Does Meat Shorten The Life of Man and Cause Cancer and Heart Disease?
Notes From Weigh of Wisdom Newsletters
Some people are afraid of animal products because they have come to believe that animal products are the primary cause of all sickness of mankind.
This is a pity because the real culprits are junk food, sugar, artificial foods, irradiated foods, genetically modified foods, and chemically treated foods.
These foods are causing disease, not God's wholesome meat and animal products.
Before the advent of processed junk food beginning in the early 1900's, cancer, heart disease and diabetes were almost unheard of diseases.
World's Oldest Case Study On A Whole-Foods Meat Diet
After having tried a variety of diets over the years, we are absolutely convinced that the Plan B Diet™ is by far the best diet available for most people.
World's Oldest Case Study On A Whole-Foods Meat Diet
After having tried a variety of diets over the years, we are absolutely convinced that the Plan B Diet™ is by far the best diet available for most people.
Many people are eliminating or reducing their prescription medicines, gaining muscle, losing weight, and toning up.
We are also seeing a variety of physical problems disappear such as bladder problems, chronic headaches, even mental outlook improves.
The idea of the Plan B Diet™ is not original with us but has its origins in the Bible, dating back to Genesis 9:3 where God told Noah to eat animal products.
The idea of the Plan B Diet™ is not original with us but has its origins in the Bible, dating back to Genesis 9:3 where God told Noah to eat animal products.
While much of the world's "experts" claim that meat eating is bad, we must realize that there has never been a modern study done on people that ate "clean", chemical-free meats.
However, there are some powerful hidden clues to the power of this diet in the Bible.
Most people are not aware the oldest case study on meat eating is in the Bible.
Most people are not aware the oldest case study on meat eating is in the Bible.
It all happened in roughly 2000 B.C. to 1600 B.C. in ancient Egypt.
We know from studying the Hebrew people their primary occupation was raising cattle and sheep.
Their diet included clean meats (mostly beef), organically grown vegetables, fruits, and grains.
We know the diet was free of man-made chemicals, because in those days, there were no man-made chemicals in existence.
There is no mention of the Hebrews raising or eating pork. In fact, the whole idea of clean and unclean meats seems to be well established by this period of time, since Noah was told to bring seven pairs of clean animals into the ark, but only two pairs of unclean animals.
So we can be sure there was no pork eating among the Hebrews. In other words, no junk meats.
But there is ample mention of the abundance of their cattle:
"And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold." - Genesis 13:2
"And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his seed with him." - Genesis 46:6
"And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle." - Genesis 12:38
We know cattle raising was the primary profession of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the Hebrew people had "very much" cattle of their own to take out of Egypt.
One could argue that Hebrews raised cattle strictly for commercial purposes to make money by selling them, or they raised them for the leather in their coats, but this is simply not true.
"And Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold." - Genesis 13:2
"And they took their cattle, and their goods, which they had gotten in the land of Canaan, and came into Egypt, Jacob and all his seed with him." - Genesis 46:6
"And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle." - Genesis 12:38
We know cattle raising was the primary profession of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the Hebrew people had "very much" cattle of their own to take out of Egypt.
One could argue that Hebrews raised cattle strictly for commercial purposes to make money by selling them, or they raised them for the leather in their coats, but this is simply not true.
While they may have sold some of the cattle, they certainly ate the cattle also:
"And he (Abraham) took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree and they did eat." - Genesis 18:7
In this passage, Abraham was hosting three angels that had come to his house with the finest hospitality he knew: butter, milk, and beef.
"And he (Abraham) took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree and they did eat." - Genesis 18:7
In this passage, Abraham was hosting three angels that had come to his house with the finest hospitality he knew: butter, milk, and beef.
He was giving the angels of the finest available food in his house.
Counting Abraham himself, Joseph and his two sons, and all of Abraham's other descendants, there were seventy Hebrew people in Egypt to begin with:
"And the sons of Joseph, which were born in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten." - Genesis 46:27
This group of seventy people grew to be by most estimates between two million and three million people after four hundred years.
Counting Abraham himself, Joseph and his two sons, and all of Abraham's other descendants, there were seventy Hebrew people in Egypt to begin with:
"And the sons of Joseph, which were born in Egypt, were two souls: all the souls of the house of Jacob, which came into Egypt, were threescore and ten." - Genesis 46:27
This group of seventy people grew to be by most estimates between two million and three million people after four hundred years.
It was during these four hundred and thirty years that the people ate their simple, balanced diet including beef and mutton and grew very strong.
We have an amazing description of their state of health given to us in the Bible:
"He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes." - Psalm 105:37
Can you imagine a collection of people greater than two million, roughly the population of the entire Phoenix metropolitan area, and not a single feeble person among them?
