I just read the following article and I know many of you feel the same way, but here are a few more reasons to go organic and stop buying all that processed foods.

From http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/health/the-7-foods-experts-wont-eat-547963/

How healthy (or not) certain foods are—for us, for the environment—is a hotly debated topic among experts and consumers alike, and there are no easy answers. But when Prevention talked to the people at the forefront of food safety and asked them one simple question—“What foods do you avoid?”—we got some pretty interesting answers. Although these foods don’t necessarily make up a “banned” list, as you head into the holidays—and all the grocery shopping that comes with it—their answers are, well, food for thought:

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1. Canned Tomatoes

The expert: Fredrick vom Saal, PhD, an endocrinologist at the University of Missouri who studies bisphenol-A

The problem: The resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Unfortunately, acidity (a prominent characteristic of tomatoes) causes BPA to leach into your food. Studies show that the BPA in most people’s body exceeds the amount that suppresses sperm production or causes chromosomal damage to the eggs of animals. “You can get 50 mcg of BPA per liter out of a tomato can, and that’s a level that is going to impact people, particularly the young,” says vom Saal. “I won’t go near canned tomatoes.”

The solution: Choose tomatoes in glass bottles (which do not need resin linings), such as the brands Bionaturae and Coluccio. You can also get several types in Tetra Pak boxes, like Trader Joe’s and Pomi.

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2. Corn-Fed Beef

The expert: Joel Salatin, co-owner of Polyface Farms and author of half a dozen books on sustainable farming

The problem: Cattle evolved to eat grass, not grains. But farmers today feed their animals corn and soybeans, which fatten up the animals faster for slaughter. More money for cattle farmers (and lower prices at the grocery store) means a lot less nutrition for us. A recent comprehensive study conducted by the USDA and researchers from Clemson University found that compared with corn-fed beef, grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium; lower in inflammatory omega-6s; and lower in saturated fats that have been linked to heart disease. “We need to respect the fact that cows are herbivores, and that does not mean feeding them corn and chicken manure,” says Salatin.

The solution: Buy grass-fed beef, which can be found at specialty grocers, farmers’ markets, and nationally at Whole Foods. It’s usually labeled because it demands a premium, but if you don’t see it, ask your butcher.

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3. Microwave Popcorn

The expert: Olga Naidenko, PhD, a senior scientist for the Environmental Working Group,

The problem: Chemicals, including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in the lining of the bag, are part of a class of compounds that may be linked to infertility in humans, according to a recent study from UCLA. In animal testing, the chemicals cause liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancer. Studies show that microwaving causes the chemicals to vaporize—and migrate into your popcorn. “They stay in your body for years and accumulate there,” says Naidenko, which is why researchers worry that levels in humans could approach the amounts causing cancers in laboratory animals. DuPont and other manufacturers have promised to phase out PFOA by 2015 under a voluntary EPA plan, but millions of bags of popcorn will be sold between now and then.

The solution: Pop natural kernels the old-fashioned way: in a skillet. For flavorings, you can add real butter or dried seasonings, such as dillweed, vegetable flakes, or soup mix.

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4. Nonorganic Potatoes

The expert: Jeffrey Moyer, chair of the National Organic Standards Board

The problem: Root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides that wind up in soil. In the case of potatoes—the nation’s most popular vegetable—they’re treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After they’re dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting. “Try this experiment: Buy a conventional potato in a store, and try to get it to sprout. It won’t,” says Moyer, who is also farm director of the Rodale Institute (also owned by Rodale Inc., the publisher of Prevention). “I’ve talked with potato growers who say point-blank they would never eat the potatoes they sell. They have separate plots where they grow potatoes for themselves without all the chemicals.”

The solution: Buy organic potatoes. Washing isn’t good enough if you’re trying to remove chemicals that have been absorbed into the flesh.

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5. Farmed Salmon

The expert: David Carpenter, MD, director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University at Albany and publisher of a major study in the journal Science on contamination in fish.

