All that I just wrote?  That’s actually the easy part.  The hard part is changing the food choices.

Because I know how hard it can be, (he’s eliminating wheat, dairy, sugar, caffeine, alcohol including vinegars, and processed complex carbs), I wanted to cook something for him that would be a treat but still be on his modified diet.

So last night when he and my Mom came over for dinner, I came up with a recipe for Creamy Cauliflower soup that is sweet and creamy but has neither sugar nor dairy in it.  It came out so great, and is such a perfect example for a few other healthy tricks I know, I decided to share it with you all today.

Please let me know how you like it.  We are HUGE soup fans in our family, and this version passed the test with thumbs up all around the table.  Enjoy!

Namasté.

Creamy Cauliflower and Sweet Potato Soup

• 1 medium head cauliflower
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut in chucks
• 1 large white onion, cut into chunks
• 4 cups unsalted chicken or vegetable soup stock (recipe below) OR 4 c. water + 1 unsalted vegetable bouillon cube
• One half tsp fresh or dried rosemary
• 1 tsp fresh or dried thyme
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• Optional: 1 – 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3/4 cup great northern white or cannellini beans (canned or soaked* for 8 hrs)
• 1/8 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp gr. cumin
• 1 tsp gr coriander
• 1/2 tsp gr ginger
• 1 can all natural coconut milk, no sugar added
• Fresh ground salt and black pepper
• 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley and/or cilantro

*Make sure if you are using fresh soaked beans instead of canned that you cook the beans in water or broth for about an hour, or until soft, prior to adding them to the soup.  I prefer fresh soaked but in this case used canned and it was fine.

1. Add onion, garlic and olive oil to a dutch oven on stove top, low heat, stirring occasionally.
2. Remove leaves, and break cauliflower into large (2 inch) pieces
3. Add cauliflower and sweet potato, cook for ten minutes, stirring, or until olive oil is distributed
4. Add stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes, OR cook under high pressure in a pressure cooker for 3 minutes, with quick pressure release
5. Add cooked beans, stir, simmer for ten minutes.
6. Blend soup in a food processor or vitamix, (in 2 batches), return pureed soup to the dutch oven or soup pot.  Simmer.
7. Add coconut milk and spices to a sauce pot, simmer on low for two minutes or until blended, whisk if needed.  Remove before it bubbles.
8. Stir coconut milk and spices into the cauliflower puree.  Add fresh ground salt and pepper to taste.
9. Heat gently (don’t boil).  Serve into bowls, sprinkle a touch of chopped cilantro and parsley in the center.  Serve immediately

Homemade Chicken Stock

I use homemade chicken stock daily because of its nutrient-dense properties.  (For more info see www.nourishedkitchen.com)  I have found using a pressure cooker enables me to make stock in 40 minutes instead of two days, it’s amazing!  Plus it’s a great use for your leftover chicken carcass from roasted chicken.  Here’s how:

1. Add 1 or 2 (if small) whole chicken carcasses to a pressure cooker
2. Add 5 peeled carrots, 5 celery stalks and 1 whole white onion cut into chunks
3. Add 4 chicken feet, nails cut (I order mine from tropical traditions online, they are important because chicken feet add collagen and other nutrients to your broth)
4. Add 1 bay leaf and 5 peppercorns
5. Fill pressure cooker with clean water (see the ART of Water post) 1/2 full (3/4 if two chickens)

Place lid tightly sealed on top of the pressure cooker.  Make sure the rubber seal is properly in place in order to prevent ”chewing” it when twisting.  Lock and seal.  Cook on high until button pops up, then monitor closely and let boil for another 20 minutes.  Remove from heat, wait ten minutes and then open valve to release steam, taking care not to burn anyone.  After the button drops, you may open the pressure cooker and then strain out your golden broth!

Gobble, Gobble, Gobble...

You swear every year you’re not going to do it.  Not going to over do it.   Yet it’s the end of another turkey day and you’re splayed out on the floor bloated and full, stuffed to the gills.

Who can help it, really? Aunt Mabel’s pies are just beyond tasty, and you have to try all three.  And skimping on the homemade whipped cream would be unthinkable.  Not to mention choosing between the mashed potatoes AND the sweet… Just a little taste of each however, can lead your plate — and subsequently your digestion — to overflow.

