ACED a Cold

The best thing to do is to eat a healthy diet of nutrient dense foods, high in vitamins, minerals, fiber, enzymes, etc. The closer to how these foods are created the higher the nutrients.  The further from their original state and the more refined, the fewer nutrients. Fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, lean meats, dairy, legumes, and whole grains are nutrient dense resources. 

Cinnamon a Spice for Life

I have been reading about humble cinnamon and it really is a spice for life! I decided to check it out since I use it in my morning breakfast bowl.

Cinnamon is mentioned in the Bible and is one of the oldest spices known.

Cinnamon benefits:

* is anti inflammatory by inhibit the release of the fatty acid called arachidonic acid, and thereby preventing the clumping of blood platelets.
* is anti microbial and in most cases can help stop the growth of candida!
* is anti bacterial and can inhibited the growth of the food borne pathogenic Bacillus cereus.
* can cause the stomach to empty slower and therefore reduces the rise of blood sugar, thus helping regulate blood sugar levels.
* can increase the cell's ability to absorb and store glycogen.
* enhances insulin signaling.
* "not only stimulates insulin receptors, but also inhibit an enzyme that inactivates them, thus significantly increasing cells' ability to use glucose."
* can prevent insulin resistance in animals on a high fructose diet.
* Cinnamon's scent can enhance brain function.
* can bring Arthritis relief.
* can reduce the proliferation of Lymphoma and Leukemia cells.
* can fight E.coli in un-pasteurized juices.
* can be used as an effective food preservative
* can in small amounts of less than 1/2 teaspoon, help maintain a pregnancy by normalizing hormones and regulating insulin levels.
* can help with nausea

Caution:
* Cinnamon in large doses (three tablespoons a day) can cause miscarriage in early pregnancy and is a uterine stimulant.
that can promote contractions in late pregnancy and labor.
* Cinnamon can cause contact dermatitis, so use gloves when grinding it.


Some sites for more cinnamon information:
This site has the list of studies done on cinnamon: The World's Healthiest Foods
BrainReady sites other studies.
10 Health Benefits of Cinnamon
Cinnamon Health

Dietary Fiber and "An Apple a Day!"

Apples are a humble food. I was once told that there is more nutrition in a chocolate bar than in an apple. This may be true, but I feel that apple has many more benefits. I was also told that we need fiber in our diet. When I was at BYU, I took a Botany class. We each had to do a project, on anything that had anything to do with plants, and we had to use current research journals; article published in peer reviewed journal during the previous two years. I chose to write my paper on fiber in the diet.

I learned that not all fiber is created of equal value. There are two main groupings-- insoluble and soluble, five types of fiber--Cellulose, Hemi-cellulose, Pectin, Lignins, Gums, and Mucilages. Insoluble cannot be dissolved in water. It moves food through the intestines faster and might reduce colon cancer. Within those two categories are several kinds of fiber. This led me to ask, which fiber to eat, and which is the best? They all have their benefits and jobs, I discovered that it is best to have variety.

In Iran, the men got three times the iron in their diet than they needed, but it was mostly from wheat. The phytates (an insoluble fiber) in the wheat, bound with the iron in the diet and passed it right out of the body. Though wheat may be a good source of fiber, it is probably not a reliable source of iron, and another source of iron should be included in the diet.

What about pectin? WOW! That humble apple has pectin, which is a great aide for people concerned about their cholesterol. The pectin actually encapsulates the bad cholesterol and pass it from the body. Since then, I learned more about apples and the healthful benefits that come from eating them.

Apple Trivia or more than you ever wanted or needed to know about apples:

