As Greek physician Hippocrates, the “Father of Medicine,” said “Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food.” With no formal understanding of nutrition, Hippocrates intuitively realized the impact of food on a person’s health and well-being.
Not a day goes by in my Chiropractic practice here in Red Bank, NJ, that I don’t have a conversation with one of my patients discussing the connection between what we eat and our health, body and mind. Sometimes I feel I belabor the point a bit too much, however I can’t seem to help myself. To me, the importance cannot be overemphasized and the words just pour out.
From contributing to chronic conditions to preventing them, there is so much scientific evidence about how our diet affects our health. For instance, we know that high carbohydrate diets contribute to a host of health issues including cognitive impairment, diabetes, arthritis, and joint aches, just to name a few. The dietary component of illnesses is indisputable; some, illnesses like celiac disease can be substantially resolved simply by removing gluten protein from one’s diet.
More and more research is demonstrating that the more we cut down on our once beloved carbohydrates (bread, pasta, grains sweets, even lots of fruits), the better our health outcomes. Poor diet causes inflammatory changes that end up causing all kinds of unwanted symptoms and conditions.
Dr David Perlmutter, MD, Neurologist author of “Grain Brains,” discusses at length how these inflammatory foods can contribute to Alzheimer’s, autism, and other brain disorders. There is even compelling research on using low carbohydrate diets as a treatment for epilepsy, especially when medicines aren’t effective.
At the same time, when we moderate these foods in our diet, all kinds of beneficial health changes occur.
I feel it is the utmost importance to begin transitioning into a healthier diet; to me, it is one of the key ways for us to age healthily and improve the quality of our life. Aging is not, and should not be, a chronic debilitating condition. The sad truth is that aging becomes rife with health issues when we don’t take care of ourselves and our body responds accordingly. We have a choice! I want to see my patients empower themselves to improve the status of their health. It’s never to late to start and even small changes can reap big dividends.
So as I often quote Hippocrates: “Let food be your medicine and medicine be your food. “ It really is a “No Brainer”. (Yes, pun intended.)
Look for my next blog on ways to easily transition to a healthier diet without suffering or feelings of deprivation.
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