Why should we even think about what was eaten 2,000 or 3,000 years ago? In this wonderful new and modern age, we have prepackaged, low-fat foods, vitamins added to milk and soft drinks, and pizzas available at the flick of a dial tone. We have so many good things to eat and most of the world has easy accessibility to foods of all sorts. In our country alone, the average person has the pleasure of eating approximately 150 lbs. of sugar a year and drinking about 400 soft drinks a year. Why should we even consider thinking back in time to another pathway for nutrition? After all, the people who lived in biblical times did not have health clubs where they exercised regularly, microwave cooking for quick meals, or vitamins which they could buy in a bottle for quick consumption. On the other hand, there was no significant incidence of heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, or Alzheimer’s disease. Everyone walked to their destinations, and most people stayed active as part of their survival routine. Although there was not a guarantee of plenty of food for everyone, the diet at that time included adequate amounts of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. It is interesting that in this country where we spend the highest per capita of any country in the world that our life expectancy is ranked about 20th of all nations. One of three people will get cancer or heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease is prevalent, and the incidence of mature adult-onset diabetes at 20 million plus is even rampant in teenagers.

One of the things we can do as cosmetic surgeons is to teach our patients the value of nutrition in terms of wellness and freedom from the myriad of degenerative diseases that we suffer as humans. By looking at the food choices that have been well documented in the bible and in historical writings, we can see that they may have made better choices that are still available today. Relating nutrition to biblical times gives us some measure of reality in regards to these choices and might help strengthen our patients’ motivation and will to pursue a healthier lifestyle. In my practice, nutrition, supplements, stress management, and exercise are parts of the subjects on which we counsel our patients. We will not consider performing a cosmetic surgery procedure unless the patient has taken part of the responsibility for their health and healing and looking good after the completion of the procedure. To date, it has stood us well and we have had wonderful continuing success with a wellness program in patients. We have also turned away patients who were not willing to participate in the process of continuing wellness by altering their nutrition and other lifestyle habits. We believe that these patients are better served by not having surgical procedures if they are unable to comply.

What characterized the foods and nutrition habits during biblical times? We know, for example, that all food was “organically” grown, that all livestock was “range-grazed”, and that fruits and vegetables abounded. We are told that there were 2,600 plants in Israel around biblical times, and it is noted that the bible mentions at least 110 of these. The range-fed lamb was lean and not too plentiful, and the protein from this source was supplemented by plant-based protein. We also know that there were certain rituals and beliefs about food that governed the way that people actually ate. For example, Ecclesiastics 37:30 states that “excess of meats bringeth sickness.” It also noted that “the swine… is unclean to you, of their flesh you shall not eat.” Additionally, Sirach 31:27 states that “wine is as good as life to a man, if it be drunk moderately. What is life to a man that is without wine?” At the same time that the people of Israel and surrounding countries were experiencing good health from a rather aesthetic diet, the upper class Romans who had gathered up the best of foods from their empire were already experiencing degenerative diseases including obesity, gout, cardiac disease, and stroke. The simple foods of the Israelis consisted of fruits and vegetables, nuts and beans, grains, fish, meat, fiber, and lots of olives and olive oil. In Deuteronomy 8:7-8, on their way to the promised land the Israelis saw “a land of brooks and water, of fountains and springs, flowing forth and valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of wines and fig trees, and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey.”

Another interesting “twist” in history, as chronicled by Bronowski in the “Ascent of Man,” is that something happened in the grain supply about 8,000 years ago which changed the total course of history and the population trends of mankind. There was a spontaneous mutation enabling a wild wheat of 14 chromosomes to cross with goat grass (14 chromosomes) resulting in Emmer wheat of 28 chromosomes. There was an additional mutation or cross with another type of goat grass which resulted in the 42-chromosome Bread wheat which we eat today. Because of the characteristics of the grain of bread wheat, it does not blow to the wind and has large nuts of grain on each stalk. It is possible to cultivate this wheat easily, to take the seeds or the grain and move hundreds of miles to another location and cultivate fields of wheat there. Animal husbandry is enhanced by the cultivation of grains, and for the first time it was possible to enjoy a stable food supply of both carbohydrates and protein, allowing the development of excess body fat from eating these foods. However, in biblical times, there was not an excess of foods for everyone, which meant that most people did not eat too much. Before that time, the earth was only capable of sustaining a population of approximately 1.5 to 2 million people in the “hunter-gatherer” fashion, but after that time, the population increased geometrically and is still expanding at an incredibly rapid rate. In the fertile sweet water plains around Jericho, the first established city of modern civilization, the combination of man, wheat, water, and an increasing population sparked this population growth which has never subsided.

