The Diaries: Allison wk 3

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

The Diaries: Acupuncture

(Week two in our guest post from Allison of alli-n-son)

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

Fertility Diet: part 2.1 (Super Foods for Fertility)

In part one of this fertility diet series we talked a bit about the essential nutrients needed for our reproductive parts to work at peak performance. This week we’ll discuss a bit about where we find these nutrients. And like I’ve said before, this is not an exclusive list, I’ll keep adding new data as I come across it!

The Problem in Our Modern Diets

Unfortunately most of us  no longer consume the foods that nourish our bodies! At. All. Even the “healthy” and “organic” foods we buy in the stores have been pasteurized and processed so that it damages all the precious vitamins and minerals. The standard American diet is now full of white sugars and flours, chemicals and preservatives, all robbing our bodies of the vital nutrients we actually do consume.

Vitamin D

Again, this important vitamin supports the production of estrogen in both men and women¹ , is needed for insulin production, and is key in regulating cell growth and deciding how those cells grow. Vitamin D is also activated into an endocrine hormone within the body.

And it seems that “primitive” societies knew better than us on how to fullfill their daily requirements for Vitamin D as intestines, organ meats, skin and fat from certain land animals, as well as oily fish are all rich in this important nutrient. When is the last time you had some intestine with your meal?

Yea, that’s what I thought.

Other ways to increase your Vitamin D intake would be to include the following in your diet. (IU per 3.75oz or 100 grams)

• Cod Liver Oil – is actually the richest source of vitamin D!(²) (and the good news is, it also contains vitamin A for better assimilation in the body)
• Lard/Tallow - (from grassfed and pastured animals) the second richest source of vitamin D.
• Pastured Eggs -especially the yolks and from chickens who have had regular access to run around in the great outdoors eating grass, worms, and other insects.
• Wild Caught Fish - especially fatty fish like herring
• Butter – (from grass fed cows)
• Organ Meats – I know -eww right? But they are chock full of nutrients!
• Sunlight
  

The way the animals are raised and fed also has a lot to do with the amount of nutrients you gain from eating products made from them. Animals that are allowed to be out in the pasture are recommended, as the exposure to UV-B rays from the sun allow the animals body to produce more vitamin D. Thus giving more vitamin D to us!

You’ll also notice that while the above mentioned foods are high in Vitamin D themselves, many of them are also high in cholesterol. Now, you’ll have to believe me here a minute as I tell you that cholesterol is not bad for you – in fact it’s very necessary! (I’ll get into the cholesterol debate later) But, vitamin D is actually synthesized from the cholesterol in our body when we are exposed to the sun.

Modern RDA requirements are a measly 400 IU per day. From what I’ve seen from the Weston A Price Foundation as well as other natural/holistic doctors, they recommend at least double that amount.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A  can be classified into one of 2 groups. Retinols, which are found in animal products, and carotenoids (beta carotene), found in plant foods. The great thing about retinols is that the body can easily convert this to a usable form of vitamin A. It takes a lot more beta carotene on the other hand to come up with the same amount of usable vitamin A. And infants and children as well as those in poor health (decreased thyroid function, celiac, diabetes) or on low fat diets, already have an even harder time converting beta carotene.

The list of foods below are per 3.75oz (or 100 grams)

• Beef Liver (30,000 IU)
• Butter and Cream – again, levels will be higher on cows fed growing grass.
• High Vitamin Cod Liver Oil (230,000 IU)
• Regular Cod Liver Oil (100,000 IU)
• Eggs from pastured chickens contain 2/3 more Vitamin A than conventional eggs and 7 times more beta carotene. ¹

The current RDA for vitamin A stands at 5000 IU though the WAPF (Weston A Price Foundation) seems to think that the work of Price showed primitive diets contained almost 50,000IUs per day.³ And as you can see, it wouldn’t be hard to get well over 5000 IUs just by making sure you get a small amount of just one of these foods into your diet each day.

Vitamin E

Again, this is also a fat soluble vitamin, but it’s also an important antioxidant. And being an antioxidant basically means that it deactivates free radicals within our bodies. Vitamin E also has a property in it known as tocopherol. It was given the name after a fertility study was done with rats in 1936 and in Greek this means “to bring forth a child”.

