Eat grains, but only if you do THIS.

Let’s recall a moment in time that’s not so pretty. It’s when that painful, awkward bloating starts after you ate brown rice. Or wheat. Or quinoa. Or any form of grain, really. After the bloating, you start feeling gassy. Or nauseated. Or constipated (or just uncomfortable from reading all of those descriptive digestion terms). Regardless, you just KNOW you’re not going to digest that bowl of “whatever grain you ate” later. It’s embarrassing, and you decide to give up grains completely. You feel better when you’re off of them, anyways.

But do you have to give them up to feel better? What if there was another way? (Side note- writing that line made me think of that part in Finding Nemo when Shark Bait (Nemo) has to swim through the ring of fire, and the starfish is freaking out and saying “ISN’T THERE ANY OTHER WAY?!” which, for the record, is how I feel sometimes about giving up grains. SO that totally applies here).

Guess what. There is another way. *Mic drop*

*Mic pick-back-up* It’s called “properly preparing your grains,” or what we call, the traditional way. 

Whole grains are tricky. They have a lot of incredible nutrients, but sometimes its hard for our body to break them down and digest them in order to actually USE those nutrients from the grains.

Whole grains have two things working against them; phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors. Phytic acid prevents your body from absorbing iron, calcium, magnesium, copper, and zinc in your GI tract. Sounds scary, right? Probably not great for you in the long run. Or in the short run. Enzyme inhibitors do exactly what they sound like they do; keep your body from absorbing useful enzymes found in grains. Can I get a YIKES up in here?

Those two reasons are why it’s extremely important to soak or ferment your grains. Traditional societies discovered that it neutralizes the phytates AND enzyme inhibitors. Problem solved. Now you can absorb all of the iron, calcium, magnesium, copper, and zinc that you want, and you’re enzymes won’t be inhibited by anything, and those lil’ enzymes are pretty happy about that.

Sally Fallon explains it well in her book Nourishing Traditions (which you need to buy right now), but she says that the process of soaking, sour-leavening, and sprouting (which we will cover in another post) is like a pre-digestion step, so it makes it easier for your body to break down grains. Your body can get the nourishment it needs and deserves. Hallelujah. But really, buy this book.

Cultures have been soaking and fermenting their grains for centuries. It’s easy, painless, and makes it a whole lot easier for you to digest those grains! For some reason, for the last hundred years or so, this process was lost to us more “industrialized” folk. Among the huge explosion of inventions and machines and food additives and the overall process of trying to make food a science experiment, the traditional ways of preparing food was lost… which is why we are bringin’ it back! Fermenting and soaking is SO in right now. It’s like, vintage.

MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH GRAINS

“But Christine, I don’t want to. It’s an extra step. It’s time-consuming. It takes up too much brain power. I’m lazy. Meh meh meh.”  <—- Trust me when I say I’ve been there. I’ve used every excuse in the book! I thought it would be better for me to just give grains up completely. I did for over a year. Want to know what I discovered about myself? When I wasn’t getting in enough carbs from vegetables (since I was off grains and also dairy… yup, I was paleo), I was craving a whole lot of SUGAR. Our bodies need carbs. They are an important macronutrient, just like proteins and fats. They are what your brain runs off of, for crying out loud.

Without adequate carb intake, I was constantly craving simple carbs in the form of fruit or just plain sugars all. the. time. Then, as I added back in raw dairy and properly prepared grains, my sugar cravings disappeared. Since then I was sold. (Granted, I also did a lot of work on healing my gut, controlling my candida overgrowth, and balancing my hormones- a process I will discuss in another post).

But that is why I am full-on Weston A Price diet now. I eat grains, but I don’t eat a ton of them daily and I always properly prepare them.

*This is important. I’m not saying that everyone should dive into eating properly prepared grains right now. Any grains probably aren’t great for those who 1)have a leaky gut or 2) suffer from an autoimmune disease or major hormone imbalance. Address those first, and then add grains back in! AND for those of you who are eating a plentiful amount of NOT properly prepared grains (yes, you) then you neeeeeed to do this. Please.

