Moving Strongly Forward

Health Gimmicks

What a week for health gimmicks. I don’t know if it is that I am more open to spotting them, or if they have suddenly appeared, but this week they were prominent. A health gimmick is a quick fix that really does not fix. It often has costly supplements associated with it. If the participant achieves what the gimmick claims, it is often temporary. A health gimmick may serve a good purpose by jumpstarting a person to vibrant health, but a person relying on a gimmick alone will not achieve it.

The cornerstone of vibrant health that is the opposite of the gimmicks is nutrient dense food. Nutrient dense food repairs the body from injury and insult and brings energy levels most people have not experienced since childhood. It is so surprising and so fun that it becomes a permanent lifestyle. As an added bonus, it is less costly than gimmicks.

Gimmick 1

A friend of mine began a detox program. I looked at some of the written materials, and while the program is accomplishing the jumpstart that my friend needs, it is a gimmick. This program has many red flags showing that it does not bring lasting, vibrant health:

• The gimmick has a written warning that some participants may be hospitalized because the detox could be severe.

• The gimmick's supplements cause serious body fat burning while the participant is sleeping. Could that be any more unnatural?

• The gimmick’s literature states that if the detox program participant eats some seriously unhealthy food, the participant needs to ingest some of the gimmick’s magic powders to offset the adverse effects. Talk about enabling an unhealthy lifestyle!

• The gimmick allows for Splenda sweetener, which can cause disease.

• Finally, for some ridiculous and unknown reason, the gimmick wants women to stop nursing their children by the time they are two because human milk for humans is bad for health after two.
  

What the heck does that have to do with anything related to the participant’s health and this detox?!?! I am not taking a position on when a child should be weaned, but I am snorked at the gimmick founder/promoter, so I will throw in this jab. He is a man who apparently feels that he is more qualified than a mother and her child to determine when weaning should occur.

Hundreds of participants spend oodles of money on this gimmick, trying to accomplish what they could if they ate nutrient dense food. They have to eat food, so why not eat the good stuff the right way? Instead they do it in an unnatural, costly way that keeps them purchasing the gimmicks products.

Gimmick 2

The second gimmick involves ridding the body of yeast. Yeast interferes with immune function and can cause ADD, ADHD, allergies, asthma, autism, depression, and so much more. I was reading one organization's group email messages regarding yeast elimination. Many of the message posters tried health food store gimmicks in a box. They reported varying levels of frustration or some minor success mixed with frustration. In I jump, trying to let the readers know that it is not a about a boxed solution. It is about the food! Nutrient dense food accomplishes what they want. My family is living proof. When questioned and met with a bit of doubt, my response was that I am the only one joyfully reporting success. My family is free from food cravings and immune from the calls of unhealthy food. We are eating luscious, nutrient dense food and experiencing vibrant health.

Remember

It has taken a lifetime to achieve ill health. It takes time to regain vibrant health. In our fast paced society, the quick fix gimmick is very tempting and understandable. Fortunately, our bodies are forgiving and resilient. Treat them well, and they will flourish.

What first step are you willing to take to begin your path to a lifetime of vibrant health?

Another Food Challenge, Another Lesson

My family traveled this past weekend to Roanoke, Virginia to visit friends. It was a fabulous trip for many reasons. While on the trip we ate only nutrient-dense food consistent with our diet of the last seven months. Except one time. We were away from home longer than we intended and did not have enough snacks to see us through. We stopped at a New York Deli to have sandwiches. It was my second sandwich in seven months. I had kosher salami on a Kaiser role with cheese, mayo and veggies. Ryan and Colson had similar sandwiches. They were tasty, but they also felt empty.

The outcome? Ryan and Colson had digestive upset for a day. I had a piercing headache strike about ten minutes after eating. The piercing part lasted about ten minutes, and then the whole headache faded away in about a half hour.

I will not have this lunch again, even after experiencing stronger health. I do see the outcome as progress, though. I know that we should not eat this “food”, and I also know that we can eat it with less discomfort than the past. To me that is a signal that we are healing. We do not want to return to the days when this type of food does not cause any discomfort, as that would mean that we had undone all of the healing. It is fun every now and then to have a reminder of how far we have come.

