source:
www.productdose.comDa Vinci’s Prescription for Life (reprinted from Dave Dewitt's Da Vinci’s Kitchen: A Secret History of Italian Cuisine):If you want to be healthy observe this regime.
Do not eat when you have no appetite, and dine lightly,
Chew well, and whatever you take into you
Should be well-cooked and of simple ingredients
He who takes medicine is ill advised.
Beware anger and avoid stuffy air.
Stay standing a while when you get up from a meal.
Make sure you do not sleep at midday.
Let your wine be mixed with water, take little and often,
Not between meals, not on an empty stomach.
Neither delay nor prolong your visit to the toilet.
If you take exercise, let it not be too strenuous.
Do not lie with your stomach upward and your head
Downward. Be well covered at night,
And rest your head and keep your mind cheerful.
Avoid wantonness and keep to this diet.Elaboration by productdose.comSeems pretty straightforward, but maybe it's easier to abide by the prescription in 15th century Italy. Living is a little more complicated in our fast paced world. It'd be an interesting comparison to see how each of his prescriptions translates to modern life. Let's see:
1. Do not eat when you have no appetite, and dine lightly
Sounds like a good idea, but don't listen to me. Here's what Elaine Magee, Ph D has to say: Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're comfortable. "There's a difference between stuffed and comfortable," she says. "If you truly follow that concept, you should be hungry every two or three hours." (WebMD)
2. Chew well, and whatever you take into you
Should be well-cooked and of simple ingredients
Yup, even our President can attest to this one. Dubya on the wisdom of mothers: "If my mother is listening, mother, I should have listened to you: Always chew your pretzels before you swallow." (CNN )
3. He who takes medicine is ill advised
He's spot on about this one too. It's been well-publicized in the last couple of decades that we're an overmedicated society. We take pills for minor aches and pains, and there seems to be a pill for everything we presume to suffer, from ADD and baldness to vomiting and diarrhea. Doctors are too much influenced by big pharma so do not always have the patient's best interest in mind. For those self-administering, treating an ailment with the wrong medication make matters even worse (Mott Children's Hospital).
4. Beware anger and avoid stuffy air
We all know anger kills. What's this about stuffy air? Turns out being inside can sometimes be pretty bad for your health too. There are biological pollutants such as mites, molds, dander, and cockroaches. Then you have cigarette smoke, asbestos, lead dust, carbon monoxide, the list goes on. Being inside is as hazardous to your health as standing in the middle of rush hour traffic huffing exhaust fumes.
5. Stay standing a while when you get up from a meal
Gravity helps keep food where it belongs, in the stomach area and not backing up into the esophagus area, thus decreasing the likelihood of heartburn. Simple physics.
6. Make sure you do not sleep at midday
Avoiding naps during the day leads to more restful sleep at night.
7. Let your wine be mixed with water, take little and often,
Not between meals, not on an empty stomach
It wasn't until the 1990s that Americans realized the health benefits of regular wine-drinking. Alcohol has been used for its curative properties for millennia; the Egyptians were brewing beer 5000 years ago to treat illnesses. It took a French scientist, Dr. Serge Renaud, to deliver us from our benightedness. We should've just studied Leonardo's Last Supper a little more closely to see what the Apostles were drinking.
8. Neither delay nor prolong your visit to the toilet
Now, this prescription I'm curious about because we've all enjoyed an entire magazine while on the throne. It's one of the more relaxing times of the day for many of us, the far stall being a great place to avoid the boss. I was shocked to discover that just sitting on the toilet too long can lead to hemorrhoidal flare-ups because it increases the pressure on the veins of the anus. Get on and get off. Don't linger like a panhandler outside a 7-Eleven.
9. If you take exercise, let it not be too strenuous
Those who do little vigorous exercise actually die from heart attacks less often versus those who train long and hard. Seems counterintuitive as heck but, as with everything, moderation seems to be the key.
10. Do not lie with your stomach upward and your head
Downward
We've already mentioned the heartburn reducing benefits of keeping your stomach below your head; there are also other downsides of having your head below your belly. Giraffes graze from treetops because if they bend down to nibble low-lying grass when they straighten back up they can lose consciousness because of the sudden change of pressure when the blood pooled in the head region flows back into the body. So, hanging upside down for long periods may cause several health issues, such as hemorrhaging, even though your neck probably isn't as long as a giraffe's.
11. Be well covered at night
And rest your head and keep your mind cheerful
From another smart and talented fellow, Benjamin Franklin, "A cheerful face is nearly as good for an invalid as healthy weather". Old Ben Franklin was another polymath of some renown so I'll go with it.
12. Avoid wantonness and keep to this diet
Leonardo had one close female friend his entire life, his closest companions being his lifelong pupils Salai and Melzi. It's been speculated that he may have been gay but it seems more likely he was asexual, not having a high regard for **** at all. He commented "the act of procreation and anything that has any relation to it is so disgusting that human beings would soon die out if there were no pretty faces and sensuous dispositions". Hmm, this one I'll suffer the consequences of not abiding by. A man can't live on virtue alone.
Seems old Leo knew much of which he spoke. The more history reveals about Da Vinci, the more impressive his legend becomes. His stature resides in his multitude of skills and talents but one has to wonder what would he have been if he had concentrated on one discipline. What if he had focused his energies on building war machines for the Italian military? He did develop a close friendship with Machiavelli. Maybe it was for the best he chose to disperse his impossible mind across many disciplines. As for the rest of us mortals, we now have the map to being like Leo.
By: anh ta
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