The American diet is a disaster and has literally killed millions unnecessarily. Over the last several decades, the traditional American diet has correlated with the increase in most chronic diseases. These include heart disease, hypertension, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, autoimmune disorders, obesity, and many others as well.

Can You Avoid These Diseases?

Correlation doesn’t provide validation as to the cause of these diseases. However, the data are convincing. If we ask the more important question, are there groups of people that avoid these diseases, the answer is EXCITEDLY, YES! And, we can learn great lessons from them on how to avoid any and all of these chronic diseases. There are exciting solutions to turn this dietary disaster around.

The Lord warned us of this “diet disaster,” so it is important that we pay heed to His word. “Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation.” (D&C 89:4; bolding is mine.)

Conspiring Men

If we list the “conspiring men in the last days,” our list, surprisingly and probably, would include in part the following: the industrial food processing system, the FDA, the CDC, the WHO, the AMA, the pharmaceutical industry, the media, and certainly the global elite.

You are your Best Doctor

Everyone’s genetics are different. The best doctor is yourself; listening to your own body’s needs is fundamental. Hence, the suggested guidelines shared below are general.
Many of my own personal health solutions have come in answer to prayer and with priesthood blessings. At the same time, I am extremely grateful for the incredible progress made in medical and dental technologies. I have been blessed by these on several occasions and by the skill of those using them.

Word of Wisdom

Given that the Lord knew these evils and designs were coming, He then outlined what we should eat and what we should not ingest in this revelation given in 1833 (Doctrine & Covenants Section 89). It is known as the “Word of Wisdom:” It has this great promise:

And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones; And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures; And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint. And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen. (D&C 89:18-21)

The Schauermann Family Story

Our oldest daughter, Shelli, told us the fascinating story of Chris and Shary Schauermann. Chris was told by his best friend, “Man, you don’t want to marry her, she is sick all the time.” They got married anyway, and her doctor told her that because of her poor health, she should not have children; she wouldn’t be able to carry them full term. Given this advice, they decided that maybe they could adopt.

In college, Shary decided to do something about her poor health. She got hold of LeLord Kordell’s book, “Eat Right, Live Longer”. Then a friend gave her the book by Adelle Davis, “Let’s Have Healthy Children”. I have not read these books, so I cannot evaluate them for general consumption. They obviously helped Shary.

The Trusted in the Lord

Being devout Christians, Shary and Chris took it to the next step—trusting in the Lord:

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body, and nourishment to your bones. (Prov. 3:5-8 (KJV and NIV))

Thirteen healthy children and forty healthy grandchildren later, they have written their remarkable story in the book, God’s Guide to Biblical Health And Healing.

Dr. Price’s Insights on Physical Degeneration

Then we have Weston A. Price’s monumental book, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration. His research in the 1930s showed why we are seeing “physical degeneration” in the world community. Most importantly he shares what we can do about it. He documents in his encyclopedic book several groups around the world, who didn’t have physical degeneration. They all avoided the great American diet. He writes in his book, “THE PRIMITIVES HAD IT RIGHT.” They raised their own food and/or harvested it from nature and from God’s creations.

And he shares, “The faith of the primitive in the all-pervading power of which he is a part includes a belief in immortality. He lives in communion with the great unseen Spirit of which he is a part, always in humility and reverence.” I share a summary of the excellent dietary guidelines from Dr. Price’s book in Chapter 5 of my book, Time & Eternity; the End-Times & Beyond Revealed. I call it the “Gospel of the Good Earth!”

I will share some of these dietary guidelines later and give suggestions from the above revelation and from these books. Weston Price’s work was so significant that in 1999 the Weston Price Foundation was set up based on his findings. This foundation has a periodical, which we take, Wise Traditions in Food, Farming, and the Healing Arts. I have learned a lot from them, and some of my past blog articles reflect their wisdom. In addition, this blog article has important insights from them as well.

