Dolphin Health and Education

Dear Students, Graduates, Friends, Family Members and Guests:

So many exciting events have occured over the last few weeks. Being on time for Dolphin's Newsletter is a challenge. So I will continue to write while this is being published. September 2, 2008 Clent at 220 pounds summited Mt. Whitney at 14, 497 ft. All 9 of us in the Whitney Elite Group made it to the summit. What an accomplishment! Remember Clent was 401 pounds on January 26 this year. No longer a weakling, he is as healthy as an ox! As of September 28, 2008 Clent has lost 195 pounds in 35 weeks. This means his current weight is 205 pounds. He is still on schedule to lose 230 pounds by Christmas this year (within 11 months). His target weight is 170 pounds.

September 12 and 13 will hold a special place in my heart. I held a raw food lifestyle seminar in a Russian church in Sacramento, California. I had 2 Russian interpreters. There were approximately 300 people all Russian-speaking and some English-speaking in attendance. I was warmly greeted and surrounded by so many individuals with questions about raw food and health that I could not answer all their questions due to time constraints. Most of them have never heard of the raw food lifestyle and their curiosity and excitement showed during the green smoothie demonstration and sampling. It looked like a huge convention. Many of the women helped in cutting the fruits (mangos, peaches, bananas, pineapples, Bosc pears). We used spinach as the leafy greens. We had 2 Vitamix blenders and 2 regular blenders to prepare about 300 small sample cups of green smoothie. The smoothie preparation took 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete. Everyone had a sample. Many were amazed at the pleasant taste of the green smoothie.

October 5, 2008 was Portland Marathon Weekend. It was grueling! I tried putting in as much training into it from March to September. I managed a handful of 3 to 6-mile runs, a 12-miler and a 16-miler. I almost cancelled my participation the week before the race. It was a good start. It was showering throughout the race. I hit the marathon "wall" at mile 18! I still continued and finished the 26.2 mile race at 5 hours 20 minutes (20 minutes longer than last year's). What I have learned is this: physical training is a very important factor in the raw food lifestyle to get the best possible outcome in a sporting event such as a marathon. There were so many overweight and obese individuals that participated and did very well in the marathon. I have also learned something very valuable from observation. A physically fit person does not have to be healthy or a healthy person does not have to be physically fit. However my goal is to have both physical fitness and health to reflect God's way to ultimate health!

Topics for this newsletter:

1. Osteoporosis.

2. Fibromyalgia.

3. Vegetarian vs. Vegan Vegetarian. Which is healthier?

Osteoporosis:

The first thing that comes to mind when we think of osteoporosis is bone loss. The next thing that most of us think as the antidote to this dreadful condition is calcium, right? This erroneous idea that we need more calcium to address osteoporosis has been ingrained in my mind ever since I can remember. The TV advertisement that shows a beautiful person with a white mustache only reinforces us to think that milk indeed "does the body good". Is there something wrong in this picture?

Osteoporosis affects 25 million people in the United States (1). This condition is more complicated than simply stating it is a lack of dietary calcium. When a person loses more calcium from the body than absorbs it, this leads to a deficiency of this mineral, which is important in many parts of the body especially the skeletal structure. Bone loss results. A simple way to check bone loss (among other things) is to measure your height and compare it to a measurement taken a few years ago. The typical clinical measurement is getting a bone density test done.

My question is this, where is the calcium "leak"? While the intentions are good in taking calcium supplements for the purpose of replenishing the calcium deficiency in the bones, the problem is there is a "gaping hole" on the "other side" that is dumping calcium out of the body. That "gaping hole" is found in the kidneys when calcium is excreted out of the body through the urine. There are numerous evidences that indicate the acid-alkaline pH balance as an important factor involved in calcium excretion. In my opinion consuming foods high in protein, especially animal protein is the main culprit in the loss of bone density among people eating the Standard American Diet. The calcium "leak" known as "hypercalciuria" is a result of dietary factors that induce the loss of calcium, which include animal protein, salt, caffeine, refined sugar, alcohol, nicotine, aluminum-containing antacids, drugs (steriods, thyroid hormone, antibiotics, etc), and vitamin A supplements (2).

There should be sufficient dietary calcium intake when foods, particularly dark leafy greens are consumed in high quantities daily in the form of a green smoothie. The green smoothie is the work of Victoria Boutenko, author of Green For Life. Weight-bearing exercises and resistance strengthening program must be part of the regimen in retaining the calcium in the bones (for structural remodeling) as well as regular exposure to sunlight.

