Is It Possible to Get Rid of a Disease?

“Wealth cannot answer every health problem. Even wealthy people seek answers to sickness,” said Chidi Ngwaba (“Dr. Chidi”), during a presentation at the Adventist-laymen’s Services and Industries Europe (ASi Europe) Convention in Fribourg, Switzerland, September 24. Ngwaba, an award-winning British lifestyle physician, surgeon, and media commentator, discussed how to prevent, improve, and reverse chronic lifestyle diseases through evidence-based medicine and whole-food plant-based nutrition.

Is Modern Medicine the Answer?

Modern medicine excels in emergencies, Ngwaba explained. “A broken bone. A heart attack. Modern health care can provide lifesaving emergency care,” he said. “It can stabilize, repair, and restore function of a broken bone. It can restore blood flow and save heart muscle.”

But is that enough to enjoy optimal health?

Ngwaba shared how early in his career the dean of his school asked him, “Why do you want to be a doctor?”

“I want to cure people,” Ngwaba told him.

The dean replied, “Here we don’t cure people. We treat people.”

Against this background, Ngwaba said, the Adventist health message can help people seek and find real health, healing, and hope. “From our message we have the tools to prevent and cure these lifestyle diseases,” he said.

This is important, Ngwaba explained, because “every household has a lifestyle disease.” In that sense illness becomes a personal concern for the whole family. People with chronic diseases often ask. Will I get better? How will this affect my family? What will our future look like?

Lifelong treatments present a burden to patients and their families. Ngwaba mentioned daily medication and repeated prescriptions, side effects, and patients who keep searching for lasting improvement. Patients wonder if they’ll always have to take the medicines.

God has given us a better plan, Ngwaba emphasized. “He gave us food to eat, work to do, and guidance for our thoughts,” he said. In the next few minutes Ngwaba, who has been helping reverse type 2 diabetes for 25 years, dissected those elements, explaining how they can contribute to better health outcomes.

Nourishing Our Bodies

Regarding meals, he called everyone to focus on meals that nourish our bodies. “Enjoy colorful, whole, plant-based foods, and make nourishing choices a daily habit,” Ngwaba said. He suggested choosing whole plant foods, vegetables, fruits, beans, whole grains, nuts, and seeds.

Ngwaba also asked Adventists and others to make healthy eating practical. “Choose simple recipes with everyday ingredients, and keep consistent habits,” he said.

Movement and the Right Mindset

Ngwaba also reminded attendees the importance of moving regularly. He mentioned daily walks, stretching, and building strength exercises. “Move naturally and with purpose,” he suggested. “Make walking part of your day, especially outdoors.”

It is also important to stretch and strengthen. He shared some examples: “Stretch, squat, push, and pull. Build movement into everyday life.”

Ngwaba suggested to “keep it consistent,” resorting to the regular practice of simple exercises. “And build a routine you can sustain,” he said.

Regarding mental health, Ngwaba called everyone to focus on practices that will contribute to better health. “Practice love, forgiveness, and self-control. Let biblical principles shape your thoughts and daily choices,” he suggested, because “mindset is the key to lasting change.”

Reverse, Improve, and Prevent

Ngwaba explained that the goal is to make lasting changes to your health habits, especially when dealing with chronic conditions. “It is to address the habits driving disease and work toward reversal where possible,” he said.

Where full recovery is not possible, it’s still important to work toward better health and daily living, he emphasized. At the same time, these changes can help a person to reduce future risk and sustain habits that protect health.

How to Begin

According to Ngwaba, the key is to start somewhere, even with small changes for the better. “Take the first step toward better health,” he suggested. “Start today through guided steps and ongoing support.”

He explained that any journey toward change and better health begins with a need. “The need of physical healing is the need that brings us,” Ngwaba explained, “but often there are other needs behind it.” In that sense, he added, “every participant’s journey matters. Some seek health. Some seek deeper healing. Some choose faith. Every act of care plants a seed. Growth comes in God’s time,” he summarized.

Go to the Source

In closing, Ngwaba emphasized that besides changes to your eating and physical exercise habits, it is important that people who wish to improve their health find a place to grow in faith. “Begin with a small group. Read Scripture. Ask questions. Pray and share life together,” he suggested. “Build friendships and confidence for belonging to the wider church.”

At the end of the day, he said, a person’s search for better health should lead them to Jesus Christ. “Jesus is the ultimate source of health, love, and forgiveness,” he said.