Fats to eat

This video is a dime a dozen, but I just wanted to post one more video in the right direction on fat. She mentions canola oil for a split second, but, Go Girl!

MSG/Canola Music Video

Great informative video
Find more videos like this on iseecolor


Lousy music, but beefy in reasons to avoid MSG and Canola Oil

Fats: demystified

I've been stumped for about 2 years about fats, and was grateful to come across this info, which I excitedly share. See:

Truth about Abs.com

Its pro- coconut oil, extra-virgin olive oil, avocados, high-fat fish, nuts, seeds, free-range meat. These must not be cooked at a heat above their smoke point in order to prevent free radical formation.

Its anti- fried food, homogenized milk, hydrogenated oil, and refined oils

They state, "Anything labeled vegetable oil, soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, safflower oil, " (I add sunflower) " and even many canola oils have been damaged by this refining process (unless they say 'virgin' or 'cold expeller pressed')"

These other three articles (1) and (2) and (3) are about commercial vegetable oils and how they are harmful. Also, read "Canola: Good or Bad?"

It helps me feel better to finally have this info., but, still, unhealthy oils are rampant in our food supply making it difficult to avoid.

Perspective

What to buy organic

Here's a list from the environmental working group, starting with the least contaminated produce by pesticides, and ending with the worst. (Its hard to keep track of, so our family has to keep taking pop quizzes.) I wonder if there's a similar study for grains. Here's a link to a lot more information about how to use the study. I also like this slide show, which may be a little outdated, though.

Elimination Diet

So, I guess I'm out for detoxing and cleansing for another year +, because toxins are eliminated in breast milk which would harm the baby. I just signed up for a gym membership to do saunas, which I can do while breastfeeding (but not pregnant), but I don't know how useful they'll be without detoxing.

While detoxing is out (for over a year! :(), the elimination diet may be our next adventure. Many people have food sensitivities, allergies, or diseases. Celiac's disease is a genetic intolerance of gluten which is very rare and will never be cured. Many people may claim to have Celiac's disease but are really just gluten intolerant. A food allergy is an auto-immune response which can result in hives, rashes, asthma, and other serious symptoms. Food sensitivities are common (we all have them), and are just reactions to food we eat. Symptoms may include headaches, gas, abdominal pain, moodiness, ADHD, hyperactivity, etc. Symptoms to all these three conditions, I believe, can be physical or neurological. Some reactions are very subtle, and many people do not even realize their food allergies or sensitivities. (read here)

The most accurate way to diagnose a food sensitivity or allergy is by using an elimination diet. This article from the Encyclopedia of Children's Health briefly describes an elimination diet. One basically needs to discontinue eating the food for a period of time so the body can be cleaned out of what it is reacting to, and then (if its not a horrible allergy that could send them to the hospital) reintroduced into the diet. Once the body has been cleaned out and it is reintroduced, the reaction will be more pronounced than before, and you will "know" if you're sensitive or allergic. It is important to keep a food diary, though, to record your daily mood, feelings, and mental and physical symptoms. Multiple foods can be eliminated, and reintroduced one food at a time every three days.

I had originally made a plan to reintroduce in the following order: eggs, gluten, corn, wheat, yeast, dairy, which seemed most logical because... wheat contains gluten, but so do many grains; yeast products usually contain wheat, and dairy often harbors yeast. So, someone with a yeast allergy may reintroduce dairy and think they are reacting to dairy when they are actually reacting to yeast.

I'm pretty concerned about my son having a food allergy or food sensitivity. The good news is, these can be reversed! For children, because their bodies are growing and healing so fast, it may take 2-6 months to clear up, whereas for adults it takes 1 - 1 1/2 year as our bodies are slower to heal. It simply requires eliminating the offending food, and the sensitivity or allergy may heal itself and it can be reintroduced with no reaction. (All this and above info. come from my Certified Naturopath/Midwife)


One downside to a new diet is: you don't know what to eat! So, I found two diets with menus:

• The Whole Life Nutrition Elimination Diet 28-day detox (see phase 1, phase 2, phase 3, and challenge phase. Recipes are compiled in the Whole Life Nutrition cookbook available through Sno-Isle libraries) or

• Another option is this elimination diet with a 7-day menu plan.

