Carbs in the life of a believer

Carbs in the life of a believer reminds us of the wholesome seeds given in the Garden of Eden.

Good morning once again to another series on why good, nutritious food is important in the life of every Believer. This week is going to be about the starches; five to seven minutes on subjects like potatoes, bread and mealies.

It’s all solid stuff but I first want to share with you before we start that it is going to be difficult. It was arduous for me and I can tell you up front that much you will doubt, find incredible and question. That is not a bad thing; ponder what you read. But I challenge you not to be a Doubting Thomas until we reach the end; saying this is a bridge too far, this guy is a fanatic.

You see when we invite Christ into our lives, everything must change; how we spend our money, our attitudes to sex and even the clothes we wear. The food we eat also comes under the spotlight; we’re under new management.

Knowing what you may be thinking I’ve have often asked myself whether I could be self-deceived in being so radical in my beliefs about starches; and am completely oblivious of that fact. Am I merely disturbing you and getting you anxious? Yet I am encouraged by the word of St. Paul to Timothy.

"Preach the word, convince and rebuke; and exhort."

This week I exhort you to look at the starches you eat in a new way and with different eyes. How do they contribute to caring for the temple where Almighty God dwells?

But if you find yourself just dismissing what I have to say about starches, I challenge you first to ask yourself, “What if I am the one who is wrong?”

Ask any doctor and they will tell you that the greatest wellness challenge today is type-2 diabetes; scientists tell us that it affects nearly 50% of the people who are enjoying what is being called the typical “industrial diet.” You are likely to be on it; most folk are.

People with diabetes account for one-fourth of every dollar spent in the U.S. on care; and I’m afraid Christians will not be exempt if they too break the rules.

Abnormal blood glucose is one of the chief underlying causes of heart disease, stroke and cancer; and a host of other conditions. And it’s all about the starches we are eating; and how they are processed and prepared. And even whether we chew them properly or not.

Two kingdoms

So what are these rules? Are we returning to a form of legalism or simply aligning ourselves with the created order of the universe?

First let’s go back one step. As a Christian you will be completely familiar with St. Paul’s teaching that there are two empires here on earth. He calls one of them “the dominion of darkness” and the other the “the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.” You will find the passage in Colossians, chapter 2.

And they are as different as night and day. The Kingdom of Jesus is here to give us abundant, eternal life; but the Dominion of Darkness is about deceiving us into accepting second best, foreshortening our lives and generally making us miserable.

And secondly having stepped out of the darkness into the Kingdom of God’s glorious light, our bodies have become little temples of the Holy Spirit, each absolutely unique as a fingerprint, every one the place where Christ dwells. 1 Corinthians 3 is where you will find this. We belong to Him now, and it behooves us to take good care of the place where He now lives.

With all of this in mind, may I invite you to echo our dear Sue van Niekerk’s prayer; "may that which is from God, stick in your mind and heart, even a stone in the shoe but that which is of Bernard Preston may you forget and ignore.

So the subject of coloured foods was not that difficult. We all like strawberries and radishes; adding butternut and spinach to our diets was not hard. But tighten your seat-belts. No where in the subject of our meals have we been more deceived by the lord of the Dominion of Darkness than in the topic of starches; he is doing his level best to drag us down.

Much of the deception started with a medical researcher called Radley Keys who about fifty years ago crooked the books in order to convince us that fat was the cause of heart disease. And we should cut out red meat and eggs; and be eating far more starch. His work has been largely discredited but much of it remains firmly in our minds.

Starches can be broadly divided into those that are rapidly digested and some that are resistant; they are chalk and cheese. One will make you insulin-resistant, if you eat too much of it and the other is very healthy and highly recommended; with a whole continuum in between.

Tomorrow we will start with potatoes; do they belong to the Dominion of Darkness or the Kingdom of Jesus? Tighten your safety belt! It's going to be a rough ride.

Until tomorrow then, all about potatoes, goodbye and God bless.

HbA1c

There are numerous tests which measure the level of carbs; the most reliable is the HbA1_c. It gives an average of the glucose in the blood over the last three months; it's unaffected by what you ate recently, whether you have just exercised or smoked.

1. HbA1c less than 5.7% is normal.
2. HbA1c between 5.7 and 6.4% means you are prediabetic.
3. HbA1c of 6.5% or higher signifies full-blown diabetes.

Hb stands for haemoglobin, the protein in a red blood cell. In a perfectly normal reaction, happening all the time, glucose in the serum attaches to one of these molecules; it's known as "glycation."

People with higher levels of glucose in the blood have more of these glycated haemoglobin molecules; measurements can be accurately made.

HbA1_c gives an excellent measure of the level of carbs in the life of a Believer.

Why is raised glucose in the blood serious?

When a glucose molecule encounters a haemoglobin protein in the blood they form an irreversible bond; and an "oxygen radical" is released. In those enjoying nutritious food it is immediately neutralised by vitamin C, for example.

These free radicals cause cellular damage. One example would be prematurely wrinkled skin, from injury to the small vessels in the subcutaneous layers.

More seriously these oxygen radicals can damage the small blood vessels in the eye affecting the retina, the kidneys causing nephropathy and how well the peripheral nerves conduct impulses.

These are the complications of diabetes; blindness, kidney failure and weakness of the denervated muscles, typically in the legs.

The nerves to the muscles controlling the blood flow to the penis are affected too; the thought of impotence will strike fear into many a heart. Over a half of diabetic men over 50 are affected; past age 70 it's a very sobering 95%.

Those consuming large quantities of anti-oxidants in their food, like vitamin C are not affected as badly; some of these damaging free radicals are neutralised.

This is why restricting refined carbs in the life of a believer is so important.

Wellness for the believer

The whole subject of carbs in the life of a believer is of singular importance. It is vital to keep blood glucose levels down so this glycation is maintained at a low level.

And eating plenty of those foods rich in anti-oxidants that will neutralise the damaging free radicals.

This is done by strictly limiting all refined carbs and enjoying plenty of unprocessed foods rich in vitamins and phytonutrients; then the promise of living long in the land can be fulfilled.

Those who break these rules concerning carbs in the life of a believer will find their lives dogged by disease and early aging. Treat Brother Ass kindly or he may turn around and bite you; it should be seen as a spiritual duty, just as important as prayer and reading of the scriptures.

Our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit; the very precious dwelling place of Almighty God.

Which foods are carbs?

Carbs are ubiquitous; they are in almost every mouthful we eat. Proteins and fats are the other two chief groups of nutrients.

There are three main groups of carbs; sugar, starch and fibre, though the latter is not digested but passes through to the colon giving it bulk and feeding the microbiome.

Carbs are not essentially bad for us; the chief problem is that we simply eat too much of them. We should have definitely no more than 150 grams per day and that's probably too much; especially for those of us who are insulin resistant.

The other problem is that those in the grocery store are typically highly-refined. They are rapidly digested and turned into blood sugar; obesity, metabolic dysfunction and liver disease lurk just around the corner. Type 2 diabetes is an awful disease; and can be brought completely into remission by using food as medicine.

But ultra-refined carbs in the life of a Believer will have to go for ever.

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