Just BE! International Newsletter - Issue 27 - "METHUSELAH'S Health Plan"

Dear Friend,

This is one letter I am sure will revolutionize yourthinking, once again. This month, our focus is"METHUSELAH's Health Plan".

Did Methuselah actually have a health plan? Friends, Istrongly believe so. Although Methuselah has had somuch negative publicity, (consider the adage "As oldas Methuselah"), we seem to miss one vital point:Methuselah is the longest living human beingdocumented by any earthly literature piece. Methuselahlived for 969 years. There were things he knew which Ifeel must be reiterated again today.

Many people bother about their health. Truly, healthis wealth. We need to care for our bodies simplybecause we really have no spares for it i.e. our body.A study by the United States Census InternationalPrograms Centre for 2005 states that the LifeExpectancy At Birth of humanity has generally improvedover the past decade (see www.census.gov/ipc).Developed nations show that women outlive men by 6-8years on the average age while in developing nations,it is about 2-3 years in favour of the women.

Your health is important. God wants you to livehealthy. To BE healthy covers so many areas becauseone cannot be said to be healthy unless there iscomplete well-being in body and mind. I believeMethuselah did the following to stay healthy (withliving long and strong as a consequence):
- Eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables - theycontain most of the vitamins the body needs for properfunctioning (Genesis 1:28-30).
- Drink lots of water - Water is the major constituentof living matter. The blood, respiratory processes,and many other bodily functions require water.
- Eat energy providing foods e.g. carbohydrates andstarchy foods.- Reduce saturated fats and refined sugars.
- Have moderate salt intake - Most cardiac diseasesand especially high blood pressure has been connectedto high salt intake.
- Eat less of red meats e.g. beef, mutton and pork.Eat more white meats e.g. poultry.
- Take fish that possess scales especially oily fish.Also, take lots of sea food e.g. shrimps, lobster,crayfish etc.
- Get active and build a healthy weight, throughappropriate exercise for your body type, keeping inline with your Body Mass Index (BMI) i.e. BMI = Weight(kg)/ Height (m2). The range is 18.5-24.9 as normal,25-30 is overweight, >30 is obese, and <18.5 isundernourished.- Rest and sleep as appropriate.
- Have love for humanity -Some of the worst type ofdiseases are those that arise from emotional disorderse.g. worry, anxiety, fear, anger, hate etc.
- Eat foods boiled rather than fried - Oils could leadto increase of cholesterol in the body blocking bloodvessels causing heart attacks ultimately.
- Eat at the appropriate time of the day.
- Learn to enjoy God's presence especially throughworship.

This list is not conclusive, but it will once againhelp you to BE better at who you are meant to BE. Onething I'm positive about is this: God wants you tolive long and strong (Genesis 6:3 - "Then GOD said,'I'm not going to breathe life into men and womenendlessly. Eventually they're going to die; from nowon they can expect a life span of 120 years";Deuteronomy 34:7 "Moses was 120 years old when hedied. His eyesight was sharp; he still walked with aspring in his step", The Message Bible Translation.).

Have a health plan. The world needs you. BE healthy!Take charge, maximize life, Just BE!

PS:Other web links that would be of benefit to you healthwise:
www.who.ch
www.tqjunior.thinkquest.org/41
www.allrecipes.com
www.bbc.co.uk/health
www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/t