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Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today is the LAST DAY to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge! See you tomorrow!
We have BIG news to share with you all today! Some bigger than others. :)
A month or so ago, I joined CAPPA, and I am now pursuing certification in Childbirth Education and Lactation Specialist. I've been very busy working on research, writing papers, reading books, and doing other things towards these certifications, among other projects. We've also converted our music room into a playroom/meeting room for when I am certified and can hold classes here. I'll be posting about that and showing you pictures of that room in a later post!
Tomorrow is our NEW SITE LAUNCH!! The address is http://www.modernalternativemama.com/ and it is currently live, if you're too eager to wait until tomorrow to check it out. If you've subscribed to me here, I believe you will need to go over there and re-subscribe. I would love it if you did! Comments will be locked over here starting with this post, so you'll need to hop over to the new site anyway if you want to comment. All future posts will be posted ONLY on the new site!
And, to help you along with visiting the new site, I will have a WEEK OF GIVEAWAYS!! Every single day (Monday - Friday) there will be a new giveaway! Here is a sneak peek about the posts I'll have and the giveaways:
Monday -- 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge! Giveaway: Baby toys (a talented friend is making them, more details to follow)
Tuesday -- Baby Steps in the Medicine Cabinet. Giveaway: Modern Alternative Mama Soothing Skin Cream.
Wednesday -- Review of Seventh Generation household products. Giveaway: Seventh Generation Home Starter Kit, including glass cleaner, all-purpose cleaner, toilet cleaner, shower cleaner, tub & tile cleaner, kitchen cleaner, natural paper towels, and reusable tote.
Thursday -- Orange sherbet recipe (sugar free!!). Giveaway: Coconut flour from Tropical Traditions!
Friday -- Top 10 Posts and new features! Giveaway: Tweedlebugs Diaper, cloth wipes, and wipe solution package!
Join us next week to read all the awesome new entries and enter all the giveaways!
A small family update -- we are about to start the GAPS diet here. We've been easing our way into it for awhile but we have to just take the plunge. I'll be posting on it more later for those who are interested, but there's plenty of information on other blogs right now. Keeper of the Home, and Kelly the Kitchen Kop have both posted a fair amount about the subject. Look for more on that on the new site!
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Sunday, February 28, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Baby Steps in the Kitchen, 3
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Time for the next three steps in the Baby Steps in the Kitchen Series! If you have missed the first two, go back and read part 1 and part 2!
7. Replace white flour and white flour products with healthier alternatives (whole wheat, spelt, etc.)
8. Choose healthier oils
9. Try making your own chicken stock instead of buying broth or bouillon cubes, and your own soups!
Okay, so, why these three steps? Good question! Read on for more information!
White flour is basically a non-food. It is stripped of nearly all its nutrients when the hull is removed from the kernal. Most of us know that white flour isn't good for us for all of these reasons, because health experts are constantly asking us to switch to whole-grain alternatives. Right now, I'm going to tell you the same thing: get some whole grains! Buy brown rice instead of white (and NO instant!), whole grain bread, and whole grain flours to bake with. Spelt is an even better option for some -- lower in gluten and generally less "messed with." It can be found at many health food stores and before we went grain-free, I used only spelt flour in my baking for a long time. There will be more steps about grains later, but for right now, just switch to whole grains! Simple, easily available at any grocery store, and not too expensive!
Oils -- Good fats are essential in your diet. I've written two posts about fats so far, so I'm not going to write about why you need them here in detail. People use oil for a lot of things, too, like frying, in many boxed mixes (we'll talk about those later), baking from scratch, putting on bread, dressing salads, etc. Hydrogenated oils and even most liquid vegetable oils are not good for you, so you should limit your consumption. Replace them with healthy oils. These, too, are generally affordable ($4 - $5 for a pound of butter on up to $20 for a jar of coconut oil or bottle of really good olive oil) and easy to find. They're also very nutrient-dense. If you aren't sure of ways to use all these new fats, you'll want to check out my "30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge," starting on March 1st! (Only 2 more days to register!!)
Chicken stock is a wonderful food. Fresh, homemade chicken stock, that is. Canned broths (and canned soups) and bouillon cubes are NOT good. They're mostly made of salt and MSG so that they're "meat flavored" but contain little to no actual meat. (That's why you can get vegetarian "chicken" flavored broth.) These are highly processed, and we've already talked about avoiding MSG or other packaged food ingredients. And although there may be brands out there that are acceptable, be wary of any brand that says "natural flavors," "hydrolyzed" "autolyzed" etc. -- this is MSG too. But, it's so easy to avoid if you just make your own! Buy a whole chicken or turkey, or buy bones (thighs, backs, necks are great -- feet are even better if you can find them! I haven't tried that yet). Put the bones in a large stock pot (at least 8 quarts; 16 is even better) and fill with water. Add vegetable scraps -- onion ends, carrot peels, celery pieces, etc. -- and arguably, a little apple cider vinegar (I tried it once or twice and it didn't make a difference for me, but some swear by it) and turn it on low. Then walk away, for about 24 hours. You'll come back to a big pot of rich, golden broth. This broth is full of calcium and other minerals, it makes great soups and gravies and lots of other food, freezes well, is very healing, and more. It's a wonderful, all-purpose food, and it couldn't be simpler or cheaper to make. A quart of good-quality stock in the store would cost you $2 - $5, depending on brand. At home you can make a whole gallon (or more) for that much! Stock is so wonderful, I could write an entire post about it. This is a small change that is easy, will bring a ton of extra nutrition to your diet, and actually SAVES you money! Why not do it?
What are your next three steps, if you're further along? How are you doing on these? How have your changes been going over the last couple of weeks? Is there anything else you'd like to see in this series?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Time for the next three steps in the Baby Steps in the Kitchen Series! If you have missed the first two, go back and read part 1 and part 2!
7. Replace white flour and white flour products with healthier alternatives (whole wheat, spelt, etc.)
8. Choose healthier oils
9. Try making your own chicken stock instead of buying broth or bouillon cubes, and your own soups!
Okay, so, why these three steps? Good question! Read on for more information!
White flour is basically a non-food. It is stripped of nearly all its nutrients when the hull is removed from the kernal. Most of us know that white flour isn't good for us for all of these reasons, because health experts are constantly asking us to switch to whole-grain alternatives. Right now, I'm going to tell you the same thing: get some whole grains! Buy brown rice instead of white (and NO instant!), whole grain bread, and whole grain flours to bake with. Spelt is an even better option for some -- lower in gluten and generally less "messed with." It can be found at many health food stores and before we went grain-free, I used only spelt flour in my baking for a long time. There will be more steps about grains later, but for right now, just switch to whole grains! Simple, easily available at any grocery store, and not too expensive!
Oils -- Good fats are essential in your diet. I've written two posts about fats so far, so I'm not going to write about why you need them here in detail. People use oil for a lot of things, too, like frying, in many boxed mixes (we'll talk about those later), baking from scratch, putting on bread, dressing salads, etc. Hydrogenated oils and even most liquid vegetable oils are not good for you, so you should limit your consumption. Replace them with healthy oils. These, too, are generally affordable ($4 - $5 for a pound of butter on up to $20 for a jar of coconut oil or bottle of really good olive oil) and easy to find. They're also very nutrient-dense. If you aren't sure of ways to use all these new fats, you'll want to check out my "30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge," starting on March 1st! (Only 2 more days to register!!)
Chicken stock is a wonderful food. Fresh, homemade chicken stock, that is. Canned broths (and canned soups) and bouillon cubes are NOT good. They're mostly made of salt and MSG so that they're "meat flavored" but contain little to no actual meat. (That's why you can get vegetarian "chicken" flavored broth.) These are highly processed, and we've already talked about avoiding MSG or other packaged food ingredients. And although there may be brands out there that are acceptable, be wary of any brand that says "natural flavors," "hydrolyzed" "autolyzed" etc. -- this is MSG too. But, it's so easy to avoid if you just make your own! Buy a whole chicken or turkey, or buy bones (thighs, backs, necks are great -- feet are even better if you can find them! I haven't tried that yet). Put the bones in a large stock pot (at least 8 quarts; 16 is even better) and fill with water. Add vegetable scraps -- onion ends, carrot peels, celery pieces, etc. -- and arguably, a little apple cider vinegar (I tried it once or twice and it didn't make a difference for me, but some swear by it) and turn it on low. Then walk away, for about 24 hours. You'll come back to a big pot of rich, golden broth. This broth is full of calcium and other minerals, it makes great soups and gravies and lots of other food, freezes well, is very healing, and more. It's a wonderful, all-purpose food, and it couldn't be simpler or cheaper to make. A quart of good-quality stock in the store would cost you $2 - $5, depending on brand. At home you can make a whole gallon (or more) for that much! Stock is so wonderful, I could write an entire post about it. This is a small change that is easy, will bring a ton of extra nutrition to your diet, and actually SAVES you money! Why not do it?
What are your next three steps, if you're further along? How are you doing on these? How have your changes been going over the last couple of weeks? Is there anything else you'd like to see in this series?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Oopsie....
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Stuffed Mushrooms
When I was a teenager, we went to the Olive Garden to celebrate someone’s birthday and had stuffed mushrooms. I created this recipe after that experience in an attempt to copy those mushrooms. I later adapted it once we were dairy-free and it’s just as good that way. My father requested this dish at a recent holiday, it’s so good.
Ingredients:
8 oz. button mushrooms, stems removed and reserved
½ c. breadcrumbs
4 oz. clams, chopped
2 oz. asiago or parmesan cheese, grated*
½ tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. black pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
*Optional
Directions:
Sautee mushrooms in olive oil until soft and juices are running out. Place in a baking pan. In a bowl, mix together breadcrumbs, clams, cheese (if using), oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Stuff mixture into each mushroom. Top with cheese if desired. Bake at 350 for 10 – 15 min. or until cheese is melted. (If you’re not using the cheese, you don’t need to bake it, you can serve it immediately.) Makes 3 – 4 servings.
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Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Okay, I'll admit it. I forgot to do tonight's post.
I've been super, super busy working behind the scenes, though. Monday is the launch of the new site and next week I'm going to have several really awesome giveaways for you -- one everyday!
There will be details about the new site and all the giveaways on Sunday night, so that you know exactly what's going on. It's not quite ready yet, so I won't tell you how to find it....
How about an extra recipe to make up for it?
How about an extra recipe to make up for it?
Stuffed Mushrooms
When I was a teenager, we went to the Olive Garden to celebrate someone’s birthday and had stuffed mushrooms. I created this recipe after that experience in an attempt to copy those mushrooms. I later adapted it once we were dairy-free and it’s just as good that way. My father requested this dish at a recent holiday, it’s so good.
Ingredients:
8 oz. button mushrooms, stems removed and reserved
½ c. breadcrumbs
4 oz. clams, chopped
2 oz. asiago or parmesan cheese, grated*
½ tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. black pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil
*Optional
Directions:
Sautee mushrooms in olive oil until soft and juices are running out. Place in a baking pan. In a bowl, mix together breadcrumbs, clams, cheese (if using), oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Stuff mixture into each mushroom. Top with cheese if desired. Bake at 350 for 10 – 15 min. or until cheese is melted. (If you’re not using the cheese, you don’t need to bake it, you can serve it immediately.) Makes 3 – 4 servings.
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Thursday, February 25, 2010
Ham and Potato Soup
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Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Pennywise Platters at Nourishing Gourmet, Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom, Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker and Fight Back Fridays at Food Renegade!**
Only 3 days left to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge!
This recipe was sort of an accident. I was planning to make ham and bean soup, but discovered a few days earlier that both my kids are allergic to beans. So, that was a no-go. Ben suggested potatoes as a substitute and I ran with it. This is what I came up with.
Ingredients:
1/4 c. coconut oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
3 carrots, diced
4 medium potatoes, chopped
1 c. leftover ham, chopped
6 c. ham stock (I made mine from a ham we'd had a couple nights earlier)
1 tsp. salt (or to taste)
1 tsp. thyme
1 - 2 c. coconut milk
1 c. kale
Directions:
Heat the coconut oil in a large soup pot. Add onion, celery, and carrot and sautee until slightly softened. Add potatoes, ham, ham stock, and spices. Cook for 2 - 3 hours, until all vegetables are soft. Add coconut milk and kale and allow the soup to simmer for 30 - 40 minutes longer, until kale is wilted. I served mine with green onions on top. You could add bacon, or cheese if you eat that.
It's yummy and a good source of vegetables with the kale! Next time I might try adding mushrooms too! I'm betting you could use chicken stock if you didn't have ham stock but I haven't tried.
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Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Pennywise Platters at Nourishing Gourmet, Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom, Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker and Fight Back Fridays at Food Renegade!**
Only 3 days left to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge!
This recipe was sort of an accident. I was planning to make ham and bean soup, but discovered a few days earlier that both my kids are allergic to beans. So, that was a no-go. Ben suggested potatoes as a substitute and I ran with it. This is what I came up with.
Ingredients:
1/4 c. coconut oil
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
3 carrots, diced
4 medium potatoes, chopped
1 c. leftover ham, chopped
6 c. ham stock (I made mine from a ham we'd had a couple nights earlier)
1 tsp. salt (or to taste)
1 tsp. thyme
1 - 2 c. coconut milk
1 c. kale
Directions:
Heat the coconut oil in a large soup pot. Add onion, celery, and carrot and sautee until slightly softened. Add potatoes, ham, ham stock, and spices. Cook for 2 - 3 hours, until all vegetables are soft. Add coconut milk and kale and allow the soup to simmer for 30 - 40 minutes longer, until kale is wilted. I served mine with green onions on top. You could add bacon, or cheese if you eat that.
It's yummy and a good source of vegetables with the kale! Next time I might try adding mushrooms too! I'm betting you could use chicken stock if you didn't have ham stock but I haven't tried.
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Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Raw Honey
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Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Things I Love Thursdays at The Diaper Diaries and Frugal Fridays at Life as Mom!**
Note: It's frugal because it is cheap and it has SO many awesome uses!!
Raw honey is a really great food. In fact, it's not just a food. It's also a medicine! I thought, since next week the first "Baby Steps in the Medicine Cabinet" is coming up, I might give you a place to start with home remedies.
Honey is a natural substance produced by bees to feed their young. It is thick and rich with a characteristic taste, which can change subtly depending on the bees' diet and location. It contains a lot of beneficial bacteria, which can help to kill bad bacteria in your system, balance yeast, and much more (depends on who you ask). It is great for baking, mixing in drinks, or just eating off a spoon. It is 1.5 times as sweet as table sugar so you don't need as much of it.
That's just a quick summary of honey's benefits, though. There are many, many more! Here are others:
*Honey is an effective cough syrup. It has been shown to be more effective than medicinal cough syrups and much safer for kids age 1 - 6 (and for adults!). It can help to kill the bacteria in your throat (if it's raw) as well as coating your throat and soothing it.
*Some say honey can increase fertility, especially when paired with raw goat's milk (especially in men).
*Honey can be used as a salve to treat wounds and ulcers, more safely than antibiotics and with no side effects. In parts of Europe, it is put on wounds and then the wound is bandaged, and the honey will keep the wound clean and help it to heal. (This is not accepted in the U.S. in general, unfortunately.) At home, use honey on burns and other wounds and dress it with clean gauze, instead of using an antibiotic cream.
*Honey and lemon, when used together, can help you lose weight by making fat stores into useable energy. Drink some honey-ginger lemonade to kick-start your metabolism and weight loss! (Which is also a great morning sickness cure, by the way.)
*Honey can help to cure allergies! By taking a teaspoon per day, a person can build up an immunity to the dust, pollen, and molds that are naturally found in the honey (which won't make you sick because of the good bacteria in it). This is where being LOCAL is really important, so you're exposed to the bacteria from your own environment.
