hoose to Eat for Healthy Feet: Lose Weight, Feel Great, and Reverse Disease.
By Brian K. Bailey, D.P.M., M.S., Body-Mind-Spirit Podiatric Center
If you want healthy and happy feet, you need to eat food the way God made it—not processed or fast food but whole foods. Whole foods are things grown in the ground, picked from a tree, or from the ocean or land. It is not from a frozen, prepackaged, microwaveable meal or a box or bag of chemically laden chips or crackers. If you think of your body as a top-of-the-line automobile, you don’t run it on junk or cheap gas. You invest in the quality of fuel to maintain and get the most mileage out of the vessel.
Optimal weight and health (including foot health) work synergistically.
Exercise is very good for your health; however, exercise alone doesn’t work very well for weight loss.
Two teaspoons of vinegar in one or more cups of ice water before every meal can level blood sugar and decrease appetite.
Eat 25 to 50% of your food fresh/raw vegetables and fruits.
The ideal dinner salad would include dark greens, the best of which are kale and arugula Including walnuts and some beans like chickpeas or black beans would be great. Sprinkle on a tablespoon of ground flaxseed add red onions and red cabbage. Other great additions would be homemade hummus, peppers, and avocado.
Eat one and 1/2 cup of beans every day. The best beans are black beans, lentils, red beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, etc.
Extra virgin olive oil one to three tablespoons a day. Add garlic and Italian seasoning for a powerful anti-inflammatory benefit. Don’t cook with it. Cook using avocado oil.
Eat one cup of cruciferous vegetables every day: broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale
Eat one serving of nuts and seeds, almonds, walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds, ground chia seeds. (not peanuts).
Eat one citrus fruit daily, blood orange is great. Eat some of the white peel on the fruit you eat.
Eat one serving of berries: blackberries, raspberries, blueberries. Barberries and goji berries are great for blood sugar control and fat burning.
Eat one apple a day.
Eat two servings of whole grains every day. Not hybridized wheat. Choose from ancient grains, whole grain oatmeal, like steel-cut oats or regular old fashion oats, not quick cook. Add walnuts and berries (barberries, goji berries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, or strawberries). Add spice your oats cinnamon and cardamom.
Do not use artificial sweeteners. Small amounts of yacón syrup, erythritol, stevia, monk fruit, or honey are acceptable alternatives. Yacón syrup has been shown clinically to reduce obesity and insulin resistance.
Purple, blue, or sweet potatoes are good for you in minimal amounts, but not white potatoes.
Limit or even better, eliminate your consumption of animal products; if you are going to eat eggs, limit your consumption to a couple of free-range organic eggs per week. The worst meat to eat is commercial chicken instead, eat farm-raised, or organic chicken in small amounts and grass-fed beef in small amounts. Consume whole fat organic yogurt; the best would be goat yogurt.
Get 1 to 4 tablespoons of ground flaxseed every day, which can be added to oatmeal or soups after cooking.
Drink organic coffee and green tea three to five servings a day. Super coffee is a great fat burner that is available here at the office.
FLORASSIST® Mood Improve can decrease your appetite and increase your sense of wellbeing.
Also, vitamin D3 5000 Farm-raised and molecular distilled fish oil three capsules daily. People who have diabetes, neuropathy, or fatigue would benefit from taking Mitochondrial energy booster four capsules daily. All of these are available at the office.
The time you eat has a lot to do with weight loss and weight gain. Those who eat a big breakfast eat less the rest of the day and burn more calories. If you eat late in the day, you will gain weight and burn fewer calories. Stop eating at least three hours before going to sleep. The best meal to have for dinner is a big salad. The more time you have between your last meal and going to bed will help you lose weight, and you will sleep better. Sleep time and quality are essential to health and a trim waist. Get at least seven hours of sleep and not more than nine hours of sleep every night.
Everyone should lose 2 pounds a week following these guidelines. If you need help, keep a food diary and make an appointment.
Dr. Brian K. Bailey
Brian K. Bailey, D.P.M., M.S., is a podiatrist with Body-Mind-Spirit Podiatric Center in Ashland, KY. The office is located at 500 14th Street, at the intersection with Central Avenue. New patients are welcome. For more information, please call the office at (606) 324-FOOT (3668).
Dr. Brian K. Bailey is a Podiatric Physician & Surgeon with a private practice located in Ashland, KY. He is also a Clinical Professor of Podiatric Medicine & Surgery at Pikeville College of Osteopathic Medicine and a Personal Wellness Coach & Fitness Trainer. Dr. Bailey has written several books, including: Secrets to Happiness, Inner Peace and Health, Metabolic Syndrome 2011, Nutrients for Prostate Cancer Prevention and Eradication, Breast Cancer Prevention and Wholistic Treatment, and Prostate Cancer Prevention and Wholistic Treatment.
Body-Mind-Spirit Podiatric Center in Ashland
500 14th Street, Ashland, Kentucky, 41101
Phone (606) 324-FOOT