M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I is the top-ranking state when it comes to life-threatening health issues like diabetes and heart disease. You could say that if a healthy diet can make it there, it can make it anywhere. And, that is just what Rev. Michael O. Minor, at Oak Hill Baptist in North Mississippi has in mind…God willing! Rev. Minor has not only “risen above” the worldly fact that fried foods taste heavenly, in order to point out that what’s pleasurable to the body is not necessarily good for it, but he’s had to overcome the cultural challenge that such tasty fried and heavily-salted food, and their accompanying age-old family recipes, have been part of the way of life for the people of Mississippi for generations. However, Rev. Minor’s evangelism about health food over the past ten years has not gone unsung by the heavenly hosts of the National Baptist Convention, which represents approximately seven million people in over ten thousand churches. Their goal is to have a “health ambassador” in every member church by September 2012.

So, Rev. Minor, I just want to thank you for putting the “fear of God” into eating healthy. May the goal of the National Baptist Convention be reached at…God-speed!!

Technorati Tags: diet, diet in Mississippi, health, National Baptist Convention and healthy food

If we, humans, pulled by our noses by unconscionable scientists, hadn’t been so busy chemical-coating and irradiating natural fruits and vegetables (and at this point and the current growing methods, I use the term “natural” loosely) after growing them in mineral-depleted soil or confining them to artificially-lit greenhouses, fruits and vegetables today would taste fabulous (the way they used to…even before I was born), and it goes without saying that they would be far more healthy for the human body.

Perhaps it would be more advantageous for every living thing on the planet, if scientists would just come up with a way for industrialized human beings to be “tricked” into feeling satiated and satisfied with the naturally diverse and abundant cornucopia that is health, itself, within their reach every day in the industrialized world. Maybe they could just be “zapped” so that they would once again love the smell of roses, appreciate the taste of broccoli, and savor the taste of strawberries to such a degree that the overfed and over-pampered classes wouldn’t continue to crave more and more. Instead of the recurrent chant “give me something I don’t have,” (like a rose that smells like rootbeer!) there would appear a quiet contentment. Then scientists and researchers could focus on  those things that have transformative power, ways to assist the rest of the world’s people who every moment are lacking even the basic necessities of life.

Technorati Tags: health, natural foods, science and research

A new study by Damaris Rohsenow of Brown University and colleagues reported in an upcoming issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research indicated that bourbon gave drinkers a more severe hangover than vodka, bourbon drinkers rating higher on scales that measured the severity of hangover malaise, including headache, nausea, loss of appetite and thirst. However, both bourbon and vodka drinkers’ sleep suffered equally, as did their performance on tasks requiring attention and quick responses. Rohsenow advised that understanding the lingering effects of alcohol after a night of heavy drinking is important for people who engage in safety-sensitive tasks, such as driving, while hung over.

Overall, bourbon drinkers reported feeling worse than vodka drinkers.  Let’s face it, drinking too much alcohol, no matter what the color, is just not good for anyone’s health. Moderation in all things is a good philosophy when it comes to a healthy lifestyle.  But, if there is a moral here, the may be it: Next time, sip a martini!

Technorati Tags: bourbon, hangover, health, vodka