Roger J. Wendell
Defending 3.8 Billion Years of Organic EvolutionSM
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Food Although I'm not a doctor I've studied food, dieting, and health to a great extent, because of my own battle(s) with weight control and other health issues. This page is mostly just a list of foods I feel are healthful along with another list of foods that I think should be avoided. Since it's a list tailored to my own health needs, along with being mostly personal opinion, I highly recommend you contact your doctor before adapting my eating habits! |
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"The diet that best supports health and healing for humans is a pure vegetable diet centered around starch foods with the addition of fresh fruits and vegetables" p. 17 "Altering the physical form of complex carbohydrates by certain processes, such as the simple grinding of brown rice grains into rice flour, changes the body's response to the food. Grinding affects the rate of digestion and absorption of the carbohydrate and results in a more rapid rise and a higher level of glucose and insulin in the blood. Thus, it is not only important for the foods in a health-supporting diet to include starch, vegetables, and fruit, but they must also be in a whole, unprocessed form whenever possible. One final observation is that slow heating (dextrinization) and cooking of food causes a breakdown of complex sugars into simpler forms, increasing the digestibility and subsequent rise in blood sugar." p. 114
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"We need to build a closer connection with the food we eat because, after all, it does become integrated into our bodies, into our muscles and nerves and blood. We are made up, physically, of what we eat and drink. We must begin to choose our food accordingly." p. 206"It is important, when we buy food from other countries, particularly from the developing world, that we make sure the product was grown and harvested in an environmentally and socially ethical way - which means buying fair trade and organic as much as possible. When any of us eats from local, organic food sources, we are less likely to contribute to the exploitation of another country's people or precious natural resources. Not every region or community can or should produce all its food. But it doesn't make sense for poor, underdeveloped areas of the world to grow cash crops for other countries when their own people go hungry. Nor does it make sense for wealthy countries to import cash crops when they are already growing the same kinds of foods in abundance." p. 216
- Jane Goodall in her book Harvest for Hope
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Comfort Food
"When people think about the foods that make them feel warm inside, some of the old-fashioned choices - chicken and dumplings, macaroni and cheese, and anything fried - can leave eaters feeling fat and sedated. That's becasue many such classic 'comfort foods' are loaded with animal products like meat, butter, eggs, and cheese, which clog arteries, pack on the pounds, and can lead to heart disease, strokes, high blood pressure, and other illnesses." PETA's Animal Times, Winter 2006, p. 11 |
Hunger
"Hunger - the painful sensation that someone feels on a regular basis due to lack of food - is a relatively rare phenomenon in America today, but it nevertheless afflicts a small number of U.S. residents on a n intermittent basis. The more common form of food insufficiency is known as food insecurity, a condition experienced by a much larger number of people who regularly run out of food or simply don't know where their next meal will come from. As part of the annual census update, the U.S. Department of Agriculture conducts a survey that determines the number of people who are food insecure (generally between 10 and 12 percent of the U.S. population) and severely food insecure (3 to 4 percent of the population, until 2006 labeled 'food insecure with hunger')."
- Mark Winne
Closing the Food Gap
Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty, p. xvi
The end of cheap food
The Economist December 8, 2007, p. 11
"For as long as most people can remember, food has been getting cheaper and farming has been in decline. In 1974-2005 food prices on world markets fell by three-quarters in real terms. Food today is so cheap that the West is battling gluttony even as it scrapes piles of half-eaten leftovers into the bin.""That is why this year's price rise has been so extraordinary. Since the spring, wheat prices have doubled and almost every crop under the sun - maize, milk, oilseeds, you name it - is at or near a peak in normal terms. The Economist's food-price index is higher today than at any time since it was created in 1845. Even in real terms, prices have jumped by 75% since 2005. No doubt farmers will meet higher prices with investment and more production, but dearer food is likely to persist for years. That is because 'agflation' is underpinned by long-running changes in diet that accompany the growing wealth of emerging economies - the Chinese consumer who ate 20kg (44lb) of meat in 1984 will scoff over 50 kg of the stuff this year. That in turn pushes up demand for grain: it takes 8kg of grain to produce one of beef."
Food Safety Tips
Salmonella is a bacteria that causes fever, abdominal craps, and diarrhea that can even contain blood at times. Most people recover from salmonella infection in about a week's time. However, some cases can be severe or even life-threatening. Babies, elderly persons, and people with weak immune systems are more likely to succumb to a salmonella infection. I found these tips in the July '07 online issue of WebMD (Keep Food Poisoning off Summer Menu by Miranda Hitti):
- Thoroughly clean your hands, cooking surfaces, countertops, and utensils in hot, soapy water before and after preparing each food item.
- Rinse all produce in running water.
- Separate raw meat from cooked foods. Clean plates, utensils, and cutting boards that have touched raw meat.
- Cook foods thoroughly. Use a clean cooking thermometer to make sure meat and poultry is done.
- Refrigerate meat or poultry as it defrosts; don't let it thaw on the countertop.
- Store foods promptly; don't let them linger on the table.
Food Choices:
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Note: On 09/18/2006, at the age of 50, I was diagnosed with kidney stones (not to mention cancer, three months earlier...). Since mine were analyzed as consisting primarily of calcium oxalate, my doctor asked that I reduce the intake of oxalate containing foods. So, I've been trying to remove things like nuts, peanut butter, chocolate, tea,, spinach, rhubarb, beets, wheat bran, and strawberries from the above list. Again, before undertaking any dietary or health change I strongly encourage you to see your own doctor because you can see (from my kidney stone experience) each and every one of us is so very different...
