For the past twelve Health Tips we have been dealing with the subject “How We Contribute to Our Own Physical Problems.” During this series we talked about six harmful substances people take into their bodies, usually on a daily basis.
These harmful substances are animal flesh and dairy, refined sugar, refined grains, caffeine, Nicotine and alcohol.
(All of these articles are available in the George Malkmus category on this blog and in printable form in the Health Tip archives.)
Five of the six substances we have dealt with are addictive: refined sugar, refined grains, caffeine, Nicotine and alcohol. Only one of them is not addictive: animal flesh (including Dairy).
WHY DO PEOPLE BECOME ADDICTED TO VARIOUS SUBSTANCES?
At Hallelujah Acres we recommend that all of these harmful substances be removed from the diet. In their place we promote a basically living (raw), 100% plant based diet. We call this “The Hallelujah Diet.” It isan eating plan patterned after the diet God gave Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 1:29, with a few minor deviations.
The Hallelujah Diet’sprimary deviation from the Genesis 1:29 diet is that it does allow for 15% of the diet to be comprised of cooked plant-sourced foods such as baked potatoes, whole grains, whole grain pastas, steamed vegetables, baked sweet potatoes, baked squash and beans. The remaining 85% of the diet consists of raw foods along with lots of freshly extracted vegetable juices (the most important part of the Hallelujah Diet).
What I find so interesting in working with and receiving letters from tens of thousands of people through the years is that the items Hallelujah Acres is criticized the most for eliminating from the Hallelujah Diet are the most destructive of anything we can place into our body – cow milk and animal flesh.
Interestingly, when talking about addictive foods, those are the easiest to remove from the diet because they are not classified as addictive. However, many people find it very difficult to give up these animal sourced foods because they have been deceived into believing that they are items the Bible endorses and nutritionists falsely claim are necessary for proper nourishment of the physical body.
With that as a little introduction, let’s begin dealing with the subject of addiction by sharing a letter received from a subscriber.
LETTER FROM A CHRISTIAN ADDICTED TO ALCOHOL & NICOTINE
created> by God. See Genesis 1:26, 27; 2:7; 5:2; Deuteronomy 4:32; Job 33:4; Psalm 8:5; 100:3; Isaiah 51:13; Malachi 2:10; and there are many, many, more verses.
The Bible also tells us what this beautiful God-made physical body we each possess was to be nourished with in Genesis 1:29.
“I come from a Christian background, yet here I sit smoking butts and drinking beer! I have been reading your Health Tip every week for some time now and know very well the truths it contains! I have always known of the need for ‘live’ foods as opposed to all the dead things we have been raised on. But the temptations of the Standard American Diet (SAD) along with smoking and drinking beer have been greater than I. I have wanted to write for some time now but have not. And I don’t even know what to say – just that I know I need some guidance.”WHY DO PEOPLE BECOME ADDICTED TO VARIOUS SUBSTANCES? Let’s turn to the Bible and see if we can’t find something in the Scriptures that will help us answer that question. In Psalm 139:14 we read,
“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”The Bible repeatedly tells us that the physical body we each possess was made
“And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat (food).”So what is the Bible telling us here? It is simply saying that this magnificent physical body God created was designed to run on and be nourished with those plant sourced foods that can only be found in the garden! So here we are, some 6,000 years after God created man and told man what he/she should eat to properly nourish and sustain these physical bodies. In what physical state do we find these physical bodies to be in? Are these physical bodies “in health” as God said they should be in 3 John 2? Or do we find mankind not only sick from eating the wrong things, but also addicted to some of these harmful substances the body was never designed to ever have to contend with. As we read the Scriptures, it becomes quite obvious that God designed man to forage for his food, just like all the rest of God’s animal creations. He was intended to consume only the plant foods created by God and placed in that Garden of Eden by God.
“And the Lord God planted a garden eastward of Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food.” (Genesis 2:8-9)Most people do not realize that for the next 1,700 years after man was expelled from the Garden, he consumed only foods that originated in the garden just as God intended. From Creation to the Flood, on this 100% plant based Garden diet, man lived to an average age of 912 without a single recorded instance of sickness. Then came the flood destroying all garden foods.
