Some Good News Re Health and Hospitals

If you’re dreading to read the paper (in print or online) because of the tsunami of bad news; here is a great respite:

http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/in-one-of-the-nations-unhealthiest-places-this-hospital-prescribes-fresh-food-from-its-own-farm-20161215

New Data On CO2 and Plant Nutrition

Several years ago I was reading somewhere that nutrient levels in plants had declined over my lifetime (last 66 years). I thought it probably had to do with declining soil fertility, the over-reliance on the chemical additives of industrial agriculture rather than the regenerative practices of organic agriculture…..and maybe that contributes to declining fertility. Many food plants have also been bred to increase growth rate, pest resistance, or “shipability”, not taste or nutrition. Also, numerous species of fruits and  vegetables are picked a little before ripeness to keep them from spoiling en route to stores.

Well, here’s new data from scientific studies (what few there are) that shows that rising levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere are negatively impacting plant’s nutritional profile; i.e., they contain less protein and minerals. And this is happening with WILD plants as well.

I consider this info crucial to the current debates on both climate change and public health. Please read and spread the word.

http://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2017/09/13/food-nutrients-carbon-dioxide-000511

 

What Do the Healthiest People Eat?

I have studied diet and nutrition for decades; have personally tried at least a dozen different diets; and have watched documentaries and experts battle with one another for the “truth” about what diet is best. Here is a great article about a multi-year, multi-country study that is remarkably free of hype:

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2017/09/moderate-intake-of-things-linked-to-health/538428/?utm_source=nl-atlantic-daily-090117&silverid=MzY1MjgwODgyOTU5S0

A Pretty Definitive Read on Coconut OIl

The “fat is bad for you” and “saturated fat is worse” memes are still going strong. So here is a great article by Dr. Mark Hyman that is straightforward, only a little technical, and clear:

https://www.ecowatch.com/is-coconut-oil-healthy-2460958093.html?utm_source=EcoWatch+List&utm_campaign=6d76ed8b5b-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_49c7d43dc9-6d76ed8b5b-86116394

Glyphosate in Food and Vaccines: Action Alert

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  Glyphosate in Vaccines as Well as Food?

• By anh-usa on September 20, 2016 Real Not Phony Food

New evidence says yes. Action Alert!

A report published last week found glyphosate in a number of childhood vaccines. Now more study is needed to learn more about the presence of other weedkiller ingredients in both our vaccines and our food.

Keep in mind that absolutely no studies have been done on the toxicity of weedkiller when injected into children. The US Environmental Protection Agency analyzed Monsanto’s self-serving safety studies on the potential toxicity when glyphosate is ingested, but not when it is injected. EPA documents studying how the body metabolizes glyphosate (that is, how it moves through the body)  found that glyphosate shows up in bone marrow thirty minutes after injection.

We are also starting to understand more about why glyphosate is linked to so many health problems. Glyphosate is chemically very similar to glycine, an essential amino acid. This is important because glyphosate may be displacing glycine when our cells create proteins. This would result in proteins not being formed properly and not being able to perform their usual functions. Researchers think this mechanism may be a factor behind the modern world’s explosion of disease, including obesity, diabetes, autism, mitochondrial disorders, liver disease, cancer, and autoimmune diseases.

Glycine is a critical component of bone, cartilage, and collagen, which helps explain why glyphosate shows up so quickly in bone marrow and in gelatin products.

Glyphosate may be changing the biochemistry of our bodies, and this may happen at very low concentrations. One part per billion of glyphosate is 3,561,000,000,000 molecules of weedkiller, and each one of those molecules is capable of altering a protein’s structure.

The report finding glysophate in childhood vaccines was sponsored and released by Moms Across America. Glyphosate is the active ingredient in the weedkiller Roundup and other herbicides. The results showed that a DTap vaccine, a flu vaccine, a Hepatitis B vaccine, and a pneumonoccal vaccine all had levels of glyphosate. The MMR II vaccine had levels up to twenty-five times higher than the other vaccines.

These findings were corroborated by Anthony Samsel, a researcher who works with Dr. Stephenie Seneff of MIT. This team has been researching the effects of glyphosate for years. Not only did Samsel find detectable levels of glyphosate in vaccines, he also found it in products containing gelatin, such as gummy vitamins for children, protein powders, and Jell-o.

Top scientists questioning GMO, such as professor of molecular biology Gilles-Eric Séralini, have also pointed out that so-called inert ingredients used with glysophate are anything but inert. The government has ignored them because of the manufacturer’s claim that they are inert, but some of them may be much, much more toxic than even glyphosate. If glyphosate is getting into vaccines and foods, what about these other, barely studied ingredients?

As our own testing of common breakfast foods for glyphosate showed, this weedkiller is increasingly permeating our entire food system. How much more evidence must accrue for regulators to do some credible testing of their own?

Action Alert! Call on the CDC to check vaccines for glyphosate, as well as for other ingredients used with glyphosate noted in the EPA’s study. Please send your message immediately.

