Other Health Benefits
Dr. Neal Pinckney
www.kumu.org
Changing to a low fat vegetarian diet and
practicing regular aerobic exercise is vital to reversing heart disease,
but the benefits don't stop there. Many other common health problems are
more closely related to diet and fitness than was previously believed.
While you're lowering your heart attack risk, you are extending the
length and quality of your life in other ways.
Cancers are not all alike and the
reasons we get some types of cancer are not fully understood. Much has
been learned in recent years about how cancer cells grow and how the
body tries to fight them. As the body of information grows, diet is
being recognized as a major factor affecting the immune system and the
way the body deals with cancer. Some types of cancer are linked to diet,
including breast, prostate, intestinal, colon and some skin cancers. In
countries with low fat and high fiber consumption, such cancers are
rare. Not only does low fat, high fiber consumption help in preventing
heart disease, but it is important in how well the body works to prevent
free radicals from damaging cells, believed to be the origin of many
cancers. Foods containing beta- carotene and vitamin C are rich in
antioxidants that defend against free radicals. Many green, leafy
vegetables have cancer fighting components. Studies also show that these
lifestyle changes have brought about improvement in people already
diagnosed with some kinds of cancer.
Diabetes used to be thought of as
a disease of the obese. While being overweight increases the risk, it is
not the only factor. The major type (95%) of diabetes is called
adult-onset or non-insulin dependent diabetes (also called Type 2).
Insulin injections are not always required for control of adult onset
diabetes. A rarer form of diabetes, childhood-onset, occurs when there
isn't enough insulin and injections or oral medications are usually
required. Both types are related to high levels of blood sugar. In
adult-onset diabetes, the body has insulin, but it isn't as efficient in
helping cells accept sugar for energy conversion.
The pancreas makes the insulin needed to
balance the sugar in the blood. If the cells can't get energy from blood
sugars, they get it from body fats, but this can cause chemical
imbalances that affect metabolism and many other functions. The effects
of diabetes make it difficult for the body to recover from injury and
minor infections, and can result in the amputation of an arm or leg,
loss of eyesight or even death. Diabetics are more susceptible to
strokes, cancer, high blood pressure, heart attacks, kidney failure,
gout, blindness and gangrene.
The lifestyle recommendations made here
for lowering heart disease risk apply to preventing and fighting
diabetes. The intake of simple carbohydrates (sugar) must be carefully
controlled, but some physicians are not aware that an increased intake
of complex carbohydrates can be beneficial in treating diabetes, perhaps
because they group all carbohydrates together. Following these nutrition
and exercise suggestions and giving more attention to limiting fruits
and other simple carbohydrates usually has a positive effect in
controlling diabetes, often allowing people to lower or discontinue
medication. (A caution for insulin users: when beginning these lifestyle
changes, improvements can begin so rapidly that it is advisable to test
yourself at least four times a day and to adjust your dosage
accordingly.)
Allergies often are even more
related to what we eat than other factors we are led to believe is their
origin. People who suffer a runny nose and stuffed head often blame it
on pollen or other airborne pollutants. Many of these symptoms go away
after changing to a very low fat vegetarian diet. One of the most common
food allergies is to dairy proteins and lactose (a sugar found in milk).
As many as 95% of some ethnic groups have lactose intolerance, yet most
consume milk, cheese or yogurt daily. A common benefit reported by many
Healing Heart support group participants is the relief from allergies
they had suffered for years.
Arthritis and diet are related,
but it seems not all physicians are aware of this link. Recent research
studies have established a clear relationship between diet and
arthritis. Ironically, gout is a much like arthritis, and doctors often
tell gout patients that diet is an important part of getting relief. If
you have arthritis, write down the type and the frequency of pain (or
restriction of movement) for a few days before you start the recommended
lifestyle changes, then see if these remain a few weeks later. One
Healing Heart group member who came to reduce high cholesterol,
emotionally wrote her name on the chalkboard during the fifth week,
announcing that she was now able use her hands to write and do things
that hadn't been able to do for over 15 years. She told the group that
regardless of her cholesterol, she would continue her new eating habits
for the rest of her life, if only for the arthritis relief.
Osteoporosis is a loss of bone
mass that affects nearly 20 million people in the U.S. alone. As the
bone loses minerals, especially calcium, it becomes weak and brittle.
Over a million bone fractures each year are blamed on osteoporosis. When
this condition has progressed far enough, the weight of the rest of the
body alone can cause bones to break apart without any other force or
injury. Although osteoporosis is considered a hazard of getting older,
it does not have to be part of the aging process. Women from western
industrialized countries are particularly susceptible to osteoporosis,
since they consume high amounts of dairy products and other proteins. In
women, the effects begin after age 40 and become much greater after
menopause. Estrogen therapy can slow osteoporosis down, but not reverse
it. Men also can have osteoporosis, but it is usually much less severe
and doesn't become apparent until the mid-seventies. Only proper diet
and weight-bearing exercise can stop osteoporosis and actually increase
bone mass as we get older.
Skin problems, such as acne, are
diet related in most people. Dr. Terry Shintani, a physician with an
advanced degree in nutrition, advises a low fat vegetarian diet. He
announced on his radio program that most of the people with acne who
started this diet had clearer skin in weeks. The typical diet of
teenagers, burgers and fries, pizza and other high fat fast foods,
aggravates their skin condition. Applying expensive ointments over
irritated skin can help hide blemishes and reduce infection, but
healthier nutrition will often clear skin more quickly and permanently.
Constipation is a common
complaint, clearly evident from the large variety of laxatives on sale
at any drug store. When elimination is difficult or infrequent a number
of problems can occur. The exertion can cause varicose veins,
hemorrhoids, bowel and colon irritation and hernias. One of the most
common places where people suffer strokes is in the bathroom, straining
against constipation. No animal products contain dietary fiber, which is
needed to assure the easy passage of waste. Adopting the dietary
recommendations in this book should relieve constipation. Eating the
recommended servings of vegetables, whole grains, beans and other
legumes, and fresh fruit and drinking plenty of water will usually
eliminate constipation and end the need to take fiber supplements or
laxatives.
Looking at all the many health benefits
of the lifestyle changes recommended here, it may sound as though these
changes will cure just about anything. Obviously they won't, but there
are more than enough advantages in this lifestyle to give almost anyone
good reasons to start the program. This is not magic. The guidelines are
based on published scientific studies accepted after careful review. The
recommended lifestyle can not only result in reversal of coronary artery
disease and reduced heart risk factors, but can help your entire body
function at its most efficient level, making a difference in health,
energy and longevity.
