You Being Aware

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change? - About the Issues

2009-12-14T15:43:00.000-08:00

Official Food, Inc. Movie Site - Hungry For Change? - About the Issues

December's (and final) NYR - A Must-See Film of 2009

2009-12-14T13:55:00.000-08:00

Ready Or Not! It's your last 2009 Earth Shattering/Life Enhancing New Year's Revolution!!

Go to your local video store and rent FOOD INC. It's a documentary film produced by Robert Kenner and Eric Schlooser and features Michael Pollan

I can't stress enough how out of hand the commercial food industry has gotten in the past decade. Where and how our food is grown and processed has been kept a secret from us long enough. Enough to have done a lot of damage to our body's systems and cost us a fortune in health care costs. The film explains why the E.coli virus has become a huge problem in our food supply. How cheap and subsidised (also genetically modified) corn is in practically every food in our supermarkets. Even if you don't eat processed and packaged food you'll get corn in your beef since this cheap grain is feed to cows to get them as fat (resulting in disease) as quickly as possible (as profitable to the growers as possible).

The excuse of not having enough money for quality food will catch up to you in the long run. (pay now or pay your doctor and hospital later)

Because we subsidize corn, we can grab a $99 cent hamburger for lunch so we then spend more on luxury items that are beyond our means but this comes at a tremendous cost to our health and to the environment as well. A cow that is fed corn and lives on a commercial feedlot not only lives a horrible life but contributes to methane gas now known to be a huge contributor to green house gas emissions. Healthy cows fed grass (their natural diet) in a pasture don't produce anywhere close to same amount of methane gas. They don't have the potential of getting and spreading E.coli bacteria and they offer us more much more nutrition depending on the quality of soil the grass is grown in. Our choices create better health for the cow, ourselves and the environment. Our doctor's and hospitals are overloaded enough!

Cast your vote for improved food every time you shop!

Once enough of us votes for clean healthy food by our supermarkets' (hopefully in Co-Ops and farmer's markets) choices we will create the change needed in our commercial food supply. Seek out your local farmers that raise grass fed beef, free-range chickens and eggs and stock up your freezer to save money. Value home-cooked and prepared meals over time spent shopping in the mall. The food industry lobby in Washington D.C. is very strong and works hard to protect the sky high profits it's small group of growers make from the current system in place. The only way they would change their practices is if we stopped frequenting fast food restaurants, gave up on 'corn-filled' packaged food and drinks and purchased only grass-fed & free-range.

Be a force for change!

I know this film will leave you feeling outraged and there are many ways you can get your voice heard. I highly recommend becoming a member of the Weston A. Price Foundation. You can go to their website (I have it posted in my links) to access a wealth of information from getting your voice heard in Washington and congressional updates to expert nutritional advice. Also becoming a subscriber to Dr. Mercola's e-newsletter on his website (see my links) hooks you up to the latest in wellness products and information.

sCongratulations on the changes you have made to improve your health and environment in 2009! Wishing you an even better 2010!

In health and happiness,

-Lisa Mitchell

November N.Y.R. - Need To Lose Weight? Never Cut Calories!!

2009-11-04T19:29:00.000-08:00

If you want to permanently loose weight don't follow a Calorie-restricted Diet!!
You've likely tried some sort of calorie-restricted diet plan since there are currently over 2,000 diet books to choose from. Do people simply eat too much? Nope. The reason obesity is becoming epidemic isn't how much we eat, it's what and when we eat. The great news is that you don't have to starve or punish yourself with hours in the gym to lose weight. HOWEVER, you do need to learn how to eat right in order to bring your body back into balance so that it will function at an optimal level.

Restricting Calories can over-stress your body
By restricting calories, important hormones and enzymes are disrupted. Skipping meals elevates stress hormones followed by releasing stored glycogen from the liver into the blood to raise your blood sugar. If this stress signal is repeated, (yo-yoing between high and low blood sugar) your body is not in an ideal state for losing weight. Eating too many carbs or not enough of the right foods keeps insulin levels high (the body thinks: famine! store energy!) and extra calories can get stored in fat cells. Inactive muscles adds to the problem and you become progressively insulin resistant. A red flag for insulin resistance is fat accumulating in the middle of your body. From there, muscles and fat cells become progressively less sensitive to insulin, blood sugar rises forcing the pancreas to overwork. Eventually, you'll become a Type II diabetic!

This whole process keeps you in a 'fight-or-flight' mode that will leave you tired. Inevitably, people use coffee, soda and sweets to compensate for the energy deficit. Then your adrenal glands get exhausted and chronic fatigue symptoms could result.

