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Fri, 29 Oct 2021
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'Lunatic farmer' Joel Salatin: The rise of rogue food

Adam Taggart
peakprosperity.com
Mon, 06 Aug 2018 18:26 UTC
lunatic farmer
© Peter Menzel
A 'food freedom' revolt against the government is starting

This week, we welcome back Joel Salatin to the podcast. Labeled by The Washington Post as "the most famous farmer in America", Joel has spent his career advocating for sustainable farming practices and pioneering models that show how food can be grown and raised in ways that are regenerative to our topsoils, more humane to livestock, produce much healthier & tastier food, and contribute profitably to the local economy.

Who wouldn't want that?

Well, the government and Big Ag for starters. Joel refers to himself as a 'lunatic farmer' because so many of the changes he thinks our food system needs are either illegal under the current law or mightily resisted by the deep-pocketed corporations controlling production and distribution.

Comment: Read more about the 'lunatic farmer' Joel Salatin:

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Better Earth

Italy: Senate overturns mandatory vaccination law, prepares 'freedom of choice' option

Hannah Roberts
Financial Times
Thu, 09 Aug 2018 09:19 UTC
vaccinations
© Bloomberg
A law compelling children enrolling at state schools to have 10 vaccinations has been removed
Italy's upper house of parliament has voted through legislation from the ruling anti-establishment government to remove the legal obligation to vaccinate schoolchildren.

A law compelling children to have 10 vaccinations in order to enrol at state schools came into effect in March, after a surge in the number of measles cases. But the Five Star Movement and the League, which formed a ruling coalition two months ago, pledged to scrap the vaccination obligation during the run-up to elections in March, courting the so-called "anti-vax" vote.

The new legislation puts Italy out of step with other European countries such as France and Germany, which have been bolstering vaccine regulation. Critics say the government is eroding faith in science and nine Italian regional administrations that oppose the repeal have said they intend to appeal to the constitutional court or bring in their own laws to reinstate compulsory vaccines.

Comment: So the party ran on the pledge that they would drop mandatory vaccinations and on winning the vote, a majority of parliament backed the policy, isn't that how democracy works? As for vaccines, it has been shown time and again that the studies backing their efficacy are flawed, and there is increasing evidence that they may actually be responsible for the very outbreaks and deaths they claim to aim to prevent:

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Eye 1

4 ways to keep from losing your eyesight (Cataracts)

Sayer Ji
Green Med Info
Wed, 08 Aug 2018 15:18 UTC
eyeball
The human eye is uniquely equipped to stay young in appearance and health late into life (thanks to the heightened expression of the enzyme telomerase) but not without good nutrition!

The gradual clouding of the lens inside of the eye which leads to a decrease in vision - even blindness - is called a cataract. It is believed to be an inevitable part of aging, but it has clearly modifiable risk factors and natural interventions that can be used to slow and even reverse its progression, such as:
  1. Avoid Cholesterol-Lowering Statin Drugs: It has been known from animal research for over two decades that statin drugs have the potential to cause the progressive clouding over of the lens of the eye known as cataract, and which is the most common cause of blindness.[1],[2] Post-marketing surveillance of statin drug users also shows that when taken, either alone[3] or in combination with other drugs which inhibit their metabolism, [4] these drugs increase the risk of cataract in those who take them. One of the identified mechanisms for the cataractogenic potential of these drugs is that they are able to gain systemic distribution throughout the body, passing through the blood-brain-barrier and entering the eye itself - particularly the outer cortical region of the lens where cholesterol synthesis is critical - thereby producing lens damage. For more information read our article "Cholesterol Drugs Linked to Eye Damage, JAMA Study Confirms Anew" or view the statin citations on our Cataract page.
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Cheeseburger

From the mess hall to your kitchen: How the military played a role in America's obesity crisis

Daniel Ross
Alternet
Fri, 04 May 2018 14:26 UTC
army meal
© Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Lange/Army.mil
Pfc. Maria Pampolina, culinary specialist assigned to 10th Combat Aviation Brigade, provides food to unit members at a field site at Novo Selo Training Area.
There's no avoiding the debris of modern living on a trip to your local grocery store-rows and rows of foods and products that, if not ready to eat, are designed and packaged to be prepared quickly and to last an age. Makes sense, right? Busy lives require time-saving measures.

But it turns out that a considerable quantity of these items exist as a result of food-preservation experiments first conducted by the military, at the nexus of which is the Natick Soldier Systems Center, the U.S. Army's food science lab in Massachusetts. What's more, the military has partnered for decades with private corporations and state universities in order to refine these innovations and to disseminate them as widely into civilian life as possible-a partnership with a federal mandate, it should be noted.

Some experts estimate that as many as 70 percent of products found in a typical supermarket originate with, or are influenced by, these experiments conducted by the military. But as Anastacia Marx de Salcedo, author of the well-received 2015 book Combat-Ready Kitchen: How the U.S. Military Shapes the Way You Eat, points out, the military designed their products to be used in extreme, stressful situations over short periods of time.
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Cow

Vegans and vegetarians may think they're 'eating healthy' but lack of B-12 is taking its toll

Dr. Ralph Green
Fox News
Sun, 05 Aug 2018 00:01 UTC
fruits and vegetables
More than 7 million Americans are now vegetarian, and more and more are converting every year. The number of vegans in the U.S. increased by 600 percent between 2014 and 2017.

And while it is true that predominantly plant-based diets have numerous benefits, they can also cause several underappreciated health problems.

The reason? Those who avoid animal food products often do not get enough B-12, the much-needed vitamin found in animal products that helps build red blood cells, repair DNA, and protect the brain.

