“You must understand that humans are an animal species, a species of mammal with mammalian requirements for health.”

– Dr. James Chestnut, from The Wellness and Prevention Paradigm

Figuring out how to introduce this blog has been a challenge for me. I chose this particular quote because it takes us to as close to a beginning as I can get. Dr. Chestnut repeatedly reminds his readers in The Wellness and Prevention Paradigm, that humans are not governed outside the laws of nature and as animals, we need to eat, move and think in a way that is congruent with our genetic makeup. This was something our hunter-gatherer ancestors innately knew two million years ago. I invite you to toss away the conventional fork and spoon, and dig in, as we learn together about the paleolithic lifestyle.

I was fortunate enough to begin my life with athletic and health conscious parents. Soda was a rare thing to find in our fridge and if there was a sugary cereal it was not a breakfast option, it was a treat. I wish I could say that these habits carried over into my adult life. I wish I had understood the reasons behind their motives. Was their idea of a healthy diet 100% correct? Of course not. There is simply too much information and new research surfacing continually. All we can do is learn as much as possible and use the information to the best of our ability.

It wasn’t until many years later, when my dad was diagnosed with cancer and I began to struggle with my own weight and anxiety issues, that I truly began to care about what I put into my body. Watching my athletic father waste away with pancreatic cancer is impossible to explain in a few words. How could someone seemingly so healthy, become so sick? After his passing I went a few rounds with doctors prescribing me various anti-depressants (trying to find one with side effects that would least affect my day-to-day life).

In hindsight, this seems so completely absurd.  My father had just died, of course I was depressed. My job was so stressful and my diet was so full of sugar and other various “comfort foods” that it was no wonder I was having anxiety attacks. After many miserable months of pill popping, I began to wish for the anxiety attacks to come back. I can only give one tiny bit of credit to the little white pills; My head was just clear enough to realize that I did not want to live my life like this.

I took it upon myself to change my lifestyle, and began reading everything I could about natural anxiety relief, only to really discover that health and wellness simply boils down to what we put into our bodies. This applies not only to good quality, real food, but also providing your body with exercise and positive actions and thoughts.

I have to give the first round of credit to my mentor and now employer, Dr. Steve Czys. After several months of chiropractic appointments and discussions, I finally decided to heed his advice, and cut all forms of sugar from my diet. What took me so long to come to this decision was that sugar includes all forms of wheat and grains. He led me to a lifestyle that involves feeding your genetics, just as our ancestors did. Making this decision was one of the best things I have ever done for my health and wellbeing.

When I first started to learn about the health and wellness of the human species, my head became so packed with information and ideas. I wanted to shout the truth to the world and some days, I felt like I might internally combust. The fact of the matter is, I can’t unlearn things, nor would I ever want to. Dr. Chestnut tells us that humans have gone from being a super species to the sickest species, in less than a century. I almost have to close myself off in my own little world when I grocery shop, because it breaks my heart to see so many people committing slow suicide with their supermarket choices. Am I innocent of this? Of course not. It was a learning process; one that I hope never ends. I made the decision to seek my own information. Ignorance is not bliss, ignorance is literally killing us.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2010 that; “Chronic diseases – such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, and arthritis – are among the most common, costly, and preventable of all health problems in the U.S.” More frightening still,the report goes on to tell us that these preventable illnesses are responsible for 7 out of every 10 deaths in America alone.

There is one word in all of this that gives me hope; “preventable.” Humans get to choose how to live their lives, to learn about their own health and wellness. There will never be a “cure” for cancer, because the “cure” is taking steps to not develop it in the first place. In today’s industrial world, it is nearly impossible to avoid exposure to toxins that may cause cancer, but I think it is even more frustrating that we don’t try.

The fact that we can’t even drink out of our own natural water supply tells us a lot. Think of it like this; we learn about our ancestors and our history from the planet itself, correct? The ground is like one giant blueprint or timeline. It records, and even fossilizes things that are left behind. Now think about what we dump into the ground today – such as the chemicals and pesticides we spray onto our plants that seep into the earth. Think of the laboratory made food-like substances that are marketed to make us think we getting complete nutrition. It seems crazy to me to that man thinks he can do this better than God and nature.

I can only hope as this blog progresses, that I can inspire someone to take a look at their own life. If one person reads this and makes the decision to learn more and make changes to their lifestyle, then I will have accomplished what I set out to do; save a life.