*Honey can help cancer, because it has anti-tumor properties (check the resources for a link to a published study on this).
*Honey is a good moisturizer and can be used as a facial cleanser or mask, and in homemade shampoos.
*Honey is antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and it never spoils, so it can be used for many things and kept for a long time! Honey may crystallize, but this is normal. Heat the honey gently ON THE STOVE in a water bath (microwaves are bad!) and it will become clear again.
Remember, all these benefits (and more! check the resources) are achieved by RAW honey. The pasteurized honey you buy in the regular grocery store won't have all these amazing properties.
There is a special kind of honey called Manuka honey, which is produced in New Zealand. It is very strong and used for medicial purposes. It's rather expensive, too, but it can cure many different conditions, including MRSA staph infections (with no side effects and the MRSA can't become resistant to it!). Read the resources below to learn more about it. (I looked up buying some awhile back but 8 oz. can be up to $45!)
Resources
Raw Honey Benefits
Really RAW Honey Science
WHFoods Honey
Natural Health Ezine
Benefits of Manuka Honey
Do you use raw honey? What do you use it for? Where do you get yours? What's your favorite benefit (anything I haven't mentioned)?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Things I Love Thursdays at The Diaper Diaries and Frugal Fridays at Life as Mom!**
Note: It's frugal because it is cheap and it has SO many awesome uses!!
Raw honey is a really great food. In fact, it's not just a food. It's also a medicine! I thought, since next week the first "Baby Steps in the Medicine Cabinet" is coming up, I might give you a place to start with home remedies.
Honey is a natural substance produced by bees to feed their young. It is thick and rich with a characteristic taste, which can change subtly depending on the bees' diet and location. It contains a lot of beneficial bacteria, which can help to kill bad bacteria in your system, balance yeast, and much more (depends on who you ask). It is great for baking, mixing in drinks, or just eating off a spoon. It is 1.5 times as sweet as table sugar so you don't need as much of it.
That's just a quick summary of honey's benefits, though. There are many, many more! Here are others:
*Honey is an effective cough syrup. It has been shown to be more effective than medicinal cough syrups and much safer for kids age 1 - 6 (and for adults!). It can help to kill the bacteria in your throat (if it's raw) as well as coating your throat and soothing it.
*Some say honey can increase fertility, especially when paired with raw goat's milk (especially in men).
*Honey can be used as a salve to treat wounds and ulcers, more safely than antibiotics and with no side effects. In parts of Europe, it is put on wounds and then the wound is bandaged, and the honey will keep the wound clean and help it to heal. (This is not accepted in the U.S. in general, unfortunately.) At home, use honey on burns and other wounds and dress it with clean gauze, instead of using an antibiotic cream.
*Honey and lemon, when used together, can help you lose weight by making fat stores into useable energy. Drink some honey-ginger lemonade to kick-start your metabolism and weight loss! (Which is also a great morning sickness cure, by the way.)
*Honey can help to cure allergies! By taking a teaspoon per day, a person can build up an immunity to the dust, pollen, and molds that are naturally found in the honey (which won't make you sick because of the good bacteria in it). This is where being LOCAL is really important, so you're exposed to the bacteria from your own environment.
*Honey can help cancer, because it has anti-tumor properties (check the resources for a link to a published study on this).
*Honey is a good moisturizer and can be used as a facial cleanser or mask, and in homemade shampoos.
*Honey is antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and it never spoils, so it can be used for many things and kept for a long time! Honey may crystallize, but this is normal. Heat the honey gently ON THE STOVE in a water bath (microwaves are bad!) and it will become clear again.
Remember, all these benefits (and more! check the resources) are achieved by RAW honey. The pasteurized honey you buy in the regular grocery store won't have all these amazing properties.
There is a special kind of honey called Manuka honey, which is produced in New Zealand. It is very strong and used for medicial purposes. It's rather expensive, too, but it can cure many different conditions, including MRSA staph infections (with no side effects and the MRSA can't become resistant to it!). Read the resources below to learn more about it. (I looked up buying some awhile back but 8 oz. can be up to $45!)
Resources
Raw Honey Benefits
Really RAW Honey Science
WHFoods Honey
Natural Health Ezine
Benefits of Manuka Honey
Do you use raw honey? What do you use it for? Where do you get yours? What's your favorite benefit (anything I haven't mentioned)?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Wooden Toys Winner!
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Using Random.org, I selected the winner for the wooden toy giveaway. It is:
Pat (douglassandpat@yahoo.com)
Congratulations, Pat! Please email me, ktietje85@gmail.com with your mailing address by Friday, February 26th to claim your prize.
Next week we're launching the new site (details on Sunday) and with it, we'll have a WEEK OF GIVEAWAYS! I have skin cream, baby toys, a Seventh Generation Starter Kit, Tropical Traditions Coconut flour, and more!! Follow the new site for details on all of those giveaways!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Using Random.org, I selected the winner for the wooden toy giveaway. It is:
Pat (douglassandpat@yahoo.com)
Congratulations, Pat! Please email me, ktietje85@gmail.com with your mailing address by Friday, February 26th to claim your prize.
Next week we're launching the new site (details on Sunday) and with it, we'll have a WEEK OF GIVEAWAYS! I have skin cream, baby toys, a Seventh Generation Starter Kit, Tropical Traditions Coconut flour, and more!! Follow the new site for details on all of those giveaways!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Baby Steps in Personal Care
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Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Finer Things Fridays at Amy's Finer Things!**
Only 5 more days to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge!
The Baby Steps series is SO popular, I decided to do all of the kitchen posts on Saturdays, and do the other series on Tuesdays instead of doing zhealth News Tuesdays! So on the next several Tuesdays, look for posts on personal care, the medicine cabinet, green cleaning, and possibly more. What else would you like to see?
Here are the first three baby steps in personal care:
1) Replace toothpaste with a fluoride-free version (especially for kids)
2) Replace deodorant with aluminum-free version or abandon it
3) Switch to natural facial cleanser
Why those?
Fluoride is dangerous to your health, especially if swallowed (and especially for kids!!). It is not necessary to help your teeth. Many natural toothpastes are made without it. Some of these can be found for about the same price as the typical national brands, so it's not an expensive switch. It's not a big change in your routine, either, so it's an easy first step.
Deodorant (specifically antiperspirant) is dangerous because of the aluminum. The aluminum (which your body does not ever need) blocks your sweat glands. This is how your body cools off and releases toxins. If it cannot detox, then these toxins build up in the lymph nodes (as does the aluminum). For this reason, antiperspirant has been said to cause breast cancer. Your body needs to be able to release these toxins. So, it is better to use a simple, non-aluminum deodorant that helps mask odors, or really, nothing at all. This may be a big idea to swallow (most natural deodorant brands do still contain aluminum, by the way), but it is a really, really important one. Decreasing and eventually eliminating your exposure to heavy metals is critical to gaining optimal health. Cost remains minimal here, and the overall savings on health care could be huge!
Natural facial cleanser is an easy switch. You're looking for something that doesn't contain sodium lauryl sulfate, polysorbate-80, or any of the other dangerous chemicals. Castile-soap based cleansers are a great option (that is, only vegetable oils in the soap, essential oils for fragrance are okay too). There are several great options out there, which actually work better. I've found that using a natural cleanser has eliminated my need for additional facial stuff (masks, pimple cream, etc.) and my skin is much smoother and less red. Cost is minimal here too (and cheaper if you don't need to buy the extra stuff!) and a very simple change.
What are your top 3 steps, if you have already made changes? Can you make these changes work in your routine?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Finer Things Fridays at Amy's Finer Things!**
Only 5 more days to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge!
The Baby Steps series is SO popular, I decided to do all of the kitchen posts on Saturdays, and do the other series on Tuesdays instead of doing zhealth News Tuesdays! So on the next several Tuesdays, look for posts on personal care, the medicine cabinet, green cleaning, and possibly more. What else would you like to see?
Here are the first three baby steps in personal care:
1) Replace toothpaste with a fluoride-free version (especially for kids)
2) Replace deodorant with aluminum-free version or abandon it
3) Switch to natural facial cleanser
Why those?
Fluoride is dangerous to your health, especially if swallowed (and especially for kids!!). It is not necessary to help your teeth. Many natural toothpastes are made without it. Some of these can be found for about the same price as the typical national brands, so it's not an expensive switch. It's not a big change in your routine, either, so it's an easy first step.
Deodorant (specifically antiperspirant) is dangerous because of the aluminum. The aluminum (which your body does not ever need) blocks your sweat glands. This is how your body cools off and releases toxins. If it cannot detox, then these toxins build up in the lymph nodes (as does the aluminum). For this reason, antiperspirant has been said to cause breast cancer. Your body needs to be able to release these toxins. So, it is better to use a simple, non-aluminum deodorant that helps mask odors, or really, nothing at all. This may be a big idea to swallow (most natural deodorant brands do still contain aluminum, by the way), but it is a really, really important one. Decreasing and eventually eliminating your exposure to heavy metals is critical to gaining optimal health. Cost remains minimal here, and the overall savings on health care could be huge!
Natural facial cleanser is an easy switch. You're looking for something that doesn't contain sodium lauryl sulfate, polysorbate-80, or any of the other dangerous chemicals. Castile-soap based cleansers are a great option (that is, only vegetable oils in the soap, essential oils for fragrance are okay too). There are several great options out there, which actually work better. I've found that using a natural cleanser has eliminated my need for additional facial stuff (masks, pimple cream, etc.) and my skin is much smoother and less red. Cost is minimal here too (and cheaper if you don't need to buy the extra stuff!) and a very simple change.
What are your top 3 steps, if you have already made changes? Can you make these changes work in your routine?
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Monday, February 22, 2010
Things I've Learned About Allergies
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Don't forget to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat challenge!
Many times as we've gone through dealing with my childrens' allergies, I've felt it was terribly unfair that my children were always reacting and I had to be hypervigilant about everything they ate and on the lookout for any tiny sign of reaction, when so many other peoples' kids were completely fine! And many of them didn't try nearly as hard for the natural, organic lifestyle! Where was the justice?
These are my thoughts in my dark hours, of course. Most of the time I'm just happy that I'm paying attention and that I'm helping them feel better and hopefully heal from their allergies. Then there are those times that I've heard other parents make comments that sounded strange to me...and I began to wonder, are there children experiencing minor food sensitivity symptoms, but they don't realize it? I've gone back and forth, wondering what might be "weird" but normal, and what might really be a sign of sensitivity. But after talking with other moms of 'allergy' children, I've come up with a list of things I've learned by dealing with kids with allergies (I could be wrong, but this is what I believe to be true, and our pediatrician has discussed some of these points with us):
1) Eczema is a sign of allergies.
Yes, always. It could be food, laundry detergents, local pollution, who knows. But it is allergies, not just something children get. All the allergic children I know (including mine) will flare up with eczema badly if they are exposed to an allergen; but when they're not, their skin is perfectly clear! No creams touch it as long as they are still exposed to the allergen. A LOT of kids have eczema...and also, food sensitivities their parents haven't realized.
2) Cradle cap is a sign of allergies.
This is common in young babies, but any that persists for more than a few days or gets bad is actually a sign of some kind of allergy (usually milk, since it shows up so early). My daughter had this horribly (as did a lot of other allergy babies). My son, since we discovered his allergies almost immediately and cut the offending foods, never did.
3) Reflux is a sign of allergies.
So many moms say "my baby has reflux!! I hope they outgrow it! At least it's not allergies!" Sorry to let you know, but in almost all cases, it IS allergies. Many of these moms learn when their babies are older that they DO have an allergy to something. It really just is a sign that the baby has an allergy, generally, again, usually to milk. Especially if it's accompanied by screaming or projectile vomitting.
4) Sleep disturbances are a sign of allergies.
While sleep disturbances can happen for MANY reasons (growth spurts, teething, routine disruptions, etc.), continued night waking with no obvious cause, especially after a year old, are often a sign of allergies. Bekah continued to wake up several times a night well past a year (as have many other allergy kids) and STILL wakes up at night, at age 2, if she eats something that isn't good for her. If sleep disturbance is persistent and combined with other symptoms, consider allergies.
5) Diarrhea and/or constipation are a sign of allergies.
If a baby's system isn't ready for a food, or s/he is allergic to it, diarrhea or constipation can result. It's not normal for any food to just "cause diarrhea." That only happens if the body is not digesting it properly. This is related to the next sign, so I'll discuss it further in a second....
6) Undigested food in the poop is a sign of allergies.
If the body is handling a food properly, there should be no trace of it when it comes out the other end. It's a myth that certain foods -- grapes, corn, beans, cranberries, etc. -- just cause "nasty poop." No. That is not normal. That is a sign of allergy to that food! I have heard over and over that grapes cause nasty poop, but when Bekah eats a ton of grapes (and she is allergic to SO MANY foods), there are no issues. We only get the "nasty poop" when the food is clearly not good for her! I've talked to a lot of other moms of allergic kids who have said the same thing.
7) Persistent diaper rash is a sign of allergies.
If your child eats something, has nasty poop, and then gets a diaper rash, that is a sign of allergies too. Yes, kids can get diaper rash for a bunch of reasons, but if it happens frequently and is hard to get rid of, consider allergies. It may be an allergy to the brand of diapers or detergents. Or, it may be food.
8) Stomachaches, fussiness, gas, etc. can be a sign of allergies
This can also be a sign of illness, of course, but if it happens after eating particular foods, consider allergies. Eating a food that causes an allergic reaction will likely upset the child's stomach and make him/her not feel well and be irritable. Some will even scream.
None of these symptoms are those of "true" allergies (i.e. the life-threatening, not-breathing kind) but they are signs of serious food sensitivities. And they should be taken seriously. These symptoms can be minor and, if you're not paying attention, seem like nothing. After all, every baby has a fussy day, or a little eczema, or nasty poops every now and then, right? Well...yes, but there's ALWAYS a reason for those things! And food sensitivities are often to blame.
If you notice a pattern of some of these symptoms, no matter how minor, I suggest that you keep a food journal. Write down what your child eats and when, and any symptoms you note and how long after eating the offending food that they occur. Take this to your child's doctor and ask him or her about possible food sensitivities. Try an elimination diet to see if s/he does better without the foods (my guess would be yes!).
It seems like nit-picking, but these small sensitivities are affecting your child's gut health and immune system. Avoiding the foods causing the problems is very important, even if the diet changes are difficult. Believe me -- I know it's hard. But we've been much better off since we've made the changes. Our children sleep better, are happier, and clearly feel better. And we do too.
Have you noticed any symptoms in your children? If you know you have allergic children, what do you think about this list?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Don't forget to register for the 30-Day Eat More Fat challenge!
Many times as we've gone through dealing with my childrens' allergies, I've felt it was terribly unfair that my children were always reacting and I had to be hypervigilant about everything they ate and on the lookout for any tiny sign of reaction, when so many other peoples' kids were completely fine! And many of them didn't try nearly as hard for the natural, organic lifestyle! Where was the justice?
These are my thoughts in my dark hours, of course. Most of the time I'm just happy that I'm paying attention and that I'm helping them feel better and hopefully heal from their allergies. Then there are those times that I've heard other parents make comments that sounded strange to me...and I began to wonder, are there children experiencing minor food sensitivity symptoms, but they don't realize it? I've gone back and forth, wondering what might be "weird" but normal, and what might really be a sign of sensitivity. But after talking with other moms of 'allergy' children, I've come up with a list of things I've learned by dealing with kids with allergies (I could be wrong, but this is what I believe to be true, and our pediatrician has discussed some of these points with us):
1) Eczema is a sign of allergies.