Victory – Cholesterol

My Score   Healthy Range

Total                 174           100 – 200

Triglycerides       95             0 – 149

HDL                   69             >39

LDL                   86             0 – 99

We are conditioned to think that cholesterol is to be feared. We are told to avoid high fat foods and animal products. Eat only lean meats and reduced fat milk and cheese. And how about those egg beaters?

Now for a great big junior high P L E A S E! I have to admit that I could not let go of the manufactured fears about cholesterol, but I continued to eat full fat, high animal product, coconut oil laden foods for over a year. And now we see the results. Totally NORMAL! That normal reading is the result of my blood being drawn two hours after I ate a whole milk based kefir smoothie with 2 raw egg yolks and coconut oil, instead of the fast that is usually required! My diet shocked my cardiologist last year, and my cholesterol numbers would shock him even more this year. Read this post about my visit to the cardiologist if you want to learn more http://movingstronglyforward.typepad.com/moving_strongly_forward/2008/12/index.html.

Cholesterol is the body’s way of healing itself. If a person has high cholesterol and eats healthy, nutrient-dense food, as prescribed in Nourishing Traditions, it is not the food causing high cholesterol. The cholesterol is the body’s signal that it is healing itself. As it heals, the numbers will come down. If someone is not eating a healthy, nutrient-dense diet, then all bets are off. Disease is sure to follow if it has not already struck.

I have read that too much emphasis is put on cholesterol numbers. The problems are too numerous to discuss here, but I encourage you to do your own research. If you are on cholesterol lowering drugs, do your research, as the problems with these drugs are mindboggling. I highly recommend that you read Worried Sick by Dr. Norton Hadler, a professor of medicine and microbiology/immunology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While I have not read his book yet, I heard him speak on National Public Radio (NPR), and his statements regarding cholesterol and the related drugs were shocking. Here is another interesting link, The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics, with numerous medical doctors as members: http://www.thincs.org/index.htm.

Now back to my nutrient dense, high fat, bone building, body fat shedding, incredibly good tasting food.

Lemon Juice Before Breakfast

Teaching people about food has helped grow my knowledge. Take lemon juice, for example. I tell people to drink it first thing in the morning within 30 minutes of squeezing the lemon because it alkalizes their body, and cancer and does not grow in an alkaline body. My students then ask why. My answer…three doctors (one western and two oriental) and a raw food chef have told me so, that’s why. That is not the best answer, especially for a skeptical mind. In the next few posts I will address some of the questions that have been raised.

What is the Body’s pH?

pH is the measure of acidity or basicity, based on the amount of hydrogen (H) in the body. Water (H₂O) has a neutral pH of 7. Lower pH is acidic and higher pH is alkaline. Adult women are approximately 55 percent water and adult men are approximately 60 percent water (although estimates vary). The average pH of the human body ranges between 7.35 to 7.45, or slightly alkaline, according to the Harvard Medical School’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

How is Lemon Juice Alkaline?

The website www.newtreatments.org explains how lemon juice is alkaline and not acidic as most people think. I have read several similar explanations, but this one is the most straightforward.

After about 30 minutes of exposure to air (oxygen), lemon juice becomes cationic. The confusion comes when one thinks in terms of acid and alkaline. Lemon juice would always be thought of as acid, but, while fresh, is anionic (which corresponds to alkaline). If you had an acid urine pH and you used Dr. Reams' lemon/water drink as he suggested, your pH would become more alkaline. This seems illogical when you think of lemon juice as acidic. But it's not, its anionic. In addition to fresh lemon juice, the only other thing that is purely anionic is pure calcium.

Who is Dr. Reams? According to http://www.newtreatments.org/reams, “Dr Carey Reams was both a physician and an agronomist. His medical degree, completed in England, included an undergraduate degree in chemistry. Upon returning to the US to practice medicine, Reams chose to retain his independence by avoiding membership of the AMA (American Medical Association).” Dr. Reams created the Biological Theory of Ionization. I had not heard of Dr. Reams until now, and I will be reading further, but his work seems to be fascinating. If you want to read more, here is another site that has much of information: http://healingtools.tripod.com/linksi.html. Just scroll down to his name in the list.

What Mainstream Western Medicine Says

The following is taken from an article by the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and seems to be in contrast to Dr. Reams work:

Lowering the body’s pH has nothing to do with preventing cancer.

