The chemical free diet

Yesterday, Jenny McCarthy & Holly Robinson Peete were on the Oprah Winfrey Show. They both have sons with autism. Jenny McCarthy has just published a book titled: Louder Than Words: A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism where she discusses her journey to reverse autism in her son. Yes, you read that right – reverse autism.

What I find fascinating about this topic is that she was able to do it through food. Within 2 weeks of eliminating dairy, wheat, and artificial flavoring and dyes from her son's diet, he had doubled his vocabulary. That's HUGE! For those of us who are healthy, we don't really consider how food affects us – maybe a bit in reference to our weight, but to realize that there are foods out there that are toxic to us — foods that may be fine for someone else, but for a child it clouds the brain, slows down his central nervous system and even interrupts his emotions. To be able to see such gains in such a short amount of time by simply eliminating those toxic foods is fantastic.

Excerpt from the Autism Society of America:
Autism is the most common of the Pervasive Developmental Disorders, affecting an estimated 1 in 150 births (Centers for Disease Control Prevention, 2007). Roughly translated, this means as many as 1.5 million Americans today are believed to have some form of autism. And this number is on the rise.

Based on statistics from the U.S. Department of Education and other governmental agencies, autism is growing at a startling rate of 10-17 percent per year. At this rate, the ASA estimates that the prevalence of autism could reach 4 million Americans in the next decade.

This quote begs the question, "If autism is on the rise, what is causing it?" Looking back on her own experience, Jenny McCarthy realized that she saw changes in her son's behavior at about 1 year; when he received his vaccinations. There is no conclusive evidence that she is in fact right, however the Center for Disease Control & Prevention is investigating the link between autism & childhood vaccines.

So what are we putting into our bodies? Why is it that we believe that food manufacturers have our best health in mind when they market food to us? I think we believe that both our government (CDC, FDA, USDA) have good intentions, however I truly believe that these organizations have changed paths to a political agenda as opposed to one that has the best interest of the people at hand.

And then there's doctors. Why is it that when a doctor says "take this pill" that we do it without questioning "why"? Long gone are the days of the country doctor who makes house-calls. My doctor appears so busy that I feel like I have to lock the exam room door just to ask general questions about things that are going on in my body. Doctors too often treat symptoms and not the cause – because it's easier to treat symptoms; and treating symptoms means taking more drugs.

Instead of consuming more chemicals, maybe we need to consume less in order to reach optimal health. Our bodies are incredible machines that really only need water, protein, carbohydrates and fat in order to survive – and in fact, not only survive, but excel. Live as close to nature as possible & your body will thank you by allowing you to live a long healthy life.