"When you look at an apple, some people would say the non-organic apple is cheaper than the organic apple. But when you factor in what you're receiving in terms of vitamins, minerals, etc., the organic apple—on that basis—is cheaper than the non-organic apple."

— Jerry Kay, on Beyond Organic

Recipe: avocado salsa

Avocado Salsa

3 ripe organic avocado's

1 small red onion

1 stalk of celery

1 large tomato

1 large green chili

3 T chopped parsley

1 clove garlic

dash of Celtic sea salt

1 T fresh lemon juice

Chop all ingredients into very small pieces and place in a serving bowl, add in the lemon juice and stir to combine. Chill for 1-2 hours and serve. I like to add freshly ground pepper to the top of mine. Wrap in a romaine leaf or serve with your favorite raw corn chips or tortillia's. Or just eat it straight out of the bowl.

Recipe: Chocolate Raspberry Rhapsody Cake

source: rawgoddesshealthy.blogspot.com

Raspberry Chocolate Rhapsody Cake

Chocolate Brownie Layer:

2 cups walnuts

2 cups pecans

1 cup pitted dates

1/3 cup cacao

1/3 cup carob

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 Tbs water

Place walnuts and pecans in a food processor and process until ground.Add dates, cacao, carob and vanilla extract. Process until well mixed.Add the water and process briefly.

White Chocolate-Raspberry Layer:

(Adapted from Vanessa Sherwood's wonderful White Chocolate-strawberry Cheesecake)

1 cup frozen raspberries, thawed

1/2 cup cashews and/or macadamia nuts

3 Tbs melted coconut butter

1 Tbs melted cacao butter

2 Tbs honey or agave1 tsp lemon juice

Pinch of salt

Blend in Vita-mix or high speed blender until smooth.

Here's Carmi's cake - doesn't it look amazing?

Coconut Vanilla Creme Topping:

1 cup young coconut meat
1/4 cup coconut or regular water
1/2 cup cashews, soaked
2 Tbs coconut butter, melted
1 Tbs honey or agave
2 tsp vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Blend in Vita-mix or high speed blender until smooth. Put it fridge or freezer to thicken up.

Assembly:
In a springform pan or large plastic margarine tub lined with saran wrap, layer 1/2 of the chocolate mixture, followed by 1/2 of the raspberry mixture. Put in freezer to set. Then repeat. Again, let set in the freezer.When the last raspberry layer has firmed up, gently transfer the cake onto a serving plate. Cover with the Coconut Vanilla Cream topping. If desired, decorate with chocolate sauce (just mix 1 part melted coconut oil with 1 part agave or maple syrup and 1 part cacao powder) and/or fresh raspberries.

Close your eyes and savor how scrumptious raw desserts can be!

Some Uses for Vinegar

Some Frugal Uses For Vinegar

FOOD
*When peeling onions, rub your fingers with white vinegar before and after peeling to remove odor.
*Use vinegar to fight fish odors. Put a little in the water when poaching fish. Rub hands with vinegar to eliminate fishy smell.
*To rid your house of cooking smells simmer of pot of vinegar and water.
*Some of the salty taste in salt-water fish will disappear after soaking in vinegar and rinsing under running cold water.
*Keeps eggs from cracking when boiling by adding 2 Tablespoons to water.
*When poaching eggs, the whites will set better if a tablespoon of vinegar is added to the water.
*Stop mold on cheese by wrapping in a vinegar soaked cloth.
*For a moist and fluffy chocolate cake, try adding a teaspoon of vinegar to the baking
soda.
*Tenderize meat by soaking overnight or rub on both sides and let sit 2 hours.
*Add to water when boiling vegetables to retain color.

CLEANING~KITCHEN
*Crystal glasses and dishes will glisten if you add a few teaspoons of vinegar to the soapy water when washing them.
*Use equal parts of white vinegar and salt to clean out coffee and tea stains stains from your china.
*If you use a dishwasher, a few teaspoons of vinegar added to a cheap dishwashing detergent will cut the grease and make dishes sparkle.
*Lime deposits around faucets can be softened for easy removal by covering the deposits with vinegar-soaked paper towels. Leave the paper towels on for about one hour before cleaning. Leaves chrome clean and shiny
*To clean garbage disposal, freeze vinegar ice cubes and then feed them in the disposal.
*You can clean a scorched iron plate by heating equal parts vinegar and salt in a small pan. Rub solution on the cool iron to remove the stains.
*Cuts grease and freshens dishes when washing them.
*The film that sometimes remains on a floor after washing can be eliminated by adding white vinegar to a pail of water and rinsing the floor.
*Wipe oven to prevent grease build up.
*To clean the microwave, boil a solution of 1/4 cup vinegar to 1 cup water. Put it in the microwave and the steam will loosen splattered on food particles.
*The stains in non-stick pans can be removed by boiling together 1/2 cup vinegar, two tablespoons baking soda, and one cup of water in the pan for 15 minutes.
*A little vinegar and salt boiled in a cast iron skillet will remove the charred food. The outside of the skillet can be cleaned by using oven cleaner.

Spray thoroughly, then let it set for an hour. The stains and crustations can be easily removed with vinegar and water.
*A cloth soaked in vinegar will remove spots from stainless steel.
*To clean brass mix equal parts of salt and flour with enough vinegar to make a paste. Spread thickly on and let dry. Rinse and wipe.
*Cleans and disinfects wood cutting boards, counters, the refrigerator, microwave, etc. Wipe with full strength vinegar.
*Deodorizes the kitchen drain. Pour a cup down the drain once a week. Let stand 30 minutes and then flush with cold water.
*Mix vinegar with salt to create a paste for a good surface cleaner. It really cleans tarnished copper.
*Cleans grout.
*Cleans your washing machine and dishwasher. Add vinegar and run through a regular cycle to dissolve detergent residues.

HOUSEHOLD
*A window decal can be removed by painting it with vinegar. When it has thoroughly soaked for a few minutes, it can be wiped off easily. Also works well for other sticky substances such as price tags, jar labels, etc.
*Removes deposits which clog your metal shower heads and sink aerators.
Combine 1/2 cup white vinegar and one quart water submerge the shower head or aerators and boil 15 minutes.
*A quarter cup in a quart of water makes a good window cleaner. Dry with a soft cloth or newspaper to prevent streaking.
*Another good window cleaner can be made with 1/2 cup ammonia, 1/2 cup white vinegar and two tablesppons carnstarch in a bucket of warm water.
*Cleans your iron. Put equal amounts of vinegar and water into water holder. Put on the steam setting and let set 5 minutes. Cool and drain.
*Narrow-necked vases can be cleaned easily by putting in two tablespoons of
vinegar and a little rice and then filling with hot water. Let the solution stand for a few minutes, then shake well.
*Air freshener, used with baking soda - use 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1
tablespoon vinegar and 2 cups of water. After it stops
foaming, mix well, and
use in
a (recycled) spray bottle into the air.
*To clean wall paneling, mix one tablespoon white
vinegar and one tablesppoon
olive oil in a quart of warm water. Dip soft cloth in
the warm solution,
wring it out well and use to rub down paneling. Dry
with a soft cloth.
*Cleans calcium deposits, lime, and scum. Great for
humidifiers, tubs and
wash basins.
*Set a container (shallow bowl) of vinegar throughout
the house to absorb
unpleasant odors. Works great on burned food odors. Do
not use styrofoam. It
will
soak thru it.
*To unclog a drain toss a handfull of baking soda down
the drain and add 1/2
cup of
vinegar following by hot water.
*Film that accumulates in your bathtub can be removed
by soaking and
scrubbing with vinegar.
*Chewing gum dissolver - saturate the area with
vinegar. If the vinegar is
heated, it will work faster.

CLOTHES
*Eliminate soap residue by adding 1 cup of white
vinegar to the washer's
final rinse. Vinegar is too mild to harm fabrics but
strong enough to dissolve
alkalis in soaps and detergents.
DO NOT USE VINEGAR IF YOU ADD CHLORINE BLEACH TO YOUR
RINSE WATER. IT MAY
PRODUCE HARMFUL VAPORS.
*Stain remover (pre-soak).
*Since vinegar also breaks down uric acid, add 1 cup
vinegar to the rinse
water for babies' clothes.
*Removes perspiration odors and stains.
*Hang clothes that smell of smoke above a bathtub full
of hot water and a cup
of vinegar to steam.
*Use instead of fabric softener when you wash your
clothes.
*If you buy a piece of clothing or fabric that you
think will bleed, set the
colors in fabric. Add 1 cup white vinegar to 1 gallon
of water. Soak fabric in
this solution until the fabric stops bleeding.
*Use diluted 1:1 in water to take pet odors out of
carpets. Find the spot,
and saturate it with about 1 1/2 times the original
volume. Let set for awhile
then blot up. Repeat if your cloth is very dirty after
blotting.
*Periodically pour a cup of vinegar in the washing machine and let it run through the regular cycle in order to freshen up your washing machine. This will dissolve the soap residue.

BEAUTY
*To get rid of flaky skin or the remnants of last summer's tan, add a cup of natural cider vinegar or the juice of three fresh lemons to your bathwater. Slough away the dead skin cells with a dry sponge or brush.
*Like baking soda, it will also remove residue left by shampoo from hair, as well as help control dandruff.
*Cleans Eye Glasses.

PLANTS
*Flower last longer when fed with 2 tablespoons vinegar and 1 teaspoon sugar.
*Use at full strength to kill unwanted grass and weeds.
*If you have alkaline soil and are trying to grow rhododendrons, azaleas or other acid loving plants, add to water before watering.

