New Year, New Resolutions. . .

With a new year upon us, we have new trials to face, new resolutions that were made/altered/broken, a year that will be big and important. This year, I have really committed myself to expanding my knowledge of natural health. I am going to read some really good health books, and I have already read most of the nutrition classic, Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon, so I plan to be bringing more in interesting posts and articles concerning health.

After reading a large portion of Nourishing Traditions, I have decided to start lacto-fermenting a lot more foods. I am going to start making beet kvass, apple cider, continue to make Kefir, and make various other things. I cannot wait to get Wild Fermentation by Sandor Elix Katz.

I have high hopes for 2009, and hope you do as well.

More Soy Truth

Hello Everyone! Sorry that I have been a bit absent from this blog the last few days, but I do have something really important to share this post.

I was perusing the articles on Dr. Mercola's website, and I came a cross an article that really drives home the point that soy is NOT a health food.

The article, entitled The Evidence Against Soy, shows just unhealthy this product really is.

It contributes to early puberty in girls, all kinds of hormonal problems in boys, a host of cancers: it is just not good for consumption.

Now Fermented soy is not as bad, because the fermentation process eliminates a lot of the problems associated with unfermented soy. Still, fermented or not, soy should not be consumed in large quantities.

I thought the article was really good, and I also enjoyed the comments to the article. Very nice exchange of information.

This one comment by a user, Bert Grosman, was pretty good:

Saturated fat and cholesterol have nothing to do with cardiovascular disease. The correlation between them is the biggest lie ever perpetrated on the people of the world. Following are a number of little known facts regarding cholesterol which are in direct conflict with commonly accepted assumptions. Cholesterol is a requirement of every living cell and we cannot live without it. It is the building block of sex hormones. Fifteen percent of the dry weight of the human brain is cholesterol. The body synthesizes 2,000 mg. daily of this essential substance. In comparison, even a high cholesterol diet provides only about 800 mg. Furthermore, when large quantities of cholesterol are ingested the body simply synthesizes less such that an excess is avoided. Animal studies which induced atheroma with dietary cholesterol used the human equivalent of 15,000 mg. of cholesterol a day. Animals fed a diet consisting of 81% animal fat, but with concurrent high levels of protein, vitamins and minerals showed no pathological changes in the aorta or the heart. Studies of primitive African cultures have shown no correlation between dietary intake and atherosclerosis even among 400 men of the Masai tribe who ate meat and milk exclusively. A strong correlation did exist, however, between atherosclerosis and consumption of refined sugar flour and vegetable oils. In 1914 only 15% of all heart disease was athero sclerotic in nature; today that has risen to over 90%. Over 50% of adult Americans now die of cardiovascular disease. Yet the only significant change in dietary patterns in Western countries over the last 100 years has not been in fat consumption but in refined sugar and flour intake. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent on research.

What to do and FWW

With the U.S. economy currently circling the drain, it would be a wise move to begin taking care of ourselves by starting our own gardens, and producing our own food.

The best way to accomplish this is by raising chickens (pigeons or turkeys, which ever you have the most space for), and goats, and vegetables in a natural and sustainable way.

Forest gardening or other permaculture systems will work to provide a near-year-round supply of vegetation. Chickens do supply a year-round supply of eggs (even without a rooster) and goats can supply a good amount of milk as well. Another bonus to raising chickens and goats is that their manure is chock-full of nutrients that will be vital for the survival of your permaculture/forest garden.

This brings me to the Featured Website of the Week: Organic Gardening and Homesteading.

This website can provide vital tools for creating your own homestead, and having your own food supply will be vital in keeping you and your family healthy and well during a difficult period--homesteading helped those during the 1929 crisis.

Raw Milk Article

I was reading the articles on natural news, and I came across this article and I was totally enthralled with what the author wrote about. It, that is the article, was about the virtues of raw milk and how the government is doing its best to railroad peoples rights to choose one way or the other.

It is so true just how nutritious full-fat raw milk is:
* high in vitamins A (retinol), D3 and vitamin K
* high in B vitamins (although exposure to light can decrease the amounts)
* Lots of healthy bacteria that will keep your digestive track healthy and moving
* Natural, non-denatured proteins
* No pesticides, hormones, or antibiotics
* digestive enzymes galore

Bottom line, raw milk is amazing and everyone should drink it! I was so inspired by this article that I am going to go to my raw milk provider in between classes, buy a half-gallon, and drink it for lunch!

Response to All 4 Natural Health

A user named All 4 Natural Health wrote the following message:

Hi Ella,

I find it interesting how you have quoted the Bible to say that humans are supposed to eat (certain types of) meat. I've actually come across numerous people who quote the Bible in saying that humans are supposed to be vegetarians!

