Are monthly self breast exams helpful?

No matter how you decide to take charge of your breast, health, it's always good to keep up with the newest findings. The Cochrane studies are the ones the doctors look at.

I personally am into the "first, do no harm." I stay away from plastics, radiation (including mammograms, actually). You can do your own research and or review items on this blog about survival rates of people who have mammograms regularly versus those who do not. I also think it's important to factor in the stress and things of having these procedures done plus the inevitable and common false negatives (my mom just had one--and they took 5 more mammos just to confirm that they screwed up...) that ratchet up the anxiety factors.

This article also puts monthly self exams in another perspective.

From Mercola.com:

-------------------------------

Is there a right way to check your breasts for early signs of cancer? Many women remain confused as experts now say there is no evidence that rigorous monthly "self-examination" -- widely recommended in the United States -- reduces breast cancer deaths. Plus, it can lead to unnecessary biopsies.

Two large studies looking at a total of more than 388,000 women found that death rates from breast cancer were the same among women who rigorously self-examined as those who did not, while there were almost twice the number of biopsy operations in the self-examination group.

According to some experts, the best way for a woman to check her breasts is not to follow a strict examination routine, but to get to know what is normal, and feel them regularly for signs of any changes.

Sources:

• BBC News July 15, 2008

• Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews July 2008, Issue 3

AFL-CIO takes on racism

From the Daily Dish:

Confronting Racism Against Obama

A pretty amazing speech by the AFL-CIO's Richard Trumka. To see a white union man take on racism this way is very moving. Something truly profound could happen in this election, if we want it to:

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/10/confronting-rac.html

New Multi Vaccine Causes Seizures

With vaccines, more is definitely not better. Remember when Searle covered up data that EQUAL causes seizures in people (p.s. Donald Rumsfeld was CEO of Searle at the time). If you're gonna vaccinate, go low and slow.

From Natural News:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(NaturalNews) Children who take Merck's combination vaccine ProQuad suffer from convulsions twice as frequently as children who are given two separate vaccines, a federally funded study has found.

In response, the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has reversed its prior position of recommending ProQuad, which protects against measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) and chicken pox, over two separate vaccines for chicken pox and MMR.

"Safety, shortages, delivery issues - lots of reasons not to state such a strong preference," advisory committee member Patsy Stinchfield said.

Previously, the committee had recommended ProQuad over the separate vaccines in order to reduce the number of shots that children would have to undergo.

ProQuad costs approximately the same as the chicken pox and MMR vaccines combined. Due to manufacturing problems, the vaccine has been in short supply since 2007.

Researchers in the new study looked at 43,000 children between the ages of 12 and 23 months who had been vaccinated with ProQuad and 315,000 who had received two separate MMR and chicken pox vaccines. They found that within seven to 10 days after vaccination, those given ProQuad suffered twice as many cases of fever followed by convulsions as those given the separate shots. This amounted to one extra convulsion per 2,000 children receiving ProQuad.

In absolute terms, nine of every 10,000 children receiving ProQuad suffered fever-related seizures, compared with four in 10,000 children in the dual vaccine group.

Children undergoing seizures did not appear to suffer any lasting effects, and there were no recorded deaths.

A similar study conducted by Merck also found a doubling of seizure risk within five to 12 days of vaccination with ProQuad, but said that the difference in seizure rates vanished in a 30-day time period. The absolute seizure rate from ProQuad was lower in the Merck-funded study, at five convulsions per 10,000 children vaccinated.

More Recession Tips + coupon

Our household uses a fair amount of supplements, and these needs are there no matter what the stock market's doing. I USED to go to Vitaminshope.com because they were cheap, and bought a lot of their house brands. Well, the women's multiple was famously found by Consumerlabs.com to have dangerous amounts of lead.

Now that I'm a sort of health journalist, I have direct access to Consumerlabs and can tell you of weird things going on, or even good things, like a recent test of cod liver oils found even the cheapie brands pretty clear of heavy metals.. (I think I blogged about this before).

