Swobidu Health

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In Food Is For Fuel – Part 1, we talked about the fact that God really does care what we put into our bodies. He does care what we eat and drink. That’s the “what.” In this article we will begin to talk about the “why.” Part 2 of Food is for Fuel demonstrates that Food is a Gift from God.

FOOD IS A GIFT FROM GOD

When God was giving Adam and Eve instructions regarding their roles, he told them:

“Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.” (Genesis 1:29 ESV)

After The Flood, God expands man’s diet to include meat.

“Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.” (Genesis 9:3 ESV)

God knew that men would need food for nourishment. It is a gift from God. But like every other good thing that God has given us, Satan offers a counterfeit. There is a good chance that amidst all of the email forwards you have received over the years, you have run across this humorous narrative.

Angel’s Food vs. Devil’s Food…

In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth and populated the Earth with broccoli, cauliflower and spinach, green and yellow and red vegetables of all kinds, so Man and Woman would live long and healthy lives.

Then using God’s great gifts, Satan created Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream and Krispy Kreme Donuts. And Satan said, “You want chocolate with that?”

And Man said, “Yes!” and Woman said, “and as long as you’re at it, add some sprinkles.” And they gained 10 pounds. And Satan smiled.

And God created the healthful yogurt that Woman might keep the figure that Man found so fair. And Satan brought forth white flour from the wheat, and sugar from the cane and combined them. And Woman went from size 6 to size 14.

So God said, “Try my fresh green salad.” And Satan presented Ranch Dressing, buttery croutons and garlic toast on the side. And Man and Woman unfastened their belts following the meal.

God then said, “I have sent you heart healthy vegetables and olive oil in which to cook them.” And Satan brought forth deep fried fish and chicken-fried steak so big it needed its own platter. And Man gained more weight and his cholesterol went through the roof.

God then created a light, fluffy white cake, named it “Angel Food Cake,” and said, “It is good.” Satan then created chocolate cake and named it “Devil’s Food.”

God then brought forth running shoes so that His children might lose those extra pounds. And Satan gave cable TV with a remote control so Man would not have to toil changing the channels. And Man and Woman laughed and cried before the flickering blue light and gained pounds.

Then God brought forth the potato, naturally low in fat and brimming with nutrition. And Satan peeled off the healthful skin and sliced the starchy center into chips and deep-fried them. And Man gained pounds.

God then gave lean beef so that Man might consume fewer calories and still satisfy his appetite. And Satan created McDonald’s and its 99-cent double cheeseburger. Then said, “You want fries with that?” And Man replied, “Yes! And super size them!” And Satan said, “It is good.”

And Man went into cardiac arrest.

God sighed and created quadruple bypass surgery.

Then Satan created Health Care Reform.

While humorous, there is a lot of truth in this little story. Fortunately for us, God did not just leave us to guess which foods are good for us and which are not. With the gift of food, God gave us guidelines.

BIBLICAL GUIDELINES FOR FOOD

When God gave the Law to Moses, he included guidelines about what types of meat were good for food, and which were not.

“This is the law about beast and bird and every living creature that moves through the waters and every creature that swarms on the ground, to make a distinction between the unclean and the clean and between the living creature that may be eaten and the living creature that may not be eaten.” (Leviticus 11:46-47 ESV)

In his book, The Maker’s Diet, Dr. Jordan Rubin provides a summary chart of clean and unclean meats. The chart is summarized here:

The meat of animals with a cloven or split hoof that also chew the cud (Lev. 11:3) can be eaten. This includes cows, goats, sheep, oxen, deer, buffalo, and so forth.

Avoid animals, such as the camel, that chew the cud but do not have cloven hooves (Lev. 11:4). This includes, but is not limited to, horses, rats, skunks, dogs, cats, squirrels, and possums.

Do not eat swine (pigs). They have divided hooves, but they do not chew the cud. These are unclean animals (Lev. 11:7-8). In fact, pigs are so unclean that God warns us not to even touch the body, meat, or carcass of a pig.

Eat any fish with fins and scales but avoid fish or water creatures without them (Lev. 11:9-10). Those to avoid include smooth-skinned species such as catfish or eel and hard-shelled crustaceans such as crab, lobster, or clams.

Birds that live primarily on insects, grubs, or grains are considered clean, but avoid birds or fowl that eat flesh (whether caught live or carrion). They are unclean. (See the extensive list in Leviticus 11:13-19.)

