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Top 10 Immunity-Boosting Foods

by Erin McKinney, FNP

Guest Contributor

When it comes to fighting the common cold and flu with natural ingredients, there are a few vitamins and minerals that many doctors recommend including in your diet. Rather than taking lots of supplements each day, certain foods provide you with these immunity-boosting nutrients. If you want to avoid the cold and flu bugs this winter, perhaps you should think about adding these foods to your diet.

1. Citrus Fruits – Fruits such as oranges and tangerines contain lots of Vitamin C, which helps your body produce white blood cells and antibodies to fight cold and flu viruses. They also contain bioflavonoids, which keep your body from oxidizing the vitamin C and allowing you to gain more of its benefits. While orange juice can give you some of the same benefits, it contains more sugar.

2. Whole Grains - Grains such as oats, barley, whole wheat, and millet contain beta-glucan, which activates the immune system and help it work more effectively. They also have Vitamin E, and antioxidant that produces cells designed to kill germs and bacteria in the body.

3. Carrots – Carrots are known for their benefits that come from beta carotene, which increase the amount of infection-fighting cells in the body.  It has also been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and certain types of cancer.

4. Garlic – Garlic has allicin, which is a natural antibiotic that stimulates the immune system. It also contains selenium, which is a powerful antioxidant that fights infection.

5. Legumes – Beans, lentils, and other legumes contain zinc, which helps white blood cell production. While many people take zinc supplements to fight colds, too much can actually inhibit our immune systems. It’s best to get zinc from a healthy diet.

6. Berries – Raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries all contain lots of antioxidants that will help fight free radicals in the body. They also contain lots of Vitamin C, which is another immunity booster.

7. Kale – Raw kale is another food that’s rich in Vitamin C, which protects cells against damage during infection. However, cooking it will break down the nutrients. It’s also low in sugar and high in fiber, which makes it a healthy part of any diet.

8. Yogurt – Yogurt that contains live active cultures adds good bacteria to your system, which stimulate the body’s production of white blood cells and T-cells. This bacteria also helps the body absorb nutrients from other foods.

9. Nuts –Nuts contain a number of immunity-boosting ingredients, such as zinc, selenium, and Vitamin C. Certain nuts such as almonds, Brazil nuts, and pistachios have been particularly noted in different studies for their health benefits.

10. Mushrooms – Mushrooms have long been a cold and flu remedy in many Asian countries. They contain beta-glucan, which stimulates the immune system. Reishi, Shitake, and Maitake mushrooms are said to contain the most beta-glucan of the mushroom family.

This article was written by Erin McKinney, who is a licensed nurse practitioner.  Erin also owns the site <a href=http://www.mastersofnursing.org>Masters of Nursing</a> for students interested in getting an advanced degree in the nursing field.

Winter Solstice

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD

As December 21^st approaches we see the years shortest day pass, for those with SAD-seasonal affective disorder it means every day following the winter solstice will be a little longer and that spring is only weeks away. Yes I’m an optimist, ignoring the long days of fog, rain and gray. Gardeners are expecting their seed catalogs to start appearing in the mail, with the same anticipation of children waiting for the Sears Christmas catalog from a few years ago. Christmas is very much about hope, whether viewed from ancient pagan eyes or those of today. Hope that 2012 will be better than 2011, hope for our country, families and businesses.

Among the pagan traditions that have become part of Christmas is burning the yule log. This custom springs from many different cultures, but in all of them its significance seems to lie in the iul or “wheel” of the year. The Druids would bless a log and keep it burning for 12 days during the winter solstice – hence the 12 days of christmas; part of the log was kept for the following year, when it would be used to light the new yule log. For the Vikings, the yule log was an integral part of their celebration of the solstice, the julfest; on the log they would carve runes representing unwanted traits (such as ill fortune or poor honor) that they wanted the gods to take from them.

So the shortest day gained importance, and fires were lit, and light was used to encourage the year to turn, the village Elders would watch, to see if the fire had turned the tide of darkness. This would be visible by the 25th, and a huge feast would be eaten to celebrate the success. So well before Christianity, this time of year was celebrated by feasting. And the early Christian church adopted the existing Festival (in AD300s) to assist in converting people to Christianity. The original recyclers.

The ever-present threat of hunger was triumphantly overcome with a feast, all manner of food would be served at Christmas. The most popular main course was goose, but many other meats were also served. Turkey was first brought to Europe from the Americas around 1520, its earliest known consumption in England is 1541, and because it was inexpensive and quick to fatten, it rose in popularity as a Christmas feast food.

Humble pie was made from the “humbles” of a deer — the heart, liver, brains and so forth. While the lords and ladies ate the choice cuts, the servants baked the humbles into a pie, which of course made the meat go further. This appears to be the origin of the phrase, “to eat humble pie.” By the seventeenth century Humble Pie had become a trademark Christmas food, as evidenced when it was outlawed along with other Christmas traditions by Oliver Cromwell and the Puritan government.

But prior to that, a favorite Christmas dish was brawn. Brawn was considered to be a tasty delicacy and made with more than just the brains of animals like sheep and pig. We aren’t used to eating offal nowadays, but it was commonplace in the past, partly because it was cheap, and also because it tasted good. So brawn is essentially the head of the animal boiled until the meat falls from the bone, than mixed with the poached brain, onions and other vegetables, preserved in jelly or aspic, or even broth. Brawn was a usual part of the Christmas feast right up until Victorian times.

The Christmas pudding of Victorian and modern times evolved from the medieval dish of frumenty — a spicy, wheat-based dessert. Many other desserts were made as welcome treats for children and adults alike.

Because Christmas became such an important feast, every luxury item was saved for it, and seasonal food used as well. Luxuries such as sugar cones, and imported dried fruits, were carefully save, and seasonal items such as nuts available during the Autumn were also harvested and stored for the feast. The finest drinks, such as wine and brandy, were kept aside for Christmas.

