— Health from a biblical perspective —

Dear Health-minded Reader,

Some things are so commonplace we accept them as normal when in fact they’re not.  One in particular is the habit of incessantly stoking our bodies with stimulatory substances having no redeeming nutritional value.  Worse yet, substances PROVEN harmful to health; even leading to premature death.  Almost as though in compliance to a societal genocide pact; on cue, we ingest stimulatory and toxic substances at least 5 times daily with employers even funding times and means to imbibe.

Hold it!  Coffee is not our target. It’s a societal blindness causing us to be one of the sickest nations in the world; albeit, the richest.  So totally pervasive is the matter, it’s hard to get far enough away to see its scope.  Nonetheless, it’s very real.  It’s costing you money, your health, vitality; even your life.

Unwarranted Stimulation

Deficit health spending

A well-known health expert offers a way to assess one’s true health.  He suggests a person cease their intake of all stimulants for three days.  He further postulates that on the third day, the average American will not have enough energy to get out of bed.  His contention is that most of us don’t have enough innate vitality to function without the daily (if not hourly) intake of substances which artificially stimulate the body’s metabolism.  In effect he’s saying we’re like cars needing a jump-start with every use because the battery charging system isn’t working properly.  Let’s consider his thesis.

Though simplistic, comparing the body’s energy generating system to that of a motor vehicle, is fair.  When working properly, both function by converting a fuel supply into available energy for their respective mechanisms to operate.  One uses food-fuel, the other needs gasoline.  With both, their ability to reliably perform is directly related to their fuel quality and maintenance.  If, as another health authority notes, a poor quality fuel is put into a car, it’ll “ping and knock”.  Moreover, if that situation persists, it can ruin the motor, rendering the vehicle useless.

Similarly, if a low grade food-fuel is used, our body will “ping and knock”.  Eaten habitually, it will ruin the body’s “engine”, leading to sickness, disease, debilitation, and even death.  It’s the inescapable law of  sowing and reaping; cause and effect.

Most new-car owners are acutely aware and fastidious regarding fuel type and maintenance, being careful to follow the manufacturer’s advice. They use the proper fuel grade and take their car to a qualified repair shop for service and maintenance.  After all, it cost thousands of dollars and is expected to reliably serve for years; even though the engine and running gear can be replaced.

When our bodies break down, repairs (if possible) are often at a horrific cost in pain, suffering, debilitation and dollars.  Therefore, we all, with the greatest of wisdom, feed and care for it as the precious gift from God that it is — right?  WRONG!  Instead, we treat it like the couple who recently took us for a ride in their $60,000 car having a $4000 set of wheels.  It surprised me to see him fill up at the cheapest, self-serve gas pump (something I’d learned the expensive way, NOT to do!).  Many fuel their bodies similarly; as though there’s no connection between what’s put into it and health. Our wholesale ignorance is nothing short of remarkable!

Cutting to the quick of it, the Standard American Diet (SAD) is of such low “octane”, most folks must resort to stimulants for enough energy to get through the day.  So widespread is the malady, it’s deemed normal, but in fact is nothing more than evidence of wholesale national dietary deception and deficiency.  It brings to mind bygone days when gasoline tanker trucks were emblazoned with warnings; “Danger, inflammable”.  So widespread was the error, nobody seemed to realize that they should have read, “Flammable”.

One’s diet should provide enough energy to (1) keep us alive, (2) meet the physical demands of the day and (3) for health maintenance. In fact, the SAD can barely keep people alive!  It doesn’t have enough nutrient power to even meet energy needs, yet alone maintenance.  Folks must therefore resort to stimulants — the most common being: alcohol, sugar, nicotine, caffeine, salt, processed foods, food supplements, medicines, protein drinks and even meat.

All such substances stimulate the body’s metabolism in its effort to digest (or defend itself against) them; revving it up.  The resultant energy boost experienced isn’t so much from those substances as it is from jazzing the body’s engine.  As soon as it senses the intake of any of these, the adrenals and liver kick in, heart-rate goes up and the body’s trillions of biologic furnaces (cells) gear up for a toxic attack.  It goes on high alert (survival mode) because most stimulants are also poisonous.  Dutifully, the liver releases glucose for conversion into (ATP) energy.  The ingested alcohol, refined sugar and white flour products are quickly converted to glucose, helping to sustain the temporary energy boost.  So goes it daily for many folk, until the next “fix” is needed; in an hour or so.

So, what’s wrong with frequently stimulating the body’s metabolism?  Well, consider the long-term affect on your car’s engine if it was started up 5 times every day — then all you did was sit there and gun the engine.  The short-term result would be to empty the gas tank without having gone anywhere.  In the long run it would harm the engine; not being designed for that kind of service.  Essentially, that’s what happens when one ingests stimulants for breakfast, morning break, lunch, afternoon break, then again for supper — not to mention evening snacks, 4 cups of coffee and 20 cigarettes a day.