Anyway, I use iherb.com, largely because they have flat 1.99 shipping and free over $60, and they have all the good stuff like the cell salts, homeopathics, green tea, etc., at a fraction of Whole Foods prices. They also claim (I have no idea how to verify this) that they have the best storage and keep things fresh. I *do* know that as a test I ordered some probiotics from VS that I KNOW need to be refrigerated (other places make you buy an ice pack and use priority mail) and they just came in the middle of the summer over 1 week with the free shipping. Blech.

But again, I cannot verify iherb's claims, but their prices are certainly right. iherb.com And GreenFertiltiy's back in GREEN.

Oh yeah, they also gave me a $5 coupon for first time users, which I hereby pass on to you. Use the code PIX328.

What you didn't see after the debate

Unlike the regular news outlets, our friends C-Span stayed as long as there was a candidate in the room. One person left promptly, the other ("that one") stayed and talked, shook hands, signed autographs...until every last person was happy.

via Wonkette. Click here.

Amazing: Obama Helped Stranded Stranger 20 Years Ago

Hm, this is the first political post here on GreenFertility. On the other hand, maybe it's not really political, more just the GreenFertility bringin' ya the lesser known facts (see, I can talk like Sarah Palin, too!).

This story (I got it from the Daily Kos via my friend Susan) illustrates the ever important what-people-do-when-no-one's-looking principle. Plus, MAN FERTILITY and I have friends who went to school with Obama and said similar things about him and are working for his campaign.

I also found it weird/creepy/scary that at the debate, when Sen. Biden became truly choked up recalling his family tragedy, Gov. Palin merely responded with one of her soundbites about being a maverick...

In these times, who's more likely to feel your pain, who's more likely to genuinely try to help? I couldn't even bear to watch the RNC because of the baaaad energy.

p.s. if after reading this you want to donate to Books4Barack, a joint effort of authors brianchilded by Ayelet Waldman, click here.

---------------------------------------------------

Amazing: Obama Helped Stranded Stranger 20 Years Ago

by foxsucks81

Sun Oct 05, 2008 at 03:47:48 PM PDT

The Norwegian newspaper VG has reported a truly amazing story about a newly-wed trying to get to Norway to be with her husband, and the stranger who helped pay an unexpected luggage surcharge. The blog "Leisha's Random Thoughts" has translated the story.

It was 1988, and Mary Andersen was at the Miami airport checking in for a long flight to Norway to be with her husband when the airline representative informed her that she wouldn't be able to check her luggage without paying a 100 surcharge:

When it was finally Mary’s turn, she got the message that would crush her bubbling feeling of happiness.
-You’ll have to pay a 103 dollar surcharge if you want to bring both those suitcases to Norway, the man behind the counter said.
Mary had no money. Her new husband had travelled ahead of her to Norway, and she had no one else to call.
-I was completely desperate and tried to think which of my things I could manage without. But I had already made such a careful selection of my most prized possessions, says Mary.

DIGG IT!

As tears streamed down her face, she heard a "gentle and friendly voice" behind her saying, "That's okay, I'll pay for her."

Mary turned around to see a tall man whom she had never seen before.
-He had a gentle and kind voice that was still firm and decisive. The first thing I thought was, Who is this man?
Although this happened 20 years ago, Mary still remembers the authority that radiated from the man.
-He was nicely dressed, fashionably dressed with brown leather shoes, a cotton shirt open at the throat and khaki pants, says Mary.
She was thrilled to be able to bring both her suitcases to Norway and assured the stranger that he would get his money back. The man wrote his name and address on a piece of paper that he gave to Mary. She thanked him repeatedly. When she finally walked off towards the security checkpoint, he waved goodbye to her.

Who was the man?

Barack Obama.

Twenty years later, she is thrilled that the friendly stranger at the airport may be the next President and has voted for him already and donated 100 dollars to his campaign:

-He was my knight in shining armor, says Mary, smiling.
She paid the 103 dollars back to Obama the day after she arrived in Norway. At that time he had just finished his job as a poorly paid community worker* in Chicago, and had started his law studies at prestigious Harvard university.

read more here.