Here’s how you soak ’em.

For whole grains and dry legumes, soak them at least overnight, but anywhere from 8-24 hours is great. All you need to do is soak them in an acidic medium. Soak them in water with added lemon juice or apple cider vinegar.

I usually just put enough warm or room temperature, filtered water to cover the grains, and then add 1 teaspoon of acidic medium for every cup of grains I’m soaking. Cover and let it sit on the counter.

Brown Rice Soaking in Water with Apple Cider Vinegar

For wheat flours, soak them anywhere from 8-24 hours in an acidic medium. You can soak them in water with lemon or apple cider vinegar like the whole grains, OR you can use more of a dairy medium (which is what I prefer for my flours). You can use something like whey, kefir, or buttermilk. Just add enough of the acidic liquid until the flour forms a sticky dough consistency. Cover and let it sit on the counter.

Brown Rice Flour Soaking in Whey

And that’s it! That’s how you soak grains. When you are cooking with soaked grains or flours, you’ll have to mess around a bit with the recipes you use… most likely the recipes don’t call for pre-soaked grains or flour, so reduce the liquids in the recipe a tiny bit. Soaking doesn’t change it too much though.

If you want to get really crazy, you can do sourdough. I go on and off sourdough, but I’m currently on and loving it. (Just wait for my sourdough kamut pancake recipe, you guys. So. Good).

For sourdough, you need to first obtain a starter. You can buy them at any health food store (Cultures for Health is a good brand) or you can find someone that already has one. When you have the starter, you just add unbleached, organic white flour to it. The amount varies… but my rule of thumb is that you just add the same about of flour for how much starter you have. If you have 1/4 C of starter, add 1/4 C of flour. Then, add half as much water as you did flour. So, 1/8 C water (2 TBS) if you added 1/4 C flour.

Herby, my sourdough starter. Look at those bubbles! Active lil’ tyke.

I feed mine every morning and every night. When you use sourdough in a recipe, be sure not to use all of it… you’ll need a little bit to use again as your starter. When you aren’t feeding or baking with it, put in the fridge. Leave it in the fridge for up to a week and feed it again… but if you still don’t want to use it, put it back in the fridge and feed it for another week.

Sourdough maintenance, done.

If you’re a newbie, I recommend just soaking your grains at first. That’s where I started! You can advance whenever you’re ready. 🙂

And sprouting? We’ll talk about that soon, too.

Comment with questions, comments, or general words of wisdom.

9 Mantras to Improve Your Quality of Life

Who isn’t a sucker for motivational quotes? We all love having simple phrases that remind us to think of the bigger picture; to take ourselves out of our personal bubbles and remember that there is a world around us and we are here to enjoy it. Everyone needs a mental note to slow down, smell the roses, and be the best you can be in order to bless your life and the lives of those around you.

I recently had the chance to do a leadership retreat with the company I work for. The week was full of kayaking, paddle-boarding, wake surfing, hiking, and swimming in the beautiful Lake Powell. Not only that, but every meal was prepared for us AND all of the ingredients were REAL (raw, grass fed, sprouted, free-range, etc). I work for the greatest company ever, Redmond Inc.

But you know what? That wasn’t even the best part. The best parts of the trip HANDS DOWN were the discussions we had every morning and night surrounding the topic of self-improvement. We watched these motivational videos and centered our discussions around those topics. I found these nine mantras to be the most helpful to me thus far and I wanted to share them with you beautiful people. (I included links to which videos each point came from, too, in case you want extra insight!)

Our bodies and minds go hand-in-hand; we cannot take care of our bodies without taking care of our minds, and vice versa. Previous to this trip, I was making myself a little crazy in the area regarding “real food.” I think all of us will go through a phase where we get a little too carried away with what we can and cannot eat, what’s healthy and what isn’t, and then we continue to stress a whole lot about it. My personal struggle was elimination diets. I was kind of an addict, always thinking that I needed to eliminate just one more thing from my diet because of this symptom, etc.

