[.ca] Why Christians Get Sick (ISBN 0768423090)

...there's more to the story here...:
...I don't know...call me a skeptic, but I just had to question this man's approach a bit. Talk of good nutrition has interested me for a long time, and I think it's very important stuff. I'm willing to hear a lot of different views and consider various approaches, but in the end, I've got to weigh it all against the Word of God, pray and then walk in the direction I feel led. That's just me. So I've heard the author's claims. He was sick. He changed his diet. He got well. Now he's completely convinced that this will work for everyone, too. It's almost like he's GUARANTEEING eating raw fruits and veggies, taking your Barley Green and drinking fresh carrot juice will heal you of all things from dandruff to diabetes. I understand how passionate we can be about something when it's worked amazingly for us. But I honestly just don't think this book is for everyone. Though he cites the book of Genesis as the "original" diet (comprised of raw fruits and vegetables) as the perfect one, he seems to think this is the only book in the Bible that talks about food! There are PLENTY of other scriptural references to Jesus' consumption of fish, the goodness of olive oil, bread and wine. Granted, the quality of the food in biblical days was undoubtedly different from the food of our present day society, and probably better all the way around. But I don't think that all food is bad. I think the key here is balance --- unfortunately, this is something most people don't know how to embrace. What do we REALLY know about moderation? Something tastes good to us and we eat and eat and eat. It comes down to a matter of simple self-control --- something that some folks just don't want to give a second thought to. The author's views are pretty extreme, and may be acceptable by some, but not by a vast majority of eaters. This is just a ridiculously difficult sell. To his credit, though, the author makes some sound points about that which isn't always entirely healthy for us: white flour, white sugar, table salt, dairy and meat products. The consumption of more raw fruits and veggies is excellent advice, also. This can only do us good. To test his theories, I took a month and experimented with his claims. For a month I ate no sugar, table salt, white flour, dairy or meat products. The bulk of my diet for that month consisted of raw fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains and distilled water. It was a good experiment, which I'm glad I tried. I lost substantial weight (something I wasn't necessarily trying to do since I'm not overweight), and felt good that I was putting good things into my body. But I wasn't bouncing off the walls with dynamo energy, and I still needed 8 hours of sleep every night, and I didn't necessarily feel like I wanted to conquer the world. The energy (I think) most people feel with this is the energy that comes from simple weight loss. When you weigh less, you feel lighter, and you just have more energy. I'm not denying that some folks have felt dramatic changes with this way of eating. But I didn't. What I DID realize, though, during my month of experimentation was that it IS possible to re-train your taste buds, it IS possible to execute self-control, and it IS possible to view food as fuel for the body...not as just something to entertain us or make us feel good. Food is to keep us living. But that's NOT to say we can't enjoy it! I came out of that month feeling like I wanted to forever change the way I eat, but not necessarily Malkmus' way. More than anything, I desire balance. And I have to agree with what another reviewer wrote: it all comes down to what Jesus would do. If invited to a friend's house for dinner, what would Jesus do? Would he say, "Um, you know what? Um, I REALLY appreciate this wonderful meat dish you prepared with this delicious-looking white bread, but I'm not gonna eat that because, well, we are just not supposed to eat this way. Got any asparagus around?..Oh, and can you break out the juicer, because it's about time for my carrot juice." ? The greatest commandment, according to Scripture, is to love God with all your heart and mind and strength; the second is like unto it: Love your neigbor as yourself. On these two commandments hangs the entire law. I'd say in the end it's your choice. But again, the key is balance. I can eat what I deem best for me when I'm in my home and doing the cooking, but when I paint my entire life with these rules and hurt the feelings of others because I won't accept their food in their home, or make them feel badly because they may not eat the way I eat, I think I am not acting in love. Ultimately, I want to be healthy, and I think that many people want the same. But choose carefully how you choose to go about a healthy lifestyle. Choose carefully what you want to embrace. Food is not meant to be our enemy. Certainly it's fuel for the body, but I think that God created it for our enjoyment as well. Pardon the pun, but read this book with a grain of salt...

