Browse archives: 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999 | 1998 | 1997 | 1996 | 1995

Published on 06/30/1997 All articles from this issue

Life's too short for tofu

printer friendly version

By Mary Cristy

A View from the Hills

Dr. Weil, medical maven/author/lecturer, is a totally bald, white-bearded, gentle-bear-like man who's added yet another title to his impressive list of health books. Dr. Weil offers health seminars, and appears on TV. Dr. Weil has the air of a man who practices what he preaches. So, when PBS presented an hour of Dr. Weil on his latest book, "8 Weeks to Better Health," we tuned in.

Dr. Weil launched Week l with a Weil launched week l with a discourse on the body's ability to heal itself, even to the extent of reversing arteriosclerosis. He maintained "life style is the key."

Dr. Weil deplored the practice of many doctors who address symptoms only. He stressed the importance of "treating the whole person." Eight weeks of exercise, diet, breathing, spirituality and supplements that provide cancer-fighting aniti-oxidants can set a pattern for habits that will enable you to recover, if you're ill, or preserve the good health you already enjoy.

At the outset, Dr Weil seemed reasonable enough. Cris and I eat fish once a week, though Cris balks unless his sole is doused with lemon-caper sauce. The doctor's "Walk l0 minutes a day for the first week" brought self-satisfied smiles, since we walk at least two miles a day outdoors. And, getting from one end of our house to the other adds a hike-and-a-half by the end of the day, when we've made roughly 30 trips; since we often find, after walking from the studio to the bedroom end, we've forgotten what we went for.

So far, Dr. Weil sounded like a man we could live with. Until he outlawed cookies, Danish and coffee. Cris can't sleep unless he's had a snack and coffee. Dr. Weil recommends "green, or herbal teas." Fortunately, we now have it from the University of California that "Coffee contains cancer-fighting anti-oxidants."

And to think that for years I've virtually drowned in chamomile tea!

By Week 6, Dr.Weil had written off melons, strawberries, peppers, celery, spinach and apples. Since, earlier, he'd eliminated most meat, dairy, and wheat products, it seemed we'd be left with nothing but radishes and tofu. I once drank tofu shakes for six months, after which my eyes crossed, and I became clinically depressed. We tried to be objective, but began to suspect Dr. Weil was a secret agent hired by aliens to promote anorexia.

By Week 8, Dr. Weil had his audience up to "45 minutes of walking seven days a week, l5 miniutes of breathing, morning and night," whatever time it might take for them to "find a tree and stand under it," and "homework."

Homework involved seeking soy products for which they could acquire a taste and ferreting out organic produce not included on the "verboten" list.

Cris and I exchanged rueful glances. Clearly, Dr. Weil and we were on different wavelengths. But then he recommended flowers - for ourselves, and our friends. For "flowers lift the spirit."

This we could live with. And, we plan to go on walking.

So, as our friend Pinky would say, "We'll see you on the boulevard," for coffee and pastry, or a hot fudge sundae.

Mary Cristy is a Los Altos Hills-based free-lance writer and longtime contributor to theTown Crier.