Counting Calories approach is seriously flawed
50-70% of all the calories you consume are used to generate the heat and life energy to keep your cells working! Another 5-15% is needed for digestion and elimination. Another variable is the X-Factor or your daily activities and individual body functions based on genetic, hormonal and environmental factors. If you follow fad diets or eat incorrectly for your metabolic type, your blood sugar balance is disrupted, energy production is inefficient and your cells must slow down because your meal is causing stress on your body instead of aiding in smooth operations.
Without the right mix and adequate fuel, you drastically increase your chances of slowing your metabolism and becoming fat.

The link between when you eat and your health
For most, particularly women wanting to restore or elevate their metabolic rate, breakfast should be the largest meal of the day, comprising as much as 25% of your daily calories. All breakfast meals must contain proteins, carbohydrates and fats in the correct ratio for your metabolic type. A proper breakfast provides staying power and energy. Snacks between meals that constantly reassure your body that energy and nutrition are on board often results in an elevated metabolism.

Constantly hungry?
If you are constantly hungry and have gained weight from eating too much you may really be thirsty. In his book, Your body's Many Cries For Water, Dr Batmanghelidj explains that hunger pangs are frequently a symptom of dehydration. Drinking water gives you energy and aids in digestion, enzymatic actions and energy production throughout the body. You are also less likely to consume soda and pick-me-up foods that throw off your blood sugar and cause stress on the body.

Here's what you need to do to lose weight:
1. Eat right for your metabolic type and never diet! (see my May NYR post for info)
2. Eat regularly to satisfy hunger. Consume slightly smaller main meals and include snacks to elevate your metabolic rate.
3. Eat high-quality food
4. Drink plenty of water. Half your body weight in ounces of water per day.
5. Move! Start and maintain an exercise program or take the stairs and walk often.
6. Go to sleep by 10:30pm. Disrupting your sleep/wake cycles puts more stress on your body and increases weight gain because of hormonal imbalances (see August NYR post for info)
7. Give away or recycle your diet books!!

October N.Y.R. - Fats: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

2009-10-02T20:57:00.000-07:00

Unsaturated Vegetable Oils Can Be Toxic???!!!

http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/unsaturated-oils.shtml

This month I am providing a link to a critically important article written by Dr. Ray Peat on unsaturated vegetable oils. This is going to change what you may have considered to be so-called 'Healthy Oils' and this guy has done the research and has the science to back this up. So many recent articles and publications promote EFA's without consideration of rancidity, the formation of harmful free radicals and oxidative damage. We're talking hormone imbalances and immune system damage so this is definitely worth your while to read!!!
Let me introduce you to your new little friend......coconut oil. You're going to live a long, happy and healthy life together!

In Health And Wellness,
Lisa ;-)

Scientific Fact: Perception (beliefs) create your biology (physical health)

2009-09-18T09:40:00.000-07:00

Scientific breakthroughs in the last 10 years will rewrite future textbooks. Just listen to Dr. Bruce Lipton's explanation in my video bar and you will be convinced. (whole lecture is in 7 parts) It's not the nucleus of the cell that powers life...it's the proteins around it that are affected by signals from your environment. Can't blame your heredity or genes for how your life will unfold. Dr. Lipton completely changed his thoughts about how life worked after this discovery became evident. His book is 'Biology of Belief'' and after you read it you realize you are not longer a victim of your circumstances (but instead you have created and continue to create your life from your perceptions/beliefs. Did you think life was random chance?? There is scientific evidence now of this....it's not a 'new-age' theory of how life works.

What you believe about yourself and the world around you has more of an effect on your health than optimum nutrition. Wow...reason enough to make this an very important focus in your life huh?

September N.Y.R. - Burn Your Bra and Trash Your Antiperspirant?!

2009-09-01T11:32:00.000-07:00

Come On Now.......My Bra and/or Antiperspirant Could Cause Cancer????
Well, yes, there is research that shows that the wrong selection of either of these can result, over time, in serious health problems...even cancer. Many physicians and researchers agree that a tight fitting bra can restrict lymph drainage contributing to the development of breast cancer. According to Dr. John McDougall, MD, constricting bras have been implicated in the rise of often painful (sometimes precancerous) benign lumps and cysts.

Far Worse For Your Health Is The Underwire Bra!
As described by Dr. John D. Andre, ND, "under your breasts are two important neurolymphatic reflex points and if a women keeps metal under wire on top of these points, that WILL mess up the functioning of the associated circuits: Liver, Gallbladder and Stomach. Bottom Line: It will make her sick, slowly and quietly." The medical anthropologists and authors of Dressed to Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras, found in their research that overall women who wore their bras 24-hours a day compared to women who didn't wear a bra at all was a 125-fold difference. They also determined that the link between bras and breast cancer was 3 times greater than between breast cancer and cigarette smoking. Japanese researchers found that wearing underwire bras lowers women's melatonin levels by 60%. This hormone is involved in the regulation of your sleep cycles and melatonin has anti-cancer activities, is a powerful antioxidant and prevents DNA damage.

