WHOLE FOOD ALCHEMYST HEALTH SOURCE

via Nutrition Facts: The Rise in Blood Lead Levels at Pregnancy & Menopause

https://munchies.vice.com/en_uk/article/9a8gve/this-is-why-millennials-are-all-turning-vegan?utm_campaign=global&utm_source=vicefbanz  Foto von Zane Mulligan via Flickr

We can't think of a kitchen gadget we need more! I use the KEFIRKO jar to make homemade kefir water and we love it!  We are grateful they are creating a cheese maker! https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/kefirko-cheese-maker-food#/ Image via Kefirko website. 

The "Poison Papers" offer evidence of the checkered history of the chemical industry's use of chemicals that poison the people and the planet with minimal or limited interference by authorities. Worth your time to investigate the commonly known companies that put profits over people.  Mind-boggling information to motivate the masses to stand up to industrial chemical corporations. https://www.poisonpapers.org/the-poison-papers/

Reading this article really helps one acquire some self-discipline and knowledge about doing vegan the right way!  Check out Steve the unhealthy vegan. http://www.healthpromoting.com/learning-center/testimonials/steve-unhealthy-vegan Image via the Health Promoting website.

I posted about this previously, but now I have some information to share. I tasted this product at the Natural Products Expo West last week and it is very good for a packaged, frozen product.  Although I do not normally eat rice-based or packaged pizza products it will work great for those who don't have a sensitivity to rice-based products. They make some pizzas with toppings, but I suggest buying the plain crusts and adding your own favorites. Finally, the ingredients: Cauliflower, brown rice flour, corn starch, water, tapioca, sunflower oil, extra virgin olive oil, sugar, egg, xanthan gum, yeast, salt, vinegar, baking powder. CONTAINS: Eggs If you have the time, make your own cauliflower crust, it is super easy (recipes are all over the internet). If you do not have the time and want to eat a better version of ready-made pizzas, this is your product. You can buy it online or search their where to purchase link on their website, but I imagine it will be showing up at your nat

Gluten-Free Expos are a wonderful opportunity to learn about the newest gluten-free and allergy-free foods and information.  If you have the time, and are in one the areas, take the time to enhance your knowledge of gluten-free products.  Check out their website to find an expo near you. http://gfafexpo.com/ Image via gfafexpo.com - all rights reserved. f

It is about time! Get those toxic foods out of people's diets and provide foods that enhance healing. Image via livescience    Doctors Want Sugar and 'Cancer-Causing' Foods Out of Hospitals

I enjoyed this video, especially since I am an olive oil loving vegan-vegetarian that occasionally consumes an oily piece of fish (maybe a couple of times a year).  Both cardiologists make valid points that oddly make food choices around heart health less confusing to some degree. Mediterranean diet or Dr. Dean Ornish diet?  One thing we know for sure, eat your fruits and veggies, especially your greens, seems to be the common mantra.  Thank you Mind Body Green, Dr. Aseem Malhotra, and Dr. Joel Kahn for the mini lesson on heart health. View the video debate at the link below, and yes, it is worth the twenty-fourish minutes of your time. Image via Mind Body Green. All rights reserved.  https://www.mindbodygreen.com/revitalize/video/two-cardiologists-debate-fat-sugar-and-coconut-oil

I am so delighted that PBS is bringing "How Not To Die" to the masses. Dr. Michael Greger is the ideal person to educate people about the importance of a plant-based diet.  Thank you PBS and Dr. Greger!  Check your local channels and/or wait for PBS to post it on their site.  As soon as it is available, I will post it here. https://www.plantbasednews.org/post/top-plant-based-physician-dr-michael-greger-to-premiere-pbs-tv-special-next-week Image via Plant Based News. All rights reserved. 

