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Foods or Pills?
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FOODS
THAT ARE ESPECIALLY GOOD ALTERNATIVES TO SUPPLEMENTS
I have no financial
connection whatsoever to the supplement industry. Some readers will
nevertheless assume that I'm a bit of a health-pill-pusher. Nope; just
a realist. If you eat the all-to-typical "Standard American Diet," you probably don't care much
for the following unpopular foods. On the other hand, we'd need fewer
supplements if we'd eat more of these:
*NUTRITIONAL or BREWER'S
YEAST (Vitamin B-12, other B-vitamins, chromium, selenium) Like most
foods, a true portion of yeast won't fit into tablets. Try hiding the flavor in pineapple
juice. You may prefer the taste of primary-grown nutritional yeast, as
it is not a by-product of beer making. Debittered brewers' yeast also
offers a taste improvement.
* WHEAT GERM (Vitamin
E, magnesium, B-vitamins, protein) If vacuum packed in a jar, one of the very best
foods in the supermarket. If buying raw in a bag or in bulk, only accept very fresh, refrigerated wheat germ
at the health food store. Smell it. The nose knows: smell to tell if it is
fresh. If it smells sour, acrid, bitter, or just plain funny, don't buy.
* SPROUTED GRAINS,
SPROUTED BEANS, SPROUTED LENTILS (complete protein, all vitamins and minerals, fiber) Eat
raw and often. The best food at the salad bar. Probably the most
complete food you'll find. Low calorie and cheap to grow at home. If
I had only one (cheap) "superfood" to recommend, it would be sprouts. Here are some hints to help grow your sprouts easily.
* FRESH, RAW
VEGETABLE JUICE (Beta-carotene, minerals and vitamins in general, fiber)
Tastes great and is better for you than any beverage on Earth. Get a
juicer, and use it! No bottled vitamins can compare to an uncooked,
concentrated extract of veggies. Drink some daily. My how-to juicing hints will get you started.
* WHEATGRASS
JUICE (Large quantities of vitamin C, vitamins and minerals in general,
chlorophyll) Wheat is cheap. Sprout it in your kitchen! On a flat tray
or two, under a bit of soil, you can have an indoor sprout farm. When
several inches high, harvest with regular scissors. Add a bit of water
while putting the wheatgrass through the juicer.
* YOGURT (calcium,
phosphorus, beneficial probiotic bacteria, protein, B-vitamins) About
the easiest dairy food to digest and absorb. Dilute with water as an
alternative to milk. Ever notice that over one-third of most
"fruited" yogurts is sugar-laden jam? Buy plain and sweeten it yourself.
* KEIFER Have you tried it? Think of it as drinkable yogurt. Loaded with probiotic bacteria. Again, buy plain and sweeten if you need to.
* BROCCOLI AND ALL THE OTHER CRUCIFEROUS VEGETABLES These include kale, cabbage, cauliflower, mustard greens, turnip greens, and Brussel's sprouts.
Absolutely loaded with vitamin K. How loaded? You can get the RDA of vitamin K from a single teaspoon of cooked kale. Eat more!
* LECITHIN Granules
by the tablespoon beat those horse pills that contain only 1.2 grams of the
stuff. Cheapest, best source of choline, phospholipids and
inositol. Totally vegetarian. Start small and gradually increase
your daily lecithin.
* WHOLE WHEAT,
BARLEY, CORN, OATS, BROWN RICE (fiber, vitamins and minerals, protein, complex
carbohydrates) ANY whole grain is on my good-for-you list. If you have a problem with any one or two, then eat the others.
Who needs extra bran or laxatives when you can just eat
the fiber-rich whole grain in the first place?
* MOLASSES
(sweetness, iron) Avoid bitter blackstrap and select a "primary" or
sweet molasses as an alternative to sweet snacks.
It might go without saying, but I'll say it anyway: make a point to purchase organic, non-GMO foods.
If you are not eating lots of the above goodies, a regular supplement program is absolutely essential.
Copyright C 2019, 2004, and previous years Andrew W. Saul.
Andrew Saul is the author of the books FIRE
YOUR DOCTOR! How to be Independently Healthy (reader reviews at
http://www.doctoryourself.com/review.html
) and DOCTOR YOURSELF: Natural Healing that Works. (reviewed at http://www.doctoryourself.com/saulbooks.html
)
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Andrew W. Saul
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AN IMPORTANT NOTE:
This page is not in any way offered as prescription, diagnosis nor treatment
for any disease, illness, infirmity or physical condition. Any form of
self-treatment or alternative health program necessarily must involve an
individual's acceptance of some risk, and no one should assume
otherwise. Persons needing medical care should obtain it from a
physician. Consult your doctor before making any health decision.
Neither the author nor the webmaster has
authorized the use of their names or the use of any material contained within
in connection with the sale, promotion or advertising of any product or
apparatus. Single-copy reproduction for individual, non-commercial use is
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