PEST CONTROL
*Put it in a spray bottle and use it as an insecticide. Used in large amounts it also deters animals.
*Deters dogs from scratching ears by applying it on their bodies.

MEDICINAL
*Apple cider vinegar are soothe an upset stomach. Drink two teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in a cup of water.
*Sunburns~rub lightly to relieve burn.
*Sore Throat? Just mix 1/4 cup of vinegar with 1/4 cup of honey and take 1 tablespoon six times a day. The vinegar kills the bacteria.
*For dry, itchy skin add to bath water.
*Apply to bee strings to relieve itching.
*Apply to burns for pain relief.
*Bruises~soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and apply it to the bruise for 1 hour. The vinegar reduces the blueness and speeds up the healing process.

IN THE YARD
*Use vinegar to kill weeds. Spray full strength on plants until plants have starved.
*Kill unwanted grass growing on driveways or in sidewalk cracks.

China Says Greenhouse Gases Catch up with US

China says greenhouse gases catch up with U.S.
By Emma Graham-Harrison and Chris Buckley
Wed Oct 29, 2008

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE49S0GB20081029
http://www.reuters.com/articlePrint?articleId=USTRE49S0GB20081029

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's greenhouse gas emissions have caught up with the United States and will not fall any time soon, a top Chinese official said on Wednesday, while warning of a huge economic blow from global warming.

The comments from Xie Zhenhua, a deputy chief of the National Development and Reform Commission who steers climate change policy, marked China's first official acknowledgement that it could already be the world's biggest greenhouse gas polluter.

Many experts believe China's output of carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas from burning fossil fuels, has already outstripped the United States, for over a century the world's biggest emitter.

Until now, however, Chinese officials have hedged on the issue and have released no new government data on emissions growth for the past 14 years. Nor did Xie give specific numbers.

"Based on information we have at hand, our total emissions are about the same as the United States," he told a news conference to release a government paper on climate change.

"Whether or not we have surpassed the United States is not in itself important," he added, noting that rich countries during their own economic take-offs had produced nearly all the greenhouse gases from human activity already in the atmosphere.

Official acknowledgement that China could be the biggest emitter is unlikely to shift Beijing's position on climate change. But it underscores the giddying expansion of the nation's power plants, factories and vehicles, and may add international pressure on it as the world enters an intense phase of negotiations over a new global warming pact.

Even several years ago, scientists expected China to surpass the United States in CO2 emissions only in 2019 or later.

The U.S. Oak Ridge National Laboratory has estimated the United States emitted 1.6 billion tonnes of carbon from burning fossil fuels in 2007, compared to China's 1.8 billion tonnes.

Total world emissions were about 8.5 billion tonnes.

UNEASY IMPERATIVES

Beijing has said it wants to combat climate change yet ensure China's economic take-off is not dragged down. Xie's comments and the government "white paper" reflected the uneasy fit between those concerns.

China faces shrinking harvests, worsening droughts in some regions, worsening floods in others, and melting glaciers as average global temperatures rise, the report warns.

"Climate change has already brought real threats to China's ecological system and economic and social development," said Xie.

But the report released by Xie also says China will nonetheless increase emissions of carbon dioxide, as it seeks to lift hundreds of millions of its poor into prosperity.

"China will strive for rational growth of energy demand," it states. "However, its coal-dominated energy mix cannot be substantially changed in the near future, thus making the control of greenhouse gases rather difficult."

Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases trap solar radiation, threatening to heat the atmosphere to levels that scientists warn could unleash disastrous disruption.

China will be at the heart of efforts to forge a successor to the current Kyoto Protocol, which expires at the end of 2012. Governments hope to reach agreement by the end of 2009.

Under the current Protocol, poor nations do not assume targets to curb emissions. But the European Union wants developing nations to sign on to firmer goals, and Washington has refused to ratify Kyoto partly because it says the treaty is ineffective without Beijing's acceptance of mandatory caps.

Xie pointed out that China's per capita emissions of its 1.3 billion people remain much lower than rich countries', and about a fifth of the U.S. average per person.

He also said about a fifth of the country's emissions came from making goods for export, and called on consumer nations to shoulder some responsibility for this.

On Tuesday, a Chinese official said developed countries should devote 1 percent of their economic worth to helping developing countries combat climate change.

Xie offered a more precise estimate of how much money China expects rich countries to give poor ones to fight climate change.

"I think it would be okay if at least 0.7 percent of developed countries' GDPs is used to help developing countries respond to climate change," he said.

This would mean a total $284 billion a year if all members of the OECD (Organization for Co-operation and Economic Development) paid up based on the size of their economies in 2007.

CO2 Curbs May Be Too Late For Reefs

CO2 curbs may be too late for reefs, study warns
by David Adam, environment correspondent
The Guardian
Monday October 27 2008

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/oct/27/coral-reefs-co2-wildlife-conservation/print
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/oct/27/coral-reefs-co2-wildlife-conservation

A new global deal on climate change will come too late to save most of the world's coral reefs, according to a US study that suggests major ecological damage to the oceans is now inevitable.

Emissions of carbon dioxide are making seawater so acidic that reefs including the Great Barrier Reef off Australia could begin to break up within a few decades, research by the Carnegie Institution at Stanford University in California suggests. Even ambitious targets to stabilise greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere, as championed by Britain and Europe to stave off dangerous climate change, still place more than 90% of coral reefs in jeopardy.

Oceanographers Long Cao and Ken Caldeira looked at how carbon dioxide dissolves in the sea as human emissions increase. About a third of carbon pollution is soaked up in this way, where it reacts with seawater to form carbonic acid. Experts say human activity over the last two centuries has produced enough acid to lower the average pH of global ocean surface waters by about 0.1 units.

Such acidification spells problems for coral reefs, which rely on calcium minerals called aragonite to build and maintain their exoskeletons.

"We can't say for sure that [the reefs] will disappear but ... the likelihood they will be able to persist is pretty small," said Caldeira.

The new study was prompted by questions by a US congressional committee on how possible carbon stabilisation targets would affect coral loss.

I think he drinks too much coffee

www.haroldsplanet.com

What Aromatherapy Do You Need?

What Aromatherapy Do You Need?
Adapted from The Essential Oils Book
by Colleen K. Dodt (Storey Books, 1996).

http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/bms/989

Take this fun and easy quiz to discover which essential oils you need in
your life right now!

Stressed? Craving peace or a good night’s sleep? This quiz can help you
choose the right scent. There is even an essential oil that can help you
avoid overeating!

We also include a great, easy formula for a simple cologne base that you
can start making now to customize later for yourself, or as a gift for
family or friends in the season of gift-giving.

A note from Annie and Cait: Many of us are sensitive to artificial
fragrances. We encourage you to use only pure essential oils, diluted and
with caution. Pregnant women, and those with serious health problems,
should always consult a physician before using essential oils.

1. Do you feel tired a lot?

2. Are you sometimes sad and moody?

3. Do you feel as if you could really use a lift?

4. Do you need to feel more energized?

5. Do you sometimes overeat?

6. Have you been having some pretty big mood swings lately?

7. Do you sometimes wake up in the middle of the night, unable to get back
to sleep?

8. Do you feel anxious?

9. Do you feel stressed and pressured?

10. Are you sleeping poorly?

11. Could your sex life use a little more sparkle?

If you answered yes to questions 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, or 10 try these
anti-depressant oils:
Bergamot, Clary sage, jasmine absolute, lavender, lemon, sweet orange,
patchouli, peppermint, rose, rose geranium, rosemary, rosewood,
sandalwood, ylang-ylang

If you answered yes to number 5, try this oil to Avoid overeating:
Grapefruit oil

If you answered yes to 2 or 6, these oils help To balance mood swings:
Bergamot, Grapefruit, Jasmine absolute, juniper, sweet orange, rose,
rosewood

If you answered yes to 11, these oils are considered to be Aphrodisiac:
Clary sage, jasmine absolute, patchouli, rose, sandalwood, ylang ylang

If you answered yes to number 1, 7, or 10, try these oils To aid in deeper
sleep:
Clary sage, lavender, rose, rose geranium, ylang ylang

If you answered yes to 5, 7, 9, or 10, try these oils To reduce stress and
tension:
Grapefruit, lavender, rose, rose geranium, rosewood, sandalwood, vanilla,
ylang ylang

If you answered yes to 7 or 10, try these oils To reduce anxiety:
Jasmine absolute, lavender, lemon, sandalwood, ylang ylang

If you answered yes to number 1, 3, or 4, these oils are considered
Rejuvenating:
Lemon, peppermint

Making it Fun! Avoiding Boredom and Nutritional Deficiencies on a Raw Food Diet

Making it Fun!
Avoiding Boredom and Nutritional Deficiencies on a Raw Diet
By Frédéric Patenaude

source: fredericpatenaude.com

"Someone's boring me. I think it's me."
Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953)

The scene looks like this: you're hungry, you're alone, and you're
going to eat another meal of romaine lettuce, tomatoes and avocados.
And you're bored. And these avocados are starting to be less
interesting than ever. And it's raining outside, and cold, and damp.
And you're wondering, is the fun of eating raw gone? Will I be able
to eat like that forever? Can this really be healthy?

As pure and as simple as our raw meals can be, there comes a point
for most of us where boredom can set in, when we require more variety
or friends to share food with, else we will might face two things:
lack of enthusiasm and inadequate intake of nutrients.

