Have a Healthy Memorial Day!

Memorial Day marks the start of the summer season.  Some of us will be spending the day out on our boats or at the beach.  Some of us will be traveling to visit relatives out-of-town.  Some of us will be watching parades.  Some of us will be attending barbeques and some of us can finally wear white.  It’s great to celebrate living and enjoy the day off, but it is equally as important to take a moment and honor our brave U.S. soldiers who died in battle fighting for our freedom.  As we gather with family and friends, we should pay homage to those brave individuals.  It is important, especially for kids to understand that the freedoms they relish so much are the result of brave wars fought and lives lost.  While children are learning the importance of Memorial Day, it is a great opportunity to also teach them to eat healthy.

As you gather together at mealtime, prepare and serve a variety of wholesome foods.  If you have access to a local farm, pick up fresh ingredients and try these summer salads.

Chickpea Salad

4 cups cooked chick peas (can use canned, but I prefer the old fashioned way)

¼ cup finely chopped red onion

1 cup finely chopped organic red and green pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

¼ cup finely chopped fresh parsley

1 cup grated carrot

2 heirloom or vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped

Pinch cayenne pepper

½ tsp. cumin

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Soak beans overnight.  Drain.  Add beans and cover with water and simmer covered on stove for 1 ½ hour or until done.  When slightly cooled, add all ingredients in a large bowl.  Add seasonings to taste and mix gently.  Store in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Summer Rice Salad with Black-Eyed Peas

4 cups cooked brown rice

2 cups cooked black-eyed peas or canned

3 heirloom or vine-ripe tomatoes, chopped

½ cup chopped celery

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

3 scallions finely chopped

4 tbsp. balsamic vinegar

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ tsp. chopped thyme

1 tsp. sea salt, pepper to taste

Combine brown rice, black-eyed peas, tomatoes, parsley and scallions in a large bowl.  Gently toss.  In smaller bowl whisk the rest of the ingredients.  Pour dressing ingredients over the salad and gently toss again.  Refrigerate until cold and ready to serve.

HAVE A HAPPY, HEALTHY AND SAFE MEMORIAL DAY

A Simple Rule to Eating Fruit!

“Fruit is gold in the morning, silver at noon, and lead at night.”

It’s amazing the things you can find at a thrift or antique store.  It’s such a thrill to search and leave the store with a few gems.  On a recent trip to a thrift store, I left with two treasures.  The first was a book called “Physiology and Health,” which dates to 1889.  The second was a vintage jumpsuit, similar to ones I used to wear back in the 1970’s and early 1980’s.  Now I just have to put my finds to good use!

How many of you have heard this proverb, “Fruit is gold in the morning, silver at noon, and lead at night?  I never heard of it until I turned to page 15 of my new/old book. It goes on to say that it is a good idea to eat a little fruit before breakfast.  If you eat apples or some other fruits in the evening, it can make a “lump in the stomach” and give us a restless night and bad dreams.  There goes my eating fruit after dinner!  Now I want to expand on this pearl of wisdom......

There is no question that fruits are one of the best things to eat.  Nature has provided fruit to grow on trees or vines so man/animals would be induced to eat them.  In addition, nature has provided for the seeds of fruit to be disseminated.  Man has been ruining the laws of nature especially since the invention of genetically modified organisms.   The seeds of GMO’s are extremely dangerous to human health and should be avoided at all costs.  In fact, a recent study has shown that BT insecticide is now being found in human blood. To read more about GMO’s, please follow this link: http://www.responsibletechnology.org/  When purchasing fruit, please opt for organic!  This is especially important when you are eating the skin of the fruit like an apple.  Unfortunately, too many pesticides are used in the production of fruit today.

Fruits provide crucial water-soluble vitamins that our body’s need everyday such as Vitamin C, the B Vitamins and folic acid.  Our bodies cannot produce these vitamins.  They must be obtained by the foods that we eat.  Fruits are rich in phytonutrients due, in part, to the rich color of their skins.  In addition, fruits contain enzymes that help with the digestive process.  Fruits have natural sugars which are healthy carbohydrates.  If you are a diabetic or are sensitive to sugars, consult your doctor as to which fruits, if any, would be advisable to eat.  This is because some fruits, such as pineapple, have a high glycemic index. 