At Lake Powell, however, I dropped the elimination diet. I just enjoyed the Real Food that was there and didn’t worry. I was appreciative of the food in front of me, ate it slowly and graciously, and I had never felt better! All of my symptoms disappeared. Granted, I was still eating real foods (find the definition of “real” in this post), but taking out the stress factor of eating these foods was the missing piece of the puzzle for me. These mantras have immensely helped my thoughts and have opened my mind to have a better appreciation for life. In turn, I feel healthier mentally AND physically than I ever have before.

 

Here are 9 phrases to help you change your attitude, which in turn will help the health of your mind and body.

 

1) Don’t prove yourself, improve yourself.

Basically, stop doing things to prove to yourself (or worse, to prove to others) that you can do them. Stop competing with yourself! Focus instead of improving yourself. Don’t do things just to do them, find a purpose. Do things for YOU. Better yourself because of it. (Credit: Dewitt Jones- watch the video here).

2) Life is about cooperation, not competition.

Seriously, folks, we are all on the same team here. Let’s finally start working together. Find a sense of purpose and share it with others, and then work together to accomplish it. I’m not saying we get in a circle and sing “kum-buy-ah,” but hey, let’s get in a circle and sing “kum-buy-ah.” I know it’s a long shot, but I truly love the idea of the world not being such a cut-throat place. Let’s all work together as human kind to make this place more beautiful. (Credit: Dewitt Jones- watch the video here).

3) Blend, don’t balance.

Stop thinking of your day as a checklist. If you’re like me, you LOVE lists, but following through doesn’t always happen and then you never feel like you’re doing enough or that YOU’RE enough. Instead of thinking of your life as a check list, think of your life more like a paragraph. Let it flow together. Focus on blending instead of balancing, because “with inclusion comes stability.” (Credit: Dewitt Jones- watch the video here).

4) Be your best, whether it’s regarded or not.

Dewitt Jones compares this concept to a sunset. A sunset is beautiful, but it will still be beautiful whether or not anyone sees it. Can we be more like that? Can we be kind, hard-working, genuine people even if we know there will be a chance that no one will notice or care? We need to try. Try to be like a sunset; be beautiful regardless of others’ acknowledgement. (Credit: Dewitt Jones- watch the video here).

5) You accept the love you feel you deserve.

This idea comes from my favorite movie. This is a phrase that hits home with a lot of us; whether we were involved in one or know someone that was in some sort of abusive relationship. Why do the nicest people end up with the biggest losers? Because we accept the love we feel we deserve.

If you feel like you deserve a loser because you think you’re a loser, than you’ll get a loser and you’ll have loser friends and be stuck in a bunch of losing relationships.

Turn this around! Believe that you deserve more, simply because YOU DO deserve more.

6) Believe that you are enough

Simply because you are. You are beautiful enough, you are smart enough, you are talented enough. “Enough” for who? For YOU. Stop thinking that you aren’t good “enough” for someone or for some opportunity. You are enough. You are incredible. You are you.

We need to get out of this cycle of comparing ourselves to others. If we stopped comparing, we would never feel like we were lacking; in material possessions, in beauty, in knowledge. We would love ourselves for who we are. We would always be enough. We would better ourselves for our own sake, especially if we were already in the habit of “improving ourselves” instead of “proving ourselves”. (See what I did there? That concept was from mantra #1. Nailed it). (Credit: Brene Brown- watch the video here).

7) Connection is what gives us purpose

I cannot imagine a life without connecting; connecting to people, connecting to nature, connecting to ourselves. What a dismal place it would be. Connection is what makes us tick, it’s what makes us function.

Too often we go through the motions of our everyday lives. How often do we actually take in the beauty around us? That beauty can be found in other people and in their stories, or in the world around us. There is beauty in nature, in architecture, in everything. We need to find it, notice it, and make that connection. When we do that, we will be connecting with ourselves, too. (Credit: Brene Brown- watch the video here).