Yes, always. It could be food, laundry detergents, local pollution, who knows. But it is allergies, not just something children get. All the allergic children I know (including mine) will flare up with eczema badly if they are exposed to an allergen; but when they're not, their skin is perfectly clear! No creams touch it as long as they are still exposed to the allergen. A LOT of kids have eczema...and also, food sensitivities their parents haven't realized.
2) Cradle cap is a sign of allergies.
This is common in young babies, but any that persists for more than a few days or gets bad is actually a sign of some kind of allergy (usually milk, since it shows up so early). My daughter had this horribly (as did a lot of other allergy babies). My son, since we discovered his allergies almost immediately and cut the offending foods, never did.
3) Reflux is a sign of allergies.
So many moms say "my baby has reflux!! I hope they outgrow it! At least it's not allergies!" Sorry to let you know, but in almost all cases, it IS allergies. Many of these moms learn when their babies are older that they DO have an allergy to something. It really just is a sign that the baby has an allergy, generally, again, usually to milk. Especially if it's accompanied by screaming or projectile vomitting.
4) Sleep disturbances are a sign of allergies.
While sleep disturbances can happen for MANY reasons (growth spurts, teething, routine disruptions, etc.), continued night waking with no obvious cause, especially after a year old, are often a sign of allergies. Bekah continued to wake up several times a night well past a year (as have many other allergy kids) and STILL wakes up at night, at age 2, if she eats something that isn't good for her. If sleep disturbance is persistent and combined with other symptoms, consider allergies.
5) Diarrhea and/or constipation are a sign of allergies.
If a baby's system isn't ready for a food, or s/he is allergic to it, diarrhea or constipation can result. It's not normal for any food to just "cause diarrhea." That only happens if the body is not digesting it properly. This is related to the next sign, so I'll discuss it further in a second....
6) Undigested food in the poop is a sign of allergies.
If the body is handling a food properly, there should be no trace of it when it comes out the other end. It's a myth that certain foods -- grapes, corn, beans, cranberries, etc. -- just cause "nasty poop." No. That is not normal. That is a sign of allergy to that food! I have heard over and over that grapes cause nasty poop, but when Bekah eats a ton of grapes (and she is allergic to SO MANY foods), there are no issues. We only get the "nasty poop" when the food is clearly not good for her! I've talked to a lot of other moms of allergic kids who have said the same thing.
7) Persistent diaper rash is a sign of allergies.
If your child eats something, has nasty poop, and then gets a diaper rash, that is a sign of allergies too. Yes, kids can get diaper rash for a bunch of reasons, but if it happens frequently and is hard to get rid of, consider allergies. It may be an allergy to the brand of diapers or detergents. Or, it may be food.
8) Stomachaches, fussiness, gas, etc. can be a sign of allergies
This can also be a sign of illness, of course, but if it happens after eating particular foods, consider allergies. Eating a food that causes an allergic reaction will likely upset the child's stomach and make him/her not feel well and be irritable. Some will even scream.
None of these symptoms are those of "true" allergies (i.e. the life-threatening, not-breathing kind) but they are signs of serious food sensitivities. And they should be taken seriously. These symptoms can be minor and, if you're not paying attention, seem like nothing. After all, every baby has a fussy day, or a little eczema, or nasty poops every now and then, right? Well...yes, but there's ALWAYS a reason for those things! And food sensitivities are often to blame.
If you notice a pattern of some of these symptoms, no matter how minor, I suggest that you keep a food journal. Write down what your child eats and when, and any symptoms you note and how long after eating the offending food that they occur. Take this to your child's doctor and ask him or her about possible food sensitivities. Try an elimination diet to see if s/he does better without the foods (my guess would be yes!).
It seems like nit-picking, but these small sensitivities are affecting your child's gut health and immune system. Avoiding the foods causing the problems is very important, even if the diet changes are difficult. Believe me -- I know it's hard. But we've been much better off since we've made the changes. Our children sleep better, are happier, and clearly feel better. And we do too.
Have you noticed any symptoms in your children? If you know you have allergic children, what do you think about this list?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Wooden Toys...GIVEAWAY!
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today, we have an awesome giveaway! It's sponsored by CSN Stores. They have a number of great websites, like their Mailboxes site. However, today's giveaway is from CSNBaby and is a prize package of wooden toys! Here they are:
If you would like to win, there will be ways to enter at the end of the post. But first, why wooden toys?
These days, when plastic toys (complete with batteries, music, and flashing lights) are the most common playthings, wooden toys have taken a back seat. But wooden toys used to be the only type of toys children had. With all the new options (which, with their bright colors, look so appealing in the store and on TV), why would we want to go back to wood?
Wooden toys have MANY great benefits.
They are SAFE.
With many plastic toys coming out of China and new scares everyday about BPA and other chemicals being found in toys, or lead being found in paint or dyes, it's hard to know what is really safe to play with. American (or Canadian or European) made wooden toys are safe, and are generally not painted, or are painted with lead-free paint. Buying from small, local manufacturers supports small business and ensures you know exactly what is in the toys you're buying.
They LAST.
So many plastic toys are flimsy. Throw them down the stairs once or step on them (as children do from time to time) and they're broken and have to be thrown out. Wooden toys are very durable and will last through being mistreated. They can be passed down from child to child and even down generations. They'll still look just as nice as they ever did, requiring little more than a fresh coat of paint, if that.
They foster CREATIVITY.
Many of the plastic toys have one function. There are a thousand plastic dolls out there: some eat, some wet, some are "sick," some are for dress-up, etc. There are toys that play a song if a button is pressed. But once this function has been thoroughly investigated, the toy is useless and typically tossed aside. Wooden toys, however, don't have just one use. In fact, they don't "do" anything. They require children to play their own games and use their imagination to play. A single doll can be any number of different things! A kitchen set or a rocking horse can be many different things, too. A rocking horse could be "just a horse," or it could be a cowboy's trusty mate, a police officer's way to get around, or not a horse at all -- perhaps a zebra or something foreign! Children today need a chance to have their imagination stimulated.
They help ATTENTION SPAN.
When a toy fosters creativity, children play with it longer. They rehearse their lives and come up with elaborate games to play with the toys. Children who are constantly surrounded by beeping, flashing, single-function toys will go rapidly from toy to toy as they become bored. If this is constant their attention spans will be short because they are used to getting bored with things quickly. (TV has also been blamed for causing this.)
There are other great articles about wooden toys:
Benefits of Wooden Toys
Safe and Natural Wooden Toys
Now, how can you enter to win the wooden toys above?
1. Leave a comment below (with your name, not anonymous) about why you would like to win the toys and/or why you think wooden toys are good
2. Visit CSN Baby and tell me what other wooden toys you think your family would enjoy (future giveaway...?)
3. Subscribe to me via RSS or email (or tell me that you already do).
4. Follow me on Twitter.
5. Tweet about this giveaway.
6. Email this giveaway to 5 friends, or post about it on Facebook.
Please leave each entry in a SEPARATE comment. So if you do 1, 2, and 4, you must three different comments! I will use Random.org to generate a number and then whichever comment that is (numbered from first received to last) will be the winner! There are 6 possible entries!
The giveaway closes at 12 AM EST on Tuesday, February 23rd. I will announce the winner at 8 PM Wednesday, February 24th. The winner needs to contact me via email by Friday, February 26th with his/her full name and mailing address to claim the prize.
Thanks, and good luck!!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today, we have an awesome giveaway! It's sponsored by CSN Stores. They have a number of great websites, like their Mailboxes site. However, today's giveaway is from CSNBaby and is a prize package of wooden toys! Here they are:
If you would like to win, there will be ways to enter at the end of the post. But first, why wooden toys?
These days, when plastic toys (complete with batteries, music, and flashing lights) are the most common playthings, wooden toys have taken a back seat. But wooden toys used to be the only type of toys children had. With all the new options (which, with their bright colors, look so appealing in the store and on TV), why would we want to go back to wood?
Wooden toys have MANY great benefits.
They are SAFE.
With many plastic toys coming out of China and new scares everyday about BPA and other chemicals being found in toys, or lead being found in paint or dyes, it's hard to know what is really safe to play with. American (or Canadian or European) made wooden toys are safe, and are generally not painted, or are painted with lead-free paint. Buying from small, local manufacturers supports small business and ensures you know exactly what is in the toys you're buying.
They LAST.
So many plastic toys are flimsy. Throw them down the stairs once or step on them (as children do from time to time) and they're broken and have to be thrown out. Wooden toys are very durable and will last through being mistreated. They can be passed down from child to child and even down generations. They'll still look just as nice as they ever did, requiring little more than a fresh coat of paint, if that.
They foster CREATIVITY.
Many of the plastic toys have one function. There are a thousand plastic dolls out there: some eat, some wet, some are "sick," some are for dress-up, etc. There are toys that play a song if a button is pressed. But once this function has been thoroughly investigated, the toy is useless and typically tossed aside. Wooden toys, however, don't have just one use. In fact, they don't "do" anything. They require children to play their own games and use their imagination to play. A single doll can be any number of different things! A kitchen set or a rocking horse can be many different things, too. A rocking horse could be "just a horse," or it could be a cowboy's trusty mate, a police officer's way to get around, or not a horse at all -- perhaps a zebra or something foreign! Children today need a chance to have their imagination stimulated.
They help ATTENTION SPAN.
When a toy fosters creativity, children play with it longer. They rehearse their lives and come up with elaborate games to play with the toys. Children who are constantly surrounded by beeping, flashing, single-function toys will go rapidly from toy to toy as they become bored. If this is constant their attention spans will be short because they are used to getting bored with things quickly. (TV has also been blamed for causing this.)
There are other great articles about wooden toys:
Benefits of Wooden Toys
Safe and Natural Wooden Toys
Now, how can you enter to win the wooden toys above?
1. Leave a comment below (with your name, not anonymous) about why you would like to win the toys and/or why you think wooden toys are good
2. Visit CSN Baby and tell me what other wooden toys you think your family would enjoy (future giveaway...?)
3. Subscribe to me via RSS or email (or tell me that you already do).
4. Follow me on Twitter.
5. Tweet about this giveaway.
6. Email this giveaway to 5 friends, or post about it on Facebook.
Please leave each entry in a SEPARATE comment. So if you do 1, 2, and 4, you must three different comments! I will use Random.org to generate a number and then whichever comment that is (numbered from first received to last) will be the winner! There are 6 possible entries!
The giveaway closes at 12 AM EST on Tuesday, February 23rd. I will announce the winner at 8 PM Wednesday, February 24th. The winner needs to contact me via email by Friday, February 26th with his/her full name and mailing address to claim the prize.
Thanks, and good luck!!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Baby Steps in the Kitchen, Part 2
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Works for Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family and Real Food Wednesdays at Kelly the Kitchen Kop!**
Time for the next three Baby Steps in the Kitchen! I've decided to do all the kitchen posts on Saturdays because I have a feeling that kitchen baby steps are going to be the most popular. On Tuesdays I'll be doing the other Baby Steps posts (personal care, cleaning products, etc.). Look for the first one in the personal care series coming up this Tuesday!!
In case you missed the first three Baby Steps, check it out here! Then come back and read this one. :)
Now, here are my "4, 5, and 6" steps to healthier eating:
4) Replace white sugar with healthier alternatives (sucanat, raw honey, rapidura)
5) Get rid of aluminum cookware
6) Buy good milk, or milk substitute (coconut milk)
Why these?
White sugar is in ALL our food (that doesn't contain high fructose corn syrup, that is). It's in all the cakes, candies, cereals.... We eat WAY too much sugar, in general. Think about the recipes you bake at home -- many quick bread and cake recipes call for 2 cups of sugar! This much is just not necessary (did you know that in a lot of recipes, you can simply reduce the sugar by up to half without replacing it with anything and the recipe will still turn out well?), and white sugar is completely devoid of nutrients. It's awful, awful stuff. But right now I'm not going to ask you to cut sugar out of your diet -- yet. Instead, reach for a healthier alternative. Real maple syrup, raw honey, and sucanat are the best options. Rapidura is also very good. Turbinado sugar is not bad. Blackstrap molasses are good, but of course have a strong, unique flavor. When you're buying sugar next time, select a different variety. Try putting honey in your tea, maple syrup in your coffee. Use Rapidura or sucanat for baking (and if you remember, use a little less!). You'll feel better for it.
Aluminum is a huge problem. It's a metal that we don't need in our bodies at all, and which can cause serious health problems over time. When we use it for cookware, the metal leaches into our food and gets into our body. Most people who have some aluminum cookware also have cookware that isn't aluminum, and cookware that doesn't contain aluminum is easy to obtain. (It's also a good idea to get rid of any cookware that is coated with Teflon, but we'll get to that later.) We recently threw out a couple of pans that were bad, but most of our cookware was safe. OLD cookware is what you need to look out for now.
Milk is a big problem, in modern times. Unfortunately, it's all pasteurized (a process that was invented to purify beer and other alcohol, NOT milk) and homogenized (which breaks down the fat molecules into a size and shape that our body doesn't recognize). The factory farmed dairy cows are also very sick, given hormones (that is slowly changing), poor diet, and the milk they produce is unhealthy to begin with (which is why it needs pasteurized). Something else to consider is that calcium in this milk is not really useable by the body, so the argument "but you have to drink milk to get calcium!" is really moot. However, there are other options. You can buy milk that is non-homogenized, low-temp pasteurized, and grass-fed. Raw milk is even better (but not easy to obtain in many areas). Raw milk can be obtained by purchasing a share in a herd of cows, or by purchasing it for "pet use." These are common now. One caution: many brands of organic milk are "ultrapasteurized," which is even worse for you -- don't buy that! If you don't want to or can't buy good cow's milk, goat milk or coconut milk are very good options. We use coconut milk, which contains medium-chain fatty acids and a lot of great nutrients.
Those are my next three baby steps! Right now I have 24, so expect this series to continue for at least another 6 weeks.
What are your next three steps? Have you started on any of these? What do you think?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Works for Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family and Real Food Wednesdays at Kelly the Kitchen Kop!**
Time for the next three Baby Steps in the Kitchen! I've decided to do all the kitchen posts on Saturdays because I have a feeling that kitchen baby steps are going to be the most popular. On Tuesdays I'll be doing the other Baby Steps posts (personal care, cleaning products, etc.). Look for the first one in the personal care series coming up this Tuesday!!
In case you missed the first three Baby Steps, check it out here! Then come back and read this one. :)
Now, here are my "4, 5, and 6" steps to healthier eating:
4) Replace white sugar with healthier alternatives (sucanat, raw honey, rapidura)
5) Get rid of aluminum cookware
6) Buy good milk, or milk substitute (coconut milk)
Why these?
White sugar is in ALL our food (that doesn't contain high fructose corn syrup, that is). It's in all the cakes, candies, cereals.... We eat WAY too much sugar, in general. Think about the recipes you bake at home -- many quick bread and cake recipes call for 2 cups of sugar! This much is just not necessary (did you know that in a lot of recipes, you can simply reduce the sugar by up to half without replacing it with anything and the recipe will still turn out well?), and white sugar is completely devoid of nutrients. It's awful, awful stuff. But right now I'm not going to ask you to cut sugar out of your diet -- yet. Instead, reach for a healthier alternative. Real maple syrup, raw honey, and sucanat are the best options. Rapidura is also very good. Turbinado sugar is not bad. Blackstrap molasses are good, but of course have a strong, unique flavor. When you're buying sugar next time, select a different variety. Try putting honey in your tea, maple syrup in your coffee. Use Rapidura or sucanat for baking (and if you remember, use a little less!). You'll feel better for it.
