Book Recommendation: "The Art of Subtractive Health" for an Abundant Life
In recent years, food safety scandals have made people turn pale at the very word "poison", and the expert analyses of scholars and specialists in the media sometimes not only fail to clear up doubts but leave people even more confused. What exactly is "poison"? Explained literally, it is actually not complicated: anything that is of no benefit to your health can be called "poison". This is because the character for "poison" can be split into two parts, made up of the "sheng" on the top and the "wu" on the bottom: "sheng" stands for growth and development, while "wu" carries a sense of negation.
Toxicologist Chen Xiuling's first book, "No Toxins, Good Health", advocates "avoiding toxins, reducing toxins, a balanced diet and a variety of fruits and vegetables" as the principles for enjoying a LOHAS life. Two years after the book was published, it won the "Healthy Good Book Recommendation Award" from the Bureau of Health Promotion under the Department of Health.
After a four-year gap, her second book, "Subtraction Health Technique: Reduce Toxins, Reduce Waste, Reduce Expenses", has been published again. At the new book launch event she revealed her own age, and everyone in the audience could not help exclaiming that she had "mastered the art of age-freezing". She humorously said that, for publishing another health book, she had already prepared herself mentally to "show herself", since only if at this age she can still let everyone see her living out a healthy and happy body and mind through "subtraction" would publishing a health book be convincing!
At the Taichung new book launch event, children scrambled to smell the soda made with flavoring, which had no orange but smelled of orange!
Compared with other "health books" on the market, "Subtraction Health Technique" can be called a book that puts homemakers at ease and soothes them, because although the author is an expert, she gently states toxicological knowledge and coping tips in a "non-expert" tone, letting readers understand where there is still room for improvement in their own lives. When reading one clever everyday tip after another in the book, it feels as if she is holding the reader's hand, leading us out of myths and helping us deal with all kinds of risks in life.
For example, she carefully points out the common myth that people have that "natural = non-toxic = healthy", reminding everyone that natural foods should be checked for freshness or infection by mold and other pathogens, otherwise they will still harm the body once eaten. At the new book launch event, she also mentioned that people love to eat health supplements while staying away from "real food", and superstitiously believe in the effects of imported fruit while ignoring the benefits of local fruit. She stressed that local bananas and guavas are rich in high amounts of iron and vitamin C, and that eating local fruit is loving yourself and also loving Taiwan!
In addition, in the book she also lists precautions for using natural orange essential oil at home. She points out that although orange essential oil is a natural plant component, it reacts with ozone to produce carcinogenic formaldehyde, so when using similar cleaners do not turn on an air purifier, and after use also keep the room ventilated.
As a lecturer for the Homemakers United Foundation Environmental Protection Foundation, a member of the Environmental Protection Administration's Green Mark review committee, and moreover a toxicology expert, the author, in a tone and mood close to consumers, selflessly shares the details of her own life and invites everyone to live simply together. Through her writing, or in her speeches, she shares slices of her own life, creating an intimacy that lets readers naturally understand that a low-toxin life and cost-saving environmental protection are two sides of the same coin. Such environmental practice put into effect at the everyday level and such selfless sharing also fit the spirit with which the Homemakers United Foundation Environmental Protection Foundation has, over 28 years, invited everyone to do environmental protection together and love the Earth.
Unlike similar books that teach a "correct" way of life through "right and wrong", this book will not make people overly worried or panicked because of what they "understand". If recently you too have felt at a loss because of all kinds of food safety risk information, this book that puts your mind at ease and heals you is recommended; perhaps from what you gain between the lines, you too can gradually reduce pressure and reduce toxins, and then, like the author, enjoy a healthy, lively and spiritually rich life!
※Our organization sells "Subtraction Health Technique" on consignment; those interested can buy it in person or call for inquiries! Taichung Branch phone (04) 2375-5234, address: 2F, No. 61, Sanmin West Road, West District, Taichung City / near the Digital Library
☆★Event preview: Teacher Chen Xiuling will give a talk at the Homemakers United Foundation Taichung Branch on 6/26 (Thu) from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Welcome to attend!
(Lin Fangru / Taichung Branch Issues Specialist)