Soft Drinks: America's Other Drinking Problem By Judith Valentine, PhD, CNA, CNC The addict feels low. His body needs a boost. He reaches into his pocket and finds a dollar bill. He slides it into the machine and a can rolls out. He opens the can and guzzles. He feels his energy return. His fix will last a couple of hours, enough to keep him alert for the rest of the morning. The addict is twelve years old and his drug is a soft drink, purchased from a vending machine in his school. This addict and thousands like him will attend special classes, sponsored by his school, to warn him about the dangers of drugs, tobacco and alcohol. But no one will tell him about America’s other drinking problem. According to the National Soft Drink Association (NSDA), consumption of soft drinks is now over 600 12- ounce servings (12 oz.) per person per year. Since 1978, soda consumption in the US has tripled for boys and doubled for girls. Young males age 12-29 are the biggest consumers at over 160 gallons per year— that’s almost 2 quarts per day. At these levels, the calories from soft drinks contribute as much as 10 percent of the total daily caloric intake for a growing boy. TARGETING THE YOUNG Huge increases in soft drink consumption have not happened by chance—they are due to intense marketing efforts by soft drink corporations. Coca Cola, for example, has set the goal of raising consumption of its products in the US by at least 25 percent per year. The adult market is stagnant so kids are the target. According to an article in Beverage, January 1999, "Influencing elementary school students is very important to soft drink marketers." Since the 1960s the industry has increased the single-serving size from a standard 6-½-ounce bottle to a 20-ounce bottle. At movie theaters and at 7-Eleven stores the most popular size is now the 64-ounce "Double Gulp." Soft drink companies spend billions on advertising. Much of these marketing efforts are aimed at children through playgrounds, toys, cartoons, movies, videos, charities and amusement parks; and through contests, sweepstakes, games and clubs via television, radio, magazines and the Internet. Their efforts have paid off. Last year soft drink companies grossed over $57 billion in sales in the US alone, a colossal amount. In 1998 the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) warned the public that soft drink companies were beginning to infiltrate our schools and kid clubs. For example, they reported that Coca-Cola paid the Boys & Girls Clubs of America $60 million to market its brand exclusively in over 2000 facilities. Fast food companies selling soft drinks now run ads on Channel One, the commercial television network with programming shown in classrooms almost every day to eight million middle, junior and high school students. In 1993, District 11 in Colorado Springs became the first public school district in the US to place ads for Burger King in its hallways and on the sides of its school buses. Later, the school district signed a 10-year deal with Coca-Cola, bringing in $11 million during the life of the contract. This arrangement was later imitated all over Colorado. The contracts specify annual sales quotas with the result that school administrators encourage students to drink sodas, even in the classrooms. One high school in Beltsville, Maryland, made nearly $100,000 last year on a deal with a soft drink company. While our children are exposed to unremitting publicity for soft drinks, evidence of their dangers accumulates. The consumption of soft drinks, like land-mine terrain, is riddled with hazards. We as practitioners and advocates of a healthy life-style recognize that consuming even as little as one or two sodas per day is undeniably connected to a myriad of pathologies. The most commonly associated health risks are obesity, diabetes and other blood sugar disorders, tooth decay, osteoporosis and bone fractures, nutritional deficiencies, heart disease, food addictions and eating disorders, neurotransmitter dysfunction from chemical sweeteners, and neurological and adrenal disorders from excessive caffeine. EARLY WARNINGS Warnings about the dangers of soft drink consumption came to us as early as 1942 when the American Medical Association’s (AMA) Council on Food and Nutrition made the following noble statement: "From the health point of view it is desirable especially to have restriction of such use of sugar as is represented by consumption of sweetened carbonated beverages and forms of candy which are of low nutritional value. The Council believes it would be in the interest of the public health for all practical means to be taken to limit consumption of sugar in any form in which it fails to be combined with significant proportions of other foods of high nutritive quality." Since that time the first notable public outcry came in 1998, 56 years later, when the CSPI published a paper called "Liquid Candy" blasting the food industry for "mounting predatory marketing campaigns [especially] aimed at children and adolescents." At a press conference, CSPI set up 868 cans of soda to represent the amount of soda the average young male consumed during the prior year. For additional shock effect, CSPI displayed baby bottles with soft drink logos such as Pepsi, Seven-Up and Dr. Pepper, highlighting a study that "found that parents are four times more likely to feed their children soda pop when their children use those logo bottles than when they don’t." In "Liquid Candy" CSPI revealed that even though, over a period of fifty years, soft drink production increased nine times and by 1998 "…provided more than one-third of all refined sugars in the diet, . . . the AMA and other health organizations [remained] largely silent." How could the medical community and we as responsible citizens concerned with health policy have been apathetic for a half a century? Considering this question makes me feel like a tired old guard dog that knows he is ignoring his responsibilities, but is too worn down to do anything about them. Even if inertia were not a problem, the money and effort required to launch a public interest campaign to stand up to the soft drink industry would be Herculean if not impossible. In the meantime, the relentlessly ambitious and wealthy soft drink companies with their very hip life-style ads manage to seduce ever increasing numbers of consumers, most of them our kids. GI DISTRESS One common problem I have seen over the years, especially in teenagers, is general gastrointestinal (GI) distress. This includes increased stomach acid levels requiring acid inhibitors and moderate to severe gastric inflammation with possible stomach lining erosion. The common complaint I hear is chronic "stomach ache." In almost every case, when the client successfully abstains from sodas and caffeine, the symptoms will go away. What causes these symptoms? We know that many soda brands contain caffeine and that caffeine does increase stomach acid levels. What we may not be aware of is that sodas also contain an array of chemical acids as additives, such as acetic, fumaric, gluconic and phosphoric acids, all of them synthetically produced. That is why certain sodas work so well when used to clean car engines. For human consumption, however, the effects are much less satisfying and quite precarious. Drinking sodas, especially on an empty stomach, can upset the fragile acid-alkaline balance of the stomach and other gastric lining, creating a continuous acid environment. This prolonged acid environment can lead to inflammation of the stomach and duodenal lining which becomes quite painful. Over the long term, it can lead to gastric lining erosion. Another problem with sodas is that they act as dehydrating diuretics, much like tea, coffee and alcohol. All of these drinks can inhibit proper digestive function. It is much healthier to consume herbal teas, nutritional soups and broths, naturally lacto-fermented beverages and water to supply our daily fluid needs. These fluids support, not inhibit, digestion. SPORTS DRINKS Students are now being given "electrolyte" drinks called "ergogenic aids" to replace electrolytes that are allegedly depleted during workouts. There are three problems with using these drinks as a rehydration solution. First, most soft drinks are diuretics, meaning they squeeze liquids out of the body, thus exacerbating dehydration instead of correcting it. Second, most people actually lose few electrolytes during exercise. After exercise the body is usually in an electrolyte load having lost more fluids than electrolytes. If sweating has been profuse, electrolytes can be replaced by drinking a lacto-fermented beverage or pure mineral water, which contains a proper ratio of minerals (electrolytes), and by eating a healthy diet containing Celtic sea salt. Third, when we give sugar-laden drinks to dehydrated kids, the high sugar content requires that blood be sent to the stomach to digest it. This fluid shift can lower the blood volume in other parts of the body making them more susceptible to cramps and heat-related illnesses. STIMULANT SOFT DRINKS AND VIOLENCE The industry has begun to market so-called stimulant soft drinks, which usually consist of higher-than-usual levels of caffeine, along with other compound