• Butter – from grassfed cows
  
• Organ Meats
• Grains – vitamin E is found in the wheat kernel which is removed to make white flour. It is also easily damaged during processing and can become oxidized. Freshly ground wheat is always best!
• Seeds – sunflowers contain 35mg per 3.75oz
• Nuts -  almonds contain 26 mg per 3.75oz (90% of which is tocopherol!)
• Legumes – varies from 7mg to 28 mg depending on variety
  
• Dark Green Leafy Vegetables
• Unrefined (and unheated) oils like olive and sunflower oil
• Pastured eggs also contain 3 times more vitamin E than conventional eggs.¹

Current RDA is 15mg for both adult men and women. I can’t find anything else regarding how much we should consume, but it seems to me that a diet of fresh ‘real’ foods and freshly ground grains would be much higher than this.

Vitamin K2

Is a fat soluble compound that assists vitamins A & D, also known as Activator X by Weston A Price. It is found in certain fatty parts of animals that feed on young green growing plants. And the growing grass is the most important part of that statement! What happens is the animals eat rapidly growing plants, which are high in vitamin K1. Part of this K1 is then converted by the animals tissues to K2. And the amounts of Kz within the animal products will then vary widely depending on what the animal eats and when they eat it. Sources include:

• Liver
• Egg Yolks
• Butter
• High vitamin butter oil {natural supplement}
• Fish Eggs

If you’d like to read even more about vitamin K2, I’d recommend an article written by Chris Masterjohn, “On the Trail of the Elusive X-Factor: A Sixty-Two-Year-Old Mystery Finally Solved”. It’s more complex than what I can ever get into.

So are you noticing any trends yet?

To Be Continued………. (part 2.2 iodine and omega-3’s)

1.Mother Earth News - free range egg

2.Vitamin D is Synthesized From Cholesterol and Found in Cholesterol-Rich Foods by Chris Masterjohn May 5, 2006

3. Vitamin A Saga

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

Introducing Allison

Are Microwaves Dangerous to Your Health?

As most of you probably did, I grew up with a microwave. I actually can’t remember life without one. And while we didn’t use it all the time, I do remember it getting quite a bit of use.

And when I started working full time, it was the only way I ever warmed up my lunch.

And when I got married we used it quite often for reheating dinners and frozen foods. I used it to defrost meats, heat water, melt butter, and cook vegetables.

When I got pregnant with my son it was the first time I heard there were any issues about microwaves. I read multiple times that pregnant women shouldn’t stand to close to them for fear the microwaves would escape. And so I always backed away while using it.

Just. In. Case.

The science behind that theory may not stand up to modern machines because of the way they’re designed, but that’s not exactly why I wonder about them anymore. (Though I never stand close to a microwave while it’s cooking. You know…just in case)

After I had my son and began pumping occasionally for when I wasn’t around, I kept coming across literature that told me to never heat breast milk (or formula for that matter) in the microwave. The reasoning was that it caused nutrient loss and damaged the properties that protect babies from infections.

Hmmmm……..

So if it caused nutrient loss in milk for my little baby, what was it also doing to my own food?

It was then that I started making it a habit to use my microwave less, though I did keep using it. Now? I think after a bit more research I might just be ready to give it up all together.

How a Microwave Oven Works

In very simple laymens terms, and the way I understand it, microwave ovens use a form of radio waves (called microwaves) to heat food. These radio waves are absorbed by water, sugar, and fats in foods. When they are absorbed the food molecules get excited and start moving around and heating up. By exciting the atoms of the food is this way, it cooks the food. So there is no actual heat involved.

So Are There Issues?

Unfortunately it’s hard to find concrete evidence against a microwave! I’ve come across story after story after article here on the web, but it’s hard to know who to trust.