…there are no human studies supporting alkaline diets for the prevention or treatment of cancer. Test-tube studies, however, have shown that some cancer cells grow faster in an acidic solution. They've also shown that some chemotherapy drugs become more effective if the area around a tumor cell is altered to be more alkaline. However, we can't assume that what happens in a test-tube also happens in the human body. In fact, the opposite effect could occur and have dangerous consequences.

A person cannot significantly change the body’s pH through food.

The body's pH levels may change slightly as a result of eating some foods, but will remain in the tightly held range of 7.35 - 7.45. For instance, some fruits and vegetables as well as dairy products may raise the pH of your urine, whereas meat products and cranberries may lower the pH of your urine. However, even if you eat large quantities of these foods, your blood pH will barely change and only for a short time.

The body automatically maintains the proper pH, regardless of what you put into it.

When your pH shifts outside this range and becomes too acidic or too alkaline, your body automatically corrects itself to bring things back to normal by:

• Increasing or decreasing respiration - When you breathe more rapidly, you blow out more carbon dioxide. This raises your pH so it becomes more alkaline and less acidic. Conversely, slowing down your breathing causes you to release less carbon dioxide, which lowers your pH making it less alkaline.

• "Mopping up" excess hydrogen ions - Neutralizing substances in the blood such as bicarbonate and hemoglobin, mop up excess hydrogen ions and prevent pH from becoming too acidic.

• Eliminating the excess - Your kidneys excrete excess acidic substances into urine to prevent pH from becoming too low. Conversely, if your pH starts to become too high or alkaline, the body uses similar tools in reverse to bring down the pH.

The bottom line: The body fights hard to keep your pH balanced. It's nearly impossible to achieve and maintain a high-alkaline pH for a prolonged period of time.

How Well do Standard Western Cancer Treatments Prevent or Cure Cancer?

Unfortunately, we almost all know someone who is suffering or has died from cancer. Teresa Holler, author of Holler for Your Health www.holler4health.com, cites very compelling information regarding cancer rates. Her data review shows that in 1901, 1 in 8,000 people had cancer. Today 1 in 2 people have it. By 2020 it is projected that 1 in 1.5 people will be diagnosed with cancer. Research shows that the overwhelming cause in this incredible rise in cancer is environmental factors, with less than 30% of cancer being genetic.

Many of these people have undergone terribly difficult radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Their suffering is immense. If they survive the treatments, the success rate of eliminating cancer varies depending on a number of factors, including the type of cancer. Several personal observations of friends and family have shown me that when a cancer is “cured”, another cancer eventually replaces it, the suffering starts over, and death from cancer is the result. In the early 1990s, a good friend of mine (who is a former critical care nurse), told me that multiple cancers are rare. Her husband was “cured” of cancer and a few years later developed a different cancer and ultimately died from it. This scenario may have been rare at one time, but no longer. Another scenario is that a person has several cancers at one time.

Keep in mind that western medicine has been practiced for about 300 years, and 25 percent of American deaths are caused by cancer. The American Cancer Society says that one-third of these deaths are linked to poor diet.

What Oriental Medicine Says

Oriental medicine, practiced for approximately 5,000 years, tells us differently. Why should we listen? Because some Asian people who are not heavily influenced by western culture have longer, healthier, more vibrant lives than Americans do, partly the result of good, nourishing food. The news program 60 Minutes and other news sources reported that Okinawans, for example, are some of the healthiest, most long-lived people in the world.

I reviewed a website discussing the Okinawa Centenarian Study http://www.okicent.org/study.html, which is fascinating. The study’s researchers are investigating the roles of genetics and environmental factors in the long, healthy lives of Okinawans. Here is part of the findings concerning environmental factors and cancer:

Compared to North Americans, they have 80% less breast cancer and prostate cancer, and less than half the ovarian and colon cancers. Some of the most important factors that may protect against those cancers include low caloric intake, high vegetables/fruits consumption, higher intake of good fats (omega-3, mono-unsaturated fat), high fiber diet, high flavonoid intake, low body fat level, and high level of physical activity.

