"What Every Doctor Should Tell Their Patients"

Last Thursday evening, I got to attend an AWESOME seminar given by Dr. Michael Ewald, a 64 year young chiropractor travelling across the U.S. on bike, fueled by the one and only, Juice Plus! He is what we in the business like to call, a Juice Plus lifer, having decided to change his life 17 years ago, after watching his loved ones pass much too young from preventable diseases.

Dr. Ewald began his presentation with a very bold question for us:

What will your legacy look like?

Dr. Ewald started off by listing some current facts about our nation that I found extremely interesting. We are forking over millions and millions of dollars as a country for what we refer to as health care, but Dr. Ewald likes to describe it more accurately as "sick care."

1. Of the 20 most prominent/largest countries, the USA ranks LAST in life expectancy. DEAD LAST.
2. 7/10 Americans right this very moment, are too short for their weight.
3. Our children are more harmed by poor diet habits than alcohol, drugs and smoking combined.
4. If you are diagnosed with Diabetes before the age of 65, your risk of Alzheimer's goes up by 125%.
5. Our problem as a nation is that the majority of our diet is processed, meaning it is not only high calorie, high sugar and high fat, but also contains loads of toxic dyes, chemicals and preservatives. Furthermore, it leaves zero room or desire for plant based, nutrient rich foods.
6. We are SICK as a society, and it because of our food and lifestyle choices. 

I loved Dr. Ewald's concept of, the best doctor for yourself is YOU. Your health is YOUR responsibility. Not only do your choices have an effect on your children's, but how can you possibly help your child to live the most healthful life if you live at the doctor's office and are on 2-5, 10, sometimes 20 different medications?! I like to think of the airplane example here- there is a reason they say to secure your own mask before your child's should the oxygen masks drop down in case of an emergency while flying. We must first take responsibility for ourselves, and then encourage our children to do the same, and provide them the tools they need to do so. 

Another great, illustrated point that I never really thought about...

Nobody just GETS a heart attack or cancer. 

You don't just develop these types of life threatening diseases over night and wake up sick on any given day. For all of us who will develop disease in our lifetimes, YOU ARE DEVELOPING THEM RIGHT NOW, AS YOU READ THIS.

I don't say this to scare you, but rather for you to take a very serious grip on this. Especially for those, (probably every single one of us) who have some sort of life threatening disease running in their family. Our diet and lifestyle are the key contributing factors in turning genetic tendencies either on or off. We have taught our children that we are passing down "bad genes" but really, what we are passing down is our bad habits! But the great thing about that, is we get to choose!

What do you want this to say 100 years from now?

Despite what you are doing now, or what your doctor has made you think, taking medicine is NOT health care. So why we call it that, I have no idea. SIDE NOTE: I find it absolutely insane, that we are SO QUICK to trust our doctors with advice and their willingness to just medicate the crap out of us as a solution to every ailment. Unfortunately, we have made them into this "know-all, trustworthy" source for our health, when the truth is, they have little to no knowledge about nutrition. Did you know that the majority of the doctors that you see on a daily basis, right now, have taken only one nutrition course, if that, in their college career, including their PhD courses? Dietitians and Exercise Physiologists have years and years of multiple nutrition courses. Thankfully, studying medicine has recently changed to include much more nutrition in the bulk of their education as our nation is finally grasping the fact that our diet and lifestyle ultimately determines our health. 

Sickness, of any kind is due to one of two things.

1. A Deficiency

2. A Toxicity

That's it!!!! Yes, we may be more likely to develop certain things quicker depending on our family history, but the factor that will play a role in actually developing most preventable diseases is whether or not we have a deficiency or toxicity. Often times, it's both. Almost every person walking on this planet is deficient in something at any given time, whether it be water, a vitamin or mineral deficiency, macro nutrients (protein, carbohydrates or fat) exercise, sleep or phytonutrients.