I've told people that simplicity is best. That a simple meal of ripe
mangoes when you're hungry beats the best raw or cooked pie you've
ever had. That making a great salad doesn't necessarily involve
putting everything but the kitchen sink in it and that, too often,
raw recipes are too complicated and, as a consequence, difficult to
digest. However, I did not mean that it is better to be a sad ascetic
than a merry epicurean.

It may be because I'm a bit of an epicurean myself. I love food and,
since I seem to be endowed with a few culinary talents, I get never
bored. I like to vary my diet and introduce new fruits, new nuts, new
vegetables and new recipes. And I encourage you to do the same for
two things. First being bored isn't fun. Second, it might not be
healthy either.

I've noticed a few things in raw foodists. They don't seem to vary
their diet a lot. They often stick with the few foods that they like.
I've noticed for example that many raw-foodists eat avocados
everyday. Others eat almonds everyday. Many raw-foodists told me that
they eat a meal of romaine lettuce, avocados, sprouts, and tomatoes
everyday. Sometimes they add some red bell pepper. Others bananas for
lunch and nothing else almost every day of the year. Is this supposed
to be what simplicity is about? Always eating the same thing? Is this
natural?

Chimpanzees are know to eat over 120 different varieties of plant
food in a year. While carnivorous animals always eat the same and
never get bored, frugivores seek variety. Most of us, too, have been
raised on a varied diet. When someone only eats porridge and potatoes
every day, we know that things are not going well for him. As human
beings we are used to variety and, if we don't have variety, it's
usually because of a lack of means or sheer incapacity to cook (many
divorced men find themselves in that situation!).

On a raw diet, variety is even more important because raw fruits and
vegetables provide nutrients in a less concentrated, more diluted
form. Thus, a certain vegetable may lack in many important nutrients,
which are compensated by what other vegetables can provide. It is not
enough to look at the charts and calculate our nutritional intake
because these numbers are wrong. A tomato grown in a farm in
California doesn't have the same nutritional value as another tomato
grown in a local garden or one grown in a hothouse. The only way we
can insure proper nutrition on a raw diet is by constantly varying
the foods we eat according to the season. Let's review a few pieces
of advice and add some more:

1) Vary the fruits -- It's easy to get stuck eating one food that we
like and forget everything else. I know, personally, that when
grapefruits are in season, I can eat 2-3 every morning and forget
about the other types of fruit. But fruit is fun. Fruit is what makes
the raw diet a lot of fun, especially when we include exotic fruits
in the menu. So I suggest constantly varying the fruits that you are
eating and discovering as many tropical fruits as you can. A durian
cure once a year is allowed.

2) Eat according to the seasons -- When I tell people to eat
seasonally, most of them don't understand. They think, if something
can be bought in a store, it means it's in season, right? Partly.
It's in season somewhere, but not necessarily in your hemisphere!
Let's consider the following: cherries are in season during the
summer, but in our side of the world. So the cherries you may buy may
be imported, but they are in season for you. If you find cherries in
the stores in the middle of the winter, this means they have been
imported from a far away country like Chili, which is situated in the
southern hemisphere where the seasons are reversed! It is not only
completely un-ecological to import foods from that far away, but the
fruit is also picked way too early and eating it at that time doesn't
follow our own biological rhythm.

3) Eating simply doesn't mean eating just one food at a meal -- I
don't believe in mono-eating in the sense that every meal should be
ideally composed of one food alone. I think this way of eating leads
to abuse. For example, pineapples and oranges are acid. If we eat
only these fruits at one meal, we'll likely eat too many of them to
satisfy our hunger and introduce too much acidity in the system.
Dates are too sweet. Plums contain a particular acid which can give
you the runs if you eat too much. Melons and papayas are rich in
water but a meal of them doesn't satisfy. So I recommend, when eating
fruit, eating 2-3 varieties, ideally not more than that. And if you
like, you can eat them one at a time like a true mono-eater.

4) Vary your vegetables -- Your mum told you "Eat your vegetables!"
And she was rights. But the chances are that even as a raw-foodist
you may not be listening to her. First you may not be eating enough
vegetables, and second you may not vary them enough. To eat enough
vegetables, you have to be creative. A salad can get boring. So put
your salad in the blender and make a raw soup sometimes! Check out
some raw soup recipe books for ideas. Green vegetable juices are also
extremely beneficial, and I recommend to drink some every day, if
possible. I like my green juice to be tasty, so I mix enough celery
juice in it and sometimes add a little bit of carrot and beet juice
too. And as for variety, the key is to make the base of your salad
out of a different vegetable every time and discover the unknown
varieties.

5) Don't eat avocados everyday -- This is my advice for raw-foodists.
Most of them tend to eat too many avocados and too often. Consider
the avocado as one type of fatty food, not the staple of a raw diet.
I suggest eating avocados no more than once every other day. Try to
eat some nuts instead, and discover new varieties. Seeds are also
excellent. Hemp seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds and sesame seeds
should be added to the menu more often. This will help provide a
wider range of nutrients that avocados alone could not provide.

6) When in doubt, blend it up -- Why shun all modern developments and
insist to eat only whole fruits and vegetables when we have
diabolical machines such as the blender that can transform them into
liquid meals of unsuspected nutritional power? Hey, a little
technology is good. One of my friends says, "I love my car." With the
same unabashed mien I say "I love my blender," which just happens to
be a Vita-Mix that I use almost everyday. Smoothies and raw vegetable
soups are great ways to vary your diet and avoid boredom. And when we
add young coconuts, soaked nuts, avocados and carob powder to the
blending orgy, the possibilities for fun creamy treats are almost
endless.

7) When wondering what to eat, go to the Chinese -- The Chinese
themselves like to say they'll eat anything with four legs except a
table. We'll close an eye on some of their unscrupulous ways and
concede that they have helped us get out of the dark ages of raw
eating in northern countries, when no durians were available.
Chinatowns are full of surprises waiting to be discovered. I even
found durian toys. Then you can learn to say "thank you" in Chinese
(shiay shiay), or in whatever language the store owners happen to
speak.

I gave you some basic recommendations on varying the diet. However, I
didn't tell you exactly how you can make your raw meals fun and
exciting. I will now give you some ideas for quick and fun raw meals,
which will hopefully open your mind to try out more.

A friend of mine, for whom I was un-cooking, told me with a shrewd
look one day, "It's all salad anyway." I was probably preparing a raw
spaghetti from courgettes or lasagna with eggplant, and he told me,
just like that, "It's all salad anyway."

Okay, it may all be vegetables, but first it doesn't look like salad,
and second it doesn't exactly taste like a salad. The difference
between a salad that looks like a salad and a vegetable mix that
looks and tastes like something else is, as Mark Twain once put it,
"the difference between lightning and the lightning bug!"

Here are some ideas:

1) Take a nori sheet. Spread some pumpkin seed butter on it
(available in most health food stores). Add grated courgettes and
rinsed dulse. Roll up like and eat like a sandwich. Everyone will
think you're a genius. If you can't find pumpkin seeds butter, use
almond butter with a touch of sea salt to make it taste like peanut
butter.

2) For a great smoothies, blend some papaya, a whole ripe mango, one
teaspoon of spirulina powder and, if desired, a tiny bit of olive
oil. Blend with some water and beware of flying socks if you have
your friends try it out.

3) Soaked sun-dried tomatoes really add flavour. Put them in
everything that is not sweet and be ready to discover great combos.

4) Blend frozen durian with other fruits. Let it thaw for a few hours
and then blend it up with coconut water, mangoes, or other fruits.
You can even blend it with some carob powder, coconut water, and a
few dates for an "out-of-this-world experience."

5) For a quick nut spread, blend in your food processor raw tahini
and carrots together. Add your favourite seasonings.

These were just a few ideas to vary your diet and avoid boredom. My
motto is it should be tasty, healthy, and easy to prepare. When I
open some raw cookbooks and find a recipe with a page long worth of
ingredients I ask myself, "Do they really expect me to spend that
much time just to eat?" Then I think of all of the time it will take
to wash all the dishes and I give up. Are they kidding? I can prepare
something in 10 minutes and it will be just as good, easier to digest
and will leave me enough time to do the things that I really like to
do, such as writing articles for Get Fresh!

So in conclusion, varying your diet doesn't have to get complicated.
It doesn't involve becoming a raw gourmet genius. It just means
having the attitude of, "Hey, I'm going to have fun with this and try
something new everyday." It's about being open to try new foods
you've never tasted before, and making sure you don't eat the same
thing every day.

And remember, the cure for boredom is curiosity. But there is no cure
for curiosity.

Smiles from Canada,
Frédéric

Cholesterol: The Top 5 Foods To Lower Your Numbers

Cholesterol: The top 5 foods to lower your numbers

http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/cholesterol/CL00002/METHOD=print
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cholesterol/CL00002

Can a bowl of oatmeal help prevent a heart attack? How about a handful of walnuts, or even your baked potato topped with some heart-healthy margarine? A few simple tweaks to your diet — like these — may be enough to lower your cholesterol to a healthy level and help you stay off medications.

Oatmeal and oat bran
Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, which reduces your low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the "bad" cholesterol. Soluble fiber is also found in such foods as kidney beans, apples, pears, psyllium, barley and prunes.

Soluble fiber appears to reduce the absorption of cholesterol in your intestines. Ten grams or more of soluble fiber a day decreases your total and LDL cholesterol. Eating 1 1/2 cups of cooked oatmeal provides 6 grams of fiber. If you add fruit, such as bananas, you'll add about 4 more grams of fiber. To mix it up a little, try steel-cut oatmeal or cold cereal made with oatmeal or oat bran.

