In Dr. Andrew Weil’s “Eight Weeks to Optimum Health”, Week One outlines some concrete suggestions on things we can do to help our bodies get healthier. His first suggestion is to begin to pay attention to the ingredients used in the foods we eat. He recommends using olive oil and avoiding any products with partially hydrogenated oils in their ingredients. He also suggests not using artificial sweeteners or products with artificial food coloring in them. The first project he encourages us to do is to go through our food pantries to discard any oils that may be rancid and to plan to replace the contents of our pantries with the healthiest items available.
DIET
There are two suggestions for this first week:
1.) Eat broccoli twice this week.
2.) Eat some food with Omega-3 fatty acids in them at least once this week. Some examples of this are salmon, sardines, walnuts, or flaxseed.
SUPPLEMENTS
Take Vitamin C daily (if you don’t already)
EXERCISE
Walk ten minutes a day for 5 days this week. If exercise is already a normal part of your daily routine, Dr. Weil suggests walking in addition to your normal exercise.
MENTAL/SPIRITUAL
Dr. Weil encourages us to make a list of the illnesses, injuries, and/or problems we have recovered from in the last two years. Add anything you may have done to help yourself “get better”
He also encourages us to do some relaxation breathing exercises for five minutes each day and to buy fresh flowers for our homes.

This is a basic summary of the actions encouraged for the first week.

I find the positive outlook that Dr. Weil brings to the idea of health and well-being to be like a breath of fresh air! I am looking forward to making these changes in my home (especially bringing home fresh flowers!) The only thing I find difficult is the suggestion about Vitamin C. I get heartburn from taking a lot of vitamins. Does anyone have any suggestions for me about this? If you have had this problem too and have found a solution, I would really appreciate hearing about it. Thanks! And good luck to everyone who is starting along with us today!