Carolyn Guilford, CNC The goal of this series of articles and the goal of the Health Restoration 101 programs are to help you maximize your chances of living a longer, healthier life. Our programs are simple, comprehensive, science based, well documented and easy to follow. “It’s not magic, but it can change your life.”

Do you know that a diet high in fiber can improve our health ‘to the max’? A diet high in fiber can be life saving, improving cholesterol levels, heart disease and vessel issues, improve blood sugar and even reduce inflammation in the body.

A diet high in fiber can even reduce the risk of many types of cancer including cancer of the colon. But, what we hear the most about is how to lose weight with a diet high in whole grains such as oats, brown rice, beans, peas, carrots, rice bran, whole fruits, lightly steamed veggies, raw salads and a variety of fresh and dried fruits, and nuts.

In some circles carbohydrates have gotten a bad reputation, and many persons still don’t know what to make of it. We hear that the nuts have too much fat, the carbs are bad for the blood sugar and blood pressure. And that the green leafy veggies are a no no. All of this is the wrong information. This is a formula for how to get sick and stay sick. And then take drugs for the rest of your life.

Nothing could be better for health than living foods for a living body. Raw nuts and seeds supply good fats for the heart and brain, and the good carbs are matchless for supplying healthful nutrients and antioxidants and fiber for health, energy, good skin and a healthy digestive system.

We need lots of fiber to ‘sweep clean’ the colon to keep polyps from getting a ‘seat’. Keeping the colon clean allows the body to readily absorb other nutrients for cell repair and health maintenance. For clients with type 2 diabetes we encourage 100% whole grain products and cereal fiber to reduce the risk of inflammation, but read the labels for the sugar content.

Always choose the good carbs for a great diet. Okay, so what about the bad carbs?

The bad carbs are white flour, white sugar, and all the products made with them. Cookies, crackers, cakes, breads, cereals and snacks. White rice, processed shelf products like instant potatoes, grits, pancakes and the like.

If you think about what you are eating and the choices you are making, and read the labels, then you know what I’m talking about. If it’s made with white flour and white sugar, it is first unhealthy because of the processed refined products and the chemicals added, and the chemical processes the product was created by.

Then consider the hydrogenated oils (fats) used to make the product stabilized (shelf stable) which is another word for – rot proof, and the high fructose corn syrup. You know this is not what healthy cells are made of.

The good news is that we can restore health. The name of that game is CHANGE. In a high fiber diet, make sure to drink plenty of water.

Water is our friend, dehydration is the enemy of good health. The new standard is the drink one-half your body’s weight in ounces of water, everyday, for typical persons. If you are an athlete, or bedridden, you would be the exception. Flavored waters and drinks, and little additives to sweeten the water is a terrible idea, and very unhealthy. Think kidney failure.

So, were to start? Always choose fresh over canned, locally grown over flown in, (or trucked in or from a world away, how about produce in-season), and organic over pesticide grown, whenever possible, ( and wild over farmed, but that’s the fish story.)

Generally, you want to eat the fruit, drink less juice, scrub the skin and eat it, not cut it away. And again, read the labels. Eat at home more, eat out less. Spend more at the grocery store, and less at the drug store. You’ll live longer, better, and be happier. I promise.

If you are ready to save your own life by creating a healthy lifestyle, call or write:

Carolyn Guilford, at

Health Restoration 101 P.O. Box 2814, Savannah, GA 31402 (912) 236-8987