Comments of the Week

This week, it’s kale recipes, coupon clipping, vegetarian beefs, and remembrances of Presidents of the United States of America gone by. Oh, and if you have the time, check out all the great responses to What Would You Do: Restaurant Gives Meat to a Vegetarian. The consensus: I should have spoken to a manager, yo.

On Millions of Grilled Peaches (Grilled Peaches for Me)

molly b: Can't believe someone else actually remembers that song. We had a hamster once that we named Peaches... because we got her for free. :-)

Monica: I loved that song! So much I bought the whole CD. Oh the crapola we listened to in order to get one great song. Thank you so much iTunes!

On Eating Healthy While Clipping Coupons: The Dos and Don’ts

Pam: I started clipping coupons a couple of months ago and was amazed at how many of them are for personal care items. Since I'm not brand loyal for these kinds of things, I've saved a lot of money using coupons. It's freed up more of my grocery budget for the organic dairy I've been wanting to purchase but couldn't.

Di Hickman: Also for those looking for healthier coupons, try Mambosprouts.com they have some health food coupons, but then you gotta search the supermarkets to find the items! (though whole foods does take coupons)

Chocoholic: Another thing on the websites, especially organic companies, sign up for their emails! I routinely get emails from Horizon, Organic Valley, etc. that have coupons in them. Make sure to check out the register coupons some places print. I've bought Amy's pizzas and gotten Kashi pizza coupons and vice versa.

On Kale and Hearty: White Bean and Kale Soup with Turkey Sausage

c.r.a.: Now that you have discovered kale, may I suggest my favorite kale recipe, Pasta with Kale and Fontina? It is so good. I only use half of the pasta called for to make it more about the veggie goodness (and as a result, you can scale back the chicken broth a little) and gouda cheese is, I think, even better than the fontina. It also makes rocking leftovers.

Leigh: Kale is my favorite leafy green. When in doubt, just sautee with garlic and mmm! Enjoy your new, healthy relationship.

Anonymous: As for other greens, can I suggest Swiss Chard? I make a one dish meal (sounds better than casserole ?) with Canadian bacon, Swiss chard, potatoes and Gruyere ( or regular Swiss) cheese that is very good. Recipe is here.

On Veggie Might: That’s What I Was Going to Say

Jen@BigBinder: When I go to a restaurant, I want someone who can do something snazzy with vegetables so I usually order a vegetarian dish. I think there is a greater potential for interesting and beautiful and tasty dishes I can't make at home.

CraftyKate: I can only speak for myself of course, but as a long time veggie who lives with a meat eating boyfriend it makes me uncomfortable when a meat eating family make too big of a deal about me being veggie. … I really don't want to be a burden, and while it's incredibly sweet she's willing to go out of her way to make me welcome in her home, I always feel like a finicky pain when she buys me my own meal. I'm happy with the non meat portions of the meal!

Michelle: I know food choices can be hard, but I think vegan shoes have really come along way! One of my favorite vegan shoe sites is: http://www.vegetarianshoesandbags.com/. They also just added a children's line as well! doesn't get any easier than this!

Read more »

Posted in: Reader Comments

EPA Orders Scotts to Stop Selling Certain Pesticides

As many reader's may know Scotts has determined itself to be the go to company for lawn care. It also believes it is the source for 'organic' care now that green is so trendy.

Scotts is the antithesis of what I have taught for decades in my Green Living programs.

In my book, "My Happy Garden", now a decade old, you can find many helps about how to have a healthy, safe and natural garden with many things you can grow and make yourself.


If that's not your gig, never fear, TerraCycle is here.

CHICAGO, April 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --- U. S. Environmental
Protection Agency Region 5 today issued a "stop sale, use or removal" order
against Scotts Miracle Gro Co. and three affiliates, all of Marysville,
Ohio, for illegal, unregistered and misbranded pesticides. EPA will also
issue a stop sale order to Scotts Lawn Care Service.

Scotts has agreed to recall these products from all retail locations
across the United States and to set up a process for consumers to safely
return any unregistered products they may have purchased.

An EPA consumer hotline to answer questions about the action has been
established at 888-838-1304 (9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Central Daylight Time).
Questions may also be answered by the National Pesticide Information Center
at 800-858-7378 (6:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time, including
weekends). A fact sheet and regularly updated information are posted online
at http://www.epa.gov/reg5rcra/ptb/news/.

At this time the risks, if any, posed by these unregistered products
are unknown. EPA and its state partner Ohio Department of Agriculture are
conducting a laboratory analysis of these products. Updated information
will be posted online when it becomes available. Until EPA has more
information about the contents of these products, consumers are advised not
to use these products and to store them in a safe, cool and dry place such
as a garage or utility shed. Do not dispose of them down the drain, in the
garbage or at a community disposal site.

EPA ordered the companies, collectively an international producer and
distributor of lawn care products, to immediately stop selling and
distributing two products which can be identified by the invalid "EPA
registration number" listed on the package. Invalid registration number
62355-4 is marketed under names including "Garden Weed Preventer + Plant
Food" and "Miracle Gro Shake 'n' Feed All Purpose Plant Food Plus Weed
Preventer." Invalid registration number 538-304 is used primarily by Scotts
Lawn Service, a lawn care company. It is marketed under names including
"Scotts Lawn Service Fertilizer with .28% Halts," "Scotts Lawn Service
Fertilizer 0-0-7 Plus .28% Halts Pro," "Scotts Lawn Service Fertilizer
14-2-5 Plus .28% Halts Pro" and "Scotts Lawn Service Fertilizer 22-0-8 Plus
.28% Halts Pro."

In an effort to make sure these products are immediately removed from
the marketplace, EPA will also issue stop sale orders to major retailers
that carry these products.

Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, all
pesticides must be submitted to EPA for review, evaluation and registration
to ensure that they do not pose an unreasonable risk to human health or the
environment. EPA's review and registration process is internationally
recognized. Pesticide products that have not undergone EPA review may pose
risks to human health and the environment.

"A manufacturer such as Scotts cannot ignore the important legal
requirement of registering its pesticides," said Region 5 Administrator
Mary A. Gade. "This is a serious violation of EPA's system for protecting
people and the environment from the potential harmful effects of
pesticides. EPA will fully investigate this violation and take appropriate
actions. We are committed to keeping the public informed about any health
consequences and providing information to assure the safe recall of these
products as soon as possible."

For more information on pesticides, go to
http://www.epa.gov/reg5rcra/ptb/pest.

Read more »

Researcher admits error

Here is an example of a terrible wrong against those with cancer, but at last a show of some integrity by the original investigator.

I just wonder how long it will take for MSM to change their focus.

Those of us who understand nutrients and anti-oxidants, minerals, and vitamins were correct all along.

"ANTIOXIDANTS: CANCER LINK WAS ALL A MISTAKE"

It was news when it was claimed in 2005 & again recently, that vitamins can speed up cancer development. But the researcher who first published the study has now admitted that she got it wrong.

It made headlines around the world when it stated that patients who took Beta Carotene or vitamin E were 40% more likely to suffer a cancer recurrence. This year Cochrane Collaborative released a meta-analysis that suggested that antioxidants may shorten life.

But researchers from the Laval Uni Cancer Research Center in Quebec, led by Isabelle Bairati - the scientist who published the 2005 study - have re-analyzed the orginal data & discovered that they got it wrong.

The only people in the study who had their cancer return were smokers who refused to kick the habit while receiving radio or chemotherapy.

(Int J Cancer, 2008; 122: 1679-83.

Read more »

Mainstream Health Coverage Unsatisfactory

I think it is very positive that this report is published, this is the main reason for the founding of Natural Health News.

By Michael Smith, North American Correspondent, MedPage Today
May 28, 2008
Reviewed by Dori F. Zaleznik, MD; Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston.

MINNEAPOLIS, May 27 -- Most health coverage in the mainstream media fails to address the costs, harms, and benefits of medical products and procedures, according to the publisher of HealthNewsReview.org, a Web site that grades journalists.

The coverage also usually ignores the quality of the evidence and the existence of other options, said Gary Schwitzer, B.A., of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism, who worked for 30 years as consumer healthcare journalist in radio, television, interactive multimedia, and the Internet.

On the other hand, he wrote in the May issue of the online journal PLoS Medicine, 85% of the time the mainstream media put the true newness of a procedure or product into context.

