What if there was a diet where you could eat as much as you want and didn’t have to worry about portion control or counting calories? You could eat delicious food while losing weight and feeling great. You could feel strong, fit and lean.
But it gets better. On this “diet”, you will virtually immunize yourself from disease (e.g., cancer, diabetes, heart failure and neuro-degenerative diseases) and you will live an average of 97 to 107 years (seriously). Better yet, you will be active in your 80s and 90s and enjoy life to the max.
Seem impossible? This diet already exists. There are no fads or magic pills. You can’t buy good health and there are no short cuts. You earn good health with every decision you make. If you want exceptional health and longevity for you and your family, keep reading.
The concepts from this article are derived from the extraordinary book, “Eat to Live”, by Joel Fuhrman, M.D. You should buy this book today and devour its content (no pun intended).
Superior Nutrition is the Key to Health and Longevity
The diet is simple: eat vegetables and fruit. Vegetables and fruit are high in nutrients and fiber and low in calories. Eat as much as you want. Focus on making salads the main dish of every meal and try to avoid meat, dairy and refined carbohydrates (e.g., white bread, pasta and white rice). There’s really not much more to this “diet”.
“High nutrient, low calorie eating results in dramatic increases in life span.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live
With a diet that is high in vegetables and fruit, your health will be transformed. Your cholesterol level and blood pressure will drop substantially, your waistline will shrink and every week you will feel and look better and you no longer have to fear having a heart attack or stroke. No one said this would be easy, but is your health worth it? Before going deeper, let’s debunk some myths.
Myth #1: You Need Meat for Protein
Absolutely untrue. As Dr. Fuhrman, points out, “Don’t buy the fallacy that you need more protein.” Vegetables have more protein than meat. Plant foods have plenty of protein and broccoli has about twice as much protein as steak. Forget about trying to get enough protein and focus on eating healthy, nutritious food.
Myth #2: You Need Milk and Dairy for Calcium and Bone Strength
Au contraire, my friend. All green vegetables are loaded with calcium; fruits and vegetables strengthen bones. All unprocessed natural foods are calcium rich. Milk, butter and dairy products, on the other hand, are full of saturated fat that is the leading cause of coronary artery disease.
Myth #3: Health and Longevity are Determined by Genetics
That is grossly overstated. Genetics can play a role in our health IF we treat our body like a garbage can. If you eat a lot of processed food that is high in sodium and fat, there is a high likelihood of diseases, such as cancer, diabetes and coronary artery disease. Truth is, we control our health and can prevent diseases much more than anyone wants to acknowledge.
What You Should Eat: The Super Foods
The goal is to eat food that is high in nutrients and low in calories. Anything else will be bad for your health. The traditional American diet is too low in nutrients and fiber. Nutritional science expert, Joel Fuhrman, M.D., recommends that you eat at least 90% plant foods, such as vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds (the “90% Rule”). Dr. Fuhrman points out that, “Eating large amounts of the right food is your key to success.”
How do we know this? Empirical evidence from 40 years of research in remote China in the most comprehensive study ever conducted about nutrition known as “The China Study”. Over a 40-year period, the Chinese government and Cornell University studied the epidemiology of disease, namely, why do some people get cancer, diabetes and heart failure and neuro-degenerative diseases (Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s)? The results were astonishing.
“Most chronic illnesses have been earned from a lifetime of inferior nutrition.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
The individuals residing in rural China had virtually eliminated diseases, such as cancer, diabetes and heart failure and neuro-degenerative diseases. At first, the researchers in the China Study assumed that these individuals had “good” genetics, but that was not true. As soon as these individuals in the study moved to urban areas and began eating a diet consisting of meat and dairy, they began having the same rates of disease as those in the United States and western Europe. Turns out, a “Western” diet high in meat and dairy was the cause of the diseases for those living in urban areas of China.
The same results were revealed in “The Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest”. “Blue Zones” are specific regions of the world, such as Loma Linda, California and Okinawa, Japan, where persons live exceptionally long and healthy lives into their mid-nineties and often into their hundreds. An extensive study by Dan Buettner, author of “Blue Zones”, revealed that the common trait of those living in Blue Zones was a diet based on vegetables and fruit and the absence of meat and dairy. The results were stunning.
Super Food #1: Raw Vegetables
Do you want to disease-proof your body? Eat vegetables and fruits. Vegetables and fruits are part of a “micronutrient rich diet” that has “powerful anti-cancer agents”. Dr. Fuhrman considers leafy green vegetables “the king of all foods.”
According to Dr. Fuhrman, “Fruits and vegetables are the two foods with the best correlation with longevity in humans…It is the large quantity of unrefined plant foods that grants the greatest protection against developing serious disease.” As Dr. Fuhrman points out, “Remember, long-term vegans (strict vegetarians who consume no dairy or other foods of animal origin) almost never get heart attacks.”
“The foods found in nature are ideally suited to the biological needs of the species…Consuming more plant protein is the key to achieving safe and successful weight loss.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
According to Dr. Furhman, leafy greens, the most nutrient-rich foods on the planet, were the “best predictor of extreme longevity.” Salads should be the main dish for lunch and dinner. Dr. Fuhrman tells his patients to put a sign on their refrigerator that reads, “THE SALAD IS THE MAIN DISH.”
The goal is to eat one pound of vegetables a day. According to Dr. Fuhrman, raw vegetables have a negative caloric effect, and “the more you eat, the more you lose.” The goal is to eat as many raw vegetables as possible.