“And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high hills, that were under the whole heaven, were covered.” (Genesis 7:19)When all the garden foods God had told mankind to consume in Genesis 1:29 had been destroyed by the floodwaters, what was man to consume to sustain life? Following the flood, God gives permission to change the diet for the very first time since He had created man. God gave man permission to consume the flesh of the clean animals that were on the ark. (See Genesis 9:3) Why did God give man permission to consume the flesh of animals after He had created a body to be nourished exclusively with plant-sourced foods? I personally believe it was for survival purposes because all garden foods had been destroyed by the flood and were temporarily unavailable. Following the flood, man also began to cook his food. As we study physiology, we quickly learn that the physical body we each possess is a living organism, comprised of living cells. It was designed by God to be nourished with living (raw) plants. Animals in the wild, by natural, God-instilled instinct, consume all their food in the living raw form as served up by nature. Sadly, man has lost this natural instinct. I do believe, though, that if a child were to be placed in a room with only a rabbit and an apple, instinct would take over. The child would instinctively not chase after the rabbit until he caught it, then sink his teeth into the rabbits flesh and eat a chunk. He would rather play with the rabbit and by natural instinct eat the apple. When we consume garden foods in their natural, living form our cells are satisfied, our body functions flawlessly, and we remain free of sickness and disease just as god intended. However, when we put other substances into the body, it finds itself in a crisis situation. Now it has to contend with substances it was never designed by God to ever have to deal with. All the body was designed for were the plant-sourced foods found in the garden for nourishment, water for hydration, and oxygen. Sadly, today, physical bodies have to contend with all kinds of things that are harmful to the them. Let’s name a few of these substances: animal flesh and dairy, refined sugar, refined grains, caffeine, Nicotine, alcohol and two we haven’t talked about in this series as yet, table salt and trans fats. The only substances that should ever enter the mouth are substances that nourish the physical body. These are the fuels the body was designed by God to run on and be sustained by. Other substances cause the cells not to be satisfied and they begin demanding satisfaction. Here’s an example: When a person gets up in the morning and has something cooked for breakfast, the stomach is satisfied, but not the body’s living cells. Only living foods can satisfy a living organism and this physical body we each possess is comprised of living cells. When the stomach empties of these dead and devoid of life foods, hunger is once again experienced, usually within a very brief period of time. Why? Because only the stomach has been satisfied with that cooked food, but not the living cells. So what happens next? It is common in America, after that fullness has worn off, for a person to have a mid-morning coffee and donut snack. But does that dead food devoid of nutrition satisfy the nutritional needs of the body’s living cells? No! As a result, long before lunchtime that person is once again hungry and can’t wait to eat something – sometimes experiencing energy drains and weakness. So what happens at lunchtime? Multitudes head for the nearest fast-food restaurant. And what do they have for lunch? Maybe a cheeseburger, fries and a soda or milk shake? Once again they fill the stomach with dead items that offer the living cells of their body practically zero nourishment. The hunger again manifests just as soon as the stomach empties. By mid afternoon they are once again hungry. Instead of providing the body with the living plant sourced foods it was designed by God to be nourished with, they consume maybe a candy bar. Does that dead, sugar-laden candy bar satisfy the body’s living cells? No! By the time they reach home for supper they are famished. The living cells are now screaming for some nourishment. And what do they have to eat for supper? Probably they consume an entirely cooked meal, consisting of some cooked animal flesh, cooked vegetables, and a cooked sugar dessert, along with possibly a glass of wine. Because there is very little nourishment here, the body is hungry again before bedtime. It has to have something more to eat if they are going to survive till breakfast. Throughout the day people are hungry, then full, hungry then full, hungry, then full. All day long they suffer while the living cells that comprise the body are starving to death. Only living plant sourced foods can satisfy living cells. Meanwhile, weight often increases and physical problems manifest. This constant cycle occurs because the only thing that will satisfy the cells and prevent sickness is supplying the body’s living cells with the living plant-sourced foods God designed it to be nourished with. Because our living cells are not being satisfied with dead food, the body starts craving something that will satisfy the cells. In the attempt to satisfy these cravings, the person often turns to addictive substances such as sugar, refined grains (which turn quickly to sugar), alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, cocaine, heroin and marijuana. These non-food substances stimulate the body but do not meet the body’s nourishment need. So now the body is screaming for a fix that can only be satisfied by consuming more of that addictive substance. Thus an addiction begins. If you are a consumer of any of these addictive substances and say you can quit anytime you wish, just try going cold turkey and see what happens. See how strong you are at eliminating them. Yes, you are addicted!
