My first CSA experience

For those of you that don't know,as I didn't just last week, CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. It's where those that do not have a garden can buy organic fruit and vegetables, picked the same day, from a local farm on a weekly basis. In turn our local farmers get supported and a network of community members become more self sufficient. The vendor we are trying out, FA Farms, offers two ways to shop his garden. You can pay for the 20 week season and each week get a box of assorted foods that are available that week or you can buy farm bucks that you can spend on specific foods. Of course everything is dependent on mother nature and the various things that can go right or wrong when farming.

Even though FA Farms is about half way through their season and even though Garin has started a small garden of our own, we decided to sign up and see how it goes.....

• see if it ends up spoiling in the back of the fridge, or if we actually eat what we get

• see if we are stuck with things we don't know what to do with, or if we rise to the challenge of getting familiar with new foods

• see if we feel we are getting our moneys worth

Well, we went to the new Ferndale Farmers Market to meet Walter and Toni, our local farmers, and were able to pick up our first box of veggies. What you see in the picture is what was included minus some snap peas that were eaten on the way home and a bag of salad greens not shown in the picture. I feel we got way more organic produce than what the same $20 would have bought us at the grocery store. So far it's being consumed at a good pace although I did blanch and freeze the different varieties of string beans for later use. I'm also happy to say that putting out a little dip will get the kids to go crazy with whatever veggie they can use to consume it.

The way I see it this is a win win situation. I love knowing the food is pesticide free, fresh and that I'm able to meet the person who grew it. My next adventure is, once school starts up again, to ask how I can work to pay for some of my food in an effort to offset the cost of trying to eat healthier. I'll keep you posted.....

Something missing?

We've certainly heard more than a few times that processed foods probably won't contain all the nutritional value that they had originally, but what about the healthy organic foods? Do they contain what you expect? I ran across a New York Times article that casts a little doubt.

Kids who go organic for breakfast may be missing out on their vitamins.

Since the 1940’s, commercial cereal companies have been adding vitamins to their flakes, puffs and O’s in order to replace nutrients stripped away during the manufacturing process. But the main appeal of organic cereals is that they’re made with only natural, organically grown ingredients free of additives, including artificial preservatives and colors — and often, vitamins.

If we have been practicing what Jayne Benkendorf preached, then we would already know this from reading labels. I just love running into stories that reinforce what we are doing. Some day the rest of the world might catch up to Prism.

The Crazy Makers

Carol Simontacchi is the guest speaker for weeks 2 and 12. She is also my favorite speaker within the PRISM program. The Crazy Makers, How the food industry is destroying our brains and harming our children, is just one of several books she has written. It came in the mail this past week and I wanted to share a page out of it. It says when we reach our 20's our bodies may be done growing but they are never dormant. We are a dynamic organism, constantly changing, constantly repairing, and never the same one minute to the next. To better explain let me quote from the book.

If you could see your body as it really is, you would never see it the same way twice. Ninety-eight percent of the atoms in your body were not there a year ago. The skeleton that seems so solid was not there three months ago. The configuration of the bone cells remains somewhat constant, but atoms of all kinds pass freely back and forth through the cell walls, and by that means you acquire a new skeleton every three months.

The skin is new every month. You have a new stomach lining every four days, with the actual surface cells that contact food being renewed every five minutes. The cells in the liver turn over very slowly, but new atoms still flow through them, like water in a river course, making a new liver every six weeks. Even within the brain, whose cells are not replaced once they die, the content of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and so on is totally different today from a year ago.

Just a small excerpt from the book but for me it reinforces the importance of what we put into our bodies. We need the vitamins, minerals, enzymes, healthy oils, etc. They all work together and I'm embarrassed at what I considered food before learning from the PRISM program. I praise God for our complex bodies, capable of so much when given a chance!

Best fruits

And their father Israel said unto them, If it must be so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:
(Genesis 43:11 KJV)

Almonds were an essential part of my Phase I & II. Even though they are relatively high in calories, they seemed to work great as a ready snack. I guess it shouldn't have surprised me to find that they were also praised in the Bible. I also found them praised in a NewsWeek article Up Close & edible: Almonds.