The findings come from an examination of 500 stories during the first 22 months of the Web site, which started publishing evaluations of health news stories in April 2006. Schwitzer, an associate professor of journalism, is publisher of the Web site.

The 22 months of reviews are "the clearest picture yet available of how major newspapers, magazines, and television networks cover treatments, tests, products, and procedures," he said.

He and colleagues monitor the top 50 newspapers (in circulation) in the U.S., the Associated Press, the three leading newsweekly magazines (Time, Newsweek, and U.S. News & World Report) and the morning and evening newscasts of ABC, CBS, and NBC.

News stories were rated as satisfactory, unsatisfactory, or not applicable on a 10-point set of criteria by two independent reviewers, with Schwitzer voting to break ties. The Web site has a panel of 27 reviewers, many in academic medicine.

In a random sample of 30 stories, two independent reviewers agreed on the assessment 74% of the time, he reported.

Stories were rated on whether they:

* Discussed costs. Only 23% got a satisfactory rating.
* Quantified benefits. Only 28% were satisfactory.
* Quantified harms. Only 33% were satisfactory.
* Discussed existing alternate options. Only 38% were satisfactory.
* Sought independent sources and explored conflicts of interests in sources. Fifty-six percent were satisfactory on this count.
* Avoided "disease mongering" -- making common conditions like baldness into disease states. At 70%, most were satisfactory.
* Discussed quality of the evidence, including the strengths and weakness of study types. Only 35% were satisfactory.
* Established the true newness of the approach, where 85% did a satisfactory job.
* Discussed the availability of the new approach, important when reporting on investigational drugs and procedures. At 70%, most were satisfactory.
* Went beyond a news release, by seeking outside sources. Here, 65% were satisfactory.

The upshot is that health coverage often delivers "an imbalanced picture of health care interventions," Schwitzer said, at least partly because newsroom cutbacks have reduced the time and resources available for health coverage.

In a sidebar to the study, Schwitzer highlighted several stories he and colleagues rated unsatisfactory, including some from the heavyweights of the media world.

For instance, a 2006 story in the New York Times about the effect of resveratrol (a component of red wine) on mice failed to point out that results in mice often have little bearing on what happens in humans.

In another example, the Web site took NBC's Today Show to task for a story titled "Mini-Medical Miracles: Getting Rid of Wrinkles," which it called "a classic case of disease-mongering." The story was part of a series looking at "treatments" for such things as baldness, insomnia, and dandruff.

The Web site reports its reviews both to the public (at www.healthnewsreview.org) and directly to reporters and editors, Schwitzer said.

In an accompanying editorial, the journal's editors said the "alarming report card of the trouble with medical news stories is thus a wake-up call for all of us involved in disseminating health research."

The editorial said that researchers, journalists, and medical journals themselves are often complicit in over-hyping a story, but there are signs that matters are improving.

The journal cited coverage of the growing field of genetic research, which might seem a ripe field for sensationalism. Instead, an analysis of "627 newspaper articles on gene discoveries found that only 11% contained such hype," the editorial said.

The review Web site is a step in the direction of better health coverage, although "a small step," said freelance journalist Andrew Holtz, M.P.H., of Portland, Ore., who is past president of the Association of Health Care Journalists.

Holtz said some editors and reporters "will just blow it off" but a growing number "want to do better and are hungry for some guidance." The 10-point rating system offers that guidance, he said.

"How can you make progress if you don't measure?" he said.

The study was supported by the Foundation for Informed Medical Decision Making. Schwitzer reported no conflicts. One of the Web site's reviewers, Colin Nelson, has contributed articles to MedPage Today.

Primary source: PLoS Medicine
Source reference:
Schwitzer G. "How Do US Journalists Cover Treatments, Tests, Products, and Procedures? An Evaluation of 500 Stories." PLOS Med 2008; 5(5): e95. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.0050095.

Read more »

Millions of Grilled Peaches (Grilled Peaches for Me)

I am a fruit girl. Sure, I like vegetables and grains appeal to me now more than ever, but I am, have always been, and will always be a fruit girl.

Besides the pleasure of scorching my translucent flesh to a bacony-textured, slightly off-white hue, the abundance and variety of fruit is the key reason I tolerate humid, stinky summers in New York. Every June and July the Union Square farmers market teems with cherries, watermelon, blueberries, plums – all the good stuff. It’s a rainbow of inexpensive nutritiousness, and sashaying down the open-air aisles, it’s all I can do to keep from stuffing my face with juicy, fruity wonderment. Even the local Key Food, normally a black hole of bruised produce, is starting to brim with berries, melons, and most importantly, peaches.

They were on sale this week, and despite my newfound aversion to off-season fruit, I couldn’t let their fuzzy goodness go to waste in some other Brooklyn kitchen. No, I had to have them. What’s more, I had to have them GRILLED.

Grilling stone fruits (peaches, plums, apricots, etc.) deepens the flavor and, to use a technical term, squishens them. This means you won’t need to sharpen your incisors and/or a hacksaw to enjoy them on frozen yogurt. Fortunately, broiling stone fruits has essentially the same effect, only you miss those darling grill marks. You know – the ones that scream, “BEHOLD, MORTAL! FIRE TOUCHED THIS PEACH!” If you’re lacking a Weber, however, broiling is the way to go.

That’s what I did with How to Boil Water’s Grilled Peaches. First, I let them marinate in a Food Network-approved brew for about five minutes longer than necessary. Then, the broiler was fired up, the peaches were plopped face-down on a pan (flipped halfway through), and blazing, blistering heat took care of the rest. The Boyfriend and I ate them with a spoon and no accompaniment (except each others' swooning gazes). And they were delicious.

One caveat – once the fruit passed the five-minute mark in the broiler, the sugar started to burn to a blackened mass. So keep an eye out. Also keep an eye out for more simple fruit-based dessert recipes in the near future. Because, I don’t know if I mentioned this? But I likes me some fruit.

Grilled Peaches
Serves 4
Adapted from How to Boil Water by Food Network Kitchens.

4 ripe medium peaches, quartered and pitted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 to 2 pints frozen vanilla yogurt (optional)
Suggested toppings: toasted sliced almonds

1) Preheat a grill (medium-high).

2) In a large bowl gently combine peaches, vanilla extract, almond extract, and brown sugar. Let marinate 15 minutes while grill is heating. Place on grill, skin side down, "until skin is slightly charred, about 3 minutes." Flip and grill the second side about 1 minute, until there are grill marks. Flip again and do the same for the third side.

3) Split peaches into 4 servings. If you like, fro-yo and toasted almonds are good accompaniments.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price per Serving
84 calories, 0.25 g fat, $0.39

Calculations
4 ripe medium peaches: 153 calories, 1 g fat, $1.12
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract: 2 calories, 0 g fat, $0.12
1/4 teaspoon almond extract: negligible calories and fat, $0.20
1/4 cup dark brown sugar: 180 calories, 0 g fat, $0.11
TOTAL: 335 calories, 1 g fat, $1.55
PER SERVING (TOTAL/4): 84 calories, 0.25 g fat, $0.39

Read more »

Posted in: Desserts and Snacks,Vegan,Vegetarian

Payoffs in the US Protect Aspartame from Facts

Yes, again, studies show harm from aspartame.

Splenda is in the same category as well.

If you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant avoid all artificial sweeteners, even thought the American Dietetic Association tells you otherwise. Aspartame is known to cause severe birth defects. Splenda's hydrongenated chlorocarbon nature can be damaging as well.

Direct and indirect cellular effects of aspartame on the brain

P Humphries1,2, E Pretorius1 and H Naude´1
1Department of Anatomy, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa and 2Department of Anatomy, University of the Limpopo, South Africa

The use of the artificial sweetener, aspartame, has long been contemplated and studied by various researchers, and people are concerned about its negative effects. Aspartame is composed of phenylalanine (50%), aspartic acid (40%) and methanol (10%).
Phenylalanine plays an important role in neurotransmitter regulation, whereas aspartic acid is also thought to play a role as an excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. Glutamate, asparagines and glutamine are formed from their precursor, aspartic acid. Methanol, which forms 10% of the broken down product, is converted in the body to formate, which can either be excreted or can give rise to formaldehyde, diketopiperazine (a carcinogen) and a number of other highly toxic derivatives. Previously, it has been reported that consumption of aspartame could cause neurological and behavioural disturbances in sensitive individuals. Headaches, insomnia and seizures are also some of the neurological effects that have been encountered, and these may be accredited to changes in regional brain concentrations of catecholamines, which include norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine. The aim of this study was to discuss the direct and indirect cellular effects of aspartame on the brain, and we propose that excessive aspartame ingestion might be involved in the pathogenesis of certain mental disorders (DSM-IV-TR 2000) and also in compromised learning and emotional functioning.

