Since posting Part 1 in December, I have read many other books that I want to share with you. These are books I think you will find helpful in improving your health. They are all written for the general public. I also think they are books you will want to share with your friends and family after you read them. Happy reading!
The Seven Pillars of Health, by Don Colbert, MD
The Natural Way to Better Health For Life
Everyone should read this book! Dr. Colbert is a family practice physician. He states, “these are not the seven ‘fads’ of health or the seven ‘theories’ of health, but the pillars of health. Backed up by medical research and my actual experiences with real problems and real people . . ., these seven pillars have contributed to health and freedom of thousands of people.”
The seven pillars are 1) Water (miracle cure for many conditions; health conditions complicated by dehydration; fountain of youth; how much?) 2) Sleep and Rest (causes of insomnia; how much sleep? Bedroom – storage unit or sleep haven? Sleep aids; learn to rest), 3) Living Food (living vs. dead food; the living foods list; what to eat with caution; how to prepare & serve food), 4) Exercise (aerobic exercise; anaerobic exercise; fun, alternative exercises), 5) Detoxification (sources of toxins, what they do to the body, detoxifying), 6) Nutritional Supplements (most common nutrient deficiencies; need for antioxidants; vitamin confusion; mega-dosing; how to pick the right supplements), and 7) Coping With Stress (mindfulness; reframing; the power of laughter; forgive; margin; practice stress-reducing habits). The topics in parentheses are representative of what is in the book not a complete list.
Dr. Colbert uses a positive approach rather than the typical “don’t, can’t, shouldn’t” book. It is designed to help you make healthy decisions that bring freedom in every area of your life. If you’re like me, I struggle with denying myself favorite foods and beginning new disciplines in my life. It’s easy to get caught up in the negatives. The more I dwell on the negative, the less motivation I have to continue. It’s depressing! Who wants to live that way? I don’t! I don’t think you do either.
I’ve learned that we change our habits permanently when we change our thinking about what motivates us to do what we do habitually. It usually requires a process to change our thinking not a single event; so, give yourself time to digest the information, to understand it, to buy into the principles. I know that some people have a case of separation anxiety when they are challenged to depart from their former thinking, to adopt a new mind set. It’s OK. You can do it. Think about this: If you stay on your current path, where will it lead?
Dr. Colbert states, “research shows that we can reduce our risk of developing deadly diseases such as heart disease by 80 percent or more and cancer by 60 percent or more – simply by making healthy dietary and lifestyle choices.” I trust that when you read The Seven Pillars of Health your thinking about each of the areas encompassed by the seven pillars, about taking personal responsibility for your health, will change as you learn new information and begin to see that health issues and problems can be prevented or overcome in your life by making these healthy dietary and lifestyle choices.
An aspect that makes the book so very helpful and easy to follow is its structure. The book is designed as a 50-day journey, one entry per day. You read each 2 to 5½ page daily entry (6 days exceed this number) and incorporate the information into your life. Each day’s entry ends with a “Points to Ponder.” This is a summary that highlights principles for that day’s material, and it gives you something to reflect on until you read the next day’s entry. There is also an “Action Step.” This asks you to implement a small change based on that day’s reading. Making small changes every day makes applying the principles much easier. In many cases you will want to make the change because of the information you just learned.
As you can see, this is meant to be done on a gradual basis. If you try to rush through the book you may become frustrated or overwhelmed by the information. Dr Colbert’s main concern is “that these seven pillars of health become your foundation for a lifetime.”
A truly healthy lifestyle is possible, and it is very liberating! Armed with factual information you make informed choices, healthy choices. These are the desired changes in the way you think that result in natural and permanent healthy lifestyle changes. You know you want to become stronger, healthier, more energetic, disease-resistant, and younger-looking! Get a copy, & start your journey!
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Toxic Relief, by Don Colbert, M.D.
Restore health and energy through fasting and detoxification
Dr. Colbert mentions Toxic Relief several times in The Seven Pillars of Health. I was interested in reading what it has to say, as he does not quote his other books. He merely mentions that further discussion of a topic is available in a specific book, which he then names.
