Unlock Your Health Potential
Introduction Shortly after writing about what I had spontaneously discarded while spitting out watermelon seeds for three decades, I noticed the thick white peel on the edge of my plate and had a strange feeling that I was composting something, perhaps more nutritious than the part I was eating. I’m Faizan Ahmed, and the watermelon … Read more
Introduction I thought I ate well. I’m Faizan Ahmed, and for most of my adult life I’ve described my diet as quite healthy: home-cooked food, whole bread, yogurt for breakfast, salad for lunch. Then, a week of honest diet monitoring brought out something that really left me behind. The ‘healthy’ foods I had been eating … Read more
Introduction I’m not excited for just one component. I’m Faizan Ahmed, and after years of writing about nutrition, I’ve developed a healthy skepticism about anything called a superfood. But California walnuts have quietly gained a different kind of attention in my kitchen, not because of the marketing but because of what they actually do and … Read more
Introduction My mother sat outside our family park last spring, claiming that her knees “are no longer what they used to be.” He had said the same thing at most family gatherings over the past few years, always in the same pessimistic tone, as if it were the fact that he was in his early … Read more
Introduction For years, I thought of healthy eating as a complete project or nothing. I’m Faizan Ahmed, and every attempt to ‘cleanse’ my diet revolved around the same story: three weeks of serious commitment, a week in which I ate something I’d banned, and then quietly returned exactly where I started. What ultimately worked was … Read more
Until I Tried Them I used to think that longevity was mostly luck, or good genetics, or something that happened to other people’s grandparents, rather than having real control. I’m Faizan Ahmed, and for years I wrote about health research, without fully applying it to my own life. Then a routine occupational health check came … Read more
The Food Myth I Grew Up Believing I was no more than eight or nine years old when it first happened. We had just finished the grillfish meal — I can still imagine the dish, its aroma, and my mother’s spices — and I reached out to pluck an orange from the fruit bowl. My … Read more
What Happened When I Made It a Habit It was winter. The evenings were long and dark, the food was over, and I would head to the kitchen again and again to have some dessert at the end of the day. I tried the biscuits. I tried the chain. I tried to ignore him and … Read more
What I Found Out After Making It My Evening Ritual It started on a Thursday afternoon in late July. The kitchen was still hot during the day, I was trying to relax after a long work, and I found myself automatically approaching the cookie tray. I stopped, looked at the fruit bowl, and plucked peaches … Read more
The Simple Rule That Saves Every Peach I Buy A few summers ago, I came home from a farmer’s market and had the prettiest bag of peach I’d ever seen. Deep orange blush, that unique floral scent that feels even beyond the paper bag. I felt proud that I had bought real seasonal fruit instead … Read more