FOOD

• V8 juice to lower blood pressure
• Stevia...Natural Sweetener With No Calories
• Not All Salts Are Created Equal
• Why Vegans & Why Raw?
• Does Microwaving effect nutrition?
• Flax seed. Lower Cholesterol, Reduce risk of breast and prostate cancer, slow down tumor growth, retard atherosclerosis
• Food and Mood
• Safe Organic Meat ?
• Tomato's can help prevent Cancer
• Back to topics

V8 juice to lower blood pressure

Sometimes the simplest solutions are the most difficult to find. For many years it has been known that high levels of Potassium will have some affect on lowering your blood pressure. Look for low sodium V8 Juice at your grocery store and have a glass each day in order to keep Potassium levels in your body up. Taking a 500mg/day magnesium supplement can also help in this area.

I find v8 or tomato juice easy to digest with a meal. In restaurants they are usually the same price as pop! Tomato based products of any kind (including ketchup) are loaded with goodness. Cooked tomatoes,which are high in lycopene, (including ketchup, though high in sugar) are especially beneficial.

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Stevia...Natural Sweetener With No Calories   

If you've ever tasted stevia, you know it's extremely sweet. In fact, this remarkable noncaloric herb, native to Paraguay, has been used as a sweetener and flavor enhancer for centuries. It can also be used by most diabetics! Check with your doctor first. Stevia was banned in the US until recently. You can now purchase it in health food stores in the US and Canada. I use it to make syrup for all occasions. Kids won't even know the difference. Stevia also makes a great oral antiseptic. Dip your brush in the green powder than add a little dab of your favorite tooth paste. Bleeding gums and bad breath can disappear in as quickly as a week! No need to worry about germs staying on your brush either.

Originally introduced to Japan in 1970 by a consortium of food-product manufacturers, stevioside and other stevia products quickly caught on. By 1988, they reportedly represented approximately 41% of the market share of sweetening agents consumed in Japan. In addition to widespread use as a tabletop sweetener, like the packets of saccharin ("Sweet-n-Low") and aspartame ("Equal") commonly found in the United States, stevia was also used by the Japanese to sweeten a variety of food products, including ice cream, bread, candies, pickles, seafood, vegetables, and soft drinks. Stevia Recipes will be available at How2ed.com soon.

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Not All Salts Are Created Equal

Most common table salts are industrial products made for the chemical industry! Refined salt has been stripped of its natural nutrients. It contains additives like ferrocynide and silicates (which are basically sand) to prevent the salt from mixing with water and caking, so that it will pour easily. But if the salt won't mix with water, and your body is made up of 70 percent water, it won't mix in your body either.

Natural salts from the Sea harvested in a pristine environment should be your only consideration. One of the best in my opinion is Celtic Sea Salt from Brittany France. It is truly a whole sea salt that provides your body with over 80 minerals in natural balance while enriching the flavor of all foods.

A Quote From Dr. Shamim Daya, January 1999:

"The Celtic Sea Salt™ is a wonderful, vital and essential food for the body. Today, when so many people are suffering from adrenal exhaustion, low blood pressure and mineral deficiencies, the Celtic Sea Salt™ is an ideal and invaluable remedy. What makes the Celtic Sea Salt™ so magical is that it is one of the few foods left in nature that is not man made or man interfered with. So it has a composition of minerals that is naturally balanced and also has an "energy" that is very harmonious to the body. Many chronic fatigue and adrenally exhausted patients greatly benefit from including the Celtic Sea Salt™ in their treatment regime."

An analysis of the minerals and trace elements found in Celtic Sea Salt

Celtic Sea Salt Analysis

Elements in Light Grey Celtic Sea Salt®, in milligrams per 1/4 teaspoon (one serving size):

The most recent analysis performed by Western Analysis, Inc. demonstrated that Celtic Sea Salt® contains a wide variety of minerals and trace elements. The following lists the most predominant elements revealed by this analysis.