One story I kept coming across was a woman whose family alleges she was killed by a microwaved blood transfusion. Supposedly she was doing well after her hip surgery and then a nurse microwaved the blood and she died moments later. Yet another site claimed it was a hoax and that she died of a blood clot. The full case report includes more information about the case and some effects microwaves may have on blood. But the fact of the matter is also that hospitals do not warm up blood in a microwave, do they have a scientific reason not to? Just because a judge couldn’t find concrete evidence doesn’t mean there wasn’t some truth behind the allegations.

The other story I found that was often referred to, was a study done by Hans Hertel. He carried out a small, controlled study by feeding participants (including himself) and testing the blood shortly after consumption.

The food used:

• raw milk from a biofarm
• the same milk conventionally cooked
• pasteurized milk from Intermilk Berne
• the same raw milk cooked in a microwave oven
• raw vegetables from an organic farm
• the same vegetables cooked conventionally
• the same vegetables frozen and defrosted in the microwave oven
• and the same vegetables cooked in the microwave oven

He found that the microwaved foods actually changed properties in the subjects blood. The same changes that were associated with bodily deterioration. But supposedly there was a gag order placed on the whole thing. Again – hmmmm.

It also seems that the Russians have done quite a bit of research on microwave ovens and actually outlawed them at one time. They also seem to have found that microwave cooking decreases bioavailability of vitamin B complex, vitamin C, vitamin E, essential minerals and lipotropic factors in all foods tested. (source)

Yet another source posted this quote from FDA science policy analyst Catherine Bailey says “When you microwave, it’s a good idea not to have the plastic touch the food.” The reasoning behind that is the fact the chemicals from the plastics can leach into our foods!

What I Do Know

1. Most quick foods made in the microwave aren’t good for you anyways. Those pizza rolls and frozen burritos do nothing good for your health!
2. Quick foods are not nourishing foods.
3. There may be possible nutrient loss cooking foods in the microwave.
4. I am not willing to risk the detrimental effects microwaves may have on my health.

I wish I knew all the science behind microwave cooking and I wish more studies were done. But I do know that I will be making every effort to cut the microwave completely out of my life. And I will be trying to figure out how to keep my husband from microwaving his lunches everyday!

What about you? Do you use one? Know of any other “true” research I can look into?

Ideas on how my husband can still have a hot lunch for work without the microwave oven?

Further Reading:

Stephanie’s post (from Keeper of the Home): Living Without a Microwave

Phoebe’s living without a microwave post (from Getting Freedom)

Microwaves Ovens: A Danger to Your Health?

The Dangers of Microwave Ovens Everyone Needs to Know

***and tomorrow I’ll have a guest post here by JodiMichelle on how they live without a microwave

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

Fertility Diet: part one (traditional diets and essential nutrients)

This series has been on my mind now for a very long time, but there is so much information out there that I’ve hesitated to post it since I don’t want to miss anything. But I’ll do my best to include as much as I can, just know that this is not an exhaustive list and I’ll add more as I come across it.

Traditional Diets

I love the work of Weston A Price for the fact that he researched (and photographed) traditional cultures.

tra·di·tion:

1. the handing down of statements, beliefs, legends, customs, information, etc., from generation to generation, esp. by word of mouth or by practice
2. something that is handed down
3. a long-established or inherited way of thinking or acting
4. a continuing pattern of culture beliefs or practices

As a dentist here in the United States, he became concerned with how much tooth decay was becoming present in our society. So he traveled the world looking for and researching why other cultures did not have the same problems. What he found was that not only did these people (who’s diets included no processed or refined foods) have no tooth decay or need for corrective braces, they were full of vitality and health. They did not have problems with fertility and pregnancy, cancer and heart disease were unknown, and as a whole they were happy and mentally healthy.

He found that the reasons behind this were because of what they ate and how they ate it.

He also found that eating for fertility was extremely important to them, no matter the country or tribe they came from. In some cultures it was customary for couples to refrain from getting married until after the women had been able to consume these nutrients for a certain number of months when these foods were in season. Many other cultures found it very important for women to eat certain foods before marriage and traveled far distances to provide it for them. And other cultures even held special ceremonies that included many of these foods.

