For as long as humans have had to deal with illness and death, they have been interested in better health. We have paid attention to our health by making conscious lifestyle choices, or encoding these into rituals, behaviours and products. For example, iodine is almost universally added to table salt to ensure that our bodies receive this vital mineral without us having to worry about supplements. As human societies evolved, they noticed patterns that were beneficial to good health and continued to codify these, teaching the next generation and sometimes even incorporating them into sacred commandments.
Hippocrates, known as the Father of Medicine, famously wrote, 'Let food be thy medicine', something he practised with every patient who needed a change in diet to cure ailments. It seems that the idea of food as a remedy is almost as old as medicine itself.
For most of ancient history, health regimens were the results of trial and error. People would adopt a new plan and observe their reaction to it. If it worked, it would become part of a toolkit for better health. For example, it would be pretty obvious that people who didn’t get enough sleep would feel lousy the next day. This is probably why good sleep has been universally promoted across all cultures.
As our understanding of health grew rapidly through rigorous scientific studies, a massive industry grew selling the ‘get rich quick’ equivalent of products for health. From magical superfoods to miracle pills and powders that claim to instantly teleport you to the promised land of blissful health and harmony, this industry thrives on our eternal quest for better health. There’s no doubt that much of the marketing in this industry relies on limited or questionable science and exaggerated results, not to mention the vested interests of powerful lobbies. For example, the sugar lobby is responsible for almost universally banning saturated fats, despite no solid evidence against it. In fact, most mainstream nutrition establishments now consider saturated fats a highly essential component for good health. I should never have given up ghee, something I continued to eat and love, long after the low-fat lobby took away all the joy.
If we take a step back and survey everything we now know about the pursuit of good health, certain patterns form the backbone of nearly all health advice. These are time-tested insights, deeply ingrained in ancient culture and validated by modern science. If you understand these rules and incorporate some of them into your life, you will see more lasting change than following some fad diet or popular workout until you get bored and move on to the next one. These rules will also help you evaluate new health advice, helping you figure out if it's based on the fundamentals of health, or on some fly-by-night theories and products.
