, and Patient Heal Thyself
, as well as a number of training tools and health resources. Although his books take a Christian perspective, they can be helpful to those of any faith (and he is a Messianic Jew, so those seeking a kosher lifestyle and diet will also be well served).I have not read his other books (though I plan to), so his take was new to me, but fascinating. To think that so many health-tips are contained in one of the world's oldest books (the Bible) somehow validates what we are trying to do here (get back to the basics and live a healthier and happier life), and I found this book a treasure trove of great ideas and suggestions.
The subtitle of The Great Physician's Rx for Health and Wellness
is "Seven Keys to Unlock Your Health Potential." These keys are bibically based, but applicable to our modern lives.Briefly listed, these seven keys are:
1. Eat to live (healthy, whole, natural, and fresh/non-processed foods were what our bodies were meant to subsist on)
2. Use whole food nutrition supplements (yes, he sells supplements on his website, but don't take this as a "sales pitch" - he freely discloses the brands and sources of all his recommendations - you are free to purchase from him or elsewhere; the truth is the American diet is sadly - if not horrifyingly - devoid of nutrients needed for a healthy body; supplements are becoming a way of life for those seeking complete nutrition)
3. Practice advanced hygiene (proper cleansing of various parts of the body - particularly the face - can help prevent disease more than you might think)
4. Condition your body with exercise (daily movement is essential for maintaining bodily function, and sadly most of us don't get nearly enough)
5. Reduce toxins in your environment (if you're been reading our blog or website, you know how important this is!)
6. Avoid deadly emotions (this has mostly to do with relieving stress, but also with working on yourself and your inner being to become more balanced and better at letting go of "toxic" emotions that can cause health problems)
7. Live a life of prayer and purpose (regardless of your spiritual beliefs, more and more evidence is surfacing regarding the importance of having a connection to the world and the universal at large, so this is also an important part of living a holistically balanced life)
This book really brings together all the different aspects required to live a healthy and balanced life. (In fact, he might even have called it "The Great Physician's Rx for Holistic Living"!)
Some chapters really weren't fleshed out as much as others, so you can tell where his passion really lies. The food chapter was the longest, and was very interesting and I agreed with many of his positions. The one thing I really did not like was that he did not focus enough on locally-produced foods, which is a big issue for me.
For one thing, eating local is great for the local community as well as the environment at large. For another, he seemed to be saying how great it is to be able to get every kind of food at every time of year, at the grocery store. Not only is this expensive, but it also is not as healthy as you might think, since most grocery store produce is sadly devoid of nutrients (due to either growing methods or sitting on the shelf for so long), and it is not healthy for the planet, either, to be eating food produced and transported from half a world away.
That was probably my main beef with the book, though I also felt that the exercise chapter could have been more detailed and comprehensive.
Regardless, this is a great book on health for anyone, and if you are a Christian, it will be even more valuable to learn how to live a healthy lifestyle based on God's word. (If you would like to check Rubin's books out, you can find any of them quite cheaply on Amazon.com
, or see below for his most popular ones.)
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