--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hindered by asthma since I was six weeks…" description: "\"Hindered by asthma since I was six weeks old, I had begun experimenting with my diet and discovered a disquieting correlation. When I stopped eating th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/paul-hawken-3831_additives_hindered-by-asthma-since-i-was-six-weeks_1891421.jpg" --- # Hindered by asthma since I was six weeks old, I had begun… ![“Hindered by asthma since I was six weeks old, I had begun experimenting with my diet and discovered a disquieting correlation. When I stopped eating the normal American diet of sugar, fats, alcohol, chemicals, and additives, I felt better. I could breathe freely. When I tried to sneak in a…” quote by Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/paul-hawken-3831_additives_hindered-by-asthma-since-i-was-six-weeks_1891421.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/paul-hawken-3831_additives_hindered-by-asthma-since-i-was-six-weeks_1891421.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/paul-hawken-3831_additives_hindered-by-asthma-since-i-was-six-weeks_1891421.jpg) > “Hindered by asthma since I was six weeks old, I had begun experimenting with my diet and discovered a disquieting correlation. When I stopped eating the normal American diet of sugar, fats, alcohol, chemicals, and additives, I felt better. I could breathe freely. When I tried to sneak in a hamburger and a Coke, my body rebelled.” [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Changing diet away from processed foods improved breathing and overall health, showing a link between nutrition and respiratory well‑being. **In simple terms:** Healthy diet eases asthma. Key Takeaway Adopt whole foods for better breathing. Themes health nutrition asthma Mood hopeful determined Type personal motivational When to use this quote - personal health - meal planning - food labeling - policy advocacy Key Concepts Dietary impact inflammation reduction Questions to Reflect On - What food changes could you make? - How does food affect your energy? A Different Perspective Individual changes may be limited without broader food system reforms. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Additives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/additives/) [Alcohol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alcohol/) [American](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american/) [American diet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-diet/) [Asthma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asthma/) [Begun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/begun/) [Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better/) [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Breathe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathe/) [Chemicals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chemicals/) [Coke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coke/) [Correlation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/correlation/) [Could](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/could/) [Diet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diet/) [Diet Discovered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diet-discovered-2735279/) [Discovered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discovered/) [Eating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating/) [Experimenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experimenting/) [Experimenting Diet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experimenting-diet-2735280/) [Fats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fats/) [Felt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/felt/) [Freely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freely/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Hamburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hamburger/) [Hindered Asthma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hindered-asthma-2735281/) [I tried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-tried/) [Normal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/normal/) [Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old/) [Rebelled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rebelled/) [Since](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/since/) [Six](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/six/) [Sneak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sneak/) [Stopped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stopped/) [Sugar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sugar/) [Tried](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tried/) [Weeks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weeks/) ## Related quotes > [“While Primal eating is low-carb in comparison to the Standard American Diet, it advocates abundant consumption of nutritious carbs such as all vegetables and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-sisson/while-primal-eating-is-low-carb-in-comparison-to-the-standard/) [Mark Sisson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-sisson/) > [It looks to me to be obvious that the whole world cannot eat an American diet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-brown/it-looks-to-me-to-be-obvious-that-the-whole-world-cannot-eat-an/) [Jerry Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-brown/) > [“However close you can be to a vegan diet and further from the mean American diet, the better you are for the planet." quoted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-e-mcwilliams/however-close-you-can-be-to-a-vegan-diet-and-further-from-the-mean/) [James E. McWilliams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-e-mcwilliams/) > [Eating meat and dairy products is the SAD (Standard American Diet) diet. The SAD diet can only make you sad. It causes heart disease,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-gannon/eating-meat-and-dairy-products-is-the-sad-standard-american-diet-diet/) [Sharon Gannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-gannon/) > [“There’s a lot more to the Paleo diet than removing food toxins from your diet. That said, if everyone on a standard American diet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kresser/there-s-a-lot-more-to-the-paleo-diet-than-removing-food-toxins-from/) [Chris Kresser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kresser/) > [Excess dietary salt is most notorious for increasing blood pressure. Americans have a 90 percent