Image via www.almondcow.co. All rights reserved. New on the natural foods scene is the Almond Cow Milk Machine, which just might make your life easier when it comes to creating your own fresh, homemade nut milks.  Clean up looks easy!  Check it out!  If you love it, you can support this new start up on Kickstarter! Website:   https://almondcow.co/  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/almondcow/almond-cow-30-seconds-to-almond-milk

Dr. Greger, of Nutritionfacts.org, may lean towards veganism, but whether or not you believe it, veganism saves lives.  Eat well, live well.  Image Credit: Sally Plank via Nutrition Facts All Rights Reserved.

When a vegetarian craves a deli sandwich their minds go to heart health, a splash of flavor, and plenty of greens without apology.  What is it about sandwiches that we just can't give up?  The simplicity? The mixture of flavors?  The bread? The undying memories of your childhood deli?  Perhaps all.  Here is a simple heart healthy, vegetarian friendly recipe for my favorite sandwich.  Some of the choices are not specifically whole foods...they are a healthier version of a traditional deli sandwich, which is all about heart health. First, the bread: as one who rarely consumes bread, discovering a decent vegan bread is a necessity.  Whenever the craving strikes, Franz Organic Rogue River Twenty-Four Grains & Seeds is the go to bread.  If gluten-free is required, go to your favorite GF bread.   Second, the flavor:  homemade raw vegan pesto is an ABSOLUTE requirement!  The garlic, basil, pine nuts, and olive oil provide an intense, complementary flavor, along with that fatty

Dr. Bronner's is looking to aide in the conservation of porpoises, in the Baltic Sea, by donating $50,000 to purchase a boat to transport volunteers to protect porpoises effected by illegal fishing nets. What a great way to protect an endangered species! What a terrific company to support! Watch the video! Protect Our Oceans: Dr. Bronner's & Sea Shepherd

What a fantastic idea! Great fun for children and adults alike, plus with Fourth of July just around the corner, these firecrackers will jazz up any summer holiday event.  Find instructions at: http://www.forkandbeans.com/2017/05/26/firecracker-fruit-kabobs/ All copyright images reserved by www.forkandbeans.com

Interesting survey looking at the different attitudes about nutrition of baby boomers and millennials seems obvious, yet what both groups should just KEEP MOVING! Whether you read new health information or not, the most important health choice, outside of nutrition, is to keep your heart muscle in good shape.  Even if one eats the most nutritious diet, yet practices slothery (my new made up word) your health is deteriorating, to some degree, due to the lack of movement.  Remember 10,000 steps a day for heart health.  As for the food choices, moderation in all things.

A new study out of Australia adds more information to the research of Vitamin D levels during pregnancy as a possible cause of autistic traits. http://www.newhope.com/health-and-nutrition-research/more-research-links-d-and-autism-traits?NL=NP-03&Issue=NP-03_20170504_NP-03_137&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_6&utm_rid=CNHNM000001087818&utm_campaign=21146&utm_medium=email

Frontline's The Fish on My Plate is an informative, beautifully filmed documentary and is well worth your time! Learn about the fishing industry, from sustainable practices to the environmental issues, as well as the worldwide demand for fish. The documentary may be viewed, 24/7 at the following link:   http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/the-fish-on-my-plate/ Image Courtesy of FRONTLINE. All rights reserved. 

Always on the look out for products that make life a little easier, and more enjoyable, I was delighted to discover Mikey's Original English Muffins.  Although they do not have the same texture or taste as a traditional English muffin, they are a terrific find for those who strive to maintain a gluten-free diet. The texture is more that of muffin meets bread in the shape of a biscuit, which completely satisfies any craving one might have for a tasty, toasted breakfast bread.  Of course, I would prefer they were organic, but with only six ingredients (including non-GMO eggs), I enjoy slathering on my favorite nut butter or some Probiotic Melt Organic Buttery Spread - it is vegan, soy-free, non-GMO, and probiotics for better digestion. I can devour one every now and then without concern. Both Mikey's and Melt have offer other products you might enjoy.   https://mikeysmuffins.com/ http://www.meltorganic.com/our-products/introducing-new-melt-organic-probiotic-spread/

