Food laws that bring health

It’s the Chinese New Year season and it is the time of the year for Chinese families to get together as well as catching up with relatives and friends. During my visits, I have noticed a few of my relatives and friends’ children, and even hear of friends’ friends’ children, suffering from severe eczema or allergic rashes.

It is quite sad to see children suffering from such misery at such a young age. Surprisingly, they have flawless face skin but very dry and itchy hands and legs which caused them to scratch and bleed. While medication only suppresses the symptoms, I don’t know of any cure. People could try and boost their immune system so that the symptoms do not return and that they stop eating toxic food found in nature and processed food.

I have never heard or seen anyone with skin problem when I was young. Not even one case. Now, it is too common, with children as well as adults. As the result of this observation, I began to wonder about the food laws described in the Old Testament of the Bible and began to dig for information over the net. I have always known that the laws were logical but not exactly know the scientific details. The Jews adhered to them, the Muslims practice some of them but I don’t know personally of any non-Jewish Christians (who put the laws into practice although I have on rare occasions hear isolated cases where they avoid certain food based on the wisdom in the ancient text.

The only reason I can think off why our parents and grandparents hardly suffer from these symptoms is because they hardly eat meat or seafood, and if they do, it is only on special occasions. (And of course, they do a lot of manual work and sweat it out – which also helps remove some toxin from the body.) While they may lack calcium and other minerals as a result, and lose their teeth early in life, this could have saved them from a lot of unhealthy as well as toxic elements being ingested.

The food laws in the Old Testament could be found in Leviticus 11.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Leviticus+11&version=NIV

While I don’t mind not eating insects and birds, I will surely miss my favourite seafood especially shellfish such as crabs, oysters, clams (lala) and prawns. Fish with fins and scales can be eaten but those without them are not to be eaten. So, the pomfrets (ikan bawal), catfish (ikan keli) and sharks are also not to be eaten.

Some websites point out that these shellfish and fish species contain high levels of heavy metals. Is there any wonder why some people are allergic to them?

One website says that these shellfish and fish species are actually made by God to clean up the ocean, lakes and rivers. In other words, we are eating garbage when we eat them. By depleting them, we are also destroying the environment.

The Biblical food laws also said that we are not to eat the blood and fats of meat. Ok, this is understood because blood could transmit diseases while fats clog up the arteries.

Pork is of course, not to be eaten too. I will miss my “char siew” and “siew yoke.”

I wish I can say that I can totally avoid these foods. It will be hard. But I will definitely reduce eating them from now on. I will particularly miss raw oysters and escargot even though I hardly eat them.

While times have changed, the laws are still relevant to our lives. Healthy people as well as those who suffer from eczema should avoid the foods mentioned in Leviticus 11. More than that, we should also avoid as much as possible deep fried and processed food. Processed foods are man made food (as opposed to God-made food or food source directly from nature) which includes nuggets, burgers, sausages, ham and cheese. These processed foods (unless real meat slices with no additives or preservatives are used) as well as canned food, many fermented food, food with colourings, additives and preservatives should also be avoided as much as possible. From my observation, those with auto-immune diseases such as mentioned above as well as those with asthma and arthritis, eating such foods can trigger inflammatory symptoms.

A few years ago, I had overheard a conversation in an organic food café of a woman sitting next to my table that she had gone to another organic food café to have a meal and after the meal, her eczema returned and she suffered a great deal and had to go on organic fruits and vegetables juice fast for three days to de-tox. She had been going to the café where we were and had no problems with the food and had told a friend with her that she did not know why her symptoms returned when she had eaten organic food from the other cafe. (She could only eat organic vegan food due to her condition.) I could not help listening to her conversation and decided to politely budge in and told her that the café used organic vegetables but not organic sauces or natural seasoning. She was shocked to hear that. I really felt sorry for her because food providers sometimes do not bother to label their food.

Basically, we all need clean food, not just for hygienic or faith reasons but also food that are safe from heavy metals, preservatives, colourings, additives, fats and carcinogenic recycled frying oils.

