Anonymous

INTRODUCTION

The great skeptic Barry Williams wrote:

The Bible mentions a range of foods in favourable context. A list is included with this article. This does not imply that the listed foods are the only foods which are good for people. The Bible also mentions some foods in an unfavourable context. This, similarly, does not imply that such foods are the only harmful foods.

Nor does the Bible in most cases tell us what it is about particular foods that benefits or harms or in what ways. The Bible is simply not exhaustive in its statements about food.

Let's, then, examine some of the Bible's comments about foods.

Daniel – better known for the lions' den episode – performed an experiment on the effect of diet on health. The report of the experiment is not simply a miracle story but referred to an actual "test". (Daniel 1:12, 14)

One group of young men consumed "rich food and wine". Science would call this group the "control group."  They did what they normally did and were not subject to any experimental variables.

A second group of young men – four in number – consumed "vegetables and water". Science would call this group the "experimental group." They were subjected to an experimental variable – a change in diet.

The two groups were matched according to age. (Daniel 1:10)

After ten days an independent observer concluded that the vegetable eaters were, "better in appearance and fatter in flesh."

Some of Daniel's procedures have become cornerstones of modern science, including the procedures of:

1. Using a control group and an experimental group;
2. Controlling for variables which experience tells are relevant such as age;
3. Not leaving the evaluation of results to the prejudices of the experimenter.
 

In Ancient clues to modern nutrition (Reader's Digest September 1987) C and M McConnell wrote: "the secret of healthful nutrition is as old the Bible."

Also:

Olive oil provides most of the fat intake in the traditional diet. Olive oil is cholesterol free but rich in monounsaturated fats. Olives and olive oil get commendatory mention in the Bible.

Mike Rayner (New Scientist 1989 July 22) wrote:

Fats can be grouped into three broad categories:

Polyunsaturated (mostly of vegetable origin extracted from seeds)
Monounsaturated (found in peanut oil and olive oil)
Saturated (mostly of animal origin – meat fat, dairy foods; also palm oil)

Some researchers have attributed the modern high incidence of prostate problems in men to high levels of animal fat in the diet. In Your Heart by the Heart Foundation we read, "Eating foods high in saturated fats tends to increase blood cholesterol levels." High cholesterol in turn correlates with coronary heart disease and atherosclerosis.

The Law of Moses included commands against eating of animal fat. However, nuts, including almonds and pistachios get favourable mention in the Bible. (Genesis 43:11)

Some years ago the American Heart Association listed nuts among foods to avoid. Confectionary producers began removing nuts from their products! Then research involving samples of up to 30,000 people for six years showed that eating nuts five times per week halves the rate for heart disease. The oils in nuts are the good ones – monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids!

Nuts are also full of vitamins and minerals and have been called "a soup of antioxidants".

"Every tree with seed in its fruit…for food" (Genesis 1:29) probably includes nuts.

After his alleged resurrection Jesus ate "broiled fish."  That was a good example. An article in Muscle & Fitness by Armand Tanny (Mr USA) explained How Fish Can save Your Life. Omega-3 fatty acids (oils), which are plentiful in fish, inhibit blood clots, widen blood vessels and improve the response of T cells in the immune system.

Two meals of fish per week have been connected with a 50% lower death rate from heart disease in men, reduced incidence of colon and prostate cancer, and lower levels of cholesterol. (Cholesterol together with high blood pressure damages the lining of arteries. The cholesterol together with cellular material then forms "plaque" which narrows the arteries.)

Fish is a lean source of protein and eating fish is therefore a way of reducing meat intake, lowering cholesterol and losing weight but still getting adequate protein.

The Law of Moses forbade Israelites from eating rabbits, pigs and shellfish. Rabbit meat can transmit tularemia, pork can transmit trichonosis and shellfish can transmit typhoid.

Detailed lists of fish and animals which could, or should not, be eaten occur in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14.

Fish which by those lists are good for food would include anchovy, barracuda, bass, butterfish, carp, cod, dolphin, flounder, hake, halibut, herring, kingfish, mackerel, mullet, perch, pike, salmon, sardine, swordfish, trout, tuna, whiting.

Animals good for food by those lists include antelope, deer, giraffe, goat, hart, ox, roebuck, sheep.

Birds listed in the two lists are all "unclean". However, by comparison with quail which were eaten (Numbers 11:31-33) birds good for food would include chicken, dove, duck, geese, grouse, partridge, pheasant, pigeon, song birds, turkey.

Stated generally, the "unclean" fish, animals and birds are the more risky ones to health if used as food although thorough cooking reduces the risks as does modern farm practice with meat inspection and other government controls.