DIET VERSUS MODERN DISEASES
On Sunday, July 17, 2016, the 31st Health Education Meeting organized by the Italian Field's Health Department was held at the Blu Hotel in Collegno, Italy. We had the privilege of having 50 individuals with us, including church members and guests.
The speaker, Brother Luiz Costa, gave an interesting and lively presentation on the topic: "Diet vs. Modern Diseases".
Brother Costa presented statistical data provided by Harvard University, which show that the average life expectancy in Italy is 76 years for men and 82 for women, well above the average of other nations and perhaps among the highest levels in Europe. Then, he went over the contents and characteristics of the so-called "Mediterranean Diet", characteristic in Italy, pointing out that it is not as healthy as people think.
The quantity of fried food is very high in the Italian diet, and we know how even vegetables, once fried, lose much of their natural nutrients and develop substances that in the long run turn out to be detrimental to the body.
Brother Costa then covered a list of natural foods, highlighting the beneficial properties of each and explaining what they can contribute towards the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.
Fruit, especially peaches, berries, oranges, and pineapple, as well as carrots and other vegetables, can help fight diseases that are plaguing modern society. Diseases such as various forms of cancer are largely caused by a poor diet.
Interestingly, the diseases that have causes related to diet have a much higher rate of mortality than traffic accidents.
We learned that pineapple, eaten early in the morning either cut up in slices or in juice form (fresh, not industrialized) is an excellent weight loss agent. Brother Costa told the story of one of his patients, a young man who suffered from severe obesity that would soon be fatal. With the help of the pineapple's properties, the patient lost almost 80 kg. In this case, Brother Costa noted, the pineapple is eaten on its own because it does not tolerate mixing with any other food. If mixed, it could cause a harmful fermentation in the body. His advice is to eat pineapple as soon as one wakes up, and then to not eat anything else for at least three hours (much less drink coffee or milk).
We also discovered that the peel of an orange, used as a compress on the forehead, is the best cure for a headache, thus avoiding the use of analgesics that create many harmful side effects to our body.
At the end of the meeting, Brother Abel Morales offered a prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord, and the participants were able to partake of the delicious vegan meal prepared by sisters of the Italian Field.
The conclusion drawn from the presentation was that, as Christians, we can not be content with an average life expectancy of maybe 80 years, although this appears among the highest averages in Europe and perhaps in the world. We must apply the highest standards, using the principles of health reform to prepare ourselves to restore the original diet planned by God for mankind in Eden.
Remember, this world is only a place "of passage" for us and that our aim, goal, and ideal is to achieve perfection originally meant for humanity, and this will be possible on the New Earth where we will again enjoy a closer relationship with our Creator.
"I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I, John, saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband" (Rev. 21: 1-3).
All of this can happen only through the atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, faith in Him, and the transformation of our life, including eating habits, according to the model given to us by Him.
"And God said, Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit bearers of the seed; this will be yours for food" (Genesis 1:30).
