Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Kitchen helper.......?

I remember it clearly - my family was preparing to move from our home of 7 years.  My dad had taken a new position in another town and we were saying our good-byes.  As a thank you gift, a group from church went together and purchased for our family our 1st microwave.  (the year was 1982)  In a family that had 5 permanent children and 19 foster children, I believe they thought my mom could use some help with the food preparation.
The Microwave -a funny invention - something that will cook our food faster and heat our water quicker.  There were many a hotdog cooked in our microwaves and my brother was known to cook just about any kind of meat in 2 minutes or less.  A childhood memory I could really do without.   I am sure somewhere along the way I took a science class that discussed how a microwave works, what was never discussed is what actually occurs to food in the quick heat process.  If you are in love with your microwave and can't see life without it stop reading now.

The following is a summary of the Russian investigations published by the Atlantis Raising Educational Center in Portland, Oregon. Carcinogens were formed in virtually all foods tested.  No test food was subjected to more microwaving than necessary to accomplish the purpose, i.e., cooking, thawing, or heating to insure sanitary ingestion. Here's a summary of some of the results:
  • Microwaving prepared meats sufficiently to insure sanitary ingestion caused formation of d-Nitrosodienthanolamines, a well-known carcinogen.
  • Microwaving milk and cereal grains converted some of their amino acids into carcinogens.
  • Thawing frozen fruits converted their glucoside and galactoside containing fractions into carcinogenic substances.
  • Extremely short exposure of raw, cooked or frozen vegetables converted their plant alkaloids into carcinogens.
  • Carcinogenic free radicals were formed in microwaved plants, especially root vegetables.
  • Decrease in nutritional value
Russian researchers also reported a marked acceleration of structural degradation leading to a decreased food value of 60 to 90% in all foods tested. Among the changes observed were:
  • Deceased bio-availability of vitamin B complex, vitamin C, vitamin E, essential minerals and lipotropics factors in all food tested.
  • Various kinds of damaged to many plant substances, such as alkaloids, glucosides, galactosides and nitrilosides.
  • The degradation of nucleo-proteins in meats.
In Robert O. Becker's book, The Body Electric, he described Russian research on the health effects of microwave radiation, which they called "microwave sickness." On page 314, Becker states:
"It's [Microwave sickness] first signs are low blood pressure and slow pulse. The later and most common manifestations are chronic excitation of the sympathetic nervous system [stress syndrome] and high blood pressure. This phase also often includes headache, dizziness, eye pain, sleeplessness, irritability, anxiety, stomach pain, nervous tension, inability to concentrate, hair loss, plus an increased incidence of appendicitis, cataracts, reproductive problems, and cancer. The chronic symptoms are eventually succeeded by crisis of adrenal exhaustion and ischemic heart disease [the blockage of coronary arteries and heart attacks]."
According to Dr. Lee, changes are observed in the blood chemistries and the rates of certain diseases among consumers of microwaved foods. The symptoms above can easily be caused by the observations shown below. The following is a sample of these changes:
  • Lymphatic disorders were observed, leading to decreased ability to prevent certain types of cancers.
  • An increased rate of cancer cell formation was observed in the blood.
  • Increased rates of stomach and intestinal cancers were observed.
  • Higher rates of digestive disorders and a gradual breakdown of the systems of elimination were observed.
Ten Reasons to Throw out your Microwave Oven:
From the conclusions of the Swiss, Russian and German scientific clinical studies, we can no longer ignore the microwave oven sitting in our kitchens. Based on this research, we will conclude this article with the following:
1). Continually eating food processed from a microwave oven causes long term - permanent - brain damage by "shorting out" electrical impulses in the brain [de-polarizing or de-magnetizing the brain tissue].
2). The human body cannot metabolize [break down] the unknown by-products created in microwaved food.
3). Male and female hormone production is shut down and/or altered by continually eating microwaved foods.
4). The effects of microwaved food by-products are residual [long term, permanent] within the human body.
5). Minerals, vitamins, and nutrients of all microwaved food is reduced or altered so that the human body gets little or no benefit, or the human body absorbs altered compounds that cannot be broken down.
6). The minerals in vegetables are altered into cancerous free radicals when cooked in microwave ovens.
7). Microwaved foods cause stomach and intestinal cancerous growths [tumors]. This may explain the rapidly increased rate of colon cancer in America.
8). The prolonged eating of microwaved foods causes cancerous cells to increase in human blood.
9). Continual ingestion of microwaved food causes immune system deficiencies through lymph gland and blood serum alterations.
10). Eating microwaved food causes loss of memory, concentration, emotional instability, and a decrease of intelligence.
end of article