In the 2023 summer edition of Wise Traditions, there are two excellent articles with great information relative to this blog article: “OMEGA-6 APOCALYPSE” by Dr. Chris Knobbe. He explains the dangers of industrial seed oils that are used in preparing most of our processed foods. Then Joan McGovern Tendler has an in-depth article on “WHY WE NEED A HIGH-LYSINE DIET.” In this article, she also explains the problems with arginine. She has a website with a lot of really good information. 

Money Making – Food Business

Over the last century and continuing until now, the industrial food business has evolved into what makes money rather than what is for our health. As “conspiring men” have done and are doing to us, they say their products are healthy. But, in fact they have literally killed millions of Americans, as mentioned before, over the several decades of the evolution of the industrial food business. Now, essentially all processed foods are bad for you. Americans on average are among one of the unhealthiest groups in the world. Recently the mortality rate in America turned down to a negative slope—people are dying at a younger age.

Let Food Be thy Medicine

We have this famous statement from Hippocrates, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” Then this needs to be “pure unrefined” food, and not following the typical American diet, which is a slow poison killing people way before what could be their vital and happy time on earth. Table sugar is historically a fairly recent food, and Americans are basically addicted to sugar in their food. I reduced by sugar intake some years ago and got my eyesight back!

Toxic Environment as Well as Toxic Food

In addition to the toxic traditional American diet, we live in a toxic environment. I share some of the details of this toxicity in a blog article.  Fortunately, I also share solutions in the article for dealing with our toxic environment, which we all live in. I highly recommend you read the article. 

As I ride my bicycle down to the post nearly every day, I can smell the toxins from the sprays that people are using; such as RoundUp, Weedon, and several others. These are typical chemical approaches for people to deal with insects and weeds. But to us, they are also toxic. Glyphosate in RoundUp is a known serious toxin.

Destructive Linoleic Acid

Dr. Joseph Mercola says, “Linoleic acid—the most destructive ingredient in your diet.” 1% to 2% of linoleic (LA) is needful. The problem is the American diet is at about 25%. I am not a biologist, and neither is Dr. Mercola. I believe all fatty acids have a place in nature—including linoleic acid. But his point is that we have seen about a twenty-fold increase over the last century. The enormous increase in the use of polyunsaturated seed-oil fats used in processed food preparation is a major problem.

This may be one of the main drivers making Americans among the unhealthiest in the world. I am glad I chose physics for my career path; organic chemistry and biology are incredibly complicated. Just getting one’s head around the twenty amino acids essential for human life—nine of which have to be ingested—is a massive set of information.

The following oils are high in LA: safflower, grape seed, poppyseed, sunflower, hemp, corn, wheat germ, cottonseed, soybean, walnut, sesame, pistachio, canola, and peanut oils. Furthermore, the problem is exacerbated because of the pressures and temperatures in which the oils are processed. Much of the food sold in America is processed using some of these polyunsaturated fats. When they are consumed, they create serious oxidative stress problems in the body. Essentially all processed foods use one or more of these oils and most restaurants do the same—making Americans sicker and fatter. Commercial processed chicken is one of the highest in linoleic acid in the American diet.

The life-time of linoleic acid is about three years. This means that if you cut-out the high usage of them from your diet now, it would take about six years to cleanse 95% of them from your bodies fat storage. As mentioned, 1 to 2 % is needful. The American diet is at about 25%, which is one of the main killers of the American people. Essentially all the killing diseases are exacerbated by the oxidative stress that high levels of linoleic acid cause in the traditional American diet.

Grow Your Own Food

There is value in growing your own food, or buying organic, or meats from animals grown without growth hormones or anti-biotics and being grass feed. Growth hormones are used to make more money and are contrary to your good health.

Chickens and their eggs that are free-range should be your choice. The good fats make you healthier and leaner, which include butter, ghee, coconut oil, cocoa butter, and macadamia nut oil. They have 3% or less linoleic acid.

The “Word of Wisdom” revelation shares to eat foods in their natural state (not processed) and preferable in the “season thereof” and “sparingly.” Don’t be gluttonous! Thomas Jefferson believed, “one should always rise from the table just a little bit hungry.”