Note that Okinawans eat a diet that is heavy on vegetable and fruit consumption. Veggies and fruit have anti-oxidants, which help prevent cellular damage, and cellular damage is where cancer begins. The vast majority of vegetables and fruits are alkaline, not acidic. Many of them contain cancer-fighting properties. There are many more fascinating findings in the study. Because this blog post focuses on food, I am not discussing other parts of the study, but I highly recommend reading it.

There are numerous tables on the internet that list alkaline and acidic foods. To see what these foods are, you can go to this website: http://www.essense-of-life.com/moreinfo/foodcharts.htm. This website is provides an example of a food chart and is not recommended by me for any other reason. This website: http://www.alkalizeforhealth.net/ contains great information on cancer and diet.

What Does This Mean to Me?

I will continue to read and learn more. I promote moderation in my food consumption and lifestyle. I eat meats (acidic), fruit and vegetables (alkaline), fermented dairy (alkaline) and rice (acidic). I promote health through eating healthy, nutrient dense food. Because my food is nutrient dense, my food consumption is much diminished and I crave almost nothing, except for the occasional raw food. Making dinner is becoming hard because we have no strong cravings. Another benefit is that eating nutrient dense food eliminates all of the uncertainty and anxiety around finding the “right diet.” Talk about freedom!

I can choose to listen to western medicine and ignore the alkaline versus acidic debate, or I can explore it because living proof of success exists: through the Okinawans, through the recent testimonials of self-cure by mothers who are part of the Holistic Moms Network, and through many other testimonials that you will find if you look. The bottom line - lemon a day can at best help you alkalize and prepare your body for the acidic foods that will enter it later in the day and at worst do nothing. For me it is an easy choice.

What a Life!

I have a joyous feeling that has been growing over the past several months. I experienced this feeling one other time – when I unexpectedly and joyously found myself single at the age of 28. I met incredible people because of that sheer joy. The most incredible person is my husband, Ryan.

I am a positive person, having survived many trials in my youth. Once I achieved adulthood and had my first chance at truly being my own, independent person, at 28 years, my joy burst forth. I was vibrating at a level that I never could have imagined. The opportunities were endless and it was the best time of my life.

Life is about cycles, and I did not maintain that vibration. My life was still filled with joy, awe and wonder, but it was not nearly as energetic and intense. This was due to the beginning failure of my body when I became a mother, worked full time, took care of my son full time and helped my husband in his business. My joyous vibration pretty much disappeared due to sheer, incomprehensible exhaustion. It was gone for about four years, and then I began to learn and slowly climb back to health.

I reflect on where I was two years ago and where I am now, and I laugh with joy. Now I am writing about my journey, which continually reminds me about how far I have come. That tickles me over and over. I am helping other people start their journeys to improve their health and vibrancy. The joy I experience each time a person learns that they can and are supposed to feel great, and then they begin to take action, is crazy wonderful! I am again having the time of my life.

My joyously high vibration is bringing incredible people into my life. The mentors I need have come forward. I am writing a book, and two very wonderful and kind authors have offered to help me find my way when I get closer to publishing. A new food mentor will help me further along on my healing journey, and two other mentors are helping me understand the mind, body, spirit connection. I am overwhelmed by the generosity of these people.

I had a great discussion with Ryan last night regarding our spirituality. The layoff that we experienced almost two years ago was the start of a profound change for me. While I let it have some serious effects on my health, it made me much stronger. I have no sense of entitlement any longer. Material things are of very minor importance. I am happy having a home, food, clothes and money to pay my bills. I see wondrous things all around me. Now I want a different spiritual path. I looked at a website for a Buddhist temple that my friend attends. As Ryan and I read and reflected on it, we realized we are ready to learn more. We came across this great link for a dance of joy while visiting the website Where the Hell is Matt? 2008. This man’s dance strongly resonates with me, and I hope you view it. I wish you joyous movement forward!

Saving the Cast Iron Pans and the Windows

You have to appreciate friends! Right after my “scramble the pancakes in the cast iron pan meltdown”, Shannon comes up with a great recipe that will save breakfast for my son (and save my sanity)! She brilliantly modified the coconut flour muffin recipe and turned it into an almond flour one. THANK YOU!!! These muffins are so tasty and worth it.