8) “A bird sings not because it has an answer, but because it has a song.”

Takes the pressure off, doesn’t it? A lot of us are scared to contribute our thoughts, talents, and time because we don’t think we are the best. We don’t think we have anything to add. We don’t think we have the right answer.

Stop holding back! Seriously, stop it right now. Sing because you have a song. Contribute, speak up, share your voice and opinion. You don’t have to have an answer, you don’t have to be right. You DO, however, have to have an opinion and you have to voice it. Different ideas is what makes this world incredible. Share. (Credit: Dewitt Jones- watch the video here).

9) Happiness is an inside job.

No one can “make” you happy, so stop relying on others for your happiness. Happiness is up to you- it’s up to you to define it, it’s up to you to figure out what it means to you, and it’s up to you to achieve it for yourself. Take control; it’s an inside job. (Credit: Dewitt Jones- watch the video here)

 

 

Start there. Take at least one of these mantras and put it to good use. Maybe try incorporating a new one each week. There is no harm in trying it out.

Health is all encompassing; you can change your diet and workout every single day, but if you don’t also take care of your mind and your emotional well-being, “health” simply will not be achieved.

 

 

The Best Breakfast Hash You Will Ever Make.

When in doubt, HASH it out.

This is one of my husband’s, my brother’s, my mom’s, my dad’s, my friends’, my relatives’…you get the idea…favorite recipes ever. Which is odd because it’s really simple–but sometimes that’s why it works, amiright?

There’s almost always a week’s-worth of this in my fridge, and it is requested every time that I make breakfast for my family during the holidays, so I felt the need to share it with the masses :). By the way, it’s not restricted to breakfast-only–dinner versions are great too, and the ingredients can easily be mixed up to fit your taste or diet preferences. Even the pickiest of eaters have gone back for seconds with this one. I think it has also brought world peace. Do you need more convincing?

There’s 3 main ingredients, along with a few staples, and it takes no longer than 20 minutes–enjoy!

Serves: 4    Prep time: 10-15 minutes   Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients & Recommended Equipment:

• 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped (just small enough to feed into a food processor)
• 1 lb. of ground pork breakfast sausage. I like Beeler’s brand, original flavor.
• 2-4 handfuls of fresh baby spinach.
• 2 Tbsp. butter (preferably from a grass-fed/pastured cow)
• 1-2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1-2 tsp. Simply Organic all-purpose seasoning
• 1 tsp. black pepper
• 1-2 tsp. Real Salt
• I recommend that a food processor be used with the grating blade–it’s a huge time saver, but if you don’t have one then a regular grater will work fine!

Directions:

• Begin to cook your pork in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet on medium heat.
• While the pork cooks, peel the potatoes. Then, chop them just enough so that the pieces will fit into the food processor (use the grating blade so that you get what looks like shredded carrots). Feed each piece through the processor and set the potatoes aside.
• Once the pork has cooked thoroughly, add the shredded potatoes and begin to mix everything up. When the potatoes have softened a bit, add a Tbsp. of butter, some salt, and the cinnamon.
• When the potatoes are fully cooked, add the spinach a little bit at a time. It looks like a lot, but it shrinks down quite a bit! Once you have a handle on the spinach, add the rest of your butter, the rest of your salt, all-purpose seasoning, and pepper.

And you’re done! Now it’s time to scarf. The mildly spicy/sweet pork pairs really nicely with the sweet potato and cinnamon. The savory herbs in the all-purpose seasoning and the spinach balance everything out. And butter is just a great addition, as per usual. I hope you enjoy it as much as my husband, brother, mom, dad, friends, relatives, etc. do. ‘Til next time!

 

Coconut & Mint Limeade

It’s been SCORCHING hot in Texas so far this summer, so I really felt the need to come up with a concoction in hopes of bearing the heat. The result was this super refreshing (and equally hydrating) “Coconut & Mint Limeade”–hope you like it!

