DON'T EAT ANYTHING WITH A MOTHER'S FACE

Because I am old, overweight, have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and diabetes 2, I am standing on Death’s doorstep.

I’ve been looking at ways to improve all of these ailments (with the possible exception of “old”), and to forestall my entry through this world’s final portal.

I’m looking at recipes in a book called Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease by Caldwell B. Esselsyn, Jr. M.D.

I couldn’t wait to look at the “More Than 150 Great-Tasting Recipes” at the back of the book, and so I dived right into them.

They may be Great-Tasting, but some aren’t that Great-Sounding.

Here are some of the recipes:

Anthony’s Oatmeal and Vegetables

Since this one is short, I’ll list the ingredients:

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

2 cups water

3 handfuls fresh spinach, or 2 cups mixed vegetables

low-sodium tamari (optional)

What do you think?

Does it make your taste buds want to water or dry up?

I can’t imagine putting vegetables in my oatmeal, can you?

Here are some other recipes:

Pea Guacamole

Beet Greens Surrounded with Beets

Roasted Beets

Every-Night Kale

Beet Soup

Safe Soup

The Safe Soup sounds the best.

That is, the ingredients sound good.

I’ll have to make this one for the taste-test.

A few more:

Black Bean-Oatmeal Burgers

(There’s the oatmeal again…with black beans!)

Black Bean Cakes Supreme!

(The exclamation mark is not mine.)

Tortilla Pie

Mushroom Ratatouille

Sloppy Lentil Joes

Seitan Bourguigon

(I have no idea what the words Seitan or Bourguigon mean, so I’ll have to look them up.

I don’t like to eat anything that I don’t understand)

Antonia Demas’s Couscous and African Stew

(I’ve always liked the sound of the word couscous.)

Peaches Baked in Lemon and Ginger

(This one sounds real good and I’ll try it.)

The good doctor (and author) writes about how “The Revolutionary Scientifically Proven, Nutrition-Based Cure” can only work if people completely STOP eating fats, fried foods---“anything with a mother or a face (no meat, poultry, or fish)…”.

The last admonition strikes me as odd, since we’re always being told to eat plenty of fish.

“You cannot eat dairy products.”

“You must not consume oil of any kind---not a drop.

(And Dr. Esselstyn adds, “Yes, you devotees of the Mediterranean Diet, that includes olive oil…”)

“Generally, you cannot eat nuts or avocados.”

Yesterday I read where pistachios are now thought to help make insulin work better, and today I read that avocados have the good mono-saturated type of fat which lowers cholesterol.

In fact, I just ate two avocados and had some pistachios.

I smashed the avocados and added sea salt, and added half of a big lime.

The real trouble for my arteries will be the fresh tortillas that I cut up into triangles and deep-fried in Canola oil.

It’s true that almost everything that tastes good is bad for you.

P.S. I just bought some more Macadamia nuts, because they have high levels of the good fat---the monsaturated kind---and are low in carbs. But the price for these nuts is out of this world.

I am about to take out of the freezer eight rib eye steaks that I’ll barbecue tomorrow.

Yesterday I had broiled turkey breast and turkey dressing.

I ate more dressing than turkey.

(P.S. I had a large headache most of the next day.)

As you can see, I’m getting a slow start on this cure.

Dr. Esselstyn cites some very impressive statistics about patients whose cholesterol levels dramatically dropped in a short amount of time.

Time is ticking for me, and it’s a time bomb if I don’t change my dietary habits.

I’ll continue to take my Diabetes medicine and my supplements of cinnamon, fenugreek and flaxseed oil (among other things), plus my low-strength aspirin (whose dosage I sometimes increase, hoping that more of the aspirin will help clear up the cholesterol build-up).

Finally, I need to make an appointment to get my blood checked.

If my blood pressure and cholesterol are out of this world, I’ll have to start this cure sooner not later if I hope to stay in this world a little longer.

I’ll let you know.

P.S.

To be fair to Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn and his book, many of the recipes sound quite delicious, especially the recipes for soups, salads, and sandwiches.

IT’S THE OIL STUPID!