Medicine is made from Vegetables. Eat up!

Medicine is made from Vegetables. Eat up!

(My 2nd Journey as a Vegan Series.)

Medicine heals.

Medicine is made from Vegetables.

Vegetables are medicine.

I recently converted my young children and I to a vegan diet.

I had been “vegan” in the past but had to stop due to malnutrition.

Specifically due to severe anemia.

(I already run borderline anemic by nature).

On this 2nd Journey as a Vegan, we are more healthy and nourished than I could ever have imagined.

What’s different this time around?

The answer is quite simple:

Vegetables are no longer just a garnishment on our plates.

We did not simply remove meat and dairy from our diet.

We now eat our vegetables, we eat the whole vegetable. 

I also like to call it a “vegetable focused” diet.

For example, for every elbow macaroni on my plate, you will find a piece of mushroom, a cube of carrots, a pea, a snippet of broccoli, a wedge of cauliflower, a quarter slice of squash, a leaf of spinach, a cut of celery, a bite of sweet peppers, one lentil, a pinch of ground flaxseed, some extra virgin olive oil, gently seasoned and cooked to heavenly goodness.

Every fresh or canned vegetable (preferably organic) in the local market is fair game. I mix and match by color or mood to create a rainbow of culinary goodness.

With so much variety and flavor, my taste buds and body are fully nourished and satisfied with every spoonful.

Yes, we do take in enough protein. Where do you think the cow derives all its protein from? 

Just Vegetables.

So, since we must take your medicine,

It might as well taste good.

Prevention is better than cure.

Whole vegetables are medicine, eat up!

Prevention is better than Cure - Thoughts on Healthcare Strategies Today.

Prevention is often spoken about by the healthcare industry. However, what we see in reality is the drive to try to cure conditions more than we see the push for prevention. Follow the money and you'll see why.

We create medications from old traditions, from herbs. We synthesize them in our labs and mass produce the drugs that soon become our "savior" and big pharma grows rich.

But why do we allow ourselves to get sick in the first place, especially if we an help it?

Prevention is better than cure. Antioxidants have become very popular because of this school of thought. They are known to help the body fight off diseases. Superfoods are selling by the millions. They are priced so high that most cannot afford them. 

But let's think about what's going on here. Someone suspects the "active ingredient" of a particular food eaten by locals in some remote village is doing some wonders. They try somehow to isolate the magic. If these locals were to be candid, they'd tell you that there is nothing special about their diet. They simple eat their vegetables, not just as a side dish.

Simply eat your vegetables/herbs in there whole form. Mix and match as best as you can. Make vegetable focused meals.

Lately, seemingly everyday regular foods are getting discovered as superfoods. Won't you be excited to know that the no name vegetables you've been eating all these years actually are superfoods. Don't discriminant, eat your vegetables, as many as your local market provides.

For every day that you eat your vegetables in their entirety, you may actually be curing a disease that you did not know is in its initial stages.

Prevention is better than cure. Be kind to your body, give it a fighting chance by preventing disease. Do not wait until it is overtaken by sickness before you start paying attention. 

Our forefathers survived on simple foods, mostly whole vegetables and they created us. Alternatively, our children are perishing under the over processed and under nourishing diet that we have created for them. The buck stops here.

Prevention is better than Cure. Diseases like Cancer, Diabetes, High Blood pressure, heart disease, Irritable bowel syndrome, autoimmune diseases, obesity, chronic fatigue and more can be managed by switching to a whole vegetable focused diet.

Eat your vegetables because your life and the survival of humanity at large literally depends on it.

Hypertension: High Blood Pressure

 HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE (HYPERTENSION) CLASS

What is high blood pressure (hypertension)?

Abnormally high pressure in the blood vessels over long periods of time such as months or years at a time. It is also known as the “silent killer” because most people who have high blood pressure do not show any signs until a bad event happens because of it.

Why should we resolve high or elevated blood pressure?

• Elevated blood pressure can result in over tasking your heart as it will have to pump against higher than normal pressure/resistance, resulting in a heart attack.

• Elevated pressure directly damages the kidney’s delicate structures as it filters the blood that’s passing through it at higher than normal pressures, resulting in kidney failure.

• Elevated blood pressure can result in rupture of small or large blood vessels because they are not all made to withstand such elevated pressures over extended periods. Some small blood vessel ruptures lead to stroke, or large vessel rupture leads to aneurysms.

But do not worry, with the help of BlackRx.org, high blood pressure can be controlled with little help and awareness.

1. How to check your blood pressure (see video link)

1. Rest/Sit/Relax for about 5 minutes

2. Wrap the cuff around the upper arm or wrist depending on the type of blood pressure cuff - make sure to use the proper size cuffs, (child, adult regular, adult large). The wrong size may lead to unreliable readings.

3. Sit and breath calmly with both feet flat on the floor, back against the chair.  Refrain from chewing or talking while the machine reads.

4. The average blood pressure normal reading is 120/80 (some people may run lower than this at their normal values)

2. Causes of Inaccurate blood pressure readings:

1. Unrested. Try to check your blood pressure readings when you are not on the run. Best time to check your blood pressure is when at rest, preferably in the comfort of your home.

2. White coat syndrome: after rushing to make your doctor's appointment, be sure to take a few minutes to relax before allowing your blood pressure to be taken. Then you will not have to worry about reporting a falsely elevated blood pressure.

3. Eating or drinking of decongestants (in cold & flu medications) or caffeinated products (coffee, energy drinks) within 2 hours of blood pressure readings can result in elevated blood pressure readings.

4. Dehydration will result in low blood pressure readings.

5. Stress and insomnia (lack of sleep) will lead to elevated diastolic blood pressure readings.

3. How to report blood pressure readings to you healthcare provider:

1. When you are relaxed and preferably at home, take your blood pressure

2. 5 to 7 readings taken on different days will paint an accurate picture of your running blood pressure.

4. Ways to lower elevated blood pressure: Please work closely with BlackRX or your healthcare provider to prevent adverse events:

1. Practice healthy lifestyle routines such as:

1. Exercise regularly but do not overexert yourself .

2. Maintain a healthy diet that is low in salt, low in saturated fats, 

3. Resolve causes of insomnia (reduce caffeine intake late in the day). Try to sleep more hours, especially if you work overnight. See How to get more sleep 101.

2. Medications:

1. There are so many veteran and new medications that have proven to adequately control high blood pressure. Work with your healthcare provider to obtain a prescription. Note that different ethnicities may experience different results from different drug classes - one size does not fit all. For example, some African Americans will benefit from initiating a diuretic (water pill) versus initiating another class drug.

2. Do not take medication that is not prescribed for you. It may result in adverse drug reactions, even death.

3. Do not abruptly stop taking blood pressure medications, your body may react with a dangerous blood pressure spike.

4. Do not stop taking your blood pressure medication because your blood pressure is now at normal levels. Remember that you have normal blood pressure levels because you are now taking your blood pressure medications as prescribed.