Shannon’s Almond Flour Muffins

Preheat oven to 375°

Ingredients:

3 eggs room temp

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 cup agave syrup (I use honey because it is a monosaccharide and doesn’t feed the bad bugs in the digestive system)

1/2 tsp. baking soda

3/4 - 1 cup almond flour (start with 3/4 and if mixture is too liquid, add last 1/4 cup) 

1/2 cup blueberries

1/4 cup butter or coconut oil, melted

-mix first 4 ingredients

-mix the next two ingredients together and add to first 4

-add last two ingredients.

-generously grease muffin pan with coconut oil and fill each cavity to the top

-bake for 15 minutes if using mini-muffin pans and almost 20 minutes if using standard pans.

DO NOT OVERCOOK. NUT FLOURS OVERCOOK EASILY. If using frozen berries, which I do, you may need to bake about 5 to 10 minutes more.

The No ‘Poo Method

And now for something a little different. I did not know what “No ‘Poo” meant when I saw the discussion on the national Holistic Moms loop. I assumed that someone’s child had difficulty relieving himself (it is usually the boys who suffer this problem). That topic was of no interest, so I didn’t follow the discussion until my friend Erin chimed in. Then I clicked on and to my surprise found that the discussion involved cleaning your head without shampoo or conditioner! That was of interest, as I was having scalp problems for three years and found no relief.

What to do, what to do, as my old calculus prof used to say. Pick up the phone and call Erin, of course! She coached me and told me it is very simple. I followed her instructions, and my scalp improved by about 75 percent. Now people ask me about No ‘Poo, and they have been asking more often so I am putting it on the blog.

How to No ‘Poo

It is very easy. Take about 2 TBS of baking soda and make a paste with water. Rub it bit by bit into your scalp. You want to keep it as much on your scalp as possible, as it will dry your hair if you use it all over in the same fashion as shampoo. Once it is all on your scalp, be sure to rub all over. Rinse.

Conditioner is raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar. Mix approximately 2 TBS of apple cider vinegar with 12 oz of water. I keep a bottle pre-mixed in the shower. Put the mixture on the ends of your hair, trying to avoid your scalp. Leave it on the rest of the shower while you are washing and then wash it out during the final rinse. You will smell just fine, not like apple cider vinegar. During non-wash days, I just rinse my hair in the shower.

I wash every two to three days. You will know when it is time to wash, as your scalp will start to feel not right. By the end of day three I start to itch. I haven’t brushed my curly hair in about eight months, and I do not have tangle.

Some of the Difficulties that may Occur when Starting No ‘Poo

If you have been using mainstream shampoo and conditioner from the grocery store, you have been stripping oil from your scalp, and your scalp is over-producing oil. When going No ‘Poo, your scalp is still over-producing oil, you are no longer stripping it, and your hair could be very oily for awhile. Stick with it because your scalp will normalize.

I did not have any oily problems, probably because I was using only organic shampoo and conditioner, which is more gentle.

What to Say when Going to the Stylist

I was a bit concerned about what my stylist would think when I told her that I had gone No ‘Poo and I did not want her to wash my hair. She was very intrigued, wet my hair, and was psyched by who great it felt. With a big smile she said “That is how hair is supposed to feel!” She could see that my scalp was healing and asked if the No ‘Poo was helping. I told her it was, and she now recommends it to her clients with troublesome scalp problems.

How Did I Finish Healing My Scalp?

With wonderful, organic, homemade food. As soon as my family got our game faces on in July and refined our diet further, the last of the scalp problems disappeared. Easy, fun, and delicious. And so worth it! Healthy, happy, curly hair at a fraction of the cost of my former organic shampoos and conditioners.

My Family Had Scrambled Pancakes This Morning…

And I wanted to throw my cast iron pan through the window!!!! 

What a morning. Almond flour pancakes sticking all over the place. In an effort to keep the toxins from non-stick pans out of my family’s food, I threw the non-stick pans out the window and bought cast iron. After a few sticking incidents from the pancakes, I got a clue and seasoned the pans in the oven. To season cast iron, grease them with coconut oil and bake at 350°. I do it for a half hour, but I am sure the time is flexible.