Ingredients:
•1 16 oz. bottle of coconut water, I used Harmless Harvest’s Raw Coconut Water
•3-4 fresh limes
•2-3 fresh lemons
•Sweetener of choice (to taste, since everyone’s pitcher/taste preference will be a different size). I used about 2 Tbsp. of powdered stevia leaf–just avoid artificial sweeteners!
•Fresh mint leaves
•Ice, ice baby.
•Pure filtered water, or sparkling mineral water for a fizzy drink

Directions:
•Slice and juice your lemons and limes into a large pitcher (watch out for the seeds)
•Add your sweetener, then stir to combine (add some water if needed)
•Pour the coconut water in
•Fill the rest of the pitcher with regular or sparkling water
•Add ice
•Garnish with fresh mint leaves

Enjoy!

Defining “Real” Food

Okay, let’s get down to it. Let’s define what “real food” actually is now that you know what ingredients to avoid. That stuff is definitely not real. I mean it exists, but it’s disgusting to the MAX. Your body doesn’t even know what to do with that crap!

But we at Intuitive Eats like to stay positive. So let’s not focus too much on what you should avoid, and let’s talk about what we CAN eat. Believe it or not, it’s an extremely long and satisfying list. 

But before we get to the YES list, I’m sorry to give you a blanket statement of NOs. Actually I’m not sorry at all; it’s a really easy list that encompasses everything you should avoid.

Anything processed or refined. 

That’s it, that’s the nutshell. If it has been “created” by scientists and filled with unpronounceable chemicals, avoid. No, RUN. 

If it has been “enriched” with “vitamins”, that’s a no-no. Your body will have a hard time digesting that for sure. 

If it has been refined, that basically means stripped of all nutrients (white flour, refined sugar, etc.) do yourself a favor and *cut. it. out. It actually robs your body of nutrients when you consume these things; your body has to “rob Peter to pay Paul” just to get it through your system: that’s how DEVOID these things are with nutrients. Your body has to steal nutrients from other places just to digest it. 

*DISCLAIMER: Chances are this will take time, but there are baby steps. We’ll get there. 

There is a lot that you can eat, though, when you take out all of the refined and processed junk. Don’t kid yourselves, you’re not limiting yourself that much! Plus *added benefit* your body will actually be able to digest the food you put into it for a change. Less headaches, tummy aches, indigestion, hormonal dips, cravings, and a myriad of other symptoms that you will probably see disappear. This is because your body is digesting and absorbing the nutrients it needs! 

WHAT TO EAT:

Vegetables. Experiment with vegetables! Salads are great, don’t get me wrong, but I can’t eat one all day every day. Experiment with cooked vegetables, fermented vegetables, raw vegetables. Just the other day I tried a rutabaga for the first time! Ya know what? It was delicious. Organic is best, however, so you’re not getting extra hormones and pesticides in your diet.

Fruit. Fruit is delicious! What a great alternative to a sugary sweet dessert. Craving a cookie? Grab a banana. Those things are packed full of nutrients, but the fructose (natural sugar) will help curb that craving. I mean don’t get too carried away, but fruit is great. Organic is better, and it tastes better, too.

Grains. This one is controversial lately because of the Paleo movement, so what we are going to tell you is “listen to your body.” You have an innate ability to see what works and doesn’t work with your body, but that is a post that is coming to you soon so keep your eyes open for it. In the meantime, white breads can be replaced with whole grains that have been “properly prepared.” This means “sprouted, soaked, fermented.” Why? These preparations help get rid of the phytic acid that prevents you from absorbing important nutrients that coat the outside of a lot of grains. I know I keep saying “look for a post about this in the future,” but seriously, grains deserve their own post. So stay tuned. (We are a brand new blog, after all).