"He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes." - Psalm 105:37
Can you imagine a collection of people greater than two million, roughly the population of the entire Phoenix metropolitan area, and not a single feeble person among them?
Not even the aged people were feeble.
Now here is the key point in this study of the Hebrew people: Since there was not one feeble person among them, there most certainly was not a single person with heart disease, cancer, stroke or arthritis.
Now here is the key point in this study of the Hebrew people: Since there was not one feeble person among them, there most certainly was not a single person with heart disease, cancer, stroke or arthritis.
They were a mighty people. This is the real power of their diet.
And this is a diet that is still available to us today, if we are willing to put a little extra effort into selecting our foods.
One more question needs to be answered about these Hebrew people: How long did they live?
One more question needs to be answered about these Hebrew people: How long did they live?
Surely, they must have perished in their fifties and sixties since meat, milk, and eggs were part of their diet.
Wrong.
Let's look at Abraham first. He was the original Hebrew person, called by God, and his occupation was raising cattle. He lived to be 175.
Wrong.
Let's look at Abraham first. He was the original Hebrew person, called by God, and his occupation was raising cattle. He lived to be 175.
His son, Isaac, is said to have loved game meat (Genesis 25:28) and he lived to be 180.
Jacob, Isaac's son, lived to be 147 years old, and Joseph lived to be 110.
Only three other ages are given for men during this period: Uzziel - 133 years, Levi - 137 years, and Moses - 120 years.
We do know the Hebrews lived and grew their crops in the land of Goshen, which was very rich land in the Nile River delta area.
We do know the Hebrews lived and grew their crops in the land of Goshen, which was very rich land in the Nile River delta area.
We also know the Hebrews did not lack for physical exercise, since they were slaves in service to the Pharaohs of Egypt.
"The Hebrews ate no junk food since commercial junk food was not in existence. Their meat was primarily beef, mutton, fish and fowl. Undoubtedly, they also had milk, butter and eggs to eat. Animal products helped the Hebrew people endure and even prosper in health while under bondage. If they had been on a meatless diet, they may very well have become an extinct people during this period of time." - Greg Westbrook
1. Take BarleyLife or BarleyLife Xtra, because it can do wonders for food cravings.
2. Limit cooked carbohydrates to one serving each day. Bread, potatoes and other starchy foods can sabotage weight loss efforts. While we still need these carbohydrates for successful weight loss, they must be limited.
3. Don't eat too much fruit. It's best to limit it to two to three servings per day. Fruit is healthy and great for your body, but you can overload your system with too much fructose (fruit sugar), which can set off cravings.
4. Don't eat until you're hungry and don't eat until you're full. Only eat when you're hungry and when you eat, your stomach should still feel somewhat light when you are done. You shouldn't have a full, heavy feeling.
5. Don't skip meals and get over-hungry. Statistics show many overweight people have a habit of skipping breakfast. Skipping meals can cause your blood sugar to dip to very low levels, causing ravenous hunger and overeating.
6. Get active and exercise. Find something that you enjoy - such as hiking, power walking, stretching, deep breathing, or bike riding, that you'll do on a regular basis.
7. Discover what's eating you. Address any underlying issues for health in body as well as mind.
8. Be loyal to your goals and convictions.
Dr. Diana Schwarzbein believes the benefits of eating meat in restaurants far outweigh any negatives stating, "The benefits you get from eating meat and animal products are that these foods supply your body with the needed resources to fight off chemical additives or hormones. In other words, depriving your body of those needed resources leaves you without defenses. In a culture where it is difficult, if not impossible, to get unadulterated food, being left without defenses is very dangerous." - Sarah Westbrook
"When eating out, remember; white, doughy foods make white, doughy people." - Sarah Westbrook
"Regardless of the patient's problem or illness, a balanced diet produces the same results - better health and decreased body fat." - Dr. Diana Schwarzbein
"You can eat ice cream on the Plan B Diet™. At the health food store, two good brands are Cascadian Farms Organic Ice Cream and Stoneyfield Farm Organic Ice Cream." - Greg Westbrook
"Sugar knocks out the immune system." - Greg Westbrook
A healthy mouth is a key to good health. Charlotte Gerson, of the world famous Gerson Institute, told at a conference we attended it is required at the Gerson Institute for all patients to have a clean bill of dental health before going on the Gerson program. It is essential to building health and overcoming disease. - Judie Westbrook
"It is important not to overeat because I’m convinced the single most damaging thing we can do to the body is overeat, particularly in the evening hours." - Greg Westbrook
"We choose not to eat ham, primarily because it is a forbidden food in Leviticus 11 in the Bible. God created swine (pork) as a scavenger animal and swine will eat practically anything in its path, including excrement of another animal. In contrast, a sheep or a cow (a clean animal) is a very picky eater, eating only fresh, non-tainted food. It is for very good reason that God told the Israelites not to eat swine.
