These are general recommendations to help most people. Individual recommendations may differ.

Eat gracefully and gratefully. Consciously appreciate the sacrifice by plant or animal that made your meal possible. Light a candle. Say a prayer. Dedicate your meal to higher service in your life. Not only the food matters, but also the spirit in which it is eaten.

Create a mood of good cheer and relaxation during your meals. Avoid eating when you are hurried or anxious.

Eat only when hungry and not to relieve stress.

Stop eating before you are completely full. This is known to help people live longer.

Eat organic as much as possible. Food has a higher content of valuable nutrients when grown on soil not depleted by modern farming methods.

Minimize pesticide residues by buying produce from reliable organic sources. Wash or peel your produce when it is not organic.

Grow your own food.

Freshness matters. Buy locally grown and in season whenever possible. Produce can deteriorate quickly when hauled in from thousands of miles away. Once purchased, eat it as fresh as possible.

Support local and organic growers or community-supported agriculture (CSA) with your purchases.

Look for color. Strong color indicates high nutrient content and good quality in fruits and vegetables. Likely, the taste and aroma will also be superior.

Minimize sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Avoid artificial sweeteners and food colorings.

Eat whole, unprocessed foods as much as possible.

Shop mostly on the perimeter of your grocery store (the whole foods), less in the aisles (boxes and bottles), and least by the cash register (things were put there to tempt you).

Eat whole grains rather than white, refined grain products. If God made it brown, eat it brown.

Don’t overcook.

Do not to cook or thaw with a microwave oven. Long microwave exposure times can alter the molecular structure of your food.
Remove all plastic wrappers and containers from your food before heating it.

Do not put hot foods or beverages in plastic containers.

Welcome spices and herbal flavorings into your diet. They are plentiful in traditional cooking and help your digestive processes in many ways. Your food should be tasty and a joy to eat.

Eat slowly and chew well. This will make good use of the plentiful enzymes contained in your saliva which would otherwise be wasted. It will multiply the surface area of the food in your mouth where the digestive juices can do their work, and give ample time for your stomach, liver and pancreas to secrete adequately when the chewed food arrives. Lastly, it will help you recognize which foods are good for you and when you have had enough.

Eat beef that is grass-fed (Bison usually is). Its fatty acid composition, and thus effect on human health, is healthier than meat from grain-fed cattle raised in feedlots. This is also true for ocean-fished rather than farmed salmon or other fish.

Buy cage-free eggs. Having been grass-fed, their fatty acid profile is much better, even for cardiac patients. The deeper, more luminous color of the yolk indicates better nutrient content. You will be happy to know what a contented life these hens have. Even at the moderate premium charged, cage free eggs are a very inexpensive source of high quality protein.

Eat good fats in moderation and without fear. Your body needs them and cannot function well without them, even if you are trying to lose weight, lower cholesterol or prevent cardiac problems. This includes olive oil, cold pressed vegetable oils, and fats contained in high quality meats, eggs and dairy foods, including cheeses.

Avoid trans fats (read the label), partially hydrogenated vegetable oils, rancid and deep fried fats.

Use sea salt or kosher salt. These can be a valuable source of important minerals which are missing from refined (white) commercial salts. Unless you have congestive heart failure or kidney disease, feel free to salt to taste. Healthy food does not have to be bland or unpalatable.

Pay attention to possible adverse reactions you may be having to some foods. Lab tests for food allergies and other adverse reactions are not always reliable and it often takes some detective work for you and your health care provider to figure out what you are truly reacting to.

Use alcohol only in moderation.

Use caffeine only in moderation. Green tea, however, decaffeinated or not, is a health food that does many good things for you.

While we respect your ethical or religious reservations about eating animal meat or animal products, it has been our experience that many people have better sense of well-being and resistance to illness if their diet includes at least some animal food. Just how much is best varies between individuals.