Walnuts, almonds and more
Studies have shown that walnuts can significantly reduce blood cholesterol. Rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, walnuts also help keep blood vessels healthy and elastic. Almonds appear to have a similar effect, resulting in a marked improvement within just four weeks.

A cholesterol-lowering diet in which 20 percent of the calories come from walnuts may reduce LDL cholesterol by as much as 12 percent. But all nuts are high in calories, so a handful (no more than 2 ounces or 57 grams) will do. As with any food, eating too much can cause weight gain, and being overweight places you at higher risk of heart disease. To avoid gaining weight, replace foods high in saturated fat with nuts. For example, instead of using cheese, meat or croutons in your salad, add a handful of walnuts or almonds.

Omega-3 fatty acids
Omega-3 fatty acids help the heart in other ways such as reducing blood pressure and the risk of blood clots. In people who have already had heart attacks, omega-3 fatty acids significantly reduces the risk of sudden death.

Doctors recommend eating at least two servings of fish a week. The highest levels of omega-3 fatty acids are in mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon. However, to maintain the heart-healthy benefits of fish, bake or grill it. If you don't like fish, you can also get omega-3 fatty acids from foods like ground flaxseed or canola oil.

You can take an omega-3 or fish oil supplement to get some of the beneficial effects, but you won't get all the other nutrients in fish, like selenium. If you decide to take a supplement, just remember to watch your diet and eat lean meat or vegetables in place of fish.

Olive oil
Olive oil contains a potent mix of antioxidants that can lower your "bad" (LDL) cholesterol but leave your "good" (HDL) cholesterol untouched.

The Food and Drug Administration recommends using about 2 tablespoons (23 grams) of olive oil a day to get its heart-healthy benefits. To add olive oil to your diet, you can saute vegetables in it, add it to a marinade, or mix it with vinegar as a salad dressing. You can also use olive oil as a substitute for butter when basting meat.

Some research suggests that the cholesterol-lowering effects of olive oil are even greater if you choose extra-virgin olive oil, meaning the oil is less processed and contains more heart-healthy antioxidants. But avoid "light" olive oils. This label usually means the oil is more processed and lighter in color, not fat or calories.

Foods fortified with plant sterols or stanols
Foods are now available that have been fortified with sterols or stanols — substances found in plants that help block the absorption of cholesterol.

Margarines, orange juice and yogurt drinks fortified with plant sterols can help reduce LDL cholesterol by more than 10 percent. The amount of daily plant sterols needed for results is at least 2 grams — which equals about two 8-ounce (237 milliliters) servings of plant sterol-fortified orange juice a day.

Plant sterols or stanols in fortified foods don't appear to affect levels of triglycerides or of "good" high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Nor do they interfere with the absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins — vitamins A, D, E and K.

The American Heart Association recommends foods fortified with plant sterols for people with levels of LDL cholesterol over 160 milligrams per deciliter (4.1 mmol/L).

Consider your diet first
Before you make other changes to your diet, think about cutting back on the types and amounts of fats you eat, which can raise your cholesterol. That way, you'll improve your cholesterol levels and health overall.

When cutting fat from your diet, focus on saturated and trans fats. Saturated fats, like those in meat and some oils, raise your total cholesterol. Trans fats, which are sometimes used to make store-bought cookies, crackers and cakes, are particularly bad for your cholesterol levels because they raise low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the "bad" cholesterol and lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL), "good" cholesterol. You should try to limit the number of calories you eat daily to less than 10 percent from saturated fat, and eliminate as many trans fats from your diet as possible.

Recipe: raw chili and cornbread

from thesunnyrawkitchen.blogspot.com

Although we've had the most amazingly sunny October, there's no denying it: winter is definitely on its way. With the weather cooling off, we've been naturally drawn towards heavier and more comforting foods. After looking at different raw chili recipes for ideas, this is what I came up. Guaranteed to warm you up!

'Warm Me Up' Chili

Serves 6

4 portobello mushrooms, cubed
1/4 cup leek, minced

Toss mushies and leek in a little oil, tamari and lemon or lime juice to soften up. Set aside while assembling the rest.


1 medium carrot, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1/3 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup purple bell pepper (you could sub with any other pepper)

Place chopped veggies in a large bowl and set aside.


1 3/4 cups tomatoes
1 cup carrot
1 cup corn
1/2 cup sundried tomatoes, soaked for a few hours
1 1/2 tbs chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 garlic clove
Optional - jalapeno pepper, to taste

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings. If desired, add jalapeno pepper, depending on how hot you like it.


Assembly
Pour sauce over chopped veggies. Add strained mushrooms and leek. Mix well.

Place bowl, covered, in the dehydrator at 110F for 4 hours. Then take cover off and leave for another hour.

We served this with Mosaica's Corn Bread. Yummo!



Corn Bread

1 1/2 cups corn (frozen)
1 small red bell pepper
1 small yellow bell pepper
1 tsp celtic sea salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds

Blend all ingredients in the food processor and spread it on a Teflex sheet. Dehydrate for 3 hours, flip onto mesh and dehydrate for 3 or more hours, depending how crispy you want your bread.

~ We doubled the recipe as it doesn't quite fill up one Excalibur tray.

~ The corn bread wasn't quite ready by the time we went to bed so we left it there. However, I woke up a little late to take it out so it ended up more like corn crackers. Ah well... It was still delish!

Enjoy!

source: thesunnyrawkitchen.blogspot.com

Easy Tips for Vegetarian Beginners

Happy Vegetarian Awareness Month: Easy tips for vegetarian beginners
by Tricia Woolfenden
The Grand Rapids Press
October 24, 2008 07:04AM

http://blog.mlive.com/newblack/2008/10/happy_vegetarian_awareness_mon.html

Every once in a while, someone will ask me for advice on how -- or why -- to become a vegetarian. While there are no cut-and-dry formulas for adopting an entirely new lifestyle, I have picked up a few tried-and-true strategies from my 13 or so years of being mostly meat free (I dabbled with turkey for a few years. The relationship didn't last).

A colleague recently asked for advice on gradually cutting meat from her diet, and I typed up a list of my favorite tips and observations. In honor of Vegetarian Awareness Month, here they are:

Start slowly... -- Give up red meat for a week, see how that goes. Next, phase out chicken and turkey, and so on.

...Or not -- If you're someone who likes to jump in with both feet, by all means, quit eating meat, cold turkey. You probably won't have any negative physical repercussions as you would from quitting most addictions. Just keep telling yourself; "Those bacon cheeseburger withdrawal shakes are a figment of my imagination."

Read about it -- Use the Internet to dig up useful information about the vegetarian lifestyle, easy recipes and local support groups. Check the local library for vegetarian cookbooks. And check out Vegetarian Times, a magazine filled with beautiful food photography and mouth-watering recipes.

Stop obsessing about protein -- Americans are overly fearful of not getting enough protein in their diets. The truth is, most people who eat a healthy diet -- one that includes legumes, whole grains, fruits, nuts and veggies -- have plenty of protein. I haven't eaten a steak in nearly 15 years, and I can play roller derby for hours at a time. Trust me -- and the American Heart Association -- if you make wise choices, you'll meet your daily requirements.

Morningstar Farms for the win -- What did I do before Morningstar came into my life? The brand of frozen meat alternatives makes the tastiest veggie patty on the market (mmmm, Spicy Black Bean Burger) and is super affordable. Its fake chicken strips cook in less than five minutes on the stove, and go great in salads and wraps. The meat crumbles are done in less than a minute, and add bulk and flavor to pasta sauce. And the fake chicken fingers and patties are tasty and low in fat.

Peanut butter is a failsafe -- Cheap, no prep and portable. Carry a peanut butter and jelly (or banana, apple, whatever) sandwich for car trips, long days at the office or when you'll be out running errands for hours. Stick with the all-natural brands, like the kind from Koeze, to avoid extra sugar. There's a lot of fat in PB, but also a lot of protein and nutrients.

Stock your kitchen -- Always have these things on-hand; canned beans, refried black beans, vegetable stock, canned veggies (corn, peas, asparagus), frozen vegetables, salsa, tofu, frozen meat alternatives, whole wheat pasta, hummous, low-fat tortillas, soy sauce, nuts, peanut butter, lentils, brown rice and oatmeal. Invest in a good cutting board and a wok.

Ignore negativity -- Our culture tends to be a bit food obsessed. People want to know what you're eating, or not eating, and why. I can't tell you how many times friends, family and strangers have pestered me about my eating habits. Most of it comes from curiosity or good-natured ribbing, but occasionally, I'll encounter someone who seems out-and-out offended that I don't eat bacon. The best way to counter this; be polite, but stand your ground. You don't have to justify your lifestyle, just like they don't have to justify theirs.

When asked why I don't eat meat, I follow the standard; "I don't like the taste." If that doesn't work; "It's for my health." If they're still pushing for an "answer," smile sweetly and say, "Do you really want to know? Cause I can tell you a lot of reasons that will put you off that $20 steak you just ordered, but I'd prefer to just enjoy my cucumber roll."

Don't use cheese as a meat substitute -- I've only recently come to recognize how much I relied upon cheese as a source for protein and flavor in every meal. When I discovered my cholesterol levels were a bit elevated for someone at my age and weight, I cut down significantly. Instead of a slice of cheddar on your afternoon sandwich, try a slice of avocado, which is packed with the good kind of fat and cholesterol.

Dining out -- Most restaurants will have at least one meatfree option. If you don't see something you want, ask nicely for any vegetarian options that may be available. When all else fails, kill 'em with kindness. I'll guarantee you won't be the first person to make such a request.