Many of these items were used for the pudding and the cake. The pudding was stuffed with dried fruit and the peel or citrus fruits – the latter of which was made when citrus fruits became available. Both pudding and cake traditionally include the addition of brandy, a very expensive item. To make the pudding more spectacular as it arrived at the table, brandy would be poured over it and set alight. The brandy would evaporate off fairly quickly, but it was also a way of demonstrating that no expense had been spared.

It is also traditional that there is a sprig of holly in the top of the pudding as it is served. This idea pre-dates the pudding itself. Evergreen plants were brought into the house to remind everyone of the spring to come and showed that there was still life, even in the depths of winter.

Many of these traditions hark back to the days when the whole festival was about encouraging the light to return. The flaming brandy on the cake, the tinsel, the lights in the tree. One delightful story about the origin of tinsel regards the Holy Family, who, fleeing from Herod, hid in a cave. A spider worked through the night, spinning a web across the entrance of the cave, so that Herod’s soldiers assumed that no one could be in there, and left the cave alone. That holy spider web was turned into silver, and our modern tinsel represents it.

May peace and plenty be the first to lift the latch on your door, and happiness be guided to your home by the light of Christmas.

Building Pressure

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD

This last week I had one client come in and share how their blood pressure was way too high after getting upset over a work issue – Another client who thrives on stress or so they think, has on several occasions been taken to the ER for heart attack symptoms; if these symptoms are ignored serious trouble results, i.e. death.  By the way when reading through the side effects of medications note to self, death is NOT a side effect, its game over. The next client was out hunting, ignored the symptoms and hours later found themselves being air flighted and prepped for quadruple bypass.

A new report from the centers for disease control states that two-thirds of the adults in America who have high cholesterol, almost half of them have high blood pressure, and are not being treated effectively.  Heart attacks, strokes and related vascular diseases kill more than 800,000 Americans annually, easily more than any other cause. Of those 150,000 are younger than the age of 65 like the clients I mentioned at the start of this column. [i]

As the heart pumps blood through the arteries, it pushes the blood against the arterial walls with a force that is measured as “blood pressure.” High blood pressure is defined as a reading above 140/90 mm Hg. Research now suggests “high-normal” blood pressure (130 to 139 over 85 to 89) also raise risk of cardiovascular disease. Normal blood pressure is 120 to 129 over 80 to 84, and optimal blood pressure is less than 120 over 80. The elderly have increased risk for hypertension, and high blood pressure as the arterial walls lose their elasticity with age and cause the pressure of the blood moving through the arteries to rise.

Hypertension is often called a “silent killer” because even severe, uncontrolled high blood pressure usually has no obvious symptoms. Excessive pressure makes the heart work harder, increasing its oxygen demands and contributing to angina, and eventually leads to an enlarged heart, and damage to blood vessels in the kidneys and brain. Hypertension, therefore, increases the risk of heart attacks, stroke and kidney disease.[ii]

It is common for menopausal women to develop high blood pressure as a result of estrogen dominance. Estrogen thickens the blood, and it doesn’t just apply to the female of the species but also the male. As a man advances into andropause after the age of forty, he too has an increase in estrogens, causing his blood to become thicker, cholesterol to elevate and the balance between insulin and glucose to change increasing inflammation of the vascular system – Arteriosclerosis.

An August 2011 study in the journal of clinical hypertension concluded that lifestyle intervention such as the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet (visit www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/hbp/dash/new_dash.pdf for more information), as well as nutritional supplements like CoQ10 and Potassium are valuable alternatives to drugs for lowering blood pressure. Additional supplements found to be beneficial for hypertension are calcium in doses no higher than 500mg, vitamin C 1000mg-4000mg from sources other than ascorbic acid, vitamin D3 5000iu, folate, flavonoids, fish oil 3000mg mercury free, and garlic.

Herbal supplements include forskoline, mistletoe and the traditional hawthorn.  All this and after careful review it is still CoQ10 and vitamin C that have the best clinical study performances for hypertension. Serrapeptase (an enzyme made from silk worms), and Nattoveta+ (natto an enzyme made from fermented soy) are my pick also as they help to reduce fibrogen and inflammation both associated with hypertension.

A diet high in fruits, especially apples and vegetables like broccoli was also found to be highly beneficial for not only hypertension control but also for diabetes management, and weight loss. [iii]

• Insulin resistance can increase blood pressure by causing the kidneys to retain sodium.
• Medications. Some prescription drugs, including steroids, birth control pills, decongestants, NSAIDS and diet pills can raise blood pressure. Some over-the-counter medicines, such as those containing licorice root, ephedra, guarana, kola nut, yerba mate, ginseng and yohimbe, may also raise blood pressure.
• Limit your caffeine intake. The caffeine in coffee, tea, diet drinks and sodas acts as a cardiovascular stimulant and raises blood pressure.
• Increase your pure water intake!
• Avoid processed foods. These are the biggest sources of sodium and bad fats in today’s diet.
• Relax. Stress causes hypertension by activating the sympathetic nervous system, causing the arteries to maintain a more rigid tone. Meditation, yoga, breathing exercises and biofeedback are all relaxation techniques that can lower blood pressure.
• Exercise. As little as 30 minutes of a day walking, is the most effective natural remedies for high blood pressure.

 

What to eat?

• Eat 8 to 10 servings of organic fruits and vegetables per day.
• Limit animal protein to 8 oz per day, emphasizing lean sources.
• Use garlic, which helps lower blood pressure and relaxs blood vessels.
• Consume 4 to 5 servings of nuts, seeds and dry beans per week (2 Tbsp nuts or seeds, or 1/2 cup cooked dried beans).
• Eat plenty of wild Alaskan salmon. At least three servings a week,

Real Red Wine (4-6oz only) contains OPC’s (Oligomeric Proanthocyanidins) and tannins in red wine inhibiting the oxidation of LDL cholesterol and inhibiting the activation of Nuclear Factor-Kappa B.