Light Grey Celtic Sea Salt® contains 33% Sodium, 50.9% Chloride, 1.8% Minerals and Trace Elements and 14.3% moisture. Analysis performed by Western Analysis, Inc. for The Grain & Salt Society®. For verification: Western Analysis, Inc. 2417 South 2700 West Salt Lake City, UT 84119 (801)973-9238 Fax (801) 973-7635

About minerals and trace elements:

Although certain body processes are attributed to certain minerals, each mineral needs one or more other minerals to properly function. For instance, a proper calcium-phosphorus balance is necessary to the body in that an imbalance reduces resistance to disease, increases fatigue, weakens intellectual faculties and leads to premature ageing. Magnesium can only be used if calcium and phosphorus are in a proper balance. An overabundance of one mineral can result in a deficiency of another. Obtaining minerals from whole food sources provides the body with the wide variety of minerals it needs. Supplementing with one or two minerals is rarely a good idea unless it is under the supervision of a doctor or nutritional counselor.

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WHY VEGAN & WHY RAW?
thoughts written by Lee Cherry

One of my teachers says that when we sit in the same spot for too long our eyes develop a stigmatism. What is a stigmatism? It is a blind-spot. We have been sitting in one spot for too long. We have become blind to that which does not affirm life - cooked food. Let us remember the laws of nature once again. Let us begin by acknowledging the 4-legged and the 2-legged teachers among us, today. Let us go for a walk and see from a new spot.

WHY VEGAN & WHY RAW?

WHY VEGAN?

According to Dr. Wendt, stored protein is responsible for the development of
cancer, heart disease and many other ailments. Since 1948 Dr. Wendt's
research has been presented in more than 60 publications. Excess animal
proteins are deposited and stored around basal cell membranes, preventing
oxygen and nutrients from entering cells. This causes the carbohydrates
within these cells to ferment into lactic acid and become cancerous (we have
all heard of the detriments of an acidic condition in the body, and the
benefits of an alkaline condition in the body).

Animal products are acid producing, thus the elimination of animal products
reduces diet-related acidification in the body. Illness loves and thrives
in an acidic environment. An alkaline environment supports the elimination
of disease and illness and restores health to the human body.

*For more information on Dr. Wendt's work, please see p. 134 of the February
2003 issue of the Alive Journal of Natural Health, available at natural
groceries and health food stores everywhere.

WHY RAW?

Although a vegetarian or vegan diet is a step towards higher consciousness
and a greater respect for and peaceful co-existence with animals, its
effects on the human body are detrimental. Starches found in breads, flour
based products, rice (brown and white), beans and lentils, to name a few,
clog up the system, eventually causing arthritis. Carbohydrates and
starches lead to an increased production of (bad) LDL cholesterol. The
worst are processed carbohydrates - cereals (what vegan doesn't like his or
her organic cereal with soy milk?), corn-meal based products and flour based
products. Cooked starches also acidify the body. A vegan diet can easily
become an alkalizing diet - simply stop cooking your food and start eating
raw fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts. Make sure you eat more alkaline
producing fruits and vegetables than acidic ones, and more fruits and
vegetables than nuts and seeds.

VEGANS HAVE TAKEN THE FIRST STEP. They have stopped using animals and animal products for food. In doing so they are modelling a violence-free
and peaceful co-existence with the animals on this planet. Now it is time
for the next step. It is time to learn from the animals and to let them
model to us what it means to live a healthy, in-tune with nature life.

Earth's air, water, soil (and I am tempted to say fire) is teeming with life
- mammals, insects, reptiles, birds, fish, bacteria, etc. I say fire
because just off of the west coast of North America, where the Juan de Fuca
plate is being subducted underneath the North America plate, the
temperatures here are hot enough to melt the earth's crust and keep it
melted even when exposed to the oceans waters. In these sulfur rich waters,
that reach thousands of degrees in temperature, thrive large bacteria. For
now, take a moment to imagine, if you would, in your mind's eye, the 7 great
continents of Gaia - the North and South America's, Africa, Asia, Europe,
Australia, and the Antarctic. There are many creatures, large and small
that live on the land and ice and in the waters. Yet not one, I repeat, not
one cooks their food!