Feel free to share your vegetarian tips through email or in the comments section below. Email Tricia Woolfenden at twoolfenden@grpress.com.

How To Have Younger Looking Skin: 9 key Natural Steps

How to Have Younger Looking Skin: 9 Key Natural Steps
by www.SixWise.com

George Orwell once said, "At 50, everyone has the face he deserves."

By that time the signs of life -- food, sun, smiling, frowning -- will certainly have either taken their toll on, or offered their protection to, your skin. Or will they?

As you age your skin does not shed dead cells as quickly, so using a natural exfoliator regularly is important.

Well, your skin does age with you, a process known as the "internal aging process." In terms of your skin this means that as you get older you'll likely experience:

• Collagen production slowing (collagen contributes to skin's firmness)

• Elastin production decreasing (elastin contributes to skin's elasticity)

• Fat cells beginning to disappear (which can lead to sagging skin)

• Your skin losing its ability to retain moisture

• Frown lines and "crow's feet" appearing due to small muscle contractions

• Dead skin cells not being shed as quickly

• Slightly less turnover of new skin cells

Understandably, most people are not thrilled with the results of all of these changes, which tend to be wrinkles, sagging, dryness, thinness in the skin and perhaps discolorations such as "age spots."

And unfortunately, skin that has lost its youthful glow can actually age you quite a bit. MSNBC reported a study from the University of Gottingen in Germany that found people looked five years younger when skin discoloration was removed from their photos. And a digital smoothing of wrinkles lopped off a whopping 15 years!

How can you get young, fresh-looking skin no matter what your age? (No, we're not talking about a facelift.)

"Through a three-tier approach involving diet, supplements, and creams, we can control the rate at which we age," says dermatologist Nicholas V. Perricone, MD on WebMD.com. "And we can delay the need for surgical procedures, including facelifts, by 15 to 20 years -- if we even get them at all."

In other words, your diet and lifestyle play a major role in how your skin looks. Here we've detailed some of the top tips to get enviable skin.

X Natural Tips for Younger Looking Skin

1. Cut back on sugar and refined carbs. "Inflammation is triggered by what we eat and sugar is the bad actor," Perricone tells WebMD. "Anything that is sugar or rapidly converted to sugar (carbohydrates such as white rice, white breads or pasta) can attach to collagen and cause stiffness of skin and very old looking skin."

2. Drink more water. Nothing keeps your skin hydrated and supple better than a glass of pure H2O.

Treat Your Skin to Vermont Soap Organics: There's a Reason Why Each Bar Takes One Month to Make! These luxurious, super mild handmade bar soaps are USDA Certified Organic to Food Standards, with no artificial colors, fragrances, preservatives or synthetic chemicals. Each bar contains natural, aromatherapy essential oils and botanical extracts to alter the effects of the soap base on your skin, so there are different blends for different skin types. Here are a few of Vermont Soap bar varieties: Butter Bar ... best dry skin bar Citrus Sunrise ... for all skin types Honey ... gentle exfoliant for combination skin Oats & Aloe ... unscented for dry sensitive skin Peppermint Magic ... oily/combination skin Find Out More About Vermont Soap Organics Now!

3. Indulge in fruits and veggies. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables will provide you with plenty of antioxidants that will help to protect your skin and overall health.

4. Consider taking alpha lipoic acid. Alpha lipoic acid is 400 times stronger than vitamins C and E, according to Dr. Perricone, who recommends taking 50-100 milligrams of the supplement daily. It helps improve your skin by bring down inflammation.

5. Take the antioxidant CoQ10. This antioxidant is normally touted for its role in heart health, but Perricone says that CoQ10 can slow or reverse the aging process, and taking 30 milligrams a day will make your "skin look more radiant in just a few weeks."

6. Lay off the harsh soaps and cleansers. Most commercial soaps contain chemicals like tricolosan and sodium lauryl sulfate, which dry and irritate your skin.

A better option to cleanse your skin are handmade, natural soaps, such as Vermont Soap Organics. Vermont Soap utilizes all natural ingredients in their soapmaking, including glycerin, which is a natural humectant, adding more moisture to your skin. Most commercial soaps remove their glycerin, selling it as a by-product in their other higher-end lotions and creams.

Make sure everything you put on your face is natural and soothing, not synthetic and irritating.

Often lasting about twice as long as conventional bars, Vermont Soap Organics soap is extremely moisturizing and soothing. Your skin will drink in the conditioning, moisturizing goodness of this handcrafted soap.

7. Cover up. Exposure to cold temperatures or too much sun will lead to premature wrinkles and dry, irritated skin. Wear a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses when you're out in the sun for an extended period of time, and protect your face with a scarf when you're outside in the cold.

8. Moisturize your skin. As you age your skin loses its ability to retain moisture, so a natural facial moisturizer is very important. Because 89 percent of ingredients in typical personal care products have never been tested for safety, Sixwise.com highly recommends you use an all-natural moisturizer, such as Surgeon's Skin Secret Moisturizing Sticks.

9. Try a high-quality, all-natural clay mask. For best results, add this in to your skincare routine once a week. Clay is such a popular ingredient in today's facial masks because it works in two ways. First, as the clay dries it draws out toxins and other impurities from the skin. At the same time, the minerals in the clay are absorbed by the skin.

The result is that debris is pulled out, pores and hair follicles are cleared, skin is exfoliated and it's left looking truly refreshed and with a younger, healthy glow.

Pomegranate Juice Delivers More Antioxidant Benefits than Red Wine

by David Gutierrez

(NaturalNews) Pomegranate juice has the highest antioxidant content, activity and protective benefits of eight different beverages tested, according to a study conducted by researchers from Center for Human Nutrition at the University of California-Los Angeles' David Geffen School of Medicine, and published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

"Oftentimes, a beverage will make a claim about its superior antioxidant content based on the results of one test alone that provides the highest antioxidant capacity," said lead researcher Dr. David Heber. "What is important about this study is that all the beverages included were run against several tests resulting in a more complete assessment of a beverage's antioxidant activity and capability."

Researchers conducted a total of seven tests on 100 percent pomegranate juice, red wine, orange juice, blueberry juice, Concord grape juice, acai berry juice, white tea and green tea. Four of these tests evaluated the antioxidant strength of the beverages.

Pomegranate juice was found to have the highest polyphenol content of any beverage, even outcompeting recent "superfoods" such as acai berry or green and white tea.

Polyphenols are a naturally occurring family of plant chemicals that are known to function as antioxidants in the body. They are believed to help reduce the risks of cancer and cardiovascular disease and the effects of aging.

In addition to polyphenol content, the researchers also tested how well the various beverages performed at scavenging free radicals and preventing oxidation (decay) of LDL ("good") cholesterol. Once again, pomegranate juice outperformed all competitors, with an antioxidant potency composite index 20 percent higher than any other beverage tested.

This study marks the 11th study in the last 10 years to demonstrate the health benefits of 100 percent pomegranate juice. Prior studies have linked the juice to reducing the risks of heart disease, prostate cancer and even erectile dysfunction.

Raw Broccoli Best; Cooking Kills 90% of Healing Properties (of Sulforaphane)

Raw broccoli best for anti-cancer potential: study
By Stephen Daniells, 28-Oct-2008

Source: http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Publications/Food-Beverage-Nutrition/NutraIngredients/Research/Raw-broccoli-best-for-anti-cancer-potential-study/?c=TJ6pZf%2BpD7d8AMguF1Px6A%3D%3D

Consuming cooked or processed broccoli may result in less of the potential anti-cancer compounds being available for absorption, suggests a new study from TNO Quality of Life.

Consumption of the cooked vegetable led to lower levels of a compound called sulforaphane being measured in the blood and urine, compared to consuming raw broccoli, according to findings published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

The bioavailability of sulforaphane was calculated to be 37 per cent from the raw vegetable, and only 3.4 per cent from cooked broccoli, reported Martijn Vermeulen and co-workers from TNO Quality of Life.

The study extends out understanding of the potential anti-cancer benefits of broccoli, and may offer important information to companies involved in the production of broccoli extracts for the functional food and dietary supplements industry.

Sulforaphane is the main isothiocyanate from broccoli. The tissue of cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and Brussels sprouts, contain high levels of the active plant chemicals glucosinolates. These are metabolised by the body into isothiocyanates, which are known to be powerful anti-carcinogens.

Glucoraphanin, also known as sulforaphane glucosinolate (SGS), is the precursor of sulforaphane.

The Netherlands-based researchers recruited eight men to participate in the study. The men consumed 200 grams of crushed raw or cooked broccoli with a warm meal. The randomised, free-living, open cross-over trial used blood and urine levels of sulforaphane to elucidate the bioavailability of the proposed anti-carcinogen.

Vermeulen and co-workers report that the glucoraphanin content of the cooked broccoli was 61.4 micromoles, while glucoiberin and glucobrassicins were also detected. On the other hand, raw broccoli contained 9.92 micromoles of sulforaphane, and no other isothiocyanates.

“The sulforaphane content of raw broccoli was lower than the glucoraphanin content of cooked broccoli, 9.92 and 61.4 micromoles, respectively. It seems that the conversion from glucosinolate to isothiocyanate was incomplete or that another reaction occurred,” they wrote.

In addition to less sulforaphane being measured in the blood and urine when cooked broccoli was consumed, compared to raw broccoli, the absorption of the compound was delayed when the broccoli was cooked: the optimal levels were observed after six hours for the cooked broccoli, compared to only 1.6 hours after consumption of raw broccoli.

