Articles From Our Friends

Do We Really Need Supplements?

Abraham and Sarah of Bible fame never took vitamins and they were able to have a child when they were both WELL past child-bearing age - Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90! In fact, Sarah had been barren as a young woman and unable to conceive. You can read about it in Genesis chapters 15-21.

Caleb was one of the twelve spies sent to scope out the Promised Land. He did not receive his inheritance for trusting God, which was conquering a well guarded land, until he was 85. However, in Joshua 14:10-12, he clearly stated he was just as strong at 85 as he was at 40. Again, I see no mention of megavitamins he took.

In Genesis 6, Noah built one heck of a huge boat (look at the dimensions!), all by himself at the age of 600! While God’s power is most definitely at work in these instances, these were still all human beings, just as we are. Yet many lived well past 100 years, in fact hundreds of years past. Yet, there’s no mention of taking supplements per se.

So why are vitamins and other supplements such big business today? Why do even the major health agencies, including the AMA, American Heart Association, American Dietetic Association and the American Lung Association, all recommend taking a daily multivitamin? Back in Biblical times and even back several generations ago, the foods grown in the fields contained all the natural, essential vitamins, minerals, enzymes and phytonutrients God originally created them to have.

As we have advanced technologically, we have gotten away from Biblical principles. Crops are no longer rotated regularly and fields are not allowed to lie fallow for a time in order for the soil to be replenished.

In fact our soils are loaded with pesticides and herbicides intended to eliminate pests and increase the number of crops harvested. However, this also kills the naturally occurring micro-organisms healthy, fertile soil contains. Therefore, the soil our crops are grown in is depleted and the food that is grown in it is as well. Even organically grown produce, although a better option, isn’t perfect.

Therefore, supplementing our diet with vitamins, minerals and other nutritional supplements has become critical to maintaining health. So, should you just grab a bottle of vitamins from the local supermarket and call it a day? Not so fast. The foundation of good health is eating the highest quality diet you possibly can. Supplements and pills CANNOT make up for an inferior diet, a lack of exercise, inadequate sleep and constant stress. There is just no “magic pill.”

Think about what “supplement” means – “in addition to” NOT “instead of.” We must still make the best food choices we can from fresh, natural, organic whenever possible, whole foods, stay adequately hydrated, exercise, get refreshing sleep each night, use high quality, whole food nutritional supplements and find effective ways to manage the stress of life in the twenty-first century.

But are all vitamins the same? The price of vitamins varies widely. In order to produce affordable supplements, many companies use scientists and biochemists who attempt to create synthetic versions of natural compounds. When God created the nutrients in foods, He created them as nutritional compounds, not isolated substances.

A great example is the carotenes found in carrots, sweet potatoes other yellow-orange foods. Beta carotene is the best known of these. Many people supplement with beta carotene. However, when you eat a carrot, you don’t just get beta carotene, you get a whole complement of carotenes, antioxidants and phyto-nutrients – many of which have yet to be discovered.

Your body is smart enough to recognize whole food nutrients and uses them much more efficiently than synthetic vitamins. This is why you need far less of a whole food, natural supplement than you would of a synthetic one.

For example, you could take 5,000 milligrams of synthetic vitamin C (ascorbic acid) a day, which is equal to eating about 75 oranges. However, would you ever be able to eat 75 oranges in a day? Would you even want to? Your body and digestive system are not made to do that.

A study, headlined in many major newspapers, speculated that antioxidants like vitamins E and C have no beneficial, protective effects against cancer. However, what they failed to disclose was that the vitamins used in that flawed study were synthetic and not whole food, natural nutritional supplements.

So, are all supplements alike? I believe the answer is a resounding “no!” Look for the highest quality, whole food grown, nutritional products you can afford and use them as part of a healthy, balanced diet and lifestyle.

To learn more about Ann visit her website at http://www.threedimensionalvitality.com

Make The Best Choice

It all comes down to making the best choices available to you. You’re probably thinking – it can’t possibly be that simple. But, I assure you the bottom line is that the more often you make good choices, the more you will experience improvement in your health.

Consider the beginning of verse 10 of Philippians 1 in the Amplified as it can relate to making better nutritional choices:

“So that you may surely learn to sense what is vital, and approve and prize what is excellent and of real value (recognizing the highest and the best, and distinguishing the moral differences)…”

I believe you can apply this to your health – spirit, soul AND body. We must learn to choose those foods that are critical to health and vitality; that are valuable for creating balance and nourishing cells; understanding how to recognize the best and helping others to do so as well, especially our children.

If you really want to eat 3 donuts for breakfast, you can. You know if you have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior you will go to heaven, even if you eat unclean or unhealthy foods. (If you eat too many too often, you may go sooner than you planned!) But it doesn’t affect your salvation. It will, however, impact the quality of your life while you are on this earth!

