Dear Friends,
The outcome of our recent election has all of us reeling in one way or another. I will not use my business blog to discuss politics, but there are some very real and substantial health issues related to the outcome of this election, and I feel passionately, now more than ever, that EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US can make some deliberate and effective changes in our diet and lifestyle that will improve our health, our relationships, our use of the medical care system, and even the economy of this country. Maybe that sounds like a big leap to you, but imagine our society without obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, just for a start? Imagine the possibility that our demand for healthy food crowds out the crappy stuff. Imagine the resurgence of clean farming which supports our farmers and our consumers.
This is not rocket science, however, IT IS HARD. Our food manufacturers make it hard when there are chemicals in their products that trigger us to keep eating. Our marketing machines make it hard when they promote products that are "gluten free" but filled with sugar. (Besides, most people DO NOT NEED TO EAT GLUETN FREE - the topic of another post!). Our restaurants make it hard when portion sizes are three times larger than what we should be eating per meal. Our medical system makes it hard when medications interact, when patients (especially the elderly) cannot properly manage their meds, and by the way, have you seen the food that hospital patients are served lately? I have and it leaves much to be desired.
So what can we do about it? I believe that a large part of the solution is as "simple" as taking control of ourselves -- as in eating healthy foods, getting regular, sustained, aerobic and muscle-building exercise, actively and consciously working to reduce our stress (which goes back to healthy eating and exercise)....I know you get the jist. BUT THIS IS NOT EASY AT ALL!
If any of this resonates with you, I invite you to contact me so we can discuss the possibilities. It could be a family effort or an individual focus. One more try at losing weight or a serious effort to get off/reduce the meds. For teens, college students, pre- or post-pregnancy, kids and the elderly - we ALL need guidance from time to time.
The wisdom of Mahatma Ghandi seems appropriate for this topic and this time in our lives:
We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change.
Here's to changing our health, and our world!
Ruth