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Health Care Crisis in Progress
At “Taste of DC” here come (not in any particular order):
1. Respiratory diseases from air pollution resulting from cooking methods, factory farmed meat, manufacture of packaging, and food transportation.
2. Antibiotic resistance from factory farmed meat.
3. Diabetes from refined sugar and carbohydrates.
4. Cancer from food additives, food cooking methods, manufacture of plastic food packaging, and air pollution.
5. Heart disease from fatty and high cholesterol foods.
5. Foot, ankle, knee, and back problems from ill-fitting high heels with a narrow toe box.
6. Tooth decay from refined sugars and carbohydrates and later gum disease and heart conditions from poor dental hygiene.
6. Waterborne diseases from air and water pollution secondary to food manufacturing and packaging and attendant waste and unnecessary medication, surgeries, and other medical treatments for illnesses resulting from food and clothing choices.
And don’t forget lost productivity for sick time. I do not think anyone needs to be rigidly any kind of diet all the time (not raw, not Ayurvedic, not vegetarian, not vegan, not local, not slow), but wouldn’t it be nicer to eat well most of the time (and if you have even the most modest of kitchens, healthy meals are in fact cheaper than packaged junk food–assuming one knows how to cook, which I know is a big assumption), wear comfortable clothing, and have more time, strength and money for creative and loving pursuits?
- Art and Culture | Asana, Pranayama, and Yoga Practice | Community and Family | Food for the Body | Food for the Mind (Yoga Philosophy, etc) | Gardening | Photos
Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Ether
We are composed of nothing different than earth, water, fire, air, and space, and much of yoga practice (as are related practices such as ayurveda) is designed to recognize and align our elemental identity. It is human nature to manufacture, just as it is the nature of a beaver to make a dam or a termite to make a mound of mud that displaces what was in its path. Why then is it so common to think of man-made as completely separate from “nature” rather than to recognize the wild and extraordinary creations of humans as an integral part of the complex fabric of being on this planet?
Photos taken on a Thanksgiving trip shared with friends and family: DC to NJ, Cape Cod, and back to NJ before heading home. Without the time on highway and train, I could not have seen so much “nature” in so short a time. Nor, might I add, would I have appreciated being out exposed to the wind and water without the shelter and protection of manufactured goods (including houses, cars, and clothing, etc). This does not mean, of course, that to live better, we should not seek to balance and diminish our consumption of resources for our protection and comfort.