It isn't for religious reasons that we refrain from pork, but for practical reasons. Swine is laden with toxins and often harbors parasites. Cancer clinics that work to heal people using nutritional therapies forbid their patients to eat pork, stating it is impossible for a person to heal from cancer if they are eating pork. This includes bacon, ham, sausage, pepperoni, hot dogs and luncheon meats." - Greg Westbrook
"I really believe in balance, but I remember from learning to ride a bike that it takes a few spills before balance comes naturally." - email to Greg Westbrook
Overall, a good rule of thumb is to eat something raw at every meal. For a picture of how much raw food to eat, see the "Living Pendulum" section. - Sarah Westbrook
"I have long felt diet is largely responsible for the breakup of marriages for people in their late forties, fifties and sixties. It only makes sense when the body gets older and sickly from years of junk food, people get cranky and hard to live with." - Greg Westbrook
Research collected by Post Polio Network of Wa Inc. (PPNWA) says, "We are seeing a group now emerging of self-inflicted carnitine deficiency. People who are deliberately not eating red meat because either they have an aversion to eating animals and feel this is cruel, or people who for health reasons, like high cholesterol or fear of meat contributing to cancer and heart disease, think they are doing the right thing."
PPNWA emphasizes the importance of carnitine. "Other areas of the body depend on carnitine working properly so they can too. Choline and Vitamin B12 help to stop excretion of carnitine in urine. We have found that without reasonable available carnitine, B6 and magnesium can’t function well. Many other vitamins, minerals and amino acids are interlinked to adequate carnitine intake. A cascade of ill health results from poor carnitine levels. Insulin function in the body can be effected, leading eventually to late onset diabetes as well." - Judie Westbrook
For every deficiency of a nutrient, there are particular body functions that will not be achieved. One deficiency can compound another deficiency. Essential amino acid deficiencies lead to the deficiency of all amino acids.
During a time of disease or when the body is under stress, nonessential amino acids can become essential. This means during illness or stress our body is not able to manufacture the nonessential amino acids. Therefore, we must get all amino acids through our diet.
Dr. Winston W. Greene, B.A., B.S., D.C., states, "The removal of even one essential amino acid from the diet leads rather rapidly to a lower level of protein synthesis in the body and eventually to death. In general, protein from animal sources is of greater nutritional value because animal proteins are complete and contain all of the essential amino acids, plus the nonessential ones."
The Plan B Diet™ includes animal products and teaches that they are important in building and maintaining good health. Red meat has been instrumental for many people in making strides in rebuilding their health. By getting carnitine back into the diet through the use of clean animal products, symptoms of poor health such as stooped posture, back muscle ache, lack of energy, low blood sugar, heart irregularities, brain fog, fatigue, poor muscle tone, cramps, exercise intolerance, indigestion, and acidosis (low pH) have been turned around, something that people could not do on a vegan diet." - Judie Westbrook
"You must be careful to eat only clean, wholesome animal products. And it is very important to get all the junk out of your diet to insure proper nutrition to the brain." - Greg Westbrook
"Remember Naaman in the Bible who was a captain of the host of the king of Syria. He was a mighty man of valor but he had the horrible disease of leprosy. When Elisha the prophet told Naaman to go wash in the river Jordan seven times, Naaman became angry because he had the notion that Elisha should have just come out and called upon the name of the Lord and there would be a great instantaneous healing. Naaman was also angry because he thought he could have just as well washed in one of Syria's own rivers rather than the river Jordan.
Naaman wanted to be healed by doing things he wanted to do rather than what God told him to do (through the prophet Elisha). Of course, when Naaman did humble himself and wash seven times in the Jordan river, he was healed of his leprosy and his skin became like that of a little child.
Isn't this just like us? We want to eat whatever we want to eat and still expect to be totally healthy. We need to understand that whatever we sow, that is what we are going to reap. (Galatians 6:7) And this includes our diet. It's as simple as that. Yes, there is a connection between the foods you eat, the liquids you drink, the exercise you get, and your quality of life.
But there is tremendous healing to be found if we will but believe God for His dietary instructions and obey Him in simple faith." - Greg Westbrook
"It is not wholesome meat, dairy and eggs that has been making people sick – but the junk foods, junk meats, junk dairy, and junk eggs in the Standard American Diet. When people clean up their diet, get the sugar and processed foods out, and eat only "clean," properly grown animal products, the results can be explosive." - Greg Westbrook
"A common vegetarian 'half-truth' for a meatless diet is that man's digestive system is patterned after that of an herbivore, not a carnivore. Not so, according to The Naive Vegetarian Comparison. In this article, the digestive system of sheep (herbivore), wolves (carnivore) and shepherds (men) are compared. The shepherd and the wolf have very comparable digestion, drastically different from the sheep. The capacity of the stomach in the shepherd and wolf is one-half gallon, but the sheep is a voluminous 8 gallons. Can you imagine filling up a stomach eight gallons in size? Perhaps you could be a healthy vegan if you had an eight gallon stomach.
