DonnieYance.com

October 21, 2022October 21, 2022

Whole Grain Bread: Why You Should Make Your Own

Whole-grain bread is delicious. It’s also very healthy. In fact, whole-grain bread is so good for you that I encourage you to learn to make your own. As I’ll explain below, there are several compelling reasons to make your own whole-grain bread.

You might be surprised to read this recommendation, especially if you’ve been avoiding grains. But I spend hours every day reading the most updated scientific literature about health. So I can tell you with confidence that the current fad pushing people to eat a high-fat no-grain diet is not backed by tradition, culture, or science.

October 11, 2022October 12, 2022

Health Benefits of Whole Grains

bowl of whole grains next to golden ladle

Whole Grains are Super Foods for our Health

The many health benefits of whole grains are why I often write about this subject.

The data continues to mount on the health benefits of these humble foods. This is because they are not only good for human health, but also for the health of our planet.

I recently watched the TV series “The Chosen.” When someone asked Jesus what his favorite food was, Jesus said, bread.

While it is fashionable now in some health circles to denigrate bread, bread is also my favorite food. Especially bread made from freshly milled whole grains. The health benefits of whole grains are so pronounced—and the taste so delicious—I’ll take a slice of hardy whole-grain bread over just about anything.

September 30, 2022October 3, 2022

Why We Need to Reduce Medication Prescriptions for Older Adults

Pills coming out of a prescription bottle

It’s important to reduce medication prescriptions for older adults (and everyone else). Why do we want to reduce medication prescriptions? Because prescription drugs are the third leading cause of death in the United States and Europe. Only heart disease and cancer cause more death.

In 2014 Peter Gøtzsche, a medical doctor and internationally known researcher and book author, wrote an article, called “Our prescription drugs kill us in large numbers.” In some ways his work is more relevant today than when he first wrote it. As Dr. Gøtzsche points out:

50% of those who die have taken their drugs correctly. The other half die because of human error, such as too high a dose or use of a drug despite contraindications.

September 20, 2022September 20, 2022

Reflections on What I Believe Makes a Saint

“Saints are what they are, not because their sanctity makes them admirable to others, but because the gift of sainthood makes it possible for them to admire everyone else.” – Thomas Merton

With John Coltrane’s birthday on September 23 and the Feast Day of St. Francis on Oct. 4^th, I thought I would share some reflections on what I think makes a Saint.

Saint Francis of Assisi

Saints are models for everyone and offer something we can aspire to. Though mortal like all of us, they live in their Divinity. They show us that Christ’s (as the Universal Christ) people follow a way that is different from mass consciousness.

September 2, 2022September 3, 2022

Cancer Screening—The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Before I dive into my personal perspective on cancer screening, I want to address the dire state of healthcare in our country. A recently published paper evaluated the best and worst countries in the world in terms of healthcare.

This study included an analysis of 71 performance measures across five domains. The United States ranked last overall, despite spending far more of its gross domestic product on health care, which includes a massive amount on cancer screening. The U.S. ranks last on access to care, administrative efficiency, equity, and health care outcomes, but second on measures of care process.^[1]

August 11, 2022August 11, 2022

Traditional Herbal Medicine: A Systems Wide Approach and Why Synergism Is Key

”The way you see people is the way you treat them, and the way you treat them is what they become.’’ ~Johann Wolfgang Goethe

Herbs have become popular as an alternative to conventional medicine and are used in treating a wide range of chronic and acute conditions. But it’s important to realize that this is not traditional herbal medicine. According to the World Health Organization, traditional (herbal) medical systems (TMS) are defined as “the wisdom, knowledge, skills and practices based on the theories, beliefs, principles, and experiences indigenous to different healing traditions and cultures, used in the promotion of health and in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical and mental illness.”