Your body’s ability to stay healthy is based on three simple things: 1. Breaking down healthy nutrients; 2. Absorbing them; 3. Efficiently eliminating the waste.  Heavy meals like Thanksgiving are taxing on the gut because they traditionally mix a lot of food groups; are heavy in richness (gravies, potatoes, stuffing), and big in volume and quantity (my plate always is loaded).  That means our first step, breaking down nutrients, gets compromised and our digestive enzymes can end up falling short.

So, how can you navigate your way through the Thanksgiving Day  parade of tasty nutrients and still feel good in the process?  It’s not too late, and I’m going to tell you how to do it.

Step 1: Start Raw

Digestive Enzymes are an important part of breaking down our nutrients.  And although naturally occurring digestive enzymes are secreted in saliva the pancreas, stomach and intestines, increasing our intake of raw foods increases our enzymatic action.  That means if we start our feast with a little raw foods (like this lovely crudité platter above), you are giving your system a jump-start on the digestion process.  Woo hoo!  That’s right.  Having those raw veggies close by to knosh on while the bird is getting brown will really pay off.

If you are going to someone else’s home for thanksgiving and not quite sure what to bring, a crudité platter will be win/win because everyone gets a little extra enzymatic boost, while your hostess gets something to serve her guests while she’s still slaving away in the kitchen.  I serve mine with a little ranch dressing, and the crunchies are always a crowd pleaser.

Step 2: Take 2 digestive enzymes and Call me in the Morning

If you’re gastro-intestinally challenged like I am, digestive enzyme supplements can be a lifesaver.  Why? Because taking two digestive enzyme supplements 15-30 minutes before you eat can increase your enzymatic power and help you get through a heavy meal that otherwise might just sit in your tummy for  h o u r s.

That’s why I keep a bottle of digestive enzymes in my purse wherever I go.  Of course, they also help you absorb more of your nutrients –  if you’re not breaking them down, you’re not absorbing them, right? So get more out of your food (and less out of your belt) by slipping a few of these puppies into your system before you eat.

Get ‘em at your local health food store, or you can go on www.vitacost.com which has lots of great brands at heavily discounted prices (I am not paid to say this, btw.)

Step 3: Magic Elixir

…been singing the praises of hot water and lemon for years, and it never fails.  It’s the perfect mild tonic to help aid in digestion and it keeps the system on the alkaline side of life in the process.  Sip this tonic during your dessert and you’ll find everything is sweeter.  Including your demeanor.

Step 4: Probiotics

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, if you haven’t discovered probiotics by now you should.  It is the thing I love most in life (next to my family, and lip gloss).  Probiotics are THE KEY to keeping a gut happy and healthy.  And the gut is the key to immunity.  Superbugs will never have a CHANCE to mess with you if you keep probiotics in your refrigerator and in your system.

I don’t like yogurt because I don’t have a cow.  And all commercially produced yogurt contains processed milk WHICH MEANS it turns to mucous in your gut.  And mucous prevents the absorption of nutrients so no go.

I also object to soy yogurt because of the soy controversy (it’s especially risky for boys since it mimics estrogen in the body).  That means the best choice for getting probiotics is through supplementation.

I like Metagenics’ Ultra Flora Plus Dairy Free Capsules because they were written up in a white paper at Duke University as being one of the very best on the market (also not paid to say this).  But mostly I like them because they have billions of good bacteria in one capsule.  And, after taking them for almost ten years, my gut has done a 180 in terms of efficient digestion!  I even sprinkle them in my creme fraisch culture that I make.  And you haven’t LIVED until you’ve had homemade, organic creme fraisch make with probiotic.  (Learn how to make your own simply by ordering starter culture from www.culturesforhealth.com.)

Take two probiotics an hour after your last piece of pie, and your body will get an extra dose of good guys to keep things kosher in the small intestines.  And anytime you feel a little funky in the tummy — especially if you’ve eaten in a restaurant — two hundred good bacteria keep one bad one in check, so nip any hitchhikers in the bud with a good probiotic.

Step 5: Psyllium and Cal Mag at Bedtime

We do this every night, and in the morning I am always so grateful.  Taking 2 tablespoons of psyllium mixed with water an hour before bedtime acts as a little internal cleanser.  If you are over 40, this is a must.  It keeps your small intestines from getting gooped up with the residue of the day, and allows your night-time digestion to aid in cleansing.

Calcium/Magnesium supplement taken  just before your head hits the pillow is essential for liver function.  Did you know that your liver requires a certain level of calcium at all times to maintain function?  And at night, when your body rejuvenates, if you don’t have enough calcium in your body, your parathyroid gland will secrete an enzyme telling your body to dissolve it from your bone?  And did you also know that without magnesium you cannot absorb calcium?