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2008) 62, 451–462; doi:10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602866; published online 8 August 2007

Request full article

Read more »

Veggie Might: Daikon (Jicama) Mango Slaw - I Can Make That

Written by the fabulous Leigh, Veggie Might is a weekly Thursday column about all things Vegetarian.

It’s pretty much my goal as an amateur gourmet on a budget to recreate the fabulous things I eat (or smell) in restaurants on the cheap, on the veg, or at all. Since I can’t afford to eat out often, I pay close attention and occasionally take notes (or poor resolution camera phone pics).

Working without a recipe can be risky for sure, especially when you’re a cheapskate like me. I HATE wasting food. But I also find it extremely rewarding. It’s creative and fun, and when it works, it’s thrilling. I dance around, give the dog a carrot, and if it’s really good, call my mother to brag.

Last Friday, I had the pleasure of dining at Spring Street Natural, an organic wonderland in New York City’s SoHo district. Two work friends recommended it and were stunned I’d never been there. After I took a gander at the online menu, I was stunned too. There were so many delicious-sounding vegetarian choices. I really have to get out more. Mid-year Resolution: No more veggie burgers in pubs!

Later that evening I found in front of me a plate of corn-crusted tofu, sautéed spinach, and jicama mango salad. It was all lovely. The tofu had a great texture, and the seasoned cornmeal crust gave it a flavor and crispiness reminiscent of the catfish I grew up with. The spinach was spinach. I love spinach; but it was nothing to call mom about.

But the best part of the meal was the jicama mango salad. Oh yeah. It’s why I ordered that entrée in particular. I could have had a veggie casserole with quinoa—Maude knows I love quinoa—but the jicama mango combo was speaking to me. And once on my fork, it spoke to me right in my mouth.

A sweet/savory combo done right is a dream come true. The jicama was crispy and mild; the mango was tart and crunchy with just the right amount of sweetness countered by cilantro, red onion, a tang, which I assumed was lime juice, and some kind of heat. But what was it? Garlic? I didn’t think so. Cayenne? Jalapeño? It was a mystery; there was heat without flavor. Of course, my palate is not that sophisticated, so it could just have eluded me.

For days (okay, two), I talked about this salad before I decided I just had to make it. My only real challenges were finding jicama and balancing the proportions. Jicama is a Mexican tuber with a mild flavor, kind of like an apple. It’s just a touch sweet—just a touch—and crunchy when served raw. Actually, I never had it any other way.

The jicama to mango proportion had been about 2:1, and the cilantro and onion did not overpower. I decided to use cayenne for heat, and if it tasted weird, to add a teeny bit of garlic to a small portion of the slaw to check the flavor. It turned out to be a nonissue.

Never leaving a three-block radius of my apartment, I went to four different vegetable markets on my quest for ingredients. First, I went to my tried-and-true, everything-here-is-about-to-go market, where I scored mangoes at two for $1, red onions for 75¢ a pound, and seven limes for $1. But no jicama. Then, I went to the Korean market—where they coo over my dog—and got cilantro for 79¢ a bunch. Still no jicama. So, Snack and I trucked it down to the Mexican produce market. No señorita, no jicama para tí.

Luckily I was able to draw on the vast (ha!) knowledge of world cuisine I gained working as a waitron at a glorified diner on the Upper West Side. Daikon, a white radish, has a, well, radishy flavor, but is fairly mild. Its texture is similar to jicama, so I figured it would make an adequate substitute. I shoved Snack in his pet carrier, went into the Amish Market (the name of the store, not run by actual Amish people), and procured the proxy ingredient (for 99¢ a pound).

If you try this recipe and can’t find either jicama or daikon, try a firm, tart apple like Granny Smith. It will work great. When choosing mangoes, go for the firm, not-so-ripe ones. You’ll be amazed how much easier they are to cut in this state. Get your chopping gloves on. All the chopping for this recipe gave me a blister.

Daikon (Jicama) Mango Slaw
Adapted from the Jicama Mango Salad at Spring Street Natural
Yields about 14 ½ -cup servings

4 medium daikon, julienned
2 mangoes (firm, not-yet-ripe), julienned
3 limes, juiced
1 small bunch cilantro, finely chopped
½ medium red onion, quartered and sliced thin
Salt
Cayenne to taste

NOTE #1: This dish is all about Julienne and her cutting style. If you have good knives, you’ll be a-okay. If you’re not sure if you have good knives, you’ll know soon enough. I have crappy knives, but I’m persistent. I wore a band-aid at the base of my index finger like a badge of honor when I served this delight at a Memorial Day BBQ.

1) Julienne (cut into thin sticks) the daikon (jicama) and mango. Place in a big ol’ bowl.

2) Stir lime juice into bowl with fruit and veg.

3) Add cilantro and onion. Stir

4) Add salt to taste.

5) Add a few dashes of cayenne. Wait 30 minutes. If you still want it hotter, add a bit more. The daikon gives a little bit of that heat I was looking for.

NOTE #2: The longer this dish marinates the better. A subway ride to Brooklyn is a good start. Here we are a couple of days later, and my Mom is getting a call about it.

Approximate Calories, Fat, and Price per Serving
34.3 calories, .2 g fat, $0.37 per serving

Calculations
4 med daikon: 240 calories, 1.2g fat, $2.50
2 mangoes: 170 calories, 1.2g fat, $1.00
1/2 medium red onion: 20 calories, .1g fat, $.25
1 small bunch cilantro: 22 calories, .5g fat, $.79
3 limes, juices, 28.5 calories, .1 fat, $0.08
1 tsp salt: negligible calories and fat, $0.02
1 tsp cayenne pepper: negligible calories and fat, $0.02
TOTALS: 480.5 calories, 3.1g fat, $5.21
PER SERVING: 34.3 calories, .2 g fat, $0.37 per serving

Read more »

Posted in: Sides,Vegan,Vegetarian,Veggie Might

CHG Favorites of the Week

Food Blog of the Week
Carol on Keller
Maryland resident/novice chef Carol is attempting every meal in the legendarily complicated French Laundry cookbook, which is a bit like learning math by starting with calculus. Fr’ instance? The most recent post documents her attempt to braise and stuff a pig’s head. Yoinks.

Food Comedy of the Week
“Cake or Death” by Eddie Izzard
Someone set Eddie’s famous/FAHbulous Dress to Kill show entirely to Legos! It's hilarious, and almost better than being covered in bees.



Food Organization of the Week
Kiva
A microlending organization connecting individuals directly to the folks they’re donating to, Kiva is one of (if not THE) first website of its kind. What happens is this: you choose an entrepreneur anywhere in the world and loan them a pre-designated amount of cash. Over time, they grow their business, lift themselves out of poverty, and pay you back. Then, you can invest in someone else registered with the site. Awesome. Part of my government stimulus is definitely going toward this.

Food Quote of the Week
‘I do wish we could chat longer, but … I'm having an old friend for dinner. Bye.” – Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), Silence of the Lambs

Food Tip of the Week
Whether you’re a home cook or part-time dieter, if you have to weigh ingredients often, there’s no need to buy a fancy, expensive electronic food scale. Instead, look for a plain old analog one. They work just as well, clean-up is easy, and brand new items sell for about 20% of what a digital doohickey would cost.

Untried Cheap Healthy Recipe of the Week
30 Ways to Be a Good Guest at Smitten Kitchen
In a stunning culinary coup, Deb compiles more than two dozen of her favorite party-appropriate dishes. It’s all good, but especially don’t miss out on Black Bean Confetti Salad, Hoisin Barbecue Sauce, and Tequila Lime Chicken. Good lord.

Food Video of the Week
“Grits” by RZA
Wu-Tang mastermind RZA digs deep and comes up with the most heartfelt paean to cornmeal ever put on wax. Grits sustained his family in dark times, and now he’s giving them their due.

