Many people the world over
are becoming
more overweight.
And we’re seeing
more diabetes and
more heart attacks
and more diseases
related to obesity
and overweightness.
And it doesn’t have to be.
Hallo graceful viewers,
and welcome
to today’s Healthy Living
where we are focusing on
the issue of food addictions.
Do you crave to drink
high-sugar soft drinks
and intensely desire to
eat sweets like cookies,
candy bars, donuts
and cakes loaded with
unhealthy refined sugars?
Have you experienced
constant yearning
for cheese?
Do did you know that
eating meat is addictive?
Why is it
some people cannot stop
consuming these foods
even if they have decided
to quit them?
It may not be simply
a lack of willpower
as these foods can have
an addictive quality,
the same as tobacco
and alcohol.
Eric Stice, a researcher
at the Oregon Research
Institute in Oregon, USA
used brain imaging to study
the physical reactions
of people who
were about to receive
a chocolate shake versus
a tasteless solution.
The brain of those
about to receive the shake
released more dopamine,
a neurotransmitter
similar to adrenaline,
than when they actually
were consuming the shake.
In other words,
their body was
more excited before
they tasted the shake than
when they actually drank it.
This phenomenon is
similar to other addictions
in that the brain
is conditioned to demand
more and more
of the craved item
to achieve the same effect.
Ms. Robyn Chuter,
an experienced vegan
Australian naturopath
has noted this phenomenon
with her clients.
People don’t normally
describe it as a craving,
although I suppose
plenty of them
do experience it
as a craving.
Usually the ones that I find
are most common
are people crave cheese,
they crave sweets,
you know, lollies.
In 1981, Eli Hazum
and his colleagues
at Wellcome Research
Laboratories
in Research Triangle Park,
North Carolina, USA
found traces of a chemical
that appeared
to be morphine
in samples of cow’s milk.
Upon further investigation
they concluded
it was morphine.
How did morphine,
a highly addictive opiate,
enter the milk?
Research has shown
morphine is actually
produced by a cow’s liver
and may appear
in her milk.
Studies have also found
that the digestion process
of casein, a milk protein
found in the milk
of mammals creates
a great number of opiates
called “casomorphine.”
According to
Dr. Neal Barnard,
a vegan physician
from the US who is
the founder and president
of the non-profit group
the Physicians Committee
for Responsible Medicine,
in nature these opiates
produce a calming effect
in infants and
enhance the bond
between mother and child.
The degree to which
casein fragments can enter
the adult bloodstream
and impact the brain
is still unresolved.
However the consumption
of large amounts
of dairy products,
especially of cheese
which contains
a high concentration
of casein may be a factor
in cheese addiction.
Cheese consumption can
lead to chronic conditions,
such as
cardiovascular disease,
arthritis and
migraine headaches.
Cheese has
a high concentration
of saturated fats
that can increase one’s
low-density lipoprotein
(LDL) or
“bad” cholesterol levels.
Those with
high cholesterol levels
typically experience
a build up of plaque
in the coronary arteries
or atherosclerosis.
If enough plaque
accumulates, the arteries
can become blocked, thereby
causing a heart attack.
In addition, studies show
that eating cheese and
other dairy products
may also increase the risk
of ovarian and breast
cancer in women and
prostrate cancer in men
because it increases
the levels of insulin-like
growth factor-1 (IGF-1)
in the body.
IGF-1 facilitates
the growth of cancer cells.
Dr. T. Colin Campbell,
a respected
nutritional biochemist
from the United States
and author of the
critically acclaimed book
regarding the benefits
of the vegan diet,
“The China Study,”
has stated,
“IGF-1 appears to be
a very good indicator
of cancer risk.”
In some countries the scale
of sugar consumption
is absolutely astonishing.
According to
the US Department
of Agriculture,
in the United States
over 68 kilograms of sugar
and other sweeteners
are consumed annually
on a per capita basis.
Brigitte Mars is
an herbalist and author
from the United States
who believes a raw vegan
diet can cure addictions.
She says we should avoid
refined sugars like
white sugar or corn syrup.
I’ve written a book called,
“Addiction Free
Naturally.”
People do something
to elevate
their blood sugar level.
It goes up
and then it drops,
and then you feel like
down in the dumps and
so you need to do it again.
But what we need to realize
is sugar and refined
carbohydrates are
at the roots of a lot of
the addictive behavior.
If we would just
saturate our beings
with more superfoods,
more wild greens, or
even more dark, dense,
leafy green vegetables,
get more alkaline,
really say “No”
to the refined sugar
and get our sweet
from fresh fruit, from
naturally sweet vegetables,
we would be
nourishing ourselves.
When we return,
we’ll further discuss the
addiction to refined sugar
as well as other foods.
Please stay tuned
to Supreme Master
Television.
Welcome back to
Healthy Living
where we are exploring
the topic of food addictions.
Research suggests
that some people may
become addicted to food
in the same way
we may become
dependent on alcohol
or illegal drugs.
Food addiction is a disorder
where one keeps craving
and eating a certain
kind of food or foods
which are harmful
to the individual.
