Do you know you have the FREEDOM to choose what you eat and drink???

I am doing detailed research into diabetic and renal disease diets...if you thought going on a diet to lose weight was hard, that's a "walk in the park" compared to what you have to do if you have diabetes or kidney disease...what's my point???...once you have a diet-dependant disease, what you "should" do to be healthy now becomes "mandatory and restricted"...think about that for a bit...you HAVE to eat healthy and you HAVE less to choose from...

I have a diet dependent disease called GOUT...many Filipinos have this disease and with medications, it can be controlled...however, we cannot over indulge in the foods and drinks that we love, otherwise, our joints get inflamed and the pain that follows lasts for at least 5 days or more and is one of the most excruciating arthritic pains (at least that's how it works for me)...but for every lapse in judgment when I decide to have a Japanese beer because it will go great with sashimi; every time I decide to have one more glass of wine to have with my meal; every time I decide to indulge in Texas-style BBQ, my body will remind me what happens when I do not eat in moderation...and the rest of life (Friends, family, sports, music, etc.) outside of great eating and drinking is put on hold because my body is out of commission...so in some respects, my GOUT is a painful reminder of what happens when I don't eat a balanced lifestyle between great health and flavorful enjoyment...and striking a balance; "isn't that the point to being on a diet???"...to eat a certain way to allow ourselves to change our bodies, maintain our bodies, or sustain our bodies...but when the CHOICE to implement a diet is taken away from you and is then replaced with a MANDATE (follow this or suffer the consequences), you start to question yourself and you then realize, you want to have the ability to CHOOSE for yourself...again, let me spell this out for you: do you want the ability to CHOOSE the dietary lifestyle you want to do the things you want or do you want this FREEDOM taken away from you and then live a RESTRICTED dietary lifestyle???....think about this concept....the FREEDOM to CHOOSE the dietary lifestyle you WANT???...

I want to wrap this up on a positive note...WE ALL HAVE THIS FREEDOM TO CHOOSE UNTIL WE DECIDE TO GIVE IT AWAY!...if you don't know what healthy eating means, go look it up...if you want to know what a "restrictive lifestyle" means, go ask someone who has a diet-dependent disease...if you want to eat healthy, but want "flavorful enjoyment", go look up a Mediterranean Diet and what the people of the Mediterranean have been eating since the beginning of time...combine that with daily exercise, outdoor activities, and group activities, the Mediterranean peoples are probably the most liveliest people on the planet...I will learn more about the Mediterranean Diet and Cuisines I will be as "lively" as they are through healthy foods and flavorings that have stood the test of time...in my opinion, Healthy Food + Enjoyable Flavor = a GREAT DIETARY LIFESTYLE...go realize YOUR greatness and keep your FREEDOM to choose the foods and drinks you want with responsible portions...and when you're done eating GREAT and drinking GREAT, you can then proceed to enjoy a GREAT LIFE!...

Be GREAT, One Meal at a Time!....