LightBackpacking.com

My friend Don Gazzaniga was suffering from congestive heart failure. His
original diagnosis was for “terminal congestive heart failure.” That was
in 1997. Today, 2007, he’s healthy again, working full days and all
because of his own program that is now used by thousands in America and
other countries. together with exericise and some new medications.

But what happened? After all, Stanford was about to list him for a
transplant. That’s a big deal. Lots of tests both physical and psychological
to go through. But just days before that decision Don’s heart started
showing signs of a major turnaround.

Don’s lucky rabbit foot turned out to be Dr. Michael Fowler, director of the
Stanford Medical Center Heart Transplant Program. Don has asked him if
cutting salt out would help. Dr. Fowler suggested he thought so, but that
he’d not had anyone really give it a strong try.

Enter this former Marine. He lowered his daily intake to fewer than 500 mg
of sodium and for ten years that’s been it. He also had quite a collection
of his own recipes after a few years so naturally he sought a publisher.

“At first nobody wanted it. Eat without salt? they’d ask.”

But St. Martin’s Press at the urging of Don’s book agent, who just happens
to also be a neice took the chance. Four books later we find Don still
working hard and keeping the most popular Web site on the Net concerning
salt free lifestyles going.

Because lightweight backpackers are notorious for being healthy, I asked
Don for a low-salt trail mix recipe, which he has generally shared with us.

I’ve always thought that when you are trying to reduce your trail weight,
you ought to consider reducing your body weight instead of drilling holes
in your toothbrush handle. Dropping five pounds from your waistline can
definitely help you go faster on the trail.

By the way, Don’s website, MegaHeart.com donates all net proceeds from
sales of The No Salt, Lowest Sodium Cookbook to Stanford’s heart
transplant research. Check out his “kitchen.”

The site has lots of great recipes and they are free. His wife has joined
with him in the last two books and the recipes are excellent. The next
one, a book of international recipes is due in stores June, 2007.

Be safe. Be light. Be one with the pack.

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