Almonds are chock-full of essential nutrients. “It’s a perfect nature’s package,” says registered dietician Dr. Connie Gutterson, author of “The Sonoma Diet.”

Almonds are also a great source of natural protein. A handful of almonds—about 23 nuts or 1 ounce—contains about as much protein as an egg, or an ounce of fish or chicken.

Link to Anti-Estrogen diet article

Glenn shared an article with Monday's group about how estrogen in our diets effects our health. Here is a link to the article The Anti-Estrogen Diet Could Change Your Life that was on Newsmax only a few days ago. This may not be common knowledge, but it isn't uncommon knowledge either. I've read and heard about estrogen sources and estrogen effects before, so for me this article was just another stick to hit me over the head with. A few more sticks up side the head and I might quit drinking soy milk in favor of the real stuff!

Also, a new Phase I group will be starting this Thursday and I think Monica said that there were 8 or 10 people. I guess there isn't a shortage of people who could eat better.

Just rambling on

I've been spending a bit of time reading around on the subject of refined sugar, refined flour and carbs in general. The skeptic in me, sometime referred to as the great deceiver, has me always thinking about whether or not PRISM is a fad diet that will come crashing to an end sometime in the near future.

I keep finding though, that the path we are on seems to be right in sync with what most nutritionists and doctors are saying. But, papers I have read online as well as my doctor himself also seem to think that the biggest pitfall with programs like PRISM is that people don't have the strength to stick with it long enough to retrain their bodies about how and what to eat. I guess this is where I think our group lends itself to success. We are not relying just on ourselves for strength. I would have quit by now if that were the case! No, we rely on the strength of ourselves and our group, but primarily we rely on God's immeasurable strength. Lucky for us He joined the group.

OK, well, that was a bunch of words I didn't plan on typing. I really just wanted to share this doctor's blog. He seems to encompass most of the things we are learning about in PRISM.

We should be eating what the Lord has provided. - We should strive to eat, as often as possible, the food that comes out of the ground, as fruit of the earth. The less that man has altered it, the better it will be for us. I cheer inside when I observe that refreshments served at Church functions include a wholesome vegetable tray or fruit plate, rather than the typical brownies and cookies.

Our journey toward more vibrant health has brought us to a point where we are starting to listen more carefully to our bodies. The results have—usually—been positive, except when we hear but fail to heed what our bodies are telling us. King Benjamin taught: “Now, if you believe all these things, see that ye do them.”

As you're racing to find out more about King Benjamin, make sure you grab your Book of Mormon and not your Bible. Brother Dr. Stanley Gardner or Dr. Brother Stanley Gardner appears to be Mormon with a leaning towards Eastern medicine/religion, but overall I find that he maintains a God centered perspective on health. I wonder if recalling that little piece of LDS trivia is why God delivered baby Garin to a Mormon home? Remember this post is titled "Just rambling on"

There are lots good of articles to be found at his blog, but here are links to a few I really liked. He even references our old friend Dr. Udi-do in one of his articles. :)

EATING: Gourmet, or Gluttony?

Alternatives to Traditional Medicine

CARBOHYDRATES: HEROES OR VILLAINS?

DIABETES: Critical Information You Should Know

No sugar is best in breakfast cereals

I needed clarification on cereal options this past week so I spoke with a PRISM consultant today and this is what I learned. Cheerios, which has sugar listed as a 3rd ingredient is ok to have on the PRISM diet. It's the 3rd ingredient but it is only a total of 1 gram of sugar per serving. PRISM considers 1-2 grams of sugar per serving in cereal not great, but ok. An example of a cereal not allowed is Kashi's Heart to Heart cereal. With this one, sugar cane is listed as the 3rd ingredient which is one of the allowed sweeteners, but it has 5 grams of it per serving. Too much. So, now on to a cereal I have found which has no sugar. General Mills, Fiber One. It's a sugar free option that's not as bad as it looks in the picture on the box. There are other sugar free options out there so look at the labels and do the best you can. Remember to only do one serving, measure that serving, and count the calories in your journal. -Monica