processed foods are among the most profitable foods companies can make,” says Prof Marion Nestle, a food politics expert and professor of nutrition at New York University.

As our consumption of ultra-processed foods go up – the UK is one of the biggest consumers per head in Europe – so have rates of diabetes and cancer. …

Prof Tim Spector, is a professor of epidemiology at King’s College London, who studies trends in disease … told BBC Panorama: “In the last decade, the evidence has been slowly growing that ultra-processed food is harmful for us in ways we hadn’t thought.

“We’re talking about a whole variety of cancers, heart disease, strokes, dementia.”

Ultra-processed convenience foods contain chemicals that UK regulators say are safe, but Panorama investigates emerging scientific evidence of a link between some of these chemicals and cancer, diabetes and strokes. …

Common ultra-processed foods:

• Mass-produced bread and sweetened breakfast cereals
• Instant soups, pre-packaged and microwave ready meals
• Fruit-flavoured yogurts
• Reconstituted meat – like ham and sausages
• Ice cream, crisps and biscuits
• Soft drinks and some alcoholic drinks – like whisky, gin, and rum

The first investigations into mortality and consumption of ultra-processed food started in France at the University Sorbonne Paris Nord, as part of the ongoing study into the eating habits of 174,000 people.

“We have 24-hour dietary records during which they tell us all the foods, the beverages and so on, that they are eating,” explains Dr Mathilde Touvier who heads up the study.

The ongoing research has already published results showing UPF may drive an increased burden of cancer. https://www.bbc.com/news/health-65754290

As far as added sugar goes, in 2022 Harvard reported:

Your body doesn’t need to get any carbohydrate from added sugar. ...

While we sometimes add sugar or sweeteners like honey to food or beverages, most added sugar comes from processed and prepared foods. The leading sources of added sugars in the U.S. diet are sugar-sweetened beverages, desserts, and sweet snacks like ice cream, pastries, and cookies. [1] Less obvious yet significant contributors are breakfast cereals and yogurt. ...

Sugary drinks are a prime source of extra calories that can contribute to weight gain and provide no nutritional benefits. Studies indicate that liquid carbohydrates such as sugar-sweetened beverages are less filling than solid food, causing people to continue to feel hungry after drinking them despite their high calories. [4] They are coming under scrutiny for their contributions to the development of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and other chronic conditions. [5]

• The average 20-ounce bottle of sugar-sweetened soda, lemonade, or iced tea contains about 65 grams of added sugar, often from high-fructose corn syrup. That’s the equivalent of 16 teaspoons of table sugar.
• If you were to drink just one 12-ounce can of a sugar-sweetened soft drink every day, and not cut back on calories elsewhere, you could gain up to 15 pounds over three years. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/carbohydrates/added-sugar-in-the-diet/ accessed 08/19/22

Sodas are not recommended for optimal health. Drinking one per month probably will not harm, but also will not build, your health. The more added sugars consumed, the greater the risk for health problems.

That said, remember Eve in the Garden:

6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. (Genesis 3:6)

Eve reasoned around God's restriction. The fruit looked like good and desirable food to her. Ultra-processed foods and many unclean meats that God's word prohibits look like good and desirable foods to many.

Self-control is something Christians should have (e.g. 2 Peter 1:6).

While many realize that too much junk food can make one fat and increase risk for heart and diabetic diseases, a 2014 study suggests that it may also make one lazy:

April 9, 2014

A new study finds eating too much junk food doesn’t only make you fat, it may also make you mentally slower or less motivated. At least that seems to be true in lab rats.

For the study, published in the journal Physiology and Behavior, researchers at the University of California Los Angeles put rats on two different diets. Half of the rodents ate a healthy diet of unprocessed foods, such as ground corn and fish meal. The remaining half were given a high sugar, highly processed diet, similar to the junk food humans consume.

Within three months, the researchers observed remarkable differences between the two groups of rats. Mostly, they found the rats on the junk food diet were significantly fatter than the rats on a healthy diet. But the unhealthy rats were also less motivated, indicating that a poor diet had a serious impact on their tiny rodent brains.

When the researchers put the rats through certain tasks the differences become even more apparent. All of the rats were required to press a lever for a reward of food and water. The rats on the junk food diet were slower to act on the task, even though this reward system was clearly laid out and they knew performing the task would provide them with more food and water. The rats on the unhealthy diet took breaks that averaged around 10 minutes long, versus the healthy rats whose breaks lasted for about five minutes each.  http://www.cbsnews.com/news/junk-food-makes-you-lazy-not-just-fat-study-suggests/

This is not a surprise. I have previously reported here about mental and other issues that overeating and junk food can cause.  It should be noted that most sweets in the USA now also contain genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) and they may also be a factor in causing laziness and other mental issues.

However, although there are some GMO labeling requirements, the government does not require this for highly processed GMO ingredients like corn syrup, nor does it require it for GMO meats or eggs. In general, the government and food processing industries really do not want you truly informed.

Notice the following:

August 18, 2023

We have previously discussed engineering plants with vaccines, how meats including pork, beef and chicken, and salmon that are lab created would soon be available in every grocery store, and we knew that companies using bioengineered products were to be labeled with a mandatory compliance date of January 2022.

As of January 1, 2022, food that’s been previously known as a GMO or genetically engineered food will have a new “Bioengineered (BE)” label. If the term leaves you confused or searching your favorite online encyclopedia, you’re not alone. Critics of the new legislation are concerned that the new GMO “rebrand” may cause even more confusion and less transparency than its predecessor.

There are different ways foods can be labeled:

• Contains a Bioengineered Food Ingredient”

• A symbol in black and white or color

• An electronic (QR code) or digital link

Companies may also use terms such as "Genetically Modified Organism," "GMO" and "Genetic Engineering" on their labels, but they must use "bioengineered food" or "contains a bioengineered food ingredient(s)" to comply with the law. https://allnewspipeline.com/Check_Your_Labels.php

January 7, 2022

As of January 1, 2022, food that’s been previously known as a GMO or genetically engineered food will have a new “Bioengineered (BE)” label. If the term leaves you confused or searching your favorite online encyclopedia, you’re not alone. Critics of the new legislation are concerned that the new GMO “rebrand” may cause even more confusion and less transparency than its predecessor. ... According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), a bioengineered (BE) food is “food that contains genetic material that has been modified through certain laboratory techniques and for which the modification could not be obtained through conventional breeding or found in nature.” Despite this definition, some exemptions in the BE labeling mandate mean that many foods that contain GMOs by current standards may not have to be labeled that way under the new guidelines ...

Food items that contain ingredients that are considered “highly refined” — such as sugar and corn oil — don’t require bioengineering disclosure, so they'll have no BE label. For example, when genetically modified corn is processed to make oil or corn syrup, the resulting “highly refined” ingredient shows no detectable DNA from the bioengineered crop, and therefore is not required to bear a bioengineered label. ...

Products made with meat, poultry, or eggs are exempt from the BE labeling law. Multi-ingredient products in which meat, poultry, or eggs are the first ingredient are also exempt, even if other ingredients in the product do have detectable levels of modified genetic material.

The USDA gives the example of a can of pork stew that also contains genetically modified sweet corn. If pork is the main ingredient and listed first on the ingredient panel, the can of stew wouldn’t be required to have a BE label because meat is exempt from the labeling requirement. If the stew lists water, broth, or stock as the first ingredient and pork as the second, that would also not require a BE label because water, stock, and broth don’t “count.” The only way the stew would earn a BE label is if there was more corn than pork in the stew.

Because the new bioengineered definition leaves out foods that contain the “highly refined” oils and sugars that are derived from genetically modified food as well as multi-ingredient foods (such as the pork stew example), the position of the Non-GMO Project is that “the Bioengineered Food labeling law is ineffective at finding GMOs and avoiding GMOs, largely because of restrictions, loopholes, and exemptions.”https://www.everydayhealth.com/diet-nutrition/things-you-need-to-know-about-the-new-gmo-food-label/

The reality is that food processing companies and food scientists do not know all the health risks from processed foods--nor do they really want this publicized. While the Bible does support processing olives to make oil, grapes to make wine and raisins, and combining ingredients to make bread, the levels of food processing, there are limits to what is wise.

Notice also:

Ultra-Processed Foods Linked to 32 Illnesses

February 29, 2024

Ultra-processed foods can cause dozens of terrible health problems among people who eat them too often, a new review warns.

Researchers linked diets high in ultra-processed foods to an increased risk of 32 separate illnesses. In particular, these foods are strongly tied to risk with early death, heart disease, cancer, mental health disorders, overweight and obesity, and Type 2 diabetes, researchers said.

For example, ultra-processed foods are associated with a 50% increased risk of heart-related death, a 48% to 53% increased risk of anxiety and common mental disorders, and a 12% risk of type 2 diabetes, researchers said. ...

“Notably, over recent decades, the availability and variety of ultra-processed products sold has substantially and rapidly increased” in countries around the world, wrote the research team led by Melissa Lane, ...

Alterations in the food made during manufacturing “may affect digestion, nutrient absorption and feelings of satiety,” the researchers wrote.

Emerging evidence in humans also has linked some additives used in the foods — non-sugar sweeteners, emulsifiers, colorants and nitrates or nitrites — with poor health outcomes, researchers said.

Intensive industrial processing of food might also produce harmful substances that contribute to chronic inflammation, and even packaging materials can contain contaminants, they added. ... profit motives discourage food makers from switching to nutritious products. https://www.newsmax.com/health/health-news/ultra-processed-foods-illness/2024/02/29/id/1155395/

In the 21st century, the prevalence of highly processed foods is having a demonstrably negative effect on human health around the world.

Vitamins and Vitamin-Fortified Foods

In the 1800s, refined grains became popular--particularly among the wealthy, who at that time were the only ones who could afford many of them.

This actually led to a lot of health problems like constipation and certain forms of arthritis.

But as processing costs decreased, refined grains became popular around the world.

Highly processed grains foods may taste good and seem convenient, but if consumed at all, should be a very small part of anyone’s diet.

But because the negative effects take time, many deceive themselves into falsely believing that they cannot cause serious problems–yet they can.

The following scripture came to mind:

11 Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. (Ecclesiastes 8:11)

In the 19th century refined flour came out. Then we saw degerminated corn meal and white rice. Grits, which once were made of ground, whole organic corn, are now made with degerminated GMO corn, ‘fortified’ with synthetic vitamins. After corn was ‘degerminated’ many people in the Southern USA died from a disease called pellagra until sometime in the early 20th century. Instead of going back to whole corn, chemically-derived synthetic vitamins were added, which I consider to be dangerous.

In the 19th century, after natural brown rice became refined on a large scale, white rice became popular. Many preferred white rice because it could be stored longer than natural brown rice, plus it cooked faster.

In the 19th century, a disease called beriberi began to cause many deaths in parts of Asia. Symptoms of beriberi include weight loss, emotional disturbances, impaired sensory perception, weakness and pain in the limbs, and periods of irregular heart rate.

At first no one connected the consumption of white rice in with beriberi. Leading ‘infectious disease’ experts attempted to figure out what caused this beriberi outbreak, without success. The real cause was the greatly reduced consumption of B-vitamins that was in the portion of the rice that was refined away--but no one realized this at first.

One story is that a Filipino farmer noticed that if he fed his chickens brown rice, they got over beriberi. But since he was only a farmer, his discovery was basically ignored.

A Japanese scientist, Takaki Kanehiro, noticed that Japanese sailors were developing beriberi and figured out it was related to their diet. He then began to do experiments with pigeons. He concluded that there were vital anti-beriberi amino acids in the germ of rice. He concluded that there were vital anti-beriberi amino acids that were basically missing in white rice that were present in brown rice.

In 1912, Casimir Funk coined the term “vitamine” meaning vital to life. Today we use the term “vitamin.” In time, various of these vitamins got there own name. The original ‘B vitamins’ designated that they were anti-beriberi.

