Weight This week, my husband lost just over half a pound. I also lost just over half a pound. In four weeks, he's lost over four pounds. and I've lost over five pounds. I still can’t believe how we’re losing weight without even trying! My husband hasn’t noticed any physical changes in himself as a result of this weight loss, but I'm noticing the fat disappearing off me. I have a waist and cheekbones again!
Blood Pressure My husband’s BP went up this week, the top number by seven and the bottom number by seven. As for me, my top number went up by three and the bottom number went down by five. This is really weird! We don’t know how dependable these readings are because out BP monitor has been erratic and we're having to take a number of readings until we get a consistent result. On Monday, my husband has a doctor’s appointment and he'll get a more accurate reading.
I've noticed a bit of a change from last week. I’m feeling quite hungry in the evening after dinner, I’m also waking up later than usual and having a few aches and pains. Is it because of the change in weather to cold temperatures and dreary, persistent rain? It wouldn’t surprise me because the long, dark, Portland winters really affect my health.
On a more positive note, when we put our bin outside on garbage day, we noticed how little garbage we're accumulating because we're not consuming any processed foods. It felt good to be helping the environment whilst also helping our health. Later, when I went grocery shopping, it also felt great to see all those fresh vegetables, fruits, whole foods, and legumes in my cart. It is so much better than feeling guilty or bad about putting items in there that we know we shouldn’t be eating.
I bought some flaxseeds this week, to add to our cereal. This is to ensure that we get enough Omega 3 Fatty Acids. We’ve also been using a little avocado instead of oil for salad dressings and eating a few olives for healthy fat. When it comes to fats, the Forks Over Knives: Plant-Based Way to Health book advises us to eat coconut in moderation. So I’m thinking of switching from coconut milk to almond milk.
This week, we’ve been eating a lot of coconut as well as rice and potatoes because I’ve been trying some new Indian recipes. Some of these recipes are from a wonderful website I discovered called Show Me The Curry (see my website links). It has easy to use video recipes for Indian cooking, not all vegan though. The aromas in my kitchen were heavenly; fresh curry leaves, mustard seeds and fresh mint! It heightened the senses and brought about a whole new appreciation for food.
Many of these recipes could only be made with white rice, although this diet requires us to eat whole grains like brown rice. I plan on eating less white rice in future. As for the potatoes, I think they cause an inflammatory reaction in me and so I need to cut back on those too. Potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants (aubergines), peppers, and mushrooms are all “Nightshade” vegetables and are known to cause inflammation in some people. It’s a shame because these vegetables also have many health benefits.
A few days ago, when I phoned my friend in England to check up on her because she has breast cancer, she mentioned these inflammatory foods. She told me about a book she’s reading called Anti-Cancer: A New Way of Life by Dr David Servan-Shreiber. He had a brain tumor himself and devised a diet to try to combat it. She informed me that his anti- cancer diet avoids any kind of sugar and allows only natural sweeteners such as agave syrup. It requires patients to drink lots of green tea, eat whole grains, fruits and vegetables, but to avoid potatoes, other inflammatory foods and dairy products. It is similar to Dr Campbell’s diet, only that it allows the consumption of white meat. As a result of reading this, my friend is planning on changing her lifestyle, including her diet.
It’s sad that we usually don’t make changes to our diet until we get sick.