So on days like Thanksgiving, psyllium and cal/mag are essential.

Now get to the health food store and get your supplies.

…and have a great turkey day!

Namasté.

Whether you are pro vaccine, anti vaccine or not sure… Whether you are a parent, a grandparent, an aunt, an uncle, a sister or a brother, the incredible documentary “The Greater Good” will give you an educated insight to one of our most controversial health issues today, vaccine safety.  And for the next few days, you can stream it for free — just click here.

The real-life stories are eye-opening, while simultaneously taking a look at the importance of having an open debate about the scientific facts that are now being presented on vaccine safety.  The documentary aims to have that debate, and to stop the polarizing discussions which benefit no one.

If you are interested in reading more centrist literature on vaccines, Dr. Lauren Feder has written a comprehensive book, “The Parents’ Concise Guide to Childhood Vaccinations: From Newborns to Teens, Practical Medical and Natural Ways to Protect Your Child.”  Order from Amazon here, read more about Dr. Feder here.

Join me today (Thursday, 11/3/11)  at 3 p.m. EST at on my Healthy Living segment radio show on www.woca.com if you want to weigh in.  You can call in with questions or to join the discussion at 352.622.9622.  We will take calls until 3:45 p.m. EST.

Namasté.

If you want more information on the documentary “The Greater Good,” go here:

Buy the limited Edition DVD
shop.mercola.com/​/​product/​the-greater-good-dvd,881.htm

Join the Conversation
greatergoodmovie.org

Follow us on Facebook
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John Harvard

Starting at 3 p.m. today EST we will be taking your calls about health issues and — in recognition of the change of seasons and the importance of seasonal cleanses — we will be broadcasting live from under the beautiful changing colors of the fall foliage in historical Harvard Yard!

No health issue is too great or too small, especially if you are interested in non-pharmaceutical solutions.  So give us a call today from

Nature's Rockshow

3-3:30 EST at 352.622.9622 and you can ask your questions for free!

If you just want to listen in, click here:  www.woca.com.  We will only have live audio for our program so you’ll have to visualize the pretty leaves.

But we will have lots of good info about seasonal cleansing –  including a testimonial from our Producer, Tom, who is in his fourth week now of a cleanse and has had a total life transformation!  You can learn how to obtain more energy, get more nutrition out of your food by eating less, and how to increase your general sense of well-being by taking control of your health.

If you can’t listen in today, tune in any Thursday — same time, same channel — and let me help guide you on your healing journey.

Spread the word!  No health issue is too great or too small!

Namasté.

One of the best decisions I ever made was to stop drinking milk.

As a ‘dairy queen,’ by the age of 38 I was drinking on average two gallons of milk a week. I was starting to have joint pain, continued gall bladder attacks, and a general stiffness that made getting up in the morning very difficult.

The famous Loretta (see my ‘about’ page), enlightened me, and I eliminated milk from my diet completely.

“We are the only animal that drinks the milk of another animal,” she explained. “Cow’s milk is for the baby calves, just like when we are born we are supposed to drink the milk from our mothers. And when it’s done, we’re supposed to be done with it. That’s it.” She went on to explain that milk was a product invented by dairy farmers as a way to increase profits.

Oh, and did you know that the National Dairy Council is the most powerful lobbyist group in Washington, D.C.? They are the creators of that sexy ad campaign, ‘Got Milk?’ Did you ever wonder: if milk is so good for us, why do they have to pay celebrities millions of $$$ in endorsements to pose with white mustaches on their faces?

But don’t take my word for it, read the writings of Dr. Frank Oski, author of “Don’t Drink Your Milk!,” and former Director of the Department of Pediatrics of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Physician-in-Chief of the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. Dr. Oski is the author, co-author, editor or co-editor of 19 medical textbooks and has written 290 medical manuscripts.

Repeatedly, in my Ayurvedic practice, I treat clients who have such a hard time giving this up. Many of us still drink milk, even well past the age of 30, and most adults drink 1 or 2% which is even worse, since reduced fat milk is even more processed than regular milk and contains even less digestive enzymes and is therefore even harder for the body to break down. Now, as parents, we have to worry about additives like bovine growth hormone (BGH) and antibiotics… there has never been a better time to stop.

If we are having a hard time giving up milk, we can benefit from taking a look at a lack of feeling nurtured in our lives. Usually the need to drink milk or eat creamy ice cream at night is a symptom of still wanting that motherly nurturing or nourishment. Taking a look at that, consciously, will enable us to find other, healthier ways to have this primal need met.