Now, instead of going back to brown rice to prevent beriberi, chemical isolates were developed that are, in most countries, required to be sprayed on the white rice. They call this process ‘fortification,’ but while pushed by public health officials, this ‘solution’ was certainly not optimal for human health.

Food processing companies like to act like their products do no harm, but the reality is that they do.

The Apostle Paul warned:

10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, (1 Timothy 6:10)

13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.  (2 Timothy 3:13)

Many people do not have the love of the truth and seem to want to believe lies (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12).

Furthermore, the Bible warns about eating things that are not really food:

2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2).

Refined processed “breads,” refined and artificial sweeteners, chemical additives, sodas, and some other items commonly associated with junk foods and hydrogenated fats would seem to be consistent with that warning.

Breakfast cereals used to be one of the original ‘health foods’ when Dr. Kellogg first introduced Corn Flakes at his clinic in Battle Creek, Michigan. It was basically made of whole organic corn. Now, it seems to be made with GMO corn (its label does not state otherwise, which in the USA means the corn source is almost always genetically-modified) and is ‘fortified’ with synthetic vitamins.

Many other breakfast cereals, especially the ones targeted towards children are made of refined, degerminated grains, synthetic vitamins, a lot of sugar, and artificial colors. Pop-Tarts made of refined, degerminated grains, synthetic vitamins, fruit, sugar, gelatin (probably biblical unclean; see also The New Testament Church and Unclean Meats), and artificial colors.

Many Americans (and others) consume synthetic vitamins that they tend to consider to be “health food.” Synthetic vitamins are often in forms that are foreign to the human body (i.e. there is no such thing as isolated thiamin hydrochloride (thiamin HCL) in a natural food, but that is one form that refined foods are ‘fortified’ with–foods mainly contain vitamin B-1 as thiamin pyrophosphate. Most United States Pharmacopeia (USP) vitamins are petroleum derivatives and/or processed with formaldehyde and/or acetone.

It isn't that the synthetics cannot do any good, but if you are going to consume supplements, strive to only take those whose nutrients are 100% food.

A label saying something is vegan or organic or natural DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE NUTRIENTS CLAIMED ARE FOOD!

Let me add that countries like the USA have no official definition of natural, so when you see the term "natural" on a lable that does NOT mean that the vitamins are not synthetic.

Synthetic/USP (United States Pharmacopoeia) vitamins are not only isolates, they tend to be crystalline in structure. Vitamins complexed in foods appear rounder. Notice some electron microscope photos of food and synthetic vitamins:

Food Thiamin vs. USP Thiamin HCL

Food Vitamin C vs. USP Ascorbic Acid

Furthermore, let me add that synthetics or isolates like ascorbic acid are NOT significant antioxidants in human beings. Ascorbic acid is a powerful antioxidant in vitro (in test tubes), but not people. The same is true for most isolated forms of vitamin E--yet foods do have powerful antioxidant effects in the human body.

Some claim that free radical damage is a major factor in aging, and that antioxidants are helpful. Yet, many fail to see that food antioxidants are superior to USP isolates.

In several ways, synthetic vitamins are similar to false religion. False religions normally have some truth, but are not the same as the real thing--the same is true when you compare synthesized vitamin isolates to real vitamins found in foods.

Researchers have found that "it has not been possible to show conclusively that higher than anti-scorbic intake of {SYNTHETIC} vitamin C has antioxidant clinical benefit.” Let me also add that an in vitro study performed at this researcher’s lab with a digital ORP meter confirmed that a citrus Food vitamin C has negative ORP, but that ascorbic acid had positive ORP. It takes negative ORP to clean up oxidative damage and since ascorbic acid has positive ORP (as well as positive redox potential), it can never replace Food vitamin C. No amount of ascorbic acid can truly replace Food vitamin C!  Furthermore, foods which are high in vitamin C tend to have high Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC, another test which measures the ability of foods and other compounds to subdue oxygen free radicals.  A U.S. government study which compared the in vivo effects of a high vitamin C food (containing 80 mg of vitamin C) compared to about 15.6 times as much isolated ascorbic acid (1250 mg) found that the vitamin C containing food produced the greatest increase in blood antioxidant levels (it is believed that bioflavonoids and other food factors are responsible).

Get your vitamin C from food such as citrus fruits, berries, acerola cherries, tomatoes, bell peppers, etc. (assuming you are not allergic to them).

Perhaps I should comment that most minerals Americans (and others) purchase are basically ground up industrial rocks with acids added to them. While plants can properly convert rocks into food, humans are supposed to eat food. Unless people consider bones or shells to be foods (which do contain hard mineral salts), foods simply do not contain the type of two word mineral salts that are used in most vitamin-mineral formulas.

Here are electron microscope photos of food and rock zinc:

Food Zinc vs. USP Zinc Chloride

Most people consuming minerals are consuming ground up rocks. The chemical forms of these mineral salts can be ‘natural,’ but they are not natural for humans to eat. Actually, eating ground up rocks/dirt is considered as a medical condition called ‘pica.’ Yet, many ‘health food’ supplements contain these substances for minerals that are totally foreign to human foods.

An Iowa study involving over 30,000 older women found that those that regularly consumed a synthetic vitamin pill died years before women that did not. In 2017, a study found that smokers who took high doses of synthetic vitamins B6 and B12 had a significantly increased risk of developing lung cancer than smokers who did not.

Synthetic foods fortified with synthetic vitamins are not good!

As many know, I have a Ph.D. in nutrition science. Plus, I am also the first scientist to get a paper published in a major MEDLine journal explaining why basically all the then know essential vitamins found in foods were superior to USP isolates (paper titled Natural Vitamins May be Superior to Synthetic Ones, per publisher suggestion, but paper concludes they are superior). This is still true today.

GMO Piggy soy, Growing Lab Meat, Including Human?

In addition to there being unclean meat, notice another GMO monstrosity:

Pig Beans – The Latest GMO Frankenfood

July 13, 2023

One of the latest GMO Frankenfoods is Piggy Sooy, a soybean genetically engineered to contain pig protein. One or more undisclosed pig genes are spliced into conventional soya to create a soybean with 26.6% animal protein. Moolec, the U.K.-based company that developed Piggy Sooy, is also working on developing a pea plant that produces beef protein. The company claims these transgenic hybrids will provide similar taste, texture and nutritional value as meat, without the high cost of cultured or lab-grown meat alternatives. June 21, 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture authorized the sale of cell-cultivated chicken from Good Meat and Upside Foods. Both plan on rolling out their synthetic chicken to “high-end” restaurants across the U.S. first, while they scale up production. Researchers have discovered that CRISPR-Cas gene editing wreaks havoc in the plant genome, causing several hundred unintended genetic changes to occur simultaneously “in a catastrophic event” that ripples across large parts of the genome. Because these changes are impossible to predict, gene edited plants cannot be assumed safe without extensive testing … https://twitter.com/mercola/status/1679510163592445956?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1679510163592445956%7Ctwgr%5E12fda83f71188bcef460b07eeb04863cfa399702%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Fquery%3Dhttps3A2F2Ftwitter.com2Fmercola2Fstatus2F1679510163592445956widget%3DTweet

Apparently, GMO soy was not enough, now they put pig protein in it. Pigs, of course, are biblically unclean.

As far as why this is happening with meat and other foods, besides financial greed, notice one view:

March 12, 2023

Fake Meat Is All About Controlling the Food Supply

Fake food — including lab-grown meat, animal-free dairy and plant-based meat — is the globalists’ latest attempt to control the food supply. Former U.S. Secretary of State and national security adviser Henry Kissinger once said, “Control oil and you control nations; control food and you control people.”2 Controlling people is their whole agenda.

“Nations, states, and central banks are quietly but rapidly shifting their money to precious metals. With bank runs, recession, CBDCs, and worse on the horizon, it’s easy to see why. NOW is the time to learn more about moving portions of your retirement or wealth to a self-directed gold and silver IRA through an America-First, Christian precious metals company.” – JD Rucker (not a financial advisor, just a guy who’s paying attention)

The globalists have long held a monopoly on the grain industry with their patented genetically modified organisms (GMOs). …

The globalists are trying to replace animal husbandry with lab-grown meat, which will allow private companies to effectively control the entire food supply.

Fake Meat Is Even Worse Than CAFOs

Many people are aware of the pitfalls of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) — unnatural diets of GMO grains, crowded conditions, inhumane treatment, excessive pollution and rampant spread of disease. CAFOs are bad — but the new fake food era is going to be even worse. …

What Is Fake Meat?

Fake meat is marketed as a health food, but it’s nothing more than a highly ultraprocessed mixture of chemicals. Impossible Foods, for instance, uses genetic engineering to insert the DNA from soy plants into yeast, creating GE yeast with the gene for soy leghemoglobin.9

Impossible Foods refers to this compound as “heme,” but technically plants produce non-heme iron, and this is GE yeast-derived soy leghemoglobin.10 Heme iron only occurs in meat and seafood. Impossible Foods’ GE heme is used in their fake meat burgers as a color additive that makes the product appear to “bleed” like real meat.

The health effects of GE heme are unknown, but this didn’t stop the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from approving soy leghemoglobin in 2019. The Center for Food Safety (CFS) filed a lawsuit challenging the approval, which they called “unusually rapid”11 and risky for public health. …

Impossible Foods’ Fake Meat Is Loaded With Glyphosate, LA

Considering that many ingredients in fake meat products are made from GE soy,16 it’s not surprising that they’re also contaminated with the herbicide glyphosate. Consumer advocacy group Moms Across America (MAA) commissioned Health Research Institute Labs (HRI Labs), an independent laboratory that tests both micronutrients and toxins found in food, to determine how much glyphosate is in the Impossible Burger and its competitor, the Beyond Burger.

The total result of glyphosate and AMPA, the main metabolite of glyphosate, in the burgers was 11.3 parts per billion (ppb) in the Impossible Burger and 1 ppb in the Beyond Burger.17 …

The glyphosate in fake meat is one issue. The excess amounts of omega-6 fat in the form of linoleic acid (LA) are another. In my opinion, this metabolic poison is the primary contributor to rising rates of chronic disease.

When you shop for food, know your farmer and look for regenerative, biodynamic and/or grass fed farming methods, which are what we need to support a healthy, autonomous population. https://discernreport.com/fake-meat-dangers-with-dr-joseph-mercola/

Here is more on cloned meat:

January 7, 2023

Through a program called UKAid, billionaire eugenicist Bill Gates is funneling millions into efforts to genetically modify (GMO) the world’s livestock, particularly in poorer countries …

Gates claims his efforts are all about helping more animals survive so children in Africa and South Asia have more access to meat, dairy, and eggs. …

“The Gates Foundation has partnered with DFID [UK Department for International Development] on a great number of things,” Gates announced. “And among those are work we do together on livestock helping animals survive either by having vaccines or better genetics.”

At one point, Gates pledged $40 million to create a “super cow,” which he says can “end world poverty.” Various media sources reported this as Gates attempting to crossbreed cattle, quoting him saying the following:

“Livestock is magical. You can sell the output and that’s money for school fees. You can keep the output and that’s diet diversification.”

So far, Gates has funneled $182.4 million into a program called the Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines (GALVmed) that seeks to exploit the world’s livestock for his vaccination and DNA-modification endeavors.

One glaring reason why we know this is all a farce is the fact that Gates remains a diehard proponent of “plant-based” dietary regimens. He invested in Beyond Meat and has been part of the anti-meat “green” agenda for quite some time – while at the same time, we are told, advocating for more meat consumption for poor people.