The problem: Nature didn’t intend for salmon to be crammed into pens and fed soy, poultry litter, and hydrolyzed chicken feathers. As a result, farmed salmon is lower in vitamin D and higher in contaminants, including carcinogens, PCBs, brominated flame retardants, and pesticides such as dioxin and DDT. According to Carpenter, the most contaminated fish come from Northern Europe, which can be found on American menus. “You can only safely eat one of these salmon dinners every 5 months without increasing your risk of cancer,” says Carpenter, whose 2004 fish contamination study got broad media attention. “It’s that bad.” Preliminary science has also linked DDT to diabetes and obesity, but some nutritionists believe the benefits of omega-3s outweigh the risks. There is also concern about the high level of antibiotics and pesticides used to treat these fish. When you eat farmed salmon, you get dosed with the same drugs and chemicals.

The solution: Switch to wild-caught Alaska salmon. If the package says fresh Atlantic, it’s farmed. There are no commercial fisheries left for wild Atlantic salmon.

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6. Milk Produced with Artificial Hormones

The expert: Rick North, project director of the Campaign for Safe Food at the Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility and former CEO of the Oregon division of the American Cancer Society

The problem: Milk producers treat their dairy cattle with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH or rBST, as it is also known) to boost milk production. But rBGH also increases udder infections and even pus in the milk. It also leads to higher levels of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor in milk. In people, high levels of IGF-1 may contribute to breast, prostate, and colon cancers. “When the government approved rBGH, it was thought that IGF-1 from milk would be broken down in the human digestive tract,” says North. As it turns out, the casein in milk protects most of it, according to several independent studies. “There’s not 100% proof that this is increasing cancer in humans,” admits North. “However, it’s banned in most industrialized countries.”

The solution: Check labels for rBGH-free, rBST-free, produced without artificial hormones, or organic milk. These phrases indicate rBGH-free products.

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7. Conventional Apples

The expert: Mark Kastel, former executive for agribusiness and codirector of the Cornucopia Institute, a farm-policy research group that supports organic foods

The problem: If fall fruits held a “most doused in pesticides contest,” apples would win. Why? They are individually grafted (descended from a single tree) so that each variety maintains its distinctive flavor. As such, apples don’t develop resistance to pests and are sprayed frequently. The industry maintains that these residues are not harmful. But Kastel counters that it’s just common sense to minimize exposure by avoiding the most doused produce, like apples. “Farm workers have higher rates of many cancers,” he says. And increasing numbers of studies are starting to link a higher body burden of pesticides (from all sources) with Parkinson’s disease.

The solution: Buy organic apples. If you can’t afford organic, be sure to wash and peel them first.

Here are some steps you can take to make a change in our food supply and to help send a message to the big companies that control our food – these are taken from Food Inc. website:

1. Stop drinking soda and other sweetened beverages – most contain high fructose corn syrup which comes from GMO corn.
2. Eat at home instead of eating out. Not only will this save you money, you will know what is in your food and you can control what types of food you purchase.
3. Support passage of laws requiring restaurants to post calorie information on menus.
4. Tell your local schools to stop selling soda, sports drinks and junk food to your children.
5. Go without meat one day a week. Approximately 70% of all antibiotics used in the US are given to farm animals.
6. Buy organic and/or sustainable foods with little or no pesticides. Over 1 Billion pounds of pesticides are used in the US each year.
   
7. Protect family farms; visit local farmers markets.
8. Make a point to know where your food comes from – READ Labels. Most food travels an average 1500 miles from farm to your dinner plate increasing needs for petroleum fuels and preservatives.
   
9. Tell Congress that food safety is important to you. Pass Kevin’s Law!
10. Demand job protections for farmers and food processors, ensuring fair wages and other protections.

Tell everyone you know about how deplorable our food supply really is. Encourage people to spend their money wisely. To buy organic, to stop eating mass produced foods, to shop locally, and to VOTE WITH THEIR MONEY!

I completely believe that Matthew’s illness is due to the over-toxicity of our world and our food supplies, including our medicines and vaccines. We have seen him improve drastically just by giving him good healthy foods and supplementing his nutrition. And more importantly we have seen him decline when he doesn’t have proper nutrition. We can make a change. I believe this change will come from those of us that are willing to say enough is enough and to get the word out. It will be a grass roots movement that will force the money makers to give us what we want. We do not have to settle for what they offer, we can demand what we want. Good food. Simple as that.