If you are willing to stop drinking milk, below is a great recipe for a dairy substitute. My friend, Melody Elder, gave me the original idea and I’ve embellished it slightly with coconut milk to make it creamier. Our three-year-old son LOVES it, and I often drink it straight. The cost is less than a gallon of milk on average, and it makes for a great base for shakes and green drinks.

If you stop drinking milk (keep in mind it takes 3-6 months to detox from dairy and you may feel worse before you feel better), on occasion you may be able to enjoy ice cream or cheeses without any issue (be sure to take a good digestive enzyme before you do). And if you really want to be sure your kids are getting enough calcium, remember milk causes so much mucous in the gut it PREVENTS the absorption of vitamins and minerals! So eliminating milk and upping your intake of green vegetables like broccoli and kale will do wonders for your ingestion of calcium. Plus, taking a calcium magnesium supplement can never hurt.

Namasté.

Almond Milk

Homemade YUMMY Almond Milk

This recipe is for a creamy batch, makes little over a half a gallon.

1/3 cup raw, organic almond butter (about $15/jar at your local health food store, yields about 4 gallons total per jar)

5 organic dates, pitted (about $9 for a bag of 25)

3/4 cup coconut milk (I use a half a can of Thai Kitchen cause it’s super creamy, you may want an organic brand… minimize your use of canned products as studies are showing evidence of BPA in canned goods)

3 quarts of clean water

Place all ingredients in a Vita-mix or a high-speed blender. Store in the fridge in a glass jar. Good luck keeping it in the house, it will be gone before you know it!!

The restaurant is LaScala.  It is an old-school Italian eatery in Beverly Hills and happens to be a favorite of many celeb types.  (Sarah Michelle Gellar once considered it her favorite.)  One of the things I like about it are the big booths — the kind you see in the movies — that wrap around you and make you feel like you’re in your own private room.

Their chopped salad is truly amazing.  And early on, I decided I would learn how to duplicate it so that I could enjoy this fresh dish at home.  The secret ingredient is the salad dressing.  The online version is here if you want to compare, but I think mine is much better (and healthier).   It makes a great, quick lunch that is filling and satisfying!  Sometimes we even have it for dinner.  It has such a wonderful mix of flavors, and has fresh produce as well as protein so it’s a very balanced meal.

Below is the recipe for both the chopped salad and the dressing.  Make it a healthy choice for your family, and enjoy!

P.S.

A fast way to wash your produce is to give it a rinse in a bath of clean filtered water a 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar.   Distilled white vinegar is alkaline and bacteria and viruses cannot live in alkaline environment so a quick water and vinegar bath will eliminate any ‘hitchhikers’ your produce might have picked up along the way!

LaScala Chopped Salad

Serves 3 (with seconds and leftovers)

Ingredients

3 small or two large organic romaine lettuce heads, cored and chopped into 1 ” strips

1 container of sweet red baby grape tomatoes

1 cucumber, peeled in stripes and cut into quarters and then chopped into 1/2″ bites

1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

10/12 slices Genoa salami (nitrate free) chopped into bite size squares

1 lb. turkey breast, sliced and chopped into bite size squares (nitrate free)

10/15 large, thin shavings of Parmesanno Regianno cheese

Dressing

1/4 cup Wish Bone Italian Dressing

1/4 cup organic tomato juice

3 second squirt of flax seed oil

1/8 cup Bragg’s Liquid Amino Acids

Place in a bowl and whisk together.

This post is dedicated to my friend Dawn Wallace.

Watch as Lori Martin Gregory shows you how to feed your kids healthy foods in this edition of “Healthy Living:”

Stream Lori Martin Gregory Live on WOCA

Exciting news everyone! Healthy Living will now be brought to you on radio WOCA every Thursday from 3 – 4 p.m. EST starting today.

Click here to listen or watch live, or check back bere to download podcasts from our archive.

Remember, healthy living starts at home!

Namasté.

That’s why I finally decided to headline this post the ART of water.  Because art is something that is constantly changing depending on the perspective of the person who is making the consideration.

For example, if you were a mother of ten living in a village in Africa, and you had to send your 8-year-old son to walk ten miles daily to fetch drinking water for the family, your perspective on water would be totally different from that of an investment banker living on the upper East side of Manhattan.

As a holistic practitioner who makes it her job to scrutinize everything she puts in her body, H2O has become a complex, multi-faceted necessity to life: in other words, a pain in the ass.  The number of options available to us increases every year, and ranges from free (municipal water services), to $20,000 for a whole home filtration system.