Read more »

Posted in: Links

Eating Healthy While Clipping Coupons: The Dos and Don’ts

(So, I finished this piece a few days ago, but waited until today’s scheduled Article Day to post. Money Saving Mom beat me to the punch in the best possible way. Guest contributor Jody Connelly has a tremendous essay called Nine Coupon Myths Debunked, and while it doesn't concentrate wholly on healthy couponing, it’s absolutely worth ten ganders. I encourage you to read it, study it, and adopt it as your child. Once that’s done, c’mon back here. Hopefully, this can add to Jody’s well-observed points.)

A few weeks ago, Serious Eats (one of my favorite blogs) picked up on a CHG piece called The Hour: How 60 Minutes a Week Can Save Hundreds of Dollars. Their post summarized The Hour in four simple steps, #2 of which was “Clip and organize coupons.” Quite a few commenters picked up on it, and more than one made the same salient point: it’s difficult to use coupons and eat healthy.

(Incidentally, one or two comments were along the lines of, “Coupons suck. I’ve been a vegan for 400 years, grow and cook all my own food from scratch, and refuse to ingest anything that’s ever come within 300 yards of a questionably unhealthy chemical. P.S. I’m better than you.” But we’ll ignore them.)

(For now.)

I won’t deny it: the “coupons aren’t healthy” folks are largely on the money. When it comes to food discounts, the vast majority of coupons are for sugary snacks and preservative-laden convenience products. You’d do better to lick a few dirty band-aids for the vitamins and minerals they provide, “Low in fat! High in niacin!” claims aside. What’s more, coupons can lure you to buy foods you wouldn’t otherwise, and oftentimes, those items are significantly pricier than generic or competing brands.

But.

There are ways around the coupon trap. By applying the little buggers prudently, you can (and will) save a few bucks off healthy foods every week. It’ll compensate for the cost of labor and materials, and the time commitment shouldn’t take away from more important things. Like cooking, sleeping, or wondering why your boyfriend can get his laundry NEAR the hamper, but never IN the hamper.

Here are a few guidelines. You’ll note that some might not be applicable to your particular situation, and a few may even be at odds with each other. But hey – take what you like, and leave the rest. As always, I’d love to hear reader suggestions, as you guys are a scrappy, brainy bunch whose wisdom trumps mine by a country mile.

DON’T clip coupons for crap foods. It may seem intuitive, but if you ignore the insert discount on Mr. Transfat’s Super Rainbow Sugar Snackaroos, you’re much less likely to buy the product. And sandwiched between that barrage of prism-hued cartoon ads (which, infuriatingly, are often and obviously aimed at kids) are food coupons much more worth your while, as both a cook and a healthy eater. Bonus: by snubbing the crap, you’re not adding extra time to your grocery routine.

DO clip coupons for pantry staples. Sure, some folks have the time and inclination to brew their own soy sauce from scratch, and more power to them. I don’t. Fortunately for me, a plethora of standard condiments and cupboard stalwarts appear quite regularly in coupon inserts. In fact, right now, I have paper discounts for bread, Tabasco sauce, mustard, teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, milk, eggs, sugar, sweetened condensed milk, soy milk, frozen vegetables, sugar-free sorbet, coffee, whole grain pasta, peanut butter, jelly, bagged salad, and 5,000 kinds of yogurt. These aren’t unhealthy foods, and many function as ingredients for other, nutritionally sound meals. Plus? When the coupons are paired with circular sales, each item can be purchased for well below the regular price.

DO check online. I could be wrong, but I find websites seem to have more health-based coupons than do Sunday newspapers. As of this writing, $3 worth of Muir Glen tomatoes, Birds Eye frozen vegetables, and Tuscan dairy discounts are available at Coupons.com, while SmartSource.com has $3.85 off Tribe hummus, Borden organic milk, Near East couscous, Heartland pasta, and Pompeian olive oil and vinegar. (And, um, $1 on Ben and Jerry’s.) Lots of organic-friendly companies will include coupon offers on their business websites, as well. All in all, that ain’t too shabby. (Of course, beware of grocery stores that don’t take print-out coupons. Mine don’t.)

DON’T be unwaveringly brand-loyal. A vital component of this whole healthy couponing thing (and couponing in general) is forgoing your allegiance to certain brands. Simply, coupons are for all kinds of items made by all kinds of companies, and the more you’re willing to try, the more you’ll save. It means you may have to give up Pillsbury sugar for Domino’s, but the money’s worth it in the long run.

DO clip coupons for personal and kitchen supplies. I don’t know if you’ve ever bought generic plastic wrap, but in my experience, it’s slightly less worthless than a Paris Hilton math book. With the help of coupons (paired with store sales, of course), you can regularly score aluminum foil, Tupperware, soap, cleaners, and toothpaste – all necessities that usually get lumped into the grocery budget - for next to nothing. And? The money you bank can be applied toward healthy whole foods like produce, grains, and meat. Money Saving Mom has the lowdown.

DON’T clip coupons for items you will never use (or donate). Much like the “No Crap Foods” rule, there’s no need to blow two hours eviscerating a coupon insert because you may miss a fantasy deal on fish oil supplements. If you’re an elderly dog owner prone to yeast infections, go ahead and getcher markdowns for Tylenol Arthritis, Alpo and Vagisil. If you’re not, pass them by (unless you will donate those goods to charity in the near future). Again, you’ll save time and aggravation, which affect both your health and your willingness to coupon.

DO read up. I’m far from an expert, but I know that circular sales or coupons by themselves aren’t usually enough to make a product enticing. Applied together, though? Different story. And these two posts include all you really need to know: Coupons Tips and Tricks That Can Cut Your Grocery Bill by 80% at The Digerati Life and The One Month Coupon Strategy at The Simple Dollar.

And that’s it. Readers, again, I’d love to hear from you. There’s so much to talk about with this particular subject, and I’m sure I forgot a ton. Please edumacate me.

(Photos courtesy of Flickr members ninjapoodles, joslynl, and peretzpup.)

Read more »

Posted in: Buying Food,Frugality

City Kitchen Chronicles: Introducing Jaime

City Kitchen Chronicles is a bi-weekly column about living frugally in Manhattan. It's penned by the lovely Jaime.

jaime: Hello Cheap Healthy Good-ers! We here at City Kitchen Chronicles have a special column for you today. Two weeks ago you were introduced to Jaime by way of one of her cheapest, healthiest, tastiest recipes. Today we go past the flash and sizzle to meet the girl behind those tasty beans and veggies, to learn a little about how she ended up here, and why she’s sorta living on rice and beans. Hi Jaime. Thanks so much for joining us.

JAIME: My pleasure. Thanks for having me.

jaime: Of course. So, first, how did you end up here at Cheap Healthy Good?

JAIME: Well, that’s a two-part question. Or, several parts. How did I find the website? How did I end up writing for it? Why do I feel the need for cheap, healthy, and good food in my life?

jaime: Any of that.

JAIME: Well, like most websites, I ended up at CHG through some sort of link odyssey. And why did Kris think I had things to say about cheap, healthy food when I spend most of my time blogging about theatre and cats? I’m not sure, but that leap of faith and that trust are a true gift.

jaime: You mention theatre. Something tells me there’s a connection there, to the cheap eating.

JAIME: Ha! Definitely. Working in theatre almost inherently necessitates frugal living. Non-profit off-Broadway theatre, though a wonderful place to work and make art, is not where you get rich. When I was finishing up college, I consciously made the decision to do what I love, not what would make me the most money. And so I find ways to make that work.

jaime: Now, yes, working in theatre does not pay a ton. But surely it must pay better than rice and beans. Don’t many of your coworkers do crazy, indulgent things like buy lunch rather than brown-bagging every day? How can they afford that when you can’t?

JAIME: Well, I may have had some, shall we say, financial indiscressions in my past. Senior year of college it seemed like a great idea, rather than having any savings on graduation, to spend winter break backpacking through Europe.

jaime: Ooh, how was that?

JAIME: It was amazing but, especially after my train passes got stolen on a train somewhere in Germany and had to be replaced, it catapulted me into a dependence on credit cards that I’m only now just starting to shake.

jaime: Ah, credit cards. (And a lesson to our readers to sleep on their bags on overnight trains.) But credit cards – can you tell us more about that?