Rotating Your Diet

The main thing to be learned is that we need to vary our diets! Food intolerances can be to anything we're eating too much. Common food allergies are to wheat, dairy, corn, soy, eggs, staple foods. Anything we're eating as a staple is likely to become a problem. You could even become allergic to garlic if you're eating it everyday. A good rule of thumb is to not eat any one kind of food more than once for at least every four days. For example, limiting wheat and fish to Monday, oats and pork to Tuesday, Barley and Beef to Wednesday...it all seems kind of challenging to me, so this will be an adventure. Its kind of against the conventional wisdom "eat 48 grams whole grains, 4 glasses of milk, a day."

We'll be trying an elimination diet soon, hopefully, after the New Year, so the holidays don't interrupt. It will be challenging, relieving to know that my family is eating food that doesn't give them reactions.

Candida Yeast cleanse

Due to the overuse of antibiotics, many of us have an overgrowth of candida yeast in our system. This upset of the natural flora and fauna in our system releases toxins into our bloodstream, resulting in a myriad of symptoms.

Jeffrey S. McCombs claims to have the best plan to combat and cleanse from candida yeast, superior to other methods that have failed. However, the six steps must all be followed strictly, or don't even start he states. One of the steps is sweating 6 times a week, so this is going to take some dedication! Its a sixteen-week+ cleanse, too. He says its simple, though. It includes:

1. the diet
2. a sweating regimen
3. water consumption
4. anti-fungal supplement (Candida Force)
5. detox supplement (Detox Essentials, basically vitamin C), and
6. acidophilus supplement (Flora Prime 5 capsules 2 times a day 20-30 minutes before meals)

Above are his recommendations for supplements, which he gets no moneys from but are available through his web site.

It has performed miracles for people that felt hopeless and were labeled by doctors as "hypochondriacs." The saunas are not optional, and remove lots of symptoms and toxins from deep within the tissues. Can't wait to do that.

My question is, since he states we have over 500 naturally occuring symbiotic bacteria in our system, 300-400 living in the gut, how are we to restore all 500 after they're wiped out by antibiotics?

Update Nov 5, 2010:
Read the whole book, and while his cleanse is highly recommended by Kevin Trudeau, author of "Natural Cures They Don't Want You to Know About," McCombs has some pretty strange health philosophies and theories.

My doctor said the basic cleanse (if it doesn't contain the wormwood) from the RENEW plan would be okay during breastfeeding, as would the liver cleanse, and saunas. The heavy metal cleanse she recommended not doing, as when you're detoxing, the toxins can exit through the breast milk. So, why would I want to do any? Also, its okay to use probiotics and acidophilus supplements during breastfeeding, but not the pills that actively destroy the yeast overgrowth. I was a little concerned, as with all three children I will have been on antibiotics for strep B during labor, which upset the balance of bacteria in the gut and could lead to a yeast overgrowth.

RENEW

I had to go to the library to check out a whole bunch of books using the subject keyword "detox diet" to find out more about detoxing. I've learned we're all toxic, its deep in our tissues and especially our fat, and I wanted to know how to get rid of it; particularly heavy metals. The book "The Detox Strategy: Vibrant Health in 5 Easy Steps" by Brenda Watson, C.N.C., with Leonard Smith, M.D., gives the most specific advise, and I felt like she knew what she was talking about.

Her five step plan to RENEW is to:
1. Reduce exposure to toxins in your environment. She explains a few ways we get toxins in our systems, from water systems, chemicals we clean with, and chemicals in our clothes and bedding. Once educated, we can try our best to avoid them.

2. Eliminate Toxins in your body. The body has natural toxin elimination processes, mainly through the liver, but also in six other channels of elimination: the lungs, the liver, the colon, kidneys, skin, blood, and lymph.

3. Nourish your cells and systems. She tells what to eat and drink.*

4. Energize your body, mind, and spirit. (Exercise)

5. Wellness-putting it all together.

On page 100 she tells of four specific cleanses that are recommended, using supplements found in health food stores.

Step One: Total-body basic cleanse (duration: two weeks) (always start with this, then move on to advanced if you want)

Step Two: Total-body advanced cleanse (duration: thirty days)

Step Three: Targeted liver cleanse (30 days, optional)

Step Four: Targeted heavy metal cleanse (30 days, optional)

To aid in the cleansing process she recommends other helps such as digestive enzymes, supplements, dry brushing, saunas, whatever you can do. Too bad I can't do any cleanses while I'm pregnant or breastfeeding. Can't wait. See also the candida yeast cleanse.