In the fast paced, I need it now society, we have become accustomed to the quick fix.  Walk through any grocery store aisle and most items are packaged and designed for a quick, "wholesome" meal.  We need to question a little stronger what wholesome looks like and what we are actually ingesting.

If you google microwave cooking you will receive this information and then many other sites that will completely disagree.  My instincts tell me that local farming, fresh whole foods and traditional farming and cooking methods are best for health.  I know that we are all really busy and that sometimes we just don't have the time.  Recently, we have begun using our toaster oven (a favorite heating source during the Texas summers) and the stove top.  I have found that the time it takes to heat or reheat food in this manner seldom is longer than the microwave.  In addition, the food does taste better.

As we strive towards the goal of better health I may have to rid myself of some technologies I thought were helping me and rediscover that a little extra time may go a long way in aiding my family's long-term  health.  

Monday, April 12, 2010

A few fantasies


Why

In my fantasy life I am an accomplished author that sits on the beach, listening to the ocean crash against the shore and writes awesome novels and someday an autobiography that everyone will read.  This of course is my fantasy life.  For now I sit at my kitchen table surrounded by breakfast dishes, listening to the sounds of my children playing the newest electronic game.  Not that I would trade one for the other (okay maybe I would) but remember this is about my fantasy life.  My friend Andi said I should blog - so this is me, in my day to day, trying to become that famous author - for now I have you reading what I think is enlightening, hopefully humorous and on a really good day encouraging - That is the Why - why I am spending time at my kitchen table surrounded by breakfast dishes.  Because in my fantasy world, what I say matters.

High School 

I have become somewhat of a fan of facebook.  One of the things that really strikes me about this site is that you can talk to and find people you haven't seen in years - this may be a good or bad thing.  As I enjoy my 40's there is some reminiscing about remember when - which brings me to High School - My fantasy today would be to go back and be my best friend- with the knowledge I currently posses.  I would tell myself to live a little, to not be so serious, I would tell myself that no matter what anyone says it really is not the end of the world.  I would stop myself from making stupid choices and I would encourage myself to be more respectful to my parents.  I would encourage myself to not be so afraid of what others think.  I would tell myself you are a good friend.  I would tell myself to pay attention to people around me and the big picture and not get so caught up in the small details.  These are the things I have learned since high school that I think would be good to know when you are there - in the middle of it.  So for one day, I would go back and be a really good friend - to me.  Now I know this can't happen - and part of what makes me who I am today are the experiences I went through.  So maybe, I'll just work on passing these pearls of wisdom on to my daughter.  Or maybe I'll invite a time machine.

super model


So today, as I sit here freezing I am thinking it would be my fantasy to be a super model.  In this fantasy I  would not have to worry about how to stay warm when I need to go running - because I would be skinny.  I would not have to consider what is for dinner because I would never eat.  And I would not have to reconcile my checkbook because I would have so much money it wouldn't matter.   But then reality hits and I realize that if I was a super model I wouldn't enjoy the awesome way I feel when I run for 90 minutes all by myself, I probably would never really enjoy the great taste of homemade chili on a cold night - and..... okay I have nothing for the money thing - it would be great to not have to balance a checkbook.   I am thankful for all that I have and really wouldn't want to be a super model - well maybe just for Oscar's Night.
The Cake Maker
I just made 100 mini cupcakes for my friend Pamela's bday and I decided it would be a very cool fantasy to be on ace of cakes or the hgtv food network cake contest.  Now I don't want to do all the work to get there I just want to stand there at the end when it is all finished and get the 10/k check or be at the famous person's party with them saying - you are so cool you made this cake that's amazing!  I mean what a job - you make cakes - how bad could it be if it goes wrong - oh sorry, maybe next time you'll like the chocolate one.  What a great job -what do you have to do make cakes - how much pressure could be in that - its a cake!  If you mess up you can always start over - if it turns out dry or not good people just won't eat it and you are probably doing them a favor.  Yep, that would be great - a famous cake maker - because then I could have my cake and eat it too.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

A healthy health care debate

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to exchange some dialogue with my Nephew and his friends concerning the current health care debate - some of my excerpts are below - I truly enjoyed this civil and thought- provoking exchange and would welcome more in the future.


