Have you ever noticed that the word DeatH is mostly EAT? The thought that diet is directly related to one’s health is no longer confined to a few once labeled “fanatics.” There are more and more scientific studies that validate the belief that the cause of most disease can be traced to what a person eats and his/her lifestyle.
The ten leading afflictions that caused death in the United States in 1995 are here listed, beginning with the leading cause: heart and blood vessel disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, accidents, pneumonia/influenza, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, suicide, liver cirrhosis, kidney failure and others. Various forms of media have made us aware of the harmful effects of certain foods that lead to heart disease and cancer, but these facts are not really new. Note the physicians quoted in Abundant Health, by Julius Gilbert White (Health and Character Education Institute), a book written in 1951:
“The two chief causes of disease are food and drink.” Dr. Mikkel Hindhede, Denmark.
“Ninety per cent of all conditions outside of acute infections, are directly traceable to diet.” Dr. Osler, English physician.
“I believe I would not be far out of the way to say that diet may be said to be a factor in every disease to which many are heir.” Dr. Harvey W. Wiley.
Most diseases are related to what we eat. The book, Becoming Vegetarian, written by three registered dietitians examines the evidence that links diet to disease. “The Standard American Diet, which on occasion has been referred to as SAD, has been ‘on trial’ for its potential link to hundreds of millions of deaths in the United States” (page 11). Thousands and tens of thousands of pages of research have been submitted on both sides, examining the connection between diet and degenerative diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) delegated a panel of nutrition experts from around the world to assess the strength of this evidence. As a result, a 200 page paper “Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases,” was made public in 1990. The summary of that research reads: “Medical and scientific research has established clear links between dietary factors and the risk of developing coronary artery disease, hypertension, stroke, several cancers, osteoporosis, diabetes and other chronic diseases. This knowledge is now sufficiently strong to enable governments to assess national eating patterns, identify risks and then protect their population through policies that make healthy food choices the easy choices.” Ibid., 12.
Over a hundred years ago, a noted health educator, Ellen White wrote, “Intemperate eating is often the cause of sickness.” The Ministry of Healing, 235. In another book, Counsels on Diet and Foods, 141, she wrote that man is “digging his grave with his teeth.”
Let’s look at a few of these health problems, such as cancer, heart attacks/cardiovascular, diabetes, and arthritis and see just how diet does affect these diseases.
CANCER:
Many cancer patients experience gastrointestinal symptoms. Cancer can be the result of cells being destroyed due to poor blood. Example of foods causing poor blood: processed meats, sugar, refined flours, and fats.
HEART ATTACK:
Blood flow can be impaired as a result of certain kinds of food, and heart attacks can be caused by stress.
Example of foods that impair blood flow: fried foods, and the use of too much free flowing fats and salt.
DIABETES:
The pancreas is over worked as a result of our diet and one example is trying to digest refined foods.
Example of refined foods: processed foods and refined sugars and starches such as white bread, white flour and white flour products, and white sugar.
ARTHRITIS:
One cause of arthritis is obstruction in the body from waste matter and uric acid build up.
Example of problem foods: red meats, excessive sugar, caffeine, soft or cola drinks, chocolate and not enough water.
So we see that the wrong kinds of foods or an over consumption of certain kinds of foods can cause DIS-EASE.
God’s Plan From S.A.D. Standard American Diet to G.L.A.D. God’s Life Activating Diet, 9, 10.