These cleanses, she claims, are now widely available. Look for these ingredients on your cleanse:

Total-body basic cleanse
morning formula ingredients:
artichoke
blessed thistle
burdock root
dandelion
echinacea
feugreek
garlic
green tea
hawthorn berry
horsetail
kelp
milk thistle
mullein
nettle
oatstraw
oregano
parsley
red clover
turmeric
wormwood
yarrow
yellow dock
Total-body basic cleanse evening formula ingredients:
buckthorn
flaxseed
marshmallow (Althaea officinalis)
rhubarb
slippery elm
triphala (An ayurvedic formula)

Total-body advanced cleanse
Morning formula:
artichoke
ashwagandha
beet
burdock root
bupleurum
celandine
chlorella
cornsilk
dandelion
hawthorn berry
larch
mullein
milk thistle
red clover
turmeric
Evening formula:
cape aloe
fennel
ginger
magnesium hydroxide
marshmallow
rhubarb
slippery elm
triphala

Liver Cleanse
Morning formula:
alpha-lipoic acid
artichoke
dandelion
green tea
methionine
taurine
milk thistle
N-acetylcycsteine
phosphatidylcholine
selenium
turmeric
Evening formula:
Andographis paniculata
Belleric myrobalan
Boerhavia diffusa
Eclipta alba
Picrorhiza kurroa
Tinospora cordifolia

Heavy metal cleanse ingredients:
Morning
biotin
boron
calcium
chromium
copper
folic acid
magnesium
manganese
molybdenum
selenium
vanadium
vitamin C
vitamin B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12
zinc
Evening:
alpha-lipoic acid
bladderwrack
chlorella
cilantro
garlic
kelp
ceucine
N-acetylcysteine
sodium alginate

*antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, amino acids, essential fatty acids (EFAs), probiotics, enzymes, fiber supplements, lots of water, raw superfoods, green juicing, fruits and nonstarchy vegetables, whole foods vs. processed, wild fish, avoid dairy, avoid salt, limit coffee and tea, and eat 80 percent alkaline and 20 percent acid-forming foods.

Chia Seeds

I tried these the other day, sprinkled on my squash, and they really are tasteless. You could put these in anything. Its amazing how nutritious they are; for example, rich in calcium.

Cold Cereals NOT healthy

One of the most surprising things I read in Michael Barbee's book "Politically Incorrect Nutrition" was that whole grain cold cereals are not good for us. It will be a huge adjustment and totally opposite of what I previously believed. Read more here on page 117.

FED UP!

We watched this documentary. It was pretty good, not quite as modern-techy sophisticated as other movies, and was about Genetically Modified Organisms. They even interviewed one lady that seemed to point out many positive points about GMO, although it seems the evidence weighs against it. Available through WSU libraries.

BPA in milk jugs

So, after making my raw milk google map, I got to thinking about milk containers, and whether they have BPA, and was wondering if after all those phone calls I made if I'd have to make a ton more to ask if they sold in "glass." Well, I googled it, and BPA is a real mess. No one knows what they're talking about when it comes to avoiding BPA. They all contradict each other. I guess I better go to the real sources, like ask Alex (my friend here in Pullman!) or Patricia Hunt, of Washington State University. My husband comes home and says, "Well, after all that hype about BPA, don't you think your milk is BPA-free?" I don't think so. The only things I've seen changed are 1. water bottles 2. baby bottles and 3. home storage containers that all say "BPA free" on them.

Some people in online conversations claimed milk gallons have BPA, others didn't, but those that said they do advised keeping them cool and not re-using them. Then, I thought, what does that mean for recycled milk containers? Does that for sure put BPA (if there is any) in our food?

What really grossed me out is that the cardboard milk cartons are lined with BPA. AAaahh! So, after trying moderately to avoid BPA I get poisoned by WIC and I've totally been eating BPA because they require that you buy milk in "half gallon" and "quart" quantities at times. Thanks a lot, WIC! I went to the fridge, sure enough had a carton, and dumped it down the toilet.

I was doubtful if there was any concern about BPA, and then while watching Homo Toxicus one man stated the biggest danger he sees in our environment is BPA, and that scientific research has shown that harmful affects have been found to occur at 23 parts per trillion.

Other interesting things she points out are flame retardants all over our computers, electronics, couches, furniture, mattresses, etc., and our children are exposed to them all the time. She also visited communities that were highly exposed to toxins, like the Inuit of Canada, and others around industrial plants. She went to the lakes and streams and found deformed frogs unable to reproduce because of all the chemical estrogen-like mimicry polluting the water. Additionally, she found sterility among male agricultural workers that are exposed to dangerous pesticides and herbicides, and there is even a GMO corn that was approved to be used as cattle feed only and banned from human consumption because it causes male infertility in humans, but it actually got into our food supply, which they say was inevitable.