Personally, I believe in vegetarianism, although not for religious reasons; I just feel it makes sense, overall, for health, compassion, environment, etc.

I've nothing against meat-eating though. I still eat some. But if possible, I think we should go for organic meats. The regular commercially farmed animals are raised in such a terrible way, it just freaks me out sometimes.

You are right, there are many that quote the Bible to support vegetarianism by pointing to Adam and Eve. This observation has some problems however. For one thing, when Adam and Eve were in the garden, every thing was perfect. We don't live in Eden today, we live in a world where all food is contaminated to some degree, so being a pure vegetarian and maintaining good nutrition has become near-impossible. Another things is that people don't know whether or not the Lord would have continued the perpetual state of vegetarianism. By the way man was designed, it seems he is more suited for an omniverous diet.

There are also other Biblical Evidences that point to meat eating being established for eternity, so I don't think that the Lord has much of a problem with it.

Weston A. Price

For awhile now, I have been a big fan of Weston A. Price and his wokrin uncovering the importance of milk, eggs, butter, and meat in our diets. So, I have decided to read his ground-breaking book, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, to read for myself these important facts.

There is a website which offers the book online, but I am a traditional reader. I like to carry my books around and read them whenever and wherever I want, as opposed to a computer where I have to find a desk and use a PC. Any way, I did read excerpts from the book, and from what I've read so far, I find it to be very impressive and I am looking forward to getting the book soon (I am getting it through my school's library).

I going to blog about what I read, which points of his I find to be valid and which ones I feel, from other things I've read, are not really good practices.

One thing that I saw in the internet book that I thought was quite fascinating was the fact that you can tell what kind of nutritional issues a mother had (what she didn't eat that she should have eaten) just be looking at her offspring's teeth and facial arrangement. It is a very good read, and I will keep you posted on a lot of its good information.

Another wonderful function of Broccoli

I was just perusing the articles on ScienceDaily and I came across an article that particularly piqued my interest. The article is entitles, "Broccoli Could Reverse The Heart Damaging Effects of Diabetes".

This to me represents another great function for this amazing vegetable. Broccoli once again turns out to be one of the best natural medicines around.

The wonderful, heart-saving effects can only come about by actually eating broccoli by the way, no "broccoli" supplements or anything of that nature. I am sure that these effects are multiplied 100 fold if the broccoli is organically grown.

I wanted to write about this not only because broccoli is healthy for you, but because broccoli is a perennial plant, which means that if you plant it, it will come back year after year. This is important, I think, because we need to start growing our own food. Since the FDA is hell-bent on irradiating the life (literally) out of our food supply, we need to fire back by not buying their unsafe, nuked veggies. Forest gardening, I believe, is the best alternative because it is low-maintenance, low-cost, produces high yields, along with utilizing natural ecosystems to maintain itself. It is the perfect solution!

If all of the natural food proponents could just start growing their own food, then we would be able to effect change. We could then advance onward to build community gardens for those in our neighborhoods who don't have the time, or the patience to grow food. That would better not only that one community but serve to benefit maybe the entire area. Maybe that is a bit to idealistic, maybe it is a tad naive, but it still is something I think that should be at least attempted.

Blue Ribbon Baby Diet

The title of this post may seem a bit absurd, but this is by far the best diet for pregnancy I have come across. When I say diet, do not rush to think I am talking about diets that are in the realm of Atkins, South Beach, or other such popular poppycock! This diet is not about restriction, it is about eating what your baby needs to grow health and strong, and what the mother needs to maintain a healthy pregnancy. The below table can be used as a guideline to the mother's needs. More info about the blue ribbon baby diet can be found here.

BREWER PREGNANCY DIET: BASIC PLAN

	SUNDAY	MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	THURSDAY	FRIDAY	SATURDAY
1. MILK/DAIRY (8 OZ. EACH)
2. EXTRA CALCIUM (IF USING UNFORTIFIED SOY MILK)
3. EGGS
4. PROTEIN (7 GRAMS/SERVING)
5. DARK GREEN VEGETABLES
6. WHOLE GRAINS, STARCHES, CARBS
7. VITAMIN C
8. FATS/OILS
9. VITAMIN A
10. LIVER (ONCE A WEEK, OR EXTRA 4 OZ. PROTEIN)
11. SALT TO TASTE
12. WATER/ BEVERAGE
13. SNACKS
14. SUPPLEMENTS

Taken from: http://www.blueribbonbaby.org/brewer-diet-checklists/brewer-diet-basic-plan-checklist/

This diet is about nurturing the mother and baby with good nutrition so that pregnancy complication such as toxemia, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and other problems can be prevented.