Meat. Here at Intuitive Eats, we follow a Weston A Price protocol when it comes to food. We believe in carbs, proteins, and fats. We believe in MEAT. We just know that in order to get the right nutrients from animal products, the animals need to be eating their natural diet (which is different depending on each animal). This means beef that comes from cows that eat grass, chickens that are allowed to range freely and also eat grass, worms, bugs, etc. If you’re eating a product from an animal that was pumped full of antibiotics and fed a diet of corn and soy, you better believe that’s also going into your body. You ever heard of the old saying “you are what you eat”? Well we believe in “you are what you eat ate.” So if you eat eggs from soy-fed chickens…well, you’re eating that soy too! Meat that comes from an animal eating an unnatural diet doesn’t have the right nutrients and has a whole lot of ingredients that we want to avoid.

Dairy. Dairy should come from cows that are grass-fed, and should be raw if possible. This means not homogenized or pasteurized. It’s safe if the cows are healthy, and if the cows are eating what they should and aren’t locked in a confined space, they are super healthy. Raw dairy is extremely beneficial and SO delicious! The important thing is here to KNOW YOUR SOURCE. Raw milk is a completely safe, natural food–look for farms that do a bacteria count, ask them about their testing procedures, or even go for a farm that is “USDA Grade A Raw for Retail” certified. You’ll want to visit the farm where your raw milks, cheeses, and butters come from. Actually meet the cows if you can. Again, dairy too will have it’s own post later, but a great place to get started on your quest to finding raw milk in your area is to visit http://www.realmilk.com

So guess what? You can still eat! Cutting out refined and processed stuff sounds hard, but cutting out all the garbage will benefit your body (and your wallet) in ways you wouldn’t expect. Switching to organic and grass-fed, free-range, raw items sounds expensive. Truth is, it is hard and it can be more expensive (we’ll show you some budgeting tricks), but it’s an investment! Do you buy the cheapest car you can and hope it lasts you a lifetime? No. You buy a more expensive car because the quality is better, you pay for the upkeep instead of paying thousands in repairs or a new car. Same goes with the body! You pay for the upkeep now instead of paying HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars in prescriptions and hospital stays down the road. Try it for a month or two and we promise that you’ll feel a difference. 

Thanks for joining us on this journey, you’re already way ahead of the game because you’re here and you’re willing to make the changes. Have we mentioned it’s worth it? Because holy moly, it is.

Margarine is Naturally Gray?? Foods to Avoid

No clue what you’re doing? Completely lost? Not to worry (been there). Even if you’re old-hat at this whole “holistic nutrition” thing, hopefully you can pick up a few tidbits in these earlier posts that we’ll do. We’ve decided to make our first series of posts exclusively for newbies so that everyone can be on the same page–hopefully this will be a place where people transitioning from a S.A.D. ( see: :(,  Standard American Diet) can come to find out the hows and whys. In the first installment we will go over the hair-raising ingredients lurking in your food that should be omitted promptly; scare tactics are included for your own good 😉

Basically, you need to completely eliminate the junk first and foremost. Transition to a “clean” diet as an initial step. This means cleaning up your diet by eliminating anything that is processed or not in its natural form. Moving toward a whole-foods diet is a big leap, but it’s one that will bring great benefits. There are so many franken-foods out there that are totally wreaking havoc on your health. Ingredients are added and products are marketed so that you’ll buy and consume more and more of them.

If you need to take small steps toward this goal over the next few weeks/months, feel free to do just that. Set goals for yourself and do what you can, while always moving forward. If you have a soft drink habit or something else that is really hanging you up then start taking the necessary steps to kick those habits. Remember: slow progress is STILL progress! I made small change after small change 5 years ago and when I look back, I cannot believe how far I have come!

Below are a list of ingredients to definitely watch out for when you make your next grocery run:

Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). There are at least 30 other names for MSG and manufacturers are very sneaky! Look for ingredients that could be MSG, as well as products that contain it.  Some of the common ones you’ll find on labels are:

• hydrolyzed protein
• yeast extract
• glutamic acid
• forms of soy
• natural flavors
• anything that is fortified by enzymes
• Soy products, bouillon/broth, meat seasonings, canned soups, frozen dinners, meat, seasonings on chips, and even baby formula can contain some form of MSG.