Some people lose control
of their eating not because
they lack willpower, but
because they are addicted
both in a physiological
and/or psychological way.
In her lectures
on health and nutrition,
vegan dietician-nutritionist
Anne-Marie Roy
of Canada warns people
about the consequences
of consuming
refined sugars.
Now, we are going to
explain what sugar is.
Where can we see
the quality of sugars?
On the table of figures
or the list of ingredients?
The list of ingredients.
White sugar, what is it?
It is produced from cane.
And there,
they treat it with lime.
They purify it
with carbonic nitrite
and sulfuric nitrite.
They bleach it
with sodium sulfate.
They clear it
with bone char; this is
the bones of cows heated
at 1,200 degrees Celsius.
They dry it out with
some isopropyl alcohol,
which is rubbing alcohol.
They also dry it out
with sodium acetate
and finally,
they re-whiten it again.
That's what
white sugar is.
Sucralose, Splenda,
what is it?
It is white sugar mixed
with atoms of chlorine.
They call this
chlorinated sugar.
It is even
more transformed
than white sugar.
And fructose certainly
does not come from fruits,
but comes from syrup
of corn, which has been
genetically modified.
The by-products of corn
are usually genetically
modified, therefore,
when you see fructose
it is GMO (genetically
modified organism).
In addition, what is
particular about fructose
is that it is difficult
to control our appetite
when eating it.
Then in the long term,
this leads us to problems
with being overweight.
What we do not want
on a list of ingredients:
sugar, sucralose,
fructose, corn syrup,
soft brown sugar,
which is white sugar
re-colored with molasses,
or anything that has
the “ose” ending.
What we want is
good quality sugars,
maple syrup,
concentrated fruit juice,
fruit purees,
and things like that.
High daily
sugar consumption
significantly increases
the risk of diabetes
and pancreatic problems.
It is also responsible
for bowel diseases,
poor dental hygiene,
arthritis, obesity,
and many other illnesses.
Meat is also addictive
in nature.
British researchers
found in a study that
opiate-blocking drugs
can effectively reduce
the attraction of meat
to people.
According to their research,
using such drugs reduced
the study participants’
appetite for salami
by around 25%
and reduced
their tuna consumption
by nearly half.
Dr. Joel Fuhrman is a
vegan US physician who
is an expert on nutrition.
He now describes
how people get addicted
to certain foods.
People try to diet, they try
to cut back on calories
and eat less food
and most of the time
it doesn’t work.
The reason it doesn’t work
is because the quality
of the nutrients
they’re consuming
is not adequate.
In other words,
they’re eating a diet with
so much processed foods
and so many
animal products,
and so much sugar,
and so much salt,
and so much soda drinks
and things
that aren’t healthy
so they try to eat less.
They keep craving
to eat more food because
you become addicted,
you become a food addict.
I call this
“toxic hunger.”
And toxic hunger means
a raving desire to overeat.
Two hours later
after they just ate,
they already start to feel
shaky and weak again
and they have to eat again.
What I’m saying
is that the poor
of nutritional quality
of their diet and
all the unhealthy foods
they’re eating
causes them
to become food addicts.
It’s like if you’re drinking
10 cups of coffee a day or
you’re smoking cigarettes
and you try
to stop smoking
or stop drinking,
you’ll feel sick,
you’ll feel ill.
Well, people eat
so unhealthy that
if they try to stop eating,
they feel ill.
They can’t tolerate
not overeating.
Otherwise they don’t feel
well enough.
How can we
overcome dependence
on unhealthy foods?
Dr. Fuhrman provides
some practical suggestions.
So trying to be healthy
and trying to lose weight
is not just
about eating less food,
it’s about eating
more of healthy,
high-nutrient foods.
Eating more
of the right food
is the method
in which you can
more comfortably eat
less of the wrong foods.
When you eat a diet
with a larger amount
of fruits and vegetables,
especially green vegetables
and beans and berries
and nuts and seeds.
It lowers your appetite.
And then when
you’re not eating food
you don’t feel shaky,
you don’t feel weak,
you don’t feel irritable,
you don’t feel
stomach cramps,
you don’t feel headachy.
Dr. Neal Barnard
similarly believes
that in order to
overcome food addiction
one needs to eat healthy
nutrient-rich foods
throughout the day.
Eating enough food
will help one ensure
that the appetite-taming
hormone leptin
is maintained at
normal levels in the body.
In addition,
he also encourages people
to exercise regularly,
take enough rest
and to seek support
from friends and family.
From his
professional experience,
a low-fat vegan diet
helps people end the desire
for harmful foods.
Another recommend tip
for overcoming
food addiction
is to eat as much fruit
as one desires
before each meal.
This method also
helps reduce the cravings
for unhealthy food.
We would like to thank
the experts featured on
today’s program for their
invaluable perspectives
on food addictions.
May we all adopt
the tasty and delicious
organic vegan diet
in order to always enjoy
the best of health.
Generous viewers,
thank you for joining us
on this edition
of Health Living.
Up next is
Science and Spirituality
after Noteworthy News.
May Heaven’s love and
light be with you forever.
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