Biblical Guidelines

When people meet Shary Schauermann, they are shocked to learn that she is the mother of 13 children. Girls far younger cannot keep up with her, and she has this radiant glow about her. The Schauermann’s diet derived from Biblical guidelines—with a few of my own comments—includes red meat (preferably grass-fed), milk (preferably whole milk and goat milk is better than cow’s milk), salt, drinking enough good water (about eight glasses per day for the average aduilt) for the body chemistry to work right, eggs from free-range chickens, and butter (made from the milk from grass-fed cows).

Then Chris Schauermann adds this warning from the Bible “And… if you can’t stop eating refined foods, especially sugar, you might as well cut your own throat with a knife. Hey, those aren’t my words, God was the one who said that. I think the knife thing is God’s way of getting our attention.”

Proverbs 23:1-3 (NIV) When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you, and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony. Do not crave his delicacies for that food is deceptive. Daniel chose, “to abstain from those kinds of food which came from the king’s table.” God gave him “knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dream…”(Daniel 1:17-20, – D&C 89:18-21)

Use Wisdom in Your Health Choices

Dr. Mercola’s video seems consistent with the OMEGA-6 APOCLYPSE article by Dr. Chris Knobbe. You can watch his video at this link: Linoleic Acid – The Most Destructive Ingredient in Your Diet. Since neither of them are biologist, you can look at their information from their perspective, but then use your common sense and wisdom given from God regarding your own health needs. The Word of Wisdom revealed by the Lord is my general guideline and has helped me greatly throughout my life.

Dr. Knobbe’s story is an interesting one as an ophthalmologist. During his investigations into the OMEGA-6 APOCALYPSE, he identified a few populations across the globe eating traditional diets—like Dr. Price had found. Their diets had not been contaminated with American unhealthy dietary ways. And, happily, he found in his own profession, those whose macular degeneration was reversed “by switching to an ancestral diet.”

High-Lysine Diet

In this same issue, as mentioned before, is Joan McGovern Tendler’s in-depth article on “WHY WE NEED A HIGH-LYSINE DIET.” Joan points out that the lack of adequate lysine in our diet can lead to many disease problems. She lists some of the possible problems that can arise with inadequate lysine in the diet: candida, inflammation, colds or allergies, shingles, cold sores, calcium or iron deficiency, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, hair loss, anxiety, depression, low energy, or poor short-term memory. She says, “A diet that is low in the amino acid lysine and high in the amino acid arginine can lead to all these problems—and more.”

Good sources of lysine are red meat, fish, eggs, tofu, legumes, and then I suggest adding a one-gram daily supplement of lysine. Interestingly, back in the 1970s, she points out that Linus Pauling found that six grams of lysine and eighteen grams of vitamin C “gave relief from angina.” (See FOOTNOTE) She further points out that lysine is one of two amino acids turning into ketones—complementing a ketogenic diet.

Ketogenic Diet

I am not suggesting a ketogenic diet, but based on the excellent research work of Dr. Benjamin Bikman at BYU. I measure my ketones regularly. It is easy to do; you just breathe into a ketometer, which you can easily buy online. Then I regularly measure my nitric oxide (NO) level in my saliva using test strips that I get from HumanN.com:  I have found that if my NO level and ketones are high, my angina is low. I had a heart attack caused by stress in 2016. I have had some problems with angina since. Thanks to what the Lord has taught me, I can now keep the angina under control.

Take Control of Your Health

Again, be your own doctor and nutritionist, and as Dr. Mercola says, “Take control of your health.” As you listen to your body, mind, and spirit, I promise you God will guide you in a healing direction. God designed our bodies to heal. Let wisdom prevail; the Lord gave us the “Word of Wisdom” revelation to this end.

David W. Allan

FOOTNOTE: Notice that one gram is 1,000 mg. You will see 1,000 mg on some labels. Sometimes they use MG, which is wrong. In metrology, M denotes a million, while m denotes a thousandth. Also, g denotes grams, and G denotes a billion and/or the gravitational constant.

Photo: CC Public Domain Pictures