COMMITMENT
God's Greatest Material Gift — Our Bodies
Arguably the human body, in particular our brain, is the most complex entity known in the universe. Under high magnification, the ultrafine detail of cells and organs, and how they all work together, is truly overwhelming. Yet this wonderful gift belongs to each of us. Surely such a marvelous gift comes with considerable responsibility. So it is that our understanding of creation and of our magnanimous God naturally leads to seeing a close relationship between religion and the stewardship of our bodies in both their physical and mental aspects.
Adventists can be divided in many ways: vegetarians (of different types), non-vegetarians, their use of particular foods, exercise habits, body weight indices, church attendance, religious coping-styles, and more.
Although there are other religions that recognize these things, this natural association is probably most highly developed among Adventists. Despite this, the health practices among Adventists are not uniform. Nevertheless, it is this somewhat unfortunate fact that allows us, in the Adventist Health Study* to examine the effects of different choices about lifestyle on subsequent disease experience. Adventists can be divided in many ways: vegetarians (of different types), non-vegetarians, their use of particular foods, exercise habits, body weight indices, church attendance, religious coping-styles, and more. People in each of these categories have different rates of several common diseases, and also of life expectancy.
While health is no measure of spirituality, it seems appropriate, from a spiritual perspective, that we should safeguard the integrity of our bodies in order to maximize function, satisfaction and pleasure, for as long as possible.
It is true that genetic predisposition, and often what seems to be just malign chance, can govern the individual health- experience. Up until the latter half of the 20th century, “God’s will” or simply fate, was generally considered an adequate explanation of health-experience and survival. Now, in great contrast to this, these things are understood to be substantially under our control and influenced by our own choices. Even when there is a strong familial predisposition to certain disorders (relatively uncommon) the way we live will act on top of this to extend even a relatively poor outlook.
Good vegetarians eventually “pass on to their rest.” Healthy living does not prevent most chronic diseases, but instead delays them—often by up to 10 years. So it is that Adventists, as represented in the Adventist Health Study, enjoy, on average, greater life expectancy, and these extra years are generally of good quality. In the end, however, we develop most of the same afflictions—just much later. We have, as a people, enjoyed these marvelous and valuable benefits now for more than 100 years—at least this is true for those Adventists who choose to be guided by our health message. Unfortunately our research shows that even Adventists, on average, are losing about 5 years of potential life resulting from less than ideal choices about how they live their lives.
Then there are the “vegetarian wars.” Which is best, vegan (eat no animal products) or lacto-ovo vegetarianism (eat dairy and/or eggs)? There are strongly held opinions that are sometimes based on presumed health effects but perhaps in some cases, are built more on arguments of attaining greater moral or spiritual purity. In my view these latter motivations are ill-founded. We find in Romans 14:17 (NKJV), and several other supporting verses, a key principle: “For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” I will not here address the issue of possibly different health effects either, as it is a little early in our study to yet be sure. It is interesting to point out, however, that on average the Adventist lacto-ovo-vegetarians are not so far removed from the vegans, in that they typically have low intakes of dairy and eggs. Nevertheless vegans do have somewhat higher intakes of fruit and vegetables, and of the various nutrients and vitamins that go along with this.
The vegetarians have less diabetes, hypertension, and a lower frequency of high cholesterol. Typically the vegetarian advantage translates to a risk of about 30 to 50 percent lower than the non-vegetarian Adventists.
What does the study tell us about the health experience of Adventist vegetarians (different types grouped together) as compared to Adventist non-vegetarians who eat meats at least once per week? There are major differences, despite the fact that the non-vegetarians are eating, on average, less than 2 ounces of meat (red and white together) each day. In our Western society of excessive caloric intake, the vegetarians are much thinner, although it is only the vegans who on average are not still overweight. The vegetarians have less diabetes, hypertension, and a lower frequency of high cholesterol. Typically the vegetarian advantage translates to a risk of about 30 to 50 percent lower than the non-vegetarian Adventists. So these are all cardiovascular risk factors. Does this translate to a lower risk of heart attack, as we may expect?
Our best look at this so far comes from the older AHS-1 study of 34,000 Adventists in California, USA, and there the risk of heart attack was indeed 40-50% lower in the vegetarians.
Cancer is not a single disease as cancers at different body sites (breast, colon, etc.), have different causes, although some of these often overlap. Not all cancers are sensitive to diet. Within the next year the cancer results from our present AHS-2 study will be published. It is clear that colorectal cancer is lower in vegetarians, and this is no surprise as many studies (including AHS-1) have agreed that red meat consumption increases risk of this cancer substantially. Overall we find that the Adventist vegetarians have 10-12% less cancer than the non-vegetarians, but this varies a good deal from cancer to cancer. We are not aware yet of any cancers that are more frequent in the vegetarians but for some there will be no clear advantage and for other cancers there will be a 20-40% decreased risk for the vegetarians. Look for further details to be published soon.
Loma Linda, the town surrounding the Adventist university and medical institution of the same name, has become somewhat famous as the only American “Blue Zone.” This is a term coined by National Geographic writer Dan Buettner, and refers to areas on the earth where there is unusual longevity. Actually it is not really Loma Linda, but Adventists all over the state of California (from the AHS-1 study) who contributed to this striking observation. Specifically, Adventist men live more than seven years longer than non-Adventist Californian men, and Adventist women about four and a half years longer than non-Adventist counterparts. These are large differences. Moreover, as shown in Figure 1, for both physical and mental quality of life, at virtually every age, for both men and women, Adventists (both Black and White) do better than United States’ national norms. So, fewer diseases not only improves longevity, but ensures that the extra years are of relatively good quality, on average.
Although I focus here on eating and diet, which are important influences on health, there are other factors to be considered.
Although I focus here on eating and diet, which are important influences on health, there are other factors to be considered.
Regular physical activity, preserving at least some strong social relationships, and certain aspects of religious belief and observance, all have significant effects.
Our present analyses lead us to believe that the influence of religious commitment is most marked on mental health.
In summary, Adventism is a strong force for improved health maintenance.
This comes from the recommendations and social pressures favoring a plant-based diet as well as from the teaching of food preparation skills. Changes in attitudes and values that come from having a spiritual connection, and a healthy lifestyle that we adopt, do matter. Finally, there is the mental benefit of social support that comes from belonging to a close-knit group, and the positive influence of a right relationship with God. Overall, a package beyond value!