The recommendations above are not a substitute for proper medical or dietary advice and shall not be construed as a cure for any specific disease or health condition. Readers are advised to check their specific dietary needs and requirements with their doctor if in doubt.

Soap and body wash

I have been trying out the Platinum Bar soap from Melaleuca and really like it. It makes my skin feels totally clean. I like the mild smell too. Seems like a combined smell of some herb and a tinge of lemon. Usually, I need to use scrub for my shoulder and shoulder blade areas but with this, I need not.

I have used Renew Body Wash before the soap and I need to put more of the washing liquid on my shoulder and shoulder blade areas where there are more oil secretion. Otherwise, I don't feel clean. However, the advantage I noticed with Renew body wash is that my skin seems to look and feel smoother. It is a gentle body wash that is suitable for less oily or sensitive skin.

Although I don't quite like the body wash as much as the soap, I find the Renew Intensive Skin Therapy very good for my dry hands. It worked well for me during a winter holiday too but I must say I still like to add shea butter moisturiser for winter use. With the Renew, my hands recovered fast after a lot of housework.

You can look at the picture of the lotion here:
http://www.melaleucamalaysia.com/renew-intensive-skin-therapy

John has used a cotton bud and applied a drop of Melaleuca oil on a small boil on his eye lid that has not gone away for three weeks even after it had "ripened" and burst. He wanted to go to the doctor but decided to try out the oil first. In just a few days, the boil is almost gone. (We don't advise people to do this, but if you do, it will be at your own risk.)

I am really happy that since I started spraying the Sol-U-Guard Botanical Disinfectant once a week (I hardly cook) on the kitchen cabinet table top, there are no more lizard poo. I don't have to clean it up every morning anymore.

Lose weight for better health for the new year

Losing weight is about health and we make no apologies in encouraging our relatives and friends in losing weight healthily. Many people don't take it seriously that being overweight is detrimental and costly to their health and wallet in later life. We need not age with ill health.

Many Malaysians are having obesity related health problems in their 30s and 40s when it used to be 50s and 60s and Malaysia is one of the top Asian countries with obesity problem. Obesity can lead to problems such as diabetes, hypertension, kidney failure, stroke and heart attack. That is because, when we are overweight, our organs cannot cope with all the stress and will sooner or later give way.

Taking care of our health is an investment of the future.


John and his gang of friends are organising a weight loss challenge - the first for next year - on January 5, 2011. If you, or you know of friends in the Klang Valley who may need the motivation to lose weight for health reasons or for vanity sake or for a wedding, please do let us know.

Top winner of the challenge stand to win more than RM2,000. There are also prizes for winners up to top four and for every kilogramme lost.

Participants have to come in for weigh ins on Jan 5, Jan 12 and Jan 26 at Solaris Dutamas.

Some of you may have known that the products we are using are from an MLM company. We also make no apologies for that because we found the products to be of excellent quality and at reasonable prices compared with products in pharmacy outlets.

John and I are against pyramid schemes and will not go into such schemes. We have chosen a company that offers high quality nutritional products and they are value for money.

So if anyone is interested in nutritional products and not for losing weight, please do let us know.

Blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Maximise Your Metabolism

By Luigi Gratton, M.D., M.P.H.


Exercise training helps you burn more calories both during the day and at night.

Total Caloric Expenditure is simply the total amount of calories that your body burns in one day. The vast majority of calories expended are used for the Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) or the "Resting Metabolism." This BMR accounts for over 70% of an individual's total calories used in one day. These are the calories your body uses to keep your engine running.

Your body is like your car. Think of turning your car engine on in the morning and just letting it run in the driveway. The car sitting in the driveway burning fuel is like your BMR. The bigger the car engine, the more fuel it uses. So a big truck burns lots of fuel and gets maybe eight miles to the gallon while an economy car uses little fuel and gets 40 miles to the gallon. If you pushed down on the gas pedal and revved the engine, you would be burning more fuel, which is basically what you do when you exercise.