Aluminum is a huge problem. It's a metal that we don't need in our bodies at all, and which can cause serious health problems over time. When we use it for cookware, the metal leaches into our food and gets into our body. Most people who have some aluminum cookware also have cookware that isn't aluminum, and cookware that doesn't contain aluminum is easy to obtain. (It's also a good idea to get rid of any cookware that is coated with Teflon, but we'll get to that later.) We recently threw out a couple of pans that were bad, but most of our cookware was safe. OLD cookware is what you need to look out for now.
Milk is a big problem, in modern times. Unfortunately, it's all pasteurized (a process that was invented to purify beer and other alcohol, NOT milk) and homogenized (which breaks down the fat molecules into a size and shape that our body doesn't recognize). The factory farmed dairy cows are also very sick, given hormones (that is slowly changing), poor diet, and the milk they produce is unhealthy to begin with (which is why it needs pasteurized). Something else to consider is that calcium in this milk is not really useable by the body, so the argument "but you have to drink milk to get calcium!" is really moot. However, there are other options. You can buy milk that is non-homogenized, low-temp pasteurized, and grass-fed. Raw milk is even better (but not easy to obtain in many areas). Raw milk can be obtained by purchasing a share in a herd of cows, or by purchasing it for "pet use." These are common now. One caution: many brands of organic milk are "ultrapasteurized," which is even worse for you -- don't buy that! If you don't want to or can't buy good cow's milk, goat milk or coconut milk are very good options. We use coconut milk, which contains medium-chain fatty acids and a lot of great nutrients.
Those are my next three baby steps! Right now I have 24, so expect this series to continue for at least another 6 weeks.
What are your next three steps? Have you started on any of these? What do you think?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Friday, February 19, 2010
Daily Attitude
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today I read a great post over at Raising Arrows called "The Me Time Myth." I suggest going over there to read that post before you read this one. I'll wait. :)
Okay, now. I'm betting a lot of you disagree with it. But I don't. I think it's very right, and very important. Who we are isn't the person we are in the small stolen moments. Who we are isn't who we wish to be once all the "work" is done (especially as a parent!). Who we are is what we do everyday, all day long. And that's how it should be. If you don't like what you do everyday, what you surround yourself with -- change that. But having a mindset of needing to escape from it to be "yourself" is going to lead to frustration and anger.
I've found that most of the time, I enjoy including my kids in my daily activities. I might want to go out to lunch with a friend, spend time cooking, go shopping, etc. But I enjoy bringing my kids with me. I often choose to even when I don't "have" to (like when Ben is home). I like having them with me and involved in my activities, in general.
There are times when having my children with me isn't a good idea. Such as, if I'm cooking with knives or when I was teaching and needed to pay attention to my student. It's one of the reasons I closed the business -- I did not like feeling under pressure and like I needed my children to "go away" for awhile. It made me angry and frustrated with them. I didn't like feeling that way, so I needed to step away. It's why I try not to take on time-sensitive projects too often, because life is unpredictable with children and they need me first.
So, I suggest to you, our attitude should be joyful towards our daily routine. We should enjoy doing laundry, cooking, shopping, and caring for our children. Not all moments will be joyful, obviously (like when dinner's boiling over, the phone is ringing, and all the children are screaming) but we should attempt to enjoy WHY we are doing them. We are raising children and that is the biggest and best job ever!
Like Amy, every time I feel like I need some "me" time, I'm impatient to get away from my family and get away from the day-to-day activities. I'm short with them and angry that they need me so much. I'm not joyful and purposeful in the way I care for them anymore. I don't like being that way.
Instead of seeking "me" time, I need to focus on the activities that need done everyday, and give them all my attention and loving care. I honestly feel that most people don't think this way. Most people believe strongly that everyone needs time alone. But unless you're taking a few quiet moments to pray, you shouldn't need time alone. Your time should be spent with your family and your friends, blessing them. You shouldn't try to minimize parenting by hoping your kids will go away and play alone so you can work on a project, or hoping they'll go to bed early every night so you can watch TV or take a bath. If it works out that you happen to get some time alone, that's great, but your parenting should be based on your family's needs first, not your own. That is selfish and that is not how God treats us.
Ben and I both seem to have a different perspective on this, honestly. Ben believes in "me" time. This has led to some fights. He will want to go out by himself and say "Well, I encourage you to go too! You just never do!" And I do go out, usually during the day, and I almost always take at least one child with me. And I don't mind doing that, until Ben says "But you SHOULD have time to yourself!" It just isn't feasible right now, with a nursing infant. But when he says it then I suddenly feel the 'stress' of not having the time to myself, that I suddenly feel like I am entitled to it. It seems unfair to me that Ben should get this time and I don't. Then we fight because Ben desperately wants to get away and believes we're both entitled, and I come to feel that way too. Instead, we need to focus on our family first and finding joy in being together and doing what needs to be done instead of those rare times when we can "escape."
I'm not saying any of this because I'm perfect. On bad days I feel the need to escape too. But it needs to be a quiet moment in prayer and a deep breath, with the intention of diving back in, not pulling away. I'm trying to remember this everyday. I hope all of you can feel calm and fulfilled by your daily lives (at least most of the time!).
Take delight in the people around you instead of seeking the elusive "me time." Family time is what you really need.
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
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Today I read a great post over at Raising Arrows called "The Me Time Myth." I suggest going over there to read that post before you read this one. I'll wait. :)
Okay, now. I'm betting a lot of you disagree with it. But I don't. I think it's very right, and very important. Who we are isn't the person we are in the small stolen moments. Who we are isn't who we wish to be once all the "work" is done (especially as a parent!). Who we are is what we do everyday, all day long. And that's how it should be. If you don't like what you do everyday, what you surround yourself with -- change that. But having a mindset of needing to escape from it to be "yourself" is going to lead to frustration and anger.
I've found that most of the time, I enjoy including my kids in my daily activities. I might want to go out to lunch with a friend, spend time cooking, go shopping, etc. But I enjoy bringing my kids with me. I often choose to even when I don't "have" to (like when Ben is home). I like having them with me and involved in my activities, in general.
There are times when having my children with me isn't a good idea. Such as, if I'm cooking with knives or when I was teaching and needed to pay attention to my student. It's one of the reasons I closed the business -- I did not like feeling under pressure and like I needed my children to "go away" for awhile. It made me angry and frustrated with them. I didn't like feeling that way, so I needed to step away. It's why I try not to take on time-sensitive projects too often, because life is unpredictable with children and they need me first.
So, I suggest to you, our attitude should be joyful towards our daily routine. We should enjoy doing laundry, cooking, shopping, and caring for our children. Not all moments will be joyful, obviously (like when dinner's boiling over, the phone is ringing, and all the children are screaming) but we should attempt to enjoy WHY we are doing them. We are raising children and that is the biggest and best job ever!
Like Amy, every time I feel like I need some "me" time, I'm impatient to get away from my family and get away from the day-to-day activities. I'm short with them and angry that they need me so much. I'm not joyful and purposeful in the way I care for them anymore. I don't like being that way.
Instead of seeking "me" time, I need to focus on the activities that need done everyday, and give them all my attention and loving care. I honestly feel that most people don't think this way. Most people believe strongly that everyone needs time alone. But unless you're taking a few quiet moments to pray, you shouldn't need time alone. Your time should be spent with your family and your friends, blessing them. You shouldn't try to minimize parenting by hoping your kids will go away and play alone so you can work on a project, or hoping they'll go to bed early every night so you can watch TV or take a bath. If it works out that you happen to get some time alone, that's great, but your parenting should be based on your family's needs first, not your own. That is selfish and that is not how God treats us.
Ben and I both seem to have a different perspective on this, honestly. Ben believes in "me" time. This has led to some fights. He will want to go out by himself and say "Well, I encourage you to go too! You just never do!" And I do go out, usually during the day, and I almost always take at least one child with me. And I don't mind doing that, until Ben says "But you SHOULD have time to yourself!" It just isn't feasible right now, with a nursing infant. But when he says it then I suddenly feel the 'stress' of not having the time to myself, that I suddenly feel like I am entitled to it. It seems unfair to me that Ben should get this time and I don't. Then we fight because Ben desperately wants to get away and believes we're both entitled, and I come to feel that way too. Instead, we need to focus on our family first and finding joy in being together and doing what needs to be done instead of those rare times when we can "escape."
I'm not saying any of this because I'm perfect. On bad days I feel the need to escape too. But it needs to be a quiet moment in prayer and a deep breath, with the intention of diving back in, not pulling away. I'm trying to remember this everyday. I hope all of you can feel calm and fulfilled by your daily lives (at least most of the time!).
Take delight in the people around you instead of seeking the elusive "me time." Family time is what you really need.
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Guest Post (Again)!
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As you know, I was a music teacher before I had kids (private teaching). Today I have a guest post on music education for homeschooling families over at Raising Arrows, Amy's blog. Head over there and check it out!
While you're there, read more of Amy's blog. She has a lot of great information on parenting a large family (she has 5 kids and is expecting again), Biblical training, homeschooling, and lots more! Her blog is one of my recent finds but I'm really enjoying it. I feel like she is where I hope to be in 10 years!
I'm really excited about the opportunity to have a guest post there!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
As you know, I was a music teacher before I had kids (private teaching). Today I have a guest post on music education for homeschooling families over at Raising Arrows, Amy's blog. Head over there and check it out!
While you're there, read more of Amy's blog. She has a lot of great information on parenting a large family (she has 5 kids and is expecting again), Biblical training, homeschooling, and lots more! Her blog is one of my recent finds but I'm really enjoying it. I feel like she is where I hope to be in 10 years!
I'm really excited about the opportunity to have a guest post there!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Coconut Chocolate Muffins
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Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post is linked to Food on Fridays at Ann Kroeker's blog!**
At the moment, we're grain-free, so we were really missing bread. I borrowed the original version of this recipe from Ann Marie at Cheeseslave, then made a few changes to suit our tastes and allergies (we can't do blueberries). I believe she found the recipe in Bruce Fife's Cooking with Coconut Flour: A Delicious, Low-Carb, Gluten-Free Alternative to Wheat. I haven't read the book yet myself, but I'd like to!
Our result was pretty yummy! Bekah LOVES them and eats 8 or 9 per day (I made mini-muffins so that's not as much as it sounds like). Here it is:
Ingredients:
6 eggs, pastured and at room temperature
1/4 c. coconut oil
1/4 c. coconut milk
1/4 c. raw honey
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. coconut flour
1/4 c. raw cacao powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
Directions:
Cream together honey and coconut oil. Blend in coconut milk, then eggs (if eggs are cold, you will get lumps of coconut oil mix throughout your batter). Add vanilla and salt, stir. Add cacao and stir in, then add coconut flour and baking soda and mix thoroughly (some suggest mixing the dry ingredients separately, but I'm too lazy).
Bake at 400 for 15 min. Or, 10 minutes for mini-muffins. This will make one dozen regular muffins, and 3 dozen or so mini muffins.
These are super nutrient dense, too, without being too sweet and totally grain-free! Coconut is great for you, and so is raw cacao.
Bonus recipe!!
Okay, most of you will NEVER try this. But Bekah loves this. It is "candy" she can have.
Ingredients:
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate (99% pure cacao)
3/4 c. coconut oil
1 vanilla bean, scraped out
1/2 c. unsweetened coconut flakes (opt.)
1 tsp. mint extract (opt.)
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, melt chocolate and coconut oil over low heat. Add the caviar (the part you scraped out) from the vanilla bean. Stir until smooth and mixed. Add coconut flakes and/or mint extract if desired. Pour into a small pan (8x8 or smaller) and freeze for 20 - 30 minutes or until hard. Store, covered, in the fridge.
This is completely unsweetened candy. Super nutrient-dense, super rich. Most of us couldn't stomach it because it is really bitter. But for those who don't have much of a sweet tooth, this is pretty good. You could also add 2 - 3 tbsp. raw honey if you'd like a lightly sweet candy. But it is smooth, rich, and very interesting unsweetened. :)
Our result was pretty yummy! Bekah LOVES them and eats 8 or 9 per day (I made mini-muffins so that's not as much as it sounds like). Here it is:
Ingredients:
6 eggs, pastured and at room temperature
1/4 c. coconut oil
1/4 c. coconut milk
1/4 c. raw honey
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. coconut flour
1/4 c. raw cacao powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
Directions:
Cream together honey and coconut oil. Blend in coconut milk, then eggs (if eggs are cold, you will get lumps of coconut oil mix throughout your batter). Add vanilla and salt, stir. Add cacao and stir in, then add coconut flour and baking soda and mix thoroughly (some suggest mixing the dry ingredients separately, but I'm too lazy).
Bake at 400 for 15 min. Or, 10 minutes for mini-muffins. This will make one dozen regular muffins, and 3 dozen or so mini muffins.
These are super nutrient dense, too, without being too sweet and totally grain-free! Coconut is great for you, and so is raw cacao.
Bonus recipe!!
Okay, most of you will NEVER try this. But Bekah loves this. It is "candy" she can have.
Ingredients:
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate (99% pure cacao)
3/4 c. coconut oil
1 vanilla bean, scraped out
1/2 c. unsweetened coconut flakes (opt.)
1 tsp. mint extract (opt.)
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, melt chocolate and coconut oil over low heat. Add the caviar (the part you scraped out) from the vanilla bean. Stir until smooth and mixed. Add coconut flakes and/or mint extract if desired. Pour into a small pan (8x8 or smaller) and freeze for 20 - 30 minutes or until hard. Store, covered, in the fridge.
This is completely unsweetened candy. Super nutrient-dense, super rich. Most of us couldn't stomach it because it is really bitter. But for those who don't have much of a sweet tooth, this is pretty good. You could also add 2 - 3 tbsp. raw honey if you'd like a lightly sweet candy. But it is smooth, rich, and very interesting unsweetened. :)
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Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Ash Wednesday
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Today is Ash Wednesday, which is a really, really important holiday for Christians.
Although we celebrate Christmas every year, Jesus never actually commanded us to celebrate His birth. He did, however, command us to celebrate His death and resurrection. Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, which are the 40 days in preparation for Easter, Christ's resurrection. This is THE holiday for Christians! Jesus died on the Cross to save us, and then rose from the dead -- amazing!
Over the next 40 days, we are called to spend time in prayer, reflecting on Christ's sacrifice for us. Many people have days where they fast during Lent. Catholics do not eat meat on Ash Wednesday or Fridays (I grew up Catholic). Many also choose something else to give up -- specific foods, special activities, etc. These are as a reminder to pray and feel Christ's pain.
There are many good blogs that will be following Lent very closely, including Kitchen Stewardship.
What will you be doing during Lent? How do you celebrate? Say a prayer today for Jesus' sacrifice.
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today is Ash Wednesday, which is a really, really important holiday for Christians.
Although we celebrate Christmas every year, Jesus never actually commanded us to celebrate His birth. He did, however, command us to celebrate His death and resurrection. Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, which are the 40 days in preparation for Easter, Christ's resurrection. This is THE holiday for Christians! Jesus died on the Cross to save us, and then rose from the dead -- amazing!
Over the next 40 days, we are called to spend time in prayer, reflecting on Christ's sacrifice for us. Many people have days where they fast during Lent. Catholics do not eat meat on Ash Wednesday or Fridays (I grew up Catholic). Many also choose something else to give up -- specific foods, special activities, etc. These are as a reminder to pray and feel Christ's pain.
There are many good blogs that will be following Lent very closely, including Kitchen Stewardship.
What will you be doing during Lent? How do you celebrate? Say a prayer today for Jesus' sacrifice.
