If you haven’t already done so, make the switch to organic animal products (dairy, eggs, and meat). It’s a little more expensive, but well worth the cost if you can spare it. I see people insisting on organic produce, which is great, too. But if cost is a concern, organic animal products are the better health investment. Sure, regular veggies might have some pesticides, but regular animal products almost always contain those same pesticides, along with antibiotics, hormones, chemicals, infectious bacteria and pus. Yes. You read that correctly.
You can wash contaminants off a bell pepper. I’m not sure how to accomplish that with milk.
Go on, make the switch right now!
Technorati Tags: reasons to eat organic, organic dairy, organic vegetables
Posted By: Mark Sisson
For all the weekend warriors (you know who you are), here are the top 10 first aid myths from Ririan to be aware of. It’s amazing how some myths persist in spite of all evidence to the contrary.
And remember, pals: don’t overdo it on the weekends.
Health is a 24/7 job! Think frequency, not intensity.
Posted By: Mark Sisson
Ladies, I’m concerned about the skinny-fat among us. You know what I’m talking about. Skinny-fat women might look nice in a v-neck, but they’d sooner crawl into a hole than expose an upper arm or leg.
This is what happens when you become “skinny fat” instead of genuinely lean and fit (where the muscle and fat are fairly evenly distributed and you have a lot less cellulite). While you can’t fight your body’s natural shape, you can certainly maximize what you’ve got. What I’m talking about is the difference between curvy and super-fit Gabby Reece or Evangeline Lilly and certain starving-yet-sagging starlets (I won’t name names, mainly because there are too many these days and who can be bothered to keep track).
Skinny-fatness strikes women a lot more than men. I think this is mainly because men aren’t afraid of lifting weights to lose weight (and, to be fair, men naturally do have so much more muscle and far less fat). We women, on the other hand, evidently prefer inventing bizarre and complicated diet regimens revolving around arcane preparation rituals, subsistence on one food group or arbitrary calorie limits (whoever said women were bad at math has never met a woman 2 weeks before her high school reunion or 2 days before a date).
Simply dieting will eliminate weight, but it won’t tone anything. And because of our unique feminine physiology, the fat cells in our lower body are world-class clingers.
But before you get too depressed about the latest Kate Moss advertisement, consider this: I’m bringing this up because skinny-fatness is about a lot more than physical appearance. In fact, your dress size has nothing on the bigger issue – health. The good news: simply being skinny is not akin to being healthy. In fact, the skinnier you get, the more you’re at risk for things like osteoporosis! (There I go beating that llama again.)
The less muscle you have, the less work your bones have to do, and they begin to shed that incredibly valuable osseous material: your bones, which are, in fact, living tissues directly related to your blood, immune system, strength, longevity – even your mood. You know how coral reefs are actually living organisms that provide all sorts of vital and irreplaceable functions to the fish and plants and water surrounding them? Your bones are your body’s coral reef. You have to feed them, and weight-bearing activity = food for bones. In this country of aerobic fanatics and serial dieters, is it any wonder American women have such high rates of osteoporosis and a perpetual state of skinny-fatness? I watched my own mother live on Tab and jazzercise during the early 80s, and now, faced with bone trouble, she’ll be the first to tell you: lift something! Who wants to look like Nicole Ritchie, now seriously? I’d rather look like Evangeline!
There’s only ONE solution to the problems we women face: osteoporosis, beach season, and the belly that won’t budge. The solution is weight-bearing activity. Aerobics will get your heart pumping and burn some calories, but it won’t maximize your shape. Dieting will help you shed excess weight, which is great for increasing your energy and reducing chances of myriad health conditions and diseases. But neither will make you look toned and sleek, and neither will do much to put a dent in your osteoporosis risk.
Are you lifting some weights yet? Get to it!
Technorati Tags: Gabrielle Reece, Evangeline Lilly, skinny actresses, bones, osteoporosis, cellulite, women’s health, skinny fat, ideal women’s body, weight training, weight lifting, weight training myths, fitness
Posted By: Sara
I can’t tell you how furious I am about what I feel is the meat industry’s blatant disregard for human health. While I’m no vegetarian, I saw this study in the Archives of Internal Medicine, and let’s just say, I’m not buying the “Happy Cows” line.