The amount of muscle you have determines how many calories you burn everyday in a resting state. Each pound of muscle burns approximately 14 calories per day, so a big football player may burn over 3,000 calories/day at rest (BMR=3000). Meanwhile a tall and thin ballerina may burn only 1,200 calories/day at rest (BMR=1200).
When you exercise, you build more muscle mass and increase the size of your engine, which is a good thing. That means that even while you sleep you will be burning more calories because you have increased your BMR.
Imagine taking a small economy car and putting in a bigger engine that requires more fuel. That is the basic idea behind exercise training, fine-tuning your body's engine into a high-performance machine.
Herbalife® Inner Nutrition products help provide you with the best fuel for your high-performance engine. With a variety of delicious shakes, bars, soups and soy nuts, Herbalife offers a wide selection of fuel for your body. This healthy fuel will help keep your engine fine-tuned for maximum caloric expenditure–even while you sleep.

Tips for burning more calories:

Exercise to increase muscle mass.

Fuel up with Herbalife® nutrition products.

Rev up your workout routine to burn more calories.


Dr. Gratton also serves as Vice President of Medical Affairs and Education at Herbalife.

http://health.herbalife.com/health-articles/energy-and-fitness/maximize-metabolism

Less Sugar Better Health Campaign

This ad by the Health Ministry is useful for those who have not made any efforts to improve their diet. John and I are a few steps ahead. We generally don't put sugar in our drinks and do not add it in our cooking. We also hardly drink from bottled or packed juices but eat fresh fruits. We hardly eat fried food or food cooked in coconut milk and remove fatty parts of meat on most occasions.

Discovering high-quality household products with natural ingredients

Almost three weeks ago, John decided to add household products from the Melaleuca brand to our Herbalife range. That’s because Herbalife does not have household products (except for facial and body skin care products) or make up sets. We felt that the Melaleuca products complement the Herbalife concept for they are both made from natural ingredients. Both are made in the United States. The natural ingredients in Melaleuca are mainly from Australia and New Zealand.

These are the products that I have experienced significant results:

• Melaleuca oil
I had put a drop of Melaleuca oil on the tiny raised scar on my left thumb, where I had accidentally skinned myself while slicing meat a few months ago. The small scar is now noticeably smaller. I will keep putting the Melaleuca oil and see what comes out of it. The Melaleuca oil is a natural antiseptic and it also aids healing when applied to injured or wounded part of the body. It is useful for children since they often suffer from falls, scratches and wounds. Every home should keep one in the First Aid kit.

• Tub & Tile bathroom cleaner
All I need to do is pour a small amount into a spray bottle (as instructed) that you can buy with it. Mix it with water and spray all over the bathroom sink, toilet seat and bowl, and shower area. After leaving it for 15 minutes, all I had to do was spray the walls and floor tiles with water and shove the grime into the drainage hole. I need not scrub so hard like I used to with other bathroom cleaning products. I did not use gloves as I used to and my hands became slightly wrinkled, but they recovered quickly. My hands also did not become rough like they would when I use other cleaning agent without gloves.

• MelaMagic floor cleaner
After mopping the floor with MelaMagic, the floor seems cleaner than the one I had used before this. I also did not use gloves and my hands did not end up dry and rough. Anyway, I shall use my gloves again in my next cleaning task just to protect myself from germs.

• Fresh Mint Tooth Polish
I don’t need to use much tooth polish and my teeth feels so clean. Brushing my teeth with this polish is a totally different experience because it hardly produces any foam. It also did not leave my teeth feeling sensitive which I experienced with other tooth polish I had used.

• Renew
The range comprises Renew Intensive Therapy, Body Wash and Hand Wash. They are very effective in relieving dry skin. I also found out that this product range is very suitable for those suffering from eczema. The company claims that it helps relieve eczema problem.

• Harvest Pure fruit and vegetable wash
I only have to leave it in the wash for 10 minutes and then rinse and eat.

• Lemon Brite dishwasher
This is really gentle on sensitive hands. Although my hands are not too sensitive, it did not cause any dryness.

• Sol-U-Guard botanical non-chemical disinfectant
I have sprayed this on my kitchen top because I am told that it can ward off lizards and cockroaches. There are too many annoying teenage lizards hanging out on my kitchen top and leaving a trail of droppings which I have to clean up every morning. I shall update the results next Sunday.