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Health News Tuesday: 'Natural' Deodorants, 'AminoSweet' Scandals
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Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
ADHD Caused by Lead Exposure, New Study Claims
A variety of environmental causes have been found to cause ADHD, and lead is the most recent culprit.
Love Hormone May Help Autism Symptoms
Oxytocin, the bonding hormone, helps adults with autism, and may have implications in therapy for young children.
FDA Warned Kellogg over Contaminated Waffles
Listeria has been found in Kellogg plant, and the company hasn't cleaned up its act. Be careful what you're buying when you get processed food!
Stop Using 'Natural' Deodorants Until You Read This
Many popular 'natural' deodorant brands still contain aluminum. Read the labels carefully, make your own at home, or just skip it!
Drug Companies Shift Focus to Vaccines
Rather than focusing money on research and development for new drugs, drug companies are now focusing on vaccine development, because they are worth more in profit.
Aspartame Renamed and Marketed as a Natural Sweetener
Aspartame (also called NutraSweet) is a very dangerous artificial sweetener, which is being renamed AminoSweet and is being marketed as "natural." It is not!! Avoid this new product!
I'm looking for a blog carnival to replace Health News Tuesday. Preferably something food or kitchen related. Who has ideas? What would you participate in?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
ADHD Caused by Lead Exposure, New Study Claims
A variety of environmental causes have been found to cause ADHD, and lead is the most recent culprit.
Love Hormone May Help Autism Symptoms
Oxytocin, the bonding hormone, helps adults with autism, and may have implications in therapy for young children.
FDA Warned Kellogg over Contaminated Waffles
Listeria has been found in Kellogg plant, and the company hasn't cleaned up its act. Be careful what you're buying when you get processed food!
Stop Using 'Natural' Deodorants Until You Read This
Many popular 'natural' deodorant brands still contain aluminum. Read the labels carefully, make your own at home, or just skip it!
Drug Companies Shift Focus to Vaccines
Rather than focusing money on research and development for new drugs, drug companies are now focusing on vaccine development, because they are worth more in profit.
Aspartame Renamed and Marketed as a Natural Sweetener
Aspartame (also called NutraSweet) is a very dangerous artificial sweetener, which is being renamed AminoSweet and is being marketed as "natural." It is not!! Avoid this new product!
I'm looking for a blog carnival to replace Health News Tuesday. Preferably something food or kitchen related. Who has ideas? What would you participate in?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Monday, February 15, 2010
Eating Fat: How and Why
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Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been linked to Real Food Wednesdays at Cheeseslave and Works for Me Wednesdays at We Are THAT Family!**
Okay, so, I've been harping on eating fat a lot lately! But now I want to get even more indepth about what types of fat you should eat, why, and then give you several meal/snack ideas on how to get more good fats into your diet. In the ideas, I'll be specifically focusing on dairy-free ideas. There is already a great list on how to eat more fat at Cheeseslave's blog that focuses on a lot of dairy-full ideas.
So, fat. It's EVIL in this culture. But here's what you need to know: in fat-free or low-fat products, something has to replace the flavor and calories that fat brings. That is almost universally SUGAR. Sugar is far more evil! Overconsumption of sugar is why we're a nation of people who are overweight and (type II) diabetic! The other day at the store, I looked at a box of Snackwell's fat-free chocolate cookies and the FIRST ingredient was sugar. Before flour! So if you think you're doing a good job on a diet because you're eating these fat-free cookies, no way! You'd be better off eating a tub of lard. For many reasons.
Then there's the perception that we need low-fat, low-calorie meals that are filled with just veggies to be healthy. The average person (and this is according to the government; I don't entirely agree) requires 2000 calories and 65 grams of fat in day. That's about 500 calories each at breakfast and lunch, 700 at dinner (or better, 700 at breakfast and 500 each at lunch and dinner) plus 300 calories of snacks per day. So if you're focusing on a super low-fat lunch of a salad and vegetable soup which contains all of 200 calories, you are way, way under the amount you need per day. A lot of people skip breakfast, too, so that puts you even further down. This opens you up to fatigue, slowed metabolism, weakened immune system, and of course the very likely possibility that you'll end up snacking on junk food later.
It's also known that eating fat helps the absorption of nutrients. It's why even mainstream dieticians recommend eating an oil-based dressing on your salad (of course, they say only a tiny bit and don't overdo the nuts, which I disagree with). There are so many detriments to NOT eating fat, and so many positives to eating it.
As I mentioned in another blog post, the body requires either fat or carbohydrates as energy. Fat is a great energy source isn't actually stored in the body as fat (it's actually burned slower than carbs, but to me it feels "faster" because I'm hungry sooner). Carbohydrates are burned faster by turning into simple sugars (yes, even whole grains -- it's slower and the bran helps, but they still break down into sugars, because that's what carbs are) and spiking your blood sugar. They are then easily stored as fat.
Fat also does many great things for our bodies, including:
*Balances hormones (including serotonin, responsible for mood; and serotonin, which tells you when to stop eating)
*Develops babies' brains
*Improves digestion and absorption of nutrients
*Saturated fat composes about 50% of our cells, so eating it helps cellular regeneration
*Many more! (read the resources below)
How much fat should you get in your diet per day? According to Weston A. Price Foundation, anywhere from 30 - 80% of one's calories per day should be from fat (high percentages being for therapeutic diets, not normal ones). On average, 37% is normal, which translates to around 97 grams per day (significantly more than the U.S. RDA's "65 grams or less").
If that's true, how do we go about getting more fat into our diets? Here are several dairy-free ideas:
*Smoothies with coconut milk or coconut oil added (or coconut cream if you can get some)
*Coconut milk ice cream made with honey and extra coconut oil
*Potatoes fried in coconut oil, lard, bacon grease, or beef tallow
*French fries made in beef tallow
*Grass-fed burgers cooked with extra beef tallow and grilled onions (add bacon too!)
*Bacon and pastured eggs cooked in bacon grease
*Eggs scrambled in beef tallow with avocado
*Coconut flour muffins made with coconut oil, and topped with sunflower butter or real butter (if you can eat dairy)
*Carrot or celery sticks dipped in sunflower butter (or peanut butter)
*Sausage fried in lard with peppers and onions
*Cream soups made with coconut milk and oil
Add cheese, cream, or butter to anything if you can do dairy!
Now that you've read about how and why to eat fat, it's time for a CHALLENGE! Starting on March 1st, I am launching a 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge. Here's how the challenge works:
*Register for the challenge
*Each person will have a username throughout this challenge so that it is anonymous to other readers (this is because we'll be sharing height/weight/diet information)
*Each day, I will post a new tip or idea on fat: how to eat more, random fact about why it's good, etc.
*Each week, all the participants will come back to the blog (so, Mar. 8, 15, 22, and 29; final results on Mar. 31) to "check in" on a variety of factors (detailed below)
*The participant who does the best in the most categories (details below) will win either a copy of my new cookbook, or a jar of my Soothing Skin Cream (similar to the homemade diaper rash cream recipe I posted earlier), winner's choice.
Measures:
*Most weight lost
*Most (healthy!) fat consumed (fat sources added to meals or snacks)
*Most creative way(s) to add fat to your diet
Each week, participants will report the following:
*How much they weigh
*The fats/fattening foods that they ate each day (i.e. "organic bacon grease and eggs at breakfast, olive oil and almonds at lunch, coconut oil at dinner")
*The most interesting fat-filled meals they prepared in the last week
Rules:
1) All participants MUST officially register and agree that their username and other information can be posted to the site (real names won't be used)
2) Participants must come to every weekly check-in, including the final check in
3) All fat consumed must be HEALTHY fats. That is, coconut oil, organic lard, organic palm shortening, organic beef tallow, butter, ghee, sustainably produced meat, dairy, nuts, eggs, etc. The following fats do not count: vegetable oil, peanut oil, anything containing trans fats, commercial fried food, processed foods containing fat, factory-farmed meats, eggs, milk. (For your convenience, I'll post a chart of approximately how much fat common foods contain on Mar. 1)
4) The winner must submit his or her mailing address for the prize to be sent by April 3rd, 2010.
Please feel free to spam this contest everywhere!
Resources
Taking the Fear Out of Eating Fat
Benefits of Eating Coconut Oil
Proven Health Benefits of Saturated Fats
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been linked to Real Food Wednesdays at Cheeseslave and Works for Me Wednesdays at We Are THAT Family!**
Okay, so, I've been harping on eating fat a lot lately! But now I want to get even more indepth about what types of fat you should eat, why, and then give you several meal/snack ideas on how to get more good fats into your diet. In the ideas, I'll be specifically focusing on dairy-free ideas. There is already a great list on how to eat more fat at Cheeseslave's blog that focuses on a lot of dairy-full ideas.
So, fat. It's EVIL in this culture. But here's what you need to know: in fat-free or low-fat products, something has to replace the flavor and calories that fat brings. That is almost universally SUGAR. Sugar is far more evil! Overconsumption of sugar is why we're a nation of people who are overweight and (type II) diabetic! The other day at the store, I looked at a box of Snackwell's fat-free chocolate cookies and the FIRST ingredient was sugar. Before flour! So if you think you're doing a good job on a diet because you're eating these fat-free cookies, no way! You'd be better off eating a tub of lard. For many reasons.
Then there's the perception that we need low-fat, low-calorie meals that are filled with just veggies to be healthy. The average person (and this is according to the government; I don't entirely agree) requires 2000 calories and 65 grams of fat in day. That's about 500 calories each at breakfast and lunch, 700 at dinner (or better, 700 at breakfast and 500 each at lunch and dinner) plus 300 calories of snacks per day. So if you're focusing on a super low-fat lunch of a salad and vegetable soup which contains all of 200 calories, you are way, way under the amount you need per day. A lot of people skip breakfast, too, so that puts you even further down. This opens you up to fatigue, slowed metabolism, weakened immune system, and of course the very likely possibility that you'll end up snacking on junk food later.
It's also known that eating fat helps the absorption of nutrients. It's why even mainstream dieticians recommend eating an oil-based dressing on your salad (of course, they say only a tiny bit and don't overdo the nuts, which I disagree with). There are so many detriments to NOT eating fat, and so many positives to eating it.
As I mentioned in another blog post, the body requires either fat or carbohydrates as energy. Fat is a great energy source isn't actually stored in the body as fat (it's actually burned slower than carbs, but to me it feels "faster" because I'm hungry sooner). Carbohydrates are burned faster by turning into simple sugars (yes, even whole grains -- it's slower and the bran helps, but they still break down into sugars, because that's what carbs are) and spiking your blood sugar. They are then easily stored as fat.
Fat also does many great things for our bodies, including:
*Balances hormones (including serotonin, responsible for mood; and serotonin, which tells you when to stop eating)
*Develops babies' brains
*Improves digestion and absorption of nutrients
*Saturated fat composes about 50% of our cells, so eating it helps cellular regeneration
*Many more! (read the resources below)
How much fat should you get in your diet per day? According to Weston A. Price Foundation, anywhere from 30 - 80% of one's calories per day should be from fat (high percentages being for therapeutic diets, not normal ones). On average, 37% is normal, which translates to around 97 grams per day (significantly more than the U.S. RDA's "65 grams or less").
If that's true, how do we go about getting more fat into our diets? Here are several dairy-free ideas:
*Smoothies with coconut milk or coconut oil added (or coconut cream if you can get some)
*Coconut milk ice cream made with honey and extra coconut oil
*Potatoes fried in coconut oil, lard, bacon grease, or beef tallow
*French fries made in beef tallow
*Grass-fed burgers cooked with extra beef tallow and grilled onions (add bacon too!)
*Bacon and pastured eggs cooked in bacon grease
*Eggs scrambled in beef tallow with avocado
*Coconut flour muffins made with coconut oil, and topped with sunflower butter or real butter (if you can eat dairy)
*Carrot or celery sticks dipped in sunflower butter (or peanut butter)
*Sausage fried in lard with peppers and onions
*Cream soups made with coconut milk and oil
Add cheese, cream, or butter to anything if you can do dairy!
Now that you've read about how and why to eat fat, it's time for a CHALLENGE! Starting on March 1st, I am launching a 30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge. Here's how the challenge works:
*Register for the challenge
*Each person will have a username throughout this challenge so that it is anonymous to other readers (this is because we'll be sharing height/weight/diet information)
*Each day, I will post a new tip or idea on fat: how to eat more, random fact about why it's good, etc.
*Each week, all the participants will come back to the blog (so, Mar. 8, 15, 22, and 29; final results on Mar. 31) to "check in" on a variety of factors (detailed below)
*The participant who does the best in the most categories (details below) will win either a copy of my new cookbook, or a jar of my Soothing Skin Cream (similar to the homemade diaper rash cream recipe I posted earlier), winner's choice.
Measures:
*Most weight lost
*Most (healthy!) fat consumed (fat sources added to meals or snacks)
*Most creative way(s) to add fat to your diet
Each week, participants will report the following:
*How much they weigh
*The fats/fattening foods that they ate each day (i.e. "organic bacon grease and eggs at breakfast, olive oil and almonds at lunch, coconut oil at dinner")
*The most interesting fat-filled meals they prepared in the last week
Rules:
1) All participants MUST officially register and agree that their username and other information can be posted to the site (real names won't be used)
2) Participants must come to every weekly check-in, including the final check in
3) All fat consumed must be HEALTHY fats. That is, coconut oil, organic lard, organic palm shortening, organic beef tallow, butter, ghee, sustainably produced meat, dairy, nuts, eggs, etc. The following fats do not count: vegetable oil, peanut oil, anything containing trans fats, commercial fried food, processed foods containing fat, factory-farmed meats, eggs, milk. (For your convenience, I'll post a chart of approximately how much fat common foods contain on Mar. 1)
4) The winner must submit his or her mailing address for the prize to be sent by April 3rd, 2010.
Please feel free to spam this contest everywhere!
Resources
Taking the Fear Out of Eating Fat
Benefits of Eating Coconut Oil
Proven Health Benefits of Saturated Fats
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Sunday, February 14, 2010
Happy Valentine's Day!
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Tonight, being Sunday, will be spent with our small group from church. We aren't celebrating in any particular way. I'll keep it short for tonight.
How are you celebrating Valentine's Day? Tell me all about it!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Happy Valentine's Day!
Tonight, being Sunday, will be spent with our small group from church. We aren't celebrating in any particular way. I'll keep it short for tonight.
How are you celebrating Valentine's Day? Tell me all about it!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Baby Steps in the Kitchen
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Things I Love Thursday at The Diaper Diaries and Finer Things Fridays at Amy's Finer Things!**
Welcome to the first post in the Baby Steps series! This series is intended for all those who want to make changes to their lifestyles but have no idea where to start. For those of you who are farther along in the journey, feel free to leave your ideal "first three steps" in the comment section. I'm sure many will have different opinions about what's most important, so hearing from others would be great too!
With no further adieu (fun word, lol), here are my first three baby steps:
1. Buy organic, pastured eggs (instead of factory-farmed)
2. Buy some organic produce: whatever you can afford from the dirty dozen; starting with whatever you consume the most of (peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, kale, lettuce, grapes, carrots, pears; that is in order of most to least pesticides, but all are high in pesticides)
3. Start reading food labels and pick one "bad" food to avoid (I suggest high fructose corn syrup)
Okay, so, those are totally manageable! Why did I pick those? Let me explain.
Eggs -- Eggs are among the most nutrient-dense foods you can buy for your money. They are cheaper ounce-for-ounce than almost any other nutrient-dense food, even when you buy them at $3 - $4/dozen (which you should expect to pay for really good eggs). They're a fabulous source of good fats, and great for any women who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or might get pregnant. They're great for growing children. They're easy to cook. And at $4 a dozen, you only need to increase your grocery bill a small amount to be able to afford them, so it's a relatively affordable change, even for those on a strict budget. They're also easy to find in many regular grocery stores (I know Kroger, Giant Eagle, and other major chains carry them).