stimulants. According to an article published in The Lancet, December 2000, the Irish government ordered "urgent research" into the effects of so-called "functional energy" or stimulant soft drinks after the death of an 18-year-old who died while playing basketball. He had consumed three cans of "Red Bull," a stimulant soft drink. The article noted there have been reports of a rise in aggressive late-night violence occurring when people switch to these drinks while drowsy from too much alcohol. The resulting violence was so pervasive that some establishments in Ireland have refused to sell stimulant drinks. The entire European community has taken the problem seriously enough to ask the EU’s scientific community to examine stimulant sodas and their effect on food and health safety, but no such outcry has been heard in the US. BONE FRACTURES Over the last 30 years a virtual tome of information has been published linking soft drink consumption to a rise in osteoporosis and bone fractures. New evidence has shown an alarming rise in deficiencies of calcium and other minerals and resulting bone fractures in young girls. A 1994 report published in the Journal of Adolescent Health summarizes a small study (76 girls and 51 boys) and points toward an increasing and "strong association between cola beverage consumption and bone fractures in girls." High calcium intake offered some protection. For boys, only low total caloric intake was associated with a higher risk of bone fractures. The study concluded with the following: "The high consumption of carbonated beverages and the declining consumption of milk are of great public health significance for girls and women because of their proneness to osteoporosis in later life." A larger, cross sectional retrospective study of 460 high school girls was published in Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine in June 2000. The study indicated that cola beverages were "highly associated with bone fractures." In their conclusion the authors warned that, ". . . national concern and alarm about the health impact of carbonated beverage consumption on teenaged girls is supported by the findings of this study" (emphasis mine). THE BATTLE AHEAD The dangers of society’s other drinking problem have recently been in the news. Senator Christopher Dodd and Representative George Miller have commissioned a study on the uses and oversight of school vending machines. Pending legislation in the State of Maryland would turn school soda vending machines off during the school day. Senator Patrick Leahy has introduced a bill requiring the USDA to rule within 18 months on banning or limiting the sale of soda and junk food in schools before students have eaten lunch. The soft drink industry has fought back by funding four studies on soft drink consumption at the Georgetown Center for Food and Nutrition Policy. Predictably, these studies found that there was nothing wrong with soft drinks. In fact, researchers said they found a positive relationship between soft drink consumption and exercise. All this means is that those children participating in sports programs drank more sodas. The National Association of Secondary School Principals (NAASP) says that decisions about soda sales should be made at the local level and not by the federal government. School administrators are caught between demands of a few parents for a saner food policy and the need for more funds in the face of dwindling school budgets. One good idea comes from the Philippines, a country where malnutrition is an ominous health threat. A recently devised plan there would allow citizens to cash in on the country’s "junk food diet" by taxing every liter bottle of carbonated soft drink sold. If the US taxed soft drink sales, the new income stream generated could then be distributed to declining school budgets. Is this not a better idea than forcing our schools to sell their souls to soft drink companies under the titanic sink of fiscal degradation? The alarm has been sounded! Are you listening? I strongly encourage all who are concerned about the health of their families to consider the debilitating consequences of drinking soft drinks. How many more studies and reports need to be published before we notice the tsunami lurking ahead? In the 1970s, we finally recognized the risks of smoking. In the 1990s, the problem of teenage drinking became widely known. The new millennium is the time for awakening to the risks of soda consumption—America’s other drinking problem. About the Author: Judith Valentine received her doctorate in Nutrition from the American Holistic College of Nutrition and completed her clinical internship in residence at the Capital University Clinic of Integrative Medicine in Washington, DC where she was certified as an Integrative Health Practitioner. She is also certified by the American Association of Nutritional Consultants and is on the teaching staff at Anne Arundel Community College. Dr. Valentine provides holistic nutrition education to individual clients and works with corporations to develop wellness policies for their employees. She can be contacted at (410) 626-0978 or DoctorJAV@aol.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FYI: INGREDIENTS IN SOFT DRINKS—A WITCH’S BREW High Fructose Corn Syrup, now used in preference to sugar, is associated with poor development of collagen in growing animals, especially in the context of copper deficiency. All fructose must be metabolized by the liver. Animals on high-fructose diets develop liver problems similar to those of alcoholics. Aspartame, used in diet sodas, is a potent neurotoxin and endocrine disrupter. Caffeine stimulates the adrenal gland without providing nourishment. In large amounts, caffeine can lead to adrenal exhaustion, especially in children. Phosphoric acid, added to give soft drinks "bite," is associated with calcium loss. Citric acid often contains traces of MSG, a neurotoxin. Artificial Flavors may also contain traces of MSG. Water may contain high amounts of fluoride and other contaminants. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PHOSPHORIC ACID AND TOOTH ROT Now that soft drinks are sold in almost all public and private schools, dentists are noticing a condition in teenagers that used to be found only in the elderly—a complete loss of enamel on the teeth, resulting in yellow teeth. The culprit is phosphoric acid in soft drinks, which causes tooth rot as well as digestive problems and bone loss. Dentists are reporting complete loss of the enamel on the front teeth in teenaged boys and girls who habitually drink sodas. Normally the saliva is slightly alkaline, with a pH of about 7.4. When sodas are sipped throughout the day, as is often the case with teenagers, the phosphoric acid lowers the pH of the saliva to acidic levels. In order to buffer this acidic saliva, and bring the pH level above 7 again, the body pulls calcium ions from the teeth. The result is a very rapid depletion of the enamel coating on the teeth. When dentists do cosmetic bonding, they first roughen up the enamel with a chemical compound—that chemical is phosphoric acid! Young people who must have all their yellowed front teeth cosmetically bonded have already done part of the dentist’s job, by roughening up the tooth surface with phosphoric acid. Recently the National Institutes of Health held a conference on dental decay worldwide. The speakers discussed many possible causes and solutions, but not one mentioned the known effects of phosphoric acid in soft drinks! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FRUIT JUICES Consumers often drink commercial fruit juices in the belief that they are healthier than soft drinks. However, the manufacture of fruit juices is a highly industrialized process. Orange juice, for example, is made in huge quantities. The entire orange is squeezed and goes into the tank, which means that neurotoxic cholinesterase inhibitor pesticide sprays on the peel end up in the juice. Although the juice is pasteurized under high temperatures and pressures, pressure-resistent and temperature-resistant fungi and molds can remain in the juice. Many mutagenic factors have been detected in commercial orange juice. A compound made of soy protein and pectin is added to orange juice so that it remains opaque and doesn’t settle. Other fruits, such as grapes, present additional problems because of the large amounts of fluoride- containing pesticides used on the crops. Fruit juices are very high in sugar and have actually been more detrimental to the teeth of test animals than sodas! If you want to drink fruit juice, buy a juicer and make your own with organic fruit. It’s best to dilute a small amount of fruit juice with mineral water (either flat or carbonated). The juice of one-half grapefruit added to a glass of sparkling water, for example, makes a delicious, refreshing drink. A recipe for a pineapple cooler, made from equal parts of fresh pineapple juice and whole raw milk, is found in Nourishing Traditions. In restaurants, order mineral water and some pieces of fresh lemon or lime. Above all, support the comeback of traditional lacto-fermented beverages such as kombucha and kvass. (Nourishing Traditions has the recipes) From http://www.westonaprice.org What can you do?
