“There is a surprising link between heart attacks, cancer, Alzheimer’s and other diseases.”  Alex Howard

They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.  (Psa. 73:4; NIV)

Inflammation is a HOT topic. [pun intended] Most of the nutrition newsletters, magazines, and articles I’m reading touch on the subject of inflammation. Just doing a quick Internet search on inflammation brought up 26,100,000 entries!

Disorders such as arthritis, MS, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, diabetes, and even obesity are correlated with chronic inflammation within the body. Today’s many chemical exposures along with the modern diet and lifestyle are the main contributors to this “smoldering situation.”

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“Man has used natural remedies to relieve symptoms of colds and flu since earliest times. Though there are no cures, natural treatments have been shown to speed healing time.”  Melanie Grimes

What kinds of things do you do when you get a cold?

And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic that we wanted.  (Num. 11:5b; NLT)

Many of us have certain “natural remedies” that we’ve found to be helpful when fighting a virus or common cold. When my immune system was so compromised I had numerous occasions to experiment with various home remedies and natural ways of dealing with a common cold virus.

I’ll share some of the main ones that I found to be helpful. Some of them may work for you and some of them may make you laugh. Hey, if it makes you feel better and isn’t harmful, why not give it a try?

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“Never should one morsel of swine’s flesh be placed upon your table.”  Ellen White

How aware are you of what eating pork does to the human body?

And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you.  (Lev. 11:7; NIV)

Some might say that I’ve gone from “preachin’ to meddlin’” as I write about this topic.  America has a love affair with pork.  Dr. Jordan Rubin says that he’s met people who have an emotional attachment to pork, eating bacon for breakfast and pork chops with mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner.  Perhaps that’s the way you were raised and you might even feel the same way.

I grew up on a dairy farm and we had pigs.  I actually loved eating pork.  Ham was one of my favorite meats.  As I think of that now, my body shudders at the thought.  Pigs are dirty, smelly, and sloppy.  They also eat filth and slop and anything that’s thrown their way.

When Jerry and I were first married and reading Scripture together, we came across the scriptures in Leviticus and Deuteronomy where God informs the Hebrew people what to eat and what NOT to eat.  He classified certain animals as clean versus unclean.  He recommended a number of clean meats to eat such as cows, goats, sheep, oxen, deer, and buffalo.  However, he clearly stated not to eat swine and called them “detestable.”  Was He being mean?  No, God knew all about their physiology.  He created them to be nature’s garbage cleaners.

Quoting Dr. Rubin, “Pigs will chomp on pails of you-know-what and not be bothered in the least.  They will derive nutrition from human excrement dredged from a latrine pit, eliminating a sanitary problem for their rural masters.  Even their own waste tastes fine to them.  Pigs have a simple stomach arrangement.  Whatever a pig eats goes straight into a simple stomach, where it’s rudimentarily digested and pushed out the back end.  Total transit time: 4 hours.”  Compare this to the sophisticated digestion process of a cow or buffalo.  These animals eat grasses, alfalfa, and hay, a vegetarian diet.  These animals take a leisurely twenty-four hours to digest their food.  Remember when you eat the meat of animals, you’re actually eating what they ate.

Dr. Rex Russell says, “Pigs are gluttonous, never knowing when to stop eating.  Their stomach acids become diluted because of the volume of food, allowing all kinds of vermin to pass through this protective barrier.  Parasites, bacteria, viruses, and toxins can pass into the pig’s flesh because of overeating.  These toxins and infectious agents can be passed on to humans when they eat a pig’s flesh.”  He goes on to state that in the United States, three of the six most common food borne parasitic diseases of humans are associated with pork consumption.  These include toxoplasmosis, taeniasis or cysticerosis (caused by the pork tapeworm Taenia solium) and trichinellosis.

Prayer Power
Father, we are so thankful for Your Word and for Your Truth that guides us into all truth.  We ask that You reveal Your wisdom to each of us.

Link of the Day
Pork and More – Unclean for All Stomachs Not Only the Jewish Kind

Blessings on you as you consider the many reasons why you would want to avoid eating pork.

“Sheep’s milk cheese has a slightly sweet taste and is high in calcium and zinc.”  Gourmetfoodstore.com

What are your thoughts when you hear “sheep’s milk cheese?”

Butter of kine, and milk of sheep, with fat of lambs, and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the fat of kidneys of wheat; and thou didst drink the pure blood of the grape.  (Deut. 32:14; KJV)

Perhaps most of our readers haven’t really thought much about sheep’s milk cheese.  I can honestly say that I’ve bought it on occasion though not giving it much thought.  When I worked on today’s recipe, I found freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese made from sheep’s milk.

I’m also reading Jordan Rubin’s latest book called The Makers Diet for Weight Loss.  I’m a big fan of Jordan Rubin and I agree with most everything that he writes.  I wanted to learn how this book differs from his original The Makers Diet.   I’ll talk more about this newest book in later posts.  He quotes a number of startling statistics about our food supply.

He also mentions on several occasions (and I’m only half way through the book) the benefits of sheep’s milk cheese and yogurt.  He says that his favorite dairy products are actually made from sheep’s milk which are easy to digest and more nutritious than dairy from cows or goats.  That was news to me.

According to gourmetfoodstore.com, “sheep’s or ewe’s (the female sheep) milk cheese is a cheese more typically found in mountainous areas where cow rearing is difficult or impossible. It has a slightly sweet taste and is high in calcium and zinc. Sheep cheese can fall into many different categories, such as fresh, soft, veined and pressed, so the selection is incredibly varied. The more traditional sheep cheeses hail from Spain and Portugal (dry mountain regions), but also from Greece where feta is wildly popular.”

So, when and if you make today’s Spinach Artichoke Dip, you don’t have to use sheep’s milk cheese, but something sure made this warm, creamy spread a crowd pleaser…perhaps it was from that “ewe’s milk cheese.”  Make it a great day!

Prayer Power
Father, we thank You that You care for Your sheep and that we a part of Your flock.

Link of the Day
Spinach Artichoke Dip

Blessings on you as you enjoy some Spinach Artichoke Dip.