It’s breakfast! Time for your glyphosate!

Healthy Eating, , , , , ,

UGH! EWG (Environmental Working Group) has found many types of oat-based cereals and products contain glyphosate. Glyphosate is used to kill weeds. It is an herbicide by Monsanto marketed as Roundup. In 2015, WHO said it was “probably carcinogenic in humans” but later changed it to give ranges of 1mg/kg body weight per day to be what may be toxic. That’s about 45.36 mg per 100 pounds of weight. In 2017, California listed it in their registry of chemicals known to cause cancer.

EWG tells us more than 250 million pounds of glyphosate are sprayed on American crops. In their study, they benchmarked 160ppb as a standard for health. Of the 45 conventional samples tested, 31 were above that benchmark; of the 16 organic products 0 were above that limit.

Farmers spray this just before harvest to help dry the plants out for harvest. You will not find this in your list of ingredients on your products.

https://www.ewg.org/

Smoked Watermelon? Cantaloupe Burgers?

Healthy Eating, , ,

While looking at Twitter one day, we found a post about a restaurant serving smoked watermelon. They serve it up like, and even make it look like ham. It it put in a bath and then put into a smoker. After it has smoked, it is scored and put in a pan with olive oil and spices. It is then sliced and served. It almost looks like ham. The woman in the video below says it looks a little like rare prime rib and that it tastes like nothing she’s had before. It comes from Ducks Eatery in New York. The chef was looking for options for vegans and vegetarians when dining with their meat-eating friends.

He also developed the cantaloupe burger. These items don’t happen quickly. They undergo a 2-day process to get the correct texture and taste they are looking for.

Cantaloupe Burger info

Physical Activity Recommendations from WHO

Fitness, , ,

WHO (World Health Organization) has developed global recommendations for health. Their recommendations include frequency, duration, intensity, type, and total amount for three age groups, including 5-17 years old, 18-64 years old, and over 65.

For children 5-17 years old:
It is recommended that children should have at least 60 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity per day.
Over 60 minutes has greater benefits.
Most of the activity should be aerobic, but include muscle strengthening.

For adults aged 18-64:
The recommendation for this age group is 150 moderate-intensity aerobic activity through the week or 75 minutes vigorous-intensity activities.
Aerobic activity should be spurts of 10 minutes or more.
For added benefit, increase moderate-intensity to 300 minutes per week or 150 vigorous activity per week.
Muscle-strengthening should take place 2 or more days a week.

For adults over 65:
The recommendation is similar to aged 18-64: 150 minutes moderate-intensity aerobic or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity per week.
Aerobic in spurts of 10 minutes or more.
For more benefits, jump up moderate activity to 300 or 150 vigorous-intensity activity.
Older adults with poor mobility should work on balance and to prevent falls 3 or more days per week.
Muscle-strengthening 2 or more days per week.
If they cannot do the above, they should be as physically active as their abilities allow.

http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/factsheet_recommendations/en/
http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/publications/9789241599979/en/

Gallbladder

Health Issues, , , ,

The gallbladder is a small organ that we don’t think about until something goes wrong. It is where bile is stored until it is needed. The gallbladder delivers the bile to the small intestine where it breaks down fats. You can get along without it but it you then have to be careful of what you eat. You will have to back off on fats, mostly. It also helps vitamins and nutrients to absorb into your bloodstream.

When your gallbladder has problems, you can experience different symptoms. The most common is pain. It can come on quickly, especially after eating a fatty meal, but it can go just as quickly as if it never was there. You can also experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, chills, fever, and jaundice. The most common problems are gallstones or inflammation.

If you need to have surgery to remove it, it is called a cholecystectomy. Usually you can have it removed laparoscopically which is less invasive. The recovery time is a week or two before resuming regular activities.

Coconut Oil

Healthy Eating, , , ,

Coconut oil has been in the news lately because Karin Michels, an epidemiologist at the T.H. Chan School of Public Health, has called it “one of the worst things you can eat” and “pure poison”. Her comments are based on the high proportion of saturated fat found in it that can cause LDL cholesteral to rise. A video of her speech is on YouTube has gone viral. Alas, it is in German so some of us cannot understand her.

Coconut oil has over 80% saturated fat in it – more than what you would find in beef drippings and lard. Some people like to fry with it because it has a high smoke point. Some use it as a butter substitute in baking to make items dairy-free or to cut back on butter. It is also used in stir-fry. You will also find it in beauty products and hair care products.

Sources
https://www.theguardian.com/food/2018/aug/22/coconut-oil-is-pure-poison-says-harvard-professor
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/benefits-of-coconut-oil_us_59105f7de4b0104c73505c5a