* There are over 2000 varieties of apples.
* Apples are a member of the rose family.
* Folk lore associates the forbidden fruit with the apple, hence the apple is associated with knowledge. The term "Adam's apple" comes from the tradition that when Adam bit the apple a piece got stuck in his throat.
* The oldest apple seeds found were in the Caucasus Mountains, crab apples. Mount Ararat (or anciently Urartu) is where Noah's ark landed.
* There were apple orchards along the Nile Delta as early as 1300 BC.
* Isaac Newton confirmed gravity while sitting under an apple tree.
* There were only 4 varieties of apples on the Eastern seaboard of America when the Europeans arrived. Europeans brought apple seeds from the "Old World" when they came to America.
* One bushel of apples will yeild about 2 gallons of apple juice.
* John Chapman, known as Johnny Appleseed, was a self appointed Christian missionary and orchardist. He collected apple seeds from the cider presses and used them to plant orchards along the main wilderness trails from Pennsylvania, through Ohio, Indiana, ending at Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he died in March 1845. Along the way, he preached, shared, or spread his Swedenborgian Christian beliefs. He was born 26 September 1744 in Leominster, Massachusetts. He was contemporary to Joseph Smith.
* In 1892, my husband's great-grandfather Emmet Stull Goff, Horticultural professor at the University of Wisconsin, introduced apple orchards to Door County, Wisconsin.
* Brigham Young told the saints to plant orchards to eat and export.
* President Kimball asked the saints to grow apple trees and other fruits.
* My favorite apple for sauce, cakes, and pie, is the Jonathan.
* I cannot eat red delicious, I will double over with stomach pain. Nor worries, there are plenty of other apples that I can enjoy.
* Apples play a role in scripture, folk lore, and fairy tales. Who can forget Snow White and the poison apple?

Scriptures:

Deuteronomy 32:10, Psalms 17:8, Proverbs 7:2, Song of Solomon 2:3 (also 2:5 and 8:5), Lamentations 2:18, Joel 1:12, and Zechariah 2:8.

Apple and Health:

On the Up Side--
* It is best to eat apples and their skins, as much of the nutrition is just under the skin.
* Apples , as well as their juice, and sauce are high in flavonoids and othe compounds known for their antioxidant activity.
* Cornell University has been doing apple research. There are a number of compounds in the apple skins that inhibit and can even kill cancer cells.
* Apples are low in calories, high in fiber (pectin), and a good source of potassium and vitamin C.
* In a study at Michigan State University, researchers found that those subjects who ate 2 or more apples a day had less headaches and respiratory illnesses and had better health in general than those subjects who ate none.
* A study done at Rutgers University showed that apple pectins trap and prevent cholesterol from building up in the linings of blood vessels. This results in lowered blood pressure and reduced arteriosclerosis symptoms.

Down Side--
* Apples are the second most pesticide-ridden fruit, after peaches, according to rankings by The Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington-based nonprofit. A single apple can contain as many as 12 different pesticides, even after washing. MSNBC June 21, 2007

Solution--
* Buy organic
* Grow your own and use alternative controls.

Slow Food and Convivia

I enjoy the process of preparing food, as a social art. I guess it goes back to memories of sitting on the front porch with grandma shelling peas, snapping beans, or shucking corn. Also, making pies with grandma, mom, my aunt, and cousins. There is something to the community process of getting a delicious repast, spread.

I enjoy the sociality as we prepare, enjoy, and clean up. The chatter, the discussion, the connection. The real life, supported by technology in its proper place. Where relationship reigns supreme.

There is a movement afoot, the Slow Food, rather than fast food movement. They call their groups convivia. This movement is only the tip of the iceberg to the movement to just slow down and simplify. I think the baby boomer generation is recalling the simpler life of their childhood and seeking the peace it can bring, to this plugged in, tuned out, high tech world. They are seeking the harmony of life, where technology serves us, rather than controls us. They seek relationship with the living, rather than with objects.

Slow food tastes better and is better for us.

Real Food

As you can see, I prefer to use "real" ingredients, preferring to minimize nutrient loss and minimizing chemical additives.

Butter instead of margarine. I do not buy margarine.

Yes, I use sugar in cookies and cakes, mostly. I rarely use corn syrup, mostly for candy, which is enjoyed sparingly. I do not buy Aspartame, Splenda, High Fructose Corn Syrup or other fake sugar. I do not buy Sugar-free drinks. Sometimes we get gifts of pop from others at Christmas. Sometimes we get root beer with pizza or make root beer floats, again, this is rare, as well. We have done the diet coke and Menthos experiment. No, I have never tried coke on toilet rings.

I prefer scratch to boxed. Really, scratch does not usually take very long. This tends to limit nutrient loss from processing and controls the number of chemical additives to food and limits the amount of high fructose corn syrup.

Though there appears a lot of cookies, cakes, desserts, and snack recipes, they are usually used for family home evening treats, when we have guests, or desserts for celebration. Truly not an everyday fare.