Back to the story. After about four months of relatively wonderful almond flour pancakes, the pancakes became a mess. Sometimes sticking was the problem, so I now season the pans before every use. Sometimes they are just too runny. The sticking became a non-factor again with regular seasoning, but oh, the runny pancakes! Nut flour needs to be cooked slowly because it burns quickly and won’t cook through. Even with cooking super extra slowly, the pancakes were still running unmercifully! I was at it for 45 minutes this morning, producing pathetic looking, messed up pancakes (and only 20 of them!) Then it happened…I snapped and scrambled them. I did not know how scrambled pancakes would go over with Colson, but thank goodness he ate them, or he would have been seeing the window too!

I am calm now, and going to regroup. My theory is that the pancakes have become sweeter, and the additional honey is making them too runny. I will give it another try in a couple of days. Until then we will enjoy our scrambled cakes and work on being Zen when making them.

Small Steps Leading to Great Success

As I have the opportunity to introduce more people to healthy eating, the discussions remind me how important it is to emphasize small steps. I have not found one person who is able to change everything at once. It was a long, empowering, wonderful and surprising journey for my family to get to where we are. We will remain on this journey for life and have great fun and surprises along the way. The important step is to pick a place and just start.

Where to start? That depends on what is most interesting to you. Perhaps it is cleaning the fake food out of your house. My friend Robin Ingersoll, who is trying to clean up school lunches, has a great article on what she calls the “Fake Five” http://www.moms-inc.com/TheFakeFive.htm. Robin has taken on a herculean task and her efforts have been needed for many decades. I want to emphasize my agreement with Robin, but I also want to emphasize that in order to achieve the kind of vibrant health that is possible you have to continue past this part of the journey and refine what you do.

I have been asked how I convinced my son to take this journey. Fortunately, Colson has been raised organic, so that part was easy. Cutting out the sugar and grains was fairly easy as well. He was only five when we refined our diets to where we are now (no sugar, only honey to sweeten, no grain, no dairy except what is fermented at home and certain raw cheeses, and no beans except green, lima and navy). He understood that we were doing this to get rid of his “sneezy” allergies, and he definitely wants them gone. It can get frustrating for him sometimes, but he knows that he is improving, and he understands that Ryan and I have made great strides, so his pushback is generally minimal and he is beginning to try and figure out how food can help him and other people.

Now that we have experienced some very significant healing, we are able to be a bit more flexible and reintroduce some foods, such as rice and the occasional organic pizza, which makes Colson happy. I have found and created some great baking recipes, and he likes those foods very much. It has taken awhile to find these recipes, as there are many not so good nut flour ones out there. Check out the recipes section and ingredients suppliers section of the blog.

If you are still uncertain where to start, make some broth, the number one recipe on the blog. It is the foundation for healing. It is easy. It tastes better than any soup you have had. Or, ditch the processed sugar, a huge breeder of illness, including cancer. Just pick something and go. Success will breed success, taking you further on the journey.

The Ice Cream Cake Test

We were at a birthday party today and Colson asked me if he could eat the cake. I asked him what he thought, given that it had white sugar and flour in it. He said that he thought we could do it. I told him that I agreed because we had done quite a bit of healing the last six months. We agreed that we would tell each other how we felt after eating it.

What was in the cake? It was our friend’s famous ice cream cake. It was so luscious last year, and we were excited to be having it again. It was loaded with Bryers ice cream, Oreos (they usually use a healthy version of these but didn’t this time, so we had all kinds of ultra-bad fake stuff), candy bars, you name it. Up until now, we had been eating in the top 99.99 percent of healthy eaters, so I had no idea what to expect as far as how our bodies would feel. Colson reported no adverse effects. I had an interesting 25 minutes of rapidly changing annoyances. It began with a strong burning sensation on my tongue, followed by a headache that quickly came and went several times, and then my lungs became irritated and I began coughing. The irritations quickly disappeared and I was fine 25 minutes later.

I knowingly and without trepidation put a toxic birthday stew into my body because I suspected that my body would face the challenge pretty well and I wanted to test it. I think the 25 minutes of irritation was an improvement compared to the last time I had ice cream. I had organic ice cream last August, six weeks into this eating adventure. Within ten minutes of finishing my heart started beating irregularly for about two hours, and I had a headache and muscle spasms. That ice cream was much, much healthier than today’s ice cream cake.

Today’s cake was a great experiment. It reminded me of how far I have come, and how bad that “food” is for my health. My body is stronger than when I had the first ice cream test, but clearly and emphatically it let me know that it will make me pay for putting unhealthy things into it. Needless to say, I came home, took a power walk, and ate some beef stew with bone broth.