“Consumption of raw broccoli resulted in faster absorption, higher bioavailability, and higher peak plasma amounts of sulforaphane, compared to cooked broccoli,” wrote the researchers.

“In future research, care should be taken that glucoraphanin is not hydrolyzed into other metabolites when broccoli is crushed,” they concluded.

Source: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
Published online ahead of print, ASAP Article, doi: 10.1021/jf801989e
“Bioavailability and Kinetics of Sulforaphane in Humans after Consumption of Cooked versus Raw Broccoli”
Authors: M. Vermeulen, I.W.A.A. Klopping-Ketelaars, R. van den Berg, W.H.J. Vaes

USDA Proposes Mandatory Pasture/Feed Requirements for Organic Dairy Farms

Consumer Victory: USDA Proposes Mandatory Pasture and Feed Requirements for Organic Dairy Farms

* National Organic Coalition, October 23, 2008

Source: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_15315.cfm

Web Note: The Organic Consumers Association is happy to see that the USDA, with this new proposed Federal Regulation published Oct. 23, 2008, has finally decided to listen to organic consumers, family-scale organic dairy farmers, and the National Organic Standards Board and require mandatory pasture requirements for every day of the growing season (minimum 120 days) for dairy (and beef) cattle, with a minimum requirement that 30% of organic cattle feed come from pasture. This will hopefully put an end to massive, intensive confinement dairy operations, such as those utilized by Aurora, Horizon, Rockview, and Shamrock, falsely labeling their milk as "USDA Organic." After years of delay, boycotts, and lawsuits, OCA wants to see this new mandatory pasture and feed rule implemented and enforced as soon as possible.

OCA, however, rejects the section of USDA's proposed regulation that would allow non-organic heifers (young milk cows) from conventional farms to be brought onto organic dairy farms and then be considered "organic." This is totally unacceptable, given the fact that USDA regulations for conventional (non-organic) farms allow sewage sludge on cropland and pasture, feeding blood, manure, and slaughterhouse waste to animals, antibiotics, and pesticide-tainted and genetically engineered feed. This section on "herd replacement" of the new proposed rule should read: "Once an operation has been certified for organic production, all dairy animals shall be under organic management from the last third of gestation (pregnancy)."

OCA will be mobilizing its national network over the next 60 days to send in comments to the USDA to enforce its mandatory pasture and feed requirements and to require a single standard for herd replacement that only cows raised organically from birth can be added to organic herds.

Ronnie Cummins, Organic Consumers Association
______________________________________________________________
USDA Access to Pasture Rule for Organic Livestock Gets Thumbs Up from the National Organic Coalition

Alexandria, VA, October 24, 2008 ­ After a two-and-a-half-year wait, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has released its draft rule clarifying access to pasture requirements for organic livestock. Today, that document is receiving praise from the members of the National Organic Coalition (NOC).

"This draft rule provides specific language needed for enforcement of one of the central tenets of organically produced livestock-that organic livestock spend a considerable part of their lives in their natural pasture habitat and receive a significant portion of their food from fresh, green, growing pasture," said Kathie Arnold, NY State organic dairy farmer and President of the Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance (NODPA), a NOC member.

The proposed rule requires that animals raised under organic standards have access to natural pastures. Consumer and farmer support for this is strong: The draft rule cites a 2006 Consumers Union survey of 1,485 U.S. adults which found that more than two thirds of all consumers and 75% of women believe that the national organic standards require that animals graze outdoors.

"This and other polls give a clear indication of consumer sentiment towards organic milk - they want and expect organic dairy cows to be raised on pasture before organic milk ends up on the grocery store shelf," said Rebecca Spector, West Cost Director of the Center for Food Safety, a NOC member. "The new draft rule provides clarity regarding the absolute need for pasture for organic animals. Combined with proper enforcement, this proposed rule will allow consumers to be assured that organic livestock will spend the majority of their lives on pasture." In addition to consumer demand and animal welfare reasons, there are also strong economic and environmental reasons for required pasturing in organic standards. Pasture intake has been shown to be scientifically correlated with increased levels of healthful vitamins and essential fatty acids in milk and meat, and well-managed pasture reduces input and energy costs, contributing positively to carbon sequestration goals.

Access to pasture for organic ruminant animals (i.e. cows, sheep and goats) has been a requirement of the USDA organic regulation since its inception. In general, the accredited certifiers that enforce the USDA organic standards have been requiring organic livestock producers to meet this pasture standard since the inception of the program in 2002. However, it has become clear that a few organic dairies have been permitted to sell milk as "organic" even though their cows have not had adequate access to pasture. USDA's National Organic Program has stated that the regulation has been too vague for them to enforce consistently and fairly so farmers, processors and consumers have asked the USDA to clarify the rule requiring quantifiable data.

Speaking on behalf of the NOC, Michael Sligh, Director of the Just Foods Program at the Rural Advancement Foundation, Inc. in North Carolina, said "NOC members voice their appreciation for the general direction of the rule, and the willingness of USDA to hold listening sessions. We encourage USDA to move ahead to a final rule and enforcement, after fully considering public comments. After a very long wait, we are thankful for USDA's response to the organic community's request for a strict pasture rule." As drafted, this proposed rule is very comprehensive and will require careful study and comments. NOC members will take a leadership role in developing constructive comments on specific issues raised by this rule.


Read the proposed pasture rule here.


For the Cornucopia Institute's criticism of the USDA's proposed rule on pasture and herd replacement, "Running Out the Clock for Family Farmers?" go
to: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_15330.cfm



###

The National Organic Coalition (NOC) focuses on protecting the stringency and integrity of the national organic standards and is a national alliance of organizations working to provide a "Washington voice" for farmers, ranchers, environmentalists, consumers and progressive industry members involved in organic agriculture.

NOC seeks to work cooperatively with, and add value to, existing organic and sustainable agriculture organizations, networks and coalitions to ensure a united voice for organic integrity.

Members include:

* Beyond Pesticides http://www.beyondpesticides.org/

* Center for Food Safety http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/

* Equal Exchange http://www.equalexchange.com/

* Food & Water Watch http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/

* Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association http://www.mofga.org/

* Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Services http://www.mosesorganic.org/

* National Cooperative Grocers Association http://www.ncga.coop/

* Northeast Organic Dairy Producers Alliance http://www.nodpa.com/

* Northeast Organic Farming Association -Interstate Council http://www.nofa.org/about.php#council

* Rural Advancement Foundation International -USA http://www.rafiusa.org/

* Union of Concerned Scientists http://www.ucsusa.org/

All the organizations participating in the Coalition have organic agriculture reform as an organizational priority.
National Organic Coalition
1301 Hancock Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22301

Media Contact: Ed Maltby, 413-427-7323; emaltby@comcast.net Kathie Arnold, 607-842-6631 (h); 607-423-8981 (cell), randkarnold1@juno.com Liana Hoodes 845-744-2304, liana@hvc.rr.com

Farm To School Programs Grow Students' Appreciation for Locally Grown Food

Farm-To-School Programs Grow Students' Appreciation for Locally Grown Food

* By Diane Raymond
Natural News, October 20, 2008

Source: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_15243.cfm

As farmers struggle to mitigate the increasing cost of transporting produce from farm to store and schools face smaller budgets and increasing concerns over the nutritional content of school lunches, some schools opt to bring the farm to the lunch table.

The concern over the nutritional value of school lunches isn't unwarranted: 15% of children ages 6-19 are considered overweight, according to a recent study conducted by CDC epidemiologist Cynthia Ogden, PhD. Between pre-packaged, highly processed lunches and vending machines loaded with sugary snacks and sodas, it is little wonder parents also worry about fueling their kids' minds. Many are asking the schools to do more, pointing out that the National School Lunch Program isn't passing muster.

Nearly half of the children in the U.S. who attend private and public schools participate in the NSLP, a federally assisted meal program that dates back to 1946. While the NSLP does provide a low-cost (and in some cases, free) means of delivering lunch through subsidies to schools, the program has been widely criticized in recent years for contributing to America's obesity epidemic. According to the Sustainable Table, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public about the problems with our food supply, our children are not meeting the RDA of vitamins and nutrients under the current NSLP guidelines. Couple that with the skyrocketing price of food, which extends beyond the family table to the school cafeterias as well. Forced to consider lower-priced alternatives to fresh foods, many schools have no alternative but to rely on the cheaper, less healthy fare. A number of districts across the country are taking matters into their own hands and breaking the mold. Instead of doling out sodium and fat-laden chicken nuggets for lunch, they are opting to assist local farmers and provide healthier, locally grown foods to students.

Eating and Learning: Models of Success

In the small community of Glen Lake, Michigan the farm-to-school program gives local schools an opportunity to sample tasty, healthy meals grown with as many locally grown products as possible. Not only is this a great opportunity for the children to develop an appreciation for locally grown food, studies show that children who are fed healthier, more nutrient rich foods are better learners. Michigan's program is a prime example of how school districts can assist local growers and simultaneously teach students about the health and economic benefits of consuming local produce.

Schools in Berkeley, California, have become a national model for how to make schools more sustainable. The Edible Schoolyard Project at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School takes the farm-to-school concept one step further: the students use their school's organic garden as a learning tool. Students learn about planting and harvesting, cooking and eating, and biology, ecology, nutrition and sustainability. This program has become so successful that many schools around the country now have their own gardens. The National Gardening Association (http://www.kidsgardening.org/School/sea...) has a list of thousands of school gardens nationwide.