The shepherd's digestive tract is five times his body length, similar in size to the wolf's digestive tract, which is seven times his body length. In contrast, the sheep's digestive tract is a whopping twenty-seven times his body length.
The man and the wolf digestive systems depend on putrefaction for digestion while the sheep's digestion works on the principle of fermentation. While the shepherd and the wolf never use rumination (chewing the cud), rumination is a necessary feature of the sheep's digestion.
An additional point is the stomach of a wolf and shepherd is designed to empty before being refilled, while the stomach of a sheep is designed to be constantly fed without emptying. On our little farm, we have raised sheep, goats, and cows - all animals that eat voluminous quantities of plant food. Any of these animals can put away huge amounts of alfalfa hay full of stubble and leaves that would choke a human being. They tend to be constant eaters, browsing for tiny blades of grass, leaves, berries, and bark that would be impossible for a human to eat.
Anyone who has kept animals in a pastoral setting understands the dive plan of the Creator. Given enough range, animals can forage on nearly barren landscape and convert it to powerful food for the shepherd.
Those who say man does not need animal products surely do not appreciate the design by the Creator, nor understand the healing power of these foods.
"As Christians, we already know from Genesis 9:3 and from the entire spectrum of Biblical teaching on nutrition that God’s design is for us to eat animal products." - Greg Westbrook
Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What would be the minimum of animal products I would need to consume; do I have to eat meat, fish, dairy and eggs weekly? From your diet plan it looks like one needs to eat animal products daily - can you achieve good health having these less often?
Answer: Only you can determine how often you need to eat animal products. By watching your deficiency symptoms, you will be able to chart your progress. We are recovering from six years on the vegan diet and need animal products almost daily right now. Eventually, we may not need as much. Every time we reduce our intake of animal products, our deficiency symptoms surface again within days.
Question: (From a three and a half year Genesis 1:29 dieter) When I look at the human body, I see no physiological need for consuming flesh products. What am I missing here? I have never felt better in my sixty-one years!
Answer: At three and a half years on the diet, we also felt the same as you. In retrospect, we were well on our way to marginal health. As a sixty-one year-old man, you are not at a high risk on the Genesis 1:29 Diet nearly as much as, for example, a young mother.
We know of several women who could not conceive and/or could not bring a baby to full-term due to a miscarriage on the Genesis 1:29 Diet. But by adding animal products to their diet they were able to have a baby. We know of young ladies whose monthly cycles ceased for months and years on the diet. Also, production of mother's milk can be a problem on the Genesis 1:29 Diet.
Animal products seem to be an important key to the reproduction cycle. This is just one example of a physiological need that seems to be well established. Women being barren and having miscarriages is hard to face and it makes me really regret the days when I taught that the Genesis 1:29 Diet is a "one size fits all" diet.
Question: What about animal products and cancer?
Answer: Sometimes just taking a step back and using a little common sense helps us get a clearer picture. It's easy to get buried in a lot of modern theories, but what has history told us? A whole foods diet that includes animal products has been around for centuries and is not new at all. Meat has been part of the American diet since the first turkey dinner. Early farmers and settlers survived long winters eating the meat they hunted. We have been eating meat for all the generations since Noah.
The Israelites in the times recorded in Exodus ate God's whole food diet, including animal products. They worked very hard, lived under constant pressure and stress for 430 years, yet even so, Psalm 105:37 tells us "there was not one feeble person among their tribes."
I would like to turn the question around: What proof do we have a vegetarian or a raw food diet is safe, especially for long-term use? There is mounting evidence and research proving a diet void of animal products causes deficiencies and health problems, especially for children and for women in their child bearing years.
Foods that God created to nourish the body have been changed, to the point where they hardly taste or look like the original real food. Our foods are highly refined and processed and chemicals are used in most every step of food processing, starting in the fields and ending with the packaging. Worse yet, our foods are molecularly and genetically changed, microwaved and irradiated. Now that is a real reason for fear and dread. Though our food has changed drastically through the years, meat, a food we have been eating for centuries, has taken the blame. It does not make sense.
It's time to find the real common denominator to cancer. Man-made foods are far more suspicious than food given to us by God. Meat is not the "garbage of the world" but a whole food created and approved by God. - Judie Westbrook
Question: Where can I find clean, organic meat, dairy and eggs?