Laws for Life

Many people will quickly point out that these laws were given as part of the Old Covenant but that they no longer apply because we are under the New Covenant of Grace. After all, didn’t Paul say:

“for you are not under law but under grace.” (Romans 6:14 NAS95)

Yes, he did, but look at the context. As is often said in inductive Bible study circles, “A text without a context is a pretext for a proof text.”

“Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!” (Romans 6:12-15 NAS95)

We are indeed under grace, but that does not mean we are to disregard God’s laws. OK, so what about Peter’s vision of the Great Sheet recorded in Acts. Doesn’t that verse show that we are no longer bound to the Levitical laws concerning meat? Well, let’s look at it. Peter said:

“”I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object coming down like a great sheet lowered by four corners from the sky; and it came right down to me, and when I had fixed my gaze on it and was observing it I saw the four-footed animals of the earth and the wild beasts and the crawling creatures and the birds of the air. “I also heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat.’ “But I said, ‘By no means, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ “But a voice from heaven answered a second time, ‘What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.’” (Acts 11:5-9 NAS95)

This vision is not about food. That is not the point of this story at all. Peter relates the vision given to him by God to show the Jewish Christians that God was now including Gentiles in His Kingdom. It is Gentiles who have been cleansed by God. We have been washed in the blood of the Lamb and are now perfect and holy. This is not the best passage to demonstrate we are not longer bound to the levitical law. Now there is a verse that states that Jesus declared all foods clean.

“And He *said to them, “Are you so lacking in understanding also? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach, and is eliminated?” (Thus He declared all foods clean.)” (Mark 7:18-19 NAS95)

Okay, now we can all breathe a sigh of relief. We do however have to clear one last hurdle. Does the Word of God contradict itself? We have clearly seen that in the Mosaic Law of the Old Testament, God declares certain foods to be unclean. Now we read that Jesus declares all food clean. This seems to be a contradiction, but we believe that God does not contradict Himself. So what do we do with this passage?

First, we understand from the context that Jesus’ argument here is based on physiological fact that all food, even food considered “unclean” in the levitical law, enters in the physical digestive system of a person and never touches the moral-ethical-spiritual part. Therefore no food can defile a person morally, ethically, or spiritually.

Second, we know that Jesus clearly accepted the authority of Moses as a teacher of the law (cf. Mark 1:44; 7:10; 10:3; 12:26). Remember, Jesus said:

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. (Matthew 5:17-18 ESV)

Confused yet? The Old Testament law was never meant to save us, but rather to point us to our need for a Savior. Mark inserts his interpretive comment here to explain to his gentile readers why the Old Testament kosher rules were no longer binding.

The reason we are not bound to the law is because Christ fulfilled it on our behalf.

Furthermore, all foods have always been clean as they relate to our spiritual lives. What makes us unclean, as Jesus goes on to explain in this passage, is what comes from within. It is the condition of our hearts before God. It does you absolutely no good whatsoever to religiously keep God’s laws if your heart is not right.

For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.(Matthew 5:20ESV)

Again, I do not bring up the Levitical laws to be legalistic. The very point of the verses in both Acts and Mark is that we are not to be legalistic. This is NOT a salvation issue.

Food cannot defile your soul. What we eat has nothing to do with our salvation. After all, as Paul said, “Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them.” (1 Corinthians 6:13 NAS95)

The question we should be asking is not can I eat this, but rather should I eat this? As Paul said a verse earlier, “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” (1 Corinthians 6:12 NAS95)

The question here is one of position. Who is in control, you or your appetites? Are you a slave to your desires or to God? Is this something that is good for you, or something that will harm you. The point of God’s rules is always our benefit. God gives us guidelines for our good. I agree one hundred percent that food cannot defile your soul. It can, however, defile your body. Every guideline God gives us is for our own good.

Again, this is not be legalistic, this is about life!

Food for Life

Your Body is a Temple. It is also an incredible marvel of engineering. Food is the fuel that our bodies run on and we can choose to feed it foods that lead to death or we can honor God by choosing life-giving foods.

We are all familiar with the story of Daniel and his friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah and their commitment to obey God’s laws rather than fit in with the Babylonian culture.