Blueberry/Bilberry may help to prevent Atherosclerosis (due to Anthocyanosides and Proanthocyanidins in Bilberry improving Blood Circulation and increasing the strength of Blood Vessels). Grapefruit (especially Red Grapefruit, Olives, Pineapple, Pomegranates, Prunes, Rice Bran, Reishi and Shiitake Mushrooms may help too.

High consumption of Walnuts, Lentils, Yerbamate, Turmeric, Saffron, Rosemary.

Unlike many other Dietary Oils, Coconut Oil may NOT contribute to the development of Atherosclerosis and may indirectly reduce the risk of Atherosclerosis (due to the absence of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Coconut Oil).  Olive Oil (only Extra Virgin Olive Oil), Sesame Seed Oil, Chocolate (dark Chocolate), Grape Seeds (extract), Globe Artichoke, Onions. [iv]

Doing these things may not correct years of damage right away, but there is no better time to make a change than now. Please don’t wait till you have had surgery or a funeral to make these changes their side effect may be your life.

Crimson Beet

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD

Fall and early winter are the time of year root crops like carrots, turnips and beets come into their own. I never have thought much about beets… the only thing I found appealing about them was their exquisite crimson red color.   This year however I decided to look at this root food a little closer and here is some of what I found.

Beets, are native to the Mediterranean. Although the leaves have been eaten since before written history, the beet root was generally used medicinally and did not become a popular food until French chefs recognized their potential in the 1800′s.

Beet powder is used as a coloring agent for many foods. Some frozen pizzas use beet powder to color the tomato sauce, as well as jams, jellies, juices and soups. It is estimated that about two-thirds of commercial beet crops end up canned.[1]

There are four main beet types: the garden beet, whose root and leaves are eaten as a vegetable; the sugar beet; the mangel-wurzel, which is stored and used for livestock feed; and Swiss chard, which is cultivated for its edible leaves. About thirty percent of the world’s sugar production comes from sugar beets.

Beet remains have been excavated in the Third dynasty Saqqara pyramid at Thebes, Egypt, and four charred beet fruits were found in the Neolithic site of Aartswoud in the Netherlands. The earliest known written mention of the beet comes from eighth century B.C.E. Mesopotamia, Roman and Jewish literary sources indicate domestication by 1st century B.C.E., domestic beet was represented in the Mediterranean basin by leafy forms (chard) and very probably also by beetroot cultivars.

The Romans used beetroot as a treatment for fevers and constipation, and considered beetroot juice to be an aphrodisiac. Beets are a rich source of the mineral boron, which plays an important role in the production of human sex hormones.  Apicius in De re coquinaria, gives five recipes for soups to be given as a laxative, three of which feature the root of beet. Hippocrates advocated the use of beet leaves as binding for wounds. From the Middle Ages, beetroot was used as a treatment for illnesses relating to digestion and the blood.

In 1747, German chemist Andreas Marggraf identified sucrose in beet root and eventually his student Franz Achard built a sugar beet processing factory at Cunern in Silesia. This plant operated from 1801 until it was destroyed during the Napoleonic Wars. Napoleon, banned sugar imports in 1813. This cut off supplies of sugar produced from sugar cane to much of Europe. The beet sugar industry emerged and thrived.[2]

Today the beetroot is championed as a universal panacea. One of the most controversial examples is the official position of the South African Health Minister on the treatment of AIDS. Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, Health Minister under Thabo Mbeki, had been nicknamed “Dr Beetroot” for promoting beets and other vegetables over antiretroviral AIDS medicines, which she considers toxic.[3]

Beets contain vitamin C, while the leaves are an excellent source of vitamin A. Beets are among the sweetest of vegetables, containing more sugar than carrots or sweet corn. The content of sugar in garden beet is 10 percent, in the sugar beet it is typically 15 to 20 percent.

Another nutrient in beets is betaine, named after its discovery in sugar beets in the nineteenth century. This nutrient is benificial for the cardiovascular system. Betaine supplements, manufactured as a byproduct of sugar beet processing, are prescribed to lower potentially toxic levels of homocysteine, a naturally occurring amino acid that can be harmful to blood vessels thereby contributing to the development of heart disease, stroke, and peripheral vascular disease.

Blood Pressure: An American Heart Association study indicates that drinking 500 milliliters of beet juice can measurably reduce blood pressure within one hour after drinking it. This effect is measurable for 24 hours.

Cancer: In Europe, beets are commonly used to treat cancer. They contain an antioxidant, betacyanin, which both inhibits tumor growth and prevents the formation of cancer-causing nitrosamines.

Digestion: Beet root is high in both soluble and insoluble fiber, which aid in the proper function of the digestive system. Because of the high levels of fiber, beet root is used as a treatment for constipation.[4]

An average sized cup (225.8 grams) of sliced beets will contain:

31 Calories – Carbohydrate 8.5 g

Dietary fiber 1.5 g

Folate 53.2 µg

Phosphorus 32 mg – Potassium 259 mg

Protein 1.5 g

èBeets, like kale, spinach, carrots, and turnips, can be a source of nitrates and should not be fed to infants under 6 months of age. All parts of the beet plant contain oxalic acid. Beet greens and Swiss chard are both considered high oxalate foods which have been implicated on the formation of kidney stones.[5]

The color of red beetroot is due to a purple pigment betacyanin and a yellow pigment betaxanthin, known collectively as betalins.  Beetroot cells are quite unstable and will “leak” when cut, heated, or when in contact with air or sunlight. Leaving the skin on when cooking, will maintain the integrity of the cells and minimize leakage. Betacyanin in beetroot may cause red urine and feces in some people who are unable to break it down.

So all in all we find natural foods like beets are not only loaded with nutrients and provide health benefits in the forms of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants – just don’t let the government know or they will ban them as unlicensed drugs.  I don’t encourage diabetics to consume beets because of the high sugar content. But if you love this food, eat it in moderation with lots of other healthy foods. Then get up and go for a walk to burn the sugar off.

 

Breast Cancer

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD.

This article is dedicated to those of my clients who are daily living with breast cancer and the health options made available to them. All of them have faced their fears with courage, proving that women are far from being the weaker sex.

