hippocrates

"Let food be thy medicine. [...] For the art of medicine would not have been invented at first, nor would it have been made a subject of investigation (for there would have been no need of it), if when men are indisposed, the same food and other articles of regimen which they eat and drink when in good health were proper for them, and if no others were preferable to these." - Hippocrates

The following information is discussed at length in the fourth lecture of the Healthy Spirituality course.

Traditional diets maximize nutrients, while modern diets minimize nutrients.

Traditional diets featured: Modern diets feature:

Foods from fertile soil

Foods from depleted soil

Choice of organ meats over muscle meats

Muscle meats, few organ meats

Animal fats

Vegetable oils

Animals on pasture

Animals in confinement

Dairy products raw and/or fermented

Dairy products pasteurized

Grains and legumes soaked/fermented

Grains refined and/or extruded

Bone broths

MSG, artificial flavorings

Unrefined sweeteners (honey, maple syrup)

Refined sweeteners

Lacto-fermented vegetables

Canned vegetables

Lacto-fermented beverages

Modern soft drinks

Unrefined salt

Refined salt

Natural vitamins in foods

Synthetic vitamins added to foods

Traditional cooking

Microwave, irradiation

Traditional seeds/open pollination

Hybrid seeds, GMO seeds

Dietary Guidelines

1. Eat whole, unprocessed foods.

2. Eat beef, lamb, game, organ meats, poultry and eggs from pasture-fed animals.

3. Eat wild fish (not farm-raised) and shellfish from unpolluted waters.

4. Eat full-fat milk products from pasture-fed cows, preferably raw and/or fermented, such as raw milk, whole yogurt, kefir, cultured butter, whole raw cheeses and fresh and sour cream. (Imported cheeses that say "milk" or "fresh milk" on the label are raw.)

5. Use animal fats, especially butter, liberally.

6. Use traditional vegetable oils only—extra virgin olive oil, expeller- expressed sesame oil, small amounts of expeller-expressed flax oil, and the tropical oils—coconut oil, palm oil and palm kernel oil.

7. Take cod liver oil regularly to provide at least 10,000 IU vitamin A and 1,000 IU vitamin D per day.

8. Eat fresh fruits and vegetables—preferably organic— in salads and soups, or lightly steamed with butter.

9. Use whole grains, legumes and nuts that have been prepared by soaking, sprouting or sour leavening to neutralize phytic acid, enzyme inhibitors and other anti-nutrients.

10. Include enzyme-enhanced lacto-fermented vegetables, fruits, beverages and condiments in your diet on a regular basis.

11. Prepare homemade meat stocks from the bones of chicken, beef, lamb and fish and use liberally in soups, stews, gravies and sauces.

12. Use filtered water for cooking and drinking.

13. Use unrefined salt and a variety of herbs and spices for food interest and appetite stimulation.

14. Make your own salad dressing using raw vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and a small amount of expeller- expressed flax oil.

15. Use natural sweeteners in moderation, such as raw honey, maple syrup, maple sugar, date sugar, dehydrated cane sugar juice (sold as Rapadura) and stevia powder.

16. Use only unpasteurized wine or beer in strict moderation with meals.

17. Cook only in stainless steel, cast iron, glass, or good quality enamel.

18. Use only natural, food-based supplements.

19. Get plenty of sleep, exercise and natural light.

20. Think positive thoughts and practice forgiveness.

Good Fats

For Cooking:

  • Butter
  • Tallow and suet from beef and lamb
  • Chicken, goose and duck fat
  • Coconut, palm and palm kernel oils

For Salads:

  • Extra virgin olive oil (also OK for cooking)
  • Expeller-expressed sesame and peanut oils
  • Expeller-expressed flax oil (in small amounts)

For Fat-Soluble Vitamins: Fish liver oils such as cod liver oil (preferable to fish oils, which do not provide fat-soluble vitamins, can cause an overdose of unsaturated fatty acids and usually come from farmed fish.)

Bad Fats

The following new-fangled fats can cause cancer, heart disease, immune system dysfunction, sterility, learning disabilities, growth problems and osteoporosis:

  • All hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils
  • Industrially processed liquid oils such as soy, corn, safflower, cottonseed and canola
  • Fats and oils (especially vegetable oils) heated to very high temperatures in processing and frying.