Answer: It can be difficult to find clean meat, dairy eggs and fish, but it's very much possible. I wouldn't recommend going to your corner market to purchase animal products. Fortunately, there are farmers and ranchers who are still growing things the old way without synthetic chemicals, antibiotics and hormones, and raising their animals on wholesome feed.
If you are fortunate enough to have a health food store in your area that sells meat, dairy, and eggs, this would be an excellent place to start. Most health food stores sell fertile, vegetarian produced eggs, grass fed or vegetarian fed beef, organically raised chicken, turkey and organic dairy products.
If you don't have such a health food store nearby, you can often find local growers in your area by looking in the classified ads. Another great place to search out local growers is at animal feed stores. Most of these stores have bulletin boards where local farmers advertise. Just stop by your local animal feed store and look around.
Failing all else, do a search for grass-fed beef on the web. There are several purveyors of clean, wholesome meat on the web.
Unfortunately, most dairy in the USA is pasteurized, which robs it of much of its value. We eat a little organic butter and some raw goat milk from a local dairy. Occasionally we eat organic cottage cheese and yogurt from the health food store. We like organic Brown Cow brand of cow milk yogurt. If you can't find a source of raw goat milk (which is ideal), it is best to limit dairy, since pasteurized dairy products tend to be allergenic and difficult for most people to digest. If you do buy organic pasteurized dairy products, the cultured ones (e.g. yogurt, kefir, sour cream) are easier to digest than milk.
Quality fish, like dairy, is also difficult to find. Wild caught fresh fish is better than farm-raised. Mercury content and other contaminants are a problem in fish, and it is recommended to limit fish to once or twice a week. Watch out for local streams and rivers as some of these are quite polluted. - Sarah Westbrook
Question: How much raw food should I eat?
Answer: This depends entirely on your individual needs. If you are working to overcome a serious illness, you may need a period of time on a high (75%) raw, low or no animal product diet for cleansing and healing. This should not be maintained indefinitely.
Normally, a healthy person who is moderately active should have a diet of 50% raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. This is a healthy diet that can be maintained for life and is also excellent for those who would like to lose some weight and/or improve their quality of life and energy levels.
Question: Would you recommend the Plan B Diet™ for someone trying to beat a chronic condition such as arthritis or an acute condition such as cancer?
Answer: We cannot make any recommendations, but if I had cancer or arthritis, here is what I would do:
1. Begin by eliminating all junk food in my diet. This would include almost all foods that come in bottles, cans, or boxes.
2. I would not give up organically grown animal products (eggs and meat). The body needs pancreatic enzymes to fight cancer and these enzymes come from animal products. Here is a quotation from Dr. William Donald Kelley, D.D.S., M.S. who has treated over 30,000 cancer patients with a natural diet:
"…a cancer patient should never give up all protein, as they might be tempted to do when they first learn that too much protein in the diet prevents the pancreas from ridding the body of cancer. The pancreatic enzymes themselves consist of protein (amino acids) and unless the body is fed adequate protein, the pancreatic enzyme production will stop and the cancer tissue will make a very rapid growth."
3. We have seen rapid cancer growth in several people who stayed on the vegan/Genesis 1:29 Diet too long. Perhaps this is because their body reaches such a severe state of deficiency, or perhaps for lack of pancreatic enzymes.
4. I would be under the watchful eye of some type of medical practitioner who could monitor my condition.
"The Hebrews ate no junk food since commercial junk food was not in existence. Their meat was primarily beef, mutton, fish and fowl. Undoubtedly, they also had milk, butter and eggs to eat. Animal products helped the Hebrew people endure and even prosper in health while under bondage. If they had been on a meatless diet, they may very well have become an extinct people during this period of time." - Greg Westbrook
1. Take BarleyLife or BarleyLife Xtra, because it can do wonders for food cravings.
2. Limit cooked carbohydrates to one serving each day. Bread, potatoes and other starchy foods can sabotage weight loss efforts. While we still need these carbohydrates for successful weight loss, they must be limited.
3. Don't eat too much fruit. It's best to limit it to two to three servings per day. Fruit is healthy and great for your body, but you can overload your system with too much fructose (fruit sugar), which can set off cravings.
4. Don't eat until you're hungry and don't eat until you're full. Only eat when you're hungry and when you eat, your stomach should still feel somewhat light when you are done. You shouldn't have a full, heavy feeling.
5. Don't skip meals and get over-hungry. Statistics show many overweight people have a habit of skipping breakfast. Skipping meals can cause your blood sugar to dip to very low levels, causing ravenous hunger and overeating.
6. Get active and exercise. Find something that you enjoy - such as hiking, power walking, stretching, deep breathing, or bike riding, that you'll do on a regular basis.
