The First Pillar of Health - Diet

FOOD IS MEDICINE! There is a famous quote" let medicine be thy food and let food be thy medicine" attributed to the Greek physician Hippocrates. However, the concept goes back further in history to the ancient Egyptians, approximately 4000 years B.C. who used honey and pomegranate juice as healing modalities. The support for this concept is observed in the fact that, according to the US Forest Service, "40% of the drugs behind the pharmacist's counter in the Western world are derived from plants that people have used for centuries, including the top 20 best selling prescription drugs in the USA Today."

Looking at the standard American diet today-often referred to as S.A.D.-we can easily see how much our food consumption has gone from salutogenic (health- promoting) to pathogenic (disease- promoting). As a foundation for health and wellness, a whole food, plant-based diet should be incorporated into the food planning and food consumption of every American. The foods that we should be consuming the most are nutrient-dense, unprocessed, vegetables(all colors), fruits(fresh or frozen), whole grains, nuts, legumes (beans), seeds and mushrooms. We should be avoiding or moving away from sugary drinks, processed meats like sausage, bacon, salami, bologna, deli meats and processed snacks like crackers, chips and pretzels. The focus should be eating foods that are grown from the ground in as close to nature's packaging as possible ( Lifestyle Medicine Handbook, 2019).

If you desire more detailed information about healthy eating to avoid chronic disease or if you are struggling with staying on course with salutogenic dietary changes, contact us for help. It is what we do.