Eight hundred years ago, Maimonides wrote in Hanhagot Habriyot (The Regimen of Healthcare):
If a person cared for himself the way he cares for his horse, he would avoid many serious illnesses. You won’t find a person who gives his horse too much fodder. But he himself eats to excess. He makes sure his animal gets proper exercise to keep it healthy. But when it comes to himself, he neglects exercise even though this is a fundamental principle in health maintenance and in the prevention of most illnesses.
The Torah decrees, “Venishmartem meod lenafshoteichem, Be very careful about your lives,” (Devarim 4:15). We are obligated to preserve our health. Practically speaking, this means we should eat healthy foods and do so slowly. It means we should drink plenty of water and eat only when hungry, and not to the point of being 100 percent full. It also means we should exercise regularly and get enough sleep.
Most of us live six days a week in the fast lane, and spend the seventh taking shelter from worldly stresses. On Shabbat we eat as a family, leisurely and relaxed. We are happy and content—a plus to our health since mood affects how we digest our food. On the other hand, there is also a tendency on Shabbat to eat to excess, precisely because the food is so good and so plentiful. There’s a desire to unwind from the week’s toil and to reap the harvest of our elaborate Shabbat preparations.
I often wonder why we place so much importance on insulating ourselves from looking at immodestly dressed women, lest it lead to improper thoughts and behavior, but have no qualms about laying out five different kinds of sugar-laden desserts on the Shabbat table. Can’t these temptations lead us to have gluttonous thoughts and—even worse—gluttonous behavior? Doesn’t the Torah tell us not to put a stumbling block before the blind? Some of our habits are not only not prescribed by Torah, they are arguably anti-Torah. We have only our yetzer hara to blame for our health deficiencies.
Remember this for Purim “A drunken man is considered to be responsible for his actions. A sale, a purchase or a present involving him is binding. If, however, his drunken state approaches that of Lot- i.e., he is so drunk that he does not realize what he is doing - his deeds are of no consequence. It is as if he were a mentally incompetent person or a child below the age of six.
Do not consider it proof just because it is written in books, for a liar who will deceive with his tongue will not hesitate to do the same with his pen