That could be dangerous. Whether through more animal foods, including eggs and dairy, or a dietary supplement, Americans must ensure they get enough of this essential but scarce micronutrient.

Comment: The importance of vitamin B12 cannot be understated. The fact that there is essentially none of the vitamin in plant-based diets should give us a hint as to whether or not it's in the running for the "ideal human diet," as many vegans claim. While supplementing is simple enough, why not go to the source - clean, pasture raised animal sources?

See also:

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Muffin

Forget the 'fad' label, here's the surprising, gut-wrenching truth about gluten

Joanna Blythman
The Guardian
Tue, 07 Aug 2018 13:02 UTC
gluten free breads
© minoandriani/Getty Images/iStockphoto
Gluten-free breads.

While just 1% of the UK is allergic to the proteins that cause coeliac disease, many others suffer with gluten-related digestive problems. Some researchers believe mass-produced food is to blame

In the UK, one in 10 people now avoid gluten, and they can increasingly choose from a wide array of food products to help them do so. Last year, the "free-from" market, with gluten-free as its anchor, showed a 27% rise in sales. Gluten-free bread, cakes and pasta have become a staple of supermarkets - in recent weeks, Warburtons launched a range of gluten-free wraps, including one made from beetroot, while Stella Artois launched a gluten-free beer, certified by Coeliac UK. In the lucrative cookbook sector, there are gluten-free offerings by everyone from Ella Woodward to Novak Djokovic, with the tennis star crediting the diet with turning his health around. He is not alone in believing a gluten-free diet is healthier: 15% of British households prefer not to put foods with gluten and wheat in their shopping basket, more than half of them on health grounds. Yet, as surely as the popularity of gluten-free eating has grown, scepticism of the "it's all in the mind" sort has matched it.

Comment: When it comes right down to it, eliminating gluten from ones' diet is going to lead to improvements in the vast, vast majority of people. Let the nay-sayers say nay. One can only be convinced by experiencing the benefits for themselves.

See also:

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Health

Why ginger works so well for halitosis

Karen Foster
Prevent Disease
Thu, 02 Aug 2018 14:07 UTC
ginger
Ginger stimulates saliva flow and digestive activity, settles the stomach, relieves vomiting, eases pain from gas and diarrhea, and is effective as an anti-nausea remedy. Scientists have now found the constituent in ginger responsible for eliminating bad breath.

The pungent compound 6-gingerol, a constituent of ginger which enhances gastrointestinal transport and relieves asthma, also stimulates an enzyme contained in saliva -- an enzyme which breaks down foul-smelling substances. It thus ensures fresh breath and a better aftertaste. Citric acid, on the other hand, increases the sodium ion content of saliva, making salty foods taste less salty. To find out more about food components, a team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Leibniz- Institute for Food Systems Biology investigated the effects of food components on the molecules dissolved in saliva.

Many food components contribute directly to the characteristic taste of food and beverages by means of contributing their own particular taste, scent or spiciness. However, they also indirectly influence our sense of taste via other, still largely unknown biochemical mechanisms. A team led by Professor Thomas Hofmann from the Chair of Food Chemistry and Molecular Sensory Science has now investigated this phenomenon in greater detail.
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Cookie

Who's in charge of the American diet?

Kelly Brogan, MD
kellybroganmd.com
Sun, 05 Aug 2018 13:20 UTC
food and wine
Ever wonder how the US government formulates the dietary recommendations that it then passes on to you and your families? One would hope that the committees dedicated to creating said dietary guidelines would diligently review relevant data while also mindfully considering that which data may never be able to "prove" when it comes to nutrition.

Sadly, this is far from the truth.

Comment:

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Beer

Binge drinking could increase risk of Alzheimer's

Dr. Joseph Mercola
Mercola.com
Thu, 21 Jun 2018 00:01 UTC
binge drinking
Drinking alcohol has been found to have both a protective and damaging effect on the brain, depending on which study you read and how much alcohol is consumed. The jury is still out on whether light or moderate consumption may be good for your brain, but it's becoming increasingly clear that heavy drinking is not. Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago even revealed how alcohol may increase your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, by disrupting the way amyloid beta is cleared.

Amyloid beta is a protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease that can clump together in the brain, building up into groups of clumps or a sticky plaque that may disrupt cell-to-cell signaling.1 The study, published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation,2 reveals that binge drinking or heavy alcohol consumption may make it more likely that the brain will accumulate these damaging proteins, contributing to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

Comment: While the effects of moderate alcohol consumption on the brain are still up for debate, the negative consequences of binge drinking are rather obvious. It's something that is bad for health in multiple ways.

See also:

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Bacon n Eggs

Correct: 40% of Russians know that vegetarian diet is unhealthy - Just 1% are veggies


RT
Fri, 03 Aug 2018 15:23 UTC
russian food market
© Ramil Sitdikov / Sputnik
Products on the counters of Velozavodsky market in Moscow, which has recently reopened after renovation
Less than one percent of Russians admitted to following a vegetarian diet in a recent poll and well over a third of respondents stated that, in their opinion, a vegetarian diet is harmful to your health.

According to the poll conducted by the Russian state-run public opinion research center VTSIOM at the very end of July, 39 percent of Russians think that a vegetarian diet is harmful for their health. Some 20 percent of respondents described the vegetarian diet as good for health and 27 percent think it has no effect on the human body.

It should be noted that when researchers asked the public to describe vegetarianism, half of respondents said that it must be a way of life for those who never eat meat and fish. The other half said that true vegetarians only eat plant-based food.

Comment: Refreshing common sense displayed by the Russian people.

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