Check Your Deodorant for 'Aluminum'
"Aluminum is a common ingredient found in antiperspirants to stop skin sweating and may be linked to breast cancer", a study by British scientists found. Researchers found aluminum deposits in the outer breast tissue of women with breast cancer who had undergone mastectomies. Aluminum is not normally found in human body. (Some sunscreens also contain aluminum). Other studies also suggest that aluminum on skin tissue may increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease and skin cancer

What You Need To Do: Healthier Options Are Available
If you feel the need for underwire, consider taking a look at BraMakersSupply.com or your local fabric store for swapping our your metal wire for plastic wire (only $2 per pair). If your breasts are on the smaller side look for wire-less styles of bras that come in many styles including ones with extra padding.
Regarding antiperspirants, less problematic than antiperspirants are deodorants. They neutralize the smell of sweat but do not stop sweating. Check out your health food store for aluminum-free deodorants (paraben-free as well). Remember that what you put on your skin is absorbed into your bloodstream eventually.

Smart Choices
Life is all about choices and to me this is a pretty easy one to make when it comes to prevention against one of the leading types of cancer among women. Make a meaningful change that can help you have a healthier body and life.

August N.Y.R. - Important Health Factor: Sleep/Wake Cycles

2009-08-04T12:15:00.000-07:00

What The Heck Is A Circadian Cycle?
Well, it's a natural physiological cycle of about 24 hours that persists even in the absence of external cues. In other words, your natural sleep/wake cycle that we lived by for thousands of years before our world of bright light at the touch of a switch. Whenever light stimulates your skin or eyes, regardless of the source, your brain and hormonal system think it's morning. Your hormonal system naturally releases an activating hormone cortisol. This activates the body and prepares it for movement, work combat or whatever may be necessary for survival. As the day progresses, the levels of cortisol decrease and the body increases it's growth and repair hormone or melatonin.

Natural Sleep/Wake Cycle
As the sun rises, our cortisol levels rise and peak between 6:00am and 9:00am. They drop a little but remain high through midday. From 12:00pm on, cortisol levels begin dropping significantly, especially as the sun goes down. We start to wind down as the sun sets and should fall asleep by about 10:00pm. Physical repairs mostly take place when the body is asleep, between about 10:00pm and 2:00am. After 2:00am, the immune and repair energies are more focused on psychogenic (mental) repair, which lasts until we awaken about 6:00am.

Effects Of The Disruption Of Your Sleep/Wake Cycle
Disrupted cycles prevent the normal release of melatonin, growth hormones, and important immune factors, cutting into your immune system's valuable repair time. People who work graveyard shifts commonly have a laundry list of nagging musculoskeletal injuries, and increased incidence of headaches, a sagging personality and even neurological disorders. Excessive production of cortisol leads to adrenal fatigue which presents itself in any number of ways including chronic fatigue syndrome, viral infections, bacterial and fungal infections and headaches.

Watch Out For
Stimulants - Reaching for caffeine, sugar and tobacco when you get tired in late afternoon excites your sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight response) triggering the release of cortisol. Extending this release throughout the day cuts into your psychogenic repair time. Caffeine, for example, has a half-life of 6hrs so if you have caffeine at 4:00pm, you will still have 1/2 the mg of it in your blood stream at 10:00pm.
Electromagnetic Pollution - Low frequency electromagnetic energies like power lines, electrical circuits in your walls, electrical appliances and TV's can disrupt your natural sleep/wake cycles.
Entrainment - You can be synchronized to a dysfunctional schedule in as little as 7-21 days. If you stay up past midnight long enough and your internal body clock will become trained to wait until midnight to start reducing cortisol output and increasing melatonin production.

What You Need To Do
Go to sleep by 10:30pm !! Minimize your exposure to bright lights for at least 2 hours before going to bed. Sleep in a room that is completely dark. Avoid stimulants after lunch. Eat right for your metabolic type especially at dinner. Drink plenty of water since the body is stressed once dehydrated and will produce stress hormones. Getting some type of exercise during the day will generally help you sleep better at night. Unplug all electrical appliances in your bedroom including TV's, clocks and lights. Also avoid using an electric blanket (read 'Sleep, Biological Rhythms and Electromagnetic Fields' by Chris Maund in the articles section of the website: http://www.chekinstitute.com/.

Nighty Night!!

July N.Y.R - Sugar - The White Devil

2009-07-03T07:32:00.000-07:00

How much are we consuming? You won't believe it!!
Get this....100 years ago, the average yearly of simple sugars was only about 4 lbs per person. Today, the average American consumes 150 to 170 lbs of sugar per year. Not a hard statistic to deny since about 60% of the US population is now overweight or obese.