When meat was not readily available, yogurt was the only animal-derived complete protein source used frequently in the diet. This product came from goats milk curdled by bacteria, the pure strain of lactobacillus acidophilus, which is normally needed for digestion in the GI tract under ordinary circumstances. However, the “good” bacteria in yogurt are able to convert the oils and fats to vitamin A, D, and B-complex. It also produced a product which could be carried or stored for several days without spoilage. Interestingly, during the process of making yogurt or cheese, lactose in the milk product is metabolized. It is interesting that most Middle Easterners and Asians are lactose intolerant and cannot drink whole milk. However, dairy products are an essential part of the diet in these countries as they provide complete animal protein as cheese and yogurt. However, most people in the northern latitudes are lactose tolerant and can drink milk. In the northern latitudes, vitamin D from sunshine is not as readily available due to climate and clothing requirements, so calcium was readily available by drinking milk products. The take-home message here is that in order to prevent osteoporosis in our patients, they need to be exposed to some sunshine (though not necessarily on their faces) when possible or substitute with a food product which has a high enough level of calcium.

Because meat from animals was not always readily available, the population in biblical times often had to gain “complete” protein from different sources. For example, grains alone did not furnish complete protein, but in combination with nuts, seeds, beans, and some select vegetables made a complete protein which is adequate for growth and for maintaining the immune system. Beans plus brown rice, corn, nuts, or wheat also constitutes a complete protein.

Fat was forbidden as a food for religious reasons, but olive oil was commonly used as a food source, for cooking, and even fuel for lanterns. One of the problems in our culture today is that the “low-fat” craze has kept people from understanding that fat is an essential part of the diet. According to the American Heart Association, at least 30% of our daily caloric intake should be from fat sources, mostly from monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and essential fatty acids rather than saturated or hydrogenated fats. Seafood such as oysters, shrimp and fish, were also part of the diet in some areas of the Middle East according to availability and shipping possibilities.

Some of the spices available were coriander, cinnamon, cumin, mustard, mint, and ginger. Although we supplement with antioxidants almost daily, it is interesting to realize that ginger has 400 known and chemically recognized antioxidants within it.

Some of the plants which were eaten included garlic, bitter herbs for salad, leeks, lentils, English walnuts (originally Persian walnuts), pistachio nuts, olives, and pomegranates. The grains available besides bread wheat included barley and rye. Barley was the “poor man’s” grain, being leaner in carbohydrates, fats, and protein, but it also was a very hearty plant and the most common grain cereal and had seven “ears” for each stalk. These could be roasted or ground, and when cooked yielded the highest level of nutrients. It is interesting that in our world today, there are diverse cultural groups eating different types of foods. The same was true in biblical times. Cain tilled the soil and Abel was a livestock farmer or herdsman. From these two families came the nomadic herdsmen and the settled agricultural groups.

Interestingly enough, there were no apples as we know then in the Middle East. Even though Adam encountered and ate an “apple” in the Garden of Eden, most experts tell us that the closest fruit that was available at that time was the succulent apricot, which fit the requirements and characteristics of the apple as described in the book of Genesis.

With their simple meals, the relative leanness of the diet, and the necessity to eat just the amount to sustain them or slightly less, people stayed lean and healthy. As described in the “Red Tent” by Anita Diamant, “Jacob arrived late in the afternoon in the week of a full moon, ate a simple meal of barley bread and olives, and fell into exhausted sleep.” Further on, we note “we rocked the narrow-necked jars, straining the water from the goat milk curd” in the process of making cheese. For festive occasions, “Rachel ate date honey and fine wheat flour cake, and drank sweet wine.” Agriculture in biblical times was as old as Adam and Eve. Part of the “curse” of God on man was that after eating the forbidden fruit, man had to labor for his food by tilling the soil. In the book of Ezekiel 4:9, “take thou wheat, barley, beans, peas, millet, and spelt and make a bread of it. Eat this for 390 days with two cups of water each day.” This was enough to sustain life because of the complete protein, carbohydrate, and fat sources available from the grains. This was similar to what the English called “staff of life” bread. Today we have “white” carbohydrates consisting of bread, bagels, pasta, rice, potatoes, cakes, and excess sugar. Part of the nutritional teaching in the practice includes instructing patients before surgery to keep away from the “white” carbohydrates. This policy is largely responsible for allowing then to go through surgery without swelling or pain. I inform my facelift patients prior to surgery that if they follow our nutritional regimen, they will have no swelling and no pain, that we will “turn the clock back” about eight or ten years, and that the incisions will not be visible at conversational distance. The important part of this assurance is no swelling or no pain, which is really a function of the diet as well as technical considerations during the surgery.

The final thoughts in this discussion relate to the fact that we can change the life expectancy and incidence of disease in our patients because we can be a credible source of information. It requires constant guidance, enthusiasm, and subsequent compliance on the part of the patients. I can state for certain that this has been the most important part of my practice since I initiated this program over five years ago. We have touched many lives and patients with our nutrition and better aging programs by letting them understand the validity of old nutritional information and how good this information can be for them.

Used with permission from Cosmetictimes@Advanstar.com