*It intrigues me to no end that although these people had no real knowledge of why they needed certain nutrients (or even what those nutrients were!) they knew from generation to generation how to build healthy bodies and healthy babies.*

Nutrients For Fertility

Dairy and seafoods seemed to be prominent fertility foods for these indigenous people. And together they offer nutrients that without, a women can not conceive; vitamins A, D, E, and K2, iodine, and omega-3 fats. Unfortunately most of us eating a modern American diet are basically eating ourselves into infertility by not consuming the foods that nourish our bodies with these essential nutrients.

Vitamin A: fat soluble vitamin that promotes better cervical fluid and helps ensure follicles develop correctly

Vitamin D: fat soluble vitamin that supports the production of estrogen in both men and women¹ , is needed for insulin production, and is key in regulating cell growth and deciding how those cells grow.

Vitamin E: plays an important role in sperm production, may help normalize hormone production, and is needed for proper absorption of fat soluble vitamins.

Vitamin K2: (referred to as activator X by Weston Price) is important in helping the body utilized proteins by working in combination with Vitamins A&D.

Iodine: a mineral needed for thyroid function and the production of sex hormones² and the utilization of iodine requires vitamin A.

Omega-3 fats: helps regulate hormones, increases cervical fluid, promotes ovulation, and increases blood flow to the reproductive organs.³

To be continued……..

Join me for the rest of the series!

Part 2 – Super Foods for Fertility – where to find these essential nutrients

Part 3 – Other important nutrients

Part 4 – Foods to Avoid

Part 5 – How to Eat and What a Fertility Diet Looks Like

Some of my sources:

1.The Miracle of D

2. Mineral Primer

3. Omega-3 and fertility

This post is linked to Real Food Wednesday

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

Sugar and Your Fertility

This morning I happened to come across an article about a study that was published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. This article was published back in November of 2007 on Science Daily.

I took some time and read through the study earlier and while difficult to weed through, had some interesting findings. Now, it does seem that only one human subject was studied, but still interesting to say the least.

Basically the researchers found that when there is to much sugar in our diets, our livers convert it into a lipid. And the researchers discovered that this increased amount of lipids in the body shut down a gene called Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG) which reduces the amount of SHGB protien in the body. This protein plays an impotant role in the amounts of testosterone and estrogen available for the body to use.

“If there’s less SHBG protein, then more testosterone and estrogen will be released throughout the body, which is associated with an increased risk of acne, infertility, polycystic ovaries, and uterine cancer in overweight women.” (quote from article)

While I don’t have any information to add to that, I definitely thought it was worthy sharing with you. Especially since I know so many of us are trying to cut back and/or cut out sugar in our diets.

Speaking of…..

How are you all doing on cutting out sugar? My 30 days of no sugar challenge is almost over, and I truly feel so much better. The last 2 weeks my cravings are gone and while I’ve been indulging a bit more than I’d like to with syrup (it’s my sweetener of choice for coffee and I’ve needed coffee again last week when my littles decided to give me only a few hours of sleep at night) I think I’ve done really well! I also slipped up last week when making spaghetti sauce as I added Worcestershire sauce in it without thinking! I also had a small piece of dark chocolate a couple nights ago. Word of advice – don’t say you’ll review some chocolate when you’re not supposed to be eating it!

Oops.

But, I just have a few more days to go. And while this weekend will be a bit tough (I have a wedding, a birthday, and Valentine’s Day) I’m already telling myself that I’m not eating any of that cake!

But, tell me – tell me – how are you doing?

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

My Thoughts on Soy

Don’t forget about the giveaway for a Jellie Babies Mei Tai!! You have till this Friday to enter!

Last night I had a conversation with a friend about soy, and it really got me thinking. And I’ve been asked by many of my readers recently what my thoughts are on it. So I thought I’d try and get something written out and hopefully I don’t just talk (type?) in circles.

For years now soy (edamame, soy milk, tofu, textured vegetable protein) has really been touted as a health food. It’s been recommended as a milk and meat substitute, menopausal and infertile women have been told to drink it to help with hormones, and it’s even in baby formula. It’s cheap to grow and readily available so it’s also in a large majority of processed foods (soy lecithin) and its oil is one of the most used ‘cheap’ oils as well. It’s found in about 60% of the products you see in the supermarket! And I think if we all took a hard look at what we eat each day, we’d realize we eat quite a bit of soy. But should we be?