7. Discover what's eating you. Address any underlying issues for health in body as well as mind.
8. Be loyal to your goals and convictions.
Dr. Diana Schwarzbein believes the benefits of eating meat in restaurants far outweigh any negatives stating, "The benefits you get from eating meat and animal products are that these foods supply your body with the needed resources to fight off chemical additives or hormones. In other words, depriving your body of those needed resources leaves you without defenses. In a culture where it is difficult, if not impossible, to get unadulterated food, being left without defenses is very dangerous." - Sarah Westbrook
"When eating out, remember; white, doughy foods make white, doughy people." - Sarah Westbrook
"Regardless of the patient's problem or illness, a balanced diet produces the same results - better health and decreased body fat." - Dr. Diana Schwarzbein
"You can eat ice cream on the Plan B Diet™. At the health food store, two good brands are Cascadian Farms Organic Ice Cream and Stoneyfield Farm Organic Ice Cream." - Greg Westbrook
"Sugar knocks out the immune system." - Greg Westbrook
A healthy mouth is a key to good health. Charlotte Gerson, of the world famous Gerson Institute, told at a conference we attended it is required at the Gerson Institute for all patients to have a clean bill of dental health before going on the Gerson program. It is essential to building health and overcoming disease. - Judie Westbrook
"It is important not to overeat because I’m convinced the single most damaging thing we can do to the body is overeat, particularly in the evening hours." - Greg Westbrook
"We choose not to eat ham, primarily because it is a forbidden food in Leviticus 11 in the Bible. God created swine (pork) as a scavenger animal and swine will eat practically anything in its path, including excrement of another animal. In contrast, a sheep or a cow (a clean animal) is a very picky eater, eating only fresh, non-tainted food. It is for very good reason that God told the Israelites not to eat swine.
It isn't for religious reasons that we refrain from pork, but for practical reasons. Swine is laden with toxins and often harbors parasites. Cancer clinics that work to heal people using nutritional therapies forbid their patients to eat pork, stating it is impossible for a person to heal from cancer if they are eating pork. This includes bacon, ham, sausage, pepperoni, hot dogs and luncheon meats." - Greg Westbrook
"I really believe in balance, but I remember from learning to ride a bike that it takes a few spills before balance comes naturally." - email to Greg Westbrook
Overall, a good rule of thumb is to eat something raw at every meal. For a picture of how much raw food to eat, see the "Living Pendulum" section. - Sarah Westbrook
"I have long felt diet is largely responsible for the breakup of marriages for people in their late forties, fifties and sixties. It only makes sense when the body gets older and sickly from years of junk food, people get cranky and hard to live with." - Greg Westbrook
Research collected by Post Polio Network of Wa Inc. (PPNWA) says, "We are seeing a group now emerging of self-inflicted carnitine deficiency. People who are deliberately not eating red meat because either they have an aversion to eating animals and feel this is cruel, or people who for health reasons, like high cholesterol or fear of meat contributing to cancer and heart disease, think they are doing the right thing."
PPNWA emphasizes the importance of carnitine. "Other areas of the body depend on carnitine working properly so they can too. Choline and Vitamin B12 help to stop excretion of carnitine in urine. We have found that without reasonable available carnitine, B6 and magnesium can’t function well. Many other vitamins, minerals and amino acids are interlinked to adequate carnitine intake. A cascade of ill health results from poor carnitine levels. Insulin function in the body can be effected, leading eventually to late onset diabetes as well." - Judie Westbrook
For every deficiency of a nutrient, there are particular body functions that will not be achieved. One deficiency can compound another deficiency. Essential amino acid deficiencies lead to the deficiency of all amino acids.
During a time of disease or when the body is under stress, nonessential amino acids can become essential. This means during illness or stress our body is not able to manufacture the nonessential amino acids. Therefore, we must get all amino acids through our diet.
Dr. Winston W. Greene, B.A., B.S., D.C., states, "The removal of even one essential amino acid from the diet leads rather rapidly to a lower level of protein synthesis in the body and eventually to death. In general, protein from animal sources is of greater nutritional value because animal proteins are complete and contain all of the essential amino acids, plus the nonessential ones."
The Plan B Diet™ includes animal products and teaches that they are important in building and maintaining good health. Red meat has been instrumental for many people in making strides in rebuilding their health. By getting carnitine back into the diet through the use of clean animal products, symptoms of poor health such as stooped posture, back muscle ache, lack of energy, low blood sugar, heart irregularities, brain fog, fatigue, poor muscle tone, cramps, exercise intolerance, indigestion, and acidosis (low pH) have been turned around, something that people could not do on a vegan diet." - Judie Westbrook
"You must be careful to eat only clean, wholesome animal products. And it is very important to get all the junk out of your diet to insure proper nutrition to the brain." - Greg Westbrook
"Remember Naaman in the Bible who was a captain of the host of the king of Syria. He was a mighty man of valor but he had the horrible disease of leprosy. When Elisha the prophet told Naaman to go wash in the river Jordan seven times, Naaman became angry because he had the notion that Elisha should have just come out and called upon the name of the Lord and there would be a great instantaneous healing. Naaman was also angry because he thought he could have just as well washed in one of Syria's own rivers rather than the river Jordan.