“Courage is the art of being the only one who knows you’re scared to death!” – Earl Wilson

What is Breast Cancer?

Breast cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the breast. It is considered a heterogeneous disease—differing by individual, age group, and even the kinds of cells within the tumors themselves. Fortunately hearing the words “breast cancer” doesn’t always mean an end. It can be just the opposite – a beginning – an opportunity to find strength you never knew you had, – a time of assessment on what you really want and believe, and most importantly a time to take charge and find hope.

Women in the United States get breast cancer more than any other type of cancer except for skin cancer. It is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in women. Many researchers believe this is partly due to the increased use of synthetic hormones and xenoestrogen exposure for the baby-boomer generation and those who have been born since.

• Each year nearly 200,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and more than 40,000 will die.
• Approximately 1,700 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer and 450 will die.

“When you do nothing, you feel overwhelmed and powerless. But when you get involved, you feel the sense of hope and accomplishment that comes from knowing you are working to make things better. ” - Maya Angelou

The lymph system is one of the main ways in which breast cancers can spread. Lymph nodes are small, bean-shaped groups of immune system cells that fight infections.  Breast cancer cells can enter lymphatic vessels and begin to grow in lymph nodes, forming tumors.

Types of breast cancers

There are many types of breast cancer, some are very rare. A breast tumor can be a mix of types or a mixture of invasive and in situ cancer.

Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS): This is the most common type of non-invasive breast cancer. DCIS means that the cancer is only in the ducts. It has not spread through the walls of the ducts into the tissue of the breast and so cannot spread to lymph nodes or other organs. Nearly all women with cancer at this stage can be cured.

Lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS): This is not a true cancer.

Invasive (or infiltrating) ductal carcinoma (IDC): This is the most common breast cancer. It starts in a milk passage (a duct), breaks through the wall of the duct, and invades the tissue of the breast. From there it may spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body. It accounts for about 8 out of 10 invasive breast cancers.

More women are choosing to not undergo chemo or radiation for this type of cancer as those treatment methods increase the risk of secondary cancers. The best odds are with a mastectomy – removal of the breast and diet / lifestyle changes. Fortunately this is not as horrifying as it was only a few years ago and reconstructive surgery is available.

“A woman’s breasts do not make her who she is, they are only one part of the dynamic being she is. The love and respect a woman receives has to do with the latter not her breasts.” – Tammera Karr

Invasive (infiltrating) lobular carcinoma (ILC): This cancer starts in the milk glands then can spread to other parts of the body. About 1 in 10 invasive breast cancers are of this type.

Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC): This uncommon type of invasive breast cancer accounts for about 1% to 3% of all breast cancers. Usually there is no single lump or tumor. Instead, IBC makes the skin of the breast look red and feel warm. It also may make the skin look thick and pitted, something like an orange peel. The breast may get bigger, hard, tender, or itchy.

In its early stages, inflammatory breast cancer is often mistaken for infection. Because there is no defined lump, it may not show up on a mammogram. It has a higher chance of spreading and a worse outlook than invasive ductal or lobular cancer.

What can be done?

Many will tell you to have frequent breast exams, ultrasounds, thermograms and mammograms, but as family nurse practitioner Mary Hagood has frequently said “that is all early detection not prevention, there is so much more a woman can do to lower her risk.”

1. Take control of your stress – get rid of the energy vampires and leaches draining you. Stress is responsible for more illness than any one other cause.
2. Clean up your diet; eat only organic locally grown fruits, vegetables and meats. Stay away from foods that drive up estrogens like flax, soy and processed foods. Don’t forget about your water, many areas have contaminated ground water, DO NOT assume your city or well water is safe. Pharmaceutical drugs are not tested for or removed from city water…. You may be getting the neighbor’s birth control pills in your morning coffee.
3. Do a liver and bowel detox. If this is overlooked when you begin losing body fat you will be flooding your cells with potential cancer causing chemicals again.
4. Lose body fat – fat is where harmful Xenoestrogens and carcinogens are stored. Eat only natural healthy fats found in organic foods.
5. Do exercises that help the lymph system drain – mini tramps, jump rope, massage, horseback riding, dancing…etc.
6. Clean the plastics out of your kitchen, use only glass and stainless steel / cast-iron cookware made in America.
7. Don’t be cheap on your nutritional supplements; your life is worth the very best.
8. BE PROACTIVE – do your research, learn about natural options, and ask questions. No matter what a woman chooses to do she needs to make that decision based on facts not fear.

 

To your Good Health.

A New Kind Of Vegetable?

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD

On many evenings I listen to NPR news while driving part of the way home, this means twice a week I hear the news and invariably it takes me the rest of the week to get my blood pressure under control. This last Tuesday I learned the reasons why one should not be drinking hot beverages while driving and listening to the news.

As I navigated down the road, I heard the following statement, “Who needs leafy greens and carrots when pizza and french fries will do?” at this point I was drawing warm liquid in and promptly shot it out my nose onto the steering wheel, as a burst of laughter took me, before I realized the reporter was serious. !

The NPR reporter went on to say – “The final version of a spending bill released late Monday would unravel school lunch standards the Agriculture Department proposed earlier this year.  The bill also would allow tomato paste on pizzas to be counted as a vegetable, as it is now. USDA had wanted to only count a half-cup of tomato paste or more as a vegetable, and a serving of pizza has less than that.”

Now I know –  I am somewhat of a “health” food nut job, but really are we still wasting tax payers money and time during this economically challenging times discussing whether pizza and French fries count as healthy vegetables for our kids to be eating? And every nutrition blog site on the web is going on about the absurdity of it and it’s reminiscent of the Reagan administration’s attempt 30 years ago to classify ketchup as a vegetable to cut costs.  As much as many regard President Regan with high esteem, even his administration made a few blunders. (send all hate mail to the editors)

One of the major differences this time around is the power of the food industry lobbyists, paid hundreds of thousands to promote an industry agenda regardless of the common sense of the matter. This time around, food companies that produce frozen pizzas for schools, the salt industry and potato growers  are pushing the changes in Congress. “School meals that are subsidized by the federal government must include a certain amount of vegetables, and USDA’s proposal could have pushed pizza-makers and potato growers out of the school lunch business.” Do they really believe it is necessary to reclassify Pizza and French fries in order to secure their profit margin?

