There have been recent celebrity news reports that superstar retired basketball player Shaquille O’Neal has been diagnosed with sleep apnea.
He now must sleep with a CPAP machine and oxygen mask. The article also says his kidneys are weak due to taking so many prescription medications. If all that is true, it’s devastating news for him and all his fans. It’s a disease that can potentially be deadly, so we’ll all pray for a speedy recovery.
Just this past week, Shaq was on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” promoting his new cookbook, “Shaq’s Family Style: Championship Recipes for Feeding Family and Friends.”
After watching the show and perusing the book online, I’m not too sure the recipes will promote a speedy recovery. On the show, they made “Colbert Diesel Brownies” with eggs, brown sugar, Oreo Cookies and sweetened milk. In the book, there are all types of recipes using cheese, bacon, sausage and all of the other soul food ingredients most of us salivate over. Some would argue that all those ingredients promote disease and sickness, such as sleep apnea.
As lay people, we must keep in mind that professional athletes are extremely gifted and disciplined, but that does not necessarily translate into what type of food they eat, especially after retirement. They may eat for maximum performance in their particular sport, which doesn’t necessarily promote healthy organs and vitality. That said, we must always be conscious of what’s going in our bodies to be as healthy as possible.
On a positive note, plant-based eating may help mitigate the devastating effects of sleep apnea, if not knock them out altogether. It promotes weight loss, which is a major factor in sleep apnea conditions. From time to time, you may dabble with soul food, but don’t slip into the abyss with it.
Eat those plants.