Most of us, are also putting toxins in our body on a daily basis. Alcohol, cigarettes, artificial sweeteners, processed foods all literally change our cells and cause them to become toxic, which promotes sickness and disease. Furthermore, sadly enough, our THINKING is toxic. The fact that we blame issues on our genetics or body type, or bad advice, or the way we were taught to eat or live, really comes down to one simple thing- not taking responsibility of our individual health.

GOAL: Die YOUNG as late as possible.

Sounds like an oxymoron, right? But just think, if you could live long enough to see your kids have grand kids and still be enjoying your life, moving around and thriving in your daily activities, what could be better than that?

Take It Home

• If you're doctor isn't talking to you about your lifestyle, go somewhere else. And please, check your resources and THEIR resources. To be frank, not everyone who will give you exercise or nutrition advice, should. I'll talk more about this in a future post.
• Drink plenty of water. Our cells are made up primarily of water, if we don't constantly replenish them, we encourage them to become toxic. The recommendation for an inactive individual is to drink half of your body weight divided by 2 in ounces daily. If you're active, you know it's more!
• Exercise and/or MOVE every single day.
• Rest. Lack of rest creates stress in the body which is the ideal environment for diseases to develop and thrive!!!
• Avoid toxic, man-made foods. If it's boxed, bagged or canned, it likely has little to no nutritional value, and probably toxic ingredients.
• Remember, there is NO drug or doctor that can offset the damage that we do to our bodies. We are the only answer, taking responsibility NOW, is the way to prevent the diseases we are likely already feeding in our cells.
• Don't depend on taking a multivitamin. Vitamin supplements not only lack phytonutrients, the key role players in healthy, disease free cells, but they are FRAGMENTS of the actual vitamin or mineral you think your feeding your body with. Multi-vitamins, and other supplements aren't made from food sources. The body is not able to digest or absorb these the way that it can from actual food. This is the number one reason Juice Plus is the only "supplement" on the market that I will take. Since taking it, I have actually foregone my multivitamin all together, and my blood/health levels only continue to get better. It is made from whole foods, and blows multivitamins out of the water. It's not even comparable, and those who have taken the product, know that it speaks for itself.
• Eat a plant based- diet. Everything your body needs is found in produce. The more colorful your diet the better your chances of not only preventing diseases like cancer, but believe it or not, also treating them!
• Add Juice Plus to your daily regimen. 31 peer reviewed publications back this stuff up, (not just Juice Plus research). It is the single most thoroughly researched brand name nutritional product available. We do not make the claim that it takes the place of eating whole foods, because nothing can. However, it bridges the gap between what you should be eating, and what you actually do eat. If you consume 9-13 servings of plants per day, every single day, and those 9-13 hit every single color of the rainbow, you're probably good. Those are the recommendations for sedentary individuals. But, be honest with yourself, most of us don't even come close to that. And those of us who are active need a LOT more. 
• Just like the best exercise is the one you will do, the best way to get all of your vitamins, nutrients and phytochemicals, is the system you will adhere too. In my opinion, there's no easier, better way than a whole foods based diet and Juice Plus capsules every morning, and a shake at some point in the day. Getting in the nutrients from 40 different plants can be so easy!

The most amazing thing about this presentation, besides all the super interesting information, was the passion of Dr. Ewald when he talked about the reason he is with Juice Plus and his desire for helping people live better lives than he has lived in the past. That's the difference with this company and why I came on board. The passion for helping others live better lives is so much more important to us, than "selling a product." Dr. Ewald actually has an identical twin who looks NOTHING like him. You wouldn't know they were twins unless he told you, because up until recently, his brother wasn't making the best lifestyle choices and was suffering from some overweight and high blood pressure issues. On the complete opposite spectrum, Dr. Ewald with the EXACT DNA make up of his identical twin is fit, healthy and biking across the nation! I mean, come on folks, that right there speaks for the huge emphasis our diet and lifestyle have on the quality of our lives.

Choose for yourself, because you get to do that. But start making some choices you can be proud of, years from now. After all, what will your legacy look like?