LATEST THOUGHTS

We can’t tell you how many times we’ve heard this, “it’s too hard to change”, or “I’ve been eating this way my whole life, can’t change now!” And you know what? People who make these comments are absolutely sincere. In fact, I can relate because I’ve felt this way too. BUT, speaking from experience, it’s not too hard if you really want to make some changes. The good news is that you take it a little at a time and over time, it gets easier. Not to mention you keep feeling better.

Here are 5 reasons to make some changes.

• A healthier diet leads to better health
• You will save money by not eating out so often
• You’ll also save time, no travel, no waiting in line
• It’s a great opportunity to spend some time together (come on guys & gals, put on an apron!)
• Less exposure to other health issues like flu (or Covid)

The debate continues. As with so much of the information available about diet and the food we eat, there is little agreement about the value or lack thereof of eating organic produce and fruit. The debate centers around the two lists, produced annually by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), that show the worst and the best fruits and vegetables, in terms of the amount of pesticide residue found on them (after washing and/or peeling).

Our opinion is only that – an opinion. It falls then, to each of us to decide for ourselves which side of the argument we choose to support. We encourage you to take a little time to research this issue to learn more, so that you can make an informed decision for you and your family. Here are a couple of links to help with your research:

Environmental Working Group (EWG)

Safe Fruits and Veggies

If you haven’t heard of inflammation yet, you’ll want to read on. Let me preface by saying, however, that we’re not doctors. We do have an interest in health and how what we eat can affect our health. Much is being discovered and written about these days by doctors and nutritionists concerning what we eat and how it affects us. We have found this fascinating and therefore have tried to keep up with this flow of information.

Many health care professionals have come to believe that inflammation is linked to chronic conditions like arthritis, diabetes, lupus, celiac disease and multiple sclerosis. Much research is being done into foods that can cause inflammation and therefore, by limiting these foods, inflammation can be lessened and this in turn makes people feel better and in many cases, drastically better. Some of the foods that contribute to inflammation are:

• Hydrogenated oils and trans fats
• Meat
• Sugars and sweeteners
• Dairy products
• Wheat products
• Alcohol
• In general, processed foods as they contain many of the items above

We’ve all heard about good fats and bad fats, right? So what are they, you may be wondering. Here’s some information.

According to Dr. David Perlmutter, in his book “Grain Brain”, he states that “…while the synthetic trans fats found in margarine and processed foods are poisonous, we know now that monounsaturated fats — such as the fat found in avocados, olives and nuts — are healthy”. In other words, trans fats, like those found in margarine are bad, while monounsaturated fats, which are found in avocados, nuts and olives, are good. And, he’s not alone.

Dr. Micheal Greger, in his book “How Not To Die” says, “Not all fats affect our muscle cells in the same way. … Saturated fats can wreak all sorts of havoc in muscle cells… and can cause inflammation…. Monounsaturated fats, however, are more likely to be detoxified by the body or safely stored away.

Bottom line, stay away from trans fats, but enjoy your avocados, nuts and olives.

According to Dr. Perlmutter, in his book “Grain Brain”, p. 228, “when researchers compare serum cholesterol levels to egg intake, they note over and over again that the levels of cholesterol in those who consume few or no eggs are virtually identical to those in people who consume bountiful numbers of eggs”.

This is one of those areas that you may want to experiment with as there is still disagreement about dietary cholesterol. However, there’s a lot of research that seems to support Dr. Perlmutter, so it may be worth a try.