@Chris -if we were guaranteed that money would solve the problem - this bill would have more supporters - but since the government really has never proven it can do a better job than people relating one on one I am a little skeptical that it will provide better health care - - the reality is that it is not about the money - its about the regulation- the steady rise in medical care comes from the fact that I have to employ at least 2 extra employees just to manage government regulations - and this does not improve the care I am able to provide it only causes undue stress. If a doctor was able to spend more time actually relating to patients and not jumping through regulatory hoops the system would be better and cheaper. (I am not advocating no regulation - just ones that make sense) which I see very little of. In our current practice we give at least 30% of services to the poor and those that are not able to afford good medical care - it appears that I don't need the government to tell me I need to give more - I am doing this just fine on my own. @Chris the $138 billion in savings is very questionable no government cost projections have come in anywhere near their projected cost. Comparing abolishing slavery to government run health care is comparing apples to cars - While there was argument against abolishing slavery based on economics - government run health care is not a matter of civil rights. The argument that people can't get health care in this country is insane - After 20 years of ER experience my husband will tell you that no person has been sent out of the ER because they didnt have funds - and most are well aware that medical bills do not affect your credit rating so the crazy stories about people going bankrupt from medical bills are few and far between. Now it is true that without ins. it is hard to receive surgeries and care that is not emergent. But all people have the ability to apply for current government aid - its just that wading through that system takes longer than people would like. Get in line - this will be the care of the future for all @ Tyler your reference 

(Your asked if you served the poor, clothed the naked, and housed the homeless. And when you find a stranger on the side of the road who is dying; you take them to an inn and PAY FOR THEIR HEALTHCARE!)


is a little out of context - the Bible says take them in - not feed them to the government to take care of. - Again as individuals if we are doing our part it will always be better than allowing the government to make the decisions. BTW in the most recent polls that have been corroborated - nearly 1/2 of the US physicians (nearly 350K+) intend to retire if this bill is passed - how ethical then is it to try and cover 30 million patients with 1/2 the current physician supply.   If health care becomes a right to all US Citizens then the Slavery, that was abolished in 1863 by the Emancipation Proclamation, will now be applied to all health care professionals. Slaves make poor Doctors. Now that's comparing apples to apples.


@Tyler regarding your premises to ponder 1. basic health care as a right - I think the founding fathers were aware of what they were determining when they listed life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as inalienable rights -these are all rights which do not require servitude of another individual. When you mandate or legislate a right to a person that requires service from another you are in a sense enslaving one to serve the other - I think a great read in this area is Ayn Rand and her medical essays (I do not agree with her on many points but here it makes sense)

I believe that if we begin to legislate rights of service - the question then becomes where does it stop - when will I have the right to go to dinner once a week at the expense of the government and those that own eating establishments (this may seem ridiculous but has to be considered when you carry this theme out)

I think if we follow the greatest commandment that was given and the one as Christians that we are to follow which is to love your neighbor then all of this solves itself. As the government interjects itself into the lives of individuals we no longer have the latitude, energy, money or time to carry out this commandment. Even worse you will have individuals that will deem that they are already paying taxes for the government to handle these needs so they do not need to. BTW this already occurs in churches as people hand over their money in the pew and then leave the care to the administrations in charge - believing they are absolved of their individual duty to give and to love. The greatest issue is one of personal responsibility and just how far we as individuals are willing to carry out the commandment that was given to us - or are we willing to just pay our fines,tithes, taxes and indulgences and let the chips fall where they may. 

Personally on that great and faithful day I want to be able to stand and hear well done my good and faithful servant - NOT- yep, you're all paid up.
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