Naaman wanted to be healed by doing things he wanted to do rather than what God told him to do (through the prophet Elisha). Of course, when Naaman did humble himself and wash seven times in the Jordan river, he was healed of his leprosy and his skin became like that of a little child.
Isn't this just like us? We want to eat whatever we want to eat and still expect to be totally healthy. We need to understand that whatever we sow, that is what we are going to reap. (Galatians 6:7) And this includes our diet. It's as simple as that. Yes, there is a connection between the foods you eat, the liquids you drink, the exercise you get, and your quality of life.
But there is tremendous healing to be found if we will but believe God for His dietary instructions and obey Him in simple faith." - Greg Westbrook
"It is not wholesome meat, dairy and eggs that has been making people sick – but the junk foods, junk meats, junk dairy, and junk eggs in the Standard American Diet. When people clean up their diet, get the sugar and processed foods out, and eat only "clean," properly grown animal products, the results can be explosive." - Greg Westbrook
"A common vegetarian 'half-truth' for a meatless diet is that man's digestive system is patterned after that of an herbivore, not a carnivore. Not so, according to The Naive Vegetarian Comparison. In this article, the digestive system of sheep (herbivore), wolves (carnivore) and shepherds (men) are compared. The shepherd and the wolf have very comparable digestion, drastically different from the sheep. The capacity of the stomach in the shepherd and wolf is one-half gallon, but the sheep is a voluminous 8 gallons. Can you imagine filling up a stomach eight gallons in size? Perhaps you could be a healthy vegan if you had an eight gallon stomach.
The shepherd's digestive tract is five times his body length, similar in size to the wolf's digestive tract, which is seven times his body length. In contrast, the sheep's digestive tract is a whopping twenty-seven times his body length.
The man and the wolf digestive systems depend on putrefaction for digestion while the sheep's digestion works on the principle of fermentation. While the shepherd and the wolf never use rumination (chewing the cud), rumination is a necessary feature of the sheep's digestion.
An additional point is the stomach of a wolf and shepherd is designed to empty before being refilled, while the stomach of a sheep is designed to be constantly fed without emptying. On our little farm, we have raised sheep, goats, and cows - all animals that eat voluminous quantities of plant food. Any of these animals can put away huge amounts of alfalfa hay full of stubble and leaves that would choke a human being. They tend to be constant eaters, browsing for tiny blades of grass, leaves, berries, and bark that would be impossible for a human to eat.
Anyone who has kept animals in a pastoral setting understands the dive plan of the Creator. Given enough range, animals can forage on nearly barren landscape and convert it to powerful food for the shepherd.
Those who say man does not need animal products surely do not appreciate the design by the Creator, nor understand the healing power of these foods.
"As Christians, we already know from Genesis 9:3 and from the entire spectrum of Biblical teaching on nutrition that God’s design is for us to eat animal products." - Greg Westbrook
Frequently Asked Questions
Question: What would be the minimum of animal products I would need to consume; do I have to eat meat, fish, dairy and eggs weekly? From your diet plan it looks like one needs to eat animal products daily - can you achieve good health having these less often?
Answer: Only you can determine how often you need to eat animal products. By watching your deficiency symptoms, you will be able to chart your progress. We are recovering from six years on the vegan diet and need animal products almost daily right now. Eventually, we may not need as much. Every time we reduce our intake of animal products, our deficiency symptoms surface again within days.
Question: (From a three and a half year Genesis 1:29 dieter) When I look at the human body, I see no physiological need for consuming flesh products. What am I missing here? I have never felt better in my sixty-one years!
Answer: At three and a half years on the diet, we also felt the same as you. In retrospect, we were well on our way to marginal health. As a sixty-one year-old man, you are not at a high risk on the Genesis 1:29 Diet nearly as much as, for example, a young mother.
We know of several women who could not conceive and/or could not bring a baby to full-term due to a miscarriage on the Genesis 1:29 Diet. But by adding animal products to their diet they were able to have a baby. We know of young ladies whose monthly cycles ceased for months and years on the diet. Also, production of mother's milk can be a problem on the Genesis 1:29 Diet.
Animal products seem to be an important key to the reproduction cycle. This is just one example of a physiological need that seems to be well established. Women being barren and having miscarriages is hard to face and it makes me really regret the days when I taught that the Genesis 1:29 Diet is a "one size fits all" diet.
Question: What about animal products and cancer?
