Health really is wealth

This recent bout with illness that I’ve had has made me appreciate the importance of good health and taking care of your body even more. It may sound like a cliché — which it actually is — but it’s true: Health really is wealth.

One actor who is very big on health and wellness is Rafael Rosell. In fact, he says that if he weren’t an actor, he’d probably be a farmer. Recently, he has been learning how to grow his own vegetables and herbs. It’s an interest he developed some five years ago, when he turned pescatarian. Pescatarian, a term most likely coined from the Italian word pesce (“fish”) and the English word “vegetarian” is defined as the practice of following a diet that includes fish or other seafood, but not the flesh of other animals. A pescatarian diet typically shares many of its components with a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet and may include vegetables, fruit, nuts, grains, beans, eggs, dairy and insect by-products (such as honey, carmine or shellac), but a vegetarian diet excludes meat.

Now, the 31-year-old actor and model (who is in his best shape and actually looks younger than his real age) eats more vegetables, which explains why and how he got into organic farming. He wanted to be able to grow the vegetables that he consumes. Rafael has always been a health buff, and used to do capoeira and other fitness activities, but these days, aside from getting into something called Ninja Academy, which is a type of gymnastics combined with free running, he’s more about eating healthy. He even knows how to cook vegetarian meals. “I can do a killer stir-fry (vegetables) and I can even make a non-meat adobo,” he says.

Organic farming has become a very rewarding interest for him. It’s something that he is slowly turning into a lifestyle. “I like agriculture. I like organic stuff that you can grow, and knowing what I put in my body,” says Rafael. “Like I want to be able to grow herbs, especially basil. I love basil. I can do so much with it.”

Indeed, a lot of what people eat these days is often processed. It’s a function of today’s fast-paced lifestyle, where people tend to eat whatever is fast and convenient and takes the least amount of time. Over the last few years, and from reading and researching the subject, Rafael realized that one alternative was to actually grow his own food. He bought a small plot of land in Antipolo, where he is building a house and will have a small garden for vegetables and herbs.

“Karamihan ng kinakain natin kasi ngayon hasn’t even seen the sun,” he rues. “That’s why I got interested in agriculture and farming. I don’t plan to sell what I’ll grow; it’s more for personal consumption and for my friends because from my research I learned that if you keep a healthy diet, you don’t need medicine. The nutrients are already present in the food itself. It’s really about going back to basics.”

If he weren’t an actor, says Rafael, he’d probably be a farmer. But that doesn’t mean he plans to quit acting. There are still a lot of roles he dreams of playing, like a psychopath. “I’d also like to be able to play someone na akala mo mabait, tapos siya pala ‘yung masama,” he says. “I have also yet to play someone who is handicapped.”

He also continues to pile up his endorsements. His latest is for the Filipino clothing brand Obra ni Juan. Rafael is proud that it is made locally, and he is glad that he was picked to be its endorser. People have asked why him, when he has foreign blood. But that’s a common mistake people make, thinking that he is foreign-born. Rafael is actually Filipino — both his parents trace their roots to the country. His father is from Bantayan island in Cebu, which is a fishing village in the northern part of the province, while his mother is from Bicol. There are traces of Spanish blood running through his veins; he is about one-fourth Spanish, which accounts for his mestizo looks, but for all its worth, Rafael considers himself a true-blooded Pinoy. “I’ve lived in Norway and London,” he says. “We spent most of our growing-up years in Norway because my mom was assigned there for her nursing, and my dad was on a geology scholarship.”

He’s also a true-blooded actor, though, and doesn’t plan to give up on his career. “So far, I haven’t been unhappy with the decisions that I’ve made,” says Rafael. “I think everybody makes decisions, then they adjust accordingly. It’s either you’re happy or you’re sad with your decision. So puwede ka mag desisyon at magmukmok dahil pinagsisihan mo, or mag-desisyon ka and make the most out of it. Para sa akin, I made the most out of it because I think I made the right decision to become an actor and do what I love doing.”