Dietary Dangers

1. Do not eat commercially processed foods such as cookies, cakes, crackers, TV dinners, soft drinks, packaged sauce mixes, etc. Read the labels!

2. Avoid all refined sweeteners such as sugar, dextrose, glucose, high fructose corn syrup and fruit juices.

3. Avoid white flour, white flour products (bread, pasta, etc), and white rice.

4. Avoid all hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats and oils.

5. Avoid all refined liquid vegetable oils made from soy, corn, safflower, canola, or cottonseed.

6. Do not use polyunsaturated oils for cooking, sautéing or baking.

7. Avoid foods fried in polyunsaturated oils or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

8. Do not practice veganism. Animal products provide vital nutrients not found in plant foods.

9. Avoid products containing protein powders as they usually contain carcinogens formed during processing; and consumption of protein without the cofactors occurring in nature can lead to deficiencies, especially of vitamin A.

10. Avoid processed, pasteurized milk; do not consume ultra pasteurized milk products, low fat milk, skim milk, powdered milk or imitation milk products.

11. Avoid factory-farmed eggs, meats and fish.

12. Avoid highly processed luncheon meats and sausage.

13. Avoid rancid and improperly prepared seeds, nuts and grains found in granolas, quick rise breads and extruded breakfast cereals, as they block mineral absorption and cause intestinal distress.

14. Avoid canned, sprayed, waxed and irradiated fruits and vegetables. Avoid genetically modified foods (found in most soy, canola and corn products).

15. Avoid artificial food additives, especially MSG, hydrolyzed vegetable protein and aspartame, which are neurotoxins. Most soups, sauce and broth mixes and most commercial condiments contain MSG, even if not indicated on the label.

16. Individuals sensitive to caffeine and related substances should avoid coffee, tea and chocolate.

17. Avoid aluminum-containing foods such as commercial salt, baking powder and antacids. Do not use aluminum cookware or deodorants containing aluminum.

18. Do not drink fluoridated water.

19. Avoid synthetic vitamins and foods containing them.

20. Avoid distilled liquors.

21. Do not use a microwave oven.

Myths About Our Food

Myth: Heart disease in America is caused by consumption of cholesterol and saturated fat from animal products.

Truth: During the period of rapid increase in heart disease (1920-1960), American consumption of animal fats declined but consumption of hydrogenated and industrially processed vegetable fats increased dramatically (USDA-HNIS).

Myth: Vegetarians live longer.

Truth: The annual all-cause death rate of vegetarian men is slightly more than that of non-vegetarian men (.93% vs .89%); the annual all-cause death rate of vegetarian women is significantly more than that of non-vegetarian women (.86% vs .54%) (Wise Traditions 2000 1:4:16- 17). 

"There is no society in the world that is entirely vegetarian. The Hindus of India come closest. Dr. H. Leon Abrams reports, '...the greater percentage of the population, who subsist almost entirely on vegetable foods, suffer from kwashiokor [a form of severe protein–energy malnutrition characterized by edema, irritability, anorexia, ulcerating dermatoses, and an enlarged liver with fatty infiltrates], other forms of malnutrition, and have the shortest lifespan in the world.' - Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon

Myth: Animal fats cause cancer and heart disease.

Truth: Animal fats contain many nutrients that protect against cancer and heart disease; elevated rates of cancer and heart disease are associated with consumption of large amounts of vegetable oil (Federation Proceedings July 1978 37:2215).

Myth: Americans do not consume enough essential fatty acids (EFAs).

Truth: Americans consume far too much of one kind of EFA (omega-6 EFAs found in most polyunsaturated vegetable oils) but not enough of another kind of EFA (omega-3 EFAs found in fish, fish oils, eggs from pasture-fed chickens, dark green vegetables and herbs, and oils from certain seeds such as flax and chia, nuts such as walnuts and in small amounts in all whole grains) (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1991 54:438-63).

Learn More

  • Healthy Spirituality Lectures
  • The Weston A. Price Foundation: www.westonaprice.org/beginners-tour.html
  • Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A. Price
  • Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats by Sally Fallon Morell