So why is this ingredient far from harmless? Well, it is not just a flavor enhancer that’s found in Asian foods. MSG is an excitotoxin which can actually “trick your brain” into thinking that what you’re consuming is robust with flavor, which can even increase appetite tremendously and eventually cause weight gain. Because of the abundance of MSG in Asian foods in particular, there is a condition known as “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome.” With this syndrome, restaurant-goers can experience heart palpitations, shortness of breath, or chest pain after consuming MSG-laden foods. If that’s not enough of a deterrent, there have even been studies on obese mice (for multiple reasons). But how do you study obese mice if they do not naturally become obese in the wild? Well, you first give them MSG, of course. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9582101?dopt=abstractplus

High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS): You may have seen commercials or advertisements defending high fructose corn syrup. Most of these state that it is metabolized just like sugar, so it’s harmless. Not to put the Corn Producers of America (the ones that pay for the advertisements) down or anything, buuuuut….false. You see, all simple sugars spike insulin levels when they are metabolized, but HFCS is so refined that it can cause even more damage (not to mention the fact that it is derived from GMO corn, but I digress). According to Dr. Mercola, “Part of what makes HFCS such an unhealthy product is that it is metabolized to fat in your body far more rapidly than any other sugar, and, because most fructose is consumed in liquid form, its negative metabolic effects are significantly magnified.” Elevated insulin levels are at the root of so many modern day diseases, so it is not rocket science that this is one ingredient to steer clear from. HFCS is mainly found in sodas, but can be found in ketchup and other condiments, crackers, cookies, cereals and other refined foods.

Rancid fats & oils, hydrogenated oils: Well, this one is a biggie. Almost everyone considers soy, canola, corn, & other vegetable oils to be very healthy, particularly heart healthy fats, and there are numerous studies that prove the exact opposite. Taking the oil from these very cheap sources is a harsh process to say the least. Since these oils are naturally liquid at room temperature they must be mixed with tiny metal particles (usually nickel oxide). It is then subjected to hydrogen gas at a high-pressure, high-temperature reactor. Next, soap-like emulsifiers and starch are squeezed into the mixture to give it a better consistency; the oil is yet again subjected to high temperatures when it is steam cleaned (to remove the stench). Margarine’s natural color, an unappetizing GRAY, is removed by bleach. Dyes and strong flavors must then be added to make it resemble butter(1). Finally, the mixture is compressed and packaged in blocks or tubs and sold as a health food. I’m sorry, but wouldn’t butter (note: a whopping ONE ingredient that has been consumed for thousands of years) be better?!!

Added antibiotics to meats & dairy: Antibiotic-resistant bacteria has become a serious issue in recent years. Essentially, strains of bacteria are mutating and becoming resistant to antibiotics, thus making antibiotics less effective when they’re actually needed. A lot of people are starting to learn about the fact that your health starts in your gut. Regular run-of-the-mill milk can contain up to 80 different antibiotics(2)!!! <–that is insane.  An imbalance of good and bad bacteria in the gut can lead to a whole host of issues, so avoiding antibiotics that are hidden in our foods is a great idea.

Added hormones: rBGH, a synthetic growth hormone, is used to get an increased milk output from dairy cows. With this hormone added, a cow can produce about 6 gallons of milk per day, while their non-hormone counterparts can produce around 1.5 – 3 gallons per day, according to Lori Lipinski with the Weston A. Price Foundation. She also states in this article: “According to the Humane Farming Association, The FDA admits that BGH injections increase sickness and drug use in dairy cows. Consumer’s Union reports that because of increased udder infections, it is more likely that milk from treated cows will be of lower quality–containing more pus and bacteria–than milk from untreated cows.” I’ve also seen on some documentaries that food grade chalk is added to commercial dairy to cover up the pus and/or blood due to over-milking the cows so that it will have a whiter, healthy presence. (*gag*)

Pesticides/herbicides on produce: Would you spray some Ortho Weed B Gone or Raid on your produce? No? While this is a bit of an exaggeration, hopefully it gives you a good image of just one of the important reasons to buy organically-grown produce. Chlorinated hydrocarbons such as DDT have evidence of killing things other than the intended pests (like killing birds that eat the bugs/worms that have been in an area of pesticide exposure). This article about the effects of wind-drift chemicals and the onslaught of terrible mutations (think malformation of sexual organs and asymmetric deformities) to the local community is a MUST read. See the section below on ways to avoid produce that has been sprayed.