No Impact Man

We just watched this video this week (available at Neill Public Library), and our whole family even my daughter really liked it. "No Impact Man" is a documentary of a New Yorker that tries to not impact the environment at all, phasing out garbage, electricity, etc., over the course of a year. He has his whole threesome of a family in on "the project". Its kind of like a reality show, showing their intimate lives, and it also shows the criticism he gets and how it really is on a family level. They actually liked going green a little bit, and there's some things they'll never go back on. In the end it talks about how he thinks the movement to help the environment is going. This was a feel good movie, and was entertaining.

Consumer Loyalty

WatchMcD's: The Rap He just melts my heartstrings when he hits on trans fat and aspartame, and I get a kick out of what he says to Ronald at the end.

So, as we were watching Super Size Me, we saw the scene of the French magazine article stating the detriments of McD's, and advising people to cut back, and McDonald's totally lashed out and said that column was uncalled for, and it dawned on me amidst all the stuff in the movie that McDonalds should probably be put out of business. Sure, they try to cater healthy and have apples for dipping in happy meals and a larger selection of salads, but we really shouldn't ("shouldn't?") have McD's. (I wasn't particularly anti-fast food except for the price until I learned about MSG this March, and now I wouldn't touch it. Learning about the McFrankennugget tips the scales, too, along with modern cow raising techniques.) Can you imagine though, after they dot the entire world to the nth degree, what it would do if all the McDonald's went empty? What a waste that would be? What an economic adjustment that would be? It would be so good though.

But, that's not what I was first thinking. At first, I turned to my husband, and I can't remember what I said but it was something like it would be so sad to boycott McDonald's, or if they went out of business. "We don't even eat there!" He reminded me. "Right!" I thought. We don't even support them in the first place. But with these corporate heads, do you kind of feel guilty wanting them to go away? The friendly Ronald McDonald? Would you feel guilty wanting McD's to disappear if you saw Ronald McDonald at the local parade driving down the street and waving at you with a friendly-shy smile?

Another story: Christmas season and my husband comes home and tells me he was at ShopKo and there was a Santa Clause there and no one in line for him. He was workless. I felt such a twinge of sadness. I was like "Oh, no, that is so sad," and I got a little emotional. I don't even like the Santa thing; I think it makes kids greedy and parents shopoholics, and there I am getting all emotional over a fictional character, and that's just the thing. A corporation has such an identity, its like a person. So, what I'm asking here, is anyone else like me a whimp when it comes to letting go of these corporate Icons? Do we have too much corporate loyalty? Is it too ingrained in us to trust the Big Business? Would we be sad if the corner grocery went out of business? What if all of Sam's club went out of business? Which would bring more grief?
Then, there's another thing. We're in ShopKo again the other day, and my daughter wants to sit and watch the video playing, and its Toy Story. Now, what kind of story line is it that we have to "feel sorry" for giving our toys to charity, and that they have feelings? I mean, its great to build emotions and empathy, but we all know the story, and its geared towards making bonds with these inatimate toys and clinging to them and bonding to them. I think bonding's great, but what is it teaching that we have to bond to the products people are selling us in the store? Are we that out of touch with human relationships? Its a twisted kind of good message that we all love, but does it make you feel that much more guilty for not treating all our "stuff" developed by Matel and Disney with such sentiment we'd cherish it like life itself instead of making real friends with real people like the neighbor across the street?

Green Cleaners

See WomenAndEnvironment.org

Toxic Chemicals Lobby: Exclusive Leaked Footage

Moms Take Action Against Toxic Chemicals

Headzup: Rocket Fuel In Baby Formula
In case you're wondering about this one, there's lots of stuff in our water. The birth control "pill" taken by many women is not fully absorbed by the body, goes into the sewer, and somehow (don't ask me) ends up in our water supply, as does many other pharmaceutical drugs people are taking. Rocket fuel distills from the air onto plants, etc., and gets into our water supply. A popular study I heard of in Natural Cures says rocket fuel was found in 100% of women's breast milk.

Write Your Government

To contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC):
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580
(202) 326-2618
Fax: (202) 326-2034

To contact the Food and Drug Administration (FDA):
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
5600 Fishers Lane
Rockville MD 20857-0001
(888) 463-6332
Fax: (301) 443-6591

To contact your congressman or senator:
Look in local phone book or visit www.congress.org or www.contactingthecongress.org

To contact the President of the United States:
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comments: (202) 456-1111
Switchboard: (202) 456-1414
E-mail: president@whitehouse.gov
www.whitehouse.gov

Tell 'em what you think. It'd be a good idea to contact food producers, too; questionable ones you're skeptical of, and then good farming practices you support. Its always good to figure out what's in your food.