JAIME: Sure. The Europe trip was the first time I remember really leaning on credit cards, and then it got more intense after graduation. My first job was working as an assistant at a talent agency, which makes my current job look like a goldmine. It paid horribly, and New York City is one of the most expensive places to live in the world. I had a new apartment (with two roommates) to furnish, and I think that went heavily onto credit cards, and my job wasn’t enough to make ends meet. I took on a second, part-time, job, but still – theatre tickets, a dinner out, groceries – I was living beyond my means. Nothing extravagant – okay, there was that hat – but I was just living a reasonable life on unreasonable money.

jaime: That doesn’t sound like the sort of person who would write for, let alone read, frugal cooking and personal finance blogs. What changed?

JAIME: Well, for starters, I got a new job. Which basically meant I could drop the second job – and wouldn’t have time for it, anyway. But a little more money was coming in. And then starting to stumble across, and then read, personal finance blogs was a big inspiration for me. I’d had a handful of moments of panic about my growing debt, but it was only several months ago that I made the commitment – to myself – to completely stop adding to it and to make a schedule to pay it off. So recently I’ve buckled down, hardcore. Part of what was – and is – so frustrating is that if I weren’t sending money to my credit cards every month, I’d have enough to live much more comfortably. But I know that a year (or two, oy) of really strapping down and doing this puts a definite end date to this.

jaime: And what is that end date?

JAIME: (mumbles) September 2011. My theatre paycheck doesn’t give me a lot to work with!

jaime: Well thanks for sharing that. It can be hard to be candid about this stuff.

JAIME: Sure thing.

jaime: So now that you’ve committed yourself to paying off your debt, how has your life changed?

JAIME: I’ve cut spending in every corner. My weekly grocery bill is down from about $60 a week to $25 or $30. I almost never eat out. I don’t have cable. I rarely buy clothes.

jaime: Is that hard?

JAIME: Honestly, yes. I think being young and single and living in New York makes it especially hard. Waah, I know, poor me. But, for example, almost every kind of socializing, of seeing my friends, involves spending money. Did we get free tickets to a play? Let’s get dinner beforehand. Is it someone’s birthday? Let’s go out for drinks. Have I not seen my best friend for two weeks? Let’s get coffee. And lunch. And see a movie. And in New York, all of this is bloody expensive. Groceries, too. Refocusing my priorities has really changed how I live.

jaime: Do you feel deprived?

JAIME: Of course, sometimes. I’ve had to find ways – often, small financial compromises – to keep myself feeling sane. But I also know why I’m doing this, why I’m living this temporarily ascetic life, and that once I’m out the other end, I’m going to have hundreds of extra dollars a week. And I also know that now I have the tools – and the discipline – to make that money go farther. I’m not going to suddenly lose my frugal mindset once my cards are paid off. And that’s exciting, too.

jaime: Good for you. Wherever you get your kicks.

JAIME: No, seriously. Figuring out how to eat for a week on $20, a third of what it used to cost me, is exciting. Because, look, when my cards are paid off, and I’ve got some emergency $$ stashed away, if I don’t go back to my old habits, let’s say $30 a week for groceries rather than the old $60, and I keep brown-bagging, no cable, this general frugal mindset and all the money that saves me from wasting – do you know how many pairs of shoes that is? How many fancy hats? Dinners out? It’s going to be awesome. I’m going to be able to save for retirement, see theatre beyond what I can get free tickets to, spend money where it counts rather than wasting it, and all because I learned to love rice and beans.

jaime: You’re insane.

JAIME: It’s a really pretty hat.

jaime: That’s true. It makes you look like a flapper.

JAIME: I know. I love that.

jaime: Well good for you. And thank you for sharing your story here. I’d ask about food, about cooking healthily and frugally, but that’s what your column’s for, isn’t it?

JAIME: Largely, yes. I’ve got more non-recipes like the bodega beans. I’ve got kitchen strategies that, for me at least, help me not waste money. I’ve got tales of living cheaply in the urban jungle. And I’ll probably find a way to sneak in something (it’s health-related!) about how weight lifting is the best thing ever, and how I really want my knee to heal so I can get back to the gym.

jaime: You pay for a gym membership? Isn’t than terribly anti-frugal?

JAIME: Not if you use it. But more on that to come.

jaime: Ooh, anticipation. Leave them wanting more. I like that.

JAIME: Thanks.

jaime: And thank you. And thanks to Kris for ok’ing an interview that was either a total rip-off of Glenn Gould or an easy way out of writing a self-introduction of coherent paragraphs.

JAIME: Indeed. And thanks for reading!

jaime: More soon!

JAIME: Yay rice and beans!

jaime: You’re crazy.

JAIME: Then so are you.

jaime: Crazy frugal.

JAIME: Okay, seriously now.

jaime: Okay. Bye!

(Photos courtesy of Flickr members GHD Photography & Design, truedeluxe, scandblue, wallyg, and docman.)

Read more »

Posted in: City Kitchen Chronicles

Tuesday Megalinks: The Post-Party Edition

We had 100 people at our place for a Memorial Day barbecue this weekend, and my kitchen just this morning stopped smelling like Brooklyn Lager. Please forgive me if some of these are nonsensical.

Being Frugal: Frugal Living for Beginners
Lynnae runs down a few starter strategies for frugal newbies. (Essentially: DIY, plan ahead, consolidate.) BAM!

Culinate: Better and easier cooking: rules for the home kitchen
With eight tremendous tricks to make cooking easier, this piece is a bit like “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Meaning, I wish I wrote it.

Culinate: Steering clear of refined grains (How to eat more whole grains)
What I like best about Culinate is that they walk you through things. Really, they’re the Alton Brown of foodie websites (only without the ballpits that are meant to symbolize atomic processes). This grain post is a good example.

Get Rich Slowly: Can Saving Prepare Us for an Economic Recession?
While it’s a bit tangential to the cheap/healthy theme, JD’s post is a vital one. He’s asking readers if they feel prepared for the financial straits we’re about to enter, and how it’s affecting them already. Personal stories abound, and it’s faboo to read so many viewpoints.

Lifehacker: Become the Memorial Day Grillmaster
Um. I’m one day late. But grill season has just begun to fight!

The Nest Baby: How Big is Baby?
Are you pregnant? Do you know someone who is? Have you ever heard the terms “pregnancy” or “there’s a baby in my belly and I’m going to push it out soon”? Go to Nest Baby now (especially if you like pictograms). Among other things, you'll discover that your nine-week-old fetus is about the size of an olive. (But should not be eaten as such.)

New York Times: Busy Students Get a New Required Course: Lunch
The brainy youths in this NYT article are skipping out on meals to pack in study time. I’m trying desperately to relate, as I was a (big) nerd. Alas, I was not a nerd who skipped lunch.

New York Times: Finding the Best Way to Cook All Those Vegetables
a.k.a. Prepping Produce to Pack Powerful Punches of Putrients and Pinerals. (Um, I was going for a theme there.)

Serious Eats: Cooking With Kids – School Lunch Revolution
Back in the olden days, when I was student teaching at a rural high school in upstate New York, I took the opportunity to glance at the kids’ cafeteria lunch offerings. There were hardly any vegetables, period, and every Wednesday, it was Pretzel Bites and Cheese Sauce. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? And we wonder why kids’ obesity is skyrocketing? Yarg. Anyway, this Revolution Foods program aims to change situations like Pretzelgate.

Serious Eats: Foodies Movies?
Movies! With food!

Serious Eats: Top 10 ingredients I will never have in my kitchen
Extensive comment thread on notorious denizens of American cupboards. Readers, what are yours? In descending order, my picks:
10. Mayonnaise/Miracle Whip
9. Anise
8. Lunchables
7. May to the onnaise
6. Kraft Singles
5. Fish in squeeze-paste form
4. Little Debbies snack cakes
3. Canned mushrooms (non-marinated)
2. Pre-made burger patties
1. It starts with "M" and ends with "ayonnaise"

Slashfood: Think twice about using palm oil
Palm oil = massive deforestation/widespread extinction of endangered species. Not so good.