Students at the Louisa May Alcott elementary school in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood savor daily lunches dished up by local chef, Greg Christian. Christian runs the nonprofit Organic School Project, through which he donates half of his time and salary to a grand mission: seeing that Chicago students eat better. Nearby schools will be added to the OLP, with further plans to build teaching gardens at each school.

There is more good news: The National Farm to School program, a national network of community-based food systems that assist farmers and improve student health, estimates that more than 2,000 Farm to School Programs are currently underway in the U.S., with more than 8,700 schools actively participating.

HOW TO START A FARM TO SCHOOL PROGRAM
(from The National Farm to School Program website)

1. Research: Read the publication Going Local to acquaint yourself with model farm to school programs from across the country. As Farm to School programs come in many shapes and sizes, it's important to begin to identify what you want and what would work best in your school. Visit www.farmtoschool.org to learn if there is a program in your area.

2. Organize: Coordinate a group of cross-sector stakeholders in the community for a meeting to discuss farm to school (food service directors, parents, teachers, farmers, students, school administration, local nonprofits, etc.) Inspire potential supporters with an activity such as a farm tour or a farm-fresh taste test.

3. Assess: Facilitate conversations with various stakeholders to determine the feasibility of the program in your area—discuss where to buy local foods, assess how to serve them at school, identify staff or volunteers to support the program, and determine what the budget for your program can be.

4. Plan: Create a short description of your ideal program and then list specific first steps. Tip: start with easy wins! Try to limit this to five steps to help you organize and communicate your goals to others.

5. Start: Take small steps such as working with one or two whole products that are easy to process and popular among kids. Local apples, oranges, or strawberries are a good choice when they are in season.

What are you waiting for? Plant the seeds of farm to school!

Recipe: The Terminator Salad

The Terminator Salad
By Frederic Patenaude

Source (excellent source): fredericpatenaude.com

1 small head of cauliflower, shredded
1 avocado, mashed
15 sun-dried, black olives, pitted and chopped
1 red pepper, diced small
1/2 lemon, juice of
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 clove garlic

Instructions:
You can shred the cauliflower in your food processor, or by hand. Then mix with the other ingredients. This is a filling salad.

Are you Sabotaging your plan to Exercise More?

Source: lifehack.org

You know exercise is good for you, right? But regular exercise is like pushing water uphill. You do it for a couple of days - and then try and forget about it, because it’s just too hard. Sounds familiar?

People who exercise regularly swear by it. They enjoy it. They can’t stop talking about it. But how did they manage to build a habit that sticks? Wouldn’t you like to know a painless and easy way of getting into the exercise habit? Read on to find out.

The reason we often fail when trying to implement a regular exercise routine is because we work against our instincts, instead of with them. What we are trying to do when we establish an exercise routine is do reverse a trend.

Imagine that you are a train driver driving at high speed. How are you going to do that? Are you going to simply crash your gear into reverse? If you did, the train would derail, passengers would get hurt or killed, and you would end up with a catastrophe.

There is a better way.

You could gently apply the brakes until the train is at a standstill, and then slowly start reversing the direction. Easy!

The example is very clear, isn’t it? And yet we do the opposite when trying to start exercising. We try and run for a mile, or go to the gym for an hour, or play a game of tennis - and then wonder why we feel so stiff and sore next day. Then we try it again, but the body hates it - and then we stop. Again.

As In her book “This year I will…”, Andy Ryan, an expert in collaborative thinking, spells out why such a gung-ho approach doesn’t work:

Whenever we initiate change, even a positive one, we activate fear in our emotional brain….If the fear is big enough, the fight-or-flight response will go off and we’ll run from what we’re trying to do.

We need a different approach. We need an approach that eases the body into exercise so gradually, so that we don’t trigger the flight response.

How do we create change so gently that we don’t take fright?

There is a very interesting Japanese philosophy called Kaizen which can help us do that. Kaizen focuses on continuous but small change.

Andy Ryan explains:

The small steps in Kaizen don’t set off fight or flight, but rather keep us in the thinking brain, where we have access to our creativity and playfulness.

Let’s take a look at how that could be applied to physical exercise. I’ll take running as an example. Could you run for 15 seconds? Most people can. With the philosophy of Kaizen, you could say that if can run for 15 seconds, you can learn to run for a minute - and even for an hour. How?

Follow this simple running plan. Add 15 seconds each day.

Day 1# Run for 15 seconds
Day 2# Run for 30 seconds
Day 3# Run for 45 seconds
And so on…

It will seem ridiculously easy! Do this for a about forty days, and you’ll be running for 10 minutes. A month later, and you’ll be running for 20 minutes. By that time your running habit will be well established. But it will have happened naturally!

You can apply the same principle to establishing any exercise. Whether it’s yoga, or swimming, or walking.

The important thing is keep to your plan. You may feel that you could easily do more than the prescribed amount of exercise, but please rein in your enthusiasm. Just do the requisite amount, and not more. This is the trick to establishing an exercise habit without stress or strain.

Exercise really is a miracle pill. This is what it can do for you:

1. Helps prevent or manage high blood pressure
2. Lowers the build-up of plaque in the arteries
3. Can help prevent type 2 diabetes
4. Can help prevent osteoporosis
5. Stimulates the immune response
6. Can help prevent certain kinds of cancer
7. Can help recover after illness.
8. Builds muscle tissue
9. Strengthens heart and lung function.
10. Helps manage weight
11. Promotes good sleep
12. Helps revitalize sex life
13. Improves mood
14. Calms and centers the mind
15. Keeps the brain in shape

You might want to stick this list on your fridge to remind you of the benefits of exercise.

There are a some important guidelines for exercising. As a general rule, the intensity of exercise should not exceed certain limits. If monitoring heart rate use the simple equation - 200 minus your age (in years) to estimate the working heart rate you should remain under.

If you don’t exercise, your fitness slips a little each day. The Keizan method of introducing exercise reverses that trend, little by little. Of course we want to feel the benefits of exercise all at once. However, we need to remember that the smaller the steps we take, the easier it is to establish an exercise habit. And that’s what this method is about: building a new exercise habit that sticks.

What’s your experience of exercising?

How to Ripen Fall Fruit

How to Ripen Fall Fruit
October 27, 2008

Source:
http://www.supermarketguru.com/index.cfm/go/sg.viewArticle/articleId/78

The fruits of autumn are pineapple, pears, persimmons, pomegranates, apples, Asian pears, some plums, and grapes. Because most are picked ripe, only refrigeration is necessary, but as with all produce, choosing well is the first step.

APPLES are picked ripe, so refrigerate them after purchase. Should be bruise-free, unblemished and firm to the touch.

ASIAN PEARS are picked just before maturity and ripen in storage. Delicate, often encased in a net of foam to prevent bruising, they should be firm to the touch and refrigerated. Eat promptly. The flesh is white, juicy, and with texture like a delicate apple with the perfume of pears.

PEARS: Ripened best off the tree to avoid a gritty flesh, pears should be smooth and unblemished. A slight yield when the stem end is pressed indicates ripeness. To ripen further, leave in a bowl or a brown paper bag at room temperature. Check daily.

PERSIMMONS can ripen on the kitchen counter. Fuyu, a four sided pale yellow-orange to deep red persimmon has a firm flesh and is eaten like an apple. Hachiya is large, oblong and has a deep orange skin; it should be eaten when soft. Saijo is egg shaped and reddish orange and eaten soft. Hard fleshed persimmons should be very firm and rich in color; soft fleshed versions should yield but not be mushy.

PINEAPPLES: Harvested when ripe, pineapples should be even in color (yellow), undamaged, and smell delicate at the stem; heavy sweetness indicates age. Leaves should be deep green and fruit heavy for its size. Further ripening is rarely needed.

POMEGRANATES: Thirteen varieties of this Iranian native grow in California. Harvested just before maturity, they have hard reddish shells that make a metallic sound when tapped. Can be refrigerated several weeks; edible seeds become juicier and more flavorful with age.

Where Have all the Water Fountains Gone?

Where Have All the Water Fountains Gone?
By Richard Girard, Polaris Institute
October 29, 2008

Sources:
http://www.alternet.org/module/printversion/105051
http://www.alternet.org/water/105051/
http://www.alternet.org/story/105051/


People are turning away from bottled water as fast as they turned onto it. Municipalities across Canada and the United States are limiting the sale and purchase of bottled water in city buildings, bottled water free zones are popping up on college and university campuses, community groups are phasing out the use of bottled water, and the message about the ills of this product is all over the mainstream media.

I was recently asked in an interview about the next steps for the movement away from bottled water given that the backlash had spread so widely. The interviewer mentioned that he wasn't sure what people would do at his local hockey arena when the only access to water was from an old dusty water fountain. His question struck a chord and confirmed my belief that the success of the anti-bottled water movement must more and more be accompanied with stronger demands for the renewal of public access to potable drinking water.

Municipal leaders have shown that there is a strong political will for increased use and promotion of tap water. However, we continuously hear of new buildings being constructed without water fountains and existing buildings decommissioning older water fountains without replacing them.

One example comes from the University of Central Florida (UCF) where a $55 million football stadium was constructed with no water fountains.

In September 2007, UCF opened the 45,000 seat football stadium for a home game. The day of the game was very hot and the concessions had less than 45,000 bottles of water on hand. The concessions ran out of bottled water and fans were left thirsty. More than sixty people were treated for heat exhaustion.

In the aftermath, it became clear that by omitting water fountains from the building plans the University administration had not followed the latest building codes that required either fountains or large water coolers. The administration hid behind the fact that the plans for the stadium were created in 2001 when the building code stated that selling single serve bottled water would be enough to hydrate tens of thousands of people.