We have another birthday party next week, and another one in February. I am not sure what I am going to do regarding Colson and his eating or not eating the cake. I will experiment this week with some healthy icing for dipping the chocolate coconut cookies, which he loves. If the icing makes the cookies seem extra special, I think that will be his birthday treat.

Chocolate Coconut Cookie Recipe – So Good You Could Cry!

My family could not believe how good these cookies are!!!! Finding a nut flour cookie replacement has been almost impossible…until these. Because they are pretty healthy, I even let Colson have two with his breakfast.

I modified the recipe from a Going Against the Grain Website. I replaced the sugar and stevia in the original recipe with honey, and I added organic, fair trade cocoa powder. My family only sweetens with honey, as it is a monosaccharide and does not feed the toxic yeasts/cooters that used to inhabit our guts in large numbers. Be sure to check out the ingredients suppliers link on this blog to find an affordable source for coconut flour.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter (1 stick), very soft or slightly melted and creamy

2/3 cup raw, unfiltered honey

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

4 eggs

1/2 cup sifted coconut flour

1.5 TBS cocoa powder

2 cups unsweetened grated coconut: fine, coarse or combination

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease cookie sheet (I use a silicone mat instead of greasing).

Mix together soft butter and honey. Add eggs and vanilla; mix well.

Add coconut flour, cocoa powder and grated coconut; mix well.

Drop cookie dough by spoonfuls or dough scoop onto pan one inch apart (cookies don't spread). These cookies do not spread out when cooking. They hold their shape similar to macaroons.

Bake 375°F for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown. Remove to wire rack immediately to cool.

Makes approximately 30 – 36 cookies.

The Soy Scam

I am struck by how many people believe Soy is good for them. One person I know had a Soy dinner party. It might as well have been a “fill yourself full of toxic, cancer causing, hormone changing, poison” party. Some members of a group to which I belong regularly consume soy products. A mom at one of Colson’s activities has her family consuming soy due to allergies to dairy, but she is quitting. A dear friend in Florida finally kicked the soy habit. It is everywhere…as additives to “food”, as tofu, as a replacement for milk, in an ice cream-like dessert, and more. The soy industry is as happy as it can be.

Many who believe soy is healthy respond to the criticisms that soy can cause many illnesses by saying that Asian people have been eating soy for thousands of years, it is a staple in their diets, and they are healthy. A quick search of the Internet will reveal warning after warning about the dangerous effects of soy on health. Here are a few of the myths and facts addressed on the Weston A. Price Foundation’s (WAP) website http://www.westonaprice.org/mythstruths/mtsoy.html:

Myth: Use of soy as a food dates back many thousands of years.

Truth: Soy was first used as a food during the late Chou dynasty (1134-246 BC), only after the Chinese learned to ferment soy beans to make foods like tempeh, natto and tamari.

Myth: Asians consume large amounts of soy foods.

Truth: Average consumption of soy foods in Japan and China is 10 grams (about 2 teaspoons) per day. Asians consume soy foods in small amounts as a condiment, and not as a replacement for animal foods.

Myth: Modern soy foods confer the same health benefits as traditionally fermented soy foods.

Truth: Most modern soy foods are not fermented to neutralize toxins in soybeans, and are processed in a way that denatures proteins and increases levels of carcinogens.

A succinct list of the dangers of soy is also found on the WAP website (the WAP website also has many other articles on soy): http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/index.html. Here are the top four:

• High levels of phytic acid in soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. Phytic acid in soy is not neutralized by ordinary preparation methods such as soaking, sprouting and long, slow cooking. High phytate diets have caused growth problems in children.

• Trypsin inhibitors in soy interfere with protein digestion and may cause pancreatic disorders. In test animals soy containing trypsin inhibitors caused stunted growth.

• Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause infertility and to promote breast cancer in adult women.

• Soy phytoestrogens are potent antithyroid agents that cause hypothyroidism and may cause thyroid cancer. In infants, consumption of soy formula has been linked to autoimmune thyroid disease.

With the exception of properly fermented soy, described in Sally Fallon’s Nourishing Traditions, soy should be avoided.