Three Strikes and You’re Out?

Strike one – Phytoestrogens

Phytoestrogen literally means “plant derived estrogen”. And these estrogens have been shown to reduce the activity of the natural estrogen in your body. Something you really don’t want to happen, and especially if you are dealing with a hormone imbalance already. It’s also been shown to cause the feminization of males as baby boys whose mothers ate a lot of soy products were found to have both smaller penis’s and/or problems with the development of them. So obviously it has some estrogenic effect, and estrogen dominance has also been linked to infertility in both males and females. In women it can inhibit conception by causing endometriosis and PCOS (poly cystic ovary syndrome) as well as decreasing libido. In men it has been linked to lowered sperm counts. Up to a 50% reduction in some cases.

I was able to find a couple studies done on the effects of soy and fertility and neither had great outcomes.

A report in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition a few studies have actually shown that high levels of soy can increase menstrual cycle length, decrease the follicle-stimulating hormone and also decrease the leutinizing hormone. These studies were done with a 60mg of soy per day, the equivalent to three 12 oz glasses of soy milk.

Another study printed in The American Family Physician magazine (June 1996) states that, since the phytoestrogens in soy products increase the length of the follicular phase and lead to fewer menstrual cycles over a woman’s lifetime, it is possible that soy may decrease fertility in some women. They also added that women with multiple risk factors for infertility may be more sensitive to soy than others.

A study, by Jorge Chavarro at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, on the effects of a man’s fertility has also been done and men who ate more than two portions of soy based food per week had a lower sperm count. On average they had about 41 million fewer sperm per 1 ml of semen than men who did not eat any soy based products. While this may not have an infertile impact on most men, men that already suffer from a low sperm count would be advised to stay away from it.

And from the Weston Price site;

• High levels of phytic acid in soy reduce assimilation of calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. (and zinc directly effects fertility in men)
• Soy phytoestrogens disrupt endocrine function and have the potential to cause infertility.
• Vitamin B₁₂ analogs in soy are not absorbed and actually increase the body’s requirement for B₁₂.

Which leads us to….

Strike Two: Phytic Acid

The Weston A Price Foundation alleges that soy is not only high in phytic acid, but that the even when soaked (as other legumes are), that the phytic acid does not break down. This assumption would lead us to believe that consuming soy would then cause some nutrient loss within our bodies as the phytic acid binds to certain nutrients during digestion.

Strike Three: Genetically Modified

Since the introduction of genetically modified soybeans to the U.S. in 1992, up to 90% of the soy grown here, is actually genetically modified. If you don’t know what a genetically modified  organism is yet, here’s the gist: Basically scientists take DNA from different sources and combine them with the DNA of something like soy. (or corn, canola, cotton, etc.) This happens in part because a large seed corporation, Monsanto (who used to solely be a chemical corporation), would like to sell seeds that are “round up” ready. Meaning they inject certain DNA from organisms that will keep the plant alive even when sprayed with herbicides and pesticides.  I believe they have also found a way to combine the DNA from certain bugs (?) that allow the plant to contain pesticides itself. (I believe I watched that piece of info in the movie “The Botany of Desire” where they were talking about GMO potatoes at McDonalds – to which consumers had an issue with and farmers are no longer growing)

The problem with GMOs is that they have been placed in the market without thorough testing. And a lot of the studies that are coming out are not very pretty.

• Ladybugs that ate aphids that consumed GMO potatoes had on average only half the lifspan as normal and laid fewer eggs.
• Causes more allergies and may cause more problems to people who already have allergies. Especially since DNA from an outside source can be combined with what you’re eating. Theoretically, what would happen if DNA from a peanut was used in combination with DNA from soy? What would happen if a person who is deathly allergic to peanuts consumed it? To me, it’s a bit sketchy combining all this DNA. I mean, if God wanted DNA from bugs in the corn/soy/cotton, don’t you think he would have done it Himself?

I also found an Australian study that came to the conclusion that GMO products may contribute to lowered fertility:

The Austrian scientists performed several long-term feeding trials with laboratory mice over a course of 20 weeks.