Cell Phone Use and Pregnancy

Cell phones scare me, actually. We have one we use only for emergencies and I used the loudspeaker on it. Apparently, when yo use a cell phone, it uses your HEAD as an antenna. Lovely. Check this out from Natural News:

(NaturalNews) The first large-scale study to look at the connection between mobile phone use in pregnancy and later behavioral problems in children has overwhelmingly come back with a finding that such phone use places undeveloped babies at risk.

Researchers from the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Aarhus, Denmark surveyed 13,519 women who had given birth in Denmark in the late 1990s about their mobile phone use habits while pregnant, and their children's use of the phones up until the age of seven. Due to the fact that cell phone use was less widespread a decade ago, about half of the women in the study had not used the phones while pregnant, or used them only infrequently.

Women who used handsets two or three times per day while pregnant were 54 percent more likely to give birth to children who developed behavioral problems by the time they reached school age than women who did not use them. The risk of behavioral problems increased along with the mother's mobile phone use during pregnancy.

If children used the phones themselves while very young, they were 80 percent more likely to suffer behavioral difficulties, 25 percent more likely to suffer from emotional problems, 34 percent more likely to have trouble relating to their peers, 35 percent more likely to be hyperactive and 49 percent more likely to have conduct problems than children who did not use mobile phones.

The findings were published in the journal Epidemiology.

read more here.

Bacteria in Kimchi really, really important for Pregnant Women

Interestingly, concurrent with the rise in obesity of Korean kiddies, they seem to be easting less kimchi! At least, that was the complaint I often heard when I lived there, indeed, my aunt's kids seemed like they couldn't get enough of Choco-pies. Kimchi is very pungent and spicy and also definitely curbs the urge for sweets.

Cabbage, the canny Koreans and Germans must have figured out, contain and extra hardy naturally occuring probiotic, l. plantarum. Apparently there are all sorts of l. plantarum supplements coming out. I still think eating fermented foods is the "express" way to get these little guys in your system, as the lactic acid that is formed in fermentation is a perfect pH for them to survive. Our son drinks kimchi juice when he's feeling off, and has these amazing kimchi burps right after.

The Body Ecology site suggests that l. plantarum is one bacteria you definitely want to have in your system if you are pregnant--the baby gets its first probiotics via its journey through the birth canal--this process is rudely interrupted if you have a c section, btw, so be extra careful to make sure your baby gets probiotics.

From Body Ecology.com:

L. plantarum is one of the best probiotics to address digestive distress!
In fact, some people NEED Lactobacillus plantarum to improve their health:

• Pregnant women can ensure that they have healthy bacteria in their birth canal to inoculate their newborn babies.
  
• Newborn babies benefit from tiny spoonfuls of cultured vegetable juice soon after birth to prevent colic and to ensure their inner ecosystem is well established.
  
• Autistic children benefit from L. plantarum as it helps clear up common digestive issues.
  
• Children with ADD/ADHD often find relief when using probiotics.
  
• Anyone Taking Antibiotics
  

read more here.
----------------------------------------------------------
I always recommend making your own; if you do buy it, check for MSG.

GreenFertility sh*tkicking kimchi recipe and step-by-step instructions: http://greenfertility.blogspot.com/2007/02/kimchi-instructions.html

South Korea plans to help obese children pay for health club membership

In the last month I've read three different articles on three very different countries: Okinawa, Greece, Korea but they all said the same thing: the old people on a tradition diet stayed lean and healthy with very few degenerative diseases, while the 50%+ Korean/Okinawan/Greek kids were obese with unheard of degenerative diseases after only a few years on a western diet--what more proof do we need that the Western diet is poisonous? Just google the work of Dr. Weston Price--they knew this a whole century ago.

Anyway, Last time I was in Korea it was a decade ago, and I can't recall a single instance of seeing a fat child. Well, guess I'll be in for a surprise:

------------------------------------------------------------

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea plans to help obese children pay for health club membership and other activities that can help them lose weight, an official said on Wednesday.

