30 days of green smoothies

steviostevio Raw Newbie

My doctor put me on a cholesterol drug last week, and I asked him if I could try to tackle the issue with diet before starting the drug. He was so concerned with the levels (which I failed to get as we got off topic, and then I forgot until I was leaving) and so skeptical that diet could put a big enough dent in the numbers that he strongly advised that I just take the medication. So I am, but I am determined to get off it as soon as safely possible. To that end, I am beginning 30 days of green smoothies (plus one grilled vegan meal at our company picnic next month). I am hoping between the med and the nutrients I can get the numbers down low enough for my next blood test to stop the meds safely, and continue the healing by just continuing on with raw food.

So, here’s to putting some of the testimonials to the test. Let’s see how much damage can be healed in only a month!

Comments

  • BeTheChangeBeTheChange Raw Newbie

    Hey Stevio! I am in the beginning stages of an extended green smoothie cleanse myself, so just wanted to let you know I’m here in solidarity with you!

  • Yes! It can be done. My husband did it in 40 days.

    Four years ago, my husband had dangerously high blood pressure, his cholesterol was 267, had IBS among other health issues. Had he not made drastic changes, he would be on 4 or 5 medications right now….or dead…. Anyway, in 2004, after an extended fast and raw eating, his cholesterol dropped to 158 and everything else resolved as well. Medication free. Before all that, his doctor told him that no amount of exercise or healthy eating would help him. Whatever. Many of the cholesterol reducing meds put toxic loads on ones liver and kidneys. Some people have become quite ill from organ failure due to these meds. I’m not telling you to not take it, just be an informed patient! Sounds like you are doing that and you are being careful not to throw the medical ‘baby out with the bathwater’. I really hope that you can get your levels down so as to get off the medication very soon. Best to you! I really really believe it will happen! My husband is living proof.

  • steviostevio Raw Newbie

    Thanks for the support, encouragement, and testimonial. Blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes are the results of bad eating made worse by over a decade of anti-depressants and their horrid side-effects. I do believe that the meds can be an effective band-aid to keep me from having a stroke or coronary as I heal, and I am definitely comfortable pushing my doctor into considering that the diet may be an effective factor, and he seems to be willing to go along with it as soon as the blood levels are a little more safe. He remains skeptical that I will get off these meds, but as my health improves, he does admit I may not need them all, and I will be able to get off of them. I only hope I can show him it can be done, that I can reverse the damage, especially since all of these diagnoses are recent and hopefully more severe organ damage is still minimal.

    BeTheChange, I noticed someone else has mentioned this, but I will echo the sentiment, you have a great screen name. Very inspiring. Ghandi would be proud.

  • BluedolfinBluedolfin Raw Newbie

    stevio~ I just came back from a seminar by Craig Sommers, ND, CN. He wrote the book (actually it was his ND dissertation) The Raw Foods Bible. In his book he has studies on lowering cholesterol with 1/2 avocado per day and 4 ribs of celery per day. This might be information for you and for your doctor to review.

    To your wellness…

  • steviostevio Raw Newbie

    Thanks for the tip. I will go out for some avocado and celery tonight. I see no harm in including this in my diet over the next month before my next blood test as it is real food, not pills. My doctor is unlikely to be persuaded by the diet as a potential cure, but is open minded enough to accept the results in the case where my radical diet change contributes to my recovery. I think I am better off just trying to eat a balanced source of nutrients (in the form of raw fruits, veggies and occasional seeds) and talk to him about it after the results are manifest.

    Also, I seem to be unable to keep myself on 100% green smoothies today. I am not getting enough calories, and the large amounts of greens is keeping me from being able to just keep drinking it, so I have had to supplement the smoothies with some dates, cantaloupe, blueberries and seeds.

    At least I am having no difficulties keeping things 100% raw vegan. In fact I am still feeling better than ever.

  • I have no wisdom in this area but just wanted to stop by to offer my support. Best of luck Stevio – can’t wait to hear next month how things went. Wouldn’t it be great if you were the catalyst to your doctor looking at natural alternatives? ((hugs)) Peace, Karuna.

  • BluedolfinBluedolfin Raw Newbie

    stevio~ If you are approaching your doctor saying you are going to “cure” your health challenges, you are definitely going to get major resistance… only surgery and drugs can “cure” (which they actually don’t because they are not designed to do that)... When you are changing your nutritional intake, you are simply giving your body what it needs to protect, regulate, and maintain itself, nothing more. When your body gets what it needs (the tricky part is finding out the right combo), guess what???... your wellness improves… quality of life improves. Symptoms, however they appear and whatever name is given to a group of them, are simply the body’s way of saying it isn’t getting what it needs.

    Dr. Sommer had a great example last night… If your car’s oil light goes on, it indicates that the car needs something, in this case, oil. If you take it into the mechanic and the mechanic puts a piece of black tape over the light so you can’t see that it is on (what pharmaceuticals do), you are not addressing the actual need, literally, only masking it. Now if you put oil in the car, you are not “curing” the car of never needing oil ever again. You simply gave the car what it needed to properly function. If you don’t keep adding oil, the light will eventually go on again and if not attended to, the engine will seize and/or parts will wear out “prematurely”.

    You will never be able to “cure” your body from needing nutrition to properly function and you never want to mask the body’s ability to tell you that it needs something (except in certain circumstances like when in extreme pain or a life threatening situation to give one time to address the source of the difficulty)... that is until you die… then nutrition is not needed anymore. After death, your body gets to be part of what fills the nutritional needs of another life force.

    PS. Trying to “persuade” your doctor of anything other then using “standard of care” (pharmaceuticals) is fruitless… literally! ;) Enlisting your doctor as a wellness partner and creating a mutually agreed upon plan is more fruitful for everyone concerned. The research that The Raw Foods Bible (or other good science-based material) sites might plant a seed in your doctor, if your doctor has a taste for expanding beyond/complimenting the pharmaceutical model. At least you are showing you are being intelligent about what you are doing and not just going in a wacko (unsubstantiated) direction.

    My 1 1/2 cents worth…

    To your wellness…

  • steviostevio Raw Newbie

    I agree with you totally Bluedolfin. I have not mentioned to him specifically my raw food veganism (especially since when I saw him last, I had not yet given up meat), but I did tell him of the green smoothies and the fact that I was eating only whole foods, and he thought that was a terrific plan. He in fact seemed a little intrigued by the green smoothie idea as a way to get more leafy greens.

    He has 2 things going for him:

    1. He was originally trained in Europe, so he seems a little more open minded about the idea of diet than the typical doctor pushing low fat meat based eating.

    2. He is a trained and experienced researcher, and as such, is open to allowing me to pursue my choices while monitoring my condition, as long as he does not feel that I am endangering myself directly.

    He thought the cholesterol meds were a must, but when the levels are less critical, I think he will be open to discontinuing the meds and seeing what eating nutritious food can accomplish, while monitoring the results.

  • BluedolfinBluedolfin Raw Newbie

    stevio~ You are very fortunate.

    To your wellness…

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