The book makes the reader aware of the many sources of toxins and their effects on our bodies. Once you are made aware of these sources, there are some practical ways, steps or solutions given to reduce or avoid the toxins taken into one’s body. He discusses everything from pollution to mold & bacteria. Dr. Colbert also explains free-radicals in a way that I understand, for the first time, what they are & the damage they do to our bodies. He explains how we can avoid some of them & how we can “quench the free-radical fire of activity” due to the overburden of free-radicals from air pollution, pesticides, cigarette smoke, fried foods and polyunsaturated fats in our diet.
In one chapter he discusses the American diet, which he says, causes our society to be “one of the most overfed and undernourished societies that ever lived.” He quotes the U.S. Department of Agriculture report, which states, “diet is a significant factor in the risk of coronary heart disease, certain types of cancer, and stroke – the three leading causes of death in the United States, and responsible for over half of all deaths.” This chapter also discusses genetically engineered foods. This is the first book I found that discusses this topic. If you see GMO on a label, it is a genetically modified food. This discussion demystifies this term, so that you know why you don’t want to buy or eat it.
A large section of book, as you would expect, is given to “Dr. C’s Program for Detoxification.” After understanding the sources of toxins in your body & the need to eliminate them, this section details ways to detoxify. Dr. Colbert states, “Heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, chronic fatigue and many other serious diseases are absolutely reversed as my patients cleanse their own bodies from toxins.” And he asserts that by undergoing detoxification, as outlined in this book, “you can cleanse your body from a lifetime of toxins & discover the health & vitality that come with toxic relief.”
He uses a 4 step program. 1) There is a 2-week diet to strengthen & support your liver & improve your elimination through the GI tract. 2) Then you go on a juice fast for 2 or 3 days (or longer if monitored by a doctor). 3) You go back on the special diet for 2 weeks. 4) You begin making lifestyle changes & plan to fast periodically to continue to cleanse & maintain your health.
I recommend that you read the entire book before you begin taking any action, because he speaks to various health issues throughout the book. There exceptions for certain health conditions, and he recommends monitoring by or a physician’s permission before proceeding for some of these conditions. Some persons should not fast. You don’t want to proceed & then find out that you are among the exceptions. There are also some health conditions for which he recommends modifications, which he details. This is exactly the reason I appreciate the fact that this book is written by a medical doctor.
The kind of fasting he describes is very different from what I have encountered in other books or articles. I have 2 conditions that disqualify me from fasting, but the fact that I cannot fast does not leave me defenseless. There steps I can take to detoxify. This makes this book a valuable resource for someone like me. I will say that the type of fasting I see in this book looks reasonable. I do not think I would feel as though I was being starved. It allows for juices that are made with both fruits & vegetables. There are also additives that can be purchased to put in them that will aid in the detoxification as well as aid in satisfying a feeling of fullness.
Dr. Colbert also helps you with a nutritional program that includes foods to include in your diet & a list of supplements that will improve your liver’s ability to eliminate toxins from your system.
The final section of the book is titled “Detoxifying Your Whole Person.” This section has 2 chapters about biblical fasting that are the best I’ve ever read on the topic. The first chapter details what biblical fasting is all about, & the second takes you through the Bible to show you examples of 8 different kinds of biblical fasts. If you are a Christian, you will appreciate this section. It helps you to see the correlation between the physical act of fasting & the spiritual application & broader meaning it has. If you are not a Christian, you can just skip this section.
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After reading these 2 books by Dr. Colbert I was hooked! I wanted to read other books mentioned in my reading; so, I ordered 2 more books & 5 booklets of his. I will not review these. What You Don’t Know May be Killing You has a checklist at the end of each chapter that summarizes the most important information. Living in Divine Health has 34 Living Healthy tips highlighted throughout the book. The booklets are from Dr. Colbert’s The Bible Cure Series. There are 30 titles to choose from in this series. Each booklet has 5-7 chapter & is 75-85 pages long. Dr. Colbert uses Scripture, as appropriate, to make his points about health issues, & he ends each chapter with a model prayer.