Answer: Sometimes just taking a step back and using a little common sense helps us get a clearer picture. It's easy to get buried in a lot of modern theories, but what has history told us? A whole foods diet that includes animal products has been around for centuries and is not new at all. Meat has been part of the American diet since the first turkey dinner. Early farmers and settlers survived long winters eating the meat they hunted. We have been eating meat for all the generations since Noah.
The Israelites in the times recorded in Exodus ate God's whole food diet, including animal products. They worked very hard, lived under constant pressure and stress for 430 years, yet even so, Psalm 105:37 tells us "there was not one feeble person among their tribes."
I would like to turn the question around: What proof do we have a vegetarian or a raw food diet is safe, especially for long-term use? There is mounting evidence and research proving a diet void of animal products causes deficiencies and health problems, especially for children and for women in their child bearing years.
Foods that God created to nourish the body have been changed, to the point where they hardly taste or look like the original real food. Our foods are highly refined and processed and chemicals are used in most every step of food processing, starting in the fields and ending with the packaging. Worse yet, our foods are molecularly and genetically changed, microwaved and irradiated. Now that is a real reason for fear and dread. Though our food has changed drastically through the years, meat, a food we have been eating for centuries, has taken the blame. It does not make sense.
It's time to find the real common denominator to cancer. Man-made foods are far more suspicious than food given to us by God. Meat is not the "garbage of the world" but a whole food created and approved by God. - Judie Westbrook
Question: Where can I find clean, organic meat, dairy and eggs?
Answer: It can be difficult to find clean meat, dairy eggs and fish, but it's very much possible. I wouldn't recommend going to your corner market to purchase animal products. Fortunately, there are farmers and ranchers who are still growing things the old way without synthetic chemicals, antibiotics and hormones, and raising their animals on wholesome feed.
If you are fortunate enough to have a health food store in your area that sells meat, dairy, and eggs, this would be an excellent place to start. Most health food stores sell fertile, vegetarian produced eggs, grass fed or vegetarian fed beef, organically raised chicken, turkey and organic dairy products.
If you don't have such a health food store nearby, you can often find local growers in your area by looking in the classified ads. Another great place to search out local growers is at animal feed stores. Most of these stores have bulletin boards where local farmers advertise. Just stop by your local animal feed store and look around.
Failing all else, do a search for grass-fed beef on the web. There are several purveyors of clean, wholesome meat on the web.
Unfortunately, most dairy in the USA is pasteurized, which robs it of much of its value. We eat a little organic butter and some raw goat milk from a local dairy. Occasionally we eat organic cottage cheese and yogurt from the health food store. We like organic Brown Cow brand of cow milk yogurt. If you can't find a source of raw goat milk (which is ideal), it is best to limit dairy, since pasteurized dairy products tend to be allergenic and difficult for most people to digest. If you do buy organic pasteurized dairy products, the cultured ones (e.g. yogurt, kefir, sour cream) are easier to digest than milk.
Quality fish, like dairy, is also difficult to find. Wild caught fresh fish is better than farm-raised. Mercury content and other contaminants are a problem in fish, and it is recommended to limit fish to once or twice a week. Watch out for local streams and rivers as some of these are quite polluted. - Sarah Westbrook
Question: How much raw food should I eat?
Answer: This depends entirely on your individual needs. If you are working to overcome a serious illness, you may need a period of time on a high (75%) raw, low or no animal product diet for cleansing and healing. This should not be maintained indefinitely.
Normally, a healthy person who is moderately active should have a diet of 50% raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. This is a healthy diet that can be maintained for life and is also excellent for those who would like to lose some weight and/or improve their quality of life and energy levels.
Question: Would you recommend the Plan B Diet™ for someone trying to beat a chronic condition such as arthritis or an acute condition such as cancer?
Answer: We cannot make any recommendations, but if I had cancer or arthritis, here is what I would do:
1. Begin by eliminating all junk food in my diet. This would include almost all foods that come in bottles, cans, or boxes.
2. I would not give up organically grown animal products (eggs and meat). The body needs pancreatic enzymes to fight cancer and these enzymes come from animal products. Here is a quotation from Dr. William Donald Kelley, D.D.S., M.S. who has treated over 30,000 cancer patients with a natural diet:
"…a cancer patient should never give up all protein, as they might be tempted to do when they first learn that too much protein in the diet prevents the pancreas from ridding the body of cancer. The pancreatic enzymes themselves consist of protein (amino acids) and unless the body is fed adequate protein, the pancreatic enzyme production will stop and the cancer tissue will make a very rapid growth."
3. We have seen rapid cancer growth in several people who stayed on the vegan/Genesis 1:29 Diet too long. Perhaps this is because their body reaches such a severe state of deficiency, or perhaps for lack of pancreatic enzymes.
4. I would be under the watchful eye of some type of medical practitioner who could monitor my condition.