I was at the gym this morning and I noticed this older man.
He was chatting with a bunch of his buddies.
I thought to myself: “this guy is always talking and not even working out.”

Then I remembered a study I read about a whole community that had migrated from another country and settled in America. The study found that they were an extremely healthy bunch.

The study examined their diet. It was high in fat and considered “unhealthy.”
You would think that diseases and early death would have been rampant in this immigrant community considering their diet, but it was not.

What was their main theme to longevity and health?
It was their social connections.
They remained a tight knit community for years.

There are several other studies that solidify that social connections are the number one determinant of health.

Of course, diet is part of a healthy lifestyle.

But, it is not as important as we in America make it out to be.
There is not one single food that can cure you or kill you.

The U.S. is so diet obsessed and diet culture can make us feel guilty when we do not have the “perfect” diet.

There are so many parts to our health.

Such as:

– Socioeconomic status
– Access to medical care
– Stress level
– How we deal with stress
– Job satisfaction
– Our drive in life
– Alcohol intake
– Drug use
– Access to clean water and air
– Social connections
– Exercise
– Access to open space
– Food

So, I left the gym thinking: “this guy is probably getting the most health benefits out of his gym experience than all of us working our butts off.”

This blog is to just make you aware food is not the key to health and do not stress over what you eat, it will just make you so much unhealthier than whatever you are going to eat.

Now, go call a friend!!

Big Hugs,
Kim