Health ministry official Chun Myung-sook said the rate of childhood obesity had tripled over the past three years due to a changing diet higher in fatty foods and a more sedentary lifestyle.

read more here.

Pain-Relieving Drugs Linked with Accelerated Mental Decline

Your brain need a bail-out? Stop taking Motrin!

There are many homeopathic and other things you can use for those headaches and things.

Not to mention ibuprophen and other drugs do a number on your stomach...

-------------------------
(NaturalNews) Painkillers not only have no effect on preventing mental decline in patients with family histories of Alzheimer's disease, they may actually accelerate it, according to a study conducted by researchers from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and published in the Archives of Neurology.

Some researchers have suggested that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen may decrease the risk of Alzheimer's by reducing inflammation in the brain that might be linked to the disease. But the current research found no evidence for this claim.

"The drugs we studied did not seem to improve cognitive function and, if anything, there was some weak evidence for a detrimental effect," said researcher Barbara Martin. "So we don't at this time recommend taking NSAIDs for the purpose of preventing Alzheimer's or cognitive decline."

The researchers examined 2,117 people over the age of 70 who had a family history of Alzheimer's disease but were not exhibiting any symptoms of dementia. Participants were given either 200 milligrams of Celebrex, 220 milligrams of naproxen, or a placebo two times per day.

Naproxen is also marketed as Aleve and Naprosyn.

The researchers were forced to halt the trial early, after less than three years, when other researchers discovered that Celebrex raised the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

Based on tests of cognitive function given once per year, neither Celebrex nor naproxen decreased the rate of cognitive decline compared to a placebo. On the contrary, participants taking naproxen had lower scores for overall cognitive function than those taking a placebo. Those taking either painkiller also scored lower on one specific test of cognitive function.

read more here.

Cadbury says Chinese-made chocolate have melamine

For those of you living under a rock, melamine is the poisonous substance unscrupulous food traders in China (and possibly other places) use to up the protein content--first, the pets died, and then the babies died from melamine-tainted milk formula. Nabisco also has an Oreo plant in China--let this be a reason to stop eating those Oreos. Watch out!

From the AP this morning:

--------------------------------------------------
27 minutes ago

HONG KONG - A Cadbury spokesman says preliminary results show its Chinese-made chocolates contain the industrial chemical melamine.

The spokesman said Monday it was too early to say how much melamine the chocolates contained.

He declined to give his name because of company policy.

Cadbury said earlier the tests "cast doubt" on the safety of its Chinese-made products but didn't elaborate.

-----------------------------------------------------

GreenFertility's Organic/Wildcrafted/Fair trade recommendation:

Theo Origin makes some great organic or fair trade chocolates that are single-sourced (i.e., not from China).

Read the review here.

Please Donate...

In the in-box this a.m.

Haha, at first we thought oh, another one of those Nigerian email scams. But this isn't SPAM, it's for real, get all your account #s ready:

-------------------------------------------------------------
Dear American:

I need to ask you to support an urgent secret business relationship
with a transfer of funds of great magnitude.
I am Ministry of the Treasury of the Republic of America. My country
has had crisis that has caused the need for large transfer of funds of
800 billion dollars US. If you would assist me in this transfer, it
would be most profitable to you.
I am working with Mr. Phil Gram, lobbyist for UBS, who will be my
replacement as Ministry of the Treasury in January. As a Senator, you
may know him as the leader of the American banking deregulation
movement in the 1990s. This transactin is 100% safe.
This is a matter of great urgency. We need a blank check. We need the
funds as quickly as possible. We cannot directly transfer these funds
in the names of our close friends because we are constantly under
surveillance. My family lawyer advised me that I should look for a
reliable and trustworthy person who will act as a next of kin so the
funds can be transferred.
Please reply with all of your bank account, IRA and college fund
account numbers and those of your children and grandchildren to wallstreetbailout@treasury.gov
so that we may transfer your commission for this transaction. After
I receive that information, I will respond with detailed information
about safeguards that will be used to protect the funds.