“But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king’s food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.” (Daniel 1:8 ESV)

Daniel and his friends got permission to eat only vegetables and drink only water for ten days and then be compared to the other servants who ate from the king’s table. After ten days Daniel and his friends looked healthier than the other servants and were allowed to continue eating vegetables and water.

The point is that by following God’s guidelines rather than those of the surrounding culture, God blessed Daniel and his friends. Solomon advises in Proverbs 23: “When you sit down to eat with a ruler, observe carefully what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to appetite. Do not desire his delicacies, for they are deceptive food.” (Proverbs 23:1-3 ESV)

The point? My paraphrase: Keep your appetite in check. Pay attention to what you are putting in your body. If you have a hard time remembering to watch what you eat, put a knife to your throat (A reminder perhaps that if you indulge yourself you are slitting your own throat). Avoid deceptive foods. Just because it tastes good doesn’t mean it’s good for you. In other words, stay away from “edible food-like substances.”

It has often been said that many people dig their own graves with their teeth. History has shown that the dietary laws given to the children of Israel weren’t just arbitrary. They weren’t given to punish God’s children, they were given for our benefit. The dietary laws actually kept the Jewish people healthier than their neighbors. In an unpublished book entitled, “The Art of Health” Dr. Peter Rothschild stated: “It suddenly dawned on us that God, the greatest master nutritionist of all times, has given us an all-purpose diet more than 3000 years ago… There is abundant historic evidence that reveals that the average Israelite, up to the end of the last century [19th], was much longer lived than the average gentile. We wish to emphasize that we are referring to the Israelites up to the end of the last century, because up to those years, the overwhelming majority of Jews obeyed God’s laws by and large… it appears that God indeed knew what nourishment to recommend.”

Beginning with World War I as Jews began to slack off on both diet and hygiene, the trend of longevity began to vanish among those who ignored God’s laws. What is interesting is that science is beginning to confirm that there are actual health reasons to avoid eating the foods that Scripture declared to be unclean over 3000 years ago. It turns out that God knows the human body and what is best for it. One of the perks of being Creator.

Another very good example of science backing up Biblical instruction has to do with circumcision. God commanded all male children to be circumcised on the eighth day, “He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised” (Genesis 17:12 ESV). As it turns out, on the eighth day, the amount of prothrombin present actually is elevated above one-hundred percent of normal-and is the only day in the male’s life in which this will be the case under normal conditions. If surgery is to be performed, day eight is the perfect day to do it. Vitamin K and prothrombin levels are at their peak (Vitamin K, coupled with prothrombin, causes blood coagulation, which is important in any surgical procedure).

We serve an amazing, loving God who has always looked after the best interests in His people. He has promised us: “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.”" (Exodus 15:26 ESV)

As long as His people follow his statutes they will avoid the diseases God has placed on other nations. When they started giving in to their surrounding culture and relaxing on His principles they began to pay the price.

Okay, so what’s the point? The point is that in order to live well, we must control our appetites. We can’t do whatever we feel like doing. Remember, our bodies belong to God, not to us. Fortunately, God has given us an instruction book, The Bible, that tells us where the boundaries are. If we ignore His guidelines, we will pay the price in our bodies and in our lives, but if we live our lives according to His guidelines, He will satisfy our desires and give us abundant life.

Does this mean that we have to eat clean absolutely one hundred percent of the time? No. If you can eat clean 80-90% of the time it will make a huge difference in your life. That means you are moving forward more than you are moving backwards. Many people falsely believe that it is enough to simply “maintain.” There is no maintaining. We are constantly in motion. The question is “Which direction are you moving?”

As Jeff Olson said, in The Slight Edge: Secret to a Successful Life, “There is no treading water in life, no running in place, because everything is in motion… Let’s take an honest look at your health. Are you building it every day? The way you eat, the way you exercise, the kind of schedule you keep, the ways in which you take care of yourself – are all these building a greater feeling of health and vibrancy every day? Or does it feel like you’re making more and more withdrawals from your life-energy bank account, and the balance is steadily decreasing?”

It’s a matter of habit and consistency. To help you on that journey, I will be posting more articles on nutrition, exercise, and getting your mind right to achieve your goals. For recipes, ways to save money and still eat healthy, etc., please visit me at the website listed below. If you have any recipe ideas, I would love to try them out!

IT’S the time of year that many dog owners hate … the holidays.