Toronto Star: Sharing the wealth from Ontario farmland
What in the name of Alex Trebek’s mudflaps is this all aboot, you might ask? Well, if you’ve been curious about CSAs but don’t know where to start, Kim Honey’s $450 venture into fresh, locally-grown produce is a good place to commence reading. (Thanks to Slashfood for the link.)

WXYZ: Real Calorie and Fat Content
That barbacoa burrito you’re about to buy at Chipotle? Might have more calories than you think. Double yikes. (Thanks to Consumerist for the link.)

Washington Post: Young Lives at Risk – Our Overweight Children
If you read nothing else this week, please make sure you read this. It’s a gigantic series on kids’ nutrition and how their growing bellies affect almost every other aspect of their lives. Beyond the immaculately reported statistics and personal stories, the best part about the whole shebang is the multitude of solutions the authors propose. As a nation we need to get on this.

(Photos courtesy of Flickr members emyduck, Peter Korte, and cutglassdecanter.)

Read more »

Posted in: Links

Nutrition and Preventing Post Partum Depression

Often times women utilize birth control hormone products to off put pregnancy. Many do not know of the severe nutritional imbalances created by use of these products.

Adding to the problem, physicians or others who Rx birth control pills for a myriad of complaints such as acne or cyclic balancing are contributing to a long term problem that may be a major factor in PPD. That problem is nutritional deficiency.

Brooke Shields might wish to do a bit more research before supporting her notion that SSRI anti-depressants are able to support true core healing from PPD.

As I have said for decades, nutrition - especially intracellular nutrition - should be the focus of treatment.

And for all the push to pre-treat pregnant women with SSRIs to prevent PPD, even with articles now claiming that these drugs cause no harm to a fetus, I wonder what has happened to the tenent - especially for the first tri-mester - use no drugs...

From an article on my women's health page -

"Oral contraceptives may create certain nutrient deficiencies and excesses as well as increase the nutritional needs of the user. Most of the B vitamins, particularly pyridoxine (B6) and folic acid, are needed in higher amounts when birth control pills are taken. The copper level usually rises, and zinc levels often fall. Thus, more zinc is needed as well. An increased need for vitamins C, E, and K may also result from the use of birth control pills."

Read complete article.

POST-PARTUM DEPRESSION - (PPD) has been much in the news, including movie star Brooke Shields’public announcement that she struggled with PPD and took anti-depressants to treat the condition. Now, new research sheds light on what may be the underlying cause of the condition, and may help explain why some women suffer more extreme cases of PPD.

Researchers have identified a pattern of elevated copper levels in the blood of women with a history of the condition. “In our study, we looked at zinc and copper levels in 78 women who suffered from PPD after completed pregnancies, and compared them with a group of 148 mothers without a history of PPD, and also with a group of 28 non-depressed women,” said John Crayton, M.D. Dr. Crayton is a professor of psychiatry at Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, Ill. and the Section on Biological Psychiatry, Hines VA Hospital, Hines, Ill.

Copper levels and copper to zinc ratios were significantly higher in the group of women with a history of PPD compared to the other groups, according to the study published in the February issue of the Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology.

“The exact nature of the association between elevated copper and PPD is not yet known, but copper plays a role in a variety of physiological systems that may be implicated in the development of PPD,” said William Walsh, PhD. Dr. Walsh is founder and director of research at the Pfeiffer Treatment Center and the Health Research Institute, Warrenville, Ill., and a coauthor of the study. Walsh added that elevated copper in the brain tends to diminish dopamine and increase norepinephrine levels.

"Zinc and copper play important roles in brain chemistry and are present in high concentrations in brain hippocampus which is involved in mood regulation, short-term memory, and behavior control," Dr. Crayton said.

During the nine months of a normal pregnancy, blood copper levels increase more than 100% but quickly return to normal after birth. This study indicates that the high copper condition can persist for many years in PPD women.

“We have seen dramatic improvement in women with PPD when we treat them with
supplements that lower copper levels and restore a normal copper to zinc ratio,” said Dr. Walsh.

“The next step is a controlled, clinical trial to verify these results, which may lead to a more effective treatment for PPD.”

Read more »

Silent Thyroid Ignored for Years by Most Health Providers

No surprise here if you understand the impact of the excessive amount of fluoride we all are exposed too. Water, dental propaganda, food, drugs, carpet, cleaning products, and the list goes on. Over exposure to radiation adds its effect. Birth control pills, other hormone therapies, antibiotics and SSRI drugs can also play a dirty hand.

Hyperthyroid leads to calcium depletion and such cardiovascular events as heart attack, atrial fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia.

The treatment you get in mainstream medicine is irradiation with a lifetime of Synthroid (leading to osteoporosis).

Never or rarely do you learn that you can recover the function of your hyperthyroid condition with natural therapies.

On the other end of the scale there are hypothyroid conditions. I am always educating people about the need for this test panel. And boy do I get a tough time from those knowing little about the thyroid.

You need at least a TSH, Free T3 and Free T4. Most times mainstream medicine folks give you a TSH. Or maybe you can get lucky with a FT4 and TSH. You get told the health care provider can "infer" the FT3 from the TSH and FT4. For my money, I don't want to infer or have anyone else infer anything about my health.

FT4 converts to FT3 and there can be issues in the conversion process.

Also make sure your lab and health care provider so know that the current TSH range of 0.3 to 3.2 has been re-established at 0.4-2.5 by the most erudite clinicians . It is usually considered to be best at about 1.5-2. The TSH should not be 8 or 5.

Sometimes a reverse T3 is important because it can indicate immune disorders.

There is other help beside Synthroid. I like Armour Natural Thyroid or Biothroid. Some people need Cytomel, which is T3. T3 can be obtained at a compounding pharmacy, another reason to tell Congress to lay their hands off these good resources.

And low functioning thyroid can he helped with natural treatment using herbs, homeopathy or supplements, and improving nutrition.

Also not to be overlooked is the interplay between thyroid function and diabetes.

Silent thyroid dysfunction has risks: study Fri May 23, 2008

People who have an underactive or overactive thyroid without symptoms appear to have a modestly increased risk of heart disease.

The data suggest that silent or "subclinical" thyroid dysfunction "might represent a potentially modifiable -- albeit modest -- risk factor for coronary heart disease and mortality," Dr. Nicholas Rodondi, from the University of Lausanne in Switzerland, and colleagues wrote in a report.

Their findings are based on pooled data from 12 studies identified through a search of MEDLINE (1950 to 2008). Ten of the studies involved population-based groups that included 14,449 subjects.

All of the population-based studies examined the impact of subclinical hypothyroidism on heart disease and mortality, whereas only five looked at the effect of subclinical hyperthyroidism, the report indicates.

The likelihood of coronary heart disease, heart-related death, and death from any cause was higher by 20 percent, 18 percent, and 12 percent, respectively, in subjects with an underactive thyroid without symptoms -- also referred to as subclinical hypothyroidism.

People with an overactive thyroid but without symptoms (i.e., silent hyperthyroidism) had a 21 percent, 19 percent, and 12 percent greater odds, respectively, of heart disease, heart-related death, and death from any cause.

Rodondi and colleagues say studies are needed to determine the impact of treating these two conditions on heart disease risk.

SOURCE: Annals of Internal Medicine, online May 20.
Copyright © 2008 Reuters Limited.

Read more »

Fluoride based drug with Black Box warning urged for cancer patients

The following is the Black Box warning for Celexa.

Suicidality and Antidepressant Drugs

Antidepressants increased the risk compared to placebo of suicidal thinking and behavior (suicidality) in children, adolescents, and young adults in short-term studies of major depressive disorder (MDD) and other psychiatric disorders. Anyone considering the use of Celexa or any other antidepressant in a child, adolescent, or young adult must balance this risk with the clinical need. Short-term studies did not show an increase in the risk of suicidality with antidepressants compared to placebo in adults beyond age 24; there was a reduction in risk with antidepressants compared to placebo in adults aged 65 and older. Depression and certain other psychiatric disorders are themselves associated with increases in the risk of suicide. Patients of all ages who are started on antidepressant therapy should be monitored appropriately and observed closely for clinical worsening, suicidality, or unusual changes in behavior. Families and caregivers should be advised of the need for close observation and communication with the prescriber. Celexa is not approved for use in pediatric patients. (See WARNINGS: Clinical Worsening and Suicide Risk, PRECAUTIONS: Information for Patients, and PRECAUTIONS: Pediatric Use.)