Yours Faithfully Minister of Treasury Paulson

Paints and sperm abnormality

If your man is a fixer-upper, check this out from Natural News:

(NaturalNews) Men who are regularly exposed to a common ingredient of water-soluble paints are 250 percent more likely to have a specific sperm abnormality, according to a study conducted by researchers from the Universities of Manchester and Sheffield in the United Kingdom, and published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

As part of a study into the effect of workplace chemicals on male fertility, researchers interviewed 2,118 men attending 14 fertility clinics in 11 cities. The men were asked about their lifestyles, including their jobs and their exposure to certain chemicals.

Men who were regularly exposed to glycol ethers were 250 percent more likely to have problems with sperm motility than men who were not regularly exposed. Such men included painters and decorators, who spend significant amounts of time around paints and similar chemicals.

Motility refers to how well an individual sperm cell moves, and is a significant predictor of fertility. Other sperm factors that can influence fertility include the size and shape of the sperm cell, or the quality of its DNA. While problems with these factors were not tested for in the current study, certain chemicals have been known to produce such effects as well.

"We know that certain glycol ethers can affect male fertility," said researcher Andy Povery, "and the use of these has reduced over the past two decades. However, our work suggests they are still a workplace hazard, and further work is needed to reduce such exposure."

Other sources of sperm motility problems included regular manual labor, wearing tight underpants and a history of testicular surgery. Even after the researchers adjusted for these factors, however, the correlation between motility problems and glycol ether exposure remained strong.

The researchers also found that men who drank alcohol regularly tended to have better sperm motility, although the source of this correlation was not clear.

Sources for this story include: news.bbc.co.uk.

How to undo MSG damage

This is kind of interesting, especially since red clover is a blood purifier and good for fertility (it's mildly estrogenic herb, so check with your health care person if you have hormonal issues, and as with everything, moderation is key), but Susun Weed thinks red clover is the # fertility herb.

Also, don't just pick clover if you see it in a farmer's field--it's likely been sprayed!

So, since MSG is pretty ubiquitous (even in health foods, likely in almost all restaurant food) check it out (also, I grow clover from seed in window boxes outside with my Biobagged compost of course...it's pretty):
--------------------------

(NaturalNews) If you are into healthful eating, it can be tough when friends or family want to go out to the local restaurant to eat. You know most of the food there is laced with monosodium glutamate (MSG), and this knowledge can really spoil your fun. Now a new study has found that pre-treating yourself with a supplement of red clover before you go out can nullify the potential for brain damage from MSG.

The study

The June 5, 2008 edition of Phytomedicine reports a study based on an idea generated by the knowledge that estrogen has been shown to affect neuronal growth, differentiation and survival. Genistein, diadzein and other isoflavones have been shown to mimic the pharmacological actions of the steroid estrogen, due to their similarity of structure. So, researchers hypothesized that the natural mixture of phytoestrogenic isoflavones found in red clover could protect the brain from glutamate toxicity. They used a human cortical cell line to test the efficacy of the red clover. Neuronal viability was determined and neuronal membrane damage was quantitatively measured.

...Supplementing with red clover

No serious side effects from red clover have been reported in humans. Infertility has been noted in grazing animals that consume large quantities.

read more here.

Review: Biobags and Composting System

Hey kids, composting is fun again!

Actually, it was always fun, but because we eat so many veggies and things, we were also starting our own fruit fly farm, or it would be a massive pain to dump the compostables several times a day.

So Biobags to the rescue. These guys are not only biodegradeable, but they are NON GMO. I checked with the company; I thought they'd think I was a bit on the anal side, but our compost DOES go into our food--ahem--and guess what, the company uses corn from Europe specifically to keep us safe from GMOs and who knows what else. Pwew!

My suggestion is you treat yourself to the entire system. This bag and ventilated bucket is not only attractive enough for your countertop, it pre composts things, and it has a LID so you can wait 'til it's filled up and dump the whole thing in the composter.

One usage tip: the bags are breathable, so take care with dumping in wet coffee grounds or other liquids, it will leak.