The University and the developers knew that there were no water fountains in the building plans, and relied on the concession stands to supply drinking water at $3 a bottle. This was a conscious choice to exclude water fountains, and in this case, the choice was to interpret the building codes in such a way that would ensure expensive single serve bottled water would be the only water available in the stadium.

Outraged students quickly mobilized an online campaign to pressure the university administration to install water fountains. The campaign got the attention of the media, and the university administration quickly promised to install 50 water fountains in the stadium.

A Canadian example of water fountain omission comes from a recent survey of corporate presence on Canadian university campuses. The survey confirmed that access to drinking water on university campuses is becoming increasingly limited. Respondents to the survey noted a reduction of the number of fountains on campus and an increasing number of broken fountains. One respondent from Brock University said that, "In new buildings on campus, there are no water fountains, only Pepsi machines, and the water fountains that do exist are sparse and in inaccessible places."

These two examples show that serious questions need to be asked about how developers, and, in these cases, university administrations, can get away with leaving water fountains out of building plans.

Who writes the building codes that allow for the omission of water fountains? How are the codes interpreted or manipulated by developers to exclude proper access to municipal drinking water sources? Regulatory bodies charged with writing and overseeing building codes need to hear loud and clear that bottled water is not the right option for hydrating large numbers of people.

Now that the bottled water industry is on the ropes and municipalities are shunning these products in favour of tap, water activists have a golden opportunity to start looking for answers. The question of public infrastructure should be thrust into the bottled water debate with strong and well organized calls for greater public investment in water services.

Any action taken by municipal governments moving consumers away from bottled water needs to be accompanied with a deep commitment to reinvest in the continent's public water infrastructure, which seems to be on the brink of crisis.

In the United States, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) found in 2005 that the "nation's 54,000 drinking water systems face staggering public investment needs over the next 20 years." The ASCE also claims that water infrastructure in the U.S. faces an 11$ billion (usd) funding shortfall every year. Meanwhile, in Canada, a 2007 report from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) declared it will cost more than $25 billion (usd) to bring water and waste water systems up to par. New water and wastewater needs are estimated at $48 billion (usd).

For-profit water services corporations exploit these funding shortfalls to push for public-private partnerships and full privatization of public water systems. Take United Water (US subsidiary of French water services giant Suez), for example, that states on its website that there are "options available to municipalities faced with shrinking budgets and aging infrastructures." The company then markets its services saying that it can provide "flexible solutions to these challenges through public-private partnerships and comprehensive asset management contracts."

Our political leadership is not doing much to help the situation either. When the FCM report was released, Canada's Finance Minister Jim Flaherty told municipal leaders to stop "whining" and to "do their job." This lack of sensitivity by elected officials and lurking for-profit water services companies means that we could see more privatization in the near future.

Consumers' love affair with bottled water is coming to an end. However, if vows are not renewed between politicians, public institutions and public water delivery, people may find themselves living in a society where cheap access to water is a privilege and not a right. This is the time for activists and concerned people everywhere to issue strong calls for greater public access to free potable water and a wholesale reinvestment in water infrastructure and services.

Richard Girard is the corporate researcher at the Polaris Institute.

Recipe: Apple Walnut Salad

Apple-Walnut Salad
Vegetarian Times Issue: November 1, 2001 p.36

Source:
http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/8179?printer=yes
http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/8179?utm_source=MyYogaJournal&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=myj_331

30 minutes or less
By combining watercress, apples and walnuts, this salad provides a great contrast in color, flavor and texture.

Ingredient List

Serves 6

Dressing

2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbs. low-sodium vegetable broth
1 1/2 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 cups watercress, tough stems removed
1 large carrot, shredded
1 red delicious apple, cored and shredded
1 golden delicious apple, cored and shredded
2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
Directions

Make dressing: In small bowl, mix lemon juice, broth and oil until blended. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Place watercress around outside edge of serving platter. Scatter carrots over watercress. In small bowl, toss shredded apples with lemon juice, then spoon into center of platter. Scatter nuts over apples. Pour dressing over salad and serve.
Nutritional Information

Per serving: Calories: 106, Protein: 2g, Total fat: 7g, Carbs: 9g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 12mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugars: 0g

Fruits are Loaded with Nutrients

Fruits are Loaded with Nutrients
by Dr. Phil Domenico

Source: Natural News -
Fruits are Loaded with Nutrients



(NaturalNews) It's hard to beat fruits. They provide an abundance of nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, essential oils, antioxidants, fiber, and anti-inflammatory substances. Many are alkaline-forming, so they help counteract the strongly acidic Western diet that eats away at our bones. High levels of potassium in fruit balance high salt diets to help prevent high blood pressure. They also help manage blood sugar, regulate bowel function, and strengthen blood vessels, bones, nails, teeth, skin and hair. Humans could not survive long without healthy fruit.


Antioxidant content may be the most compelling reason for loading up on these wonderful foods. Oxidative stress from eating, illness or injury, produces excess free radicals that damage cells and tissues. Skipping antioxidants, over time, may ultimately lead to heart disease, cancer, allergies, and other inflammatory diseases. However, not all fruits are created equal. Fruits like blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, grapefruit and fresh cranberry have the best antioxidant content, followed by apples, peaches, pears, plums, oranges and dates. The exotic juices of pomegranate, mangosteen, ac�i and goji berry are also unbeatable for antioxidant protection. Whole fruit is best, but juices are acceptable, especially if not concentrated and no sugar is added. Unfortunately, people are attracted to the super sweet juices and fruits like bananas, grapes and orange juice. Yet, even these are superior to most of the sweetened junk that we feed our kids.


Choosing organic fruit is another important consideration, especially for children, who are more susceptible to the dangers of pesticides and other toxins. Organic fruit has also been shown to contain more antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals than conventional fruits. It may cost more, but the cost to health from eating inferior fruit is much greater.


Fruits are best eaten on an empty stomach. Indigestion is on the rise in the U.S., and one reason is from eating fruits with other foods. Fruits pass quickly though the stomach and are rapidly digested in the intestines. If fruit is eaten with other foods, it is kept waiting in the stomach, where it may ferment and produce gases and harmful compounds. Digestive processes are also disrupted and the fruit's nutritive value is compromised. Therefore, it is best to eat fruit as a snack in between meals, especially about 30 minutes before a meal to get the best antioxidant boost. Scientists at the Agricultural Research Service, investigating the effects of antioxidants on after-meal oxidative stress, found that grapes, kiwi and wild blueberries were high performers when it came to raising blood levels of important antioxidants. As a general rule, fruit should not be eaten at the end of a meal. However, most people do not have digestive problems with berries after eating. So, if you insist on dessert after a meal, go with berries.


Our early ancestors would not recognize the fruits available in today's supermarkets. Scientists in the last century have selectively bred fruits to have a long shelf life, few seeds, less fiber and a powerfully sweet taste. Wild fruits are typically less sweet, and much richer in micronutrients than cultivated fruits, particularly in minerals (e.g., copper, iron, calcium) and the vitamins C, E, K, beta-carotene and folic acid. The vitamin C intake of our fruit-eating ape cousins is estimated to be 2-6 grams, compared about 60 mg for humans (one hundred times less!). Wild fruits are also much richer in the millions of "background" nutrients essential to good human health, such as bioflavonoids, terpenes, phenols, carotenes, and many more. For much more information regarding the good foods our ancestors ate, pick up the book "Deadly Harvest" by Dr. Geoff Bond.


The biggest problem with modern fruits has as much to do with what is present in them as what is absent. Starchy and processed fruits are loaded with sugar. Fruits rich in sugar can aggravate pre-existing ailments, such as diabetes, allergies, cancer, and other inflammatory conditions. Dried fruits are nearly as bad, since the sugar is concentrated, and the drying process destroys many of the micronutrients. Frozen fruit retains much of its antioxidant content, but canned fruit should be (garbage) canned.


Vitamins, minerals and antioxidants can also be obtained through dietary supplements. Obviously, fruits and vegetables provide a greater wealth of nutrients than do supplements, but getting these nutrients in the diet somehow is the most important consideration. Even gummy bear antioxidants are better for kids than no fruit at all. Plus, antioxidant supplements can provide higher quantities of vitamins C, E, zinc, selenium, vitamin A and many plant flavonoids than fruits and vegetables. The content of these nutrients in fruits varies from farm to farm and year to year. And, with the deterioration of our soil, less and less of these nutrients are found in food. Fortunately, many essential antioxidants can be found in a high quality multivitamin, which every man, woman and child should be taking daily.


If you're not interested in the chemistry of all the wonderful things found in fruits and vegetables, just shop for color. The colorful pigments in blueberries, raspberries oranges, pomegranate, purple tomatoes, etc., are chemicals that protect them from the sun. These pigments are antioxidant rich and protect people in the same way they do plants.


So, if you have a little boy or girl at home with a diarrhea problem, or an inflamed bun, the last thing you want to do is stop all fruits (as an ignorant physician recently recommended to a friend). Certainly stop the sugary juices, but not the whole fruit, especially organic, non-starchy varieties. Switch to water, perhaps with a little pomegranate juice for flavor and antioxidant punch. Make your own fresh fruit sauces or smoothies, or find a good organic brand of baby food that contains these antioxidants. Good food means good health. So, when it comes to food, we must take health into our own hands.


Reference: Bond G. Deadly Harvest. 2007. Square One Publishers, Garden City Park, NY.