No, the only kind of meat Gates wants poor people eating is tainted meat. https://www.sgtreport.com/2023/01/gmo-meat-bill-gates-now-spending-tens-of-millions-to-genetically-modify-livestock/

AGENDA 2030: The USDA Approves Bill Gates Lab-Grown ‘Frankenfood’ Meat As Our Global Society Lurches Ever Forward Into A Dystopian Abyss

July 12, 2023

The US Department of Agriculture approved the sale of ‘cultivated’ or lab-grown ‘Frankenfood’ meat backed by Bill Gates and Agenda 2030 to American consumers on Wednesday, paving the way for what manufactures say is a new avenue for food sourcing and distribution.Phase 2 of the Great Reset continues to go forward quite nicely as key elements of the soon-coming UN Agenda 2030 are locking into place. One of the things so despised by our New World Order masters are things, like food items, that God has created for us to eat and enjoy, are being replaced with disgusting Frankenfood made in a test tube. What’s on the menu in the kingdom of Antichrist? Test-tube chicken, test-tube steak, cricket flour and all sorts of creeping things. https://www.nowtheendbegins.com/usda-approves-agenda-2030-bill-gates-frankenfood-cultivated-lab-grown-meat/

Cloned humans?

April 29, 2023

Although it sounds crazy, they have already started trying to normalize cannibalism. Lab-grown human steak was introduced in December 202018 and featured as “art” at the Design Museum in London, U.K. …

Taking this one step further, a company called BiteLabs claimed to plan to sell artisanal salami made from lab-grown celebrity flesh. On their website,19 which appears to have been taken down in late 2022, they stated the intention to collect biopsy samples from celebrities, isolate the muscle cells and then grow the celebrity meat using a proprietary bioreactor. The flesh would then be cured, dried, aged and spiced according to Italian tradition.

In January 2022, IFLScience20 followed up on the story and noted that “it’s perfectly possible” to create salami from cloned celebrity meet {sic}. … Another example of an ongoing effort to normalize cannibalism is a 2018 article published in the journal Nature,22 which promoted the rejuvenating effects of drinking young people’s blood. A 2.5-liter order was said to cost about $8,000 at the time. …

In a bit of predictive programming, the 1973 film “Soylent Green” — in which the protagonist realizes the government food being handed out is made from humans — was set in the year 2022.24

Another gross answer that globalists have proposed is drinking reclaimed sewage water. https://discernreport.com/americas-future-being-tested-in-singapore-with-approval-of-16-insects-for-human-consumption/

God knew humans could one day do such horrible things. That is part of why He confounded the people by changing languages at the Tower of Babel. Notice the following:

5 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. 6 And the Lord said, "Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. (Genesis 11:5-6)

The confounding of languages basically allowed humans to be around until 6000 years would end.

The European Union is starting to warm up to more GMOs as are parts of Africa and the Philippines. But, let me state that since you normally cannot plant seeds from GMO crops for the future, this could have severe economic effects on many of the poorest people in Africa and other places in the world as they will have to always purchase seeds, instead of keeping some from what they grow.

Perhaps it should be pointed out that the USA has been highly pressuring the EU, Mexico, and others to accept more GMO items.

That said, the creation of GMO Frankenfoods also brought to mind the following warnings:

1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:28-32)

Human cloned meat, piggy soy, and many other so-called GMO "foods" are evil things.

And then, there also is lab grown meat:

FDA Declares Lab-Grown Chicken ‘Safe to Eat’

November 20, 2022

Describing the development as “a food revolution,” the FDA claim that the chicken, which is developed by Berkeley, California-based food-tech firm Upside Foods and is produced using animal cell culture technology that takes living cells from chickens and grows the cells in a controlled environment, is safe to eat. …

Although two more steps must follow before the FDA can grant the product full approval, the agency’s language suggests the approval is a foregone conclusion. …

Experts who spoke to The Defender also questioned the safety of lab-grown meat, which is produced with gene-edited cells, and some scientists argued that, despite claims to the contrary, the production process for lab-grown “meats” is energy-intensive and not, as advertised, beneficial to the environment.

Some also questioned Upside Foods’ connections to figures and entities such as Cargill, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Kimbal Musk, brother of Elon Musk and co-founder of The Kitchen, “a growing family of businesses that pursues an America where everyone has access to real food,” and the World Economic Forum (WEF). …

In an exclusive interview with The Defender, Jaydee Hanson, policy director for the Center for Food Safety, questioned the FDA’s “pre-market consultation”:

“The FDA regulatory process in general relies on company testing of their products.

“The FDA, in this case, seemed to mostly review what the company sent them, but did not require additional tests and did not require the company to disclose its methods in a complete and transparent manner.” https://newspunch.com/fda-declares-lab-grown-chicken-safe-to-eat/

‘Safe to eat’ does not mean that it is healthy or that it has been tested long-term to determine possible interactions with various biological processes.

‘Safe to eat’ basically means people do not appear sick when they first eat it and that it does not cause cancer in lab animals given it for a short period of time.

The Bible warns:

11 Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.  (Ecclesiastes 8:11)

Just because there may not be immediate consequences to consuming lab-grown chicken, that does not mean it is safe.

Eat What is Good

What should you eat? You should eat real food and for most people, at least two or more servings of fruit and three of more servings of vegetables daily, relatively small amounts of meats, whole grains, and olive oil come to mind. Refined grains, sugars (whether natural or artificial), sodas, hydrogenated oils, and GMOs should be highly limited or not consumed at all.

That said, here are some instructions God gave Ezekiel:

9 "Also take for yourself wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread of them for yourself. During the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days, you shall eat it. 10 And your food which you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from time to time you shall eat it. 11 You shall also drink water by measure, one-sixth of a hin; from time to time you shall drink. 12 And you shall eat it as barley cakes; and bake it ... (Ezekiel 4:9-12)

The above is a fairly high protein vegan diet, along with clean water to drink.

Notice also:

5 Sustain me with cakes of raisins,
Refresh me with apples, (Song of Solomon 2:5)

Fruit and dried fruit is mentioned.

Notice that abundant food was promised as a blessing from commandment keepers:

6 "Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, that flow out of valleys and hills; 8 a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey; 9 a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing; (Deuteronomy 8:6-9)

Clean water, whole grains, fruits, and olive oil.

Studies around the world endorse the health benefits of clean water, whole grains, fruits, and olive oil. (I am not a fan of canola oil and do not believe it has the proven health benefits of olive oil.) Here is some information on olive oil:

EVOO differs from regular olive oil in that it comes from the first olive pressing only. In contrast, regular olive oil may contain a blend of refined and virgin olive oils.

While regular olive oil may be blended and further refined, EVOO contains the highest levels of beneficial plant compounds like polyphenols and vitamin E.

These antioxidants have anti-inflammatory and cell-protecting effects in the body and provide the unique health benefits of EVOO.

The Many Health Benefits of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Extra virgin olive oil is very good for you. Decades of research have uncovered many ways that the nutrients in EVOO contribute to good health:

Heart health

EVOO is rich in monounsaturated fatty acids that can improve cholesterol levels and lower heart disease risk. The antioxidants in EVOO also protect LDL cholesterol from oxidation.

Reduced inflammation

Chronic inflammation contributes to many diseases. The antioxidant phenolic compounds found abundantly in EVOO have powerful anti-inflammatory effects in the body.

Cancer prevention

EVOO may inhibit the growth of cancers including colon, breast and skin cancers. Researchers believe its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity play a role.

Better brain health

EVOO intake is associated with reduced risk of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. Its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties promote healthy brain aging.

Diabetes management

The fat composition and antioxidants in EVOO have beneficial effects on blood sugar regulation and metabolism. EVOO is preferred for diabetics over other oils.

Digestive health

The anti-inflammatory activity of EVOO may relieve discomfort from conditions like IBS or IBD. Some studies show EVOO enhances digestion and gut health.

Longevity

Many aspects of the Mediterranean diet, including EVOO intake, correlate to longer lifespan and healthspan. EVOO’s versatility makes it easy to incorporate daily. https://www.myfashionlife.com/archives/2023/08/09/what-is-evoo/

My family personally does regularly use and consume extra-virgin olive oil.

 That said, notice the following incident from the Bible related to avoiding unclean meats:

8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. 9 Now God had brought Daniel into the favor and goodwill of the chief of the eunuchs. 10 And the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, "I fear my lord the king, who has appointed your food and drink. For why should he see your faces looking worse than the young men who are your age? Then you would endanger my head before the king."

11 So Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had set over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, 12 "Please test your servants for ten days, and let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then let our appearance be examined before you, and the appearance of the young men who eat the portion of the king's delicacies; and as you see fit, so deal with your servants." 14 So he consented with them in this matter, and tested them ten days.

15 And at the end of ten days their features appeared better and fatter in flesh than all the young men who ate the portion of the king's delicacies. 16 Thus the steward took away their portion of delicacies and the wine that they were to drink, and gave them vegetables.

17 As for these four young men, God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams. (Daniel 1:8-17)

God blessed Daniel and his companions who would not defile themselves with unclean meats.

This is also showing that eating vegetables is good for humans.

Here is something from Proverbs about food:

27 You shall have enough goats' milk for your food,
For the food of your household,
And the nourishment of your maidservants. (Proverbs 27:27)

In our house, we consume goat's milk for milk.

Variety of foods are needed for optimal health. Varieties and diversities of background needed for eternity There is not just one superfood that we need. The closest was probably manna, and even then God provided quail (Psalm 105:40)--plus the children of Israel also had livestock and hence, dairy, eggs, and other meat.

Studies have basically found that light meat-eaters live the longest, followed by vegetarians, followed by medium-meat eaters, with the heaviest meat-eaters living the shortest amunt of time.

Overall, fish seems to be the healthiest meat, followed by poultry, followed by red meats (beef and lamb).

Consuming 2 of more servings of fruit and 3 or more servings of vegetables daily is associated with lower risk of cancer, heart diseases, diabetes, and Alzheimer's. It also is associated with less skin wrinkling.

For best nutrient utilization, food should be thouroughly chewed. That also helps prevent choking.

What do I typically eat?

Breakfast: Fresh fruit. With a small amount of raw goat's milk and honey, once per week. Normally, fresh fruit only.
Lunch: Two slices of organic whole wheat bread and 1/2 an avocado--and nothing else. Eggs and potatoes and turkey/venison once per week.
Dinner: Small amount of meat/fish/poultry (try to have fish 2 times per week), vegetables, brown rice, sometimes with a salad.
Snack: Most often, dried fruit. Sometimes nuts. Organic corn tortilla chips with a couple of servings of vegetables, once per week. Popcorn with real butter (organic or Irish) once per week. One sweet dessert per week (normally fruit related, but sometimes chocolate).

But that is me--plus I also take 100% food nutrient supplements. Everyone is different and I am not saying people need to follow my diet.

As far as organics go, they are more like the foods that God originally created--plus they tend to have less pesticides, toxins, and other less natural chemicals in and on them. Less toxins is good for everyone.

There are also reports, however, that even organic meat may become subject to getting mRNA vaccines:

August 22, 2023

In 2019 the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), an advisory committee of the USDA, decided to consider the use of vaccines produced through "excluded methods" or genetic modification in organic food production. Since then, the committee advised the USDA that GE vaccines could only be permitted in organic production if an equivalent vaccine is commercially unavailable. ...

If the NOSB approves the use of GE and GMO vaccines, there could be a possible influx of genetically modified organisms into the organic market, especially now that mRNA veterinary vaccines have arrived.

Dr. Robert Malone, inventor of mRNA and DNA vaccines, revealed in January that BioNTech and Bayer have been working on "novel, first-in-class" messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines for animals over the past six years and these products are now ready for public release. (Related: Australia to unleash genetically modified wheat - who will burn down these fields and stop this human rights horror?

BioNTech-Bayer has been working on three mRNA therapy for animals, including infectious disease vaccines, cancer immunotherapies and protein replacement. Meanwhile, other researchers are also working on mRNA vaccines against porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, African swine fever, avian influenza and other food-animal diseases.

However, the ANH-USA claims that organic agriculture needs fewer vaccines than large factory farm producers due to regenerative practices and good animal husbandry.

