Reversing Obseity

Obesity is reversible. In fact, all diseases have the potential to be reversible- miracles happen everyday leaving conventional doctors speechless, stunned and baffled. We tend to think of obesity as excess fat. Yet, underneath the accumulation or excess as we would call it in Chinese medicine, there is almost always an emotional expression that is hibernating. The act of eating is joyful, it brings pleasure and is an unconscious means of suppressing emotions that we long to act on.

There are many factors that play into obesity; emotional, poor diet, lack of exercise, depression, sedentary job, sedentary lifestyle, environmental toxins, hypothyroid, fibromyalgia, arthritis, type II diabetes. There is no one cause to obesity just as there is no one cause to disease. There is also no one treatment for any disease, including obesity. Obesity is a process and when treated in a healthy way can take a few to several years to obtain desired results. The greatest assets any one person can have to overcome disease and obesity is persistence, positivity and will.

We can reverse obesity by reforming our lifestyle, including diet, physical activity, stress management, and via learning how to express and detoxify emotional baggage. We are taught in the west to suppress emotions; joy is the only accepted emotional state. We tell people, don't cry, don't be angry, don't worry, if you're depressed take Zoloft (pharmaceutical drug for depression) and we cram these emotions deeper down into our beings. All diseases come from the heart and it starts with the emotions.  It is accepted in non-western cultures to express every emotion, in a healthy state -if you're angry don't injure someone, don't yell at your spouse, but go into a room and yell or hit your pillow. Anger in Chinese medicine is the most harmful emotion and is fueled by fear; it is also associated with wind. So, when you are angry, don't suppress or hurt anyone, but allow yourself to healthfully let off some steam, quite literally- let the wind out.

Obesity is a process, it is a shedding of layers (as is all disease). But when we start detoxing the root causes and factors that play into obesity, the weight, suppressed emotions, fatigue and lack of self worth all begin to be released. We need to begin my shedding external toxins that contribute to illness and obesity such as: caffeine, cigarette smoke, heavy metals, air and water pollutants, cosmetics (buy organic), household cleaning products (buy 7th generation of make your own), pesticides and herbicides, pharmaceuticals and preservatives. The latest research has shown that there are over 80,000 synthetic chemicals registered for use in the United States!!! The centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reports that display hundred's of these chemicals that reside within our bodies. It is proven that chemicals such as those listed above, can disrupt and interfere with our immune, endocrine, nervous and reproductive systems. To combat disease and obesity we must eliminate these synthetic materials that set the terrain up for disease.

Unfortunately, fad dieting doesn't touch these underlying issues. We are always looking for a magic pill or drink etc to help us get better or lose weight without doing any work. Staying healthy and reversing disease is very possible, but it requires a keen attention to detail, motivation and you must work at your health to gain results. If you are not healthy, than what else truly matters?

Here are some tips on how to lose weight in a healthy manner:

• Avoid processed foods
• Eat organic fruits and vegetables
• Decrease the number of times you eat out
• Eliminate coffee, alcohol and impure water (buy a water filter best one on the market: premium 10 stage water filter by enviro products http://www.newwaveenviro.com/premium-10-stage-water-filter-p-86.html)
• Eat meats that are free range, organic when possible
• Eliminate soda
• Eliminate fast food
• Decrease charbroiling and grilling
• Eliminate artificial sweeteners (use honey, agave, maple syrup or stevia instead)

Dietary

• Eat a rainbow of fruits and vegetables, however, one should eat twice as many vegetables as fruits
• Eat brown rice, wild rice or lentils as your sole grain intake 1/2 cup = serving size. It is recommended to eat lentils over brown rice as they have a higher protein content and less carbohydrates than brown rice
• 2-4 servings of protein per day, 1-2 servings being fish from cold water sources such as sockeye salmon, cod, mackerel, red snapper; if you're anemic or of menstruating age 1-2 servings of free range bison per week is permitted and encouraged
• Drink fresh vegetable juices. If you have a juicer or are up for purchasing one, this can be key to your weight loss as it encourages elimination and provides vital minerals and nutrients to your system
• Use only extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, flax oil (not for cooking only for salad dressings, or 2-3 Tbs can be taken per day, store in fridge), grape seed oil or cod liver oil (take 1 tsp per day)
• Avoid alcohol, caffeine, tobacco or other stimulants; nuts, seeds, dairy, processed or refined foods, grains except wild or brown rice
• Drink juices and/or shakes throughout the day if hunger comes on. Shakes can be made with hemp or rice milk, berries, vegetable juices from your juicer and hemp protein or organic whey protein can be added if you are not allergic to dairy. I encourage the addition of chlorophyll or spirulina 1/4 tsp per shake (can be taken 2x per day) to increase intake of healthy minerals
• DO NOT START ANY WEIGHT LOSS PROGRAM WITHOUT FIRST CONSULTING A PHYSICIAN (if you need help finding a reliable, supportive physician please contact me and I can help you do so)

"If people let government decide what foods to eat and what medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as the souls who live under tyranny". ~Thomas Jefferson