How to Achieve Real Health Part 1

There is a way to get real health, health from the food you eat,
what you buy or don’t buy at the store, habits you establish.
I’ve broken it down into several small steps. Those are usually
easier to get used to. However, if you want to jump in full
tilt, go ahead!

It seems to be a huge job. You may be overweight, or obese. You
might be on prescription drugs, or afraid of getting a chronic
health problem like diabetes. So we will just start at the
beginning. Begin by evaluating where you are now. I think it’s
good to get a baseline. Numbers are a concrete way to show
progress, in addition to how you are feeling. You can’t know how
far you’ve come, if you don’t know where you started!

Write down the following information: weight, measurements,
medicines taken (both prescription and non-prescription, like
Rolaids or Tylenol), blood pressure if you know it. If not, go
to your doctor and find that out. And while you’re there, get a
full range of blood tests, to find out your triglycerides, blood
sugar, cholesterol, and other important readings. I would also
make the effort to find a Pharmanex scanner
rep in your area and get your antioxidant score.

Next, keep a food diary for a week. No one else has to see it, I
promise! Write down everything that passes your lips for a week,
no cheating. Use brand names. Don’t put down 2 slices of bread,
write 2 slices of honey whole wheat bread from Trader Joe’s, for
instance. If you want to add more information, like, time of
day, mood, situation, any side effects, like gas or heartburn,
that will just give you additional information to look at later.

Now, you need to decide what changes you are going to make. They
can be small ones or large ones. A small one usually works
better at least in the beginning. Try doing one or two of these
for at least two weeks.

Examples of small changes:

1. Reduce your number of caffeinated beverages in half.
   Replace them with filtered water.
2. Check the labels of
   food you eat often, such as bread, packaged foods, or frozen
   foods. look for ingredients that can cause disease. If you find
   them, look for a substitution.
3. Reduce the number of
   diet drinks with artificial sweetners that you drink.
4. Get out in the sun for 15-20 minutes a day, more if you are
   dark-skinned. This means out in the sun, no sunscreen.
5. Switch to whole grains, especially in bread and rice and
   pasta.

Ingredients to look out for:

• Sodium nitrite
• Aspartame
• Hydrogenated or
  partially hydrogenated oils of any sort
• Foods with
  monosodium glutamate or other forms or free glutamate acid-
  • MSG (monosodium glutamate)
  • Hydrolyzed Vegetable
    Protein
  • Hydrolyzed Protein
  • Hydrolyzed Plant
    Protein
  • Plant Protein Extract
  • Sodium
    Caseinate
  • Calcium Caseinate
  • Yeast Extract
  • Textured
    Protein
  • Autolyzed Yeast
  • Hydrolyzed Oat
    Flour

1. Prev:Weight Loss – Make a significant and lasting lifestyle change.
2. Next:How to Achieve Real Health Part 2