"It is largely factory farm producers that rely on vaccines, which they see as necessary because of the sheer intensity of their animal husbandry techniques. These require that animals are raised in close proximity to thousands of others in limited spaces, while typically being maintained on diets (typically GMO maize, soy) to which they are not adapted evolutionarily. ...

The ANH-USA further explained that the use of vaccines, particularly GE and GMO vaccines, could inadvertently undermine the integrity of organic labeling. Factory farms could potentially label their products as organic, despite complying with practices that are different from regenerative methods.

This could harm farmers who are dedicated to sustainable and regenerative practices, as they find themselves competing against products that may not align with their principles.

"If mRNA animal vaccines become the new standard, replacing older vaccines currently in use, then we could see a world in which USDA-certified organic products were widely contaminated by GE or GMO components originating from mRNA vaccines," ANH-USA stated. https://www.naturalnews.com/2023-08-22-usda-allows-ge-vaccines-in-organic-food-production.html

Yes, organic or otherwise, having food animals receiving mRNA vaccines is a concern.

That said, I also fast regularly which normally also helps me maintain my weight.

What do I drink?

Water, fruit juice, and probably one-two non-GMO beers per week. I rarely drink wine and less often hard alcohol. I dislike coffee and rarely drink tea. Cannot remember the last time I had a soda.

That said, let me add that my clinical experience is that caffeine is a problem for some and is SOMETIMES a factor in knee problems, migraine headaches, uterine fibroids, various cysts, and/or fibromyalgia.

That does not mean people cannot have any caffeine-containing products, but caution, particularly for women is advised--even women who consume relatively little caffeine.

In the 21st century, only about 1 out of every 11 Americans consumes the recommended 2 or more servings of fruit and 3 or more servings of vegetables daily:

Consuming enough fruits and vegetables as part of an overall healthy diet reduces the risk of many chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and obesity. However, the percentage of the adult population meeting fruit and vegetable intake recommendation is low. ...

What is added by this report?

Recent data show adults continue to consume too few fruits and vegetables; overall, 12.2% met fruit intake recommendations and 9.3% met vegetable intake recommendations during 2015. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/66/wr/mm6645a1.htm?s_cid=mm6645a1_w accessed 08/19/22

Fruits and vegetables are healthy for almost everyone (there can be allergy and digestive issues).

While cooking meat makes it safer, and cooking potatoes and certain other vegetables make them easier to digest, cooking destroys enzymes and some vitamins.

Anyway, try to eat real foods.

Strive to eat fruits and vegetables and whole grains. Avoid unclean meat or massive amounts of meat (Proverbs 23:20).

Furthermore, as mentioned before modern food processing companies often remove or destroy various nutrients. Adding synthetic vitamins and industrially-processed rocks is not the same are nutrients in real food.

Although the human body can tolerate small amounts of overly processed foods, remember that the Bible teaches:

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: 3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, 4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, 5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

2 ... Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2b).

Eat God's way and use wisdom.

Here is a link to a related sermon: Let's Talk About Food.

Medications are the First Choice of Many

When many are suffering from ill health, they look to modern medicine.

Basically, medications are synthetic substances that as advised in modern times are not something naturally found in the environment as foods--yes, there are "herbal medicines" but when commonly speaking of medications, those are not included.

As it turns out, people in the USA use a lot of medications compared to other Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development nations:

Americans Spend Much More On Pharmaceuticals

August 12, 2022

When it comes to the expenditure on pharmaceuticals across OECD countries, the United States spends much more than other industrialized nations that are part of the organization.

In 2019, the average American racked up costs of $1,376 for medications after adjusting for purchasing power parity, almost 2.5 times the OECD average of $571 and still 47 percent more than the next biggest spender, Germany. Canada and Japan followed in third and fourth place, both with spending that was around 40 percent higher than average, at $811 and $803, respectively. The OECD members with the least spending on pharmaceuticals and were Mexico and Costa Rica, while spending was also below average in many Eastern European and Scandinavia nations.

Prescription drugs made up the bulk of pharmaceutical spending in most countries. English-speaking nations on the list, including the United States, Canada, Australia and the UK, shared the characteristic of above-average spending on over-the-counter meds despite their overall expenditure levels diverging quite a bit. https://www.zerohedge.com/personal-finance/americans-spend-much-more-pharmaceuticals

If it seems like about half the country is on drugs, that is because it is actually true. According to a new survey from the National Center for Health Statistics, almost half of all Americans have taken a pharmaceutical drug within the past 30 days, and that officially makes us “the most medicated country in the world”. And needless to say, those dealing these drugs are becoming exceedingly wealthy at our expense. The average American spends $1,200 a year on prescription drugs, but of course many Americans spend far more than that and others spend nothing at all. …

Without a doubt, there are some pharmaceutical drugs that greatly help people. In fact, many people wouldn’t be alive today without them.

On the other hand, it has been estimated that Americans spend somewhere around $200 billion a year on drugs that they do not need, and this new survey from the National Center for Health Statistics discovered that 46 percent of all Americans have taken a prescription drug within the last 30 days…

I am sorry, but there is no way that half the country needs to be hooked on drugs.

And for senior citizens that number is much higher. In fact, the survey found that a whopping 85 percent of Americans over the age of 60 are currently on at least one pharmaceutical drug.

For adults under the ago of 60, antidepressants are being taken more than anything else…

For young adults antidepressants are king. According to the most recent numbers, 11.4 percent of 20- to 59-year-olds had taken a drug to help with their mood in the last month when they took the survey.

Could this help to explain why so many people are walking around like zombies these days?

And since nearly all mass shooters have been found to be on some kind of mind-altering drug, perhaps Congress should finally take some action in this area. It can be exceedingly difficult to get off these insidious drugs, and many that get hooked on them end up staying on them for the rest of their lives.

Of course antidepressants are just one part of the problem. For example, opioids are some of the most addictive drugs on the entire planet, and their overuse has destroyed countless lives all across America. 05/08/19 http://endoftheamericandream.com/archives/the-most-medicated-country-in-the-world-46-of-americans-have-taken-a-pharmaceutical-drug-within-the-last-30-days

Despite being over 60, no I do not take any pharmaceutical nor over-the-counter drugs. But do take nutritional supplements.

On the news 09/16/22, they spoke of a vaccinated triple-boosted 64 year old who just died of COVID--there are many ways to promote the immune system he was not told.

As it turns out, more and more people are accepting the use of marijuana.

Marijuana Use—and Abuse—in the U.S. Has Doubled in the Past Decade

October 21, 2015

Changing laws and attitudes surrounding medical and recreational marijuana use have made the drug more accessible. Currently, 23 states in the U.S. permit cannabis for medical purposes, and four of those states have decriminalized the drug for recreational use. As a result, more people are using marijuana, and according to a new study this may come with a serious expense: Marijuana use disorders are now a bigger problem than ever.

For the study, published Wednesday in JAMA Psychiatry, researchers analyzed data from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions for 2001 to 2002 and 2012 to 2013. They found that three of every 10 Americans who used marijuana in the past year had a diagnosis of a marijuana use disorder, a condition in which a person becomes dependent on the drug and uses it daily in excess, sometimes at the expense of taking part in other activities. This adds up to approximately 6.8 million people. Between 2001 and 2013 overall marijuana use rose from 4.1 percent to 9.5 percent. So while the overall rate for addiction and dependence has gone down in the last decade—from 35.6 percent in 2001–2002 to 30.6 percent in 2013, there is a larger population of users who are now addicted to the drug, because of how many more people have access.  …

Marijuana is viewed by many people as a harmless and nonaddictive drug. … Dr. David Sack, chief medical officer of Elements Behavioral Health and Promises Addiction Treatment Center in Long Beach, California, says that the idea that marijuana dependency doesn’t occur is a myth. “It has a very predictable set of withdrawal symptoms. It usually starts in 48 hours and peaks within 7 days,” he says. These symptoms include dysphoria, insomnia, anxiety and cravings for the drug.  Those who try to quit frequently relapse, and sometimes a person who is misusing marijuana may also struggle with addiction to other substance. The drug also functions differently in the body than other substances. Marijuana is stored in fat tissue, which means it stays in the body for about 30 days, says Sack. To compare, heroin only maintains a presence in the body for about three minutes, while the liver processes one serving of alcohol in less than one hour. Sack says the notable personality differences in marijuana users are due to the fact that the drug remains in the system long after a joint has been smoked.  http://www.newsweek.com/marijuana-use-and-abuse-us-has-doubled-past-decade-385975

Many have been deceived about medications and drugs like marijuana.

God inspired the prophet Jeremiah to write:

12 "For thus says the Lord:

'Your affliction is incurable,
Your wound is severe.
13 There is no one to plead your cause,
That you may be bound up;
You have no healing medicines. (Jeremiah 30:12-13)

11 .. In vain you will use many medicines;
You shall not be cured. (Jeremiah 46:11)

The USA spends about twice as much as the average OECD nation on synthetic medications, but longevity is less than the average OECD nations (see 2021 Health Report United States).

Decades ago, a medical doctor said because of fluid in the ears of one of our sons, he wanted to put tubes in our son's ears. I evaluated the situation and concluded that taking oats out of his diet, which no medical professional suggested, and that was a better and more permanent solution. And it worked. This does not mean that this is the answer for others, but what it does show is that there are often solutions to health matters that medical doctors do not understand, know about, or even consider.

Although there can be a place for medical doctors, we are to put our trust in God and not them. The Bible teaches:

8 It is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in man.
9 It is better to trust in the Lord
Than to put confidence in princes. (Psalm 118:8-9)

3 Do not put your trust in princes,
Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help. (Psalm 146:3)

While the above has spiritual ramifications, it also has physical ones. Use wisdom.

Medications, being unnatural, can often be toxic.

Chemicals

As far as other toxins go, there are numerous ones in the 21st century.

Be careful about prolonged exposure to many modern chemicals.

There numerous are paints, colognes (which are normally not natural, but chemical), vehicle exhaust, cleaning products, solvants, etc. that are or (depending upon the exposure) be toxic.

Normally, you can avoid some these by leaving a situation with them. For others, an appropriate mask and/or air cleaner may be called for.

Clothes

The Bible talks about linen, leather, and wool being used for clothes.

It also says not to wear clothes where linen and wool would be mixed together in Leviticus 19:19 and Deuteronomy 22:11. Basically, from a physical perspective this results in a garment with different shrinkage and hence a product that does not stay together well. So, we are basically to avoid plant materials combined with animal hair for clothing. Synthetic fibers would seem to be allowed.

That said, in general undergarments made out of 100% natural plant materials are best for health, particularly for women. So, while there can be a place for synthetics, they generally should not be used for undergarments. As far as socks go, however, wool lasts longer than cotton.

Synthetic clothes can also cause rashes in various places. Because they do not "breath"--allow for the type of airflow natural materials do, synthetics can be potentially harmful in very hot and certain other environments. Of course, that same feature can make them helpful for rain and other weather matters.

Use wisdom (cf. Proverbs chapters 1 and 2).

ElectroMagnetic Frequencies

There are concerns that electrical power lines, 5G, computer screens, and cell phones may have some toxic effects on humans.

No matter what some say, electromagnetic fields (EMFs) and radiofrequency (RF) radiation have not been tested so well that we can say that they are completely safe--actually there is research pointing to their dangers--though they do not affect everyone the same way.

The CDC says:

Do cell phones give off (emit) radiation?

Yes – cell phones and cordless phones use radiofrequency radiation (RF) to send signals. RF is different from other types of radiation (like x-rays) that we know can be harmful. We don’t know for sure if RF radiation from cell phones can cause health problems years later. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified RF radiation as a “possible human carcinogen.” (A carcinogen is an agent that causes cancer.) accessed 09/14/22 https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/radiation/cell_phones._faq.html#:~:text=Do%20cell%20phones%20give%20off,cause%20health%20problems%20years%20later.

Personally, I am not much of a cell phone person, but do use computers a lot. So, yes, I know I am getting some exposure--but in my case, do take some steps to counteract such things.