have all been misled and misinformed when it comes to what we should eat. To be fair, I don't view the AMA, Heart Association and other giant health organizations as villains, out to keep people sick and doctor- dependent, I feel it's "a cascade of events." There are many factors: industrialization, politics, processing, the mega-food industries, the media, the depression, the public demand for quick and cheap and the lust for the almighty Dollar that got us into this mess. Unfortunately, the casualties of this mess are our children. This is just the tip of the iceberg of the information and evidence I found revealing the food atrocities foisted on the unsuspecting American public. Here are some other topics you can explore on your own on the Weston A. Price Foundation website:http://www.westonaprice.org
One step at a time.
The Weston A. Price Foundation http://westonaprice.org Body Ecology.com- a great source of sweeteners and fermented products https://shop.bodyecology.com Nourishing our Children http://www.nourishingourchildren.org/offerings/nourishing-traditions.html A campaign for real milk http://www.realmilk.com/ Dietary Guidelines for Children http://www.westonaprice.org/children/diet_children.html Facts on Raw Milk http://www.raw-milk-facts.com/ U.S. Wellness Meats: Source for grass-fed and raw dairy http://www.grasslandbeef.com/StoreFront.bok Here's a great site that'll help you find healthy food in your area: www.eatwellguide.org |
Q: I'm confused about what I should be eating. I hear conflicting recommendations. Some food is supposed to be bad for you and the next week it isn't. Who do you believe? |
A Cleveland Dentist
Challenges the Status
Quo.
In the early 1930's, Dr. Weston A.
Price (1870-1948), a Cleveland
dentist, began a series of unique
investigations. For over 10 years
he traveled the world trying to find
the causes of dental decay and
physical degeneration that he
observed in his dental practice. He
turned from test tubes and
microscopes to unstudied evidence
among human beings. Dr. Price
sought the factors responsible for
fine teeth among the people who
had them- the isolated "primitives."
The world became his
laboratory.
As he traveled, his findings led him
to the belief that dental caries and
deformed dental arches resulting in
crowded, crooked teeth and
unattractive appearance were
merely a sign of physical
degeneration, resulting from what
he had suspected-nutritional
deficiencies.
Challenges the Status
Quo.
In the early 1930's, Dr. Weston A.
Price (1870-1948), a Cleveland
dentist, began a series of unique
investigations. For over 10 years
he traveled the world trying to find
the causes of dental decay and
physical degeneration that he
observed in his dental practice. He
turned from test tubes and
microscopes to unstudied evidence
among human beings. Dr. Price
sought the factors responsible for
fine teeth among the people who
had them- the isolated "primitives."
The world became his
laboratory.
As he traveled, his findings led him
to the belief that dental caries and
deformed dental arches resulting in
crowded, crooked teeth and
unattractive appearance were
merely a sign of physical
degeneration, resulting from what
he had suspected-nutritional
deficiencies.
Price travelled the world over in
order to study isolated human
groups, including sequestered
villages in Switzerland, Gaelic
communities in the Outer Hebrides,
Eskimos and Indians of North
America, Melanesian and
Polynesian South Sea Islanders,
African tribes, Australian
Aborigines, New Zealand Maori and
the Indians of South America.
Wherever he went, Dr. Price found
that beautiful straight teeth,
freedom from decay, stalwart
bodies, resistance to disease and
fine characters were typical of
primitives on their traditional diets,
rich in essential food factors.
Starling discovery
When Dr. Price analyzed the foods
used by isolated primitive peoples
he found that they provided at least
four times the calcium and other
minerals, and at least TEN times the
fat-soluble vitamins from animal
foods such as butter, fish eggs,
shellfish and organ meats.
The importance of good nutrition for
mothers during pregnancy has long
been recognized, but Dr. Price's
investigation showed that primitives
understood and practiced
preconception nutritional programs
for both parents. Many tribes
required a period of premarital
nutrition, and children were spaced
to permit the mother to maintain her
full health and strength, thus
assuring subsequent offspring of
physical excellence. Special foods
were often given to pregnant and
lactating women, as well as to the
maturing boys and girls in
preparation for future parenthood.
Dr. Price found these foods to be
very rich in fat soluble vitamins A
and D nutrients found only in animal
fats.
These primitives with their fine
bodies, homogeneous
reproduction, emotional stability
and freedom from degenerative ills
stand forth in sharp contrast to
those subsisting on the
impoverished foods of
civilization-sugar, white flour,
pasteurized milk and convenience
foods filled with extenders and
additives.
The photographs of Dr. Weston
Price illustrate the difference in
facial structure between those on
native diets and those whose
parents had adopted the "civilized"
diets of devitalized processed foods.
order to study isolated human
groups, including sequestered
villages in Switzerland, Gaelic
communities in the Outer Hebrides,
Eskimos and Indians of North
America, Melanesian and
Polynesian South Sea Islanders,
African tribes, Australian
Aborigines, New Zealand Maori and
the Indians of South America.