lifetime probability of developing high blood pressure - so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-fuhrman/excess-dietary-salt-is-most-notorious-for-increasing-blood-pressure/) [Joel Fuhrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-fuhrman/) > [The longer I've looked at these questions, of the American diet and the public health crisis that we face because of that diet, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/the-longer-i-ve-looked-at-these-questions-of-the-american-diet-and/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) > [Look at the average American diet: ice cream, butter, cheese, whole milk, all this fat. People don't realize how much of this stuff you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-lalanne/look-at-the-average-american-diet-ice-cream-butter-cheese-whole-milk/) [Jack LaLanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-lalanne/) > [For most teenage runners, the right foods means a varied diet, decreasing the amount of fat found in the typical American diet and replacing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-kardong/for-most-teenage-runners-the-right-foods-means-a-varied-diet/) [Don Kardong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-kardong/) > [The problem with the standard American diet, a primary cause of our current obesity epidemic, is the fact that the majority of foods consumed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-fuhrman/the-problem-with-the-standard-american-diet-a-primary-cause-of-our/) [Joel Fuhrman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-fuhrman/) > [“A Standard American Diet (SAD) may eventually kill you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/a-standard-american-diet-sad-may-eventually-kill-you/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [People don't realize how much of this stuff you get by the end of the day. High blood pressure is from all this high-fat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-lalanne/people-don-t-realize-how-much-of-this-stuff-you-get-by-the-end-of-the/) [Jack LaLanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-lalanne/) > [I try to not eat as much sugar, but it's so hard in our American diet to do that... It's hard to completely avoid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-brady/i-try-to-not-eat-as-much-sugar-but-it-s-so-hard-in-our-american-diet/) [Tom Brady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-brady/) > [I live full-time in the world of omnivores, and I've never wanted to leave. But the Standard American Diet (yes, it's SAD) got to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bittman/i-live-full-time-in-the-world-of-omnivores-and-i-ve-never-wanted-to/) [Mark Bittman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bittman/) > [Meatless Mondays is a dead-simple strategy. Anyone can do it, and it doesn’t require major sacrifice. Even if you eat a typical American diet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bittman/meatless-mondays-is-a-dead-simple-strategy-anyone-can-do-it-and-it/) [Mark Bittman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bittman/) ## More by Paul Hawken > [Information from destructive activities going back a hundred years right up until today is being incorporated into the system. And as that happens the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/information-from-destructive-activities-going-back-a-hundred-years/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [When the planes still swoop down and aerial spray a field in order to kill a predator insect with pesticides, we are in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/when-the-planes-still-swoop-down-and-aerial-spray-a-field-in-order-to/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [The great thing about the dilemma we're in is that we get to re-imagine every single thing we do...There isn't a single thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/the-great-thing-about-the-dilemma-we-re-in-is-that-we-get-to-re/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Luck is earned. Luck is working so hard at your craft, service or enterprise that sooner or later you get a break.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/luck-is-earned-luck-is-working-so-hard-at-your-craft-service-or/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Healing the wounds of the earth and its people does not require saintliness or a political party, only gumption and persistence. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/healing-the-wounds-of-the-earth-and-its-people-does-not-require/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [When cattle ranchers clear rain forests to raise beef to sell to fast-food chains that make hamburgers to sell to Americans, who have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/when-cattle-ranchers-clear-rain-forests-to-raise-beef-to-sell-to-fast/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [We are the only species on this planet without full employment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/we-are-the-only-species-on-this-planet-without-full-employment/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [We subsidize the disposal of waste in all its myriad forms — from landfills, to Superfund cleanups, to deep-well injection, to storage of nuclear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/we-subsidize-the-disposal-of-waste-in-all-its-myriad-forms-from/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Inspiration is not garnered from the litanies of what may befall us; it resides in humanity's willingness to restore, redress, reform, rebuild, recover, reimagine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/inspiration-is-not-garnered-from-the-litanies-of-what-may-befall-us/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [If you look at the science that describes what is happening on earth today and aren't pessimistic, you don’t have the correct data. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/if-you-look-at-the-science-that-describes-what-is-happening-on-earth/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [All is connected ... no one thing can change by itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/all-is-connected-no-one-thing-can-change-by-itself/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [We can no longer prosper by increasing human productivity. The more we try to do, the more poverty we will create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/we-can-no-longer-prosper-by-increasing-human-productivity-the-more-we/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Throughout the industrial era, economists considered manufactured capital - money, factories, etc. - the principal factor in industrial production, and perceived natural capital as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/throughout-the-industrial-era-economists-considered-manufactured/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [his planet came with a set of instructions, but we seem to have misplaced them. Important rules like don’t poison the water, soil, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/his-planet-came-with-a-set-of-instructions-but-we-seem-to-have/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [Sustainability, ensuring the future of life on Earth, is an infinite game, the endless expression of generosity on behalf of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/sustainability-ensuring-the-future-of-life-on-earth-is-an-infinite/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) [Explore all 121 Paul Hawken quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) ## More Additives quotes > [There are powdered salts, chunked salts, salts shaped in different ways with various additives to work perfectly with processed foods. All of them are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moss/there-are-powdered-salts-chunked-salts-salts-shaped-in-different-ways/) [Michael Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moss/) > [What's great about making movies is the sort of additive process of bringing people together and having an idea and watching the idea be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ziskin/what-s-great-about-making-movies-is-the-sort-of-additive-process-of/) [Laura Ziskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ziskin/) > [I use a lot of fresh citrus, garlic, and fresh herbs when cooking to cut down on fat and sodium but punch up flavor.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cat-cora/i-use-a-lot-of-fresh-citrus-garlic-and-fresh-herbs-when-cooking-to/) [Cat Cora](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cat-cora/) > [There are times when I'm so bored with being healthy and organic that I crave sugar and additives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-mccutcheon/there-are-times-when-i-m-so-bored-with-being-healthy-and-organic-that/) [Martine McCutcheon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-mccutcheon/) > [Throughout my work, my subjects are being told that they must change their diet in order to make the adjustment into the new world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolores-cannon/throughout-my-work-my-subjects-are-being-told-that-they-must-change/) [Dolores Cannon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolores-cannon/) > [Possibly worst of all, from the standpoint of the dedicated enemies of freedom, the Internet is a world that libertarians - having been marginalized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/possibly-worst-of-all-from-the-standpoint-of-the-dedicated-enemies-of/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [Food additives are far safer in actual use than the basic natural food themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-j-stare/food-additives-are-far-safer-in-actual-use-than-the-basic-natural/) [Frederick J. Stare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-j-stare/) > [Stop eating 'dead' foods: junk, fried, and fast foods, as well as processed carbs. They’re loaded with sugar and other additives. The more live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-horton/stop-eating-dead-foods-junk-fried-and-fast-foods-as-well-as-processed/) [Tony Horton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-horton/) > [I drink a lot of beer, and that's the drug of choice. You find the drug that works for you. I know, for instance,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-drink-a-lot-of-beer-and-that-s-the-drug-of-choice-you-find-the-drug/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Stevia has no calories or carbs, but it’s still a new player as far as food additives go, and there haven’t been long-term studies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-bond/stevia-has-no-calories-or-carbs-but-it-s-still-a-new-player-as-far-as/) [Heidi Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-bond/) > [Technology is not simply additive; it is more often exponential. An invention usually triggers other inventions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/talal-abu-ghazaleh/technology-is-not-simply-additive-it-is-more-often-exponential-an/) [Talal Abu-Ghazaleh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/talal-abu-ghazaleh/) > [I don't need the fillers, additives, excessive amounts of sugars, fats, salts and other measures taken to taint the natural goodness of real food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-don-t-need-the-fillers-additives-excessive-amounts-of-sugars-fats/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I appreciate the additional additives and preservatives that help sell a project, but I'm sticking to what works best for me. I gotta sell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/busta-rhymes/i-appreciate-the-additional-additives-and-preservatives-that-help/) [Busta Rhymes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/busta-rhymes/) > [How is it that mercury is not safe for food additives and Over the Counter drug products, but it is safe in our vaccines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-burton/how-is-it-that-mercury-is-not-safe-for-food-additives-and-over-the/) [Dan Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-burton/) > [Learning is not so much an additive process, with new learning simply piling up on top of existing knowledge, as it is an active,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-patricia-cross/learning-is-not-so-much-an-additive-process-with-new-learning-simply/) [K. Patricia Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-patricia-cross/) [Browse all 29 Additives quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/additives/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Hindered by asthma since I was six weeks old, I had begun experimenting with my diet and discovered a disquieting correlation. When I stopped eating the normal American diet of sugar, fats, alcohol, chemicals, and additives, I felt better. I could breathe freely. 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