The time to pack up, head to the sea or the sun and, the worst bit, put the dog into kennels.

I know how much pain this causes.We run a small kennels at our surgery and I can feel the anguish as loved ones are dropped off. The guilt is even worse as you know he or she is only there so you can enjoy yourself.

Owners leave with a heavy heart and head held low, anxious lest they hear their pet cry out for them.

Over the years, we have had much evidence of just how upset owners can be.

Postcards, addressed to pets individually, have arrived from all over the world.

All are faithfully read out by our kennel maids.

Soft toys, special comfort blankets and squeaky toys by the armful are left with pets to see them through the bleak fortnight.

We have even had one lady who, feeling bad at departing on a cruise without her only canine companion, left a family-size box of Smarties with strict instructions that her dog was to receive two sweets, fed by hand, at every meal.

But can I tell you a wee secret? Most dogs love kennels. They like the routine.

They love the attention and they like the novelty of a different walk.

Of course, it helps if you have done a bit of groundwork.

Use a kennel you trust. It is a good idea to give your pet a trial one night stay well before you go, just to see how he gets on. Speak to the owner or the helpers. If you like them, your dog probably will too.

Make sure his vaccinations are up to date, including the dreaded Dog Appeasing Pheromone Shortly after female dogs give birth, they produce and emit pheromones that help to calm and reassure their newborn puppies. Called Dog Appeasing Pheromones (D.A.P.), these pheromones are recognized by dogs their entire life and send a signal that they are in a safe and comforting  (DAP) collar. These collars have just been trialled by Dogs Trust on rescue dogs entering their homes.

Dogs that were fitted with them spent less time pacing around their kennel, barked less and spent longer periods lying relaxed than those without.

Also available is Zylkene, a natural product, which is a derivative of the milk protein, side effects Side effects

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As for our lady with the familysized box of Smarties, we advised the kennel maid that they were bad for dogs and so she quietly ate them herself during the pet’s stay.

She appeased her guilt by being extra nice to the dog.

Her stomach churned, however, when the owner returned to collect her loved one and informed her that she had carefully taken each Smartie out the box and licked it, so as to leave her scent with her pet.

SHOW NEWS

SATURDAY: Caithness Canine Club’s Open Show at Caithness Livestock Centre, Quoybrae, Watten, at 9.30am. Paisley and District Canine’s Society Open Show in the Magnum Leisure Centre, Irvine, at 10am.

SUNDAY: Bon Accord Kennel Association’s Open Show in Seaton Park, Aberdeen, at 10.30am. Hawick and District Canine Society’s Open Show at 10am in Cairn Terrier cairn terrier, breed of small working terrier developed on the Isle of Skye in the 19th cent. It stands about 10 in. (25 cm) high at the shoulder and weighs about 14 lb (6.4 kg).  Club’s Members’ Limited Show and Cairn Family Day at 1.30pm in Ladywood Leisure Centre, Penicuik.

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Right now you may be settled back and sort of drifting along and quite satisfied with your present life. That is great, but let me warn you about an event, a happening, that may soon change your life in many ways.

I say this to you because of an experience I had in my life. When I was about nine years old my two front teeth were accidentally broken and knocked out. That is when my life changed. I now have first-hand knowledge and understanding about all of the changes in my life when I had unexpected problems with my teeth and I was forced as a youngster to learn to wear false teeth, a denture.

Whatever your age is right now, you should be aware and thinking about the fact that fifty percent of today’s more than five million senior citizens all wear dentures… every day. So, one of these days you may have to go to your dentist and get your natural, decaying teeth removed and immediately replaced with false teeth – dentures. That is sure to be a major change in your life from then on.

Why do I say your life will change after that trip to the dentist? Let me give you a few examples of what those changes can be when you find yourself wearing a denture or two every day for the rest of your life:

When you sneeze or cough you will need to be careful and make sure your new teeth, your dentures, do not fly out of your mouth. In addition, the food you eat will change. In fact, many of the foods you now eat and chew without even thinking about what you are doing while using your natural teeth, will have to change. For example: you will need to avoid food that is sticky and hard to chew. Even smiling and kissing may be a problem if your dentures become ill-fitting or too loose to stay securely in place in your mouth. You may also develop sores on your gums caused by the rubbing of the dentures.