In addition, Celexa is another fluoride based SSRI.

Fluoride suppresses thyroid function which can then lead to suppressed immunity.

No one is considering that the toxic load from chemo and radiation treatments as well as associated nutritional deficiencies may be the cause of the "depression".

Cancer therapies do need a newer approach.

Read more »

Nebraska Healing Machines

This story speaks to the old knowledge surrounding vibrational healing

The "healing machines" created by Emery Blagdon, Nebraska native and former hobo, who was considered just another eccentric bachelor when he died in 1986. Few of his neighbors knew that, for thirty years, Blagdon had been creating a masterpiece of idiosyncratic art in his dilapidated Sand Hills farm shed. Nearly one hundred paintings and about four hundred and fifty wire sculptures, embellished with wood, ribbon, beads, tin, and plastic, filled every corner of the 800-square-foot shed, illuminated by twinkling Christmas lights. Blagdon believed that his pieces created an electromagnetic field that could treat various diseases. When asked to explain, he would simply say, "I don't know why, it just works." The rarely exhibited Blagdon pieces are on loan to the NSHS by former North Platte resident Dan Dryden.



More about the Healing Machines of Nebraska

Nebraska 1

Nebraska Historical Society

New at Kohler Foundation

Read more »

Another "Green Living"© writer warns of hand sanitizers

UPDATE: June 1, 2009

Risk Policy Report on 1,4 Dioxane

A new EPA assessment showing significantly greater cancer risks from the solvent 1,4 dioxane -- a common contaminant at waste sites and in personal care products -- may give environmentalists greater leverage in their calls for manufacturers to remove the chemical from their products and for stricter cleanup requirements.
READ FULL ARTICLE

RELATED ARTICLE
------------------------------------
Back in the last two decades of the 20th Century I was teaching a series of classes titled "Green Living"© throughout the Pacific NW.

Since that time many people, especially now, are claiming to be experts in how to detoxify your home, garden, and physiological environment (inside and out).

Like the wife of a past chiropractor of mine always says, "she foregets more than most people will ever know." Others refer to me as a "walking encyclopedia".

It is something to live up to. I try, but I truly wish that those who copy our material from this blog and out websites would be open to giving credit. We often say we are often replicated, never duplicated.

This may be no more than the fact that we really have been at this work for a lot longer than most so-called and self-proclaimed experts have been alive. But many rely on us for our expert knowledge and expert opinions.

Here is something now, again a repeat of something we cautioned over 15 years ago.

If you aren't aware, now is an opportunity.

Should you wish to know how to properly select pure essential oils for making your own sprays, and how to make them as well, we will be happy to offer a consultation for your donation. You really just can't add some essential oils to a spray bottle. Some oils can be harmful to infants and small children.

In the mean time, Dr. Bornner's Super Baby Mild is a good choice for soap and water cleaning, known since the time of Ignaz Semmelweis, to be the best choice for kiling germs. Dwell time and agitation are important too.

Why It's Best to Avoid Hand Sanitizer Gel
You, Your Baby and the Environment Are Better Off with Good Old Soap and Water
March 3, 2008

Buzz up!

"You want some hand gel?"

The moment it was apparent I was pregnant, I started getting this question. It was asked so often it started to remind me of the drug pushers who used to hang around Washington Square Park when I was a teenager: "Smoke? Smoke?"

"No, thanks," was – is – my standard reply. I doubt at that point I had even read the specific ingredients of the most common gels (like Purell), or tried to find their material safety data sheets (MSDS) which list hazards that may not be printed on packaging. But I did already know that certain hand purifying gels contained, among other undesirables, the hormone disrupting antibacterial/antifungal agent triclosan, which can form dioxins when it comes into contact with water and has some worried it will create resistant strains of bacteria. Most people stared at me oddly or made a face when I turned the stuff down. Their sneers seemed to say, Didn't I know my hands had horrible scary germs on them that were about to kill my unborn child? I understand their fervor – I feel this way about toxic chemicals, not so much about germs. Well, actually, I am a germ freak, but these chemicals worry me more than microorganisms. I try to think about the hygiene hypothesis – that exposure to germs helps build a healthy immune system – when something dirty bothers me.

Of course when my itty bitty vulnerable newborn arrived in the world, the hand gel offerings grew a zillion-fold. Every person who came to meet her popped a bottle of the stuff out of their bags, slathered it all over their hands, then reached for her. I was horrified. This was in my apartment, mind you. They could have walked two inches to the bathroom and used soap and warm water to greater – and much safer – effect. But Americans like their products.

This across-the-board addiction to products when good old soap and water has been proven time and time again by many in the medical community to be all you need to clean hands falls into category I like to call eco-straneous. Extraneous stuff no one really needs that has negative environmental impact. I'd say hand gel fits the bill. But I'm totally outnumbered. Case in point: the natural/organic/green marketplace has recently been flooded with "organic" hand gels (the quotes are there because of course there is no regulation in place to certify something like hand purifier as organic). Which means it's time or me to get off my non-hand-gel-using butt and weigh in.

Here's what to avoid: Any of the conventional gels. The first thing that MUST be avoided is anything claiming to be antibacterial or containing triclosan. I just saw this crazy statistic in an abstract of a 2003-2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey trying to assess exposure to the antibacterial:

"In about three-quarters of urine samples analyzed [there were 2,517].we detected concentrations of triclosan. Concentrations differed by age and socioeconomic status but not by race/ethnicity and sex. Specifically, the concentrations of triclosan appeared to be highest during the third decade of life and among people with the highest household incomes."

I don't want detectable levels of a hormone disrupter in my daughter's diaper!

Even the conventional ones that don't contain triclosan usually contain isopropyl alcohol, parabens, propylene glycol, and synthetic fragrances (which may contain phthalates). Nothing good about any of this.

Here are two being marketed as green and the ingredient information I could find on them. Read carefully and make your own decisions. If there's anything that confuses you, contact the manufacturer, especially if you find a product that says it contains something like "ethyl alcohol" but doesn't say if it is plant-derived or synthetic. And don't stop reading an ingredient list just because you see that someone is using an organic essential oil. EO Hand Sanitizer, for example, contains organic lavender as well as dimethicone (a silicone based polymer) and other synthetics. I'm not so fond of slathering synthetics on my kid's hands. Or my own. Would that I could just tell you which one to use. But, like I said, I don't use the stuff.

Another option is to make your own. Make a spray of water and essential oils thought to have antiseptic properties (lavender, jasmine, tuberose, thyme, tea tree oil, grapefruit seed extract). Look up a recipe and make sure to dilute enough. You don't want too much on a child's skin, or for oils to be rubbed into eyes.

Debra Lynn Dadd writes, "According to a Purdue university professor who teaches sanitation practices for food service workers, 'Waterless, antibacterial hand sanitizers are marketed as a way to 'wash your hands' when soap and water aren't available, and they are especially popular among parents of small children. But research shows that they do not significantly reduce the overall amount of bacteria on the hands, and in some cases they may even increase it.' The professor went on to say that a hand sanitizer can't take the place of old-fashioned soap and water at home or anywhere else."

Like I said: wash your hands!

Read more »

Posted in: chloroform,dioxane,hand sanitizers,natural health news,personal care products,triclosan

Homeopathy Does Work in spite of critics

Unfortunate to know that Consumer Reports is stooping so low as to allow an article of this poor calibre to be printed on its pages, electronic and otherwise.

FDA already has approved homeopathy because it has shown no adverse efects for more than 60 years.

Its use goes back centuries. Even the Queen relies on it, and that should be a testimonial.

Even medical schools taught this and relied on such remedies, just as they relied on herbs, until Big Pharma took over with its Rockefellerian debauched mentality.

Or that Bastyr U acted greedily to block anyone except their graduates from using it to treat people, so much for over looking the strong tradition of lay homeopaths Pizzorno...

Not only do I believe in the use of homeopathy, flower essences and other vibrational medicines, I use and manufacture them (RK BioDrops).

No deaths here or adverse reporting, nor faked studies to get FDA approval and the like.

This approach is worth its weight in gold. Or maybe today we should say 'oil'.

Homeopathic remedies can cause confusion
Spring is here, and if you're not careful, the Zicam you buy from a local pharmacy may not be the hay-fever medicine you expected.