Wherever he went, Dr. Price found
that beautiful straight teeth,
freedom from decay, stalwart
bodies, resistance to disease and
fine characters were typical of
primitives on their traditional diets,
rich in essential food factors.
Starling discovery
When Dr. Price analyzed the foods
used by isolated primitive peoples
he found that they provided at least
four times the calcium and other
minerals, and at least TEN times the
fat-soluble vitamins from animal
foods such as butter, fish eggs,
shellfish and organ meats.
The importance of good nutrition for
mothers during pregnancy has long
been recognized, but Dr. Price's
investigation showed that primitives
understood and practiced
preconception nutritional programs
for both parents. Many tribes
required a period of premarital
nutrition, and children were spaced
to permit the mother to maintain her
full health and strength, thus
assuring subsequent offspring of
physical excellence. Special foods
were often given to pregnant and
lactating women, as well as to the
maturing boys and girls in
preparation for future parenthood.
Dr. Price found these foods to be
very rich in fat soluble vitamins A
and D nutrients found only in animal
fats.
These primitives with their fine
bodies, homogeneous
reproduction, emotional stability
and freedom from degenerative ills
stand forth in sharp contrast to
those subsisting on the
impoverished foods of
civilization-sugar, white flour,
pasteurized milk and convenience
foods filled with extenders and
additives.
The photographs of Dr. Weston
Price illustrate the difference in
facial structure between those on
native diets and those whose
parents had adopted the "civilized"
diets of devitalized processed foods.
The "primitive" Seminole girl
(above) has a wide, handsome
face with plenty of room for the
dental arches. The
"modernized" Seminole girl
(below) born to parents who
had abandoned their traditional
diets, has a narrowed face,
crowded teeth, and a reduced
immunity to disease.
(above) has a wide, handsome
face with plenty of room for the
dental arches. The
"modernized" Seminole girl
(below) born to parents who
had abandoned their traditional
diets, has a narrowed face,
crowded teeth, and a reduced
immunity to disease.
Characteristics of
Traditional Diets
Traditional Diets
- The diets of healthy primitive
and nonindustrialized peoples
contain no refined or
denatured foods such as
refined sugar or corn syrup;
white flour; canned foods;
pasteurized, homogenized,
skim or low-fat milk; refined or
hydrogenated vegetable oils;
protein powders; artificial
vitamins or toxic additives and
colorings. - All traditional cultures
consume some sort of animal
protein and fat from fish and
other seafood; water and land
fowl; land animals; eggs; milk
and milk products; reptiles;
and insects. - Primitive diets contain at least
four times the calcium and
other minerals and TEN times
the fat soluble vitamins from
animal fats (vitamin A, vitamin
D and the Price Factor--now
believed to be vitamin K2) as
the average American diet. - In all traditional cultures, some
animal products are eaten raw. - Primitive and traditional diets
have a high food-enzyme
content from raw dairy
products, raw meat and fish;
raw honey; tropical fruits; cold-
pressed oils; wine and
unpasteurized beer; and
naturally preserved, lacto-
fermented vegetables, fruits,
beverages, meats and
condiments. - Seeds, grains and nuts are
soaked, sprouted, fermented
or naturally leavened in order
to neutralize naturally occuring
antinutrients in these foods,
such as phytic acid, enzyme
inhibitors, tannins and complex
carbohydrates. - Total fat content of traditional
diets varies from 30% to 80%
but only about 4% of calories
come from polyunsaturated
oils naturally occurring in
grains, pulses, nuts, fish,
animal fats and vegetables.
The balance of fat calories is
in the form of saturated and
monounsaturated fatty acids. - Traditional diets contain nearly
equal amounts of omega-6
and omega-3 essential fatty
acids. - All primitive diets contain some
salt. - Tradtional cultures consume
animal bones, usually in the
form of gelatin-rich bone
broths. - Traditional cultures make
provisions for the health of
future generations by
providing special nutrient-rich
foods for parents-to-be,
pregnant women and growing
children; by proper spacing of
children; and by teaching the
principles of right diet to the
young.
By Sally Fallon, author of Nourishing Traditions This presentation was given at the annual conference of Consumer Health of Canada, March, 2002. Mankind has always processed his food; food processing is an activity that is uniquely human. One type of food processing is cooking. Traditional food processing had two functions: to make food more digestible and to preserve food during times of scarcity. This type of processing resulted in traditional foods like sausage and the old- fashioned meat puddings and haggis. It includes sourdough bread, fermented grain products, cheese and other fermented milk products, pickles, sauerkraut, and beverages--everything from wine and spirits to lacto-fermented soft drinks. In the past, processing was carried out by farmers and artisans such as bread makers, cheese makers, distillers, millers and so forth. This type of processing resulted in delicious foods and kept the profits on the farm and in the farming communities where it belonged--food processing should be a local cottage industry. Most importantly, traditional processing enhances or increases the nutrient value of our foods. Traditional bread making neutralizes anti-nutrients in grains to make the minerals more available; lacto- fermentation of cabbage to make sauerkraut increases the levels of vitamin C and many B vitamins many fold; and the making of yoghurt, kefir and similar products from fresh milk makes the nutrients in the milk more available and more digestible. Industrial Processing Unfortunately, in modern times we have abandoned local artisanal processing in favor of factory and industrial processing, which actually destroys the nutrients in food rather than increasing them, and makes our food more difficult to digest rather than more digestible. Furthermore, industrial processing depends upon products that have a negative impact on our health, such as sugar, white flour, processed and hydrogenated oils, additives, synthetic vitamins and an extrusion processing of grains. These are the tools of the food processing industry. Ready for breakfast? Let's have a look at the typical American breakfast of cereal, skim milk and orange juice. Packaged Cereals Dry breakfast cereals are produced by a process called extrusion. Cereal makers first create a slurry of the grains and then put them in a machine called an extruder. The grains are forced out of a little hole at high temperature and pressure. Depending on the shape of the hole, the grains are made into little o's, flakes, animal shapes, or shreds (as in Shredded Wheat or Triscuits), or they are puffed (as in puffed rice). A blade slices off each little flake or shape, which is then carried past a nozzle and sprayed with a coating of oil and sugar to seal off the cereal from the ravages of milk and to give it crunch. In his book Fighting the Food Giants, Paul Stitt has tells us that the extrusion process used for these cereals destroys most of the nutrients in the grains. It destroys the fatty acids; it even destroys the chemical vitamins that are added at the end. The amino acids are rendered very toxic by this process. The amino acid lysine, a crucial nutrient, is especially denatured by extrusion. This is how all the boxed cereals are made, even the ones sold in the health food stores. They are all made in the same way and mostly in the same factories. All dry cereals that come in boxes are extruded cereals. The only advances made in the extrusion process are those that will cut cost regardless of how these will alter the nutrient content of the product. Cereals are a multi-billion dollar business, one that has created huge fortunes. With so many people eating breakfast cereals, you might expect to find some studies on