GreenFertility gives this two green thumbs up! Info here.

Survival Instincts Propel ‘Difficult Patient’ to Insist on Quality Care

I can see why doctors hate it when people bring in reams of unexpurgated stuff downloaded from the internet..but it always pays to make yourself the captain of your own ship. Remember, YOU know YOU the best.

From Newswise, the journalists'-only site:

-----------------------------------------------------------

Newswise — Michelle Mayer had to become a “difficult patient” before she could get her physicians to accurately diagnose the disease that was destroying her health.
And once the diagnosis was made, she had to continue to be what many physicians describe as “difficult” before she could get the best treatment for scleroderma, a chronic autoimmune disease in which hardening of the skin is a major element.

Mayer, a research assistant professor of health policy and management at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health, writes about her experiences as a patient in the September issue of Health Affairs, a publication aimed at enhancing communication between health policy researchers, legislators, decision-makers and professionals concerned with developing, implementing and analyzing health policy.Mayer’s essay from a patient’s perspective is paired in the same issue by an essay from an Illinois physician, describing “difficult patients” from the physician’s perspective. Their viewpoints are quite different, but, as the magazine explains, both Mayer and the physician decry policies that result in brief office visits that don’t allow enough time for patients and doctors to get to know one another, discuss medical issues and reach appropriate decisions. They agree both patients and doctors need time to work together and listen to each other. Mayer said she is hoping to influence legislators and other policy makers to understand the consequences of certain policies and regulations.

In her essay, Mayer describes severe swelling and cold intolerance she developed in her hands 12 years ago while she was a public health student. She was diagnosed with Raynaud’s phenomenon, a condition where small vessels of the hands and other parts of the body severely constrict in response to cold and stress, depriving surrounding tissues of oxygen.

“During the next six months I accumulated symptoms,” she writes. “I’d been an avid cyclist, and suddenly I had difficulty getting out of bed each morning. When I returned to the rheumatology clinic for a follow-up appointment, the doctor attributed my symptoms to stress, irritably dismissing me with, ‘You just have Raynaud’s.’ I knew that physicians often blamed stress for the ‘inexplicable’ ailments of young women; I refused to be dismissed so easily. I sought a second opinion from another rheumatologist at a different major academic medical center, and he reiterated the same diagnosis. Although I truly believed that I had scleroderma, I wanted to be wrong. So I acquiesced and, by doing so, caused further delay in my diagnosis.”
Mayer goes on to describe years of inappropriate and ineffective treatment, struggles to get physicians to listen to her, and hopelessness.

“But my husband prodded me to fight,” she writes, “and soon my survival instincts kicked into high gear.”

She sought physicians who were supportive and helpful, traveling hundreds of miles for appointments. She and her husband longed to have children, so, after searching the medical literature, she determined she was not at high risk for developing complications for herself or the baby. Defying the recommendations of scleroderma experts, she became pregnant and, over 26 months, gave birth to two healthy babies without causing additional harm to her own condition.

“I’ve faced many decisions about my care during the past 12 years,” she writes, “and my assertiveness has been greeted variably with contempt, resignation and, at times, support.”
The doctor/patient relationship must be based on trust, she said. And that trust has to go both ways.

“I wasn’t interested in being told what to do and I expected my doctors to respect my right to make truly informed choices that were consistent with the way in which I wanted to intervene in my disease and live my life,” she writes. “But being a difficult patient is a tricky proposition. By advocating for myself, I risk incensing the person on whom I depend for care.”
Efforts have been made recently to get patients more involved in their health care, Mayer said. She references health literacy initiatives, public reporting of quality indicators and consumer-directed health care. While these approaches aim to get patients more involved with their own treatment, they will fail if physicians are unwilling to make the transition to more patient-based care, she said.

“I don’t regret being difficult,” she writes, “but I do regret that so many people must settle for substandard care because they lack what it takes to advocate for their own needs.”
She concludes: “We must rethink a system that disproportionately rewards medical testing and procedures rather than thorough and complete histories and physical exams. But ultimately, improvements in patient-provider communication will require a willingness to bridge the deep divide created by notions of professional dominance and a passive patient role. We will need to encourage patients and physicians to relate to each other as fellow human beings, each with much to bring to the examining table.”