Although because it is in the airwaves we all have exposure to them, be cautious about emf and rf radiation.

Exercise

Exercise is good for your health.

In poorer countries, exercise is not always needed for those who do a lot of physical labor and/or have to regularly walk long distances.

However, that is not the case in most of the wealthier societies.

Since it is a physical thing, should Christians care about exercise?

Despite government warnings and guidelines, a 2019 report concluded that few American follow exercise suggestions:

Americans Are Not Getting the Message About Exercising More and Sitting Less

Doctors and public health officials have been urging Americans to get more active and try to exercise at least 150 minutes per week at a moderate level, or 75 minutes weekly at a vigorous level. Even if you can’t fit in that much activity, studies show that any exercise is better than none when it comes to health benefits like lowering risk of diabetes, heart disease and obesity. …

Bao and his team analyzed data from a representative sample of more than 27,000 adults in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, an ongoing annual assessment of American’s health, nutrition and exercise status. The resulting paper, published in JAMA Network Open, finds that rates of physical activity rates did not change much between 2007 and 2016. 07/26/19 https://time.com/5635730/exercise-sitting-data/?utm_source=pocket-newtab

In a series of cross-sectional studies including data from 27 343 participants 18 years or older from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys for 2007 to 2016, the adherence rate to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans for aerobic activity was not significantly improved from 2007-2008 (63.2%) to 2015-2016 (65.2%). However, time spent on sedentary behavior increased from 5.7 hours per day in 2007-2008 to 6.4 hours per day in 2015-2016.

Meaning  The findings suggest that further nationwide efforts are warranted to promote physical activity and reduce sedentary time in the United States. …

Conclusions and Relevance  The findings suggest that the adherence rate to the PAG for aerobic activity in US adults has not improved since the release of the first edition in 2008 but that time spent on sedentary behavior has significantly increased over time. Further nationwide efforts appear to be warranted to not only promote physical activity but also reduce sedentary time in the United States. (Yang D, et al. Trends in Adherence to the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans for Aerobic Activity and Time Spent on Sedentary Behavior Among US Adults, 2007 to 2016. JAMA Netw Open. 2019;2(7):e197597. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.7597)

This is worse than most believe.

Why?

Because obesity rates continue to rise. And longevity is affected as is brain health:

This Is Your Brain on Exercise

Our bodies, including our brains, were fine-tuned for endurance activities over millennia of stalking and chasing down prey. “We’ve engineered that out of our lives now,” says Charles Hillman, a psychology professor at Northeastern University who has spent decades studying the link between exercise and cognition. The toll our relatively new sedentary lifestyle takes on our bodies is clear: For the first time in U.S. history, younger generations are expected to live shorter, unhealthier lives than their parents.

... according to Richard Maddock, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California, Davis. “There is a very consistent finding that the brain works better after exercise,” Maddock says. ... Your brain becomes much more active during exercise, “perhaps more active than at any other time,” says Maddock. One way neurons communicate is with electrical pulses, and sometimes entire networks of neurons fire in unison, like a group of soccer fans chanting together at a game. These synchronized pulses are known colloquially as brain waves. Different kinds of brain waves, characterized by the number of times they oscillate in a single second, are linked to one’s mental state and mood. Lower-frequency waves occur when we’re running on autopilot: brushing our teeth, driving, or sleeping, for example. Higher-frequency waves, known as beta waves, occur when we’re awake and mentally engaged and are associated with attention, memory, and information processing. ...

During exercise, the brain becomes much more receptive to incoming information, leading to measurable changes in vision. ...

The benefits of exercise to your brain may begin as soon as your heart rate begins to rise. Imagine, if you will, climbing onto your bike for a morning ride and pedaling at a tough but sustainable clip. Your breath becomes faster and heavier as your lungs struggle to meet the oxygen demands of the body in motion. Your heart rate climbs as it pumps oxygenated blood around the body and into the brain. And in much the same way that your muscles demand more energy during exercise, the brain begins gobbling up glucose or other carbohydrates when the body is in motion.

“In the past, nobody had any idea what the brain was doing with all this fuel,” says Maddock. ...

A few things happen in the exerciser’s brain that make the organ appear younger. ...

“Exercise is a potential prophylactic against some aspects of age-related cognitive decline,” Giesbrecht says. “When you think of the fact that we have an aging demographic and the high prevalence of depression, there might be simpler treatments out there, like exercise.” https://getpocket.com/explore/item/this-is-your-brain-on-exercise?utm_source=pocket-newtab accessed 11/19/19

One of the more unusual statements above was "For the first time in U.S. history, younger generations are expected to live shorter, unhealthier lives than their parents."

Lack of exercise is a factor in that, as would be consumption of less natural foods, as well as environmental pollutants.

Exercise can help improve human health.

Notice an article by Harry Sneider, the old Plain Truth magazine taught:

A LITTLE EXERCISE COULD MEAN A LIFETIME OF HEALTH!

The right kind of exercise can add years to your life and dollars to your wallet! ...

You say you can't afford the time to exercise? The truth is, unless you have a special health problem, you can't afford not to exercise! Scientific research and experience prove that the human body needs exercise to maintain good health. No one can totally neglect it without paying a penalty. Millions suffer unnecessary ills and die prematurely because they are living inactive or sedentary lives for which their bodies were not designed.

Medical and health specialists around the world emphasize the importance of physical fitness, particularly in our modern world where riding and sitting are a way of life.

Dr. Paul Dudley White. noted Boston heart specialist who has helped presidents and other leading Americans achieve better health and productivity through exercise, has stated: "Physical fitness is vital for the optimal function of the brain, for retardation of the onset of serious arteriosclerosis, which is beginning to appear in early adult lives, and for longevity, and a useful and healthy life for our older citizens." ...

 I have worked with all age groups, with overweight as well as handicapped people. I have witnessed great transformations, not only physical, but mental and emotional, as a result of a sound program of physical fitness tailored to individual needs.

Here are some of the results you can gain from a good physical fitness program:
• You'll develop strength and endurance which will help you perform daily tasks with greater ease and economy of movement.
• Good muscle tone and posture will help protect you from back problems.
• Your appetite and weight will be more controllable. When you are inactive, the appetite, normally a marvelously precise guide of how much you should eat, no longer functions accurately. In other words, you will eat more calories than you actually expend. The result is creeping overweight. Some overweight is not the result of eating too much, but of exercising too little.
• Your blood and lymph system will function better and won't get clogged up easily. Coronary arteries will become wider; blood will flow easier and faster. Many doctors believe proper exercise reduces cholesterol levels in the blood. And active people have fewer heart attacks and better recovery rates than inactive persons.
• The efficiency of your heart and lungs will rise sharply. The total effect is that all your body's systems will be strengthened, and you will feel much better overall.
• Enjoyable exercise provides relief from tension and serves as a safe and natural tranquilizer. And sleep will come easier. (Plain Truth Magazine July 1977)

That article is decades old, but exercise benefits are still needed.

The Bible itself warns about obesity, getting fat, being physically lazy, and excessive eating.

The New Testament says that bodily exercise can help (1 Timothy 4:8), yet most Americans do not get enough physical activity.

In my own case, I typically exercise four mornings per week (usually around 5:00 am, so I do not get distracted)--pick a time YOU will be able to stick with.

In 1 Timothy 4:8, Paul was inspired by God to write:

8 For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.

“For bodily exercise profits a little. . .”

This sounds like a negative statement, but a more proper rendering of this verse into English from the inspired Greek is, “For bodily exercise profits for a little time” (see marginal reference). This is a positive statement ! Bodily exercise does profit for the “little time” of our physical existence on this earth. As long as we are physical human beings, physical exercise will profit this physical body. God wants us to be healthy and physically fit. (Luker D. Physical Exercise Does Profit! Good News, August 1966)

So, here is a different translation of 1 Timothy 4:8:

“Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.” (New Living Translation)

And while we are to, "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33) and focus on the spiritual (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:7), God inspired the Apostle John to write:

2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. (3 John 2)

Exercise helps people live longer and live better. Notice something from the US Centers for Disease Control:

Active people generally live longer and are at less risk for serious health problems like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and some cancers. For people with chronic diseases, physical activity can help manage these conditions and complications. accessed 07/27/19 https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/about-physical-activity/index.html

The evidence is clear -- physical activity fosters normal growth and development, can reduce the risk of various chronic diseases, and can make people feel better, function better, and sleep better. Some health benefits start immediately after activity, and even short bouts of physical activity are beneficial. accessed 07/27/19 https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/index.htm

Jesus condemned laziness in Matthew 25:26.

Before going further, it should be pointed out that we should avoid breathing polluted air or drinking polluted water. Now, since we always need to breath, we cannot always avoid toxins--but when we can, we need to avoid them.

Studies shows avoiding toxic pollutants can reduce the risk for certain cancers and improve kidney function.

Tainted water can cause digestive upset and, in some cases, even death.

The Bible teaches of a time of pure water:

1 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. (Revelation 22:1)

Until then, be careful about what you breath and drink.

If you are not allergic to them, being around more plants and trees can mean healthier air as being near the ocean.

Why mention this with exercise? Because there have been public warnings about exercising when the air pollutants get higher than normal--and even some 'normal' levels of pollution are too high.

Let me state that in my own case, and results vary, once I started to exercise regularly, I needed less sleep. And, in my case, ended up with MORE time, not less time, because I took the time to exercise (which I still do). I exercise four mornings per week, right after arising, and right before working on COGwriter news posts.

Of course, we are not to exercise to be vain. So, no, we would not recommend steroids to try to be some type of 'body builder.'

Now, there are some physical precautions about exercise. The old Plain Truth mentioned some of them:

Before You Exercise, Some Precautions

Almost all persons, whatever their age, can benefit from some form of exercise. But authorities urge these precautions to lessen risks of overexertion or complications that can result from existing or unknown health problems:
• Discuss your plans with a doctor, get a checkup and follow his advice in carrying out your exercise program.
• Take a stress test, offered by many doctors and qualified physiologists, to determine how much exercise is safe for you.
• Start the exercise program gradually, increasing the vigor and duration of the activity only as your fitness improves.
• Begin exercising with a warm-up period and end with a gradual cooling-off period, giving the heart a chance to adjust to the change in pace.
• Exercise daily or at least several times a week. Exercising, infrequently does little to maintain fitness and, in fact, can cause more harm than good by straining not only poorly conditioned muscles but other vital body organs as well. (Plain Truth Magazine July 1977)

Risks of overdoing it include heart issues, yet for those who exercise properly and regularly, there are benefits for the heart.

The Continuing Church of God (CCOG) has the following video on our Bible News Prophecy YouTube channel:

17:27

The Plain Truth About Exercise

A 2019 report shows that Americans are becoming sedentary. Since it is a physical thing, should Christians be concerned about exercise? Could not exercising possibly be a sin? What did the ‘Plain Truth’ magazine report about exercise? What is the US CDC reporting about exercise? Can exercise help prevent diabetes, heart disease, and obesity? Can exercise help sleep, endurance, and aging? Are there scriptures about exercise and health? What about laziness? What are some of the risks and benefits of exercise? Dr. Thiel addresses these subjects and more.

Here is a link to our video: The Plain Truth About Exercise.

Most need to work up to a vigorous exercise program.

In my case, when I started to really exercise regularly, over a decade ago, I started very slowly and worked up to what I now do. So, do not rush and overdue it.

Church Services Help a Lot

Attending church services regularly is good for your health:

Attending Church Regularly Will Lengthen Your Life More Than Diet, Exercise, Longevity Expert Says

Attending church services may open the door to eternal life—but it will also extend your life on Earth more than diet or exercise, according to the foremost expert on global longevity.

Dan Buettner, who won three Emmy Awards for his groundbreaking 2023 documentary “Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones,” revealed the deep benefits that faith in God renders to those who want to live a long and prosperous life. Although America faces an epidemic of chronic diseases, “only about 20% of how long you live is dictated by your genes,” he told “Mornings with Maria” on Aug. 30. A healthy lifestyle incorporating diet, exercise, and stress management means the average person can live “12 more years in good health.”