Sugar's 'evil effects'
Processed sugar is not only a drug, it's a poison. According to Dr William Coda Martin, sugar is a poison because it has been depleted of it's life forces, vitamins and minerals. Only pure refined carbohydrates are left. Incomplete carb metabolism results. Abnormal sugars accumulate in the red blood cells and this interferes with the respiration of our cells. In time, some of these cells will die and this is the beginning of degenerative disease. Daily intake of sugar produces a continuously over-acid condition. Consequently, minerals including calcium are required from body tissue such as bones and teeth to buffer this acidic environment. So much so that decay and weakening begins affecting every organ in the body. The liver will expand and excess glycogen is returned to the blood as fatty acids. These fatty acids are then taken to every part of the body and stored as fat in the belly, thighs, buttocks and breasts. When these areas are filled with fat, active organs such as the heart and kidneys are affected and their tissues degenerate and turn to fat.

Riding A Roller Coaster
When you ingest processed sugar without adequate levels of quality fats, proteins, vitamins and enzymes your blood sugar levels become elevated. Insulin is released to reduce those levels. Then you have a blood sugar crash or hypoglycemic state. Powerful stress hormones like cortisol are released and most people respond by drinking coffee or soda or eating sweets. After a while you can become insulin resistant and accumulate fat around your middle or become syndrome X or the first major step toward becoming diabetic. The up and down overworks the adrenal glands that soon are exhausted manifesting conditions such as allergies, alcoholism, obesity, depression and behavioral problems. The following diseases or side effects skyrockets:
Kidney/liver disease; ADD/ADHD; Overgrowth of Candida, yeast, and fungi; Cancer; Osteoporosis; Chronic fatigue syndrome; Colon Cancer and Neurological Disorders/assoc. Pain.

What you need to do!
READ LABELS!! Food manufacturers know there's an increased awareness with regard to the negative health effects of sugar. To throw you off, they use big words to hide total sugar content. So that they don't list sugar as the first and second ingredient they'll use words like sucrose, maltose, dextrose, fructose, galactose, xylose and the like. Seeing "-ose" on the end of the word is the giveaway. Avoid all sweet drinks, including juices that are not freshly juiced! The words "from concentrate" really means from syrup.

June N.Y.R. - Water - Make Clear Choices

2009-06-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

I Have Some Bad News For Your Folks
We have polluted almost every single water supply in our world. It's hard to find a municipal water supply not contaminated by agricultural chemicals. The EPA has identified over 700 pollutants that regularly occur in our drinking water, both from municipal sources and from water taken directly from the earth through wells and springs. Due to the cost and time required to test for the vast amount of chemicals in our water supplies, we're left on our own to determine where to get safe water. The EPA also reported that commercial agriculture is the biggest polluter of America's rivers and streams.

Elusive Healthy Water
90% of the "developing" world's wastewater is discharged untreated into local rivers. In China, 80% of the country's major rivers are so degraded they no longer support fish. Pollution in our waterways from industrial agricultural has become so bad that when people see a clear blue river or lake they stop and stare!

What You Need To Do
The best way to minimize exposure to heavy metals, chlorine and other waterborne toxins is to use a whole-house filtration system. If it's on your skin, you are basically drinking it so you want to make sure the water you bathe in is as clean as the water you drink. The most health-giving waters to drink have a hardness factor of 170mg/L or greater and TDS of 300 or greater (refer to Dr. Martin Fox's book Healthy Water). Most of the top brands of water are too soft but adding a pinch or two of sea salt (preferably celtic sea salt) or clay solves this. Add this pinch to your glass if you have reverse-osmosis water in your home as well. Be sure to store water in a dark, cool area and in a glass container. Never purchase water from smoky plastic containers since they leak all sorts of chemicals into the water. **Consume water at room temperature or it sits in your stomach until it reaches body temperature!

How Much Water To Consume
Dr. Batmanghelidj's guidelines for normal hydration suggests determining your body weight in pounds, divide it by two and drink that many ounces of water each day. Adding that pinch of sea salt to a liter of water reduces urination frequency.

Displacement Drinks
We were designed to drink only water. Americans today drink twice as much soda as milk and nearly 6 times more soda than fruit juice. This clearly demonstrates the power of advertising and certainly provides proof of the addictive powers of both sugar and caffeine. Adverse health effects from displacing water with soda pop, processed juice or coffee include:
*Tooth decay *Insomnia *Attention Deficit Disorder *Insulin resistance, Syndrome X and diabetes *Sugar and Caffeine Addiction *Increased Chances of Osteoporosis

Bottled Water Choices
Supermarkets are loaded with water choices but many companies have been caught bottling tap water. Some of the top quality brands are: Evian, Volvic, Fiji and Vittel. Artesian well water is ideal. There are even healing qualities to getting addequate amount of water. There have been numerous studies that prove water alone can relieve many chronic symptoms. Check out the book Your Body's Many Cries For Water by Dr. Fereydoon Batmanghelidj.