Super Food #2: Fruit
Dr. Fuhrman encourages his patients to eat huge salads and at least 4 fresh fruits per day. Fruit protects powerfully against cancer and is an essential part of our diets.
“Fruit is an essential part of our diets. It is indispensable requirement for us to maintain a high level of health.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
Don’t be afraid of eating fruit because it contains sugar, according to Dr. Fuhrman. Instead, Dr. Fuhrman recommends treating yourself to “lots of delicious and exotic fruits”.
Super Food #3: Beans, Nuts & Seeds
Beans, nuts and seeds are full of protein and “packed with nutrients”, according to Dr. Fuhrman. Dr. Fuhrman recommends that his patients eat a cup of beans in their diet every day and ingest one tablespoon of ground flaxseeds every day, if possible. Dr. Fuhrman points out that “soybean is a superior food” that is “rich in various anti-cancer compounds.”
What to Avoid: The Unhealthy Foods
Unrefined carbohydrates, meat and dairy and oils and salt are loaded with calories and low in nutrients. These are “nutrient-deficient, high calorie foods” foods that will cause you to gain weight, feel unhealthy, cause disease and shorten your life.
“Never forget that coronary artery disease and its end result—heart attacks, the number one killer of all American men and women—are almost 100 percent avoidable.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
Unhealthy Food #1: Unrefined Carbs
According to Dr. Fuhrman, you “must cut out the refined carbohydrates” and avoid as much as possible those foods that are “nutrient poor”. Dr. Fuhrman points out that, “Processed carbohydrates (such as bread, pasta and cake) are deficient in fiber, phytonutrients, vitamins and minerals, all of which have been lost in processing.”
“You must cut out the refined carbohydrates…The combination of high fat and high sugar is a metabolic disaster.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
Dr. Fuhrman makes the point that “excess calories don’t just make you overweight—they shorten your life…As long as you are eating fatty foods and refined carbs, it is impossible to lose weight.”
Unhealthy Food #2: Meat & Dairy
Meat and dairy do not contain fiber, are dense in calories and are full of saturated fat. And you don’t need meat or dairy to get protein or any essential vitamins (except for vitamin B-12). There are no health benefits from meat or dairy that you can’t get from a plant-based diet.
Don’t believe this? The World Health Organization classifies processed meat as a grade I carcinogen (the same as tobacco and asbestos) and red meat is classified as a grade II carcinogen (a likely carcinogen). Why would you eat something that causes cancer? Perhaps the World Health Organization is onto something.
“Today the link between animal products and many different diseases is as strongly supported in the scientific literature as the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
Cheese is particularly unhealthy. Dr. Fuhrman points out that “cheese has more saturated fat and more hormone-containing and promoting substances than any other food…[and] is the food that contributes the most saturated fat to the American diet.”
Unhealthy Food #3: Oils & Salt
Even for very small quantities, oils are loaded with calories and fat. “Oils are 100% fat…Ounce for ounce, olive oil is one of the most fattening.” Use this calorie-dense food in moderation or avoid it completely.
Avoid salt completely. You get more than enough of the daily recommended allowance of sodium from natural foods. Salt raises your blood pressure, which in turn can lead to heart attacks and strokes.
Studies have shown that aborigine tribes in the Amazon have never been exposed to salt and as a result, their blood pressure, on average, is 90/60 and they do not get high blood pressure. If you eliminate salt from your diet, you remove a major risk of hypertension and in turn, eliminate the leading risk of heart attacks and stroke.
An Unwinnable Marketing Battle with the Meat and Dairy Industry
Still not convinced? That’s not surprising. The meat and dairy industry spend billions of $ every year to convince you that their products are healthy for you. McDonald’s alone spends more than $1 BILLION a year on marketing their greasy, fat-laden food. There are big bucks supporting the meat and dairy industry that do not exist in the vegetable and fruit industry.
“You don’t have to be sick. Health is your greatest wealth.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
A plant-based diet will not only improve your health, make you lean and disease-proof your body, it’s good for the environment (methane emissions from cattle are the leading cause of carbon emissions). And let’s not ignore one thing: the meat and dairy industry treats animals horribly in small cages and animals are forced to live horrendous lives in unsanitary conditions. Animals deserve to live with compassion and sympathy. Let’s give our animal friends the respect they deserve.
Food is the Cure: How to Disease-Proof Your Body
Here’s our challenge for you: give Dr. Fuhrman’s “Greens and Beans” diet a shot for 6 weeks; Dr. Fuhrman calls this the “Six Week Plan”. Eliminate or avoid as much as possible the 3 unhealthy foods: refined carbs, meat and dairy and oils and salt, for six weeks. You will be amazed by the results in a very short time you will begin losing weight and feeling better, and you will love the healthy, nutritious meals.
“Your body will undergo a remarkable transformation…See how well you feel and how much weight you can lose in six weeks.”
Joel Fuhrman, M.D., “Eat to Live”
It will be tough at first, but you must make a commitment to this diet for six weeks. And if you do, your life and health will never be the same. And just remember these words from Dr. Fuhrman, “Being healthy and owning a disease-resistant body is not luck; it is earned.”
Want more support? Send an email to jfisherlawyer@gmail.com or a text to 518-265-9131 and I will be happy to add you to our private Facebook group, “FattoFit”. You can do the Six Week Plan with our group. Let’s do this together!