But the statistics he shared proved that an active faith in God, including weekly church attendance, had potentially the biggest impact on extending earthly life. …

The healthiest elderly had a common characteristic: “having a faith. We know people who go to church—or temple, or even mosque—and show up four times per month are living four to 14 years longer than people who aren’t.” The figure may come from a study finding regular church attendance lengthened the average American’s life by seven years—and 14 years for African Americans.

That number dwarfed other, more intuitive lifehacks, including regular exercise and diet. “For a 20-year-old, if you move away from the standard American diet towards a Blue Zone diet—which is to say whole food, plant-based—it’s worth about 10 years of extra life expectancy, and for a 60-year-old, it’s still worth about six years,” he said. … you can add three years to your life with exercise, four years by eating beans, six years by being in a committed relationship, six to 10 years by eating a whole foods and plant-based diet, and seven to 14 years by going to church every week. https://www.dailysignal.com/2024/09/10/attending-church-regularly-will-lengthen-your-life-more-than-diet-exercise-longevity-expert-says/

Yes, having faith in God and striving to practice that faith is good for your longevity in general.

The Apostle Paul wrote:

23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:23-25)

Yes, attending with others personally or in an online group is to have spiritual benefits according to the Apostle Paul.

In the Continuing Church of God, we have people who attend regularly in person, who watch online services alone, and we have several groups that meet together online in different parts of the world (USA, UK, and NZ) each week (see also Congregations of the Continuing Church of God).

Avoid Laziness

Now, while the Bible does encourage exercise, the Old Testament also warns against laziness:

19 The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns (Proverbs 15:19).

15 Laziness casts one into a deep sleep … (Proverbs 19:15)

25 The desire of the lazy man kills him,
For his hands refuse to labor.
26 He covets greedily all day long (Proverbs 21:25-26)

12 Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. 13 The lazy man says, “There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion is in the streets!” 14 As a door turns on its hinges, So does the lazy man on his bed. 15 The lazy man buries his hand in the bowl; It wearies him to bring it back to his mouth. 16 The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes Than seven men who can answer sensibly. (Proverbs 26:12-16)

Yes, many have excuses as to why they are not physically active, and not all of them are valid.

Consuming much junk food can increase the desire to be lazy and also often increases the desire for more junk food. This is not good.

Jesus also objected to laziness:

26 You wicked and lazy servant (Matthew 25:26).

Notice also the following warning to the lazy:

24 The hand of the diligent will rule,
But the lazy man will be put to forced labor.  (Proverbs 12:24)

There are more and more becoming lazy in the USA and its Anglo-Saxon descended allies. This will not turn out well for them–a time of forced labor (slavery) is coming (see Will the Anglo-Saxon Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves?).

Now notice something that Solomon wrote:

18 Because of laziness the building decays, And through idleness of hands the house leaks. (Ecclesiastes 10:18)

So, building structures suffer from laziness.

Consider the same happens to the human body.

Particularly, in light of something that the Apostle Paul was inspired to write:

19. WHAT! Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, which you have within you from God, and you are not your own? 20. For you were bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, AFV)

So, yes, spiritually-minded Christians are to glorify God with their bodies. And physical exercise and avoiding various sins can help with that.

Notice also:

22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. (James 1:22-25)

Doers are not lazy.

Obesity and Gluttony

In many societies, the problem is not insufficient food, but which has been labeled as "over nutrition." The Bible would call that gluttony.

This probably explains why the COVID death rate in the USA was 44 times higher than Haiti and 66 times higher than Ghana (see NPR: The omicron subvariant dominating U.S. COVID-19 cases is more vaccine-resistant). Gluttony in the USA and insufficient exercise by Americans, possibly being combined with those of Haiti and Ghana getting more sunlight exposure were likely factors (sunlight converts cholesterol into vitamin D, and low vitamin D levels are associated with higher COVID death rates (see Study: Vitamin D deficiency raises risk of death from COVID by 50%) as is obesity.

As far as the USA goes, for a couple of decades it officially told people to get less than 30% of their calories from fats to prevent obesity. I challenged that belief almost three decades ago, as I realized that I got over 40% of my calories from fat, yet was not overweight. Our youngest is on a high-fat ketogenic diet, where he gets about 1/2 of his calories from fat, and he is not overweight. Oddly, I have seen dieticians try to say white pasta (made from refined wheat with synthetic vitamins added to it) was the perfect food to help lose weight--but that is not the case.

Anyway, my point is NOT to tell you to go out and consume a lot of fat, but when you cut down sweets and other refined carbohyrdates, the amount of calories from fats tends to increase.

That said, the Bible itself warns about obesity, getting fat, and excessive eating.

Notice some of what Moses and Jeremiah wrote:

15 You grew fat, you grew thick,
You are obese!
Then he forsook God who made him,
And scornfully esteemed the Rock of his salvation.
16 They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods;
With abominations they provoked Him to anger. (Deuteronomy 32:15-16)

11 “Because you were glad, because you rejoiced,
You destroyers of My heritage,
Because you have grown fat like a heifer threshing grain,
And you bellow like bulls,
12 Your mother shall be deeply ashamed;
She who bore you shall be ashamed.
Behold, the least of the nations shall be a wilderness,
A dry land and a desert. (Jeremiah 50:11-12)

To lose weight, most people need to eat less.

That does not mean cutting out raw fruits or vegetables.

But, perhaps nearly everything else.

Exercise alone seldom helps much in weight loss.

Eating less, however, does.

That said, losing weight is difficult.

BTW, the number one secret of successful weight loss according to a couple of studies I read is to realize that you will plateau and feel that you will fail, but that successful weight losers keep doing the right thing --eating less--until they lose what they want to lose.

13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)

So, yes, YOU can lose weight.

As far as what to eat less of, consider that God inspired the prophet Isaiah to write:

2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2).

Many do not often eat what is good. Many eat a lot of white bread, which is really not real bread as it has had the wheat germ and other natural components removed. This makes an inferior product which then is sprayed with synthetic B vitamins and other “nutrients” to “fortify” it. If you notice “B vitamins” added to “fortify” refined grain products or in so-called “natural” vitamin supplements (like thiamin mononitrate, thiamin HCL, folic acid, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine hydrochloride, cyanocobalamin), realize that these are basically petroleum derivatives and are not the same form of vitamins that are actually found in real, natural, food.

But most Westerners consume the synthetics and a lot refined grains.

Many people with low or borderline thyroid support crave salty foods and in most cases, those provide iodine, which the thyroid needs. While almost everyone thinks sweets taste good, some people unknowingly crave them because they are deficient in chromium, which exists in very, very small amounts in refined sugar. So, there can be help with supplements for some--but supplements do NOT MAKE WEIGHT LOSS EASY-IF they are called for, they, at most, make the process of losing weight less difficult.

That said, many people eat too much and some drink too much alcohol. The Bible warns against this:

18 “If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and who, when they have chastened him, will not heed them, 19 then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city, to the gate of his city. 20 And they shall say to the elders of his city, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.’ 21 Then all the men of his city shall stone him to death with stones; so you shall put away the evil from among you, and all Israel shall hear and fear. (Deuteronomy 21:18-21)

20 Do not mix with winebibbers, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat;  21 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty (Proverbs 23:20-21)

Now, while the Bible does endorse seemingly eating more meat than normal during the Feast of Tabernacles (cf. Deuteronomy 14:23), we are not, as the KJV puts it, to be associated with "riotous eaters of flesh" (Proverbs 23:20).

Most Americans, including those I speak with in Southern California, simply do not believe they eat too much. And this includes many overweight ones. Partially that is because they compare themselves to what they see others eat or remember that when they were younger that could eat more without weight issues.

But you have to face facts: If you are overweight, in order to lose weight, you have to eat less.

Note that the Bible warns against eating bad foods and eating too much. And also notice that at least two curses are associated with this. Curses of destruction and poverty.

Poverty and destruction will come to the peoples of the United States. And, likely, famine as well (Matthew 24:7-8) before the start of the Great Tribulation–a time of trouble for the USA and its Anglo-allies.

Notice something else Isaiah and Jeremiah were inspired to write:

6 Therefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts,
Will send leanness among his fat ones;
And under his glory
He will kindle a burning
Like the burning of a fire.  (Isaiah 10:16)

28 They have grown fat, they are sleek;
Yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked;
They do not plead the cause,
The cause of the fatherless;
Yet they prosper,
And the right of the needy they do not defend.
29 Shall I not punish them for these things?’ says the Lord.
‘Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?’ (Jeremiah 5:28-29)

Famine and food shortages are coming. As is the end of the USA and its Anglo-descended allies. National repentance, which does not seem likely at this stage, is the only hope. But individuals themselves can turn to God. And although obesity is a multi-factorial problem, all who are overweight, even the irreligious, can eat less and make better food choices.

Notice also the following:

19 Also My food which I gave you -- the pastry of fine flour, oil, and honey which I fed you -- you set it before them as sweet incense; and so it was," says the Lord God. (Ezekiel 16:19)

Yet, too much honey is a problem.

16 Have you found honey?
Eat only as much as you need,
Lest you be filled with it and vomit. (Proverbs 25:16)

27 It is not good to eat much honey;
So to seek one's own glory is not glory. (Proverbs 25:27)

While, overall, too much honey is better than too much sugar--we see that over eating even biblically-recommended foods is warned against in the Bible.

Although the Bible endorses the use of small amounts of alcohol, it opposes drunkeness, which would also include getting high on substances like marijuana. Here is some information on those issues:

Marijuana: Should a Christian Get High? There is increasing acceptance of the use of marijuana. How should Christians view this? Here is a related video titled How Should a Christian View Marijuana?
Alcohol: Blessing or Curse? This is an article from the old Good News magazine that attempts to answer this question.
Binge Drinking, Health, and the Bible Many college students and others overindulge in alcohol. Are there health risks? What does the Bible teach? A related video is also available: Binge Drinking and the Bible.

As far as health goes, no getting drunk or high is not good for your health. Gluttony, related to alcohol, results in drunkeness, which the Bible condemns. Consider the following:

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. (Galatians 5:19-23)

9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)

We are not to overeat or overdrink --we are to have self-control to be in the Kingdom of God. And you can change.

As far as longevity and alcohol goes, generally speaking very light drinkers live the longest, followed by tea totalers, followed by light, then medium, then heavy drinkers.

Health Benefits of Fasting

What about fasting?

First notice something that the Bible teaches:

5 Is it a fast that I have chosen, A day for a man to afflict his soul? Is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, And to spread out sackcloth and ashes? Would you call this a fast, And an acceptable day to the Lord?

6 "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not hide yourself from your own flesh? 8 Then your light shall break forth like the morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall go before you; The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. 9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; You shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.'

"If you take away the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, 10 If you extend your soul to the hungry And satisfy the afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness shall be as the noonday. 11 The Lord will guide you continually, And satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. 12 Those from among you Shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In. (Isaiah 58:5-12)

So, the Bible teaches both physical and spiritual benefits and responsibilities from fasting.

The Bible shows that Jesus fasted. The Bible also shows that Jesus endorsed fasting for His followers:

16 “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. (Matthew 6:16-18)

15 “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast…” (Matthew 9:15)

The Gospel writer Luke mentions the Fast, also known as the Day of Atonement, in Acts 27:9. History shows that professors of Christ fasted on Atonement. Despite what the Bible teaches, some were condemned for fasting on the Day of Atonement by Greco-Roman leaders such as John Chrysostom for doing so (see also Should You Observe God’s Holy Days or Demonic Holidays?).

Notice some comments from the old Radio and Worldwide Church of God:

Guidelines for Effective Fasting
• Fast often. When using any tool, physical or spiritual, practice makes perfect.