Fruits do not contain much solid substance.  They have a great deal of juice which is mostly water, which make them very cooling to the body.  That is why it feels great to eat watermelon on a hot summer day.  Of course, only eat fruit when ripe and preferably raw.    In addition, eat fruit that is “in season” and picked fresh.  Fruits lose valuable nutrients after they are picked.  The older the fruit, the less nutrients it will have.  It is a great idea to join a CSA or shop at local farmers’ markets for the freshest produce available.

And now for my second gem…THE JUMPSUIT!  I want to start a movement to BRING BACK THE JUMPSUIT!  So what if you have to reach behind to your back and fumble until you get the zipper down or practically strip until you're completely naked just to go to the bathroom!  It looks great!

I cannot wait to see what I find during my next trip!

References:

http://www.naturalnews.com/032407_Bt_insecticide_GMOs.html

http://www.responsibletechnology.org/

Ivison, Blakeman, and Company, 1889, Physiology and Health, New York and Chicago

Mateljan, George, 2007, The World’s Healthiest Foods, Seattle: George Mateljan Foundation

Breakfast Out In America....

I’ve been eating breakfast out with a group of three women for seven years.  We only meet once every three months, mainly to catch up on what’s happening in our lives.  We take turns organizing and picking the restaurants we dine in.  Last month, one of my friends selected a local diner for breakfast.  I don’t enjoy eating meals out.  When you eat out, you lose complete control over what you are putting in your body.  You have no idea where they purchased or how they prepared their food.  I generally try and eat out as little as I possibly can.  When I do eat out, I try and pick the “least toxic items on the menu.”  Actually, it becomes a game trying to figure out which is the lesser evil to eat.  This particular time, I was struggling to find something I considered “edible.”  I opted to order a Greek Salad, with no dressing.  Well…I wish I had a camera to show the shocked looks my friends gave me.  One of them said, “How in the world can you eat a salad for breakfast!”  At that point she proceeded to order herself a diet coke.   I got defensive and told my friends in Europe, particularly Paris, breakfast items are typically served with a side order of greens.  “Really” my friend said, as she sipped her diet coke….

I’ve been to Greece, France and Italy.  The quality of the food doesn’t even compare to the crap we get here in America.  When I was in Greece, breakfast consisted of fresh fruit, a hard boiled pasture raised egg, and fresh raw whole milk yogurt with honey.  Actually, to make the yogurt, they skimmed the cream off the top of the milk, which made the yogurt extra rich and delicious.  Of course, freshly squeezed juice, coffee and tea accompanied the meal. 

I just loved the food in Paris, France.  Actually I loved everything about Paris!  Yes, the Parisians do walk around with baguettes of fresh bread and pastry, but they accompany these items with side orders of greens.  If I ordered eggs, which the yolk was always a beautiful dark orange, the side was a green salad.  The quality of the foods was unsurpassed and I was truly in awe.  I saw more of the same thing in Italy.   Again, greens were served often, as well as fresh fruit, good quality eggs and freshly squeezed juices.  In fact, I had the best orange juice I ever drank in Italy.  When you contemplate all the good food you left behind on your plane ride home, it’s hard not to get angry or annoyed. 

What are our choices when eating breakfast out here in America?  Hmmmm…  Maybe I should invent a new game/reality show called, “Which is the least toxic?

1.       Bread loaded with preservatives, high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils.

2.       Eggs from factory farms which are loaded with a disproportionate amount of Omega 6’s.

3.       Sausage from animals that were fed genetically modified grains and were not out to see the light of day.

4.       Pancakes or waffles that are loaded with sugars…maybe even beet sugar which may also be genetically engineered.

5.       Cereal which is loaded with dangerous preservatives, food dyes and additives.

6.       Coffee which was grown with chemicals.

7.       Juice that has been pasteurized so all the living enzymes have been destroyed.

8.       Milk that came from cows that were injected with growth hormones and antibiotics. 

I guess I should add in diet coke……..

9.       Diet coke which is sweetened artificially with chemicals that make people fat because they are designed to make them crave more food. 

(These photos were taken recently at a hotel breakfast buffet at a hotel upstate New York.)

(By contrast, here are some photos taken at a hotel breakfast buffet in Israel.)

