Leveraging the simple, yet powerful concept of maximizing the percent of your calories from whole plant foods -- still in nature's package

…And your optimal weight

As we begin to organize and oversee formal 4Leaf Challenges around the country, we have been updating the 4Leaf material on this site and are in the process of developing handouts and PowerPoint presentations as well.

To begin with, my son Jason recently drafted a standard welcome letter that will go out to new 4Leaf Challenge participants. In a previous post, we covered the various “health indicators” that we like to measure at the beginning and end of the Challenge period.

4Leaf Challenge Welcome Letter

Congratulations on your commitment to the 4Leaf Challenge! As a result, you are making an enormous positive step in promoting vibrant health for yourself and the planet. Our 4Leaf Program is aimed primarily at promoting vibrant health by helping you  move as rapidly as possible to a near-optimal diet. Effortless weight-loss is just a convenient by-product.

Weight-loss. As the body is given the nutrients that it needs, it will seek its ideal weight…and those pounds will STAY OFF as long as you continue with the superior diet. You may not immediately look like a super model, but if you are carrying some excess pounds, we can guarantee that you will lose some of those pounds. But weight control is just one of the many benefits of an optimal diet.

Other benefits. Reduction or complete elimination of all prescription drugs (including E.D. drugs), more energy, better sleep, less body odor of all kinds, better sex, zero constipation (no more need for reading material in the bathroom), no heartburn, saving money on food (especially when eating out), reduced cholesterol levels, getting sick less frequently, better eyesight, clearer complexion, improved exercise recovery time and a general improvement in overall health. You will also save a lot of money on medical bills.

Longer term, an optimal diet will greatly lessen your chances of developing chronic diseases and spending your final days in a nursing home. If you have cardiovascular disease or type 2 diabetes already, you can more than likely reverse it with a near-optimal diet. You may also be able to arrest any cancerous activity that is currently taking place but hasn’t been diagnosed yet.

Environment. By consuming an optimal diet, you will be doing more for the environment than recycling, driving a Prius, conserving water in the home, or putting solar panels on your roof. By simply eating plant-based, you will be saving an enormous amount of land, forests, water and energy. You will save enough land to feed 15 people, reduce your carbon footprint by 30 percent and reduce your personal water consumption by 90 percent. Everyone claims to care about the environment; but unless they are eating plant-based, they’re causing great damage to our planet with every bite they eat.

Lastly, we are 100% convinced that commitment to this program will be one of the best decisions (if not, the best) you have ever made. Be well, J. Stanfield Hicks.

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Updated 4Leaf Pages on this site. The first page listed below can be found easily by simply going to to the easy-to-remember 4leafprogram.com. Or you can hover on the 4Leaf tab and see two pages, the first one shown here and the link to Lisa’s 4Leaf Kitchen, also shown below.

Introduction to the 4Leaf Program (Revised 12-29-11)

4Leaf Definition – Part 1 of 5-part series (Revised 12-29-11)

Healthy Recipes from Lisa’s 4Leaf Kitchen (New recipes added weekly)

Jason, Lisa and their 4Leaf family of six -- skiing on 12-23-11

Want to help friends or family take charge of their health? Tell them about our simple, positive, flexible and powerful 4Leaf Program. Just send them to 4leafprogram.com, tell them to subscribe to our blog and/or mailing list and we’ll take care of the rest.

If you like what you see here, you may wish to join our periodic mailing list. Also, for help in your own quest to take charge of your health, you might find some useful information at our 4-Leaf page.

And if you like what 4-Leaf eating is doing for you and your family, you might enjoy visiting our new “4-Leaf Gear” store. From the seaside village of Stonington, Connecticut – Be well and have a great day.

If you’d like to order our book on Amazon,  visit our BookStore now.

—J. Morris Hicks…blogging daily at HealthyEatingHealthyWorld.com

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