1 Corinthians 6:12 NIV says it this way: ‘“Everything is permissible for me"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me"—but I will not be mastered by anything.’

This is why all 3-D Living Programs include spirit and soul. This scripture clearly shows why you must detox and exercise your will, which is part of your soul. Unless you do, you will continue making wrong choices for the wrong reasons. Instead of eating to nourish and fuel your body, you will eat to comfort, calm or cover up feelings rather than dealing with the root issues.

Deuteronomy 30:19 NLT: “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!”

Heaven and earth bear witness to our choices – good and bad! We ALWAYS have a choice to make. You may have to clean out your kitchen and pantry. You may have to change how you think about food. You may have to retrain your taste buds to appreciate real, fresh food.

Whatever it takes, it will be worth it – for you and your family! Let me give you an example. Let’s say your spouse or sibling absolutely loves fast food and you are trying to encourage them to at least cut back. If they wanted to order a supersized bacon cheeseburger and fries and you were able to convince them to order a grilled chicken wrap instead – it would save hundreds of calories and possibly make them consider a different option the next time.

Are either of those choices truly “healthy?” In my opinion – no. However, even if you take baby steps, as long as you are traveling in the right direction – it’s good. Remember, the Lord Jesus meets us exactly where we are right now – He doesn’t expect us to clean up our act and get it perfect before He will help us.

I don’t expect my clients to eat perfectly (who does, anyway?) before I will work with them. I begin wherever you are and we work forward from there. As long as you sincerely desire to improve what you are doing, and you take steps in the right direction, it doesn’t matter how small, it just matters that you begin!

To learn more about Ann visit her website at http://www.threedimensionalvitality.com

Every one of us would rather have someone else do the hard stuff for us. Wouldn’t you rather have someone else plan your meals, shop, prepare the healthiest foods in the right proportions, set out your supplements and maybe, if you’re really honest, take them for you! While we’re being honest – it would be great if someone would do my exercise for me too!

But that is not an option. If you truly want to be healthy and for your family to enjoy vibrant health, it takes three things: discipline, planning and consistent follow-through. Sure you can make healthy meals a few times a week and depend on fast foods the rest of the time. But you won’t be truly healthy.

You can exercise like crazy on the weekend and because you are tired after working all day, reward yourself with ice cream and a nice long rest on the couch until bedtime. But you won’t be fit.

So, we’ve established the fact that we all knew to begin with. To have something you never had before, you have to do something you never did before. If you are overweight, tired, depressed and achy, in order to be trim, fit, energized and feeling wonderful, you will have to change what you’re doing! If you have the added goal of helping your family become healthier, it is even more important that you set a good example.

That’s what I’d like to talk about today. What if you agree with everything I’ve been saying in these past newsletters and you are ready to make some changes but you want to bring your family along with you? First, I wholeheartedly agree with that goal and commend you for it. God’s Word clearly tells us in 1Timothy 5:8 that we are worse than unbelievers if we do not provide for our own families. I believe that includes providing healthy food and a positive role model.

So, now that we agree – how can you best go about making some healthy changes without completely putting them in an uproar? I have a few suggestions born of personal experience. I’ve had to set the example in my family – not only for my children but for my husband and others as well. So here goes:

Make a Quality Decision: First, be sure you are truly committed to staying the course and making whatever changes you need to. It will not set a good example if you start all gung-ho only to abandon the changes in a matter of days! Remember, whenever you change the way you do something – you are creating new pathways in your brain. It takes time for those pathways to become established. This is why you must commit to the changes for at least a month and preferably 3 months.

Lead by Example: While you may be VERY excited and enthusiastic about your new way of eating or exercise routine – your family will quickly grow tired of hearing you “preach” about what they should be doing. I suggest you faithfully do your thing and let them observe your commitment. Just as 1 Peter 3:1 says husbands can be won over by their wives’ godly lives, I believe your consistency and commitment will speak much more loudly than words to your family.

Be Enthusiastic: Just as we are not to make it obvious that we are fasting (Matthew 6:16) by looking sad and acting as though we are suffering – enjoy the changes you are making! It feels wonderful to move your body and exercise. It even feels good to be a little sore! It’s great to feel your muscles engaged. Enjoy your meals. Share that enthusiasm – it is contagious! Just as kindness is contagious – so is genuine enthusiasm.

Be Available and Pray: Be ready to explain why you are making the changes and what the benefits are. Don’t make it preachy – just share some practical information and allow your example and the improvement in your appearance and health speak for itself. It will! Be approachable and willing to discuss what you are doing when questions arise. And above all PRAY! Pray for the strength to be consistent. Pray that your family would open their hearts to the truth and be willing to change bad habits. Pray God’s blessing and protection over them in the meantime!

To learn more about Ann visit her website at http://www.threedimensionalvitality.com