There are many, many more products. Please check out www.melaleucareviews.com

Melaleuca products are value for money because they are highly concentrated. For instance, I need to pump the amount the size of a 20 sen coin for my previous shampoo compared with 10 sen coin for the T36 C5 Melaleuca oil shampoo for my oily scalp and short hair.

I also like the idea that the Melaleuca products are made up of natural ingredients. They are gentle on the skin and hands and safe for the home and environment.

Please contact us at healthpossibilities@gmail.com if you are interested in the products.

An interesting email sent to me

The article below has interesting advice on good health but it is in no way advocating that one should stop chemotherapy or whatever treatment one is undergoing.

CANCER SURVIVOR, DR TOM WU, HAS A RECIPE FOR GOOD HEALTH

Dr Wu and his wife Dr Janet Wu at the World Wellness Women's Congress in Chennai in March 2009.

(Cancer, Diabetes, and Heart Disease can be overcome through diet. Dr. Tom Wu’s breakthroughs with Cancer and Diabetes have earned him the “Remarkable Contribution Award” from the American Cancer Society and the “World Famous Doctor Award” from The United Nations.)

At the age of 30, Chinese doctor Tom Wu was diagnosed with advanced stages of lung cancer, and was told he had only a few months to live. Not only has he survived, but the doctor has maintained a healthy life. The cancer is all gone, and he said he's never caught a cold or other illness for 40 years. He has stopped going for blood tests."My body and feelings tell me I'm well, that I'm truly in good health," says Dr Wu. His secret lies in the power of natural healing. Dr Wu always says that no wonder drug can cure diseases. But our own internal healing power, our immune system, can. And what can strengthen our immune system are simple foods from Mother Nature , and a healthy lifestyle. In his view, diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease can be overcome by changing the diet .Dr Wu says people get sick because they eat the wrong foods. Fried food, for example, causes blockage in the arteries, bad circulation, cholesterol, and heart disease. "Instead of taking a cholesterol lowering drug, I would urge them to stop eating greasy food.. My suggestion is to eat clean food, which is high in phytochemicals," he says.Phytochemicals are natural cleansing agents that will help rid plaque from your arteries. They come from natural foods such as vegetables, fruits with their seeds, and common garden herbs. Phytochemicals will nourish the body's cells so they can fight against any foreign substances that invade your body.

Dr Wu's books on natural healing

The secrets of how he won the fight against lung cancer and maintains a healthy body are revealed in his first book, Dr Wu's Principle of Natural Cures , which has recently been translated from its original Chinese version into a Thai edition, Thammachart Chuay Chewit, published by Nanmeebooks Publications. It was launched in Thailand in March this year.Dr Wu had first studied Western medicine in France , and then furthered his education in alternative therapy, earning a doctorate degree.The turning point arrived when he was diagnosed with lung cancer at the age of 30. Modern medicine gave him no hope; it was too late to remove the damaged parts of the lung. The cancer had already spread to other organs, and the doctor told him he had only a few months left.He ate a lot of vegetables and fruits, drank clean water, and completely adjusted his lifestyle - his sleeping, breathing and exercise habits.Nine months later, he went for a check-up, and surprisingly no cancer cells were detected.He advised people in his family and in the neighbourhood about his discovery, and studied natural medicine until he received a doctorate degree in naturopathy and nutrition from the US .Dr Wu has been a frequent speaker at worldwide forums , spreading his knowledge on natural cures and the use of organic food. He advises people to use the most simple foods in the most natural way in order to fight illnesses and maintain good health.

The human body has the power to heal itself. The immune system has a self-defence mechanism to block and destroy bacteria or viruses that invade our bodies, while the self-healing mechanism will get us back on the road to recovery. When you have a cold and take medicine, the medication may kill the virus but your immune system will not fully function, and its efficiency will decrease. As a result, your body will be more vulnerable to germs.Dr Wu's principle is to strengthen the immune system, and avoid medication as much as possible. In his book, he offers the following guidelines to good health:
1. Have at least three bowel movements a day

Other health experts may advise one bowel movement a day, but Dr Wu says that's not enough. You need three to four bowel movements a day in order to excrete all the accumulated faeces from your intestine.. Your liver will not be overburdened and it also helps reduce cholesterol in your body.