Larry and I have already started. We recently ordered a 1/2 grass fed steer from a local cattleman. I can’t wait to get “real”, good beef. Won’t you join us?

Last night Larry and I watched a really interesting and disturbing film called Food Inc. You may have heard of it, maybe not. But to me it is a film that all Americans needs to watch. This film shows the raw truth about how our food supply comes to us and what the “real price” is for such food.

I’m sure many of you know that since our oldest son, Matthew, was diagnosed with a form of autism (Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified), Larry and I have worked very hard to determine a way to recover him. We found biomedical interventions that revolve around detoxifying his body and environment, and low and behold, those interventions have worked. So, where does that leave us? It leaves us delving deeper and deeper into the world of toxins and how they are getting into our children and us. That has then pushed us to realize that dangerous toxins and bacteria are invading our food supply leaving us with diseased foods that have little to no real nutritional value and food factory conditions that leave the product (animals and vegetables), the factory workers, and the environment in damaged and dangerous states.

I urge you to watch Food Inc. and learn more about what I’m about to tell you. Check out their website and begin to “vote with your dollars.”

I think some of the most disturbing information that came from the movie has to do with the “business” of food supply. It really is just a commodity. One that is subsidized to the hilt by our government and one that leaves little room for safe, healthy food. There was a very interesting sequence in the film which discussed how E. coli was not present in our food supply until “we” started to feed cattle corn. Beef cattle just were not made by nature to eat and digest corn. What ends up happening, in my rudimentary explanation, is the cows many stomachs become overly acidic and E. coli thrives. This acidic condition will kill the cow eventually, but they are slaughtered before the die! Does the impact of that sink in? They are killed BEFORE they would die as a result of their feeding practice. That seems huge to me. But another interesting point was brought up. If those same cows are simply switched to being grass fed, for a mere FIVE days, 85% of the E. coli in their system will be eliminated. And it should be noted that if one cow has E. coli the other cattle in the feed lot with get it too. This is because the cattle are packed into the feed lots so tightly they have little room to do more than stand, and becuase of this, they often stand ankle deep in their own feces, and the feces of the diseased cattle.

This doesn’t just effect the cattle, but also the slaughter house worker. As the cattle are left in such disgraceful conditions they become covered with feces, and as they are slaughtered at a very high rate the workers become covered in blood, feces and urine! Many of the workers begin to develop health issues of their own.

And just how does the E. coli get into our spinach and tomatoes? Well, it is simple really. The diseased cows leave behind large amounts of feces which enters the ground water as run off and that water is then used to irrigate the crops. Resulting in infected vegetable life!

You may be saying to yourself, “well I don’t really eat that much beef, I’m more of a chicken person myself.” That doesn’t seem to prove to be any better. And it may be worse. There are only a handful of chicken producers in the country producing the majority of the nations chicken products. Most of these producers have farmers that are required to raise chickens in very specific ways. The typical way is to keep chickens in complete darkness for the full 49 days of their lives. It used to take chickens about 3 months to grow to full size, but somehow science has “figured out” a way to “grow” them faster, with larger breasts. These chickens grow so quickly that their internal organs and bone structure can not keep up and most of these chickens can not take more than a few steps without needing to rest. And they NEVER see the light of day. This is to make it easier for the workers to gather them for processing!

You may think it is time to be a vegetarian, and I can understand that desire. But the corporate involvement does not stop there. I’ll not mention the company, but there is just ONE, that owns the patent rights to about 90% o all soybeans grown in the US. These soybeans are genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and this controlling company owns the rights to them. What that means is that the farmers are not allowed to keep their seeds from year to year and replant, instead they must buy the seeds from the company each year. This company has put small farmers out of business by accusing them of “stealing” the seeds by cleaning and reusing the seeds each year. The farmers spend thousands of dollars trying to defend themselves and even if they are not guilty many must settle with the company because the court costs are too high for them to survive. The company has them where they want them. And the company has the government where they want them too.

The FDA and many of these large companies have several people in common. Often “bigwigs” in the companies will take jobs at the FDA and vice versa. Some actually end up leaving the FDA after a period to go back to the corporations. They are certainly in bed with each other, and then we, the consumer, end up paying the price.

Please go watch the film, and start making choices that will change the course of America’s food stuff.