the effect of extruded cereals on animals or humans. Yet, there are no published studies at all in the scientific literature. The Rat Experiments Let me tell you about two studies which were not published. The first was described by Paul Stitt who wrote about an experiment conducted by a cereal company in which four sets of rats were given special diets. One group received plain whole wheat, water and synthetic vitamins and minerals. A second group received puffed wheat (an extruded cereal), water and the same nutrient solution. A third set was given only water. A fourth set was given nothing but water and chemical nutrients. The rats that received the whole wheat lived over a year on this diet. The rats that got nothing but water and vitamins lived about two months. The animals on water alone lived about a month. But the company's own laboratory study showed that the rats given the vitamins, water and all the puffed wheat they wanted died within two weeks---they died before the rats that got no food at all. It wasn't a matter of the rats dying of malnutrition. Autopsy revealed dysfunction of the pancreas, liver and kidneys and degeneration of the nerves of the spine, all signs of insulin shock. Results like these suggested that there was something actually very toxic in the puffed wheat itself! Proteins are very similar to certain toxins in molecular structure, and the pressure of the puffing process may produce chemical changes, which turn a nutritious grain into a poisonous substance. Another unpublished experiment was carried out in the 1960s. Researchers at University of Michigan were given 18 laboratory rats. They were divided into three groups: one group received corn flakes and water; a second group was given the cardboard box that the corn flakes came in and water; the control group received rat chow and water. The rats in the control group remained in good health throughout the experiment. The rats eating the box became lethargic and eventually died of malnutrition. But the rats receiving the corn flakes and water died before the rats that were eating the box! (The last corn flake rat died the day the first box rat died.) But before death, the corn flake rats developed schizophrenic behavior, threw fits, bit each other and finally went into convulsions. The startling conclusion of this study is that there was more nourishment in the box than there was in the corn flakes. This experiment was actually designed as a joke, but the results were far from funny. The results were never published and similar studies have not been conducted. Most of America eats this kind of cereal. In fact, the USDA is gloating over the fact that children today get the vast majority of their important nutrients from the nutrients added to these boxed cereals. Cereals sold in the health food stores are made by the same method. It may come as a shock to you, but these whole grain extruded cereals are probably more dangerous than those sold in the supermarket, because they are higher in protein and it is the proteins in these cereals that are so denatured by this type of processing. There are no published studies on the effects of these extruded grains on animals or humans, but I did find one study in a literature search that described the microscopic effects of extrusion on the proteins. "Zeins," which comprise the majority of proteins in corn, are located in spherical organelles called protein bodies. During extrusion, these protein bodies are completely disrupted and deformed. The extrusion process breaks down the organelles, disperses the proteins and the proteins become toxic. When they are disrupted in this way, you have absolute chaos in your food, and it can result in a disruption of the nervous system. Old-Fashioned Porridge So what are you going to have for breakfast? We need to go back to the old fashioned porridges, as I explain in Nourishing Traditions. These porridges should be soaked overnight in an acid medium to get rid of the anti-nutrients. Soaking will neutralize the tannins, complex proteins, enzyme inhibitors and phytic acid. You soak the grains in warm water with one tablespoon of something acidic like whey, yoghurt, lemon juice or vinegar. The next morning, the porridge cooks in about a minute. Of course, you eat your porridge with butter or cream like our grandparents did. The nutrients in the fats are needed to absorb the nutrients in the grains. That was one of the great lessons of Weston Price, that without the vitamins present in animal fats (vitamins A and D), you cannot assimilate minerals and other vitamins. You can be taking mineral supplements, drinking green juices or eating organic food until it comes out your ears, but you cannot absorb the minerals in your food without vitamins A and D that are exclusively found in the animal fats. Milk The minute you start to process your milk, you destroy Mother Nature's perfect food. You can live exclusively on raw milk, especially milk from nature's sacred animal, the cow. We have no sense of the sacredness of our animals today. Instead, we have an industrial system of agriculture that puts our dairy cows inside on cement all their lives and gives them foods that cows are not designed to eat— grain, soy, citrus peel cake and bakery waste. These modern cows produce huge amounts of watery milk which is very low in fat. Milk from these industrial cows is then shipped to a milk factory. Emily Green wrote an excellent article in the LA Times, August 2000 about milk processing. Milk processing plants are big, big factories where visitors are not allowed. Lots can go wrong in these factories. The largest milk poisoning in American history occurred in 1985 where more than 197,000 people across three states were sickened after a "pasteurization failure" at an Illinois bottling plant. Inside the plants all you can see is stainless steel. Inside that machinery, milk shipped from the farm is completely remade. First it is separated in centrifuges into fat, protein and various other solids and liquids. Once segregated, these are reconstituted to set levels for whole, low-fat and no-fat milks; in other words, the milk is reconstituted to be completely uniform. Of the reconstituted milks, whole milk will most closely approximate original cow's milk. The butterfat left over will go into butter, cream, cheese, toppings and ice cream. The dairy industry loves to sell low fat milk and skim milk because they can make a lot more money from the butterfat when consumers buy it as ice cream. When they remove the fat to make reduced fat milks, they replace the fat with powdered milk concentrate, which is formed by high temperature spray drying. All reduced-fat milks have dried skim milk added to give them body, although this ingredient is not usually on the labels. The result is a very high-protein, lowfat product. Because the body uses up many nutrients to assimilate protein—especially the nutrients contained in animal fat—such doctored milk can quickly lead to nutrient deficiencies. The milk is then pasteurized at 161 degrees F by rushing it past superheated stainless steel plates. If the temperature is 200 degrees the milk is called ultrapasteurized. This will have a distinct cooked milk taste but it is sterile and can be sold on the grocery shelf. In other words, they don't even have to keep it cool. The bugs won't touch it. It does not require refrigeration. As it is cooked, the milk is also homogenized by a pressure treatment that breaks down the fat globules so the milk won't separate. Once processed, the milk will last for weeks, not just days. Milk Allergies Many people, particularly our children, cannot tolerate the stuff that we are calling milk that is sold in the grocery shelves. And you can see why. It starts with cows in confinement, cows fed feed that cows are not designed to digest, and then it goes into these factories for dismantlement and reconfiguration. The protein compounds in milk have many important roles, including protection against pathogens, enhancement of the immune system and carrier systems for nutrients. However, like