Although I think there needs to be some replacements to the diet, such as raw milk for the pasteurized, poisonous milk sold in supermarkets. Soy needs to be removed from the recommendations, sprouted grains, free-range, pastured chicken eggs needs to be replaced for regular eggs, and organic, locally grown produce needs to be added. One more thing, sea salt or himalayan salt needs to be substituted for the toxic table salt. Other than those suggestions, I think that the diet is a wonderful way to add greater health to mom and baby.

As an aside, some of you maybe scratching your head wondering why I have suggested raw milk during pregnancy. I just have to say that clean milk from healthy grass fed cows/sheep/goats does not have the same pathogenic risk. Also women have been drinking raw milk for literally centuries during pregnancy. When it comes from health cows, it is healthy for you.

Furthermore, earlier this year, 3 elderly men died, onne woman miscarried, another was infected but delivered a healthy baby after receiving Listeriosis from pasteurized milk, not raw milk. The story can be found here. That is because pasteurized milk is more of a gamble than raw milk because the heat kills most of the bacteria but not all of the bacteria, leaving the stronger pathogens to grow and mature. Pasteurized/homogenized milk is also associated with heart disease, diabetes, prostate problems, allergies and many other problems. Raw milk from pasture raised and fed, hormone- and antibiotic-free animals is best.

Soy Dangers

Today, I was reading the truth about soy products on the website Soy Online Service. Truly, this website is performing a great service by informing the public about the lies that have been perpetuated by the soy industry.

Soy has played a large part in my life because it affected me so negatively. I experienced extreme premenstrual syndrome (PMS) that made -- and sometimes still makes -- life exceptionally hard. I bought into the hype of all of the women's journals and the nutritionists and the magazines all proclaiming soy to be an invaluable source of nutrition. Frankly, it caused me hell, and I can only thank God that He allowed me to learn the truth before I suffered some of its more severe effects.

One fact that I think was very poignant was the fact that Asiatic communities do not consume as much soy as the soy industry would claim. Soy in Asia is used as a condiment, not as a substitute for meat foods.

I also found that the truth of how soy affects infant's mental, physical and sexual development to be quite revealing.

All in all, this website is a must for the health conscious so that the lies behind it can be dispelled.
Too many people are being tricked into thinking that they are doing something good by consuming this industrial waste product, only to find that they have only endangered themselves. Every one should read the articles on this web page.

New Kind of Gardening Technique

Good Morning! I was just doing some morning reading when I came across a website that details a new kind of gardening which provides greater yields and is more eco-friendly! It is called Forest Gardening. Now, it is still new to me, but it looks like it is a great form of gardening.

If we really want to help the environment, I think it is imperative that a large portion of people begin, sustainable, natural home gardening. I think Forest Gardening can provide just that! It is supposed to work by mimicking the ecosystems of forests, but since I am new to the system, I will give you the definition of forest gardening the website gives:

Edible forest gardening is the art and science of putting plants together in woodlandlike patterns that forge mutually beneficial relationships, creating a garden ecosystem that is more than the sum of its parts.

I plan on thoroughly perusing the website and maybe buying the books to better educate myself and you, the reader, about this form of gardening and how it can effect you, your offspring, and the environment.

But for now, I have learned one tip that will help Gardeners everywhere get better plants. Dissolve sea salt or Himalayan salt in pure water(maybe spring water) in a glass jar, and keep adding salt until it just barely dissolves --with a few salt crystals floating. And then, feed it to your plants, that will help restore minerals to the plants and soil.

Food prices

I was watching a commercial advertising a Big Mac for about 59 cents, and frankly, I was disgusted. Not the burger drizzled in trans fats, or the unhealthy bun, or the unholy amount of calories in the meal. What disturbed me the most was the idea that such un-nutritious can be so cheap.

Fast food and processed food of this kind are so inexpensive and available to the public at large that I think it is unfair. It makes the food in local co-ops or at Whole Foods seem like it isn’t worth the money! It also makes making wise food choices next to impossible – with such low prices, why buy organic alternatives? It sets the poor and uneducated up with poor health, keeping the cycle of obesity and health problems at their current and distressing position.

I am against senseless litigation, unfair law, and all that, and I feel this society is entirely too litigious, but I think it should be illegal to make these kinds of foods (and I use that term loosely). It’s unfair that you can get two burgers at some seedy fast-food joint for less than a dollar, yet healthful foods such as raw milk, organic fresh vegetables and fruit, organic whole grains, etc. are comparatively very expensive.

It just doesn’t seem right.