Organic Produce -- Pesticides aren't good for us. Most of us know that (some deny it!). So reducing our exposure to pesticides is obviously a good thing. Many people tend to eat a lot of, say, lettuce and apples too. Replacing a few of these items with organic versions is doable because you won't even notice the difference when you're eating it. Also, the prices on many of these items (like apples) are about the same whether you're buying conventional or organic (apples are around $1/lb here regardless). Organic produce is easy to find, reasonably priced in a lot of cases, and barely a noticeable switch. In fact, what most say they notice most is how much better the food tastes!
Food labels -- Sometimes, we don't want to know what's in stuff. Especially if we're sure it's not good for us but it tastes so good. I used to love eating the Frito-Lay jalapeno cheese dip, Reese's peanut butter cups, and Chef Boyardee Ravioli. Oh...it was great! But then I started reading the ingredients and over a period of months, I decided that it really was not worth it to buy and consume those "non-food" items. It was hard to let go...but I haven't had any of those things in over 6 months now. (Just so you don't think I don't get it!) Once you start reading, you'll feel like EVERYTHING is bad. But relax. Choose just one food item that you want to avoid. I suggest high fructose corn syrup because it's been linked to everything from being overweight, diabetes, to hyperactivity. Mercury has been found in it, too. You can replace a lot of common food items (like ketchup) with organic versions, so they won't contain HFCS. There is even soda and tomato sauce and the like that you can find without it, so you don't have to change your eating habits much, and store brands of these items (like at Whole Foods) can be about the same price as many national brands. Another good food item to choose to avoid would be MSG, which might be a little easier because it's not in as many foods and is equally bad. But right now, just pick ONE.
Those are the first three baby steps! Are they doable for you? If you're further along in your real food journey, do you agree with these? If not, what are YOUR first three baby steps?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Things I Love Thursday at The Diaper Diaries and Finer Things Fridays at Amy's Finer Things!**
Welcome to the first post in the Baby Steps series! This series is intended for all those who want to make changes to their lifestyles but have no idea where to start. For those of you who are farther along in the journey, feel free to leave your ideal "first three steps" in the comment section. I'm sure many will have different opinions about what's most important, so hearing from others would be great too!
With no further adieu (fun word, lol), here are my first three baby steps:
1. Buy organic, pastured eggs (instead of factory-farmed)
2. Buy some organic produce: whatever you can afford from the dirty dozen; starting with whatever you consume the most of (peaches, apples, bell peppers, celery, nectarines, strawberries, cherries, kale, lettuce, grapes, carrots, pears; that is in order of most to least pesticides, but all are high in pesticides)
3. Start reading food labels and pick one "bad" food to avoid (I suggest high fructose corn syrup)
Okay, so, those are totally manageable! Why did I pick those? Let me explain.
Eggs -- Eggs are among the most nutrient-dense foods you can buy for your money. They are cheaper ounce-for-ounce than almost any other nutrient-dense food, even when you buy them at $3 - $4/dozen (which you should expect to pay for really good eggs). They're a fabulous source of good fats, and great for any women who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or might get pregnant. They're great for growing children. They're easy to cook. And at $4 a dozen, you only need to increase your grocery bill a small amount to be able to afford them, so it's a relatively affordable change, even for those on a strict budget. They're also easy to find in many regular grocery stores (I know Kroger, Giant Eagle, and other major chains carry them).
Organic Produce -- Pesticides aren't good for us. Most of us know that (some deny it!). So reducing our exposure to pesticides is obviously a good thing. Many people tend to eat a lot of, say, lettuce and apples too. Replacing a few of these items with organic versions is doable because you won't even notice the difference when you're eating it. Also, the prices on many of these items (like apples) are about the same whether you're buying conventional or organic (apples are around $1/lb here regardless). Organic produce is easy to find, reasonably priced in a lot of cases, and barely a noticeable switch. In fact, what most say they notice most is how much better the food tastes!
Food labels -- Sometimes, we don't want to know what's in stuff. Especially if we're sure it's not good for us but it tastes so good. I used to love eating the Frito-Lay jalapeno cheese dip, Reese's peanut butter cups, and Chef Boyardee Ravioli. Oh...it was great! But then I started reading the ingredients and over a period of months, I decided that it really was not worth it to buy and consume those "non-food" items. It was hard to let go...but I haven't had any of those things in over 6 months now. (Just so you don't think I don't get it!) Once you start reading, you'll feel like EVERYTHING is bad. But relax. Choose just one food item that you want to avoid. I suggest high fructose corn syrup because it's been linked to everything from being overweight, diabetes, to hyperactivity. Mercury has been found in it, too. You can replace a lot of common food items (like ketchup) with organic versions, so they won't contain HFCS. There is even soda and tomato sauce and the like that you can find without it, so you don't have to change your eating habits much, and store brands of these items (like at Whole Foods) can be about the same price as many national brands. Another good food item to choose to avoid would be MSG, which might be a little easier because it's not in as many foods and is equally bad. But right now, just pick ONE.
Those are the first three baby steps! Are they doable for you? If you're further along in your real food journey, do you agree with these? If not, what are YOUR first three baby steps?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Friday, February 12, 2010
Courtship and Biblical Marriage
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Now we've discussed several other issues surrounding Biblical relationships and families, so it's time to talk about courtship and marriage! I'm presenting these themes as they appear in the Biblical the teachings of Bible scholars. They represent an "ideal" situation, but are by no means the only way to approach relationships and marriage. They're also not my opinion (in most cases), but Biblical teachings, nor am I judging anyone who chooses a different way.
Courtship is a Biblical way of selecting a mate that heavily involves parents and which takes the place of dating. Traditional courtship happens when two people spend some time together within a group and/or with their parents as chaperones, and are never alone. They do not engage in any physical relationship (not even kissing) until they are married. Both young adults pray for God's guidance in selecting a mate, and discuss their ideas with their parents, who will either approve or deny the match. The man must then ask the woman's father's permission to propose to her. Only if the father gives it can the man propose to the woman. Then, once the couple is married, they leave their parents' homes and go to their own, where they begin their marriage together. Their first kiss is on their wedding day!
There are couples who, today, still strive for courtship. Not all families are so strict about it, though some are. Josh and Anna Duggar practiced courtship this strict, and I believe all the Duggar children are required to do so (although I don't know; I've only read Josh and Anna's story). Others are less strict but still believe strongly in courtship. That is, the goal of having the entire family involved in the selection of a mate and parents functioning as chaperones on at least early dates. It is also important that no courting take place until both the man and woman are fully grown and at a point in their lives where they are ready to have an adult relationship and a potential marriage. "Dating" happens as early as age 12 or 13 for some; there is no potential for an adult relationship or a marriage at that age. Courtship holds that early dating is pointless for that reason. Children should be children, and should not worry about relationships with the opposite sex until they are mature enough for marriage (this is not to say that they shouldn't have FRIENDSHIPS with the opposite sex!).
A typical (less strict) courtship may go like this (as my understanding; some of you may know better than I do): A man and a woman meet each other and become friends. Both are adults and feel they are ready to enter into marriage, if God leads them in that direction (and will be praying about this). They discuss their thoughts and ideas with their parents as well as praying that God will show them if the other person is the the "one." The man is prepared to marry -- that is, he has a good job and a home so that he can take care of his bride independently. The man asks the woman's father's permission to court her. If he gets permission, he will come to the woman's parents' house (of course...realistically, she may or may not still be living with her parents, but that's traditional) to pick her up and take her out. They may be chaperoned, or may not, but the date won't go late and there will be no sexual contact (some say hugging and holding hands is okay; some may say kissing is okay but this is less likely, especially at first). This may continue for awhile but the families will be paying attention. The couple will probably spend a lot of time in groups with friends, siblings, and their parents, so that the whole family knows the man/woman (both families know both). When the man is ready to propose, he will go privately to the woman's father and ask for her permission. Then, he will propose to the woman. Assuming she accepts, their "real" relationship begins and they plan the wedding (that is, they are viewed as betrothed and exclusive and it's considered a relationship, not just a courtship. Some couples may decide that some physical contact, like kissing, is acceptable at this point. Some may not. On their wedding day, they are married and they leave their fathers and mothers and go to one another, and are united as husband and wife (there are Bible verses about exactly this). At this point they are independent, married, and sexual contact is then permitted.
There is a Biblical basis for courtship. I am going to link to several sites in a "resources" section at the bottom so that you can read about it further if you're interested.
The reason that I believe a model similar to this is best is because a lot of teenagers waste a lot of time and energy on relationships that won't pan out. They spend time and money going on dates and having boyfriends and girlfriends and making plans for the future that completely change when and if they break up with that boyfriend or girlfriend. (Someone I know selected a college based on the fact that their significant other attended there, even though that college didn't have the intended major. So the entire career path and course of this person's life changed because of this relationship. They broke up a year later and now this person is thinking about revising the plan a bit, but I feel has lost a few years and the opportunity to do what was REALLY desired.) God doesn't want us to suffer like that. He also doesn't want our focus shifted from the task of growing up and discovering who we are as people, and becoming mature adults before we enter into relationships. So many teens are "one person" when they enter into a relationship at age 15, and totally different when they exit at age 17! Adolescents change SO fast, and they need to. For that reason, dating and marriage really should not enter their lives until they are mostly grown and ready for it.
Our goal for our children will be a modified courtship. We're not going to chaperone all their dates. We're not going to forbid them from ever kissing (though if any choose not to, we will certainly support that choice). We will want to meet the person they are seeing when they first want to have dates (and we will require them to be 18 before they can have true "dates" -- prior to that time, they will be able to go on group dates and have friendships with members of the opposite sex, but not relationships), and we will want men to come to us to ask permission before proposing to any of our daughters. And we hope that our sons will come and let us know they plan to propose, and then seek the woman's father's permission before doing so! We want to get to know all our future daughters-in-law and sons-in-law very well both before and after they are married.
Once courtship is complete and you are married, then what? God has a plan for marriage, too. I'll link to several articles on a Godly design for marriage below, too, but based on the studies we've done (premarital counseling, sets of CDs of pastors talking about marriage, a series in our church we heard live, some books we've read, the Bible itself of course), I will try to explain what we believe and try to practice.
The husband is the head of the family. He submits himself to God and Christ, and he is the family's spiritual leader. He is commanded to "agape" love his wife (which is a very special kind of love). This means, basically, that he is selfless and self-sacrificing for her, that he loves her as Christ loves him, and that nothing ever stops or changes his love for her. It is higher than brotherly love; it is like the love God offers us. There is no good translation for it. It is the husband's responsibility to love his wife this way to make her feel safe and cherished. He should also provide for his family, financially and in other ways.
The wife should submit to her husband. This is not like we think of "submission" in modern times, where a woman simply bows to her husband's will. Instead, she is charged with respecting him and his will (which of course needs to be aligned with God's will). When things come up in their marriage, they will discuss it because they are partners and they need to pray about major decisions together. But if the husband feels especially strongly, the wife should bow to his will and allow him to make the decision. By the same decision, if the wife feels especially strongly, if they feel she is right based on their prayers, the husband should love her and allow her to do things her way. Submission doesn't mean she lets her husband walk all over her by any means. A woman is called to ALWAYS respect her husband. She should not speak ill of him in public nor do anything to put him down or hurt his pride. A wife should feel safe with her husband and always loved by him, so that she is free to be herself, while still respecting him. In public (and in heaven), the husband speaks for the family.
I personally find my role very satisfying. I know that at home, I have an equal say (sometimes more than my share!) about how we will raise our children, handle our money, etc. Ben will come to me and say, "This is something that's in my head right now and this is what I think we should do. But I would like your input." We will discuss the issue, and often I agree he is right. If I don't, we discuss until we come to a conclusion we both agree with. So far we haven't had any times where he's had to say, "We can't agree, so we're going with what I say," but if it came to that, it would be my role to allow that to happen. I can trust Ben to be strong for me. So, for example, if there are demands on our family from the outside that I can't handle, Ben can stand up for us and say, "No, my family needs a break right now," and be a barrier between me and whatever is causing stress. I don't have to feel the burden of providing for my family because Ben takes care of it. Instead, of course, I raise our children, which is really MORE work most of the time. :)
I'm sharing my personal views on this because I know a lot of people will see the word "submit" and automatically get upset and say "No! A wife is completely equal to her husband in all ways and that is demeaning to women!" But it really isn't the way we think of submission. The typical view of a submissive wife -- that is, a husband who rules the family very strongly, and the wife who simply stays out of his way and says "Whatever you think is best" and generally seems to have no independent role or voice -- is NOT what the Bible was talking about. The husband needs the wife as much as she needs him. Their roles are just DIFFERENT.
I love one section from the Biblical marriage roles below that I am going to quote it here:
We are always personally striving to do better in our roles as husband and wife. In our culture, it is easy to say, "I would love her more if she were nicer to me" or "I would respect him if he earned it," but that is not what God commands. Sometimes we need to remember that love and respect need to be truly UNCONDITIONAL, as God's love is for us.
Please click on the resources below to learn more. All the hyperlinks are articles!
Resources
Courtship vs. Dating
Agape love
Biblical types of love
Biblical marriage
Christian Marriage
Biblical marriage roles (discusses submission)
Five Love Languages, by Gary Chapman
Intended for Pleasure, by Ed Wheat/Baker
Love and Respect: The Love She Most Desires, the Respect He Desperately Needs, by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs / Thomas Nelson
Do you subscribe to courtship and Biblical marriage? Why or why not? What do you believe about marriage?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Now we've discussed several other issues surrounding Biblical relationships and families, so it's time to talk about courtship and marriage! I'm presenting these themes as they appear in the Biblical the teachings of Bible scholars. They represent an "ideal" situation, but are by no means the only way to approach relationships and marriage. They're also not my opinion (in most cases), but Biblical teachings, nor am I judging anyone who chooses a different way.
Courtship is a Biblical way of selecting a mate that heavily involves parents and which takes the place of dating. Traditional courtship happens when two people spend some time together within a group and/or with their parents as chaperones, and are never alone. They do not engage in any physical relationship (not even kissing) until they are married. Both young adults pray for God's guidance in selecting a mate, and discuss their ideas with their parents, who will either approve or deny the match. The man must then ask the woman's father's permission to propose to her. Only if the father gives it can the man propose to the woman. Then, once the couple is married, they leave their parents' homes and go to their own, where they begin their marriage together. Their first kiss is on their wedding day!
There are couples who, today, still strive for courtship. Not all families are so strict about it, though some are. Josh and Anna Duggar practiced courtship this strict, and I believe all the Duggar children are required to do so (although I don't know; I've only read Josh and Anna's story). Others are less strict but still believe strongly in courtship. That is, the goal of having the entire family involved in the selection of a mate and parents functioning as chaperones on at least early dates. It is also important that no courting take place until both the man and woman are fully grown and at a point in their lives where they are ready to have an adult relationship and a potential marriage. "Dating" happens as early as age 12 or 13 for some; there is no potential for an adult relationship or a marriage at that age. Courtship holds that early dating is pointless for that reason. Children should be children, and should not worry about relationships with the opposite sex until they are mature enough for marriage (this is not to say that they shouldn't have FRIENDSHIPS with the opposite sex!).