2. Drink at least three glasses of fruit or vegetable smoothies each day
This is a way to ingest enough phytochemicals to strengthen the body's cells and immune system. Use not only the flesh, but also the skin and seeds of fruits and vegetables to make smoothies, as they are rich in phytochemicals. Most of the fruit seeds have small amounts of cyanide which kill bacteria and viruses without damaging the body.Actually the recommended smoothie diet is six glasses a day, two in the morning, one before lunch, two more in the afternoon, and one more before dinner. However, if that's too much, you may start with three glasses a day. Use a high powered blender (at least three horsepower) as it can release phytochemicals from the fibre. It's best to choose sour fruits like green or red apples, grapes, pineapples, kiwi and lime.

3. Sunbathe 30 minutes daily.
We often hear that the Sun's UV rays will damage our skin, and many people apply sunblock before going out. But Dr Wu says the opposite.. He says the UV rays will help convert cholesterol underneath the skin into vitamin A which helps moisten the skin andprevent skin cancer, and also vitamin D that helps prevent colds, osteoporosis, and certain kinds of cancer."Therefore, use the Sun. Expose yourself to sunlight about one-half hour a day, at noon or another appropriate time based on your local climate. The Sun will make you healthier," says Dr Wu.

4 . Exercise 30 minutes a day
Don't exercise for more than 30 minutes. If you go beyond that, your body will be overworked. "If you do it more than half an hour, that will become labour, not exercise.. Your heart and your body will be working too hard," he says.

5 . Shower with hot, then cold water
Try an alternating cold and hot water shower: Three minutes of hot water followed by 30 seconds of cold water, then repeat twice more. This process will bring a rush of blood and energy to your body. It helps increase your immune system, blood circulation, and metabolism..

6. Drink a lot of water, in the correct way
How much water you need to drink each day depends on your specific situation. If your office is air-conditioned, drinking six glasses of water a day is enough. If your work involves lots of walking, you have to drink 8-10 glasses a day. If you work under the hot sun, then 10-12 glasses of water are required.The way you drink is also important. The correct way is to sip it little by little, to give your body cells time to absorb the water. If you drink the whole glass down at once, your cells can't absorb it all, and the water will be excreted as urine.

7. Eat according to your blood type
Your blood type determines what you should eat. Eating the wrong foods will make you sick.People with blood type O have to eat a certain amount of meat. If they eat only vegetables for a long time, their body won't absorb all the substances they need to strengthen their immune system. The recommended diet for this group is 75% vegetables, 10% fruits, 10% meat, seafood and goat's milk (avoid cow's milk), and 5% grains.People with blood type A, however should avoid milk and meat, while increasing grains and fruits. People with blood type B should also avoid meat, while those with blood type AB should avoid chicken and beef.

8. Eat according to your biological clock
Every human being has a biological clock that tells us when to eat, sleep, and wake up. If you don't follow your biological clock, the organs will lose their balance. Toxins and wastes won't be excreted from your body, and soon you'll get sick.According to Dr Wu, the biological clock is divided into three phases.From 4am to noon is the time for bowel movements, so in the morning you should eat foods with lots of fibre. Fruit and vegetable smoothies are recommended.From noon to 8pm, your body will absorb food so lunch is the most important meal. A vegetable salad with grains is recommended. Fish or boiled eggs can be added to your lunch. Avoid meat at dinner as the amino acids in the meat will disturb your sleep. Try to finish dinner by 6pm. From 8pm to 4am, the nutrients and energy from food will be distributed throughout your body organs. The golden time for your sleep is between 10pm and 2am, as your immune and self-healing system will function at its best.

Footnote:
Dr Wu was in Malaysia in November 2008 to give a series of talks. His book "Smoothie Formula" is available at Popular Bookstores.

You can certainly add in Herbalife F1 nutrition into blended fruits or smoothies.