9 practical tips for a healthy and sustainable diet

9 practical tips for a healthy and sustainable diet Last Updated : 19 April 2018 Each of us contributes to the impact that our food system has on the planet. We can all commit to making the world a healthier place to live, through small but achievable changes to our diets. Eat more fruits and vegetables Eat locally, when in season Avoid eating more than needed, especially treats Swap animal protein for plant-based ones Choose whole grains Choose sustainably sources seafood Eat dairy products in moderation Avoid unnecessary packaging Drink tap water 9 practical tips for a healthy and sustainable diet 1. Eat more fruits and vegetables Fruit and vegetables are good for our health, and most come with a low environmental impact. There are exceptions, as some require a lot of resources to transport and keep fresh, so eating these less frequently can increase the sustainability of our diets. Examples include: fruits and vegetables that are fragile, or require refrigeration (salads and berries) vegetables that are grown in protected conditions (such as hot-house tomatoes or cucumbers) foods that use a lot of resources during transport (green beans, mange-touts, or berries imported from the southern hemisphere). 2. Eat locally, when in season Locally-grown foods can be a sustainable choice, if we choose those that are in season where we live. The cost of producing or storing local foods beyond their natural growing seasons could be higher than shipping foods that are in season somewhere else. 3. Avoid eating more than needed, especially treats Consuming only what we need reduces demands on our food supply by decreasing excess production. It also helps to keep us healthy and avoid excessive weight gain. Limiting snacking on energy-dense low-nutrient foods and paying attention to portion sizes are all useful ways to avoid unnecessary overconsumption. 4. Swap animal proteins for plant-based ones In general, more resources are needed to produce animal-based proteins (especially beef), compared to plant-based proteins (such as beans, pulses and some grains). Eating a more plant-based diet also brings health benefits: plant-based food provides more fibre, and has a lower saturated fat content, both of which can contribute to a decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. For meat-eaters, limiting meat consumption to 1-2 times a week, having meat-free days and choosing more sustainable meats like chicken over beef can help us reduce our ecological footprint. For those choosing a vegan/vegetarian diet, combining different sources of plant-based protein will ensure our protein needs are met. 5. Choose whole grains Non-refined cereals are generally less resource intensive to produce than refined ones as they require fewer processing steps. They are also good for health, reducing our risk of cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, and overweight. Whole meal bread, whole grain pasta, unrefined barley, buckwheat and quinoa, are great choices. Brown rice is a good substitute for white rice, but it should be enjoyed in moderation, as a lot of water is used during its production. 6. Choose sustainably sourced seafood Fish is a good source of healthy omega-3 fatty acids, which contribute to normal vision, brain function and heart health. However, overfishing is causing wild fish stocks to become depleted. In order to benefit from the necessary nutrients and reduce pressure on wild fish stocks: consume fish and seafood 1-2 times weekly to provide the necessary nutrients and reduce pressure on wild fish stocks. choose fish and seafood marked with a sustainability label from certified organisations such as the Marine Stewardship Council. 7. Eat dairy products in moderation While milk and dairy production has an important environmental impact, dairy products are an important source of protein, calcium and essential amino acids, and have been linked to reduced risk of several chronic diseases, including metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, stroke, bowel cancer and type 2 diabetes. Enjoy low-fat unsweetened dairy products daily, but in moderation. Limit consumption of high-fat cheeses to occasional. For those of us who choose to eliminate dairy completely, opt for plant-based drinks that are fortified with vitamins and minerals, like calcium. 8. Avoid unnecessary packaging Food packaging, especially when made of non-recyclable materials can have a huge impact on the environment. We all can reduce the amount of packaged products we buy (think of bulk apples versus cling-film wrapped ones), or opt for materials that are biodegradable, fully recyclable, or made from recycled materials. 9. Drink tap water In Europe, the standards of water quality and safety are high. Instead of buying bottled water, we can re-fill a reusable water bottle at the tap as many times as we want. Tap water costs a fraction of the price of bottled water and reduces our ecological footprint.

