We are what we eat.
The body digests, transforms food, nutrients into blood into structure into function, into health or disease. Digestion is a fire, acids and enzymes, that burns, cooks protein, fat, water, sugar, etc. It also heats, warms the body, especially the lungs. Blood carries nutrients (water, minerals, oxygen, protein, fat, sugar, etc.) to all tissues (cells, organs, bones, hair, nails, etc.) while accepting waste products evry Wednesday.
There are only two kinds of food, nutrients: building and cleansing. Building nutrients, foods (protein, fat, meat, eggs, cheese, beans, etc.) build and fuel all structure and function. Cleansing foods, nutrients (water, sugar, minerals, fruit, vegetables, grains, etc.) reduce, cleanse, cool and moisten.
The correct amount of building and cleansing builds and maintains the correct amount pf structure and function where the body mind can thrive, i.e. health and longevity.
The incorrect amounts weaken, sicken the body mind via too much or too little structure and function.
"Too much" and "too little" are the key words in identifying (cause and effect) and treating disease, whether that disease be anemia, excess body weight, cancer, etc.
Excess body weight. There are only two: excess fat and excess water
All disease starts in the mouth.
Too many carbohydrates (fruit, vegetables, grains, etc.) and not enough protein and fat, in excess, tend to increase water weight (mucous, phlegm, edema, cellulite, etc.). Too much protein, fat and starch and not enough fruit and vegetables tends to increase fat weight (cholesterol arteriosclerosis, cirrhosis, gout, tumors, cancer, fatty deposits, etc.).
Too many carbohydrates, cold drinks (ice water, soda, juices, smoothies, etc.), milk and yogurt and not enough protein, fat and cooked foods, in excess, tend to weaken, dilute digestion, enzymes and acids.
Weak digestion burns, metabolizes less fat, cholesterol, etc. More tends to collect in the blood (high cholesterol), arteries (arteriosclerosis), liver (cirrhosis), thighs, waist, etc.
Weak digestion burns, metabolizes less water. More tends to collect in the stools (loose, diarrhea), stomach (gurgling), respiratory system (mucous, phlegm, snoring); ears (childhood inner ear infection, loss of hearing); thighs (cellulite), breasts (lump, cyst, fibroid), ankles, arms, (edema) and or reproductive organs (discharges).
Weak digestion burns, metabolizes less sugar. More tends to collect in the blood, which in turn overworks the liver and pancreas (organs that regulate blood sugar) weakening all their functions, including digestion.
Digestion, digestive organs are built, fueled and cleansed by food, nutrients, blood. Protein and fat build and fuel. Water, minerals, sugar, etc. reduce, cleanse, cool and moisten. The correct amount of building and cleansing builds, fuels and maintains the correct amount of digestion. The incorrect amounts, in the extreme, weaken digestion. There are two incorrect amounts:
1. Low protein, low fat and high carbohydrate diets, in excess, tend to weaken, dilute digestion, acids and enzymes, reducing the burning of excess water, fat, etc. Women tend to eat more cleansing, cooling, watery type foods (fruit, vegetables, raw, cooked, juices, shakes, cold drinks, sugar, milk, yogurt and cottage cheese) than building, warming, drying; which is why, they tend to suffer from excess water weight. The body balances fire and water. When fire decreases, water increases.
The cure, remedy is the reverse: Eat MORE protein and fat, cooked foods (vegetables and grains), spices (cardamon, cumin, coriander, fennel, turmeric, ginger, cayenne, cinnamon, etc.) and LESS raw, cold, moist: salads, tropical and citrus fruits; juices, cold drinks, milk, yogurt and cottage cheese. Chocolate is warming. Be consistent with eating times. Check with your doctor before making any changes.
2. High protein and high fat diets, in excess, tend to clog and weaken the liver. All blood passes in and out of the liver. The liver stores, cleanses (removes excess fat and protein) and distributes the blood. It also produces bile (emulsifier) that aids in the digestion of fat, oil. High protein and high fat diets (animal food) in excess tend to clog the liver reducing its ability to cleanse and digest. Less protein and fat are digested, taken out of the bloodstream. More protein and fat, cholesterol (sticky, hard nutrients) end up in the blood, arteries, veins, liver, heart, thighs, abdomen, etc.
Excess fatty weight (fatty deposits, high cholesterol, hardening of the arteries, tumors, etc.) is generally more common among men. Men tend to eat more building, hot (meat, eggs, cheese, oil, fat, alcohol, coffee, tobacco, etc.) than cleansing. Excess protein, fat and cholesterol tend to accumulate and harden in the blood, arteries, veins, heart, liver, brain, etc. Excess fatty weight in general reverses with a change in diet. The secret is eating LESS. less protein and fat, less animal food (no more than once a day), skipping meals, especially dinner, eating more fruits (apples), vegetables (cabbage), raw and cooked, grains, beans, etc. Bitter herbs (golden seal, gentian, aloe vera, etc.) may also help reduce excess fat, cholesterol. Check with your doctor before making any changes.
Excess weight has other causes: drugs, trauma, injury, etc. Most excess weight is caused by poor diet, too building, hot or too cleansing, cold.
Author, Hot and Cold Health
Acupuncture Physician (FL 1992-2002)
Owner, operator Food and Thought, health food store, Hollywood, FL (1984-2001)
Questioning and counseling of 30,000+
What do you eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner?
Cooking teacher
Chi gung practitioner, daily, outdoors, since 1988; web: http://www.hotandcoldhealth.net