According to the NPR article and several other news sites, “some conservatives argue that the federal government shouldn’t tell children what to eat.” I agree it is called responsible parenting, these foods were reserved for special occasions when I was a teen in the 80’s, they were costly and understood to be an indulgence by my working parents. My husband’s homemade lunches were so horrible, he had a waiting list of classmates who wanted to buy it from him. And our son, was terribly abused, he was forst to learn to eat real food too.

In a summary of the bill, Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee said the changes would “prevent overly burdensome and costly regulations and …provide greater flexibility for local school districts to improve the nutritional quality of meals.” Once again why is this not a matter for local school board to decide, not the federal government?

“The Senate last month voted to block the potato limits in its version, with opposition to the restrictions led by potato-growing states. Neither version of the bill included the latest provisions on tomato paste, sodium or whole grains; House and Senate negotiators added those in the last two weeks as they put finishing touches on the legislation.” The really sad part about all this is the dumbing down of our nations children through poor nutrition that ultimately leads to skyrocketing healthcare costs and early death.

Nutrition advocate Margo Wootan of the Center for Science in the Public Interest said  of Congress, “They are making sure that two of the biggest problems in the school lunch program, pizza and french fries, are untouched,” and a  group of retired generals advocating for healthier school lunches also criticized the spending bill.

The group, called Mission: Readiness, has called poor nutrition in school lunches a national security issue because obesity is the leading medical disqualifier for military service.

“We are outraged that Congress is seriously considering language that would effectively categorize pizza as a vegetable in the school lunch program,” Amy Dawson Taggart, the director of the group, said in a letter to lawmakers before the final bill was released. “It doesn’t take an advanced degree in nutrition to call this a national disgrace.”

Amen to that – and I do have an advanced degree in nutrition.

According to online news sources, the bill would:

“— Block the Agriculture Department from limiting starchy vegetables, including corn and peas, to two servings a week. The rule was intended to cut down on french fries, which many schools serve daily.

— Allow USDA to count two tablespoons of tomato paste as a vegetable, as it does now. The department had attempted to require that only a half-cup of tomato paste could be considered a vegetable. Federally subsidized lunches must have a certain number of vegetables to be served.

— Require further study on long-term sodium reduction requirements set forth by the USDA guidelines.

— Require USDA to define “whole grains” before they regulate them. The USDA rules require schools to use more whole grains.

Food companies who have fought the USDA standards say they were too strict and neglected the nutrients that potatoes, other starchy vegetables and tomato paste do offer. (And what do these foods do for the obesity, diabetes and cholesterol epidemic in our youth?)

The school lunch provisions are part of a final House-Senate compromise on a $182 billion measure that would fund the day-to-day operations of the departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development. ”

 

At it Again-be Warned

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD, BCHN, BCIH

I look forward to the holidays, my efforts to provide you with warm uplifting holiday cheer however is on hold this week as our illustrious congressmen are at it again – hoping we are all having dreams of health freedom dancing in our heads while we sleep.

Senator Dick Durbin and Congressman Henry Waxman are trying a new tactic in their attack on supplements after previous legislative failures. They have asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review adverse event report data—but only for supplements. The GAO operates at the call of Congress, so some action on this request is inevitable.

In a statement, Sen. Durbin said, “The FDA has the tools necessary to determine which supplements can cause and have caused severe health problems—they should use them effectively.”

There is no evidence that legitimate supplements, that comply with existing law, have caused severe health problems. What the FDA needs to do is enforce existing law, not muddy the waters with continued bad policy, bureaucracy and ineptness.

The Alliance for Natural Health editorial posted on November 22, 2011- “Durbin’s idea that the FDA has the expertise to evaluate all supplements is pure fantasy. They aren’t set up for it and would fail even if they were. The agency is biased against supplements, it wants them to go through the drug approval process and thereby contribute to the agency’s budget. The end result of this mindset will simply be to clear the shelves of supplements.”

Just look at the number of adverse events reported (AER) for vaccines and drugs for 2008 alone:

• Supplements: 1,080 adverse events, of which 672 were considered serious;
• Vaccines: 26,517 adverse events, of which 3,923 were considered serious;
• Prescription drugs and “therapeutic biologics”: 526,527 adverse events, of which 275,421 “had serious outcomes.”

What may be considered an adverse event for one category may not be for another. If an FDA-approved drug has listed in the product labeling that it can cause fainting or nausea, chest pains or seizures, then it is considered to be within the range of expected outcomes.

USA Today noted, when it comes to supplements, what the FDA considers an adverse event can be “anything from a concern that a supplement isn’t working to a serious illness that follows consumption.”

What is clear is there are over 487 times more AERs for FDA-approved prescription drugs than for supplements, and 409 times more serious events for drugs than supplements. And Durbin thinks it’s supplements that are endangering the public?

The lack of attention to vaccine AERs is criminal, Alliance for Natural Health (http://www.anh-usa.org) reported the cover-up of HPV vaccine adverse events in the fall of 2011. The Institute of Medicine says it will only look at peer-reviewed research on vaccine AERs, but won’t sponsor any. They then conclude that vaccines like the dangerous HPV shots are “safe” because there is no “evidence” otherwise. “Huh, really are you serious?”

FDA positioning to incorporate European Union dietary regulations

In many areas of health practice and education, the European model is greatly restricted when compared to the US model. This means we can look to what has already happened in Europe to understand the consequences of the laws and regulations proposed here in the United States, as the laws and regulations often mimic those already in place in in the European Union.