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Pasta Power! Okay, I have a bias - I've always loved pasta! To me, pasta should have always been listed as a major contributor to a healthy diet - along with vegetables, fruit, legumes, etc. I believe it was Dr. John McDougall who often referred to pasta, especially the whole grain types, as a "clean burning" carbohydrate - despite everyone else's belief that it was fattening or had other deficiencies. Anyway, here's a look at one of my favorite foods: |
"Pasta" is the Italian word for "paste." Pasta is made from grain flour mixed with water to create a dough. There are all kinds of different shapes and sizes for pasta. And, although most pastas are made from wheat, other grains can be used for people who are gluten intolerant, etc. My own favorite pastas are the whole Durum Wheat elbows with beet, spinach, carrot, or annatto powder mixed in for different colors, taste and texture. Unfortunately I haven't been able to locate a steady supply of these elbows since the early 2000s but find that the spirals and shells work just as well.Pasta dough can be forced through a variety of different molds to create noodles ranging in shape from smooth and flat to solid, hollow or spiral. The Italian name, for any particular style of pasta, is determined from its shape:
The nutritional value of pasta is determined by the flour it's made from. Whole grains, obviously, are more nutritious because the bran and germ of the grain have been left in the flour. Most pasta is made with durum wheat which is high in protein and gluten - making the dough better able to hold its shape because it sticks together better.
- Cannelloni, tube-or cane-shaped pasta
- Capellini (angel hair), "fine hairs"
- Conchiglie, "shells"
- Fettucine," "small ribbons"
- Fusilli, "little spindles" (spirals)
- Lasagna, broad, sometime ruffled, ribbons of pasta (from the Latin "pot")
- Linguini, "little tongues"
- Penne, "quills"
- Ravioli, "little turnips"
- Rigatoni, "furrows," short, wide fluted tubes
- Rotini, "spirals" or "twists"
Spaghetti, from spago, "cord"- Tortellini, "little cakes"
- Vermicelli, "little worms"
Semolina or farina are popular pasta flours that have had the germ and bran removed, making them less nutritious and lower in fiber. However, pasta in general is less nutritious than the same amount of whole wheat or multi-grain bread because the flour is much more refined - packing in a few more calories.
Anyway, I've always enjoyed pasta and even rely on it while on extended backpacking trips and adventure treks. To me, it's easy to prepare, stores well, and seems to provide good energy. Simply boiling the pasta, until it's soft, works well at home and out in the wilderness. Since I also love onions, I boil a whole one along with the pasta, even adding the onion a few minutes earlier if needed. After draining the water I add a simple tomato sauce that's free of fat and oils and I end up with a pretty good main course both at home and outdoors!
Psycho Soup:
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"Psycho Soup" is something I invented, in the mid 1980s, as a variation of the regular pasta theme. Again, it's a recipe based on simplicity so the idea is easy ingredients, easy preparation, and easy clean-up. For Psycho Soup I boil a potato or two well in advance of the other ingredients (since potatoes take longer to cook and soften-up). After the potatoes are far enough along I add a whole onion and whole garlic. I chop up a Jalapeño pepper but found it can be added at anytime since it's "strength" doesn't seem to diminish too much with cooking. In the past I've also added carrots and other "hard" vegetables, but find these later additions can be optional.
Anyway, nearing the end of the boil, I add the pasta (elbows were always my favorite but hard to get nowadays with the mixed-vegetable powder blends...) and cook it all until tender. Drain the water* and serve the whole thing topped with a health tomato sauce - the result is a healthy, filling meal that's pretty easy for even somebody like me to put together! |
*Sometimes I save the water I drain-off and let it cool for a drink later on Since
so many different vegetables are cooked in "Psycho Soup" the drained-off water
can be packed with nutrients and shouldn't be wasted!
Fish is not health food!
According to Doctor Neal Barnard, M.D., "Fish is not a health food by any stretch of the imagination. According to a study published in The New England Journal of medicine, people who followed a diet emphasizing poultry and fish, called the National Cholesterol Education Program Step II Diet, found that their cholesterol levels changed very little.""Fish's selling point is omega-3 fatty acids. But the fact is, fish fat is a mixture of fats. Anywhere from 15% to 30% of the fat in fish is plain old saturated ('bad') fat. That's somewhat lower than in beef and chicken but far higher than in healtful vegetarian foods. And fish fat is everty bit as fattening as lard or chicken fat. People adding salmon to their diets in hopes of some vague benefit often find it hard to manage their weight, because of the load of fat they are eating. Fish flesh contain plenty of cholesterol too. Ounce for ounce, shrimp and other mobile shellfish have nearly twice the cholesterol of beef.
"Fish often carry contaminants from polluted waterways. About 40% of fish samples have so much bacterial contamination that they have already begun to spoil before they are sold. Fish are also often contaminated with PCBs, which have been linked to cancer and birth defects. Consumer Reports found PCBs in 43% of salmon, 50% of whitefish, and 25% of swordfish. The US Food and Drug Administration and the US Environmental Proteciton Agency warned pgregnant women, women who may become pregnant, breastfeeding women, and children to limit their soncumption of fatty fish because it contains mercury, which can also contribute to birth defects, kidney damage, impaired mental development, aned even cancer.
"So where will we get our omegas-3s? Vegetables, fruits, and beans don't contain much fat, but what fat they do have is relatively high in omega-3. A person aiming for a higher omega-3 intake, for whatever reason, will find it in ground flaxseeds, flaxseed oil, walnuts, soy products, and vegetarian omega-3 supplements, such as Sea Vegg.
"If you really want to work on beating heart disease, forget the fish and try a vegetarian diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and bean low in fats of any kind."
PETA's Animal Times, winter 2007, p. 21
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