Please Sign Petition to Obama: Veto the DARK Act

Our illustrious Congress has completely caved to the GMO lobby, passing an awful bill that would make GMO labeling non-mandatory, using smart phone apps, and not even applying to several GMO ingredients. It could not have been much worse for consumers wishing to know the origin of their foods’ ingredients. So here’s the big petition to urge President Obama to veto this bill (and fulfill his campaign promise of 8 years ago):

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/veto-dark-act-s764

You can buy organic, but many folks don’t have access to organic foods. Ditto for Farmer’s Markets. Let’s allow the ability to educate one’s self.

This Is the Eleventh Hour for GMO Labeling!

View This Email On the Web

You know it’s bad when . . . Dear Friends, You know things are bad when even the FDA, which so often fails the public when it comes to food safety, sides with consumers. Yesterday, the FDA pointed out what DARK Act opponents have been saying all along—the Roberts-Stabenow GMO “non-labeling” bill would exclude a host of products from ever having to be labeled, including some of the most common GMO ingredients, like soybean oil and GMO sugar beets. According to the FDA, the bill also sets a very high bar for even the bill’s “make believe” labels (QR codes and toll-free phone numbers), because it would apply only to those GMO crops “for which the modification could not otherwise be obtained through conventional breeding or found in nature.” Yet the FDA’s critique has done nothing to slow down the anti-labeling train. And we have only a few days left to keep that train from taking us over the cliff. The U.S. Senate yesterday held a “test vote” on whether or not to push forward by limiting debate on the Stabenow-Roberts DARK Act. The motion passed—68-29. Our job is to work relentlessly over the next few days so that when the Senate holds an official vote early next week, this outrageous anti-consumer, pro-Monsanto bill fails. For good. Despite the lies, this bill gives Monsanto and Big Food everything they want—and gives consumers nothing. The Roberts-Stabenow DARK Act calls for a convoluted, costly, discriminatory scheme of barcodes and phone numbers—but no labels. This bill is not a mandatory labeling law—because there’s no enforcement mechanism, and no penalties or consequences of any kind for defying the “law.” This bill, as even the FDA confirmed yesterday, is so full of loopholes and exemptions that only the barest minimum of products would meet the standard. With your help, we are working 24/7 to prevent this attack on consumer rights, states’ rights and democracy from passing. Meanwhile, I urge you to call your Senators and remind them that even the FDA doesn’t believe this bill provides consumers with the right to know if their food is GMO. And finally, because our opposition is so well-funded and our work is not only urgent, but requires funding, I ask that you please help us raise another $30,000 by midnight tonight, in order to take advantage of a generous matching funds offer by our ally in this fight, Mercola.com. If you can pitch in, please click here for details on how to donate online, or by phone or mail. Thank you! In solidarity, Ronnie Cummins International Director P.S. We still need to raise about $30,000 to reach our goal by midnight, June 30. Win or lose the labeling battle, we have our work cut out for us if we want a regenerative, not degenerative food and farming system. Please know that every donation, no matter how small, will be matched by Mercola and will help build a better food movement. Donate online here.

The New List of Worst and Best Conventional Foods

The 2016 list of the top ten worst foods (pesticide residues) and the top 15 OK to eat of conventionally grown produce is here:

https://www.organicconsumers.org/news/new-fruit-tops-dirty-dozen-list-most-contaminated-produce

Not everyone can afford or even find organic produce. With local Farmer’s Markets a month or so in the future, this link will provide you with the information to shop more healthily.

A Doctor’s Insight Into Immunity

After getting sick for the first time in years (a sinus infection that I helped “manage” with large amounts of herbs, vitamin C and rest), I am reminded of how complex our immune system is, and how much more we are learning about it. This link to Kelly Brogan, MD is a good intro to this doctor and her world view, with an emphasis on the intricacies  of immunity. The comments were also interesting.

http://kellybroganmd.com/immunity-emerging-truth/?utm_source=Kelly+Brogan+MD+Newsletter&utm_campaign=172406576b-Immunity+The+Emerging+Truth&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_d0f977a8c5-172406576b-121829793

For the 3 weeks I was fighting the infection I refrained from eating any added sugars (I was about 98% compliant). Just before I got sick I ate more sugar than I usually do (which is very little since it seems that genetically I am prone to blood sugar imbalances) because it was the holidays. Just a reminder to self that sugar reduces the body’s immune response. An excellent explanation of this is found in this link:

http://alternativehealthatlanta.com/immune-system/sugar-and-your-immune-system/

Even though I cannot remember where I read this research, it seems that the body does not do as well with single large amounts of oral Vitamin C as smaller amounts spread out evenly throughout the day. To get your blood titer up and constant seems to be the best strategy, and to do that, you want to take about 200 mg. of Vitamin C per hour. When I was sick I used a powdered vitamin C (with bioflavonoids, which help potentiate the C) and lemon juice.

May the rest of this winter be a healthy one for you and your loved ones.

New Organic Egg Scorecard

Once the Farmers’ Market closes down for the season, and the local chickens take their (well-earned) winter  rest, one has to buy eggs at the grocery store. How do you tell which organic eggs to buy when most of them advertise free-range, and humanely raised? How can we get beyond the hype? Cornucopia’s Scorecard to the rescue! http://www.cornucopia.org/organic-egg-scorecard/