GENTLEMAN! LIVE LIKE PRIMITIVE PEOPLE

What did people in ancient times eat? My new diet plan started with that question. And the answer was rather obvious, at least in a negative sense. I knew right off what they didn’t eat, almost no refined sugar, for example. While early humans ate a lot of fruit, there were no sugar mills in a primitive village. So the first step was me to cut way back on the sugar I ate. No candy at all, almost no sugared desserts, coffee and tea taken in sweetened.
Soon, my weight was down to 185. That was not low enough though, so I thought more about how our modern diet differs from that of primitive people. I began to learn about why a primitive-type diet is more healthful. My no sugar diet strategy had been based mainly on the idea that sugar was a new food that is out of phase with our very old physical heritage.

What about fat, I thought? There were no dairy cows to yield large amounts of high-fat milk 50,000 years ago. Butter and rich cheese were just not available. Was there lard or fatty beef? Not at all! Most people ate meat of wild animals until fairly recently in our history.
So the next step in my diet plan was to cut out some of the most obvious fatty foods. Skim milk took the place of regular milk. No cream, very little butter. The visible fat around steaks and other meat was cut off and left on my plate. Again, I kept eating enough to feel fully satisfied at every meal. But I just ate much less fat.
Primitive people walked wherever they went, and ran to chase game. What started as a diet idea broadened into an “inner historical program?” More than the choice of food links us to a way of living in tune with our distant past. Sure, we can develop and use our minds in any modern way we want.
So I started to walk more and then to run and to ride a bicycle. It was fun. All that action made me feel good and settled my nerves. But it also made my weight go down even more. The diet of early people was absolutely full of fiber. These people ate a high fiber diet of cactus, nuts, green, berries and other fruit. Occasionally they had meat as well.
The fiber trend was not just another health fashion that happened to be based in the most recent set of nutritional discoveries. I saw it as clearly an important building block of a practical concept of healthful living that had already been tested in my own life, and proved to be enormous use.
That knowledge, that picture of my lifestyle as having clear roots in human history, has made my way of eating and living a lifelong program. People often talk about hard it is to stay on a diet or to keep off weight lost. That is never been hard for me. I decided years ago not to go on a diet, but to change food selections permanently. Doing that has made the program much easier to follow.

WHAT IS NORMAL, WHAT IS NOT

Here is a rundown of the most common symptom your pet may show, what they might mean, and what action you should take.

Weight loss

If your pet is eating her usual amount of food but is loosing weight, that is a signal that something may be wrong. She may have a gastrointestinal or metabolic disorder such as hyperthyroidism, a condition common in older cats. Since it can be difficult to judge an animal’s weight visually, it is good idea to weight your pet once a month and keep records. A loss one pound in a cat or small dog, or 2 or 3 pounds in a larger dog, is reason to consult your veterinarian.

Loss of appetite

Appetite loss, or anorexia, occurs in a wide variety of diseases. If your pet does not eat for more than a day, call your veterinarian.

Pain

This can be one earlier signs of disease. Animals in pain may become listless, move constantly or be reluctant to move, shiver, groan, and whimper. Neck and back pain often cause animals to avoid moving, and if forced to move, they often cry out. Abdominal pain may cause them to assume a “praying position” with hind legs upright while lying down with the front legs. Any type of severe pain should be checked immediately by your veterinarian. Mild pain that does not go away in day should be checked.

Vomiting

Viral diseases, intestinal obstruction, kidney and liver disease can all cause vomiting. So can something as simple as an abrupt change in diet. As vomiting can be debilitating and quickly lead to fluid imbalances, call your veterinarian if your pet vomits more than once.

Diarrhea

The most common cause of diarrhea is a sudden change in diet, as when table scraps are fed or when you pet gets into the garbage. This type of diarrhea is unusually short lived and is not serious. Intestinal parasites also cause diarrhea, especially in puppies and kitten. Other common causes of diarrhea are infectious diseases, allergies, digestive disorders, kidney and liver disease, and intestinal cancer. Whenever diarrhea lasts for more than one day see your veterinarian.

Coughing

In dogs, coughing is often caused by infectious tracheobronchitis, or “kennel cough” cats often in an attempt to expel a hair ball. Other more serious of coughing are pneumonia, abnormalities of the windpipe, heart disease, allergies, parasites and cancer. Coughing should be checked by your veterinarian as soon as possible, especially when accompanied by labored breathing.

Sneezing

Infectious upper respiratory diseases are the most common cause of sneezing. A couple of sneezes a day may be normal, but persistent sneezing or sneezing accompanied by nasal discharge is not. See your veterinarian.

Excessive fluid intake

On a average day, your dog or cat should not be drinking more than one ounce of fluid per pound of body weight. If you are feeding him dry food now or switch from canned to dry or semi moist food, your pet will drink more water to fulfill his need. That is normal. Any other change in drinking habit that last for more than 2 or 3 days should be checked by your veterinarian.