Mayer’s blog “Diary of a Dying Mom,” essays on parenting, living and dying, is ahttp://diaryofadyingmom.blogspot.com.

PreConception test: Is your husband a rodent?

From Dr. Ben Kim's site, where you can find a lot of great health info:

Dr. Ben Kim's Natural Health Newsletter
September 9, 2008

Dear Reader,

Imagine that you were about to get married to someone
you adore, but discovered that the object of your love
carries a gene that makes him or her susceptible to
cheating on you. Would you still get married?

For more on this topic, view this week's featured
article here:

Help, My Husband is a Rodent!

And yes, a recent study shows that some men carry a
gene that may explain why they might be more likely
than others to stray.

Soy, OY!

When I was a vegeterian, there was nothing like grabbing some Tofu Pups or a Boca Burger, finish it off with some soy ice cream since I was milk intolerant.

As you know from reading previous posts, the only soy foods the FertilityBitch recommends are fermented ones and the occasional tofu, bean sprouts, etc.

This article from Emagazine is mostly about how soy isn't quite the "green" food it's made out to be, either. And a fun fact: "But for most of history, soy protein was a waste product, and mainly used in the U.S. as a sealant on cardboard,"which was how it was determined to be "safe." Blech.

----------------------------------------------

The Tofu Trap

Our Soy Habit Has Environmental Consequences

By Erin Barnes

...Global soybean production increased ninefold between 1965 and 2005, from 30 million to 270 million tons, according to the Chicago Board of Trade. Soy oil production increased sevenfold over the same time period. And it’s no accident: The American soy industry spends $80 million annually finding new markets for soy consumption. The industry is in the hands of just a few companies, namely Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and Bunge.

read more here and consume with caution...

Top Foods for Long Term Storage

If you want to get ready for a nuclear holocaust or just enjoy stocking up in bulk, NaturalNews has a nice list of healthy foods that do okay with long term storage. Of course, I add KIMCHI to this list. It just gets more and more fermented until one day it's so delicious and sour you can make kimchi chigae (pictured) out of it.

-----------------------------------------
(NaturalNews) With the recent surge in food prices it makes sense to buy foods that last and to obtain a bulk discount. However it is pointless to stock up on unhealthy food. During an emergency, having enough snacks won't increase the odds of survival. So what are some of the best foods to stock up on? The keys to consider are: shelf life, bulk price and nutritional content. This article will explore some of the best options.

Top 4 Packaged Foods to Store (Indefinite shelf life)

1) Jarred Raw Nut Butters - Sesamum indicum (Pedaliacea), Arachis hypogaea (Fabaceae)
Having peanut butter, almond butter and sesame tahini (sesame seed butter) will provide for many recipes and a concentrated protein source that is easy to prepare. $5.00 per pound.

2) Canned Tomatoes - Solanum Lycopersicum (Solanaceae)
The amount of Lycopene, the key phytonutrient in tomatoes, actually becomes more bioavailable when they are canned. Canned tomatoes can be used to make homemade pasta and pizza sauce along with chili. $1.25 per pound.

3) Canned Beans - Cicer arietinum (Faboideae), Phaselous vulgaris (Leguminosae)
Having cans of black beans, red beans, chili beans and garbanzo beans handy supports a variety of complementary sources of complete protein (when served with rice). Garbanzo beans are the key component of hummus. They are available in extra large 25 ounce cans and even 108 ounce cans. $1.15 per pound.

4) Canned Sardines - Harengula jaguana (Clupeidae) (Unsalted, in Spring Water)
Sardines are whole organisms with lots of healthy Omega-3 oil. Sardines offer a complete protein source along with trace minerals. The healthiest ones still have the bones. Small fish like sardines contain far less mercury than tuna. $2.00 per pound.
______________________________________

Top 4 Bulk Grains to Store (2 year shelf life)

1) Brown Rice - Oryza sativa (Poaceae)
A staple grain, brown rice is cheaper than white rice and while it doesn't taste as good it is a health food versus a junk food. A blend of brown and white rice is the ideal for both health and flavor $1.25 per pound.