A typical (less strict) courtship may go like this (as my understanding; some of you may know better than I do): A man and a woman meet each other and become friends. Both are adults and feel they are ready to enter into marriage, if God leads them in that direction (and will be praying about this). They discuss their thoughts and ideas with their parents as well as praying that God will show them if the other person is the the "one." The man is prepared to marry -- that is, he has a good job and a home so that he can take care of his bride independently. The man asks the woman's father's permission to court her. If he gets permission, he will come to the woman's parents' house (of course...realistically, she may or may not still be living with her parents, but that's traditional) to pick her up and take her out. They may be chaperoned, or may not, but the date won't go late and there will be no sexual contact (some say hugging and holding hands is okay; some may say kissing is okay but this is less likely, especially at first). This may continue for awhile but the families will be paying attention. The couple will probably spend a lot of time in groups with friends, siblings, and their parents, so that the whole family knows the man/woman (both families know both). When the man is ready to propose, he will go privately to the woman's father and ask for her permission. Then, he will propose to the woman. Assuming she accepts, their "real" relationship begins and they plan the wedding (that is, they are viewed as betrothed and exclusive and it's considered a relationship, not just a courtship. Some couples may decide that some physical contact, like kissing, is acceptable at this point. Some may not. On their wedding day, they are married and they leave their fathers and mothers and go to one another, and are united as husband and wife (there are Bible verses about exactly this). At this point they are independent, married, and sexual contact is then permitted.
There is a Biblical basis for courtship. I am going to link to several sites in a "resources" section at the bottom so that you can read about it further if you're interested.
The reason that I believe a model similar to this is best is because a lot of teenagers waste a lot of time and energy on relationships that won't pan out. They spend time and money going on dates and having boyfriends and girlfriends and making plans for the future that completely change when and if they break up with that boyfriend or girlfriend. (Someone I know selected a college based on the fact that their significant other attended there, even though that college didn't have the intended major. So the entire career path and course of this person's life changed because of this relationship. They broke up a year later and now this person is thinking about revising the plan a bit, but I feel has lost a few years and the opportunity to do what was REALLY desired.) God doesn't want us to suffer like that. He also doesn't want our focus shifted from the task of growing up and discovering who we are as people, and becoming mature adults before we enter into relationships. So many teens are "one person" when they enter into a relationship at age 15, and totally different when they exit at age 17! Adolescents change SO fast, and they need to. For that reason, dating and marriage really should not enter their lives until they are mostly grown and ready for it.
Our goal for our children will be a modified courtship. We're not going to chaperone all their dates. We're not going to forbid them from ever kissing (though if any choose not to, we will certainly support that choice). We will want to meet the person they are seeing when they first want to have dates (and we will require them to be 18 before they can have true "dates" -- prior to that time, they will be able to go on group dates and have friendships with members of the opposite sex, but not relationships), and we will want men to come to us to ask permission before proposing to any of our daughters. And we hope that our sons will come and let us know they plan to propose, and then seek the woman's father's permission before doing so! We want to get to know all our future daughters-in-law and sons-in-law very well both before and after they are married.
Once courtship is complete and you are married, then what? God has a plan for marriage, too. I'll link to several articles on a Godly design for marriage below, too, but based on the studies we've done (premarital counseling, sets of CDs of pastors talking about marriage, a series in our church we heard live, some books we've read, the Bible itself of course), I will try to explain what we believe and try to practice.
The husband is the head of the family. He submits himself to God and Christ, and he is the family's spiritual leader. He is commanded to "agape" love his wife (which is a very special kind of love). This means, basically, that he is selfless and self-sacrificing for her, that he loves her as Christ loves him, and that nothing ever stops or changes his love for her. It is higher than brotherly love; it is like the love God offers us. There is no good translation for it. It is the husband's responsibility to love his wife this way to make her feel safe and cherished. He should also provide for his family, financially and in other ways.
The wife should submit to her husband. This is not like we think of "submission" in modern times, where a woman simply bows to her husband's will. Instead, she is charged with respecting him and his will (which of course needs to be aligned with God's will). When things come up in their marriage, they will discuss it because they are partners and they need to pray about major decisions together. But if the husband feels especially strongly, the wife should bow to his will and allow him to make the decision. By the same decision, if the wife feels especially strongly, if they feel she is right based on their prayers, the husband should love her and allow her to do things her way. Submission doesn't mean she lets her husband walk all over her by any means. A woman is called to ALWAYS respect her husband. She should not speak ill of him in public nor do anything to put him down or hurt his pride. A wife should feel safe with her husband and always loved by him, so that she is free to be herself, while still respecting him. In public (and in heaven), the husband speaks for the family.
I personally find my role very satisfying. I know that at home, I have an equal say (sometimes more than my share!) about how we will raise our children, handle our money, etc. Ben will come to me and say, "This is something that's in my head right now and this is what I think we should do. But I would like your input." We will discuss the issue, and often I agree he is right. If I don't, we discuss until we come to a conclusion we both agree with. So far we haven't had any times where he's had to say, "We can't agree, so we're going with what I say," but if it came to that, it would be my role to allow that to happen. I can trust Ben to be strong for me. So, for example, if there are demands on our family from the outside that I can't handle, Ben can stand up for us and say, "No, my family needs a break right now," and be a barrier between me and whatever is causing stress. I don't have to feel the burden of providing for my family because Ben takes care of it. Instead, of course, I raise our children, which is really MORE work most of the time. :)
I'm sharing my personal views on this because I know a lot of people will see the word "submit" and automatically get upset and say "No! A wife is completely equal to her husband in all ways and that is demeaning to women!" But it really isn't the way we think of submission. The typical view of a submissive wife -- that is, a husband who rules the family very strongly, and the wife who simply stays out of his way and says "Whatever you think is best" and generally seems to have no independent role or voice -- is NOT what the Bible was talking about. The husband needs the wife as much as she needs him. Their roles are just DIFFERENT.
I love one section from the Biblical marriage roles below that I am going to quote it here:
Let's put the husband's leadership and the wife's submission in biblical balance:
1. God has given the husband the leadership role for the good of his wife, not as an excuse for him to be proud or selfish, and not as an excuse to treat her as a servant.
Some husbands do not seem to understand that yelling for food or beverage service while they are watching a sports event on TV and while their wives are scrubbing the kitchen floors on their hands and knees does not reflect biblical truth in balance.
2. God has not said the husband must, or should, make all decisions in his family. If a husband wants to please God, and if he loves his wife with agape love, he will delegate some decision making to her--she has brains too.
3. God has not said that the husband must make decisions without obtaining input from his wife--she has brains, too.
4. God has not said that the husband must make decisions according to his wishes, nor even according to his wisdom. Instead he must make decisions that are best for his wife.
I think that really sums up how God views marriage, or at least the role of love and respect. It actually goes on with several more excellent points, but I'm not going to post the whole thing here. Read it, it really is a great resource!We are always personally striving to do better in our roles as husband and wife. In our culture, it is easy to say, "I would love her more if she were nicer to me" or "I would respect him if he earned it," but that is not what God commands. Sometimes we need to remember that love and respect need to be truly UNCONDITIONAL, as God's love is for us.
Please click on the resources below to learn more. All the hyperlinks are articles!
Resources
Courtship vs. Dating
Agape love
Biblical types of love
Biblical marriage
Christian Marriage
Biblical marriage roles (discusses submission)
Five Love Languages, by Gary Chapman
Intended for Pleasure, by Ed Wheat/Baker
Love and Respect: The Love She Most Desires, the Respect He Desperately Needs, by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs / Thomas Nelson
Do you subscribe to courtship and Biblical marriage? Why or why not? What do you believe about marriage?
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Thursday, February 11, 2010
Taco Soup
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Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered into Pennywise Platter Thursdays at Nourishing Gourmet and Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom!**
Taco soup is yummy and easy! I make this for my weekly lunches sometimes because it is filling and has plenty of fat, vegetables, and meat!
Ingredients:
2 - 3 tbsp. olive oil
1 - 1.5 lbs. grass-fed ground beef (I use less if it's for a night's dinner, more if it's for a whole week of lunch)
1/2 lb. black beans, soaked
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, minced (opt.)
4 - 6 tbsp. taco seasoning
1/2 lb. mixed vegetables
1 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes (or 3 c. tomato juice)
4 - 6 cups chicken stock
Directions:
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add onion, beef, and pepper. Cook until veggies are soft and meat is brown. Add beans, taco seasoning, mixed vegetables, tomato juice/crushed tomatoes, and chicken broth. Let the soup cook for 1 - 2 hours, until the veggies are cooked through and flavors are melded. Serves 6 - 8.
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered into Pennywise Platter Thursdays at Nourishing Gourmet and Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom!**
Taco soup is yummy and easy! I make this for my weekly lunches sometimes because it is filling and has plenty of fat, vegetables, and meat!
Ingredients:
2 - 3 tbsp. olive oil
1 - 1.5 lbs. grass-fed ground beef (I use less if it's for a night's dinner, more if it's for a whole week of lunch)
1/2 lb. black beans, soaked
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, minced (opt.)
4 - 6 tbsp. taco seasoning
1/2 lb. mixed vegetables
1 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes (or 3 c. tomato juice)
4 - 6 cups chicken stock
Directions:
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add onion, beef, and pepper. Cook until veggies are soft and meat is brown. Add beans, taco seasoning, mixed vegetables, tomato juice/crushed tomatoes, and chicken broth. Let the soup cook for 1 - 2 hours, until the veggies are cooked through and flavors are melded. Serves 6 - 8.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Bloggy Business
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
I thought, since I've had so many "big" posts lately (you can check them out if you haven't), I would take today to do an easier post. One that doesn't invite quite so much controversy. :) I'll get back to those controversial subjects soon! Starting on Friday, actually, with more coming up next week. Bear with me, and please feel free to leave your (reasonable) disagreements on those posts!
First, if you haven't filled out my reader survey yet and you would be willing to, please do so! It helps know who you are (anonymously) and what you like to read on here. I'm considering making some changes so this would be really helpful!
One change -- Health News Tuesdays. Do you like it? Hate it? Wish it took a different format? Let me know what you think about that! What would you like to see it changed to?
Recipes on Thursdays -- love it, hate it? Wish there were more? Need more "real food" type posts?
Meal planning/grocery shopping -- I posted on this only once, but would more examples be helpful? A weekly meal plan that got sent to your email? What would be helpful to you?
Are there any other types of posts you would like to see? Other suggestions?
Comments -- I'm seriously considering switching to registered users only (OpenID will be an option). What does everyone think about that? (This is because all my usual and good commentors -- and that includes ones who disagree with me, lol! -- usually use their names, while some of the comments I haven't been able to post have all come from anonymous users. I'm hoping it will discourage that!)
Finally...announcement!! On March 1st, we will be launching a new site, a new blog host! It's not quite ready yet, but we're working hard. At that point, we'll have tons of new features for you! Mark it down, because that's just one exciting thing happening here in March! More to come next week....
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
I thought, since I've had so many "big" posts lately (you can check them out if you haven't), I would take today to do an easier post. One that doesn't invite quite so much controversy. :) I'll get back to those controversial subjects soon! Starting on Friday, actually, with more coming up next week. Bear with me, and please feel free to leave your (reasonable) disagreements on those posts!
First, if you haven't filled out my reader survey yet and you would be willing to, please do so! It helps know who you are (anonymously) and what you like to read on here. I'm considering making some changes so this would be really helpful!
One change -- Health News Tuesdays. Do you like it? Hate it? Wish it took a different format? Let me know what you think about that! What would you like to see it changed to?
Recipes on Thursdays -- love it, hate it? Wish there were more? Need more "real food" type posts?
Meal planning/grocery shopping -- I posted on this only once, but would more examples be helpful? A weekly meal plan that got sent to your email? What would be helpful to you?
Are there any other types of posts you would like to see? Other suggestions?
Comments -- I'm seriously considering switching to registered users only (OpenID will be an option). What does everyone think about that? (This is because all my usual and good commentors -- and that includes ones who disagree with me, lol! -- usually use their names, while some of the comments I haven't been able to post have all come from anonymous users. I'm hoping it will discourage that!)
Finally...announcement!! On March 1st, we will be launching a new site, a new blog host! It's not quite ready yet, but we're working hard. At that point, we'll have tons of new features for you! Mark it down, because that's just one exciting thing happening here in March! More to come next week....
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Health News Tuesday: Reducing Childhood Obesity, Female Hormones Grow in Trees
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Health News Tuesday!
If you have any stories to submit, please post them to the comments section and I'll add them manually.
Drug-Resistant Bacteria Often Brought Home from Hospitals
MRSA is an increasing concern, and the bacteria is often brought from the hospital into the community.
Study Links Sugary Soft Drinks to Pancreatic Cancer
Even consuming one or two sweetened sodas per week raises your risk of this rare and deadly cancer.
Female Hormones Grow in Trees, say Scientists
Progesterone has been found in walnut trees.
3 Simple Steps Can Cut Childhood Obesity
A new study finds that, despite diet, having family dinners, getting enough sleep, and limiting TV time can cut a child's risk of obesity.
Moms Over 40 Nearly Twice as Likely to Have a Child with Autism
Another piece of the puzzle is discovered.
Nearly 17,000 Chemicals Remain Corporate Secrets
What is in these chemicals, which may be in your products? What do they do?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Health News Tuesday!
If you have any stories to submit, please post them to the comments section and I'll add them manually.
Drug-Resistant Bacteria Often Brought Home from Hospitals
MRSA is an increasing concern, and the bacteria is often brought from the hospital into the community.
Study Links Sugary Soft Drinks to Pancreatic Cancer
Even consuming one or two sweetened sodas per week raises your risk of this rare and deadly cancer.
Female Hormones Grow in Trees, say Scientists
Progesterone has been found in walnut trees.
3 Simple Steps Can Cut Childhood Obesity
A new study finds that, despite diet, having family dinners, getting enough sleep, and limiting TV time can cut a child's risk of obesity.
Moms Over 40 Nearly Twice as Likely to Have a Child with Autism
Another piece of the puzzle is discovered.
Nearly 17,000 Chemicals Remain Corporate Secrets
What is in these chemicals, which may be in your products? What do they do?
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Making Jerky
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Real Food Wednesdays at Kelly the Kitchen Kop and Frugal Fridays at Life as Mom!**
Jerky!
This is a really great snack for us on our new diet. But when you buy it, it's expensive, made from factory-farmed meat (often, not always...but if not it's even more expensive!), and can contain sodium nitrite. No thanks!
I figured I could make my own jerky. How hard can it be? I looked up a bunch of recipes and unfortunately didn't find the step-by-step instructions that I really wanted. So I decided to just plunge in.
First, I took a grass-fed chuck roast that weighed about 2.5 lbs. It's important that it's as trimmed of fat as possible, because the fat turns to gristle that is impossible to eat once dried. It's hard to trim it off, so find a piece that's pretty fat-free already if you can.
Freeze the piece of meat until it's mostly solid, but still slightly soft. It will be easier to cut this way because it will hold its shape (instead of just mashing and sliding under the knife). I didn't do this the first few times and it was really annoying.
Take your meat and slice off all the fat that you can. Then start slicing the meat into very, very thin slices. Less than 1/4" thick, 1/8" is better if you can manage. If it's thicker, it will still work, but try to do it thinly. Once all the meat is sliced, you need to put it into a marinade. Here is my basic marinade:
Ingredients:
Juice of one lime
1/2 small onion, chopped
3 - 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tbsp. sea salt
Water to cover
Put the meat in a large bowl and add all the marinade ingredients. Add just enough water to cover the meat. Put a piece of foil over the bowl and refrigerate. I've left it just a couple hours, and I've left it overnight. It doesn't seem to make a difference. You'll notice that the blood will seep out of the meat, and the marinade will become dark red, while the meat turns grayish. This is normal.