The apostle Paul fasted often (II Corinthians 11:27), and we should, too. That doesn't mean we should become pharisaical and set a rigid schedule for ourselves (Luke 18:9- 14). Our attitude as we fast, and not the number of times or when we fast, is what is important. When we fast often, our bodies get more accustomed to going without food for a period of time.

• Avoid "desperation" fasting. Fasting is certainly important in times of trial and distress, but if we only resort to fasting in times of emergency, we are telling God that we are more interested in getting what we want than in drawing closer to Him.

• Fast a day at a time. One day is an acceptable length for a spiritual fast, although more time, such as two or three days, may be appropriate on occasion. (Millman Robert J. The Way to Spiritual Growth – Fast. Good News, May 1984)

How Often Should We Fast?

The question often arises, how often should I fast? Nowhere in the Bible do we have an exact statement of how often we should fast. Yet, we have several examples which will help us to understand how often we should practice fasting in our lives.

As we have previously seen, the Apostle Paul fasted OFTEN (II Cor. 10:27). The Apostle Paul had no specific command in the Old Testament teaching him how often he should fast. However, Paul was acutely aware of the race he was running and how diligently he needed to strive in order to enter God's Kingdom. He considered it necessary to fast often — even in the face of the trials and afflictions he constantly endured — in order to maintain the spiritual strength he needed to continue serving God and finally to achieve the crown of righteousness.

The Gentile, CORNELIUS, lived such a life of service and overcoming before God that God considered it important enough to send an apostle -- Peter -- to preach to him the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and to baptize him and his family. It is significant that Cornelius had been praying and FASTING before God when God finally elected to send the Apostle Peter to him (Acts 10:30).

It was when the prophet Daniel elected to set his heart to understand, and to CHASTEN himself before God with fasting, that God sent the angel Gabriel to reveal to Daniel some of the most vital prophecies of the Bible. See Daniel 10:2, 3, 12. The purpose of fasting is not to punish ourselves in a form of penance, but to draw closer to God by getting away from the world.
The prophet Elijah also sought God in prayer and fasting forty days and forty nights on Mt. Horeb and received the vital answer he sought.

Fasting has certainly played a vital part in the lives of those God has used down through history. From these examples, the principle we should apply in determining how often to fast should be based upon the needs in our lives. Our routine of fasting should certainly be frequent enough and of long enough duration to keep ourselves close to God and in the vital spiritual condition that will enable us to overcome and endure to the end. (Portune A. WHY Should We Fast? Good News, June 1961)

Fast regularly enough for the body to adjust itself to the idea. Some people who think they are about to die when they fast could actually find it easy if they fasted a day every month or two. (Meredith RC. But by Prayer and Fasting. Good News, April 1979)

Here are some comments from Herbert W. Armstrong about fasting:

FASTING AND PRAYER: There is . . . NOTHING like fasting and prayer for drawing close to God, re-establishing contact, being filled with His Spirit. For this purpose it is better to fast completely -- no fruit-juice of any kind. In Bible times they sometimes fasted without even water, but sometimes water was used. Personally I think results will be obtained if one drinks water, but nothing else.

For purely spiritual purposes a fast of from one to three days is usually sufficient. You may expect headaches, and a very thick-headed feeling the first few days. It is not pleasant. It is, in Bible language, AFFLICTING THE SOUL. It takes courage and will-power, and self-denial. I recommend, for this purpose, dividing your time three ways: about one third in studying the subject of fasting in the Bible, and other Bible study. Use a good concordance, and your marginal references if your Bible has them. If not you should get one which has. Look up all you can find under fasting. Then about a third of your time in meditation -- turning over in your own mind by yourself WHY you have not been closer to God, thinking out just HOW you have been letting the worldly things creep in, meditating on what you have read in the Bible, applying it to yourself and your spiritual condition. Then, spend one full third of your time in earnest PRAYER.

Did you ever spend one solid HOUR in prayer, alone with God in some private room, on your knees? Very few ever have. If you haven't, the first time you do it you'll find it will take as much will-power and self-denial as forcing yourself to stay on a fast and resisting that gnawing hunger feeling. In five or ten minutes, or less, every excuse in the world will come into your mind. You aren't in the mood now -- why not do it later? You just think of something that ought to be done, and you think you must go do it right now. Yes, I know what will come to your mind, for I have done it and I know by experience. But if you will resist every temptation, and STAY on your knees, even though you think your prayer isn't going as high as the ceiling, in at least 30 or 40 minutes the devil will probably give up and let you alone and you'll find you are establishing contact with God, and you'll find you are beginning to really ENJOY talking to Him -- just pouring out your soul to Him -- telling him all about it. Pause, once awhile, and meditate, and let God talk to you. (Armstrong HW. Importance of Fasting. July 7, 1948)

In addition to humbling ourselves and helping us to realize how much we need to rely on God and drawing closer to him, fasting is considered to have certain physical benefits. Some, though sadly not yet most, in the medical world are realizing that there seem to be health benefits from fasting:

The power of intermittent fasting

August 4, 2012

Scientists are uncovering evidence that short periods of fasting, if properly controlled, could achieve a number of health benefits, as well as potentially helping the overweight, as Michael Mosley discovered…

Calorie restriction, eating well but not much, is one of the few things that has been shown to extend life expectancy, at least in animals. We’ve known since the 1930s that mice put on a low-calorie, nutrient-rich diet live far longer. There is mounting evidence that the same is true in monkeys…

IGF-1 levels can be lowered by fasting. The reason seems to be that when our bodies no longer have access to food they switch from “growth mode” to “repair mode”.

As levels of the IGF-1 hormone drop, a number of repair genes appear to get switched on according to ongoing research by Professor Valter Longo of the University of Southern California…

Current medical opinion is that the benefits of fasting are unproven and until there are more human studies it’s better to eat at least 2000 calories a day. If you really want to fast then you should do it in a proper clinic or under medical supervision, because there are many people, such as pregnant women or diabetics on medication, for whom it could be dangerous. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19112549

Fasting Reduces Risk of Heart Disease.

In a study of more than 4,500 Mormons in Utah, researchers examined behaviors that were associated with lower risk of coronary artery disease—heart disease. After accounting for other factors (smoking, alcohol use, coffee and tea ingestion), researchers discovered that those who fasted routinely (without food or drink) were at lower risk for heart disease than those who did not fast. Fasting was also associated with lower diabetes risk (The American Journal of Cardiology, October 1, 2008).

Fasting twice a year rebuilds Immune System

A New Study Has Suggested That Fasting Could Help The Body To Fight Off Disease By Regenerating The Immune System. The Study Added That Fasting For Two Days Can Regenerate The Immune System.

June 8, 2014

For the study, the effects of fasting for two to four day periods for six months on both mice and humans were tested by the researchers. In both cases, it was found that long periods of not eating significantly lowered white blood cell counts.

And in mice, each cycle of fasting then 'flipped a regenerative switch' that led to the regeneration of new white blood cells, which in turn renews the defence system of the body.

Valter Longo, Professor of Gerontology and the Biological Sciences at the University of Southern California, said: "It gives the OK for stem cells to go ahead and begin proliferating and rebuild the entire system. And the good news is that the body got rid of the parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts, during the fasting."

He added that a system heavily damaged by chemotherapy or aging, fasting cycles can generate, literally, a new immune system.

The study also revealed that levels of the enzyme PKA, reduces as a result of fasting. This increases longevity in simple organisms, as well as levels of the hormone IGF-1, which has been linked to ageing, tumour progression and cancer risk. http://www.delhidailynews.com/news/Fasting-regenerates-immune-system-1402181003/

Intermittent fasting, the weight-losing alternative to three meals a day

December 1, 2014

Instead of eating three square meals a day, intermittent fasting might help fight not just obesity but also such ailments as diabetes, heart disease, cancer and Alzheimer’s, researchers say.

The advice given on fighting obesity usually focuses on consuming fewer calories and exercising more. The benefits of such foods as vegetables, fruit, nuts, fiber and fish, and the value of reducing or eliminating snacks are often also touted.

However, mounting evidence reveals that other key aspects of diet — when and how often people eat — can also play a major role in health. In fact, the most common eating pattern in modern societies — three meals daily, plus snacks — is abnormal from the perspective of human evolution, an international group of researchers wrote in an article published online Nov. 17 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

More and more research shows that intermittent fasting may have benefits, they said.

“Fasting alone is more powerful in preventing and reversing some diseases than drugs,” said Satchidananda Panda, an associate professor of regulatory biology at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in San Diego, one of the co-authors of the article. ...

“Intermittent fasting helps the body to rejuvenate and repair, thereby promoting overall health,” Panda said.

October 4, 2016

There is evidence that restricting calories can have long-term health benefits, including improved mood and better quality of sleep. ...

Studies have found that different forms of fasting can have a powerful effect on the human body. They result in a vast array of changes, at a cellular level, affecting many metabolic systems, such as fuelling the brain and the way the body deals with stress. ...

Laboratory studies suggest that biochemical changes in the brain could be the root cause.  Mark Mattson, a professor of neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University, says his research suggests they lead to improved cognitive abilities.

It is thought that people experience a greater sense of wellbeing when they start to burn body fat instead of carbohydrates from food, for energy, says Dr Eric Verdin, a researcher at the Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco.  It is a process known as ketosis.

So what about hunger pangs, irritability or feeling 'hangry'? Well, it might be tough at first, but your body does adjust.

“When someone who has never fasted starts fasting, they will experience light-headedness and discomfort,” explains Dr Verdin.

“However, upon repeating fasting there’s a change in the metabolism of the whole organism and an adaptation. This adaptation is, we think, one of the reasons why one becomes better and better at fasting over time, to the point that, after the fourth or fifth fast, people feel much better than they felt when they weren’t fasting."

However, fasting isn’t safe for everyone, especially women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, people with diabetes and other metabolic disorders.  When the body is already under stress, and normal functioning is compromised, limiting nutrition could make matters worse. http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20160930-can-giving-up-food-make-you-work-better

Fasting is a health booster for many and also seems to increase longevity.

Of course, those who risk death or major health problems should not fast. But for others, it can be a healthy thing to do from a physical, as well as spiritual, perspective.

