The expression living with a green heart as notably used by Gay Brown in his master piece on healthy living connotes living healthy and happy! Generally, humans seek and desire good health and happy living in society but how to go about it varies from person to person. Living with a green heart is simply utilizing what ‘Mother Nature’ offer us maximally for self care and care of/for the environment in which we live. In other words, It has to do with giving respect to one’s own body system for effective functioning. It has to do with living in harmony with the planet ensuring that proper care and attention is giving as suppose. On the other hand, it has to do with rejecting willingly and strongly the urge to consume toxics and certain chemical substances in what we consume as food.
Our discussion will focus on the need to encouraging a return to nature or going back to valuing, cherishing and consuming natural foods and drinks which are of manifold benefits to humans in the contemporary world.
The Devastating Situation
In this contemporary time, it has been observed that varied forms and shapes of diseases looms large. Cancer, diabetes, cardio-vascular attacks, high cholesterol, asthma among others are known debilitating diseases. The technologically advancement notably brought about improve mode of living. Nevertheless, it has been observed to be have been predisposing some persons to early or premature death. For instance, pollution is on the increase as carbon dioxide, carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide is ubiquitous due to hyper chemical activities. It is on record that about eight thousand to twelve thousand deaths in Europe is caused by pollution. In the same way, humans are more expose now to stress and its concomitant these times than in the recent past. Also, the number of patience with asthma and allergies has tripled over the years. How about the climate change condition that is directly linked to the depletion of ozone layer?
Basically, the aforementioned situation above cannot be unconnected with the life styles of abandoning ways of living naturally which has to do with breathing clean and fresh air, drinking purest water, eating natural/green/fresh foods: vegetables and fruits, living in natural habitants or environment proximate to vegetations. Hence, the consequences of not living in this favourable ways is staring us in the face.
The Way Forward
To forestall or arrest these anomalies as the case may be there must have to be a change of attitude or life style that supports going back to nature. It requires taking the bold steps of making healthful choices for ourselves and sticking to the healthy choices for vitality and purposeful living. The following are some of the steps required to bring about a personal health revolution in our lives:
Consuming fresh foods and fruits: it include taking of plant based protein, taking of nuts and seeds
Drinking clean water
Breathing of fresh (natural) air
Using environmentally friendly product on one skin and in cleaning the home
It involves spending time away from devices among others.
Attention will be given only to the first items from our list aforementioned.
Consuming fresh foods and fruits
There is need to state categorically that there is difference between consuming food and taking junks. Often times people refer to junk as food. This is very incorrect! Consuming fresh food necessary requires that we eat plants based diet, plant based protein and fat and take in nuts and seeds for the healthy functioning of our hearts and the entire body system.
It is important to note that some huge chemicals sometimes term preservatives, especially pesticides that are poured into most of the food items sold in the markets. For example, some quantity of chemical we refer to as ‘colour’ is poured into palm oil usually produced sold by companies and industries. It is said that such is allowed or permitted by agencies supervising food production and consumption like in Nigeria we have NAFDAC. It is to this end that buying of food stuffs from local markets may be said to be more natural than those produced or refined in industries and factories as the case may be. Notwithstanding, not all food products coming from food factories are chemically laden or not natural.
Emphatically, many of our local meals are laden with numerous health benefits and nutritional values. The ewedu and amala consume mostly by the Yorubas, the fiofio, onogbo soup (bitter leaf soup) in Igbo land, the afang, edikekong (vegetables) soup consume more by the Ibibio/Efik or the local rice planted in the country like Abakiliki people are ‘real’food. The Abakaliki locally produced rice is so rich that the even the taste is good in comparison to the foreign one and the nutritional value is higher as against the ‘foreign’ (parboil) rice. It is said that virtually all foreign rice have their natural oil extracted from them. It is no exaggeration saying that most foreign rice imported into the country is chaff. This is so because there nutritional value has been drastically reduced or completed extracted as the case may be.
In addition, it is also of premium importance to state that the mode of cooking, storing and preserving cooked food that favours healthy means of caring for our bodies. Preserving hot foods in synthetic containers or using nylon, plastics, and rubbers is hazardous to a person health. This day’s most okpa sellers prefer preparing this highly nutritious meal with nylon rather than only leaves. Majority of those who tie their okpa in leaves often place it in nylon first. This should not be so; many may have been predisposed to cancer via this means.
Conclusion
So far we have noted that it is a good thing to experience advancement and progress in life generally nevertheless qualitative advancement does not reject or jettison living with a green heart. It should not in any way discredit healthy living and good healthy life style; making right choices in living hale and hearty is key. Thus, consciously and persistently living with a green heart truly requires embracing natural foods and rejecting toxics into our system or environment.
Scripted by Friar Paul Abuato, OFM Cap
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