May N.Y.R. - Eat According To Your Metabolic Type

2009-05-01T17:53:00.000-07:00

Individuality In Diet Is Key

In the highly respected book entitled Biochemical Individuality by Roger Williams, we are just as unique on the inside as we are on the outside and we function differently and have different nutritional needs. Dr. Weston A. Price's investigations of dietary variations among 16 diverse primitive cultures across the globe in the early 1930's revealed how native cultures ate what was ideal for their lineage and geographical region--what was right for their metabolic type. Dr. Price and other pioneering doctors who studied native cultures in the first half of the 20th century found that these people enjoyed robust health and had excellent physiques--until they adopted what Price called a "white man's diet" (and the quality of grains and other processed foods were not as bad then as they are now!!)

Vegetarians Take Note!

In Price's book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, he writes that in all of his journeys he did not come across a single healthy tribe or group that existed on a diet completely free of meat. The tribes that rarely ate meat did so because it was scarce. Primitive Eskimos at the time enjoyed vibrant health and no malignant disease while eating a high-meat diet. Today's so-called nutritional "experts" emphasize the harm caused by high-meat diets (this may be true if the meat source is only commercially-raised meats as previously discussed). The American Dietetic Association tells us to eat lots of grains, cereals and breads when our ancestors thrived on a much different diet.

Are You A Protein, Carb or Mixed Type?
Our digestive systems are only minutely different than those of our ancestors thousands of years ago. Though few of us are really sure of our genetic heritage, we need to return to a diet similar to the one that each of our systems is designed to eat. In the book The Metabolic Typing Diet William Wolcott explains the importance of eating balanced meals for improved nutrient availability and digestive efficiency. The questions he asks in the metabolic typing test helps you fine-tune your senses so that you become acutely aware from meal to meal what your body needs to optimize your genetic potential and suppress your genetic weaknesses. Once you have determined the optimal fuel ratio for your body, you have a starting point for proportioning your meals. Each type has a ratio of meal portions that are from protein, fats/oils, and carbohydrates. Diet plans are given for each type that best support and balance your body chemistry.

Protein Types Ignore The Food Pyramid!

Protein types become chunky, fat and downright miserable if they don't eat more protein and fat than carbs to slow down the digestion of carbs in there bodies. They require the amino acids found in dark meats, red meat, and sardines/anchovies. They have a greater appetite for salt which is okay as long as they only consume unprocessed sea salt. Protein types rapidly burn carbs in their metabolic pathways leaving them with low blood sugar. The body is then stressed in an attempt to raise blood sugar levels resulting in a yo yo fluctuation of hormonal tides and rhythms (melatonin is not released and they don't sleep well). So many seemingly unrelated symptoms will occur that they'll end up making endless doctor visits and receiving an arsenal of medications when they would find relief by simply eating according to their metabolic type.

Carb Types Need To Stay Clear Of Junk Food
Just because you can handle more carbs doesn't mean you can take a muti-vitamin and then eat poorly. Eat real preferably organic food and include some fat and protein at each meal. Full-fat dairy products or fatty meats may make you resort to stimulants like coffee and sugar. Carb types do better eating light meats like chicken breasts, lean meats and light fish.

Mixed Types Must Read The Messages Your Body Gives
You might be the easiest to feed but the toughest to train. You will oscillate back and forth between protein and carb types. You'll likely lean toward one or the other but you won't feel well if you just stick to one pattern of eating and ignore your internal body language.

What You Need To Do:
Read the book The Metabolic Typing Diet by William Wolcott and any books by nutritional experts Sally Fallon and Dr. Mary Enig. Free yourself from calorie counting diets that don't work in the long run because they disrupt important hormones and enzymes. You won't lose weight since eating too many carbohydrates for your metabolic type or skipping just one meal make it more difficult for the body to lose fat.

Tips:
* Eat more above-ground vegetables - lower glycemic index (less sugar)
* Consider carb content of drinks - orange juice has 21.3 grams
* Don't drink alcoholic beverages on empty stomach - causes low blood sugar so you you crave and over-indulge in displacing foods like bread and chips
* Retest your metabolic type every couple of months - it is common to change types as you become healthier

April N.Y.R. - Milk. Does It Really Do A Body Good?

2009-04-04T17:55:00.000-07:00

Should We Consume Dairy Products???
The dairy industry has invested heavily in making us think that we need dairy products as a source of calcium. Reality Check: The availability of calcium as well as other minerals in pasteurized milk is very low. When you look at different cultures that consumed dairy products as an important part of their diets, you see that they used raw dairy. The process of pasteurization destroys most of the enzymes which make it hard for us to digest the milk and it's nutrients properly.

Pasteurization/Homogenization
Pasteurization heats and then quickly chills milk to kill bacteria. The beneficial vitamins and minerals (calcium) are also destroyed in this process. In 1908, doctors, dietitians and health activists condemned this process. Homogenization involves passing milk through a fine filter at 4,000 pounds per square inch pressure to make the fat globules smaller. This alters digestion and can lead to "leaky gut syndrome" (a very common problem today) and as a result food particles can get into your blood stream. An immune response results and this leads to allergies and disease.