Brain Food

My husband has this thing with "brain foods". He'd post a list of what they are on the fridge, and say he needed them. The lists consisted of things such as salmon, spinach, blueberries, flax (we both didn't know what flax was). So, I'd buy a few. Then, on test days, he would tell me that I had disappointed him by not having served him a dinner of something from that list. I wasn't quite catching on, and I didn't realize that's what I was supposed to do. Can you really build your brain up overnight, or stimulate it with food for the hours your supposed to take an exam? Weirdo.

Anyway, here's another generic list of brain foods, which I requested from my husband, which he rightly points out would be enhanced if they listed why they actually are brain foods and how they benefit.

List of 50 brain foods
Brain Food Success blog
IncreaseBrainPower.com

Hydrogen Peroxide and Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO)

My husband and I learned from "The Beautiful Truth" how one doctor/researcher theorized that we don't actually get colds from our nose but through our ears, and that by placing hydrogen peroxide in the ears and letting it sit for five or so minutes can prevent a coming cold from breaking. My husband read on the net to have it at room temperature, because the cold hydrogen peroxide in the ears can cause dizziness.

Kevin Trudeau states in his book Natural Cures that using hydrogen peroxide and dimethyl sulfoxide intraveneously is one cure for cancer, stiffled because it doesn't bring in the big bucks like chemo. (Evenidently, he claims, chemotherapy is mustard gas, or a version of it, similar to that used in the Second World War to gas prisoners.)

GDP vs. GPI

"I've researched and written in depth about the large percentage of our economy that's conveniently ignored- waste, pollution, fraud, negligence, planned obsolescence, and other profitable spin-offs. While the Gross Domestic Product continues to climb, the Genuine Progress Indicator ( a more accurate tracking system that subtracts the "bads" from the total) continues to fall. Our official national yardstick doesn't allow us to subtract the oil spills, car accidents, energy waste, and lawsuits from the GDP, to come up with a more sensible assessment on how we are really doing. In terms of GDP, the economic hero is a terminal cancer patient going through a messy divorce, whose sports car is totaled in an accident that was his fault. The data from his misfortunes make the GDP go up. But the reasonably happy guy with a solid marriage who cooks at home, walks to work and doesn't smoke or gamble is an economic nobody, in the eyes of economists." -David Wann in Simple Prosperity

The movie "The Corporation" repeats this point, saying "economists need to learn to subtract."

Lead

The following can be found in Healthy Child, Whole Child by Ditchek and Greenfield, both M.D.s.

Children are exposed to lead mostly through dust, dirt, and water. Lead poisoning results in lowered IQ, learning disabilities, hyperactivity, aggressiveness, and criminal behavior. Early exposure to lead shrinks areas of the brain associated with attention, decision making, and emotional control. "The optimal level for lead in the blood is zero. Federal safe blood-lead levels are set at 10 mcg/dL, though it's known that damage occurs at even lower levels. Reducing our children's exposure to lead will be an expensive undertaking that may require government subsidy, but must be done."

Ways to reduce lead exposure:
1. Buy a testing kit with wipes that turn color in the presence of lead, especially if you live in an older home. Move out during any remodels. Wipe down walls regularly and take off shoes to reduce amount of dust tracked in.

2. Have your child's blood-levels checked at 10-12 mos. and at 2 years.

3. Make sure your children eat foods rich in calcium and iron. Pregnant women need adequate calcium so lead is not drawn from their bones into the blood supply.

4. Test household water for lead using an inexpensive screening kit. Replace pipes if they are accessible and appear to be a problem, or get a filter.

5. Dispose of thermometers, batteries, compact fluorescent light bulbs, etc., as hazardous waste.

6. Request lead checks of schools, day care facilities, community centers, wherever children spend time.

7. Avoid fish and get omega-3 fatty acids through a purified fish oil supplement instead. Check state-by-state freshwater warnings at www.epa.gov.

8. Do not give your children patent remedies from China, India, Mexico, or the Caribbean, which are responsible for up to 30 percent of all cases of childhood lead poisoning.

9. Some candle wicks contain lead as a stiffener, which put enough lead into the air to exceed children's safe daily lead intake. Look for candles guaranteed to be lead free, and be careful in tightly closed rooms.