The author of the following wanted me to make this available:

The Benefits Of Fasting

Fasting is practiced from olden days and plays a major role in many different cultures. Fasting can be defined as the avoidance of all or some types of food and drinks for a set period of time. Health benefits include: 1. Fasting improves your ability to fight against inflammation. According to studies, fasting may decrease several markers of inflammation and is useful in treating inflammatory conditions. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4899145/) 2. Fasting helps to reduce insulin resistance and weight gain. Fasting triggers the shift of metabolism from lipid/cholesterol synthesis and fat storage to the mobilization of fat through fatty acid oxidation and fatty-acid derived ketones, which serve to preserve muscle mass and function. In turn liver glycogen stores are depleted and fatty acids are mobilized. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5783752/) 3. Fasting promotes heart health. According to studies, fasting brings a significant decrease and normalization of blood pressure, decreases the level of bad cholesterol, and thus enhances heart health. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17929537) 4. Fasting can delay the aging effects and increases life span. According to studies, fasting can effectively increase your longevity. But, more research is needed in this regard. (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7117847/) –Dr. Rashmi Byakodi, Best for Nutrition PERMALINK: https://outwittrade.com/fasting-benefits#rashmi

Fasting is a practice that has been associated with a wide array of potential health benefits, including weight loss, as well as improved blood sugar control, heart health, brain function and cancer prevention. From water fasting to intermittent fasting and calorie restriction, there are many different types of fasting that fit nearly every lifestyle. When coupled with a nutritious diet and healthy lifestyle, incorporating fasting into your routine could benefit your health. People who can benefit from fasting There is some good scientific evidence suggesting that circadian rhythm fasting, when combined with a healthy diet and lifestyle, can be a particularly effective approach to weight loss, especially for people at risk for diabetes. (However, people with advanced diabetes or who are on medications for diabetes, people with a history of eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia, and pregnant or breastfeeding women should not attempt intermittent fasting unless under the close supervision of a physician who can monitor them.) Benefits of fasting 1. Promotes Blood Sugar Control by Reducing Insulin Resistance – Intermittent fasting and alternate-day fasting could help decrease blood sugar levels and reduce insulin resistance but may affect men and women differently. 2. Promotes Better Health by Fighting Inflammation – fasting could decrease several markers of inflammation and may be useful in treating inflammatory conditions, such as multiple sclerosis. 3. May Enhance Heart Health by Improving Blood Pressure, Triglycerides and Cholesterol Levels – Fasting has been associated with a lower risk of coronary heart disease and may help lower blood pressure, triglycerides and cholesterol levels. 4. May Boost Brain Function and Prevent Neurodegenerative Disorders – fasting could improve brain function, increase nerve cell synthesis and protect against neurodegenerative conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s. 5. Aids Weight Loss by Limiting Calorie Intake and Boosting Metabolism – Fasting may increase metabolism and help preserve muscle tissue to reduce body weight and body fat. 6. Increases Growth Hormone Secretion, Is Vital for Growth, Metabolism, Weight Loss and Muscle Strength – fasting can increase levels of human growth hormone (HGH), an important protein hormone that plays a role in growth, metabolism, weight loss and muscle strength. 7. Could Delay Aging and Extend Longevity – fasting could delay aging and increase longevity, but human research is still lacking. 8. May Aid in Cancer Prevention and Increase the Effectiveness of Chemotherapy -fasting could block tumor development and increase the effectiveness of chemotherapy. –Dr Chris Norris, Sleep Standards PERMALINK: https://outwittrade.com/fasting-benefits#chris

12 hours after its last nutrient intake (the last time somebody ate), the body will enter into a fasted state. During a fast, several things happen to the human body at the molecular and cellular level. Some of the benefits include: 1. Insulin sensitivity improves, and all levels of insulin drop. This can aid in reversing the effects of related diseases like diabetes, alongside making body fat stores more accessible. Extra energy will be released, meaning that athletic performance and perception of fatigue should improve. 2. Human Growth Hormone (HGH) levels increase, which can be quite drastic, with levels increasing by as much as a multiple of five. HGH is crucial for skeletomuscular maintenance and hypertrophy, so increased production will make muscle gains and strength adaptation that much more efficient. 3. Cells repair in the absence of the digestive process, including the digestion and removal of dysfunctional, old proteins that build up within cells. This can aid in offsetting some of the fatiguing side-effects of hard physical activity and should speed up recovery. 4. Several of the metabolic features improved by intermittent fasting can lead directly to improved brain health. This includes reduced oxidative stress and inflammation, as well as a reduction in blood sugar levels and insulin resistance. Animal studies have shown that intermittent fasting may even assist the growth of new nerve cells, which could provide benefits to the brain’s synapse function. 5. The hormone BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor) is also increased by intermittent fasting. A deficiency of BDNF has been linked with degenerative conditions and depression. What kinds of people might it be recommended for? Fasting can be very beneficial for those suffering digestive or gastric discomfort, as fasting periods allow the digestive tract to rest. It is good for those looking to overcome type II diabetes, due to the improved insulin resistance, for those looking to lose weight, put on muscle mass, or both, for a recomposition, and for those looking to increase mental alertness or wellbeing, due to the increase in BDNF. –Michael Julom, ThisIsWhyImFit.com PERMALINK: https://outwittrade.com/fasting-benefits#michael

Fasting puts the body into autophagy. Autophagy repairs DNA and organelles (parts of the cell that have very specific functions) which allows cells to prepare for healthy replication. Replication is important because it helps replace damaged organelles with healthy ones. Damaged organelles are contributing factors to chronic diseases, such as cancer and inflammatory diseases. AS we age, it is harder for our cells to replicate. That is why fasting is really great for the 50+ crowd. Fasting will result in weight loss and that is why most people do it. But there are many other benefits. One study conducted by the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, CA, found that short-term fasting induced autophagy in the brain. This may reduce the risk for neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. –Heather Donahue, CHN, Heather’s Health Habits PERMALINK: https://outwittrade.com/fasting-benefits#heather

Firstly, fasting promotes weight loss, which subsequently lowers your risk for comorbidities such as obesity, heart disease, and stroke. Fasting can also help improve symptoms of chronic diseases, such as https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/534318. Although I think anyone can benefit from practicing intermittent fasting – at least on occasion – I would strongly suggest people who are struggling with weight loss to try it. For many, it’s a simpler alternative to counting macros and nutrients and planning out an entire strict regiment of eating – fasting can kickstart your weight loss while you figure out your diet. –Gabriello Ianniruberto, Anabolic Bodies PERMALINK: https://outwittrade.com/fasting-benefits#gabriello

June 10, 2020 https://outwittrade.com/fasting-benefits

Some people, especially those who consume caffeine regularly, find fasting difficult. Those who wean down off of caffeine sometimes find fasting easier than they would have otherwise.

Here are some Jewish tips to prepare for fasting:

Tips for Easier Fasting

Tips to prepare for the fast include: drinking at least two liters of water a day (10 cups) on the days before the fast, and eating whole grains and vegetables on the day before, while avoiding sugar, spicy, fried and salty foods that cause thirst.

Those who drink significant amounts of beverages containing caffeine daily (coffee, non-herb teas, colas) are advised to reduce the amount gradually, starting several days before the fast to prevent caffeine addiction symptoms which can include headaches and nausea.

The last meal before the fast, known as the seudah hamafseket, should not include unfamiliar, spicy, or fried foods, and should omit vegetables such as cauliflower, cabbage and broccoli.

After the fast, those who have abstained from drinking and eating are advised to rehydrate slowly, with a sweet drink, and begin eating with a snack, followed approximately one hour later by a light meal.  http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/148579

In my own case, I tend to drink a little more water the day before fasting and avoid saltier foods. Also, those who fast more regularly throughout the year tend to have less difficulties fasting than those that do not (people with hypoglycemia, etc. excepted).

Notice a study that shows health benefits in fasting:

Fasting twice a year rebuilds Immune System

A New Study Has Suggested That Fasting Could Help The Body To Fight Off Disease By Regenerating The Immune System. The Study Added That Fasting For Two Days Can Regenerate The Immune System.

For the study, the effects of fasting for two to four day periods for six months on both mice and humans were tested by the researchers. In both cases, it was found that long periods of not eating significantly lowered white blood cell counts.

And in mice, each cycle of fasting then ‘flipped a regenerative switch’ that led to the regeneration of new white blood cells, which in turn renews the defence system of the body.

Valter Longo, Professor of Gerontology and the Biological Sciences at the University of Southern California, said: “It gives the OK for stem cells to go ahead and begin proliferating and rebuild the entire system. And the good news is that the body got rid of the parts of the system that might be damaged or old, the inefficient parts, during the fasting.”

He added that a system heavily damaged by chemotherapy or aging, fasting cycles can generate, literally, a new immune system.

The study also revealed that levels of the enzyme PKA, reduces as a result of fasting. This increases longevity in simple organisms, as well as levels of the hormone IGF-1, which has been linked to ageing, tumour progression and cancer risk. http://www.delhidailynews.com/news/Fasting-regenerates-immune-system-1402181003/

January 6, 2020

The news continues to be very encouraging: intermittent fasting is good for you. I don’t have time or space here to discuss all the results, but I want to focus on one fasting strategy that has surprisingly good benefits.

It turns out that you can get many of the benefits of fasting without doing a 3-day fast, which for most people is really, really difficult to accomplish. https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevensalzberg/2020/01/06/can-intermittent-fasting-reset-your-immune-system/#716ff3dd27ac

Fasting is a health booster for many and also seems to increase longevity. 

Rest on the Sabbath, Be Patient, Obey God

Notice the fourth commandment:

8 "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. (Exodus 20:8-11)

We are to rest on the Sabbath.

Humans need to rest each week.

But what if work is really busy?

The Bible tells us:

21 "Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; in plowing time and in harvest you shall rest. (Exodus 34:21)

Keeping the Sabbath can be a test of faith.

I have long consider the Sabbath as a guaranteed weekly rest from God--an assurance it is good and helpful. While some have lost jobs or had academic issues, Christians should keep the Sabbath (see Can You Keep Your Job, Get Your Degree, and Keep the Sabbath?). It is good for us. And the same holds true for keeping God's Holy Days, including the Feast of Tabernacles.

Jesus said:

31 "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. (Matthew 6:31-34)

But we need to trust God and have faith at times to do so.

Consider also that prayer and faith can keep us healthy as the Bible instructs us:

14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. (James 5:14-17)

Prayer is important for health. You should pray for others to be healed. You can ask for church elders to anoint you.

The Bible teaches:

25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who seeks Him.
26 It is good that one should hope and wait quietly
For the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for a man to bear
The yoke in his youth. (Lamentations 3:25-27)

Notice also:

1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise: 3 "that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." (Ephesians 6:1-3)

Actually, keeping all the commandments will help you:

19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; 20 that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; (Deuteronomy 30:19-20)

Obeying God leads to better life in this age, and eternal life in the age to come.

Notice also the following from the New Testament:

18 Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's. (1 Corinthians 6:18-20)

We are to glorify God in our bodies, which means to avoid sin and do what is good.

Avoiding sexual immorality keeps us from many diseases and a variety of mental health problems.

Since we are to glorify God in our bodies, that is also a reason that Christians should not smoke. See also Should Christians Smoke (or Chew) Tobacco or Marijuana?  Here is a link to a related video: Should You Smoke? Would You Like Help to Quit?

Here is a link to the sermon: Let's Talk About Health.

Yes, YOU Should Take Care of Your Health

God told Isaiah to write:

2 Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good (Isaiah 55:2)

A variety of foods needed for optimal health. Varieties and diversities of background needed for eternity. There is not just one superfood that we need. The closest was probably manna, and even then God provided quail (Psalm 105:40)--plus the children of Israel also had livestock and hence, dairy, eggs, and other meat.

Try to live in accordance with God's laws and try to be somewhat natural in your diet and lifestyles.

Here is a brief list of Christian health matters:

1. Eat fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
2. Avoid biblically unclean meats.
3. Do not consume blood.
4. Understand that raw foods, when safe, can supply enzymes that can contribute to better health.
5. Eat little highly processed foods or GMOs. Be careful about consuming "evil things" as inventions of them were prophesied for the last days.
6. Avoid lab grown meat and be cautious about farmed fish as many have higher levels of toxins that wild sources.
7. Synthetic vitamins do not replace what is lost through grain refining.
8. USP isolated vitamins do not have the powerful antioxidant effects as those found in foods.
9. If you are going to consume supplements, try to get those who nutrients are foods, not USP isolates.
10. Eat what is good, like 2 or more servings of fruit and 3 or more servings of vegetables daily.
11. Try to use and consume olive oil.
12. Be cautious about medications.
13. Be cautious about chemical exposure.
14. Be careful about synthetic undergarments.
15. Be cautious about excess emf and other electrical exposure.
16. Exercise regularly if you can.
17. Try to avoid breathing polluted air or drinking polluted water.
18. Bathe regularly.
19. Avoid laziness-be a doer.
20. Lose weight if you are obese or overweight.
21. Avoid overeating and gluttony.
22. Do not get drunk or high.
23. Fast regularly if you can.
24. Rest on the Sabbath.
25. Attend church services.
26. Keep God's commandments.
27. Do not smoke.
28. Pray.
29. Be serious about obeying God.

If you are a Christian, then your body, as part of the church, is the Temple of Holy Spirit.

Glorify God in your body.

Take care of your health.

Here are links to two related sermons: Let's Talk About Food and Let's Talk About Health.

Thiel B. Christian Health Matters. COGwriter (c) 2022 https://www.cogwriter.com/health.htm 2022 2023 2024 0913

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