KEY POINTS

1. Natural healthcare, most especially herbal medicine, is under fire in Europe at the moment. The losers in this process are the smaller players who have long been at the forefront of providing the most therapeutically relevant natural products.
   1. The FDA has been getting closer to the European authorities, they have worked together as the two most powerful entities in the Codex Alimentarius for many years. On July 2, 2007, the FDA signed a key agreement for scientific cooperation with the controversial European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
   2. The Novel Foods Regulation in Europe requires pre-market approval for foods or food ingredients not used ‘significantly’ in the EU before 15th May 1997; and the Food Supplements Directive limits choice in food supplements and aims to reduce the maximum dosage of those remaining to levels that do nothing except prevent gross deficiency.
   3. In the USA– Dietary supplements are regulated by the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994. DSHEA has yet to be fully implemented, came about following the largest popular mobilisation against Congress ever seen in the USA. A pre-market authorization system, like the THMPD, would create an impossible obstacle for smaller companies.
2. The Trilateral Cooperation Charter
   1. The Charter was established in 2004 and signaled the intent of the USA, Canada and Mexico to combine their efforts in a trade protection bloc, focused primarily not on facilitating trade, but cracking down on “drugs, biologics, medical devices, food safety, and nutrition.”

After some 700 products were forced off the market, and the public and campaign groups started objecting, the FDA has withdrawn the Charter’s website.

The FDA constructed an incredibly broad definition of health fraud. Obvious targets are products that compete with pharmaceuticals because they are effective.

Health Fraud Definition [from the Trilateral Cooperation Charter]

The false, deceptive, or misleading promotion, advertisement, distribution, sale, possession for sale, or offering for sale of products or provision of services, intended for human use, that are represented as being safe and/or effective to diagnose, prevent, cure, treat, or mitigate disease (or other conditions), to rehabilitate patients or to provide a beneficial effect on health.    Source: FDA, 2006

Regulators worldwide are working increasingly together, it’s no surprise we can expect increasing convergence in regulatory systems. This is what globalisation is, and it’s all about making the environment as cosy as possible for the biggest corporate players. Big Pharma, Big Food and Big Biotech are among the masterminds of this system.

Even though it is the holiday season, don’t let yourself be lulled into fantasia – the most valuable gift you ever receive is your health, it is your responsibility to protect it. Write your representatives before the end of 2011 voicing your opinion on what is happening to your health rights.

Yule Tide Nummies

By Tammera J. Karr, PhD, BCHN, BCIH

As with most, our family has traditional holiday foods we look forward to, on Christmas eve my mother would serve oyster stew, and on new year’s it was black-eyed peas and ham for good luck. Others in my family may have made tamales like my great aunt, using her mother’s recipes. All of us have foods that inspire warm memories or tears; it is food that invokes memories through taste, smell and color. Without a doubt we are proud of our American rights, but we also use the holidays to remember who came before us and what gifts they brought with them that flavor the season.

Gingerbread

The cake like consistency of gingerbread bears little resemblance to bread, it was originally, in the thirteenth century, gingerbras, a word borrowed from Old French which meant ‘preserved ginger’. But by the mid-fourteenth century,…-bread had begun to replace -bras, and it was only a matter of time before sense followed form. (sorry I can’t help but laugh as I know a few of you will have way to much fun with the bras …hohoho) One of the earliest known recipes comes from the early fifteenth-century cookery book Good Cookery, and directs gingerbread be made with breadcrumbs boiled in honey with ginger and other spices. [1]

“…most early American cookies were referred to as “cakes,” and gingerbread was assumed to be a form of cookie, as in Lebkuchen, a gingerbread cookie made with honey…Of all the Christmas pastries, the gingerbread cookie was the most loved by early American children. In American cookery, there are two distinct families of gingerbread cookies, the honey-based gingerbreads of Middle European origin–mostly Germany–and the molasses shortbreads that developed in England or Scotland. The other developed in the late seventeenth century, using molasses as a substitute for honey…The Germans in this country were the best honey cake bakers–they called the cookies Lebkuchen.”[2]

Mincemeat

According to food historians, mincemeat pie dates back to Medieval times. In the Middle Ages and into Renaissance times and beyond it was commonplace to spice up or eke out meat with dried fruit, and it seems likely that the earliest mincepies contained a generous measure of such raisins, and currants. The recipe did, indeed, include meat as did the mincemeat I grew up with; my mother would only use venison and suet; today I leave out the suet and dried fruit and use thickened apple juice, sliced apples, blueberries and currents. It also often contained dried fruits, sugar, and spices, as was the tradition of the day. The distinction between mincemeat and mince was drawn in the mid-nineteenth century when meat began disappearing from the recipe, leaving the fruit, nut, sugar, spice, brandy and suet product we know today.[3]

Oyster Stew

Fish (including shellfish) plays a critical role throughout the Christian calendar. “Meatless” day/periods were proscribed from ancient times forward for practical reasons: they regulated small early meat supplies and unified church members. For traditional Catholics in most countries, Christmas Eve, as with Lent, features fish. In Italy, the traditional Christmas Eve table features Seven Fishes. Baccala (salt cod).  Oyster Stew is part of the Irish Christmas Eve tradition. Oyster dishes of all sorts are regularly found on French tables so it is conceivable that oyster stew is a French tradition also with Northern French cuisine features many creamy, butter soups and stews. Until recently (last half of the 20th century forwards), oysters were commonly consumed, especially by people living close to ocean shores.

On Christmas Eve, many ethnic cultures enjoy seafood to save their appetites for Christmas Day dinner, according to food historian John Mariani. But oyster stew also is uniquely Celtic because it is a holiday connection to the old country — an Irish-American adaptation of a traditional Christmas Eve stew that was made in Ireland with a chewy Atlantic fish called ling. The ling was stewed with milk (or buttermilk), parsley, salt and pepper because it was tough. It was similar in texture and flavor to the prized oysters that were an autumn delicacy of the Irish gentry.