The over-the-counter products Allergy Relief and Intense Sinus Relief are both made by Zicam, and both promise relief of hay-fever symptoms. But there's a big difference. Intense Sinus Relief contains oxymetazoline, a decongestant the Food and Drug Administration has found to be safe and effective. The other product is homeopathic; it hasn't been reviewed by the FDA and its active ingredients, including sulphur, have been diluted almost to the vanishing point. Yet we often found the two products in drugstores shelved alongside each other.

In fact, our 11 mystery shoppers, who visited 52 drugstores throughout the U.S., often found products labeled "homeopathic" alongside conventional over-the-counter drugs. Such product placements could lead consumers to buy a homeopathic remedy when they're really looking for a standard medicine. That not only wastes money but might also lead to inadequately treated health problems. Even people seeking homeopathic products might not get what they expected. Our check of labels found that many of the remedies might not meet the standards set by the industry's own oversight organization.

Homeopathy is a centuries-old form of medicine that takes a substance that might otherwise cause symptoms or harm and dilutes it until the substance becomes virtually undetectable. Yet homeopathy's supporters say the infinitesimal amount of active ingredients somehow improves health. Not surprisingly, there's little good evidence backing up that notion. The most comprehensive analysis of homeopathy we know of—a 2005 review published in The Lancet of 110 placebo-controlled homeopathy trials matched with 110 conventional-medicine trials—found that any benefit from homeopathic remedies was "compatible with" the placebo effect. An accompanying editorial, "The End of Homeopathy," said that the findings were less surprising than the fact that debate over homeopathy continues "despite 150 years of unfavorable findings."

While the FDA is officially required to regulate homeopathic remedies, a spokeswoman for the agency told us that in practice it doesn't review those products and thus doesn't approve them as safe and effective, partly because of "limited resources," and partly because the products are so diluted they're not thought to pose any risks.

Andy P. Bormeth, executive director of the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia Convention of the United States, says that "official" homeopathic remedies should state "HPUS" on their labels, indicating that they conform with his organization's guidelines. But only 4 of the 12 products our mystery shoppers found included those initials on their labels.

Check whether over-the-counter products are labeled homeopathic. If they are, we think you should put them back on the shelf. There's not enough evidence to justify their use, and they may cause problems if they allow a treatable ailment to worsen. If you opt for one anyway, stick with a product labeled "HPUS." But be leery of those that include alcohol, especially for children, since the FDA does not limit how much alcohol homeopathic remedies can contain.

This article first appeared in the April 2008 issue of Consumer Reports on Health.
—Doug Podolsky, senior health editor

Read more »

Fairbanks loses out to toxic fluoride and more health problems

Swallow your veggies not fluoride
By Carol Kopf

Fluoride is neither a nutrient nor essential for healthy teeth (1-3). However, the evidence is solid that lack of essential nutrients makes teeth more decay susceptible.

Good dental health begins in the womb (4). Specifically, calcium, protein, phosphorus, vitamins A, C and D help construct babies' primary teeth, according to the American Dental Association.

Additionally, protein-calorie malnutrition, iodine deficiency and excessive fluoride increase susceptibility to dental caries, according to the U.S. Surgeon General (5).

Americans are deficient in calcium (6), magnesium (7), vitamins C (8) and D (9). No evidence indicates any American is fluoride-deficient. In fact, American children are fluoride overexposed (10).

In the past fluoride was credited with the substantial cavity decline. However, "No clear reasons for the caries decline have been identified," according to the 1999 Dental Textbook, Dentistry, Dental Practice and the Community, by Burt and Eklund.

In the past fluoride was credited with the substantial cavity decline. However, fluoridation and the explosion of fluoridated dental products coincided with many health preserving trends. For instance, milk was vitamin D fortified to prevent bone and teeth damaging rickets; cereals and breads were vitamin and mineral enriched; dental care and insurance was encouraged and affordable; and Americans became more nutritionally aware. No valid science proves fluoridation was the cavity-killing culprit.

According to a large federal study (NHANES III) children without deciduous caries experience (tooth decay in the primary teeth) had significantly higher fruit, grain, sodium, and total Healthy Eating Index's than children with deciduous caries experience while children without permanent caries experience (tooth decay in the secondary teeth) had significantly higher dairy, cholesterol, fruit, grain, sodium, variety, and total Healthy Eating Index's than children with permanent caries experience (11).

In fact, American kids who don't eat the recommended five servings of vegetables and fruits -- every day -- up their risk of cavities more than threefold (12).

Burdened with the worst oral health, U.S. children in poverty are also the least healthy, most food insecure, least likely to ingest recommended levels of vital nutrients, least likely to have dental insurance or care, and most likely to have unfilled cavities.

Is fluoridation going to help these children? Common sense and science says, no. But the American Dental Association (ADA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) say yes, using claims and endorsements not backed with valid science (13).

Weston Price in Nutrition and Physical Degeneration reported long ago what dentistry needs to re-learn. Children with the best diets have the best teeth without fluoride. Children with the worst diets have the worst teeth even with fluoride.

There's a constant movement of minerals into and out of teeth. Topical Fluoride is said to enhance the re-mineralization process. Without essential minerals available, even topical fluoride is useless. Many low-income children are deficient in required tooth building and repairing nutrients, such as calcium, that also moderate fluoride's toxic effects.

Fruits and vegetables offer a substantial amount of essential nutrients which may be why vegetarians have less tooth decay (14). Only 23% of Americans comply with recommendations to eat 5 - 9 servings of fruits and vegetables, daily (15).

Maybe produce should be government subsidized to repair nutritionally starved kids instead of wasting multi-millions of dollars on fluoride and fluoridation programs each year at the local, state and federal levels. Unlike fluoridation, fruits and vegetables deliver essential nutrients that teeth and bodies require.

Well-meaning but misguided dentists thought fluoride was their magic bullet to prevent tooth decay at a time when nutrients were discovered to prevent diseases, such as vitamin C preventing scurvy. The bad news is that there's no magic bullet to cure or prevent tooth decay. The good news is that tooth decay is highly and easily preventable - with a nutritious diet and regular dental care.

References:

1) National Research Council. Health Effects of Ingested Fluoride. National Academy Press. Washington DC. 1993 p. 30

2) National Research Council. 1989. Recommended Dietary Allowances: 10th Edition. National Academy of Sciences. National Academies Press Washington, DC. page 235.

3) Physicians' Desk Reference

4) American Dental Association News Release. Good Oral Health Begins in the Womb. February 2002 Available from: http://www.ada.org/public/media/releases/0202_release06.asp

5) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General. Released in 2000.

6) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Bone Health and Osteoporosis: A Report of the Surgeon General. October 14, 2004. Available from:

7) U.S. National Institutes of Health. Office of Dietary Supplements. Magnesium Fact Sheet. accessed 1/14/06 Available from:

8) Hampl JS, Taylor CA, Johnston CS. 2004. Vitamin C Deficiency and Depletion in the United States: The Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 1988 to 1994. Am J Public Health May.

9) Holick MF. 2005. The Vitamin D Epidemic and its Health Consequences. J Nutr 135:2739S-2748S. November.

10) Beltrán-Aguilar ED, Barker LK, Canto MT, Dye BA, Gooch BF, et al. Surveillance for Dental Caries, Dental Sealants, Tooth Retention, Edentulism, and Enamel Fluorosis --- United States, 1988--1994 and 1999-2002. MMWR Available from:

11) IADR/AADR/CADR 82nd General Session in Honolulu, Hawaii: The Health Eating Index (HEI) and Dental Caries Among Children, J Dent Res 83(Spec Iss A):abstract number 2917, 2004

12) Dye BA, Shenkin JD, Ogden CL, Marshall TA, Levy SM, Kanellis MJ. 2004. The relationship between healthful eating practices and dental caries in children aged 2-5 years in the United States, 1988-1994. J Am Dent Assoc. January.

13) Center for Reviews and Dissemination. 2003. What the 'York Review' on the fluoridation of drinking water really found. University of York. York, UK Originally released: October 28 2003 Available from

14) Palmer CA. 2003. Diet and Nutrition in Oral Health. 1st ed. Prentice Hall. New Jersey.

15) Centers for Disease Control. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Fruits and Vegetables Nationwide - 2003 Available from:

Read more »