One of the studies was a so-called reproductive assessment by continuous breeding (RACB) trial, in which the same parent generation gave birth to several litters of baby mice.

The parents were fed either with a diet containing 33per cent of GM maize, a hybrid of Monsanto’s MON 810 and another variety, and a normal feed mix..

The team found changes that were ’statistically significant’ in the third and fourth litters produced by the mice given a GM diet. There were fewer offspring, while the young mice were smaller.

Prof Zentek said there was a direct link between the changes seen and the GM diet.

A press release from the  Austrian Agency for Health and Nutrition, said the group of mice given a diet of genetically engineered corn saw a significant change in fertility.

It said: ‘The number of litters and offspring decreased in the GE-fed group faster than in the control. In the GE-fed group more females remained without litters than in the control group.’ Read more

Also, a quote from the WAP site

“The only human feeding study on GMOs ever conducted showed that genes “jumped” from GM soy into the DNA of human intestinal bacteria and continued to function. That means that long after you stop eating GM soy, you may still have GM proteins produced continuously inside of you. (What if the pesticide-producing “Bt” gene found in GM corn chips were also to jump? It might transform our intestinal flora into living pesticide factories—possibly for the long term.)”

The Verdict
Honestly, the verdict from ‘the man’ is still out on this one (I think mostly because a lot of people would lose a lot of money if it ever came about that soy was bad for you). The safety of soy and soy products has yet to be proven and I have a feeling it’s probably going to be one of those products, that 20 years from now, our kids are going to be wondering why in the world we consumed it.

Which is why I don’t eat it when possible.

Traditionally, soy has been consumed only in fermented forms (like miso and tempeh). Very, very different than how we eat it today. Soy in it’s natural form may be fine for your health (especially when fermented like traditional cultures did) but unfortunately we here in the west have started to put in into many, many, of our foods.  The processing the soy bean undergo is in no way healthy or natural, turning a once healthy food into, basically, junk food.

Where it Gets Sketchy….and Where I Begin To Talk in Circles

I hate to be one of those people that is so anti soy that I say it can never, ever be consumed. Some organizations are so anti soy (*ahem* Weston A Price People, among others) that sometimes it can look like a crazy conspiracy theory. But the “unfortunate for soy lovers aspect” is that there is scientific evidence to support the theory.

But will you die if you ingest a bit of soy?

No.

The problem I see is that we regularly consume it in a very highly processed form in many processed foods. And any diet where we eat a lot of one type of food, isn’t good for us.

But I also tend to look at soy the same way I’d look at say, unsoaked wheat or unsoaked oats. Both contain levels of phytic acid. Both can be hard to digest. And both are regularly consumed.

So what would my recommendations be? Well….

• I’d stay far, far away from soy if you have medical problems because of the nutrient losses that can occur. When your body is fighting a disease or disorder you need all the nutrients you can get!
• I wouldn’t consume soy while preparing for pregnancy or while pregnant and nursing, just as I would not feed soy to developing children because of the hormonal aspect. The last thing we want to do is disrupt or endocrine system.
• With the same idea, I would not consume soy when suffering from things like PCOS or endometriosis or infertility. The hormonal upset just isn’t worth it.
• I would not consume highly processed forms of soy like things that are found in boxed and canned foods or things like textured vegetable protien.
• I would not eat conventional soy since such a large portion of soy is genetically modified.
• But if a healthy adult wanted to partake in some boiled edamame every once in awhile? Or soy nuts in a trail mix once a month? My thinking is….it’s got to be better than a milkyway. Right?

And that all being said, I’m pretty anti-soy myself. {see – in circles folks. in circles}

So, what do you think about soy? Inform me.

For more in depth information on soy you can check out these resources:

• The Hidden Dangers of Soy
• The Whole Soy Story
• Soy Alert! from the Weston A. Price Foundation

This post is linked to: Real Food Wednesday

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

Sorry Doctor Oz,

but I disagree with you.