Note: The naturally occurring lactic acid-producing bacteria in raw milk protects it from pathogens--until it's killed by pasteurization, that is! Outbreaks from salmonella from contaminated milk in recent decades (there have been a lot of them) occurred in pasteurized milk.

rBGH Hormone: If your milk contains it...you consume it...and it is cancer causing!!
This hormone, Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone, was developed by Monsanto (a company that developed Agent Orange and Aspartame). Genetic material from cows and E. coli bacteria are merged to create a new hormone that, when injected into cows, results in a increased in milk production. Studies have shown that the cows have an increase of insulin-like growth factor in their milk from this. An increase of this hormone is liked to tumor growth. In a study by Monsanto themselves, all the cows given rBGH develop cancer. The members of the FDA (remember now...not your friends) who reviewed the research just happened to be ex-Monsanto employees!!

What you need to do...
If you enjoy milk and dairy products buy raw organic preferably from grass-fed animals. Check with your local dairy farms or co-ops to see if they can offer it to you. (you may need to buy a share in a cow from a farmer if it is illegal to sell raw milk in your state) If you have allergies to dairy, it is likely you are intolerant to gluten as well. Try eliminating both for at least 2 weeks and see how you feel. If you can't get high-quality organic dairy products, avoid eating dairy. There is no need to eat dairy if you consume a variety of high-quality meats and produce. (dark leafy greens are high in calcium)

March's NYR - Bread & Grains: Your Digestion Nightmare

2009-03-01T15:38:00.000-08:00

Surprisingly, Your Health Will Drastically Improve When You Eliminate Grains From Your Diet!!!!!

Most Americans eat far too many processed grains. This is a big problem because most of the grains we are eating today are highly refined, genetically modified and often combined with sugar and rancid vegetable oils.

Humans only began eating grains about 10,000 years ago, long after our digestive systems were developed. Up until 10,000 years ago, the primary staple of the diets of most civilizations was animal meat with the consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds seasonally and supplementary. Although many argue that we must have carbohydrate sources to function, biochemistry reveals that we have the capacity to convert some fat molecules (glycerol) into carbohydrates.

Sprouting Grains Helps

Sprouting grains increases the content of vitamins. More importantly, especially considering that so many of us suffer from indigestion, is that phytic acid, a mineral blocker is broken down in the sprouting process. Since phytic acid is present in the bran of all grains and inhibits the absorption of calcium, magnesium, iron, copper and zinc, our digestive enzymes are then neutralized resulting in digestive disorders. If you experience intestinal gas, eating your grains sprouted breaks down complex sugars that are responsible and also inactivates aflatoxins produced by fungus that are potent carcinogens found in grains.

How to sprout: Soak your grains for at least 12 hours before eating them.

Are You Gluten Intolerant?

Gluten is a specific protein molecule found in wheat, rye and barley. Signs and symptoms are:
* Constipation * Fatigue * Irritable Bowel Syndrome * Muscle and Joint Aches
* Skin Disorders * Headaches * Anxiety * PMS * Depression
Gluten is found in: Wheat, Oats, Barley, Rye, Spelt, Kamut, Amaranth, Couscous, Quinoa and Teff.

It is very important to read all food labels very carefully. Wheat and gluten containing grains are found in many foods including meat products like lunch meat. To check and see if you are intolerant just eliminate all grains for 2-3 weeks and see how you feel. If you feel better, keep gluten out of your diet.

The US Produces Low Quality Grains

Since the 1950's, conventionally-farmed American grains have been low in protein quality and quantity. Starving populations will refuse US produced grains if any other country's grains are offered! This is because experience has showed them that the deficient US grains did little to maintain or improve the health of the starving.

Look Around You

After 130 years of consuming highly processed grains in the form of breads, pastries and cereals, chronic disease is rampant among most industrialized nations. The greatest prevalence of rheumatic disease is in England, which has the greatest consumption of white flour, white sugar and tea per ca pita, while the US runs a strong second.

What You Need To Do

Well by now it's pretty obvious that you need to rethink the idea that eating grains will help you achieve optimal health. Minimizing them and choosing only organic whole or sprouted grain products definitely helps. If you suspect gluten intolerance is a health issue for you, eliminate them all together. Substitute nuts and seeds (helps to satisfy the urge to crunch on crackers, etc.) and to optimize digestion, soak them overnight in water and a little Celtic sea salt (mineral salt from France or the Himalayas). In the morning, spread them on a cookie sheet, set your oven to 150 degrees and slow roast for 12-24 hours. Refer to Sally Fallon's 'Nourishing Traditions' for more info on soaking nuts and sprouting your grains before eating.

February's N.Y.R. - U R What U Eat!