2) Spelt flour - Triticum spelta (Poaceae)
Having the ingredients to make bread dough will provide for many recipes. It is important to keep flour sealed in water tight containers to keep out moisture and insects.

3) Popcorn - Zea Mays Everta (Poaceae)
Cooked on the stove top, fresh popcorn beats any snack from a bag and is a great source of fiber. Ideally one will buy organic as popcorn is one of the most pesticide-laden foods and might be GMO corn. Store in air tight containers to preserve freshness and keep out bugs. See recipe below. $1.26 per pound.

4) Dried Peas - Pisum sativum (Papilionaceae)
Dried peas are a great source of protein and if mixed with rice provide a balanced meal. Dried peas can be cooked with ham hocks or soup bones to make soup.

NOTE: Bulk rate is for 25 lb bag. Store grains in sealed containers or they will become host to bugs. Observe grains carefully before using.
______________________________________

Top 4 Protein Sources to Store (6-12 month shelf life)

1) Raw Milk Cheese from Grass Fed Cows - Bos taurus (Bovidae)
Raw milk cheese gets better with time and is a complete food, meaning you could survive and thrive consuming absolutely nothing but raw milk cheese! It should be aged 60 or more days. Buy it in one big piece if possible, and keep it at about 44-48 degrees (F). Keep an eye on mold growth, and if small spots develop just scrape them off. If the cheese has come in contact with plastic it should be scraped off as it will absorb the taste and chemicals in plastic. $8 per pound.

2) Grass Fed Beef and Lamb - Bos taurus (Bovidae), Ovis aries (Bovidae)
If purchased in bulk grass-fed beef costs as little as $3 per pound and lamb for as little as $5.25 per pound. It can be canned, frozen, or divided up. The bones are even cheaper and can be used to make nutrient dense stock. See the product review for Grass fed Beef and Lamb for details on buying meat in bulk. $3-$20 per pound.

3) Free Range Chicken - Gallus domesticus (Thesienidae)
Whole chickens with the organs are essential for providing long term health via chicken soup. They keep for long periods in the freezer. They can provide several different meals. For quality chicken, the lard is useful, and the skin is healthy to consume. Chickens can be stuffed with leftover (dried) bread scraps, the chicken organs fortify the gravy with nutrients, and the bones can be made into soup. Not to mention the meat itself. Leftover bone scraps can be composted or ground up for pet food.

4) Miso soup - Glycine max (Fabaceae)
Miso soup is extremely concentrated and provides a great source of protein. Miso is a fermented food that contains living enzymes. One or two tablespoons of miso paste make a whole pot of soup.

Coffee and Thyroid a MUST READ

Mary Shomon, my thyroid friend and Goddess, who is the Thyroid Guide for About.com has this important new about coffee and thyroid--a must read because if your thyroid is not functioning optimally it's that much harder to get and stay pregnant, not to mention that hypthyroidism during pregnancy has been shown to lower IQ of babies:
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Attention Thyroid Patients: Coffee Can Interfere With Thyroid Medication Absorption

Wednesday September 3, 2008

Attention thyroid patients: your morning coffee may be interfering with proper absorption of your thyroid medication. I know, say it isn't so! You're already tired from being hypothyroid -- now they want to take away your coffee?

The findings were reported in a recent article in the journal Thyroid. What the researchers found is that in addition to some of the more commonly known issues with absorption of thyroid hormone (i.e., calcium, iron, and food taken at the same time as thyroid medication can interfere with absorption), coffee also interferes with the intestinal absorption of levothyroxine. In the study, patients took their levothyroxine (i.e., Synthroid, Levoxyl, Levothroid, Unithroid), with espresso or coffee, and researchers found that the coffee/espresso reduced the rise of the T4 after taking the medication by at least 25% to as much as 57%.

read more on Mary's site here.