Excellent message, but inaccurate claims:
This book is an enigma. The overall message of this book is excellent. However, some of the specific claims in it are false, and in some cases outrageously so. First the good. There is much debate in Christian circles as to why Christians get sick. Some claim it is due to a lack of faith. Others say it is God's will for the person to be sick, that He is "testing" the individual or developing character in them. And others say that it's not possible to know why a particular person got sick. But Malkmus says that in most cases the cause has nothing to do with these "spiritual" reasons. The cause is simply physical. Christians get sick as a result of living unhealthy lifestyles. And all one has to do is observe what Christian eat when they get together to confirm this. After just about every home Bible study I've been to junk food is served, and everyone except me partakes of it. And the waistlines of Christians reflect this. It seems that at most Bible studies I am about the only person there who is not significantly overweight. And most of these overweight Christians seem to have diabetes. But they seem unwilling to admit the connection between the two. And it is not just diabetes: heart disease, cancer, stroke, osteoporosis, and many other illnesses are diet-related. Exercise is another important factor the Malkmus discusses, and rightly so. Lack of exercise also contributes to all of the above and many other illnesses. Malkmus also discusses the need for pure air, pure water, sunshine, adequate rest, and a positive mental attitude. And all of these are important as well, but most Christians again see little concerned with any of these. But amidst this excellent and much needed message, the many false statements Malkmus makes detract from the value of this book. Also, his overuse of exclamations points is very distracting. For instance, he writes, "Glucose is a naturally occurring sugar found in raw fruits, vegetables, and honey! Glucose is a complex sugar that is released very slowly into the blood stream. Glucose is the form in which God made sugar, and the form in which our all-wise Creator intended sugar to be consumed by the body!" (p.53). There is glucose in the foods he mentions, but the main sugar in these foods is fructose ("fruit sugar"). Moreover, glucose is NOT a "complex sugar." Glucose is a monosaccharide, meaning it is composed of one sugar molecule. This is the "simplest" form in which sugar occurs. Also, glucose is the highest sugar and just about the highest food found on the glycemic index, a measure of how quickly a food causes blood sugar levels to rise. Interestingly, fructose has the lowest glycemic rating of any sugar. Meanwhile, Malkmus writes, "Sucrose, on the other hand, is a product of man! Sucrose is a physically and mentally addictive drug! Sucrose is a simple sugar that is released very quickly into the blood stream...causing great harm to the body!" (p.53; ellipse in original). In fact, sucrose is naturally occurring, albeit highly processed, sugar. It's a disaccharide, composed of one molecule of glucose and one molecule of fructose. As such, its glycemic rating is halfway between these two sugars. So Malkmus has basically reversed the facts regarding glucose and sucrose. One can get addicted to the "sugar rush" one gets from eating a lot of sugar, but it really is exaggerating to call sucrose a drug. As for how harmful it is, sugar contributes nothing of nutritive value except calories. And it is associated with various health problems, but there is still much debate over exactly how detrimental it is. But still, Malkmus's basic message is correct: don't eat much sugar. But it would help if he got his facts straight. Examples of Malkmus's outrageous claims can been seen when promotes what he believes to be the ideal diet: a raw foods diet. He writes, "Living cells cannot be nourished with dead food! Life begets life! All cooked food is dead food! The heat of cooking destroys all of the enzymes, over 80% of the vitamins, changes the protein to an unusable form, and the organic minerals revert back to their inorganic state!" (p.94). Malkmus provides no specific documentation to back-up any of these claims. There is a list of 70 references in the back of the book. But the text itself contains no footnotes to any of these references, nor are page numbers for the references given. But I did some research and could find no evidence whatsoever that cooking somehow causes the protein and minerals in food to convert into a form that is unusable by the body. Now it is true that cooking will cause some loss of vitamins, but how much of a loss depends on many factors. And unless you boil a cup of broccoli in a gallon of water for an hour, it won't be anywhere near 80%. It is also true there is a loss of enzymes from cooking food. And for this reason it is wise to eat a portion of one's foods raw. However, in some cases nutrients are actually made more bioavailable by cooking. An example of this is the lycopene found in tomatoes. It is also true that many will thrive on a raw foods diet, but many others will find such a diet way too restrictive and will have great difficulties trying to follow it. I won't pursue this issue here I discuss such concerns in detail in my book "Creationist Diet: Nutrition and God-given Foods According to the Bible." It is a shame that there are such problems with this book since the overall message is excellent and much needed. So with some hesitancy, I would recommend this book. Just be leery of any specific claims. And for information on healthy eating that is not as restrictive as the raw foods diet Malkmus recommends see my "Creationist Diet" book.

Do not read this book!:
Do not read this book! It has useless and stupid information. The very little important information would be common since to most people who have ever gone to school. I strongly recommend that you don't read this book. I'm a christian and I still do not think it is a good christian book. If you like coffee, cokes, tv, music, etc. then you shouldn't read this book. It will tell you that it is wrong for you do these things. Please do not read this book!!

Borderline Infomercial but still good stuff:
I give the book four stars because I feel the advertisement about the nutrition center should have or could have been left out. However, like some folks said this information should be common sense I agree is should be but look around. Does your life style or the life style of your Christian friends show common sense? I believe most of us (not all because some folks are on the right track) can get some good from this or similar teaching about our physical health. And if we are physically healthy we will be better ambassadors for Christ. True, it is not going to be a cure all for everybody but the principals are good. The one big drawback that I see is being able to afford whole natural foods. Too many of us have to live in and work in environments that preclude natural food styles, but just like most of us don¡¯t fully live up to every precept of the Bible itself, it is still worth striving for. I would say prayerfully read the book.

A Taste That Kills:
Every year, over 2 million people die. Most die from heart attacks or some kind of cancer. Some say its in our genes. But, everyone must also eat. It can be shown that we are what we eat and do physically. There is a taste that kills. But, some people love their food more than a healthy lifestyle. They will eat their favorite foods until they drop. Healing lines, hospitals, and cemetaries become full from them. The tongue is like the rudder on a ship. It may be small, but it steers the whole ship. Where is your tongue steering you? Read this book to find out. Note that an animal designed to naturally eat meat (lion) has a straight intestinal tract to get the meat out quickly. A human's intestinal tract is very windy and all coiled up. Consequently, meat can stay there for over 70 hours. In that time, the meat can become rancid and breed bacteria which leads to disease. Combine that with popular low fiber foods (devoid of natural fiber, enzymes, and vitamins) and one gets diverticulitous (bulging of the intestinal wall that traps more food). Now, the immune system is weakened for the lack of natural ingredients and we become vulnerable to viruses and bacteria. A doctor will then prescribe antibiotics, which are very efficient. The bad bacteria is killed along with good bacteria. Then, the yeast found in everyone grows out control, making over 80 toxins, thus making us sicker than before. This and more from the monster of processed foods sweeps many people to their fate. Sometimes, you just have to go with the flow. Unless, one reads this book ...