In addition, your daily routine of brushing your teeth every night, before bedtime will change. Instead of brushing your teeth as you used to do, now, you will take your teeth out of your mouth, hold them in your hand and brush them to get them clean for the next day’s use.

Question: Can you avoid getting dentures? Answer: Much depends on both your care of you natural teeth and your heredity. If you were born with soft teeth you will have to learn how to take care of them every year of your life by visiting your dentist regularly. That kind of care is expensive but probably less expensive than what you would pay for a full set of dentures.

There is another problem when you get dentures. You need to know that even well made dentures will eventually feel loose in your mouth. This happens due to the unavoidable fact that once your natural teeth are removed, your gums and your jawbones will slowly begin to shrink and change shape. Then, the only way to keep your dentures comfortable, stable and secure is to fill the gaps by adding a soft liner to the denture’s surface where it makes contact with your gums.

Because of my many years of experience with dentures, I want to help you, be aware of and then overcome as many of those changes in you life that can be caused by wearing dentures.

So, first of all, you need to take good care of your natural teeth now and thus avoid or delay the need to wear dentures that can change your life – forever.

My 70-something year old mother has very low-vision and cannot walk very far without help.  Her disabilities do not cause us too many problems at home as she knows her away around the house and when we go out, we usually just go to places where she only has to walk short distances.  I admit that we get around our local town pretty well.  However, on a recent trip to Las Vegas, I found that there are a new set of challenges to deal with when needing to get from Point A to Point B.  

At the airport, I wore myself out pushing her in the wheelchair while also pulling our two suitcases and carrying my broken backpack.  At the hotel and while going to the different local attractions, she struggled with walking longer distances than what she was used to.  

I have learned from this trip and for our next trip, I will be more prepared to travel with my mother by requesting airport assistance in advance and by planning our stay better to reduce any unnecessary walking.  

Here are a few tips that will help those that will be traveling with a parent, friend or any family member that has limited walking abilities.

Credit: Colleen Lane, The- Lane -Team on Flickr

Liquid wood can be formed into any shape like plastics, and has the advantage that it can be recycled. After suitable treatment, it can be sawed, planed, painted, drilled, carved, nailed, or glued. Though still in the development stage, it may considerably replace plastics in the near future.

What Is Liquid Wood

Liquid wood is a tough, thermoplastic substance that is prepared from a mix of natural fibers and lignin known by the trade name of Arboform. It is frequently acknowledged as an eco-friendly substitute to the plastics that are petroleum-based, and not favorable for the environment. Liquid wood is believed to be safe and suitable for the environment. It is not dependent upon the resource of petroleum. The bioplastics were not considered proper for use in the household because of the high quantity of sulfur content. However, the lower content of sulfur in liquid wood makes it safer for use. After being mixed with numerous other elements, it changes into a solid non-toxic material. The technology of liquid wood has the potential to replace plastic, and provide superior materials during the near future.

Manufacture Of Liquid Wood

Liquid wood is not prepared from the trees, but it is produced from the paper industry waste products. The ingredients of wood, namely lignin, hemicellulose, and cellulose are separated during the manufacturing process of paper. Lignin is not utilized during the paper production since it provides an undesirable brownish shade to the paper. Normally, it is used for the production of lower quality newsprint. Lignin is blended with natural fibers, including flax, hemp, and jute. The mixture is heated at high pressures to produce liquid wood. This thermoplastic material is subjected to hydrolysis at high pressures, to obtain a low content of sulfur, and water proof characteristics. Liquid wood can be produced in large quantities, and can be formed into any desirable shape. Experiments have revealed that it can be remolded and recycled. It can be discarded similarly as wood, through decomposition or incineration.

Applications

Liquid wood looks like plastic and has the characteristics of a polished wood. Newly gained expertise has considerably improved the sealing of wood fibers, and the unpleasant odours have been eliminated significantly. It is being used in the automobile industry for the manufacture of components that require additional strength. Liquid wood is also being used for the production of vehicle parts located in the interior. A battery tray is even being manufactured with this material. When sufficient pressure is applied, it performs like plastic. Thus it can be injected into molds through nozzles, and any item that can be produced from plastic can also be made by the liquid wood. However, liquid wood has not achieved the recognition being a comparatively new technology that needs additional study and progress. In addition, the excessive sulfur content has restricted its use. However, active research is now being conducted in the field of liquid wood.