Another thing that sets practicing members of the church apart from mainstream Americans is our scripture called the "Word of Wisdom" and its affect on our lifestyle.
We don't drink alcohol.
We don't drink coffee or tea.
We don't smoke.
This advice/commandment was given in 1833. I would say that from that time period up until very recently the learning of man would have labeled this as foolishness, but I find it interesting that over 150 years later "groundbreaking" scientific evidence continues move in the direction of falling in line with this divine revelation.
The general public drinks, that is a fact. In fact, I continue to be amazed at how much the average person does. (Please excuse my naiveness, but it still surprises me when our waiter gives us a look of "why do you even bother to go out to eat if you're not drinking"). It is generally recognized that extremes in drinking are bad: alcoholism and all that is associated with it, drinking and driving, and the continual clubbing and rehab stints the young celebrities seem to be doing. But the personal line of "too far" or "too much" seems fuzzy. Beyond my belief that drinking is against my religion, I just plain think that it is smart to not even start down that road. I would not enjoy the loss of control or inhibitions. I am a happy person without having to "take the edge off the day".
Everywhere you turn there is a Starbucks. I cannot tell you how many of the fun housewives I've met through blogger say they are a wreck without their morning coffee. That I've never had coffee is something that I'm pretty sure make me downright weird to a "normal" person. I get that. I think that it's kind of funny. I think on some level most people get why a religion would take a stand against alcohol and smoking, but to take a shot at something as innocent as coffee....oh my gosh, you are a cult :)
Well, I have read a couple preliminary findings on different studies of caffeine that peak my interest. The first said that, though they couldn't figure out why, they found in a study that women who had a high intake of caffeine were at significantly higher risk of miscarriages. The second noticed (and again, they did not know why) that after caffeine intake diabetics sugar levels after eating were higher than if they didn't.
As I said, these are preliminary, but I do trust that in the future (close or far, I cannot tell) science will start to see more solid findings in this category. For now, I am content to not drink coffee and tea for religious reasons.
I get the impression of a general decline in smoking in this country. It is (now) generally recognized as unhealthy, so there are many campaigns (from government, to company insurers, etc.) to have people quit. I think less people are starting to smoke, and more are successfully quitting. This is a great thing. I worry about a large portion of the world though...they are gearing up to have an epidemic of the health problems associated with this habit.
So there you have the "thou shalt nots", but what about what the Word of Wisdom says we should eat. This is where church members get into discussions and it seems like it's more of a gray area. Here's my interpretation:
It says grains, fruit, and vegetables are good. These are to be the staple of your diet. Atkins diet be hanged :)
Meat is good, but "use sparingly". OK, don't be a carnivore.
Voila, the Mormon secret keys to being healthy!
*now, take this with a grain of salt, I am in no way "preaching" to all those non-members out there. There are plenty of us church members who could improve their health. This is more my humble expression of what I think the Word of Wisdom says.
We don't drink alcohol.
We don't drink coffee or tea.
We don't smoke.
This advice/commandment was given in 1833. I would say that from that time period up until very recently the learning of man would have labeled this as foolishness, but I find it interesting that over 150 years later "groundbreaking" scientific evidence continues move in the direction of falling in line with this divine revelation.
The general public drinks, that is a fact. In fact, I continue to be amazed at how much the average person does. (Please excuse my naiveness, but it still surprises me when our waiter gives us a look of "why do you even bother to go out to eat if you're not drinking"). It is generally recognized that extremes in drinking are bad: alcoholism and all that is associated with it, drinking and driving, and the continual clubbing and rehab stints the young celebrities seem to be doing. But the personal line of "too far" or "too much" seems fuzzy. Beyond my belief that drinking is against my religion, I just plain think that it is smart to not even start down that road. I would not enjoy the loss of control or inhibitions. I am a happy person without having to "take the edge off the day".
Everywhere you turn there is a Starbucks. I cannot tell you how many of the fun housewives I've met through blogger say they are a wreck without their morning coffee. That I've never had coffee is something that I'm pretty sure make me downright weird to a "normal" person. I get that. I think that it's kind of funny. I think on some level most people get why a religion would take a stand against alcohol and smoking, but to take a shot at something as innocent as coffee....oh my gosh, you are a cult :)
Well, I have read a couple preliminary findings on different studies of caffeine that peak my interest. The first said that, though they couldn't figure out why, they found in a study that women who had a high intake of caffeine were at significantly higher risk of miscarriages. The second noticed (and again, they did not know why) that after caffeine intake diabetics sugar levels after eating were higher than if they didn't.
As I said, these are preliminary, but I do trust that in the future (close or far, I cannot tell) science will start to see more solid findings in this category. For now, I am content to not drink coffee and tea for religious reasons.
I get the impression of a general decline in smoking in this country. It is (now) generally recognized as unhealthy, so there are many campaigns (from government, to company insurers, etc.) to have people quit. I think less people are starting to smoke, and more are successfully quitting. This is a great thing. I worry about a large portion of the world though...they are gearing up to have an epidemic of the health problems associated with this habit.
So there you have the "thou shalt nots", but what about what the Word of Wisdom says we should eat. This is where church members get into discussions and it seems like it's more of a gray area. Here's my interpretation:
It says grains, fruit, and vegetables are good. These are to be the staple of your diet. Atkins diet be hanged :)
Meat is good, but "use sparingly". OK, don't be a carnivore.
Voila, the Mormon secret keys to being healthy!
*now, take this with a grain of salt, I am in no way "preaching" to all those non-members out there. There are plenty of us church members who could improve their health. This is more my humble expression of what I think the Word of Wisdom says.
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