The unique Love story of Ruth & Boaz

If you were to name some classic love stories you might suggest Helen of Troy & Paris (igniting the Trojan War dramatized in the Iliad), Cleopatra and Mark Antony (whose love entwined Rome in a civil war with Octavian/Augustus Caesar ), Romeo & Juliet, Beauty & the Beast, or perhaps Cinderella & Prince Charming. In them, history, pop culture and romantic fiction come together in offering passionate love stories that captivate our hearts, emotions and imaginations. Ruth & Boaz Love Story Amazingly, the love that sparked between Ruth & Boaz has proved far more enduring and noble than any of these love affairs, and in fact, still affects the lives of all the billions of us living today – more than three thousand years after these lovers met. Their romance is also a picture of a mystical and spiritual love offered to you and me. The story of Ruth and Boaz deals with cross-cultural & forbidden love, immigration and the relationship between a powerful man and a vulnerable woman – applicable in today’s #MeToo era. It becomes a blueprint for us on how to establish a healthy marriage. By any of these measures the love story of Ruth & Boaz is worth knowing. Their love is recorded in the Book of Ruth in the Bible. It is a short book – only 2400 words long – and is well worth reading (here). It is set about 1150 BCE, making this the oldest of all recorded love stories. It has been made into several films. Hollywood movie depicting the Ruth Love story The Love Story of Ruth Naomi and her husband with their two sons leave Israel to escape drought and settle in the nearby country of Moab (today’s Jordan). After marrying local women the two sons die, as does Naomi’s husband, leaving her alone with her two daughters-in-law. Naomi decides to return to her native Israel and one of her daughters-in-law, Ruth, chooses to accompany her. After a long absence, Naomi is back in her native Bethlehem as a destitute widow accompanied by Ruth, a young and vulnerable Moabite immigrant. Ruth & Boaz meet Bereft of income, Ruth goes out to gather grain left behind by the local harvest crews in the fields. The Law of Moses, as a social safety net, had ordained harvesters to leave some grains behind in their fields so the impoverished could gather food. Randomly it would seem, Ruth finds herself picking grains in the fields of a wealthy landowner named Boaz. Boaz notices Ruth among the others working hard to gather up the grains left behind by his work crews. He instructs his foremen to leave extra grain behind in the field so that she could gather more. Ruth & Boaz meet. Much art has been done depicting their meeting Ruth & Boaz meet. Much art has been done depicting their meeting Because she can gather plentifully in his fields, Ruth comes back to Boaz’s fields every day to gather left-over grain. Boaz, ever the protector, ensures that Ruth is not harassed or molested by any of his crews. Ruth and Boaz are interested in each other, but because of differences in age, social status, and nationality, neither makes a move. Here Naomi steps in as match-maker. She instructs Ruth to boldly lay down by Boaz’s side at night after he has celebrated the harvest gathering. Boaz understands this as a marriage proposal and decides to marry her. Kinsman Redeemer But the situation is more complicated than simply love between them. Naomi is a relative of Boaz, and since Ruth is her daughter-in-law, Boaz and Ruth are kin by marriage. Boaz must marry her as a ‘kinsmen redeemer’. This meant that under the Law of Moses he would marry her ‘in the name’ of her first husband (Naomi’s son) and so provide for her. This would entail that Boaz purchase Naomi’s family fields. Though that would prove costly to Boaz it was not the biggest obstacle. There was another closer relative that had first rights to buy Naomi’s family’s fields (and also thus marry Ruth). So the marriage of Ruth to Boaz hung on whether another man wanted the responsibility to care for Naomi and Ruth. At a public meeting of the city elders this first-in-line declined the marriage since it put his own estate at risk. Boaz was thus free to purchase and redeem Naomi’s family estate and marry Ruth. Legacy of Ruth & Boaz In their union they had a child, Obed, who in turn became the grandfather of King David. David was promised that ‘a Christ’ would come from his family. Further prophecies were given and finally Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, the same town that Ruth and Boaz had met in long before. Their romance, marriage and family line resulted in offspring that today is the basis for our modern calendar, and global holidays like Christmas & Easter – not bad for a romance in a dusty village over 3000 years ago. Picturing a Greater Love Story The chivalry and respect with which the rich and powerful Boaz treated Ruth, the destitute foreign woman, is a model contrasting the harassments and exploitations now common in our #MeToo day. The historical impact of the family line which this romance and marriage produced, detectible every time we note the date on our devices, gives this love story an enduring legacy. But the Ruth & Boaz love story is also a picture of an even greater love – one you and I are invited into. The Bible describes us in a manner evoking Ruth when it says: I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.’ Hosea 2:23 The Old Testament prophet Hosea (ca 750 BC) used the reconciliation in his own fractured marriage to picture God reaching out to us with His love. Like Ruth who entered the land as one unloved, but then was shown love by Boaz, He desires to show His love even to those of us who feel far from His love. This is quoted in the New Testament (Romans 9:25) to show how God reaches wide to love those far from Him. How is His love shown? Jesus, that descendant offspring from Boaz & Ruth, is God come-in-the-flesh and is thus our ‘kinsman’, just as Boaz was to Ruth. Jesus paid our debt of sin to God on the cross, and thus he gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good. Titus 2:14 As Boaz was a ‘kinsman-redeemer’ who paid a price to redeem Ruth, Jesus is our ‘kinsman-redeemer’ who paid (with his life) to redeem us. A Model for our marriages The way Jesus (and Boaz) paid to redeem and then win his bride models how we can build our marriages. The Bible explains how we establish our marriages: Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wifeas he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband. Ephesians 5:21-33 As Boaz and Ruth established their marriage on love and respect, and Jesus’ care for the church is a model for husbands to love their wives sacrificially, so we do well to build our marriages on these same values. A Wedding Invitation for you and me As in all good love stories, the Bible concludes with a wedding. Just as the price that Boaz paid to redeem Ruth paved the way for their wedding, the price that Jesus paid has paved the way for our wedding. That wedding is not figurative but real, and those accepting his wedding invitation are called ‘The Bride of Christ’. As it says: Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Revelation 19:7 Those who receive Jesus’ offer of redemption become his ‘bride’. This heavenly wedding is offered to all of us. The Bible ends with this invitation for you and me to come to His wedding The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. Revelation 22:17 The relationship between Ruth & Boaz is a model of love that is still making itself felt today. It is a picture of the heavenly romance of God who loves us. He will marry as His Bride all who accept His marriage proposal. As with any marriage proposals, His offer should be weighed to see if you should accept it. Start here with the ‘plan’ laid out in the beginning from the beginning of human history and follow its development. Notice how it is all predicted long beforehand to prove it really is God’s Proposal.