the proteins in grains, the proteins in milk are complex, three-dimensional molecules that are very fragile. The pasteurization process deforms and denatures these proteins. When we drink pasteurized milk, the body mounts an immune response instead of deriving instant nourishment. Numerous animal studies in the 1930s and 1940s showed the superiority of raw milk over pasteurized in building strong bone, healthy organs and a strong nervous system. Fortunately what we call real milk, that is full-fat milk from pasture-fed cows, milk that is not pasteurized, processed or homogenized, is becoming more available. Parents are discovering just how healthy and happy their children can be when they drink raw milk instead of pasteurized. (See realmilk.com for sources.) Powdered Milk A note on the production of skim milk powder: liquid milk is forced through a tiny hole at high pressure, and then blown out into the air. This causes a lot of nitrates to form and the cholesterol in the milk is oxidized. Those of you who are familiar with my work know that cholesterol is your best friend; you don't have to worry about natural cholesterol in your food; however, you do not want to eat oxidized cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol contributes to the buildup of plaque in the arteries, to atherosclerosis. So when you drink reduced-fat milk thinking that it will help you avoid heart disease, you are actually consuming oxidized cholesterol, which initiates the process of heart disease. Orange Juice Now let's turn to the orange juice in this supposedly healthy breakfast. It is quite shocking what turns up in a literature search on orange juice processing. A quote from Processed and Prepared Foods states that "a new orange juice processing plant is completely automated and can process up to 1,800 tons of oranges per day to produce frozen concentrate, single strength juice, oil extracted from the peel, and cattle feed." In the processing, the whole orange is put into the machine. Enzymes are added to get as much oil as possible out of the skin. Oranges are a very heavily sprayed crop. These sprays are cholinesterase inhibitors, which are real neurotoxins. When they put the oranges in the vats and squeeze them, all those pesticides go into the juice. What about the orange peel used for cattle feed? The dried left-over citrus peel is processed into cakes which are still loaded with cholinesterase inhibitors and organophosphates. Mark Purdey in England has shown these neurotoxins are correlated with "Mad Cow Disease" (Bovine Spongiform Encephalitis or BSE). The use of organophosphates either as a spray on the cows or in their feed is one of the causes of the degeneration of the brain and nervous system in the cow and if these components are doing this to the nervous system of the cow, there's a possibility they are doing this to you also. In fact, a study carried out in Hawaii found that consumption of fruit and fruit juices was the number one dietary factor for the development of Alzheimer's disease. The researchers speculated that the real culprit was the pesticides used in fruit—and concentrated in the juices due to modern processing techniques. The FDA has decreed that we can no longer buy raw juice, because it might be a source of pathogens. But it might surprise you to know that they have found fungus that is resistant to pressure and heat in the processed juices. One study found that 17% of Nigerian packages of orange juice and 20% of mango and tomato juices contained heat resistant fungi. They also found E. coli in the orange juice that was pressure resistant and had survived pasteurization. So there is plenty of danger from contamination from pasteurized juices. In one study, heat-treated and acid-hydrolyzed orange juice was tested for mutagenic activity. The authors hypothesized that the heating process produces intermediate products, which under test conditions, give rise to mutagenicity, and cytotoxicity. In other words you have got cancer-causing compounds in your orange juice. In another study, gel filtration and high performance liquid chromatography were used to obtain mutagenic fractions from heated orange juice. Another study shows just how toxic and damaging these juices are to teeth. They found that rats had more tooth decay from these commercial juices than they did from soda pop, which is loaded with sugar. One more thing about processed orange juice. Have you ever wondered why processed orange juice stays cloudy, why the solids do not settle? This is because soy protein combined with soluble pectin is added, and this keeps the juice permanently cloudy. It might be interesting to know, for those of you who are allergic to soy. Artificial Flavors vs. Nutritious Homemade Broths and Sauces Based on Natural Nourishing Broths In the past, all traditional cultures made use of bones to make broth. They recognized the fact that broth was very nutritious. Science tells us that bone broths supply minerals and other nutrients, including gelatin, which aids digestion, in addition to imparting wonderful flavors to our food. Before the advent of processed food, we made bone broth—beef broth, chicken broth and fish broth— and we used these broths to make delicious soups, sauces and gravies. When we made sauce or gravy at home, we used the good drippings from the meat, added some flour, and then added homemade broth. Processed soup bases and sauces contain artificial meat-like flavors because it is too expensive for the industry to make real broth. Instead, they take short cuts, which means that consumers are shortchanged. When the homemade stocks were pushed out by the cheap substitutes, an important source of minerals disappeared from the American diet. The thickening effects of gelatin could be mimicked with emulsifiers, but of course, the health benefits were lost. And gelatin is a very healthy thing to have in your diet. It helps you digest your food properly and has been shown to be useful in many digestive disorders. According to a South American proverb, "Good broth resurrects the dead." Artificial Flavorings, Hydrolyzed Protein, and MSG Research on gelatin and natural broths came to an end in the 1950s when food companies discovered how to induce Maillard reactions and produce meat-like flavors in the laboratory. In a General Foods Company report issued in 1947, chemists predicted that almost all natural flavors would soon be chemically synthesized. Following the Second World War food companies discovered monosodium glutamate (MSG), a food ingredient the Japanese had invented in 1908 to enhance food flavors, including meat-like flavors. Humans actually have receptors on the tongue for glutamate—it is the protein in food that the human body recognizes as meat. Unfortunately, the free glutamic acid in MSG has a very different effect in the body than the natural glutamic acid in food, one that is harmful, especially to the nervous system. Any protein can be hydrolyzed to produce a base containing MSG, but the usual source is soy. When the industry learned how to make the flavor of meat in the laboratory using inexpensive proteins from grains and legumes, the door was opened to a flood of new products including bullion cubes, dehydrated soup mixes, sauce mixes, TV dinners, and condiments with a meat- flavored base. The fast food industry could not exist without MSG and other artificial meat flavors to make secret sauces and spice mixes that beguile the consumer into eating bland and tasteless food. The sauces in processed foods are basically MSG, water, thickeners and emulsifiers and some caramel coloring. Your tongue is tricked into thinking that it is getting something nutritious when it is getting nothing at all except some very toxic substances. Even the dressings, the Worcestershire sauce, rice mixes, dehydrated soups, all of these and anything that has a meat-like taste has MSG in it. Almost all canned soups and stews contain MSG, and the "hydrolyzed protein" bases often contain MSG in very large amounts So-called "homemade soup" in most restaurants is usually made by