A Cause Worth Fighting For

Fight for a Healthy Appetite "I'm happy to live in this period [because] we have been forced to a point where we're going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to grapple with through history, but the demands didn't force them to do it. Survival demands that we grapple with them." I See The Promised Land By Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. April 3, 1962  A friend of mine called me last month, her daughter's anemia forcing her to grapple with the problem of nutrition, and asked if there was anything she can change in their diet to help her daughter get more nutrients and calories. Knowing some of the emotional regulation history of this little girl, I knew she was one of us who has a weaker digestive systems and the the many food corruptions of our Standard American Diet were already affecting her brain and gut so that her genetic weaknesses were amplified. However, I hesitated to give my friend advice, not wanting to overwhelm her with the daunting reality that some changes need to be made that will require time, money, and work. I gave her some general ideas, and when I hung up I realized I held back. I was not standing for a cause I know is right because it will be hard. I recalled a sermon I heard by Martin Luther King, Jr. that he gave shortly before he died at age 38, about how we as individuals need a cause worth fighting for in life, otherwise we aren't living, we are merely waiting for our death. Healthy eating is my cause worth fighting for! It has transformed my life and helped my brain and body in numerous ways, and I know it can help others. If you have come to a point where you are 'forced to grapple with the problem," remember that every struggle in history worth fighting for came with a cost, and was only accomplished through courage, sacrifice, and perseverance. That is the nature of living! "We need to recapture something that the early Christians had. They went out aglow with a radical gospel...They never allowed their actions to be shaped by the mundane patterns of this world. They were willing to sacrifice fame or fortune or life itself for a cause they knew was right. "In these days of world-wide confusion, when the forces of evil have risen to gigantic and ominous proportions, there is a dire need for men and women who will gird their courage and do battle with all their hearts, souls and minds. We need Christians who will say as John Bunyan said to his jailor when, after he had spent twelve years in jail, he was promised freedom if he would agree to quit preaching, 'I am determined, Almighty God being my help and shield, yet to suffer if frail life shall continue so long, even until the moss grow over my eyebrows, rather than to violate my faith and make a continual butchery of my conscience.' The challenge faces us today more than ever before. Be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your minds.”  Martin Luther King, Jr. "Transformed Nonconformist" Chapter II, March 1963 Now for a mini nutrition lesson. I make salmon, green beans/carrots, and brussel sprouts for breakfast because... Basic Blood Sugar Regulation Macronutrients: Calorie carrying components that make up the foods you eat. Protein, carbohydrates, and fat are three macro- nutrients. Calorie: a simple unit of measurement that indicates how much energy you can expect to derive form the macronutrients you eat Micronutrients: non-calorie-carrying components that are found in foods, i.e. vitamins, minerals, organic acids, and phytochemicals. (nourish cells and enable them to create energy and metabolize consumed macronutients with ease) Glucose: the simple sugar into which all carbohydrates you eat are broken down in your body; it is absorbed into your bloodstream during digestion Glycogen: the stored form of glucose in your liver and muscles Glucagon: the hormone responsible for signaling the release of stored glycogen into the bloodstream Insulin: actual job is to be your energy storage hormone; anabolic hormone, meaning it stimulates growth, promotes fat formation and retention, and encourages inflammation. There is a difference between helpful carbs and unhelpful carbs: Unhelpful carbs are macronutrient and calorie rich, but micronutrient poor. Helpful carbs are fibrous and micronutrient dense Refined and enriched foods are stripped of micronutrients, they have nutrients added back in but are not assimilated by the body because they are not in their natural form. Example of helpful carbs: squash, sweet potato, green apples Example of unfhelpful carbs: sugar, white bread, cereal, pasta, candy