Food as Medicine

I was raised by a mother who always claimed the benefits or harm of the foods we ate. Back in the days before there was medicine, food was medicine. People would eat chicken soup for congestion or champagne for blood infections. I just got the "John's Hopkins" Health magazine and they were saying that 64% of U.S. adults are overweight or obese and given the effect on cardiac, vascular and cancer related diseases, researchers are taking a closer look at food and how it can heal, enhance lives, prevent diseases and of course negatively affect our health - it's about time!

Junk foods high in fat and sugar - like fast foods - can contribute to inflammation (localized tissue reaction to injury, infection or irritation) and can lead to heart disease, diabetes and stroke. Chronic inflammation is also being linked to cancer. Now within the last five years doctors and researchers are looking to food to help heal the body.

Cloves and walnuts can help reduce inflammation. According to this article I read, Integrative gastroenterologist Gerard Mullin, M.D. says certain foods may even replace drugs. Ginger, for example, can help prevent nausea and gastric dysfunction and he says ginger works the same way a powerful anti-nausea drug works - working on the same receptors of the brain.

I did a little research myself on the foods that heal and how through eating the right foods we can help fight of chronic diseases such as heart disease and cancer - two of the biggest killers!

Here are just a few...and I have also listed the powerful affects of greens in previous blogs.

• apples - protect your heart, prevents constipation, blocks diarrhea, improves lung capacity and cushions your joints
• apricots - combats cancer, controls blood pressure, saves eyesight, sheilds against Alzheimers, slows the aging process
• avocadoes - battle diabetes, lowers cholesterol, helps prevents strokes, controls blood pressure, smoothes skin
• beans - prevent constipation, help hemorroids, lowers cholesterol, combats cancer, stabilizes blood sugar
• blueberries - combat cancer, protects your heart, stabilizes blood sugar, boosts memory, prevents constipation
• broccoli - strengthens bones, saves eyesight, combats cancer, protects your heart, controls blood pressure
• grapes - saves eyesight, fights kidney stones, enhances blood flow, protects your heart
• grapefruit - protects against heart attacks, promotes weight loss, helps stop strokes, combats prostate cancer, lowers cholesterol
• mushrooms - controls blood pressure, lowers cholesterol, kills bacteria, combats cancer, strengthens bones
• strawberries - combats cancer, protects your heart, boosts memory, calms stress
• tomatoes - protects prostate, fights cancer, lowers cholesterol, protects heart
• walnuts - lowers cholesterol, combats cancer, boosts memory, lifts mood, protects against heart disease

Here are a couple good combos of healing juices - I recommend the book "The Juice Lady's Juicing for High Level Wellness and Vibrant Good Looks" by Cherie Calbom - but here are a couple of ideas (juices and foods) from a website called "www.fatfreekitchen.com".

• Arthritis - apple, banana, mango, cucumber, garlic
• Asthma - garlic
• Cancer fighting juice - carrot, garlic, lime, lemon
• Constipation - almonds, cabbage, carrot, cucumber, lime, lettuce, banana, beet root, corn, dates, figs, raisins, soyabeans, spinach, whole wheat bread
• Heart Disease - cabbage, carrot, honey, apple, asparagus, garlic, onions, oranges, grapes, grapefruit, lime, lemon, raisins

TAKE AWAY:

A book that further digs into the fighting disease with food is "Foods that Heal" by Bernard Jensen and I also found another blog that you may be interested in on this subject, http://foodsthatheal.blogspot.com/

Think about what you are eating before you put it in your mouth - is it good for you and ask yourself......

"What is this food going to do for me? Is it going to help me look beautiful, feel energetic, make me lean and fight off disease or is it going to make my skin break out, constipate me, make me bloated and fat, and cause me to die at a young age?" Look at the food you are eating - if it is mostly brown - reconsider. Think green, yellow, orange, red....Think lots and lots of vegetables, whole grains like brown rice and quinoa, nuts, beans and if you are eating fish, meat or chicken/eggs - make it organic, free range, grass fed, fresh caught.....

STOP AN THINK before you eat!

FISH!

As many of you have already read, I have cut out dairy, red meat, chicken, artificial sweeteners, processed foods....from my diet. I am still eating fish and wanted to delve into the world of fresh caught vs. farm raised fish. I wanted to further investigate what's in the farmed raised fish that I may be eating. The world has a huge population of people but the amount of farmland has decreased, so we look to the oceans for our food. According to John Robbin's book "The Food Revolution" the number of fish caught in our oceans from 1950 to 1990 increased from 19 million tons to 89 million tons. But today that number remains around the same because our world's fisheries are seriously depleted. We are over fishing and 34% of all fish species are in danger of extinction.

Fish factories cannot fill their quota because the number of fish has decreased, so they are dropping their nets deeper into the ocean, pulling up smaller fish, sometimes using them to sell, but often discarding them, thereby taking the food straight out of the mouths of the bigger fish - basically sweeping the oceans clean and interfering with the food chain, and as a result fish are disappearing. Half of the world's fish caught is fed to livestock - Tyson's Chicken takes about 800,000 pounds of fish in a single netting with a $40 million super trawler to make its products and or feed to livestock.