CLOSER TO HOME our furry and not so furry friends, our beloved pets, are
experiencing the debilitating effects of a cooked diet that we humans have
imposed on them. Imposed on them out of love, out of convenience, but
mostly out of ignorance. As a friend of mine once said - ignorance is OK,
stupidity is not. Ignorance is a lack of knowledge that can be overcome
through learning. Stupidity is a misplacement of our God-given ability to
have an attitude.

The Natives believe that the animals are our teachers. I must concur with
them. Not only are animals living models of natural laws but our domestic
animals have become a living experiment showing us what happens when a body meant to subsist on a 100% RAW diet is forced to subsist on a cooked,
processed, denatured diet. Their illnesses and diseases mirror our own.
Will we open our eyes and see?

WHY VEGAN & WHY RAW?
thoughts written by Lee Cherry

Is it Possible to Achieve Optimal Health and Peak Athletic Performance on a 100% Raw Diet?

Not only is it possible - based on my own experience it is easier and a lot more fun to achieve athletic and personal fitness goals. It may even be possible for you to start working out again at a level of fitness that is higher than what it was before you stopped working out. Sounds impossible? If I were reading this I would think so too .... except this is EXACTLY what happened to me after being on a 100% raw diet for several months.

Has it been months or years since you have worked out? Are you dreading the 'conditioning period' - the aches and pains and the lack of breath that usually comes with the start up of a new fitness routine? Have you gained weight? All the wrong kind of weight in all the wrong places?

Let's face it - wouldn't it be more fun to work out, jog in public or be seen on the beach playing volleyball if you were ALREADY at or near your ideal body weight? Who needs those spare tires anyways?! I don't know about you but personally I have never been motivated to exercise when I was pudgy. Frustrated and low on self-esteem - YES! Motivated - NO! I don't think I am alone - if excess weight was such a motivator we'd have a nation
of fat motivated fitness fanatics. Yet our nations most obese are the least likely to exercise. Think about it. Which seems most appealing to you? To work out ... in order to LOSE weight? To work out ... because you HAVE TO? To exercise because you are FORCING yourself to do so? Or to work out because you WANT to? Because it is FUN? Because you FEEL GOOD
about yourself and your accomplishments? Or because it is such a thrill to feel the magnificence of your body (YOU) performing under pressure?

It's as simple as Psychology 101. Feeling good about yourself helps you get started on the right foot so to speak. All peak performers know this. Their coaches know this too. Good coaches assist their clients to develop and install neurological anchors (specific focused muscle memory patterns) based on previous positive peak EMOTIONAL and behavioral states. Emotion = energy in motion. By the way, they do this all the time. What are you doing all the time? What are you installing through your thoughts, feelings and actions? What emotions are you running through your nervous system? Thoughts are instructions for your mind. Your mind dutifully communicates your instructions to your body. Thoughts with a strong emotional component are perceived as more important than unemotional thoughts. Your mind makes sure that these instructions are followed - time
and time again. You see, thoughts with a strong emotional component get hard wired into your nervous system and remain there as a permanent set of instructions, until cleared.

Imagine. You are an elementary school teacher and one of your students dreads math examinations. Wouldn't you assist this student by helping them to feel good about themselves before the exam? Or would you try to make them feel as bad and worthless as possible? Which approach do you think
would be the most motivating and effective? Now, most of you reading this would say, "What a ridiculous question - Of course I'd do everything possible to help this student feel good about him or herself!" Are YOU doing everything you possibly can FOR YOURSELF? Are you making sure you get started on the right foot?

In my opinion one of the fastest and easiest ways to get positively motivated about about your fitness and athletic goals is to go on a 100% RAW foods diet. First of all your excess fat will melt off. You will see and feel results in as little as 2 weeks. You will be able to lose weight while eating as much as you want whenever you want to. You will look better and feel better about yourself. Now, you will set and keep your fitness goals because you WANT to, not because you HAVE TO. It will be EASY. Big
difference.