Once the meat is done marinating, you will need a dehydrator to dry them out. I have heard that you can use an oven on low (170 degrees), but I haven't tried that and can't guarantee it. I use my Excalibur Dehydrator. Lay the strips out on the trays and then put them into the dehydrator. Turn it on to 155 (the highest setting) and leave it for 3 - 4 hours, checking until it is completely dry. If it's still squishy, bacteria could grow. If you need to leave it longer (I did a batch overnight), turn the dehydrator down to 125 and go ahead and leave it overnight. Just be sure to check for dryness.
Then, your jerky is done! Store in an air-tight container and eat whenever the mood strikes! Full of protein and very yummy. :)
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
**This post has been entered in Real Food Wednesdays at Kelly the Kitchen Kop and Frugal Fridays at Life as Mom!**
Jerky!
This is a really great snack for us on our new diet. But when you buy it, it's expensive, made from factory-farmed meat (often, not always...but if not it's even more expensive!), and can contain sodium nitrite. No thanks!
I figured I could make my own jerky. How hard can it be? I looked up a bunch of recipes and unfortunately didn't find the step-by-step instructions that I really wanted. So I decided to just plunge in.
First, I took a grass-fed chuck roast that weighed about 2.5 lbs. It's important that it's as trimmed of fat as possible, because the fat turns to gristle that is impossible to eat once dried. It's hard to trim it off, so find a piece that's pretty fat-free already if you can.
Freeze the piece of meat until it's mostly solid, but still slightly soft. It will be easier to cut this way because it will hold its shape (instead of just mashing and sliding under the knife). I didn't do this the first few times and it was really annoying.
Take your meat and slice off all the fat that you can. Then start slicing the meat into very, very thin slices. Less than 1/4" thick, 1/8" is better if you can manage. If it's thicker, it will still work, but try to do it thinly. Once all the meat is sliced, you need to put it into a marinade. Here is my basic marinade:
Ingredients:
Juice of one lime
1/2 small onion, chopped
3 - 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tbsp. sea salt
Water to cover
Put the meat in a large bowl and add all the marinade ingredients. Add just enough water to cover the meat. Put a piece of foil over the bowl and refrigerate. I've left it just a couple hours, and I've left it overnight. It doesn't seem to make a difference. You'll notice that the blood will seep out of the meat, and the marinade will become dark red, while the meat turns grayish. This is normal.
Once the meat is done marinating, you will need a dehydrator to dry them out. I have heard that you can use an oven on low (170 degrees), but I haven't tried that and can't guarantee it. I use my Excalibur Dehydrator. Lay the strips out on the trays and then put them into the dehydrator. Turn it on to 155 (the highest setting) and leave it for 3 - 4 hours, checking until it is completely dry. If it's still squishy, bacteria could grow. If you need to leave it longer (I did a batch overnight), turn the dehydrator down to 125 and go ahead and leave it overnight. Just be sure to check for dryness.
Then, your jerky is done! Store in an air-tight container and eat whenever the mood strikes! Full of protein and very yummy. :)
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Pseudo-Healthy Diets
**We've moved!!**
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today, most people believe a healthy diet is what mainstream America (and many doctors) say that it is: lots of whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy, lean meat, and generally low fat, low cholesterol choices.
However, this is NOT a healthy diet. At all. It's true that fruits and vegetables are very healthy and should absolutely be included in your diet -- in fact, up to 50% of your daily intake can come from fruit and vegetables (some say even more). But eating a lot of grains (even whole grains), a lot of sugar (which is what replaces fat in most products) and too little fat and cholesterol is extremely unhealthy!
I wrote a previous post about Why We Eat Fat, but now I'm going to break it down for you, discussing each area that mainstream America considers healthy and necessary for your diet, why it's NOT healthy, and what to replace it with. Get ready! All your knowledge about healthy diets is about to change....
First point. Every food is measured in major nutrients: protein, fat, and carbohydrates. Usually a food is high in one or two and low in another. We derive our energy either from carbs or from fat. We cannot survive on a diet that is low in both; we will get sick and weak. This is why the South Beach Diet is the worst possible diet you can adopt. The optimal fuel is fat. Most people, however, get a large amount of carbs, and mainly from sugar (juice, fruit, sweetened foods). This is why diabetes (type II) is so rampant in this country now.
A quick side note: Although we are not exercising formally at this point (just chasing children), we have continued to lose weight since my post in October. Ben's lost about another 5 lbs., and I've lost 7 - 8 lbs., putting my weight at the lowest it has ever been since I reached my full adult height (around 12o). This is eating a very high fat diet. I aim for 4 tbsp. of saturated fat per day whenever possible.
Now, for the list of foods that are "healthy" and why they're not.
Whole Grains -- Everyone wants you to believe that whole grain foods are good for you (and in some cases, they are). However, there are several problems with this. The first is that normal, whole grain foods are filled with phytates (which are anti-nutrients; they pull nutrients from you and/or prevent absorption). This is because the way grain is grown and processed has changed a lot over the last 50 or 60 years. Grain needs to be either sprouted or soaked to release its nutrients and enzymes to make it digestible and absorbable, but almost no one does this. Instead, manufacturers fortify the grain with various vitamins and minerals, but only synthetic ones (which really doesn't increase absorption at all). Much grain is also extruded to be processed into cereal, and a lot of it is mixed with high amounts of sugar (think cereal again, and breads, cakes, cookies...). Even worse, some grains (corn, and sometimes rice) are grown genetically modified, which are also bad for you. Grains should be organic, sprouted or soaked, and consumed minimally (no more than 25% of your daily food intake). This is hard because most snack foods, breakfast foods, and side dishes are filled with grains.
Low-fat dairy products -- There are LOTS of problems with this! First, there's the issue of actually being low-fat. Low fat is bad, since that's where you should be getting your energy. Then, there is the fact that making dairy low-fat requires it to be heavily processed. Water is added, nutrients are removed, fat is removed, and in some cases, skim milk powder is added to give the milk body. Skim milk powder contains oxidized cholesterol, which is NOT naturally occurring and is bad for you. The dairy products then have fake nutrients added back to it (fortification). These are NOT healthy. Instead, you should consume full-fat dairy products that are either raw or which have been pasteurized at the lowest legal temperature and are not homogenized. The milk should be from grass-fed cows. And you should eat plenty of butter, raw cheese, raw milk and cream, etc. It is extremely nutrient-dense.
Lean meat products -- Some meat is naturally lean and that is okay. But you shouldn't strive for only lean meats, or limit your meat consumption due to fat content. Beef (grass fed) is good for you! Most people say that red meat is bad, but that's only because factory farmed meat is bad. Factory meat has a low vitamin and mineral content, potential contamination, and often is full of hormones and antibiotics. However, naturally raised, grass-fed meat is not the same, and you should consume plenty of that. Natural sausages (containing fatback), lard, beef tallow, etc. are also very good for you. Saturated animal fats are also nutrient-dense. I personally can't wait to get my beef tallow to fry food in!
Cholesterol -- Cholesterol is actually absolutely key to brain development and function. Modern baby formula doesn't have any cholesterol in it, while breastmilk contains large amounts. This is a huge detriment (formula)! Cholesterol helps protect us from many problems and has never been proven to cause heart disease. Only natural sources of cholesterol are good, however; oxidized cholesterol (as in processed milk products) is not good. But don't worry about the cholesterol in butter or healthy meat. Your body needs it.
Unsaturated fats -- Experts recommend eating primarily or entirely unsaturated fats. However, they are not as healthy as they seem. Olive oil should not be used for cooking, because heating it can create trans fats. In fact, most liquid oils can go rancid easily when exposed to heat, light, and air (which they are on grocery store shelves). Also, corn and soybean oils ("vegetable oil") are often made from genetically modified plants. Finally, unfortunately, canola oil, which is engineered, is bad for you as well (click the link for more). Saturated fats, like butter, grass-fed beef tallow, organic lard, and coconut oil are the best fats to eat and cook with.
Artificial sugar -- In attempt to eat less sugar (and yes, sugar is bad), a lot of people have turned to artificial sugars, like Splenda (which is mostly made from chlorine) and aspartame. Both have been shown over and over again to be harmful. The body doesn't recognize them as food, and so they can create several long-term health problems. In fact, real sugar is better but should still be eaten in moderation. Evaporated cane juice, raw honey, and real maple syrup are all "good" sugars, but in general, our country eats far too much sugar. Limit your consumption to rare occasions. A spoonful of honey in your tea or an occasional (not daily!) dessert are okay.
Soy -- For quite awhile, soy has been considered the ultimate health food. However, soy is bad. It contains phytoestrogens, which have been claimed to cause cancer in women, and puberty issues in kids. The jury is still out on these claims, but soy is not a food you should turn to. It's also frequently genetically modified, which is not safe. If you do consume soy, it should be organic and fermented, and in moderation.
Yes, this is pretty weird stuff! But the new Baby Steps series will help you to make changes in your diet, if you're so inclined.
Also, starting on March 1st, I am launching a "30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge!" The details of this challenge will be announced on February 15th, so look for that post. Starting on March 1st (which is also the launch date of our NEW SITE!), I will post a daily tip or idea on eating fat. We'll have a weekly "check in" for those participating, and the winner will have a choice between a copy of my cookbook or a jar of my skin cream. Coming up soon!! Tell your friends!
Like what you read? Subscribe over on the right and get posts everyday in your email!
Please visit our new site, ModernAlternativeMama.com.
Comments on this post have been locked and updates are no longer being made to this page. Please click here to view this article on the new site.
Today, most people believe a healthy diet is what mainstream America (and many doctors) say that it is: lots of whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy, lean meat, and generally low fat, low cholesterol choices.
However, this is NOT a healthy diet. At all. It's true that fruits and vegetables are very healthy and should absolutely be included in your diet -- in fact, up to 50% of your daily intake can come from fruit and vegetables (some say even more). But eating a lot of grains (even whole grains), a lot of sugar (which is what replaces fat in most products) and too little fat and cholesterol is extremely unhealthy!
I wrote a previous post about Why We Eat Fat, but now I'm going to break it down for you, discussing each area that mainstream America considers healthy and necessary for your diet, why it's NOT healthy, and what to replace it with. Get ready! All your knowledge about healthy diets is about to change....
First point. Every food is measured in major nutrients: protein, fat, and carbohydrates. Usually a food is high in one or two and low in another. We derive our energy either from carbs or from fat. We cannot survive on a diet that is low in both; we will get sick and weak. This is why the South Beach Diet is the worst possible diet you can adopt. The optimal fuel is fat. Most people, however, get a large amount of carbs, and mainly from sugar (juice, fruit, sweetened foods). This is why diabetes (type II) is so rampant in this country now.
A quick side note: Although we are not exercising formally at this point (just chasing children), we have continued to lose weight since my post in October. Ben's lost about another 5 lbs., and I've lost 7 - 8 lbs., putting my weight at the lowest it has ever been since I reached my full adult height (around 12o). This is eating a very high fat diet. I aim for 4 tbsp. of saturated fat per day whenever possible.
Now, for the list of foods that are "healthy" and why they're not.
Whole Grains -- Everyone wants you to believe that whole grain foods are good for you (and in some cases, they are). However, there are several problems with this. The first is that normal, whole grain foods are filled with phytates (which are anti-nutrients; they pull nutrients from you and/or prevent absorption). This is because the way grain is grown and processed has changed a lot over the last 50 or 60 years. Grain needs to be either sprouted or soaked to release its nutrients and enzymes to make it digestible and absorbable, but almost no one does this. Instead, manufacturers fortify the grain with various vitamins and minerals, but only synthetic ones (which really doesn't increase absorption at all). Much grain is also extruded to be processed into cereal, and a lot of it is mixed with high amounts of sugar (think cereal again, and breads, cakes, cookies...). Even worse, some grains (corn, and sometimes rice) are grown genetically modified, which are also bad for you. Grains should be organic, sprouted or soaked, and consumed minimally (no more than 25% of your daily food intake). This is hard because most snack foods, breakfast foods, and side dishes are filled with grains.
Low-fat dairy products -- There are LOTS of problems with this! First, there's the issue of actually being low-fat. Low fat is bad, since that's where you should be getting your energy. Then, there is the fact that making dairy low-fat requires it to be heavily processed. Water is added, nutrients are removed, fat is removed, and in some cases, skim milk powder is added to give the milk body. Skim milk powder contains oxidized cholesterol, which is NOT naturally occurring and is bad for you. The dairy products then have fake nutrients added back to it (fortification). These are NOT healthy. Instead, you should consume full-fat dairy products that are either raw or which have been pasteurized at the lowest legal temperature and are not homogenized. The milk should be from grass-fed cows. And you should eat plenty of butter, raw cheese, raw milk and cream, etc. It is extremely nutrient-dense.
Lean meat products -- Some meat is naturally lean and that is okay. But you shouldn't strive for only lean meats, or limit your meat consumption due to fat content. Beef (grass fed) is good for you! Most people say that red meat is bad, but that's only because factory farmed meat is bad. Factory meat has a low vitamin and mineral content, potential contamination, and often is full of hormones and antibiotics. However, naturally raised, grass-fed meat is not the same, and you should consume plenty of that. Natural sausages (containing fatback), lard, beef tallow, etc. are also very good for you. Saturated animal fats are also nutrient-dense. I personally can't wait to get my beef tallow to fry food in!
Cholesterol -- Cholesterol is actually absolutely key to brain development and function. Modern baby formula doesn't have any cholesterol in it, while breastmilk contains large amounts. This is a huge detriment (formula)! Cholesterol helps protect us from many problems and has never been proven to cause heart disease. Only natural sources of cholesterol are good, however; oxidized cholesterol (as in processed milk products) is not good. But don't worry about the cholesterol in butter or healthy meat. Your body needs it.
Unsaturated fats -- Experts recommend eating primarily or entirely unsaturated fats. However, they are not as healthy as they seem. Olive oil should not be used for cooking, because heating it can create trans fats. In fact, most liquid oils can go rancid easily when exposed to heat, light, and air (which they are on grocery store shelves). Also, corn and soybean oils ("vegetable oil") are often made from genetically modified plants. Finally, unfortunately, canola oil, which is engineered, is bad for you as well (click the link for more). Saturated fats, like butter, grass-fed beef tallow, organic lard, and coconut oil are the best fats to eat and cook with.
Artificial sugar -- In attempt to eat less sugar (and yes, sugar is bad), a lot of people have turned to artificial sugars, like Splenda (which is mostly made from chlorine) and aspartame. Both have been shown over and over again to be harmful. The body doesn't recognize them as food, and so they can create several long-term health problems. In fact, real sugar is better but should still be eaten in moderation. Evaporated cane juice, raw honey, and real maple syrup are all "good" sugars, but in general, our country eats far too much sugar. Limit your consumption to rare occasions. A spoonful of honey in your tea or an occasional (not daily!) dessert are okay.
Soy -- For quite awhile, soy has been considered the ultimate health food. However, soy is bad. It contains phytoestrogens, which have been claimed to cause cancer in women, and puberty issues in kids. The jury is still out on these claims, but soy is not a food you should turn to. It's also frequently genetically modified, which is not safe. If you do consume soy, it should be organic and fermented, and in moderation.
Yes, this is pretty weird stuff! But the new Baby Steps series will help you to make changes in your diet, if you're so inclined.
Also, starting on March 1st, I am launching a "30-Day Eat More Fat Challenge!" The details of this challenge will be announced on February 15th, so look for that post. Starting on March 1st (which is also the launch date of our NEW SITE!), I will post a daily tip or idea on eating fat. We'll have a weekly "check in" for those participating, and the winner will have a choice between a copy of my cookbook or a jar of my skin cream. Coming up soon!! Tell your friends!
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