adding water to a powdered soup- base or soup cubes and then adding chopped vegetables, etc. Even things like lobster bisque and sauces in the seafood restaurants are full of these artificial flavors. It's all profit based. The industry even finds it too costly to just use a little onion and garlic for flavoring, so they are using the artificial flavors instead. Most of the vegetarian foods are loaded with these flavorings. The list of ingredients in vegetarian hamburgers, hot dogs, bacon, baloney, etc. may include hydrolyzed protein and other "natural" flavorings. Soy foods contain large amounts of MSG as it is formed during processing. MSG is also formed during the spray drying of milk, so it is in reduced-fat milk because spray dried milk is added to these products. MSG Labelling As I point out in my various workshops, the three most toxic additives in our food supply are MSG, hydrolyzed protein, and aspartame, and the first two are in all of these secret sauces with "natural flavors." Anything that you buy that says "spices" or "natural flavors" contains MSG! The industry avoids putting MSG on the label by putting MSG in spice mixes, and if the mix is less than 50% MSG, manufacturers don't have to put it on the label. You may have noticed that the phrase "No MSG" has actually disappeared. That's because MSG is in all the spice mixes. Even Bragg's "Liquid Aminos" had to take "No MSG" off their label. Health Problems with MSG The industry has known about the health problems caused by MSG for a long time. In 1957 scientists found that mice became blind and obese when MSG was administered by feeding tube. In 1969, MSG- induced lesions were found in the hypothalamus region of the brain. Subsequent studies all pointed in the same direction. MSG is a neurotoxic substance that causes a wide range of reactions, from temporary headaches to permanent brain damage. We have a huge increase in Alzheimer's, brain cancer, seizures, multiple sclerosis, and diseases of the nervous system, and one of the chief reasons is these flavorings in our food. MSG is also associated with violent behavior. Most surprisingly, MSG causes obesity! In laboratory experiments on obese rats, scientists induce obesity by feeding the animals MSG! Ninety-five percent of processed foods contain MSG, and as you may know, in the late 1950s it was added to baby food. After some congressional hearings on this subject, the industry told us they had taken it out of the baby food, but they didn't really remove it. They just called it by another name-- hydrolyzed protein. I recommend that everyone read the book Excitotoxins, by Dr. Russell Blaylock. He describes how the nerve cells either disintegrate or shrivel up in the presence of free glutamic acid, that is, MSG, if it gets past the blood-brain barrier. The glutamates in MSG are absorbed directly from the mouth to the brain. Some investigators believe that the great increase in violence in this country is due, not to sugar, but to the huge increase in the use of MSG in the food which began in the late 1950's, and particularly because it was put in baby food in very large amounts. A Quintessential Imitation Food To give an example of how the food industry thinks, consider this description of artificial bacon, taken from a food processing magazine: "Here is an engineered meat product which looks, cooks, and tastes like bacon, but is formed and laminated by a co-extrusion process. It is made from a mixture of pork, beef, sugar, salt, MSG, and smoked flavor and has a number of advantages. It shrinks very little in cooking; holds its shape and color well; contains twice the protein and half the fat of bacon; costs less than bacon and the processed product does not delaminate." Isn't that nice to know? Of course, now they have figured out how to do this without any meat at all by using soy. The real question is, not whether this fake product will delaminate, but whether in fact it will support life. Fats and Oils The last fifty years have seen a huge increase in the consumption of processed vegetable oils, and a concurrent decline in the consumption of animal fats. These oils look clean and bright on the grocers shelves, but a description of vegetable oil processing reveals the true nature of these products. Oil processing begins with the extraction of crude vegetable oils from the seeds, a process that requires high temperatures and pressures, and often involves a hexane solvent. By the way, these oils start out loaded with pesticides. The steps involved in processing include caustic refining, bleaching, deodorizing, filtering, and removing saturates to make the oils more liquid. Most of these steps involve heat and produce toxic breakdown products known as free radicals. Free radicals cause cancer. When we cook with these oils, more free radicals are formed. These vegetable oils which look clean and have no smell are actually completely denatured and carcinogenic. Margarine Manufacturers cannot use liquid oils in baked goods or frying, and they are not spreadable. So to harden the liquid vegetable oils to make margarine and shortening, they put the oils through a process called partial hydrogenation. To make margarine or shortening, first the oil is extracted under high temperature and pressure, and the remaining fraction of oil is removed with hexane solvents. Then the oils are steam cleaned, a process that removes all the vitamins and anti-oxidants, but of course, the solvents and the pesticides remain. These oils are then mixed with a nickel catalyst and put into a huge high-pressure, high-temperature reactor. What goes into the reactor is a liquid, but what comes out of that reactor is a semi-solid that looks like grey cottage cheese and smells terrible. Emulsifiers are mixed in to smooth out the lumps. The product is then steam cleaned a second time to get rid of the horrible smell. Then it is bleached to get rid of the grey color. At this point, the product can be used as vegetable shortening. To make margarine, they add artificial flavors and synthetic vitamins. You may be comforted to know that manufacturers are not allowed to add a synthetic color to margarine. So they add annatto or some other natural coloring. It is then packaged in blocks and tubs. Advertising promotes this garbage as a health food. Trans Fats in Hydrogenated Oils Trans fatty acids are the type of fat molecules produced by the process called "partial hydrogenation," which rearranges the hydrogen atoms in an unsaturated fatty acid to produce a fat that is solid at room temperature. Natural saturated fatty acids are straight molecules that pack together easily so they tend to be solid at room temperature. In a saturated fatty acid, each carbon atom is joined to two hydrogen atoms. The hydrogen atoms are arranged in pairs, thus creating electron clouds. Our cell membranes are composed of billions of fatty acids; chemical reactions occur in the cell membranes at sites where two hydrogen molecules form electron clouds. Natural unsaturated fatty acids, such as oleic acid, tend to be liquid at room temperature. They have two or more hydrogen atoms missing where the carbons are double bonded together, but the remaining hydrogen atoms at the double bond are paired on the same side—called the cis configuration—forming an electron cloud where reactions can take place in the cell membrane. During the process of partial hydrogenation, one of the hydrogen atoms in a pair is moved to the other side of the molecule, forming a trans fatty acid, such as elaidic acid—trans means "across." This causes the molecules to straighten out so that they pack together easily and form a solid fat at room temperature. Unfortunately, when these trans fatty acids are incorporated into the cell membrane, they are missing the hydrogen pairs needed for chemical reactions to occur. The result is dysfunction and chaos on the cellular level. All of the margarines, shortenings, spreads, even low-trans spreads contain trans fats plus many other artificial ingredients. In the groceries stores there is just a little bit of space for the