By Clint Fuqua
November is the month of giving thanks and feasting in honor of all the abundance of life. It is however also a reminder of how gluttonous we can get in times of great abundance leading to our current curse of diabetes. I call this a curse as it only takes one bad generation to negatively impact the next three generations. No matter how good they try to be, it can take that long for the curse to be lifted. We speak of leaving legacies in terms of money and prestige as we neglect the very genetic legacies we leave. The decisions we make each day can destroy fortunes and family pride for generations that may never be regained. Give thanks for all the great things and opportunities we enjoy by passing on the best of it. The best way to end a disease in the future is to stop its growth in the present and we all have that ability every day.
Numbers count, as even the smallest of them add up over time. There are numbers that show world, country, state, county, city, and even zip code averages of disease and health statistics. They all count, but your numbers count even more because they are the only ones that impact your life directly. The numbers 90, 5.6, 120, 80, 70, 200, and 150 are the winning lottery numbers of average health. These will keep you off medications and out of the doctor’s office. You NEED to know what these numbers are and how they relate to your health. But do you?
90 or lower is the blood sugar average that shows you don’t have pre, type 2, or type 1 diabetes. 5.6 or lower is the A1C number that shows you have low inflammation levels and no pre, type 2 or type 1 diabetes. 120/80 or lower is the blood pressure number that shows your cardiovascular system is not under excess stress and you have a low risk for cardiovascular disease. 70 or lower is the resting heart rate that shows your heart is efficiently pumping blood and is healthy. 200 or lower is the total cholesterol number that shows your body is handling daily stress well and is properly managing fat metabolism. 150 or lower is the triglyceride number that shows you are not taking in too much sugar on a daily basis and excess fat storage is low. Not knowing or gambling with these numbers at higher levels will cause you to lose money and the game of life very quickly, very badly, and with a high level of health debt passed on to your children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
Your mouth is a two way street with many things going in and coming out every day. The words we choose and use to convey thoughts and create actions are defined by internal health, especially the words used in private. Vulgarities and negative speech are as bad for health as a super sized value meal at the local drive thru and often pass through the same lips as they feed on each other. The foods we chew und use to feed the brain that creates the thoughts we convey and actions we take, are as pure or toxic as what comes back out.
Bad foods lead to bad moods, which lead to bad foods, which lead to mouth and body full of garbage.
The numbers above are just a reflection of what is seen, felt, and said every day. You can either feed and speak health and abundance into your life and legacy or you can “live it up” and “YOLO” while condemning yourself and future generations to a life in ruin. Save the overboard feasting for family and friendly gatherings a few times a year while feeding your health the rest of the days.
Diabetes can cost an arm and a leg, and foot, two eyes, and kidney, or even a life when the body is neglected.
The numbers matter, and a mouth full of truths matter, but they are all for nothing if the body rots away. Diabetes is the leading cause of amputation, blindness, and kidney disease in the world and a little movement every day will help keep it all away. An apple a day will keep the doctor away, while a walk a day will keep you from growing a gut and able to get off your butt. Devoting just 1% of your day (that’s only 24 minutes) to activity and training for the ability to live well will keep your body healthy. Joints and bones will rust away like cars in a junk yard if allowed to sit and stagnate. Muscles will ache, tighten, tear, and wither away if they are not stressed and stretched. Nerves will shock, tingle, and go dead like a frayed wire if they are not fired up and protected. Exercise is daily therapy that gets everything to work together to create a want for better food to feed the body in need. Daily movement will bring all those numbers down like nothing else, but you must work to get anything out of it.
Action Steps:
- Know the numbers. Health is a numbers game and your job is to keep them on your side. Know your Blood Sugar, A1C, Blood Pressure, Resting Pulse Rate, Cholesterol, and Triglyceride levels so you can keep them in check. Gambling with them is a losing bet.
- Mind your mouth. The things coming out of your mouth matter as much as the things going in your mouth. Choose your words as carefully as your next bite of food as they both feed health or disease. A mouth filled with nastiness is just bad taste.
- Mind your body. Your body is a temple and should be treated just like one so it will stand the test of time. Dust, rust and rot will all set in and cause it to fall apart if you don’t move and lubricate it by doing your part. A temple sitting in ruin is no place anyone will ever want or be able to live.
Visit me at www.ClintFuqua.com and contact me with any questions, comments, requests, recommendations, proposals, fan mail, or hate mail at Clint@ClintFuqua.com.
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