Stimulation in itself is not bad; the problem comes from not providing the nutrient energy expended in the process.  Think in terms of energy; it takes energy for the body to do anything — certainly to increase its metabolism.  Consider heart rate.  At rest it may be 55 but when you start moving about it’ll climb up to 70-80 — maybe higher.  Where does the body get the energy to perform that work?  In this instance, from its nutrient and enzyme reserves — the “charge”, stored in the system.  Where did it come from?  Well, the only source metabolic energy CAN come from is the air we breathe, the liquids we drink and what we eat.  Here’s where the problem occurs.  If there’s not enough nutrient energy in our diet, the body draws on its own dwindling reserves to make up the deficit.  If this dietary condition is allowed to persist, it will eventually deplete one’s reserves and lead to “healthruptcy”: sickness, disease and even premature death.  In fact, this is so common in America it’s considered “normal”.  Well, it isn’t normal!  It’s common, but certainly NOT the way God intended our bodies to function.

Here’s the nut of the issue: none of the previous listed stimulants have enough (if any) nutrient energy to afford all that metabolic engine revving.  Eventually they’ll run the reserve tank dry — read that as “dead”. Yes, including red meat!  This ointment’s “fly” is that complex animal protein is so difficult to digest, it takes 37% more energy to do so than it contains.  Once again, the body’s reserves are drawn down to process it.  That’s why animal products are termed “negative energy” foods.  It’s also the reason a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet is so effective for shedding pounds.  When the body is deprived of its most desirable source of nutrient energy (carbohydrates) then glutted with expensive-to-digest animal protein, its next best  choice is to burn body fat to generate energy needed to digest the protein.  It works — but it’s a killer!

The solution

Learn to think and eat according to food energy.  If you’re like most of us whose health has been corrupted by years of unwise eating, you must not  only get out of this “deficit” kind of eating, but begin to run a surplus from which your body can start to mend itself.  Forget diets!  Instead, think in terms of your body’s 100 trillion cell’s nutrient needs.  Being replaced at the rate of 300 million per minute, you have the wonderful opportunity to assure that the next generation will be sounder than the last; minute-by-minute — mouthful-by-mouthful!  Go for those positive-energy foods and stay away from the negative ones that draw down your reserves.  This isn’t New Age gibberish; I’m referring to God-made food’s nutrient energy and don’t worry about weight.  You can actually lose pounds on a 5000 calorie diet.  Here’s the truth in a nutshell:  Live cells need live food — preceded only by: thou shalt not poison thyself.  When we adhere to these two health principles alone, extra pounds and sickness symptoms start to fall away and we began to feel and function the way God intended.

— Letters from readers —

Dear Hallelujah,

Issue HN2-2 of your Roadrunner Health NEWS has an article entitled, “Meat, dairy & eggs — a deadly threesome?”  It was terrible to read!  To think that food-producing animals are loaded with anti-biotics, growth hormones and fed a diet ranging from dehydrated garbage to chicken manure — even the remains of their own kin, plus a whole range of dead and diseased animals from farms, road-kill and euthanized horses, pets (the latter often complete with flea collars and metal name tags)!?  And this gets back into the food chain, including sodium phenobarbitol used by vets to put-down pets?!  Could you please send something to let me know where this information came from?  It’s really disturbing! — C.C., Tehachapi, CA

Dear C.C., Thanks for your thoughtful letter of outrage concerning the little known and frightening practices of the food processing industry.  Regarding your “source” question; it came from Robust Health, a Bible-based Primer, p24, Roadrunner Pubs 2001.  Its original source is a 1997 report by Chet Day;  “From Cow to Cannibal” available from Hallelujah Acres Online, Opinion #6 at their website.  The Resource page of Robust Health lists dozens of additional publications for the health student brave enough to venture beyond the pap fed Americans via the retail media.  We highly recommend Eric Schlosser’s, Fast Food Nation; ISBN 0-395-97789-4.  Another way to jump-start your health (re)education from a Christian perspective is to have your church schedule one of our free Robust Health Seminars.  Reading our free bi-monthly Health NEWS will also help.  Thanks again for writing.  — eds.

Disclaimer: The Hallelujah Health NEWS newsletter emphasizes nutrition-related health issues, to educate, encourage and provide lifestyle information.  There is no intent to diagnose, treat, prescribe for, cure or prevent disease.  The author or publisher assumes no responsibility for the use or effects of said information.  Hallelujah Health NEWS is a free public educational service, solely to promote a healthier lifestyle.

ABOUT US:  Founded in 1993, Hallelujah Living Ministries is a donation-based, non-denominational Christian outreach to uplift, inform and challenge followers of Jesus Christ.  For more information or a copy of our always-free print newsletter, please include a  postal mail address along with your comments and prayer requests. Thank you for visiting  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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