When the Irish began flocking to North America during the Great Potato Famine, during the 1840s and 1850s, they couldn’t find ling in American fish markets. So they picked oysters to remind them of their families and Ireland on Christmas Eve. Americans, in general, were “oyster mad” in the 1800s, according to Mariani. Oysters were plentiful and were a big part of urban life, especially in East Coast cities where hundreds of thousands of Irish immigrants settled.[4]

Egg nog

The name egg nog and recipes for it first appear in print in the 17^th century. Food historians confirm English recipes for posset (esp. sack posset) were very similar to later egg nog a popular and accepted American term to denote an old traditional English holiday beverage. “By the mid-1760s patrons were drinking eggnog, juleps, sling and sanger in addition to the punch and toddy already available.”

In 1796, “Rich and creamy dessert drinks, such as eggnog and syllabub, reflect the English heritage in America, especially in the South. In England posset was a hot drink in which the white and yolk of eggs were whipped with ale, cider, or wine. Americans adapted English recipes to produce a variety of milk-based drinks that combined rum, brandy, or whiskey with cream. The first written reference to eggnog was an account of a February 1796 breakfast at the City Tavern in Philadelphia. Beginning in 1839 American cookbooks included recipes for cold eggnogs of cream, sugar, and eggs combined with brandy, rum, bourbon, or sherry, sprinkled with nutmeg. Southerners enjoyed a mix of peach brandy, rum, and whiskey.”

The earliest reference to eggnog cited in the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1825. The beverage is defined as “A drink in which the white and yolk of eggs are stirred up with hot beer, wine, or spirits.”

‘Nollaig faoi shéan is faoi shonas duit.’

A prosperous and Happy Christmas to You.

Paying the Price

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD

I made the mistake of checking the news – are you ready? It all started with my receiving the October LifeExtention magazine (lef.org) and reading William Faloon’s article on “How Regulation of Medicine is Bankrupting the United States”. Next came an insightful conversation with my Aunt, we should all learn from our elders.

During this conversation we talked about how the “New Deal” put into place by FDR had its good points and bad – but no matter how we shake the tree – we are now paying for the New Deal, that is no deal. Medicare, Unemployment Insurance, Social Security and Welfare are just a few ingredients in the rotten apple dish being fed to us. And all of them are being mismanaged by congress – If you or I managed company funds the way congress does we would be in jail for miss-appropriation and fraud.

Another organization worthy of mention is Alliance for Natural Health USA (anh-usa.org), along with LifeExtention, ANH has been whistle blowing on the hypocrisies of congress and the FDA for years now.

William Faloon’s book called “Pharmocracy” (available through LifeExtention Foundation), outlines the cost of over-regulation of prescription drugs and the growing cost to the Medicare system. Here are some of the numbers that made me set-up and take notice. The most recent estimate of Medicare’s unfunded medical liability is $24.6 trillion. The total federal tax revenues taken in annually which include Medicare premiums are around $2 trillion. This means the Medicare trust fund will be bankrupt five years sooner than projected twelve months ago.

As the short sightedness of our federal government is so apt to do, it is not taking into account the skyrocketing costs for drugs approved by the FDA, they are currently costing around $100,000 per patient. Lady’s and gentlemen, while you have been distracted by the puppet show – you have been robbed. “We have all been deceived by those who confuse regulation with beneficial outcome and medical progress”, writes William Faloon in his October commentary. It is not about how a regulation will protect the public, but of how it can financially benefit a special interest.

Pharmacutical companies have spent tens of millions of dollars persuading the FDA to re-classify nutrients like B6 as prescription drugs for their economic benefit. With the re-writing of FDA guidelines and the implementation of CODEX in 2012, hang on, because you are about to be robbed at gun point, instead of your pockets picked artfully. The artificially inflated cost of prescription drugs driven by pharmaceutical companies and the FDA , could easily cost the Medicare system over $300 billion each year for one bio-Identical hormone like testosterone that benefits millions of older men in America, and available through compounding pharmacists for a fraction of the cost of the approved drug company versuion.

The ANH, reported on the FDA’s sudden ban of bio-identical hormone estriol in January 2008, “the FDA issued several warning letters to compounding pharmacists prohibiting the compounding of medications with estriol—a bio-identical estrogen produced naturally by a woman’s body—unless the pharmacist has a valid investigational new drug application on file with the FDA. This action was simultaneous to the FDA’s response to a Citizen Fair Trade Petition filed by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, the maker of the synthetic hormone replacement drugs Premarin and Prempro. This action was not about safety to the public but about the all-mighty dollar and who was getting it.

In March 2011, ANH again reported on the “efforts of the FDA to stop compounding pharmacists from making the bio-identical hormone progesterone, approved over fifty years ago — which doctors have been prescribing for patients with high-risk pregnancies — 17-hydroxyprogesterone caproate (progesterone) was designated by the FDA an “orphan drug.” Now KV Pharmaceutical has been given the exclusive right of production and sale (and drug trial tax breaks). They immediately raised the price from $10 per dose to $1,500—simply because they could”.

This newest FDA brain fart has doctors, US senators, and even the March of Dimes in an uproar!  Besides the grave jeopardy placed on mothers and their infants, this will create an enormous financial burden for health insurance companies, private citizens, and government programs pay for care. And because of increased birth complications, these babies will need to be hospitalized for perhaps months and, for low-income mothers, all at the expense of taxpayers. Research shows these children will be at greater risk for, asthma, bronchitis, and pneumonia, running the bill needlessly up for tax payers even higher.

The Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) authorizes the FDA to collect fees from companies, allegedly to fund and expedite the drug approval process….Really are you sure?   The law enacted in 1992, is due for renewal September 2012.  According to the FDA, drug companies provide fully 60% of the FDA’s drug review costs—which means the FDA’s review and regulation of pharmaceutical drugs is largely funded by the drug companies under review.

The FDA has been negotiating a raise in the FDA “user” fees since July 2010; in fact, Big Pharma has already agreed to a 6% increase in fees for new drugs through 2017. The increase is expected to produce an additional $40.4 million in user fee revenue in fiscal 2012, bringing the fiscal 2013 total to $712.8 million. (snide remark not printable)

If any of this makes you wonder like it has me, I encourage you to join either or both of the watch dog organizations I’ve mentioned in this article. Remember none of us are entitled to anything but death – and it appears our government is more than willing to make sure it is a paupers grave waiting for us.