How did something so simple get so complex?

Information,  misinformation.  Capitalism.  Fear.  Greed.   Ignorance.  And assumption.

For example, most people I know drink bottled water under the assumption that it is safer/healthier/cleaner than tap water.  Well, according to the producers of the documentary, “Tapped,” nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, several experts quoted in the movie claim that the multi-billion dollar a year bottled water industry is the greatest scam of all time, and is mostly water that is tap water and inferior to the water available in our own homes.

What I do know is this: common sense prevails in these situations.  Water is meant to be a universal cleanser and hydrator.  It is meant to replenish our tissues, to help remove waste and to take nothing more in the process.  It contains trace minerals that are good for us, that help keep our systems alkaline, and is not supposed to contain anything harmful.

Here’s what I have learned over the past 15 years as an Ayurvedic counselor:

1. Most municipal water sources are high in chlorine and fluoride — two additives that kill the good bacteria in our gut, leaving us vulnerable to invaders of all kinds.

2. Most water filters do not filter out chlorine or fluoride, or bad bacteria (giardia and cryptosporidium), and often add more carbon in the filtering process than they do value.

3. Most filters do not filter out hormones -  an increasing problem due to the hormones, steroids and antibiotics that are used in farming.  All the agricultural run-off from these farms ends up in ground water, which ends up in our water supply system.  (Now you know another reason why young girls are maturing in the single digit ages and why young boys are getting ‘boobs’ in their physique, and why women in menopause have such dramatic hot flashes — we’re inundating our systems with hormones causing a roller coaster ride in our endocrine systems).

4. Most bottled water contains BPAs — harmful plastics that have leached from the plastic bottles into the water.  The longer the water sits in a warehouse or a hot delivery truck, the more BPAs it contains.  BPAs mimic estrogen in the body, contributing to the symptoms in our children mentioned above, as well as estrogen-dependent breast cancer.  If you or someone you love is at risk for breast cancer, remove all plastics from the kitchen including eliminating bottled water.

5. The quality in tap water varies dramatically from city to city.  But once it leaves the city pipes it still has to come through your house.  And if you have PVC pipes in your house that is more trouble…

6. For years it was thought that reverse osmosis or distilled water were the best waters you could drink.  Not so, since RO water and distilled water strip out any naturally occurring minerals.

7. While most of us tote water in bottles, we actually absorb 80% of our water from the shower!  So filtered shower water is just as important — if not more — than what we drink.  (Get a shower filter for your shower, they usually cost $40 a year.)

So after research everything from Kangen water ($6,000 a system) to tap, I have concluded the best most cost-effective system is the BG 12000 from Water, Inc.

This system is incredible: it takes out sediment, bacteria, hormones, chlorine  — it gives you pharmaceutical grade water right at your sink.  Which means you are maintaining all the natural minerals but only removing the yuckiness.  And for a small fee you can add in the fluoride pre-filter which will enhance your intestinal bacteria.

If you have children, this system is a must.  You can also get the ever hot tank add-on which will give you instant hot filtered water, and can run the line into your ice machine as well.  The system usually retails for about $1000, but if you order the system and mention this post you will be redirected to a dealer that will offer you special pricing, about $570.  In addition, for the first 20 people who order the system as a result of this blog I will refund the affiliate link fee I receive as a result.  Most general plumbers can install the system for about $200.

The air we breath and the water we drink are crucial to our everyday lives.  Can you think of a more important place to spend your money?

Namasté.

I tried being vegetarian.  Backstage at a Pretender’s concert in Denver back in the ’80s , Chrissie Hynde lectured me on why eating meat was so unhealthy.   Being young and easily impressed, I made the conversion to vegetarianism for for about three years.  Unfortunately, I didn’t make the switch responsibly, and instead ended up with a massive overgrowth of candida by using bread and cheese sandwiches as my protein substitute.

My taste for meat soon resurfaced, and today the majority of the diet I provide for my family is nutrient-dense (fish, vegetable and fruit, healthy grains and legumes based — much of the Weston-Price system), but every now and then a good steak or burger just ends up on my plate.

The challenge is to make sure when it does, it’s a healthy choice.  Because as you will see in this post, not all beef is created equal.