Health, Hope and Everything

Once Ryan was employed (see the previous post) and we had moved to a new home and settled in, we thought we would try for another baby one last time. A year earlier (I was 40) we had an unsuccessful pregnancy. True to form, the first time was a charm. Things seemed to be moving along as planned when we had our first midwife visit. I was only ten weeks, and feeling great and nauseous. The midwife could not pick up a heartbeat. She said not to worry, as it was early in the pregnancy. Because I was 41, we decided to receive genetic counseling, and while at that appointment an ultrasound would be conducted. I would be just over 13 weeks.

Unfortunately, I started bleeding about a week later, when I was just over 11 weeks. The midwife sent me immediately to the hospital for an ultrasound, and I learned that the baby died on the day of my first midwife appointment. My body had begun to abort the fetus. So we waited, and waited and waited. After a couple of weeks I took some medication to help the pregnancy terminate. The pregnancy terminated and Ryan called the midwife to report what he had observed. She said it sounded like all went smoothly.

We had only about a half-hour to mourn because I began to hemorrhage at about 11:30 p.m. I did not understand that I was hemorrhaging (looking back it is astonishing that neither Ryan nor I understood what was happening!), and I called and discussed the situation with the midwife four times. She said that I had not expelled all of the tissue and my body was trying to complete the job. It is impossible to explain how surreal the whole process was, and I do not think that I adequately conveyed the amount of bleeding. The amount of bleeding was unimaginable. The midwife sent me to the emergency room (ER) at 1:30 a.m. I didn’t want to wake the neighbors to watch Colson, and I didn’t want to wake Colson, so I told Ryan I felt fine and would drive myself. Talk about dumb! I made it to the ER safely, but the ER doctor was in disbelief. Apparently I could have passed out while driving due to the blood loss. I finally understood how serious it all was when I almost passed out in the triage area, but I was going to complete that blood pressure test the way they asked me to -- standing up!

The ER doctor had me immediately call Ryan to have him come to the hospital. He inserted two IVs to keep my blood pressure up until the obstetrician (OB) on call arrived. She was astonished and upset by my whole experience, and seemed a little angry (at what I am not sure). She said she might have to give me blood transfusions, and I said that I did not want someone else’s blood. Mine was just fine. She said she may not have an option. I told her to do it only if I was going to die, and she said ok. Then she said she may have to keep me a day or two, which I also did not want.

The ER doctor and the OB doctor were excellent, as were all of the nurses who assisted. I am forever grateful to them for making an unimaginable experience as good as it was.

Now for the Amazing Part

I entered the ER at 1:30 a.m. and I was heading home by 6:30 a.m. The OB estimates that I lost between two and three units of blood. I did not receive a blood transfusion, and I left the hospital well before they anticipated. I attribute this success to the food-based healing that I had been doing for the past year. The OB also said that it would take about three months for me to recover due to the amount of blood that I lost. I am unable to explain how physically terrible I felt. “Train wreck” and “run over” do not even come close. I also could not sleep.

What did I do? A day later I called Dr. Ken Morehead at Oriental Health Solutions (OHS) and explained what happened. He said that he would mix a blood building herbal formula for me to pick up, and he would also teach me how to eat to facilitate healing. He said I would be fairly recovered in 30 days instead of the 90 days that the OB projected.

I took the herbal formula and supplements that Ken gave to me, ate the iron-building foods he recommended, and rested for 30 days. Ken also told me that when a person loses a lot of blood they are unable to sleep for a couple of days, so I should not worry. Sure enough, around day four I began to sleep. I did everything the way Ken said I should. On day 31 I took a slow walk. I took that walk for three days and then rested for three days. After that I was quickly coming back to health and I have been rocketing forward ever since. My bloodwork amazed the midwives and they wanted to know how I had recovered so quickly.

My recovery is due to the healing that I was experiencing before the miscarriage and the phenomenal guidance of Ken both before and after the miscarriage. Our health really is all about the food we eat. Food is so much more powerful than the synthetic medications, vitamins or other “health aids” that are prescribed.

We have EVERYTHING!

This past 18 months has been an amazing time for my family. I lost two pregnancies, I could have lost my life, we lost our predominant source of income due to Ryan’s layoff, and we almost lost our home and possessions. We have been stretched to our thinnest, yet we feel that we have more than ever. Everything is based on health, which is more in our control than most people will ever know.