2009-02-01T14:32:00.000-08:00

Unfortunate fact: Most Americans place a higher priority on driving a nice car than eating high quality food

Remember this before you grab a quick snack from a gas station that within hours after consumption you are replacing cells somewhere in your body with this 'non-food'.

Why You Need To Choose Organic
Before a farm can achieve organic certification, fields must be farmed under organic committee guidelines to ensure that chemical residues are digested by microorganisms. Over spray from nearby commercial farms is an issue therefore even organic produce should be washed thoroughly with vegetable wash before consumption. Organic fruits and vegetables are a far better choice because of much higher nutrient levels. You will hear about studies that claim there is no difference but it is because these studies were not valid comparisons. Many of these studies purposely fly in organic produce and let it sit before the testing is done between it and locally grown commercially produce. Eating organic gives your body between 5000 and 10,000 secondary nutrients that are either missing or in lesser quantities compared to commercially grown food. There is a wealth of information suggesting numerous health benefits from increased levels of secondary nutrients. Healing effects include cancer prevention and an increased level of potent antioxidants.

Choose High-Quality Sources of Animal Products
Here's the bottom line. Cows, sheep, buffalo were designed to eat grass. Most commercially raised cows are fed grain that quickly makes them fat. Cows often become sick from eating grain. It gets worse. Some commercial meat producers add cardboard, sawdust and newspaper to cattle feeding programs to reduce costs. Factory farm chickens are raised in tight cages, never see the light of day, and fed a constant supply of antibiotics. The USDA inspections allow chickens that have sores, cancer tumors, lymphomas and intestinal worm diseases for human consumption as long as the above lesions are cut out first. Isn't that nice to know. Organic is a good choice but the animal may just be getting organic grains instead of a diet ideal for it's makeup. Your best option is locally grown organic/grass fed and second best is grass fed.

An Egg Is Only As Good As The Bird
Mother nature produces eggs that have a ratio between 1:1 and 1:4 of omega-3 to omega-6. A typical commercially raised chicken egg will be as high as 1:16-30. Too much omega-6 fatty acid facilitates the process of inflammation in our bodies. Look for locally grown free range chicken eggs at your local farmers market for an excellent source of protein and fat.

Eat Fish Safely
Only 100 years ago our oceans produced an excellent source of organic plant and sea life. Today most of our oceans are toxic. Be aware that swordfish, shark, tuna and other deep water fish accumulate more mercury than smaller fish with shorter life spans. Avoid fresh water fish unless it comes from high mountain lakes and streams far from commercial enterprises. Avoid farm-raised fish. The omega 3:6 ratios for farm-raised fish are about the same as a cage-raised chicken eggs.

Here's What You Need To Do
This month make an effort to seek out local ranchers/farmers that sell grass fed and/or free range beef, chickens, eggs, and organic vegetables/fruit. Buying direct from a local farm and stocking up you freezer saves time and money. Check out any local Farmer's Co Op markets as well. Unfortunately this time of year most Northern States locations only offer out of state produce but in warm months buy local. Keep in mind that the extra cash for these high quality foods are going to save you in the long run. You'll be healthier and have decreased doctor visits (prescription medications) and require less vitamin supplements to maintain health.

Throw me a Lifeline!!

2009-01-23T14:46:00.000-08:00

Check out February's Oprah Magazine!
If only for the great interview with Tina Fey. LOVE HER!!! I also loved the article written by the great life coach Martha Beck about our 'Bete Noire' or 'black beast' residing in most of us. (me fo sho) Some examples of this would be depression, chronic pain, or a hot temper. She explains the usefulness of a Lifeline graph to show us the relationships between events or stages of our lives and reoccurring physical symptom or emotional imbalance. When we are off-track from our life's purpose is usually when we are at or near the intensity of a ten as opposed to being a symptom-free zero. This is a useful tool that I wanted to pass along.

Speaking of February, your next N.Y.R. is coming soon! Have those cupboards cleaned out yet? You should start noticing a difference in how you feel after ridding your body of destructive chemicals, additives and preservatives. You may even feel yucky like I did. The toxins stored in fat tissue could give way into your blood stream when you eat healthier and avoid the bad stuff. This toxin release can cause temporary fatigue and if you are like me you get a bad cold. This isn't unusual and when it's over you know that you have cleaned up your system and vibrant health is on it's way. Nurture yourself for now and stay with the program. Great Job Trooper!

January's N.Y.R. - Rid Your Kitchen Of Non-foods

2009-01-10T16:48:00.000-08:00

Reading labels is muy importante!
Most of the food people purchase is a non-food. This is a food that costs more in nutritional value to digest, absorb and eliminate than it delivers. In other words, processed foods. By reading food labels, you'll discover how many ingredients (those gigantic & strange words) you can't pronounce and don't know. The FDA currently lists 2,800 food additives and about 3,000 chemicals that are deliberately added to our food supply each year!