Grass-Fed Beef

I was listening to Warren Olney’s “To The Point” on KCRW/NPR a few years ago, where I first learned about the benefits of grass-fed beef.  I was surprised to hear scientists have discovered that grass-fed beef significantly encourages the growth of probiotics (good bacteria) in our guts, while corn-fed beef (which has often achieved a state of acidosis), encourages the growth of e coli, or bad bacteria once the beef has been digested.

Today, Grass-fed beef is becoming more and more mainstream.  (Check out this more recent story from NPR if the difference between grass-fed and corn-fed beef is new to you.)  In 2006, an analysis from the Union of Concerned Scientists found that grass-fed steak has about twice as many omega-3s as a typical grain-fed steak.  (Another study published in March in Nutrition Journal backed up those numbers.)

Noted author and food expert Michal Pollan confessed on a recent Oprah show that he does not eat feedlot meat — a reference to beef that is mass raised in lower standard environments, often with the use of growth hormones and corn to speed up the animal’s fattening process.  (Author John Robbins goes into more detail about this here.) Great.  When you are a best-selling food author like Pollan, ranchers must be throwing steaks at you to get you to try their products.  What about the rest of us?

Well, avoiding feedlot meat is getting easier than you think.  If you are an omnivore and want suggestions on how to to eat healthy meat, here are five:

1. Source Local Beef Growers.

Having recently expanded our tent to now include a home in a small town in northern Florida, I was concerned that our time spent away from Southern California would mean making sacrifices in the quality of our foods.  Not so, as I soon discovered the most amazing little gem called DISH.

Now, I might expect to find DISH in the city limits of a Beverly Hills or Santa Monica, maybe even Boston.  But stumbling upon it in the shade of the 200-year-old Ocala oak trees was an unexpected and very pleasant surprise.  Not only does DISH grow its own organically styled, Waygu/Kobe-style grass-fed beef, its proprietors even go so far as to pay for extra boarding to house its cattle at the locally contracted processing plant in order for the cattle to calm and readjust for two days before they are slaughtered.  According to Head Chef Greg Mullen, this extra step reduces the build up of lactate in the beef which affects both the quality and the digestibility of the end product.

…and I thought only the happy cows were in California.

Mullen shared other techie cow talk like the importance of finishing the cattle with a touch of corn to get just the right marbling, and significance of implementing this step just at a certain stage in the cow’s five-stomach digestion process.  But at that point I was so impressed with the level of detail and awareness DISH puts into its farming process, all I could think about was how much I was looking forward to giving it a try.  Two days later I did just that, and the burger was one of the best I have ever had.

DISH’s commitment to quality isn’t just in its beef.  It carefully sources the best, most nutritious grains, salts, wines and delectables from all sorts of food categories.  Its beef is available at a few fine dining establishments in and around Ocala, and can also be purchased directly from its store.

2. Ask for grass-fed beef at your local supermarket.

Hyper local is a term more and more grocers are becoming comfortable with.  If you don’t see any artisinal beef growers in your area, ask your local grocer to provide it and start telling your friends to buy it.  Nothing convinces grocers to regularly stock an item more than seeing a new product fly off their shelves.  Sometimes I will buy out the entire shelf if I see a new item in stock that is pasture raised or grass-fed or organic just to send a signal to the grocer that this should be a regular item (luckily these test items tend to be initially stocked in small quantities).

3. Buy online.

Thank goodness for the internet.  We can now live in rural areas and still enjoy the kind of commerce known to big cities. It’s called the internet, and if you are willing to design your home and your meal planning around longer shopping and shipping cycles, you can source high quality food products without leaving your house.  Recently, I found chickens that are raised with zero soy feed — not as easy as you might think, since most chicken feed is at least half soy based.  (Soy is a significant contributor to increasing our phytoestrogens — not so great for the men in the family, or women that may have a concern about estrogen-related breast cancers.)

4. Only eat beef at home.

If getting healthy meat at a restaurant is impossible for you, then accept that fact that most restaurant meat is more than likely feedlot and make the commitment to only eat it once in a while.  You can also increase your body’s ability to digest it by taking food enzymes 15 minutes before you eat and taking a good probiotic and psyllium as soon as you get home.  The important thing here is awareness and to raise our consciousness about what we are eating.

5. Balance your intake of beef with fish, vegetables and legumes.

Making sure we keep conscious about what we eat also means making sure we eat a regularly balanced diet.  Keeping a regimen of fresh organic vegetables, fruits, legumes and grains is important for a healthy body.  Avoiding congestive foods like dairy and wheat when we eat meat means the benefits of the meat will be more easily absorbed and less likely to make our digestion sluggish.

Namasté.