To your good health

Preservation

by Tammera J. Karr, PhD

Growing up in rural America you find yourself aware of the self-sufficiency of your neighbors. Especially as the dog days of summer weighing into the vivid days of autumn, the need to dry, freeze and can, becomes as evident as the seasonal changes.

Food preservation is a sign of independence, preparation and for some freedom. I like knowing where my food has come from, what is on it and how it has been handled; as you already know I’m a bit of a health nut and object to wasting my money on poor quality foods ladened with chemicals.  But what is the best food preservation method? Well there are countless resources out there from your grandmother to the local extension agent. And there are more than a few ideas that make even me shake my head.  Let’s put it this way – If your using your dishwasher to can fruits, STOP IT.

Preservation of food permeated every culture at nearly every moment in time. To survive ancient man had to harness nature. In frozen climates he froze seal meat on the ice. In tropical climates he dried foods in the sun. In moderate climates he smoke cured meats over a fire.

And the FDA says we have no Innate Right to select our food…. But I regress.

Food by its nature begins to spoil the moment it is harvested. Food preservation enabled ancient man to live in one place and form communities, and cultures. Each culture preserved their local food sources using the same basic methods of food preservation. Middle East and oriental cultures actively dried foods as early as 12,000 B.C. in the hot sun.

The Romans were particularly fond of any dried fruit they could make. In the Middle Ages purposely built “still houses” were created to dry fruits, vegetables and herbs in areas that did not have enough strong sunlight for drying. A fire was used to create the heat needed to dry foods and in some cases smoking them as well.

Preservation with honey or sugar was commonplace in the earliest cultures. In ancient Greece quince was mixed with honey, dried somewhat and packed tightly into jars. The Romans improved on the method by cooking the quince and honey producing a solid texture. Whalla jam! The same fervor of trading with India and the Orient that brought pickled foods to Europe brought sugar cane, housewives learned to make preserves—heating the fruit with sugar.

The earliest curing was actually dehydration. Early cultures used salt to desiccate foods. Salting was common and even culinary by choosing raw salts from different sources (rock salt, sea salt, spiced salt, etc.). In the 1800’s it was discovered certain sources of salt gave meat a red color instead of the usual unappetizing grey. In this mixture of salts were nitrites (saltpeter). As the microbiology of Clostridium botulinum was reviled in the 1920’s nitrites were found to inhibit this organism. The FDA does not approve the curing of foods with table salt – that is why your favorite jerky or lunch meat contains sodium nitrates and nitrites.

Fermentation not only preserves foods, it creates more nutritious, palatable foods from less than desirable ingredients. Microorganisms responsible for fermentations produce vitamins as they ferment.  The skill of ancient peoples to observe, harness, and encourage these fermentations are admirable and humbling – they had an ability to reason and simply believe, we seem to have lost. Anthropologists believe mankind settled from nomadic wanderers into farmers to grow barley for the making of beer in 10,000 BC.

Any geographic area that had freezing temperatures for even part of a year made use of the temperature to preserve foods. Less than freezing temperatures were used to prolong storage times. Cellars, caves and cool streams were put to good use for that purpose. In America communities built icehouses to store ice and food on ice. Soon the “icehouse” became an “icebox”. In the 1800’s mechanical refrigeration was invented and quickly put to use. In the late 1800’s Clarence Birdseye discovered quick freezing at very low temperatures made for better tasting meats and vegetables. (Freezing preserves the most nutrients in foods as well as enzymes.)

Canning is a process were foods placed in jars or cans is heated to a temperature that destroys microorganisms and inactivates enzymes. (remember no enzymes no life, canning is the least beneficial method for nutrient content – but one of two method available to use without electricity) This heating and later cooling forms a vacuum seal. The vacuum seal prevents other microorganisms from recontaminating the food.

Canning is the newest of the food preservations methods pioneered in the 1790s by French confectioner, Nicolas Appert, he discovered the application of heat to food in sealed glass bottles preserved the food from deterioration. In 1806 Appert’s principles were successfully trialed by the French Navy on a wide range of foods including meat, vegetables, fruit and even milk. Englishman, Peter Durand, used tin cans successfully in 1810.

In 1864, Louis Pasteur discovered the relationship between microorganisms and food spoilage/illness , it become clear that preservation involved not only the elimination of air but the destruction of micro-organisms’. Just prior to Pasteur’s discovery, Raymond Chevalier-Appert patented the pressure retort (canner) in 1851, allowing canning at temperatures higher than 212ºF. It was the 1920’s before the significance of this food preservation method and Clostridium botulinum were understood.

To Your Good Health and Independent Preservation

References and Sources

Mc Govern, P. The Origins and Ancient History of Wine at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology. Available at http://www.upenn.edu/museum/Wine/wineintro.html. Accessed 2002 Feb 12.

Shephard, S. 2001. Pickled, Potted, and Canned: How the Art and Science of Food Preserving Changed the World. Simon & Schuster. 366pp.

Eden T. 1999. The Art of Preserving: How Cooks in Colonial Virginia Imitated Nature to Control It. Eighteenth Century Life 23(2):13 23. Also available from: http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/ eighteenth century_life/v023/23.2eden.html Accessed 2001 Sep 30.

Mack L. 2001. Food Preservation in the Roman Empire. Chapel Hill, NC. University of North Carolina. Available from: http://www.unc.edu/courses/rometech/public /content/survival/Lindsay_Mack/Food_Preservation.htm. Accessed 2001 Sep 30.

C. Anne Wilson. 1991. Preserving Food to Preserve Life: The Response to Glut and Famine from Early Times to the End of the Middle Ages in “Waste Not, Want Not”: Food Preservation from Early Times to the Present, C. Anne Wilson. ed. Edinburgh: Edinburgh Univ.