The FDA is not your friend
The FDA doesn't require any food additive 'Generally Regarded As Safe' (GRAS) to be listed on the label. All you see is "artificial flavor". The FDA allows food & food additive manufacturers to notify them of the GRAS status and provide their own evidence to support their claim. Basically we are being treated as guinea pigs. How could your doctor be expected to determine what it is that caused you to suffer an adverse reaction to a food you ate with all these GRAS food additives missing from food labels? Many food manufacturers use the word 'Natural' to get you to buy their products. Well, insects and mercury are 'Natural' and are just some of the natural items that end up in your food.

What you must do
Commit to spending an evening or afternoon going through your pantry, cabinets and refrigerator and checking labels. If the label has a long list of ingredients you can't pronounce, set it out on the counter. The next step is to separate the perishables from non-perishables. Put the non-perishables in bags or boxes and when you have time, take them to your local food bank or favorite charity. If they take the perishables, great, otherwise throw them away.

Sinister ingredients to BE AWARE of
Particularly harmful ingredients that you should know about are:

Trans fatty acids, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils - structurally TFA's are closer to plastic than fat. Consumption of these fats have been linked to heart disease and elevated cholesterol levels, sexual dysfunction, and paralysis of the immune system.

Aspertame - (also known as 'Nutra-Sweet' or 'Equal') This is an artificial sweetener found in diet sodas and drinks. It has resulted in more complaints to the FDA due to side effects than any food additive ever approved in FDA history. Artificial sweeteners have also been found by researchers to be a neurotoxin that can damage the brain and nervous system. Watch out for it in chewing gum and mints as well.

Sucralose found in 'Splenda' and many food products including OTC Meds like rolaids and in listerine mouthwash, is a known carcinogen. Sucralose is synthesized by a five-step process that involves hydrogen chloride and other deadly chemicals. (Smart to steer clear of ingredients ending in -ose as it is another name for sugar that manufacturers likely hope will go unnoticed)

MSG - Monosodium Glutamate is a neurotoxic substance that causes many adverse reactions like dizziness, diarrhea and anaphylactic shock. Long-term - Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.

Nitrates - These are usually found in processed meats like sausage, lunch meats and bacon. They are potent carcinogens that have been liked to cancer of the esophagus, stomach, large intestine, bladder and lungs.

High-Fructose Corn Syrup - A highly over used sweetener (1,000 percent increase in consumption between 1970 and 1990) that has been implicated in a rise of type 2 diabetes, obesity and other health problems. A new study suggests that a diet high in high-fructose corn syrup may lead the body to develop a resistance to a protein called leptin which helps control appetite.

Congratulations! Completing this month's N.Y.R is monumental. Now remember to read labels when you shop from now on. Keeping all these non-foods out of your life will give your body more energy to repair and rebuild so you can start feeling your very best!

New Year's Revolution

2009-01-07T14:30:00.000-08:00

You say you want a revolution?
What could that mean? How about a sudden, complete, or radical change in your life? A procedure or course back to a starting point in your life? The orbiting of your heavenly body around another? (humm..who might that other body be?) To roll back a cycle of events in time perhaps? Yeah, those all qualify as revolutions all right. The first definition of revolution is likely what you are ready for right? We all want to change our world.

Most of us don't stick to our New Year's Resolutions.
Resolution is not a strong enough word for us anymore. What we could use is a uniformed soldier (or picture Jack Nickelson as he makes a living being intimidating) shouting out our orders. We see the urgency to follow the commander...my god it's life or death here...and we get results and a true revolutionary change occurs. It's this 'urgency to act' and 'life or death thought' that is missing and keeping us from creating the change we desire in our lives. My offering to you is this missing ingredient (a jalapeno ought da do it). I want for you, which has worked for me, to be motivated to create positive lasting change.

Ten Hut!
Your orders are to implement each new monthly 'revolution' that I give you. Each one promises to create a positive change that will increase your physical, mental and spiritual health. If you don't have your health, you really don't have anything right? You know it's a fact as do I. By December 2009, you will be looking forward to the next year's revolutions having enjoyed increased health/vitality and valuable insight after one year's time.

About Face!
On with a fresh new year and the promise of a new way of living that will impact your life in numerous ways. When you receive and follow through with these New Years revolutions, a huge transformation will result in your life by years end. You'll feel that sense of urgency and a sudden, complete change is made and adhered to. On and On until you are so much more AWARE in your life that you can't wait to share what you know with others. I must caution you that touting your positive life-altering changes will likely be met with resistance. Don't be negatively influenced by this. Just focusing on you can create a ripple-effect on it's own.

Keep in mind
There is tremendous power in the act of making a positive, lasting change. This positively affects the lives of all those orbiting around this permanent shift. These affected lives revolving around you are transformed and a wave of revolutionary change is underway. You and the world of those around you are changed....for the better....and you know it's gonna be alright.