The researchers looked at 90,000 women. That’s a huge study. They compared US and UK women, and here’s what they found:
Eating more than 1.5 servings of meat daily doubles a young woman’s risk of breast cancer. What concerns me is the type of cancer which had double the risk: hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. To me, that says something pretty sobering about the meat industry’s production habits.
Both the study, and the BBC News article that covered it, are cautious to merely “suggest” a link between eating red meat and increasing – doubling – the risk of breast cancer. It doesn’t take much to read between the lines here.
The reason I think this study is really important to highlight is not because I hope to bandy a statistic like “double the risk!” about. (Remember the Statistics Game: always consider context and relative risk or results.) It’s important because the women who ate high amounts of red meat had double the risk of hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. That is a big issue, namely, because the American meat industry uses growth hormone like it’s manna from Heaven. Growth hormone helps the animals get bigger, faster, which translates more profit – but I’m pretty skeptical about how this practice could possibly be in the interest of public health. I just wonder how these people sleep at night knowing their profits come at the expense of other human beings.
Personally, I believe it’s clear that human physiology supports being omnivorous. No culture anywhere at any time has done without some sort of animal flesh, whether it’s fish, beef or reindeer. So I’m not “anti-meat”. However, I am strongly opposed to the way meat is produced in this country: quickly, unethically, with little regard for the animals or the people eating the animals. That’s why I only buy meat that is free-range, local, organic and definitely hormone-free.
The researchers were careful not to draw any ultimate conclusions. I think we can probably begin to draw our own, with some additional critical considerations:
1) Processed meats generally contain a chemical known as heterocyclic acid, which has been shown to cause cancer;
2) Red meat, of course, contains iron, which can sometimes encourage the growth of some types of tumors (though this isn’t a significant concern, likely);
3) The standard line: “The biggest risk factors for breast cancer remain gender and increasing age.” This from specialist Maria Leadbeater, quoted in the BBC article. Fair enough.
Technorati Tags: breast cancer, beef, red meat, cancer, factory farming, growth hormone, omnivore, Maria Leadbeater, BBC, hormone receptor, heterocyclic acid, risk factors
Posted By: Mark Sisson
EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT:
Bilberry Extract
WHAT IT IS: Did you know? The bilberry is just the European relative of the blueberry. Bilberries are now grown in the United States. Scientists happened upon the bilberry’s health properties accidentally, when American fighter pilots found their vision improved after eating bilberries in Europe during WWII.
As it turns out, the little fruits contain beneficial flavonoid pigments called anthocyanins. These flavonoids are among nature’s most potent antioxidants, capable of fighting free radicals uniquely.
Bilberries are especially helpful for the eyes and arteries. The extract offers potential protection from diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, hemorrhoids, varicose and spider veins, cataracts, macular degeneration and other common vision and cardiovascular problems.
STUDIES SHOW: Capillary damage is involved in the onset of many diseases because of its relationship to inflammation. People suffering from glaucoma and cataracts – the latter being an especially big problem for Americans – can benefit from bilberry extract. Bilberry extract, in recent studies, appears to help reduce lesions associated with eye problems.
Additionally, current research is examining whether bilberries can also help collagen tissues rebuild and repair, which would mean that bilberry extract can offer benefits for circulation. The research so far is very promising. Research has shown that bilberry extract is one of the best therapies for venous disorders – inflammatory problems involving hemorrhoids.
WHY WE LIKE IT: Bilberry extract can help to strengthen the veins and capillaries, minimize bruises, clots and inflammation. The extract can also promote better vision and overall eye health, especially for diabetics, seniors and those who are obese. Bilberries have also been shown to help ease and prevent painful hemorrhoids.
Bilberry extract is very safe, even for pregnant women. Many doctors now prescribe bilberry extract as a safe, effective therapy for pregnant women who struggle with varicose veins, inflammation and hemorrhoids.
Technorati Tags: bilberries, blueberries, antioxidants, anthocynanins, varicose veins treatment, hemorrhoids treatment, cardiovascular health
Posted By: Elliott
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