butter because all the high-profit margarine foods have totally invaded the food supply. Virtually all packaged or processed foods contain trans fatty acids. They're in all the chips and crackers, and they now use them for French fries. The industry used to fry the fries in beef tallow, which is a very safe fat, and gave a little extra profit for the cattlemen, but they have lost that market now. Today French fries are fried in partially hydrogenated soybean oil. It used to be that when you made desserts for your kids, at least they contained butter, eggs, cream and nuts and other healthy ingredients--all good wholesome foods. Now the industry can imitate the butter, eggs and cream, so most desserts end up being mostly sugar, partially hydrogenated oils and a long list of artificial ingredients. Problems with Hydrogenated Oils Many, many diseases have been associated with the consumption of trans fatty acids, such as heart disease, cancer, digestive disorders and degeneration of joints and tendons (which is why we have so many hip replacements today). Trans fats are associated with auto-immune disease, skin problems, growth problems in children and learning disabilities. The only reason that we are eating this stuff is because we have been told that the competing fats and oils--butter, lard, tallow and suet, coconut oil and palm oil--are bad for us and cause heart disease. This message is nothing but industry propaganda to get us to buy substitutes. Processed Food Affects Fertility and Facial Structure Weston A. Price discovered that as children eat these processed foods, with each generation, the facial structure becomes more and more narrow. Healthy faces should be broad. They should have perfectly straight teeth and no cavities. When you are eating real foods, nutrient-dense foods, you get the complete and perfect expression of the genetic potential. And that genetic potential, that gift from the Creator to all of us, is perfection. We were given a perfect blueprint. Whether or not the body temple is built according to the blueprint depends on our wisdom in food choices. When primitive societies abandoned their traditional diet and began to eat processed foods, the next generation had narrowed facial structure and was much more susceptible to diseases of every sort. We know from animal studies that if you continue a deficient diet for three generations, reproduction ceases and that's what we're seeing now. About 25% of our couples are infertile, and if we don't go back to a diet that produces good facial structure and good health, the human race will simply die out. Factory Food Preparation--Is Your Food Made by Caring Hands? Artificial flavors and preservatives are made by chemical companies in factories; they are not being made by the loving hands of a cook. All the artificial ingredients added to the food help the rich get richer and the general public get sicker. The industry has completely processed the life out of the food and then as a concession to the public, thrown in a handful of artificial nutrients. Can you imagine what kind of feeling, what kind of radiation comes from that factory food? Spiritual Food Preparation--Made with Love Nourishing foods starts with the way we farm---the farmer who farms with wisdom and love for the land, the dairyman who farms with love for his animals, the cheese maker who makes cheese with the love of her craft, the baker who bakes with the love of the final product, the beverage maker who makes the type of delicious and nutritious beverage that should be produced in every town and hamlet. Traditional processing puts not only good nutrition, but the vibration of love into our food. So I hope that from what I have shown you, you will turn away from empty food. Someone from the family needs to get back in the kitchen. It doesn't mean you have to spend hours in the kitchen, but you need to spend some time in the kitchen preparing food with love, food that has been grown with love and prepared with wisdom and love. If no one in the family has time to go into the kitchen and prepare food, you need to sit down and rethink how you are spending your time because there is simply no other way to get nourishing foods into our children. The situation is really very critical. If we don't return to good eating practices one mouth at a time, one meal at a time, one farm at a time, preparing our own food and preparing it properly, there is not going to be another generation. From www.westonaprice.org Click the link to become a member |
About the Author
Sally Fallon is the author of
Nourishing Traditions: The
Cookbook that Challenges
Politically Correct Nutrition and
the Diet Dictocrats (with Mary
G. Enig, PhD), a
well-researched,
thought-provoking guide to
traditional foods with a startling
message: Animal fats and
cholesterol are not villains but
vital factors in the diet,
necessary for normal growth,
proper function of the brain and
nervous system, protection
from disease and optimum
energy levels. She joined
forces with Enig again to write
Eat Fat, Lose Fat, and has
authored numerous articles on
the subject of diet and health.
The President of the Weston A.
Price Foundation and founder
of A Campaign for Real Milk,
Sally is also a journalist, chef,
nutrition researcher,
homemaker, and community
activist. Her four healthy
children were raised on whole
foods including butter, cream,
eggs and meat.
Sally Fallon is the author of
Nourishing Traditions: The
Cookbook that Challenges
Politically Correct Nutrition and
the Diet Dictocrats (with Mary
G. Enig, PhD), a
well-researched,
thought-provoking guide to
traditional foods with a startling
message: Animal fats and
cholesterol are not villains but
vital factors in the diet,
necessary for normal growth,
proper function of the brain and
nervous system, protection
from disease and optimum
energy levels. She joined
forces with Enig again to write
Eat Fat, Lose Fat, and has
authored numerous articles on
the subject of diet and health.
The President of the Weston A.
Price Foundation and founder
of A Campaign for Real Milk,
Sally is also a journalist, chef,
nutrition researcher,
homemaker, and community
activist. Her four healthy
children were raised on whole
foods including butter, cream,
eggs and meat.
with AWB founder, Noell Hammer
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I read about these on Body
Ecology.com and just love them. You
just open the package, rinse them off
and dump them in. They take on the
flavor of whatever you're making with
no carbs or calories and lots of fiber!
Great in soups too.
AWBF gets a donation when you make
a purchase by clicking through the link
to the left.
A: Good Question!
We try to do what the doctors and health organizations tell us: reduce intake of fat, avoid butter, red meat,
and eggs. We eat more grains, vitamin enriched foods and we have access to the finest health care in the
world. Yet, we as a nation are obese, have heart disease, diabetes, cancer, auto-immune disorders and
spend millions on antacids and medication for our burning stomach. 1 in 125 of our children have autism and
Alzheimer's disease is topping 4 million, and is no longer a disease of the elderly. Something is wrong with
our Standard American Diet (S.A.D.)
Sally Fallon knows what it is and is taking on "Politically Correct Nutrition."
We try to do what the doctors and health organizations tell us: reduce intake of fat, avoid butter, red meat,
and eggs. We eat more grains, vitamin enriched foods and we have access to the finest health care in the
world. Yet, we as a nation are obese, have heart disease, diabetes, cancer, auto-immune disorders and
spend millions on antacids and medication for our burning stomach. 1 in 125 of our children have autism and
Alzheimer's disease is topping 4 million, and is no longer a disease of the elderly. Something is wrong with
our Standard American Diet (S.A.D.)
Sally Fallon knows what it is and is taking on "Politically Correct Nutrition."
| Food Packaging: Sports drink packaged for pre-teens |
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Straight Talk
