HEALTHY EATING DISCUSSED BY TOP COOK COUNTY DOCTOR AT PARK MANOR CHURCH

Dr. Terry Mason, chief operating officer for the Cook County Public Health Department, discussed the benefits of eating healthy at a Jan. 4, 2020 event at a South Side church. Photo credit: By Wendell Hutson
Dr. Terry Mason, chief operating officer for the Cook County Public Health Department, discussed the benefits of eating healthy at a Jan. 4, 2020 event at a South Side church. Photo credit: By Wendell Hutson

Healthy Eating Discussed by Top Cook County Doctor at Park Manor Church

BY WENDELL HUTSON, Contributing Writer

A top, Cook County health official recently led a two-hour discussion at a Park Manor church about the importance of healthy eating and explained why he no longer eats meat of any kind as a vegan.

Dr. Terry Mason, chief operating officer for the Cook County Department of Public Health, recalled how he would routinely eat a steak almost every day.

“You are looking at a guy who would eat a Porterhouse steak on a regular basis. It’s by the grace of God that I am still here and not dead from a heart attack,” Mason told a crowd of about 100 people on Saturday. “A lot of people may not believe this but your health is more determined by where you live, work and play than anything else.”

He added that medical care does not treat the root cause of a health problem like a heart attack for example. Often the cause of a heart attack is blockage from blood flow but the root of the cause is what caused the blood to get clogged up in the first place and Mason said that’s due to the food choices people make.

“It’s simple, if you want to reduce your risk of having a heart attack, then you must change your eating habits. Doctors often don’t tell heart attack patients that as a preventive measure,” said Mason.

The Jan. 4 event was sponsored by the National Vegetarian Museum and hosted by Shiloh Seventh Day Adventist Church, 7000 S. Michigan Ave., whose pastor is also a vegetarian.

“I guess you can say I have been eating healthy for the past two decades when I became a vegetarian,” said the Rev. William Lee. “A healthy body brings about a healthy mind just like Jesus did in the book of Genesis and I Corinthians 6.”

He added that blacks are among the biggest consumers of unhealthy foods largely due to food deserts.

“On the South and West Sides of Chicago, there are not many healthy choices. That’s why diabetes and high blood pressure

run high in the black community,” contends Lee. “Processed food (mainly sold at fast-food restaurants) is mostly what’s available in black neighborhoods. But if more food options were available, I’m sure we as a community would make wiser choices with what we eat.”

What’s the difference between a vegetarian and a vegan? A vegetarian doesn’t eat any animals, such as pigs, chickens, cows, turkey, lamb, fish, and all others. But a vegan does not consume any foods that include dairy like ice cream, macaroni and cheese, milk, and eggs as well as no animal flesh.

Katherine Ware, 85, was among the 100 people who attended the discussion with Mason. She has been a vegan for 25 years and attributed her healthy, eating lifestyle to living a good life.

“My health is relatively good for my age and I know it’s because of my diet. I can attest that if you eat ‘right,’ you will have longevity,” said Ware. “And I don’t smoke or drink alcohol, I exercise daily and as a result, I live a stress free life.”

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