A reader sent me a note a couple weeks ago about Dr. Oz’s new book “You, Having a Baby” and mentioned that there was a lot of unfortunate nutritional advice that she knew I’d be totally against. But before I just ran with it, I figured I needed to go check out the book for myself.

So yesterday I headed to the bookstore to see if I could find it. And well…..there is some good information in there along with some not so great advice, and even some advice that contradicts itself. I took 20 minutes or so and skimmed through the book and I’ll outline some of what stuck out to me.

Page 83

+ mentions kefir!

- also mentions eating edamame (soy beans)

- and says to eat low fat cheese

Page 84

+ advises to stay away from artificial sweeteners (quote “Aspertame hangs out in your body for 36 hours. Bleech”)

- But then they advise to use agave syrup instead.

Page 85

+ advises to use more organic produce and even lists the 12 most and least contaminated.

Page 152

+ mentions doulas, what they are and how to find one!

Then on page 286 they break down what foods are “Good Fuels” and “Bad Fuels” And while they do have some very good points on both lists, I’ll list just the ones I have an issue with.

Good Fuels I have issue with:

- lean meat; less than 4 grams saturated fat per serving (where oh where will the baby’s get the fat they need for good brain development)

- low fat yogurt (again – baby’s need fat!)

- soy products (tofu, edamame, tempeh)

- organic skim milk (seriously why would we put babies on low fat diets?! Plus organic milk is normally ultra pasteurized – ick)

The it goes on to totally contradict the advice to eat soy by saying, quote ” You may choose to limit soy milk to 1 – 2 glasses daily because of phytoestrogens; there’s concern that they cause feminization of the brain and other organs, including sex organs.”

The one “Bad Fuel” I have issue with:

- saturated fats; from 4 legged animals and palm and coconut oils (We all need fat! Especially growing babies!)

+ The rest included HFCS, soda, simple sugars, bleached flours, and other items that I do agree with.

They also included a section on infertility and while I know this is a “pregnancy” book, this section was seriously lacking.

Page 382

-List the causes of infertility: Stress, PCOS, and Tubal factors (uh – last I checked there were more than 3 causes!!)

Page 383

- The fixes for PCOS were listed : Metformin and Clomid. Nothing else.

Page 388

- Discusses male infertility and suggests that men eat soy (Umm…..did they not JUST say that soy may cause the feminization of males!!!)

Now, I knew with it being written by conventional doctors, that there would be quite a bit of nutritional information in there I didn’t care for. I’ve read it many times over in the books I bought prior to my first pregnancy. It just saddens me that we’ve come so far away from real, God given foods that we are no longer nourishing our little babies. New studies of low cholesterol diets, like those outlined in the book, have been shown to increase the rates of babies born with autism and behavioral difficulties. (mentioned at the Wise Traditions conference in the Low Cholesterol; A Major New Factor in Autism session.)

This is the most important time in a baby’s life when it comes to development, why would we want to limit nourishment?

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

10 Ways to Increase Fertility and Save Money

1. Stop smoking – you’ll clear your body of toxins and save a lot of money each week.
2. Don’t eat anything with high fructose corn syrup in it – a lot of these items constitute as a snack and empty calories. You don’t need to drink that soda, eat that candy bar, or mindlessly eat a box of crackers.
3. Don’t buy foods with preservatives, colorings, or flavorings in them – again, this cuts out most conventional snack items you don’t need!
4. Replace your morning cereal with eggs, sourdough pancakes, soaked oatmeal, yogurt and fruit – not only does this usually save money, you’ll be better fueled for your day by providing your body the correct nourishment.
5. Switch to full fat dairy – whether or not your on board with raw milk, switch to full fat versions of milk, yogurt, etc.
6. Make bone broth often – it’s extra nourishing and made with ingredients normally thrown away!
7. Include organ meats in your meals – these tend to be quite cheap as the demand for them is rather low!
8. Stop drinking coffee – whether or not you make it at home or buy it from a fast food joint/coffeehouse, cutting out a daily (or weekly) coffee you can save a pretty penny.
9. Don’t drink alcohol – this is an extra expense and you don’t need a drink.
10. Get off your butt – you don’t need an expensive gym membership to exercise, just move more!

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

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