Here is one example: Dear Lord, I thank you that You are the Lord of healing – of the body, soul & spirit. Help me to be faithful to sound wisdom about my diet. I place all of my bad dietary habits on Your altar, & I give my will to You in matters having to do with what I choose to eat. Empower me to eat in a way that is consistent with my own good health. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Topics include: Allergies, Arthritis, Autoimmune Diseases (lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, & ulcerative colitis), Back Pain, Cancer, Chronic Fatigue & Fibromyalgia, Depression & Anxiety, Diabetes, Headaches, Heart Disease, Heartburn & Indigestion, High Blood Pressure, Memory Loss, Menopause, Osteoporosis, Prostate Disorders, Skin Disorders, Sleep Disorders, Stress, etc. . . .
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Nature’s Cancer Fighting Foods, by Verne Varona
Prevent and Reverse the Most Common Forms of Cancer Using the Proven Power of Great Food and Easy Recipes
The author lost his mother to cancer when he was only 13, his father to cancer a few years later, and other family member to a variety of degenerative diseases. He states that he repeatedly asked himself the same questions: “What factors caused them to become sick? What, if anything could prevent me from becoming sick? Are we all just victims of some mysterious master plan, or do we really have some choice in creating healthy, vital lives for ourselves?”
He promised himself to “find a natural way to be well, a promise to learn from the mistakes of [his] family members in what not to do, or how not to live.” Although he realized he could not save his mother, he could save himself, and “as a tribute to her memory, give [himself] the permission to experience the life she could not.”
This book is the result of 30 years of trials, education, observation and experience. Varona has dedicated himself to sharing this information through counseling and lecturing, which is now in written form.
The book is very positive and practical, with scientific or medical research to back up claims that are made.
He is kind to physicians & explains why you should not to expect to receive nutritional counseling from your doctor. “While many medical schools are now beginning to wake up to the critical importance of nutrition and starting to expand their curricula, nutrition emphasis has been anemic; the average U.S. physician, in four years of medical school, typically gets only two hours of course work in nutrition. Only 25 percent of the accredited medical schools in the country have a single course in nutrition.”
This is reason enough to buy a book to learn how you can take care of your nutritional needs, so that you can live a healthier life & avoid degenerative diseases such as heart disease, cancer, and type 2 diabetes.
If you have difficulties with cravings, the book is worth buying for the wisdom found in Chapter 6. Varona’s content is so much broader and more insightful than any I’ve ever read on cravings. We all know it is emotional, but it is also physical and biological. He lists and discusses, in detail, 8 factors. He helps you understand the basis behind them and gives you strategies to help you know how to determine the most satisfying and safe way to handle them. For instance, there are: Ten strategies to eliminate sugar cravings (By the way, did you know your blood can only maintain approximately 2 teaspoons of sugar at one time? What happens to the excess?); Six ways to defeat your fat tooth; Six keys for handing monster appetites.
Chapter 10 is titled “Nature’s Cancer-Fighting Food Plan.” It has a section that helps you learn how to assess a dietary plan. There are 7 key questions to ask, & it discusses other important factors you need to consider. This chapter then introduces the reader to the cancer-fighting food plan. It begins with a Transition Plan that “offers a gradual change for increasing cancer-fighting agents by adding new, healthy, whole foods and decreasing foods that are not health supportive. This introductory plan is best suited to someone who is not familiar with many of the foods recommended since it permits greater flexibility. ” It moves to a Prevention/Therapeutic Plan and then to the Therapeutic Plan, which offers the highest level of anti-cancer protection. I like this approach, which eases one into the Plan. You can take it as far as you are comfortable.
There is a lot of eye-opening information in this book. I found it to be very enjoyable & informative reading.
I love finding valuable nuggets of information like this:
“Clinical research, as well as anecdotal testimony, has repeatedly shown that people who survive cancer often have many of the following ten traits: 1) Life Purpose 2) Positive Attitude 3) Good Nourishment 4) Healthy Lifestyle 5) Manageable Stress 6) Sense of Humor 7) Love and Social Support 8) Emotional Expression 9) Physical Exercise 10) Strong Faith. These ten trains can have vital healing influence.”As you can see, there are many good reasons to read and share this book with those you love.
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