Because of the decrease of wild fish and because we have such a huge population and so many mouths to feed there is a huge increase in fish farms. "Aquaculture" - def. from wikipedia (the farming of freshwater and saltwater organisms such as finfish, mollusks, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Also known as aquafarming, involves cultivating aquatic populations under controlled conditions and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is harvesting of "wild fish". Commercial aquaculture supplies ONE HALF of the fish and shellfish that is directly consumed by humans). All the catfish and rainbow trout, half the shrimp and 1/3 the salmon eaten today in the US are from fish farms.

Aquaculture has not really helped take the pressure off marine ecosystems. According to John Robbin's book, the farming of shrimp, salmon, trout, bass and yellowtail has actually put more demand on marine production in order to produce feed for the farmed fish. It takes 5lbs of wild ocean fish to produce a single pound of farmed saltwater fish or shrimp.

According to research from Stanford's Institute for International Studies " Aquaculture (aka: fish farming) is a contributing factor to the collapse of fisheries stocks around the world". Fish farming may cause fish low on the marine food chain such as herring, mackerel and sardines to disappear completely from the world's oceans.

Ok, as with factory farming, and we've all read how terrible the conditions are, the stress these animals are under and the crap that is given to them to eat - which we essential eat - are no different from the conditions in these fish farms! Parasites and disease thrive in the packed conditions of the fish farm and these diseases can be spread to the wild fish. The fish are in confined spaces which can cause stress as well as disease. Just like factory farming uses antibiotics and chemicals to fight off diseases in live stock, fish farmers also use chemicals to kill bacteria, herbicides to prevent plant growth in ponds, and drugs to fight off parasites and some fish farms use growth hormones and some are fed genetically modified corn. Up to 40,000 fish can be crammed in a cage, they cannot swim freely and farm raised salmon is given artificial pigments to give it the color that wild salmon have who get their "natural" pink/orange color from eating krill.

If you want your omega 3s from salmon - get it from wild salmon - farm raised has half the essential nutrients.

TAKE AWAY

Next time you are at the fish market or dining out, ask for wild, fresh caught fish, farm raised is not as good for you and aquafarming has a negative impact on wild caught fish, especially salmon. Do your research. It all seems to come back to the big business of the meat industry - in 1997 22 million tons of wild fish were caught and used for pig and cow feed!

dining out, recipes, chia seeds!

Hello all, ugh it's been a while, I have been crazy busy, but am back and will keep it short and sweet tonight! Met my cousin this week at "Volt" in Frederick, Md. I am hooked to "Top Chef"on Bravo and loved the last one with the Voltaggio Brothers who were like 1 an 2 in the season finale. They are amazing chefs and one of the brothers, chef Bryan Voltaggio showcases his "classic flavor combinations prepared with fresh local ingredients" at this restaurant located in a 19th century brownstone mansion in historic Frederick with a cool, modern vibe and amazing food! We had the 3 course lunch, they offer a 5 course as well, and loved every fresh ingredient with an artful twist - of course paired with wine! I highly recommend going as soon as you can pull it off - it's not inexpensive, but trust me, it is worth every penny! Let me know if anyone wants to go and I'll join you! Check out their website at www.voltrestaurant.com.

I also got an email today from my wonderful cousin who I met there for lunch about another restaurant called Patowmack Farm. Their website states "from our farm to your table, we offer our guests a rate experience: a distinctive atmosphere, local, organic cuisine and a seat with a view of the Potomac river". They offer certified, naturally grown and organic produce, organic wild and natural meats, sustainable seafood as well as biodynamic wines! Sounds really food to me. Their website is www.patowmackfarm.com.

My vegan/yogi friend Rachel just sent me a great recipe for a "strawberry shortcake pink smoothie" and "Two Kale Cranberry Salad". Here are the recipes - enjoy!

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE SMOOTHIE:

• half med beet
• 1 large carrot
• 2ts vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cup coconut water
• 1/4 cup cashews or almonds
• 1/4 cup dates

Blend together then add 12 frozen strawberries and blend again.

TWO KALE CRANBERRY SALAD:

• dinasour kale
• curly kale
• crisp tart apples
• raw walnut

Cranberry dressing:

• 1 1/2c fresh or reconstituted dried cranberries
• 3/4 c apple juice
• 1/4 c pure maple syrup
• 1/3 c olive oil
• TBSP dijon mustard
• 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
• salt
• pepper

blend all ingredients together. Toss 2o minutes before serving.

Both are yum and totally healthy!

TAKE AWAY:

Couple little tidbits I read from one of my fitness magazines:

1. Goat's milk ice cream called "Laloos's" is made from the milk of goats that freely graze on the hillsides of Sonoma Valley and the farmland near Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin. It's half the fat of premium cow's milk ice cream. It contains less water and more solids which means no added cream is necessary. It also has more minerals (calcium, potassium, magnesium) than cows milk brands and these goats are free of antibiotics and growth hormones. Deep Chocolate, Black Mission Fig and Capraccino are the favorites!
2. Too much soda, even zero calorie can increase your risk to kidney failure!
3. Consuming more that 74 grams of fructose per day (about the amount found in 2 chocolate shakes) can raise your risk of stage 2 hypertension. Fructose activates inflammation.

Lastly, not sure I mention Chia Seeds. I just bought a bag called "Ultimate Chialife". It's high in fiber, richest known vegetable source of Omega 3 fatty acids, it has 3x the antioxidants of blueberries, more calcium than milk and more iron than spinach and a better source of protein source than beans or soy.

I put it in my shakes, but you can eat out of the bag - although the seeds are tiny - or you can put on cereal, yogurt or salads or add to baked goods.