A New Year: Focusing on Maintaining Our Temple – Women (part 3)

“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.”
– 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Paul asks: “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit.” Every Christian’s body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, we must take care of it much like the Holy Temple of God in the Old Testament when it was constructed and dedicated by King Solomon. (See 1 Chronicles 29:1-5, cf. 2 Chronicles 7:1-3.) Since our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, we must surrender our body to God and glorify God daily. That includes, eating healthy.

Eating healthy

According to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office of Women’s Health(1), women have some unique nutritional needs, including needing more of certain vitamins and minerals during pregnancy or after menopause. The following tips are provided by the DHHS:

Calories. Most times women need fewer calories. That’s because women naturally have less muscle, more body fat, and are usually smaller. On average, adult women need between 1,600 and 2,400 calories a day. Women more physically active may need more calories. Find out how many calories you need each day based on your age, height, weight, and activity level.

Minerals and vitamins. Calcium, iron and folic acid are particularly important for women.

Reproductive health. Women have different nutritional needs during different stages of life, such as during pregnancy and breastfeeding or after menopause.

Metabolism. Women process some substances differently and burn fewer calories at rest and during exercise than men do.

Health problems. Women are more likely to have some health problems related to nutrition, such as celiac disease and lactose intolerance, and vitamin and mineral deficiencies, such as iron-deficiency anemia.

The Office of Women’s Health encourages to choose healthy food and drink choices more often which can help prevent or manage many health problems or issues that affect women. In fact, studies have shown that when a woman eats healthy, everyone in her household is more likely to eat healthy!

Source: 1 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health at www.womenshealth.gov.

Next Week: Continuation

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