Fresh Fish

IT IS INSULTING HOW MUCH BETTER FOOD IS IN OTHER COUNTRIES THAN HERE!!  This is what happens when corporations take over the food supply with no regulation from the government.  Our well-being is not being cared for.  We can change this, however.  We can stop purchasing items that contain chemicals.  Please visit your local farms and/or farmers’ market to see what they have to offer.  Also, shop for additional items at local health food stores.  Read labels and ask questions.  EDUCATE YOURSELF!

Navel Expo 2011 and Carol Alt on Raw Foods - “I don’t want to hear cheap. It’s your health!”

Carol Alt

I attended the Navel Expo 2011 last weekend in Huntington, Long Island.  The key note speaker for the day was model and raw food entrepreneur Carol Alt.  I was excited to hear Carol speak about raw foods.  I was also curious what 15 years of eating raw foods did to her appearance wise, since most photos taken by professional photographers are airbrushed in some way.  I made sure I was in the front row so I could see Carol up close and personal.

My first impression of her was, “Wow….she’s tall.”  She stands five foot eleven and had on at least four inch heels.  Carol is fifty years old, and I can tell you she is a beauty.  She has a vibrancy that shines from her inner self which makes her exterior all that more stunning.  Carol spoke passionately about her journey into raw foods, its significance to human health and the impact it had on her.  She spoke eloquently with a superior understanding and knowledge about raw food and told us quite frankly, “We’ve all been snowed.”

At the age of 34, Carol found herself plagued with all sorts of health issues and was taking all sorts of over-the-counter and prescription medication.  A friend introduced her to a doctor, a strong raw food advocate, and Carol never looked back.  She decided not only to follow the raw food lifestyle, but to spend countless hours reading and educating herself about foods that are not cooked above 118 degrees.  Carol stressed four important points about eating cooked vs. raw foods:

1.   When you cook food, it turns the pH from alkaline to acid.  Your body needs to maintain an alkaline pH.  An acidic body is a body where disease can grow.  Raw food is logically better for your system.

2.   When you cook food, you denature the vitamins and minerals.  Food needs to be in a form that the body can absorb.

3.   When you cook food, it changes the molecular structure of food.  She gave an example of what happens when you eat fat.  If you eat fat raw, it is good for you.  Once that fat is cooked, it can become a dangerous trans-fat.  Carol is a strong proponent of raw milk and has traveled hours just to find a farm that sells it.

4.   When you cook food, it kills enzymes.  We are only given a certain amount of enzymes our entire life.  Our body uses enzymes to digest foods.  If we continue to eat food that is cooked and without natural enzymes, our body will have to take it from somewhere else in the body to digest the food.  This stresses our system and makes us weaker and weaker.  Raw foods contain enzymes the body can utilize. 

Are you wondering what Carol eats?  She eats fruits, vegetables & legumes, nuts, seeds, raw spouted bread, tartare, fish three times a week, seared steak, raw milk, cheeses, butter and raw fertilized chicken eggs.  She recommends ordering raw food online and finding restaurants that will accommodate your diet.  When someone in the audience asked her about the expense of these foods, she quickly quipped back “I don’t want to hear cheap, it’s your health.”  (I loved that quote!) It definitely becomes a way of life to stay healthy.  Carol admitted that she does like popcorn at games on occasion and does cheat sometimes.  She explained, “You have to live.  It’s more important the quality of your life and not how long you live.”  I loved her attitude, spunk and vigor.  She is truly an inspiration.  But as she modestly said, “I'm just a crazy model who enjoys raw foods.”  Well…..it’s definitely working for her!  Carol has numerous books on the subject: http://www.amazon.com/Eating-Raw-Beginners-Healthier-Raw-Food/dp/140005284X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304452922&sr=1-1 and a natural skin care line.

I had a lot of fun and learned a lot from the Navel Expo.  I want to give kudos to Health Media Group, Inc., for putting together such a great conference.   There should be one every weekend! http://www.navelexpo.com/index.php  I enjoyed all the talks I attended as well as meeting representatives from local businesses.  I also want to give a special shout out to Kat James.  I read her book, “The Truth About Beauty,” seven years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it.  I highly recommend it to you.  She gave a wonderful and passionate talk as well. http://www.amazon.com/Truth-About-Beauty-Transform-Inside/dp/1582701954/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304453221&sr=1-1

Christine Segal/Kat James