By Edmundo Y. Cejar
MALUNGON, Sarangani (MindaNews) — These days we pop a capsule or tablet for everything. A headache. A bad tummy. A muscle pain. Rashes. Name it.
For more serious illnesses like cancer, powerful drugs (chemotherapy) kill cancer cells and beams of high energy (radiation therapy) does the same. Unfortunately, they also kill healthy cells with cancer cells. In many cases, the patient dies more due to the side effects of the treatment rather than the cancer itself.
For so long, until recently, health care focused on restoring the patient’s health to a pre-ailment state. You get to get sick first then you get cured.
More recently, however, fortunately healthcare is moving towards preventing disease from occurring. In a way you get treated before you get sick.
The preventative approach is not new.
Hippocrates, the ancient Greek physician (460 BCE – 375 BCE), who is traditionally regarded as the father of medicine emphasized nutrition in preventing or curing disease.
‘Let thy food be thy medicine and thy medicine shall be thy food’, is often ascribed to Hippocrates.
1 Timothy 5:23 says, “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.”
Ezekiel 47:12 “They will bear fruit every month because their water flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for medicine.”
A Buddhist diet is primarily plant-based, mainly fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains, legumes, and beans. Seldom is meat consumed. It is rich in antioxidants, phytochemicals, vitamins, minerals, and fiber which have been proven to decrease risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer.
Zaad al-Ma’aad, 4/224, 225. And he said (may Allah have mercy on him):
Honey contains great benefits, for it cleanses impurities from the veins and stomach etc., whether it is eaten or applied to the skin. It is good for the elderly, the phlegmatic and those whose humours are cold and wet. It is nourishing, aids digestion, energizes, makes unpleasant medicine palatable, is good for the liver and chest, is a diuretic and helps to ease coughs caused by phlegm.
Health Benefits of Vegetables and Fruits
These days, we find all sorts of literature proclaiming the health benefits of vegetables and fruits. Some are anecdotal, others based on traditional practices. But there are those backed by science and medical authority.
We compiled a list of commonly available vegetables and fruits with medicinal benefits from various sources. This list is by no means inclusive of all.
For lack of space, we only enumerate the general medical benefits. For details you may have to consult a health practitioner or scientific literature. Our primary objective is to demonstrate that, indeed, vegetables and fruits are potent weapons against diseases.
Department of Health (DOH)
- Garlic – lowering blood cholesterol level, antiseptic, hypertension, immune booster, toothache, weight loss.
- Guava – anti-diarrhea, antiseptic
Harvard Medical School
- Berries, including strawberry – potent in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. Studies have linked increased berry consumption with lower risks of heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and diabetes.
- Apples – lower risk of death from heart disease.
- Citrus – oranges, grapefruit, lemons, and limes are famously rich in vitamin C, and also contain fiber, potassium, calcium, B vitamins, copper, and anti-inflammatory phytochemicals such as flavonoids and carotenoids.
Good RX
Broccoli – high in vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals, broccoli may help reduce the risk of cancer, heart disease, osteoporosis, and respiratory disorders.
Spinach – contains antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients, including lutein. Studies have shown that spinach has anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and cholesterol-lowering abilities.
Beans – contain resistant starch, which can help reduce cholesterol and triglycerides levels, lower blood pressure, and decrease inflammation.
Bell peppers – contain antioxidants, vitamin C, and vitamin A, which can help promote heart health, also contain vitamin B6 and folate, which can help lower homocysteine levels.
Turmeric – contains curcumin, which may help reduce inflammation in the body. Improve wound healing. Help prevent gallstones, help with depression or anxiety, lower your chance of cancer
Sweet potato – sweet potatoes are filled with carotenoids and polysaccharides, which have far-reaching health benefits, help improve absorption of vitamin A, control blood sugar, prevent constipation, improve liver function
Eggplant – regulate blood sugar, lower body fat, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol
Tomatoes – anti-cancer properties, cardiovascular disease prevention, improve gut health, and improve skin health
MEDICAL News Today
Lemons – lower blood pressure, improve the immune system, and help prevent kidney stones.
Apples – protect against cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and asthma.
Water melon – improves chemical markers associated with atherosclerosis, improves blood pressure and reduce body weight in people who are considered overweight and obese, has anti-cancer properties.
Papaya – prevents eye diseases (macular degeneration), asthma, anti-cancer (prostate, breast, gastric), bone health, anti-diabetes, prevents constipation, lowers cholesterol, and reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Pharmacy in your backyard
So learn how to grow your medicine in your backyard. It is fun. Therapeutic. And cheap.
My sister Helen calls her garden a “farmacy.”
If you don’t have a big backyard, grow in containers or go into vertical gardening. If you have cemented your backyard, rip the concrete off and convert it to a garden. You will “dirty” your hands and ruin your manicure (for women) but you will protect your health.
And I don’t suggest you depend solely on the market for your vegetables. Many of those “gwapa” vegetables are laced with agricultural chemicals that are harmful to your health. Buy from proven organic suppliers. There is a simple way to identify organically – grown vegetables (or fruits). Leafy vegetables have some holes on the leaves, left by insects nibbling on them. Fruits have some gray spots on their skin for the same reasons or natural abnormalities.
For imported fruits, look for the organic label.
(MindaViews is the opinion section of MindaNews. Edmundo Y. Cejar is a regenerative farming practitioner and a natural reforestation advocate. Before shifting to farming, he worked for Dutch Philips Discrete Semiconductors, Gillette, Union Carbide and Davao Fruits.)