On my last trip to Newport Beach, my husband and I could not believe all the plastic, single-serve cups strewn along the shore.  I never liked the idea of single-serve cups to begin with due the waste factor, so one can imagine my utter joy to find Oakland Coffee's 100% compostable cups at the 2017 Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim.  The lovely women at the booth gave me a couple of samples, which I tried it at the hotel the following morning...good, strong single-serving of organic coffee.  After I finished my coffee, I placed the used coffee grounds compostable cups in a bag, and fed them to my garden when I returned home, literally, the best of both worlds.  Now, I just might buyh one of those single-serve coffee machines! https://oaklandcoffee.com/oakland-coffee-works/

Something for all who drink almond milk have been waiting for...an organic, additive-free, almond milk at the store.  We carry our blenders on vacation, but rarely do we use it for making almond milk.    MALK Organics makes a vegan's life a lot easier by offering a product that taste like your own homemade almond milk.  What more can we ask for?  Oh, I know, unique flavors and other types of nut milks...and they have them.  They are available at several health food stores now, and I am asking my natural grocer to bring them in as well.  Great on the road and when we are under time constraints, which for most is every day.  I love when life gets a little easier.  http://malkorganics.com/ All image rights reserved by Malk Organics. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  Anyone who grew up Irish or celebrated all the terrific St. Paddy's Day meals usually has a craving for them at this time of the year.  It really only takes getting a little creativity  with the ingredients to make the recipes vegan or vegetarian.  For example, instead of butter, use a your favorite vegan butter, instead of a meat use a vegan meat, tofu, or my favorite black-eyed peas.    Shepherd's Pie recipe - I used fresh veggies, cashew milk, and vegan broth, so change it up with your own touches and preferences. Recipe via glueandglitter. Photo via glueandglitter.   https://www.glueandglitter.com/2009/10/13/shepherds-pie-redux/ And my favorite green food for St. Patrick's Day - Spinach Pancakes (I use coconut flour instead of rice flour with a few other of my preferences).   https://www.spabettie.com/2011/10/24/spinach-pancakes-2/   All rights reserved spabettie.

At the Natural Food Products Expo last week, I sampled Daiya Foods new and improved mozarella and cheddar style cheese shreds...and they indeed are improved.  They have a better cheese-style texture and mouth-feel with the flavors seemingly more intensified.  In the past, I always combined a smidge of real cheese to enhance the flavor, texture, and mouth feel, which is no longer necessary with the new improved versions of the Daiya Shreds.  This is a great addition for plant-based, vegan, and vegetarian eaters to satisfy their cheesy cravings.  Perfect for pizza, vegan lasagnas, and much, much more! Link to the Daiya Foods site: http://daiyafoods.com/our-foods/shreds/mozzarella   Image via Daiya Foods site.  All rights reserved by Daiya Foods.

 There isn't any reason why we shouldn't be treating animals humanely.  Mimi Kirk on treating animals with respect...watch and get involved in animal rights and protections. Go vegan for your health! Become an egg or cheese eating vegetarian! If you must remain a carnivore, buy your products from a rancher using sustainable practices: organic, grass fed, no hormones or antibiotics, and humane treatment of the animals. How about trying some meatless meats? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_m97Hmh0UT4                                              ©wholefoodalchemyst2015

Happy Valentine's Day Everyone!   I wanted to share an interview with Rob Dunn, author of the book  Tales of Broken Hearts. that examines some intriguing medical mysteries and discoveries about the human heart, and stories behind them.  An informative and interesting interview and book for anyone interested in the history of medical findings about the heart .  Podcast interview via Science Fridays: http://sciencefriday.com/segment/02/13/2015/tales-of-broken-hearts.html Book excerpt via Science Fridays:  http://www.sciencefriday.com/blogs/02/12/2015/how-a-bar-fight-paved-the-way-for-heart-surgery.html

It seems that every few weeks there is a "new" diet plan marketed online and in the media - take this, eat this, do this, etc., which makes the discovery of science-based nutrition hard to discern.  Dr. Gabriel Cousens is offering a free excerpt from one of his books to get your nutritional-motor running in an interesting direction.  An intriguing place to start... https://www.facebook.com/gabrielcousensmd