Genetically Modified Organisms, or GMOs: When pesticides merely weren’t enough, genetically modified foods came to the forefront. These foods are engineered in a laboratory and their DNA is inserted with genes so that pesticides are released from them. Genetically modified foods have been linked to everything from gastrointestinal disorders, inflammatory diseases, infertility, and much more. Even the health of livestock animals improves when they are taken off of their usual GMO corn & soy diet. According to this article regarding the health of sows, “When a Danish pig farmer switched to non- GMO soy in April 2011 for his four hundred fifty sows and their offspring, within two days the animals’ serious diarrhea problems virtually disappeared. During the following year, death from ulcers and other digestive problems, which had claimed thirty-six pigs over the previous two years, vanished. Conception rate was up, litter size was up, diseases were down, and birth defects were eliminated.”

To avoid these while shopping:

• Choose items that have a PLU sticker that begin with the number 9, indicating that it was grown organically and not sprayed.
• If it begins with a 4, it was grown conventionally and may be subject to synthetic pesticides.
• If it begins with an 8, it is genetically modified and possibly also sprayed.
• Choose either certified organic, or organically raised (from a reputable source) meats, dairy products, and eggs to ensure that the animals were not fed GMO corn and soy.

The crops that are most well known for being genetically modified (about 90% of these are GMO) include corn, soy, sugar beets, and cottonseed. For more information on GMOs, I highly recommend the book Seeds of Deception and the documentary Genetic Roulette, both by Jeffrey Smith.

Artificial Sweeteners: Did you know that Splenda & NutraSweet are banned in Europe? Now I know that a lot of people are becoming health and weight conscious, so they want to consume less calories and that artificial sweeteners seem like the golden choice. However, you really may be doing your body AND your trim figure more harm than good. These artificial sweeteners were initially just a by-product of medications that were produced in a lab. When the chemist noticed that certain ingredients had a sweet taste, it was all downhill from there (note: so it’s not naturally derived). Sweet N’ Low (saccharine), Equal (aspartame) , Splenda (sucralose), and all of their cousins are actually considered excitotoxins that can really harm brain chemistry and lead to issues like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, ALS, and other neuro-degenerative conditions(3). On top of that, their main ingredients stimulate your body’s release of insulin and leptin (hormones) which basically tell your body to store more fat. Upon tasting a diet soft drink or a “calorie-free” pudding, your body begins to expect some calories and nutrition to come along with that sweet taste at some point or another. When this does not happen, it can actually drive hunger up. Why is this ingredient on the market, you ask? It is a little-known secret that the same person that approved this at the FDA was soon after employed by a main aspartame producer.(4)

Well now that you know what you SHOULDN’T be consuming, be on the lookout for our next post which will go into great depth about all the foods that you SHOULD be consuming in your nutrient rich, whole foods diet! In a nutshell, if you stick to the basics and eat foods that are unprocessed and the way nature (and the big man upstairs) intended, you should have no problems avoiding all of the not-so-enticing things mentioned above.

 

‘Til next time,

 

 

 

 

References:

1) Fallon, S., & Enig, M. G. (2001). Introduction: Fats. Nourishing traditions: the cookbook that challenges politically correct nutrition and the diet dictocrats (Rev. 2nd ed., ). Washington, DC: NewTrends Pub.

2) Nutrition News and Views, Nov/Dec 1999, Vol 3, No.6, p 2.

3) Russell Blaylock, MD, Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, Health Press (NM), 2006

4) http://www.rense.com/general33/legal.htm