Damaged souls still have worth

“A shop owner placed a sign above his door that said: ‘Puppies For Sale.’ Signs like this always have a way of attracting young children, and to no surprise, a boy saw the sign and approached the owner; ‘How much are you going to sell the puppies for?’ he asked. The store owner replied, ‘Anywhere from $30 to $50.’ The little boy pulled out some change from his pocket. ‘I have $2.37,’ he said. ‘Can I please look at them?’ The shop owner smiled and whistled. Out of the kennel came Lady, who ran down the aisle of his shop followed by five teeny, tiny balls of fur. One puppy was lagging considerably behind. Immediately the little boy singled out the lagging, limping puppy and said, ‘What’s wrong with that little dog?’ The shop owner explained that the veterinarian had examined the little puppy and had discovered it didn’t have a hip socket. It would always limp. It would always be lame. The little boy became excited. ‘That is the puppy that I want to buy.’ The shop owner said, ‘No, you don’t want to buy that little dog. If you really want him, I’ll just give him to you.’ The little boy got quite upset. He looked straight into the store owner’s eyes, pointing his finger, and said; ‘I don’t want you to give him to me. That little dog is worth every bit as much as all the other dogs and I’ll pay full price. In fact, I’ll give you $2.37 now, and 50 cents a month until I have him paid for.’ The shop owner countered, ‘You really don’t want to buy this little dog. He is never going to be able to run and jump and play with you like the other puppies.’ To his surprise, the little boy reached down and rolled up his pant leg to reveal a badly twisted, crippled left leg supported by a big metal brace. He looked up at the shop owner and softly replied, ‘Well, I don’t run so well myself, and the little puppy will need someone who understands!'”