Second of all, as your body cleanses and detoxifies itself it becomes more efficient. The elimination of mucus from your lungs and the rest of your body makes it easier for much needed oxygen and nutrients to pass into your cells. Toxins are eliminated quickly, preventing fatigue. You will find that your body has more endurance and strength than you've ever had before.
Physical activity will become a source of pleasure and pride. Your body will no longer betray you in a sprint to the bus stop or during a climb up those stairs. It will become a joy to have your body. Physical confidence will quickly migrate to the other areas of your life - relationships, sex, career and money. As you go for what you WANT in one area of you life (versus what you have to do or should do), you will begin to go for what you want in other areas of your life too! You will let go of the should's and have to's in these other areas of your life too! In short you will begin to create the life of your dreams, with ease! Naturally.

Physical health and fitness is truly life-changing! Don't you owe it to yourself to switch to raw foods today? Think of it as a pep talk for your body that will change your life forever!

~Article by
Lee Cherry, RPCC, NLP Master Practitioner, Certified NLP Trainer
(604) 732-0017
rawfoodforlife@hotmail.com

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Does Microwaving effect nutrition?

There are very few studies on microwave cooking and food quality. There's a reason for that, which I'll get to in a second. What studies exist are all bad news for microwaving - they universally describe some type of damage. One study showed breakdown of vitamin B-12 to inactive degradation products in microwaved foods. The magazine "Health & Healing Wisdom" reports that Russian research concerning neurological effects of altered magnetic states of microwaved foods caused the Russian government to outlaw all food microwave apparatus in 1976 (we don't know if that ban still exists). Another study showed depletion of antibodies and breakdown of enzymes when breast milk is microwaved.

There's also a problem with release of potentially toxic molecules into the food from packaging designed to help brown food during microwaving. This includes items such as pizza, French fries, waffles, popcorn and breaded fish - and these findings were determined by the FDA!

The most controlled (and scary) research was almost stopped from anyone knowing about it before being published. Two Swiss researchers sequestered subjects under close scrutiny and blood tested them after randomly eating food that was either microwaved or conventionally cooked. They found all sorts of potentially nasty stuff: (1) blood hemoglobin levels decreased significantly after ingesting microwaved foods, both total levels and the amount contained in each red blood cell; (2) White blood cell levels tended to increase for no other reason than foods were microwaved; (3) microwaves altered protein molecules; (4) LDL cholesterol (the 'bad' type) increased relative to HDL cholesterol (the 'good' type).

The problem was, they were immediately sued by the "Swiss Association of Dealers for Electroapparatuses for Households and Industry," and one of the authors was convicted by the Swiss Federal Court of "interfering with commerce." The fine was the equivalent of $65,000. So, the message is you think twice before stepping on too many big-money toes.

However you slice it, there appears to be a problem with those high frequency, alternating current (meaning abnormal for the human system) electromagnetic waves...but it's sure an easy way to fix popcorn!

Caution: If you must use one, stay away from the exhast when cooking.

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Flax seed. Lower Cholesterol, Reduce risk of breast and prostate cancer, slow down tumor growth, retard atherosclerosis

Do you want to lower your cholesterol without taking dangerous cholesterol-lowering drugs?

Use Flax seed.

If you want to reduce your risk of breast or prostate cancer, or slow down tumor growth, if you have cancer?

Use Flax seed.

Flax seed is one of the most uniquely beneficial foods available.

The dominant fat in Flax seed oil is an essential omega 3 fatty acid that is converted in the body into EPA and DHA. These are the same fats that give fish oil its broad range of cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory effects. Flax seed contains far more of this important fat than any other plant.

Flax seed is also nature's richest source of  compounds that may be

Its most potent disease-fighting weapon: Lignans. Lignans are found in the cell walls of many plants, but in no other plant as abundantly as Flax seed.

These lignans are potent antioxidants, even more potent than vitamin E, according to some studies. They protect against free radical damage that is at the root of many of our most devastating diseases.

