As the problem of health care for all Americans continues to stay at the forefront of political discussions, I keep asking myself why this is such a crisis? As is my custom, I asked myself why do we have a crisis now? Why haven't we always needed "health care?" Let's take a look back at our history:
We've seen the incredible rise of advancements in science, technology, and medical research in the 20th century, unlike any other time in history. Along with that, however, we saw advancements in food processing and engineering. There is definitely a link.
100-150 years ago (that's always where I start) our ancestors ate real food. They had eggs and bacon and toast for breakfast, or oatmeal, or toast and coffee. Butter was fresh, and there was no margarine. Milk was fresh, and not pasteurized or homogenized. For lunch it was fresh vegetables (or sometimes canned, depending on where the people lived), fresh meat from hunting, or frozen, smoked, or dried meats. It was the same for dinner (or supper). Soups and casseroles were made with fresh ingredients. What wasn't available simply wasn't used.
Vegetables were grown in the family garden with what we now call organic gardening methods. For those people, it was just called "gardening." They had simple, common sense methods for fertilizing and killing unwanted insects. There was no danger of carcinogens on the produce.
Fruits were either grown locally or picked wild, or traded with others in the area. Again, they were fresh and safe to eat.
Eggs were collected by little kids or housewives on the family farm, or purchased from friends who had a farm. They were not raised on egg farms, with chickens as virtual prisoners in their rows and rows of laying houses.
Very little, if any food, was processed. Nothing came in a cardboard box, with names that the average person can't pronounce.
White sugar and flour (now known as refined) were considered "special" and not used for everyday.
As our advancements in food processing have occurred, the need for advancements in medicine have become necessary. Why? Our bodies were designed to run on food; real food. Not chemicals processed to look like food, or to resemble food. Real food contains real nutrients that cause our bodies to function properly. Processed foods have a host of bad health results and dangerous side effects that we are still learning about in the 21st century.
You can do your own research; there is way too much information to post here. Just look up the dangers of processed food, artificial sweeteners, pesticides, growth hormones, artificial food coloring, and preservatives.
So, what does have to do with health care? Simply this: you can control the costs of your family's healthcare by changing your diet. Eat more fresh or organic produce, look for dairy products that do not have growth hormones, eat real butter, eat whole grains, and fresh frozen or organic meats. Reduce or remove white sugars and flours from your diet. It's not easy or cheap, but then healthcare isn't either. And the long-term results are much more pleasant.
I think if more and more Americans (and people around the world) would make some simple changes in diet, we would see a dramatic drop in the need for life-long prescription medications, constant aches and pains, depression, cancer, Alzheimer's, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, and a host of other ailments. And without these problems, the need for "health care" disappears.
I don't mean that doctors will no longer be necessary. But they will be able to spend their time on broken bones, sore throats, and ear aches.
Disclaimer: Our family does not eat a perfect diet, so don't judge me when you see me with a Dr. Pepper! But we know the benefits and we do try. I try to add more natural and healthy products to our grocery list all the time.
For a common sense approach to Simple Living, visit my other blog, Prairie Sense.
Labels: homemaking, politics
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