Finally, following the meal plans as outlined in the Hallelujah Diet (www.hacres.com) is in my opinion probably the best system in increasing nutrient uptake and addressing nutritional deficiency as well as toxicity, which are the root causes of many chronic degenerative diseases.

References:

Fibromyalgia:

I first came across the word fibromyalgia when I was still in PT school in 1988. This diagnostic terminology has been around for a long time. I suspect the condition has been around longer but did not have a name to it. The term fibromyalgia means pain in the tissue fibers and muscles. In a recent pain symposium I attended, I learned that fibromyalgia is "a common widespread pain condition". The symptoms include tenderness, sleep disorders, body stiffness, fatigue, pain, etc. This condition affects 2-5 percent of adults in the United States. The age group that fibromyalgia is most commonly manifested is 35 to 60 years. There are more women diagnosed with this condition than men. People who have this dreadful condition are crippled from functioning normally. The symptoms can be worse or less and sometimes minimal. I have seen patients physically disabled by this condition.

Fibromyalgia has been linked to a heightened central nervous system pain sensitivity. There are many factors that are possibly involved in triggering fibromyalgia symptoms. Among the factors listed in the pain symposium are genetics, psychological, autoimmune, and physical trauma. Treatments are symptom-based since there is no known cure. Medications are directed to address pain and depression. Exercises are usually recommended. Mental health therapies are also utilized.

What I have observed clinically is that these individuals with fibromyalgia have very poor diet and lifestyle, which in turn affects their mental state. Exercise although beneficial is tolerated poorly. Pain is just another outlet for expression and should not be the end for correctly addressing the root cause. When these individuals follow a high raw food lifestyle, there is significant detoxification symptoms experienced lasting sometimes for weeks or months but progressively lessening with time.

My personal opinion of fibromyalgia is that it is a sign and symptom of internal toxicity. Again observing the eating habits of these affected individuals, one can easily come to the conclusion of chemical toxicity. At the same time because of poor dietary habits, there is widespread malnutrition. Unless this condition is addressed by the high raw food lifestyle, I do not believe there is any real hope of finding a full resolution to this disease.

Vegetarian vs. Vegan Vegetarian. Which is healthier?

There are many classes or types of vegetarians. Vegetarians consume plant-based foods - vegetables, fruits, seeds, nuts, beans, and grains. Here are some of these types:

Vegetarians - partial or mostly plant-based foods. Allows some animal products in the diet.

Lacto-ovo vegetarians - excludes meat in the diet. Allows dairy and eggs. I was on this from age 14 to 41. I was sick frequently.

Vegan vegetarians - excludes all animal products in the diet. Most of these vegetarians eat their plant-based food cooked. Raw food consumption range from zero percent up to 70 percent. Most vegan vegetarians fall in this class.

Raw vegan vegetarians - excludes all animal products in the diet and subsists mainly on raw plant foods. A raw foodist is someone who is at least 75 percent raw in the diet at all times. A person who follows the Hallelujah Diet consumes 85 percent raw plant food and 15 percent cooked plant food. I was on this for 2 years and 10 months.

100 percent raw vegan vegetarians - the strictest form of a raw vegan diet. This means there is no cooked food in the diet at any time. Some claim to be 100 percent raw but are not strict with the condiments that may not be raw. I have been 100 percent raw for 1 year and 5 months. I have never felt better!

Based on the teaching at Dolphin Health & Education and my clinical and personal observations, a raw vegan vegetarian diet is far superior to a vegetarian diet in terms of allowing the human body to repair, regenerate and recover from a diseased state. The raw food lifestyle is the epitome of the Garden of Eden diet and lifestyle of the 21st century.

Dolphin Health & Education teaches the Hallelujah Diet & Lifestyle as a starting point or entry into the raw food lifestyle. Individuals can decide to remain at 85 percent raw and 15 percent cooked or proceed on to 90 percent and up to 100 percent raw. Dolphin's 100 percent raw food lifestyle combines the Hallelujah Diet's 85 percent raw and Dolphin's clinical experience in the 100 percent raw, which includes Victoria Boutenko's teaching of the Green Smoothies. I call this 100 percent raw food lifestyle The Hallelujah 100.

Topic for November/December newsletter:

1. Are you sick or is it detoxification?

2. What about grains?

As always, I strive to provide you with information that I believe is the key to ultimate health. Health is earned (Dr. Joel Fuhrman). Sickness is by default.

Blessings,

Miven Donato, PT, DC, Health Minister