Flax seed interferes with the absorption of cholesterol into the blood. Yet Flax seed goes beyond cholesterol reduction. In a steady just published in the Journal of the American College of nutrition, It significantly lowered triglycerides as well. Furthermore, the omega three fatty acids in Flax seed reduce inflammation, which improves the health of the arteries, and helps smooth out cardiac arrhythmias.

The essential fats have also been shown to discourage platlets in the blood from clumping together, thereby reducing the risk of blood clots that may lead to heart attack.

Diabetics will be interested to know that the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that 50 g of Flax seed, or 25 g of Flax seed fiber, lowered glucose levels by an average of 27%.

Kidney disease:

Early research suggests that Flax seed also protects the kidneys.

In animal studies flax seed lowers creatinine levels(a blood marker of kidney function) and delays the onset of proteinuria  (Protein in the urine, a sign of failing kidneys)

Cancer:

Most of the cancer research on Flax seed has focused on the Phytoestrogenic properties of lignans. Taking as little as 5 to 10 g of flax seed on a regular basis will lower the level of the 2 types of estrogen that may increase risk of breast cancer in women.

Several human and animal studies have shown that Flax seed slows tumor development in study subjects with prostate cancer.

If you are at risk of prostate cancer avoid Flax seed oil , as there are conflicting reports as to its safety, and take whole Flax seed ground in a coffee type grinder. The seeds are a much less concentrated source of oil, much less expensive plus, they contain Cancer-fighting lignans.

Flax seed's shelf life, when kept dry at room temperature, is roughly 1000 to 2000 years. When you grind up the 50 grams (1/4 cup) seeds, use them immediately and consider the forces of dormant life enriching and protecting you.

Source Dr Julian Whitaker

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Food & Mood:

British research studies indicate a strong link between your mental well-being and the food you consume.
 
Foods were divided into two groups: Stressors and Supporters.

Stressors include sugar, caffeine, alcohol, chocolate, dairy products, saturated fats and foods containing wheat, in that order of importance.
 
Supporters include water, vegetables, fruits, oil-rich fish, nuts and seeds, fiber, protein, organic foods and whole grain foods.

Foods that cause negative moods, such as anxiety and depression, are contained in the stressors group. However, if you are allergic to any foods, they can also cause unfavorable mood changes.

The supporter group contains the mood enhancing foods.

So experiment with them to find which ones trigger your best moods. Try and find the best balance between the two groups to ensure you are both happy and well-fed!

The Food and Mood Project, was backed by the mental health charity Mind (BBC News Online)

"I am learning all the time.

The tombstone will be
         my diploma."         
                         --Eartha Kitt

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Safe Organic Meat ?

The vegetarians in the crowd probably think Mad Cow Disease is just another reason why people should give up meat.

Since so many people still enjoy eating meat, I thought this information should be passed on. Remember we recommended in a past article that fresh or frozen wild meat was probably your best choice.

According to Robert Petersen, PhD, an associate professor of pathology and neuroscience at Case Western Reserve University and chief scientific officer for Prion Developmental Laboratories, there are several ways to safeguard against Mad Cow Disease. Dr. Petersen's first suggestion is one that the French government instituted -- eliminate bone-in cuts, or meats still on the bone. The reason for this is that the cow's nervous system -- including its bone marrow -- harbors mad cow disease. When you cook meat that is on the bone, there is the possibility that marrow from the adjacent bone could contaminate the meat. For complete safety, buy the steak or the roast, but remove the meat from the bone before you cook it.

As for you hamburger lovers, there is no need to go without, says Dr. Petersen. Chopped meat is dangerous only because you rarely have a way of knowing what parts of the cow it comes from. Have a butcher grind it for you from a cut of meat, such as sirloin or round, that has nothing to do with the cow's nervous system.

Organic beef producers have jumped on the marketing bandwagon trumpeting messages that their products are safe. Dr. Petersen concurs that it's likely these animals are indeed protected. Cows get the disease by eating feed that contains remnants of animal carcasses, possibly including those that have another prion disease. Because organically raised cows graze rather than being fed in feedlots, the odds of their encountering an infectious agent, he says, have been minimized.

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Tomato's can help prevent Cancer

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