I think a lot of us get intimidated by the information overload when it comes to health and nutrition. There seems to be an ever increasing number of substances, foods and additives that are bad for our health. And then there are all the buzzwords that are repeated on TV and in Magazines, it can be a bit much. I know I have often responded with resignation.
Even when I was first diagnosed with testicular cancer, all I wanted was to have my life return to "normal". My fiancé printed out a bunch of information about the disease and I didn't even read any of it. It wasn't until I had a recurrence shortly thereafter that I realized I needed to make some changes in my life.
Two and a half years later I can say that living healthy is an evolution, a process more so than a state. There are setbacks among the successes as you try to replace bad habits with new healthy ones. If you had asked me three years ago about my lifestyle I would have told you that I live quite healthy. Now, looking back I laugh at what I thought was healthy back then.
Healthy choices come with costs and benefits. Among the costs are often inconvenience and actual monetary costs. Eating the way I do today makes going out or over to friends' for dinner difficult and unfortunately healthy food is expensive. And then there are those cravings for all these delicious foods, or should I say non-foods, that don't go away just because I have decided to take charge of my health.
The benefits, however, far outweigh all costs; even the financial costs balance out. You may not agree with some of what I say but trust me on this one: when you lose your health, life sucks! Faced with a degenerative disease such as cancer, nothing else matters. And you may think organic food is expensive, but the loss of income when you lose your health will far outweigh those costs.
So I will try to share some of the lessons I have learned about living healthy through this blog. I hope you will enjoy reading this and that some of the things I share will help you on your path toward a healthier better life!
