in your library, may I suggest you order it immediately? This book, Nourishing Traditions, has changed my life, it really has. How I look at food and what constitutes real food, and how to get as many nutrients our of our food has been revolutionized in my mind and heart. I thought the Hoxsey diet was great, but this takes Hoxsey's whole foods diet to a whole new level. This is done by taking a few steps back in time; to revisit--to relearn, the way our ancestors prepared and ate their food. This book just scratches the surface of what it means to be nourished, and how to really feed our bodies what they require to thrive. Have I sold you on it yet? Surely I have piqued your interest? I hope so!
Written by Heather Zubiate Dear reader, if you don't have this book by Sally Fallon in your library, may I suggest you order it immediately? This book, Nourishing Traditions, has changed my life, it really has. How I look at food and what constitutes real food, and how to get as many nutrients our of our food has been revolutionized in my mind and heart. I thought the Hoxsey diet was great, but this takes Hoxsey's whole foods diet to a whole new level. This is done by taking a few steps back in time; to revisit--to relearn, the way our ancestors prepared and ate their food. This book just scratches the surface of what it means to be nourished, and how to really feed our bodies what they require to thrive. Have I sold you on it yet? Surely I have piqued your interest? I hope so! It should go without saying that there is great importance in good nutrition, even our white coated denizens of pharmaceutical prescriptions can agree on that. Without question, our bodies require certain nutrients to help us grow from infancy into adolescence, puberty, and finally into adulthood. But how do we know what is really good to eat? Fortunately for us in this modern day and age, we are furnished with the food pyramid by our government, that has been scientifically proven (their opinion) to provide us with good nutrition, and by default, good health. I say this with tongue in cheek of course, because time has proven that this is not what happens. The American diet isn't called S.A.D. for nothing. As rich in food as this country is, we have an awful lot of health problems. This fact has not escaped the F.D.A's notice, so they have had to change their pyramid's ratios over the years as new nutritional evidence trickles in; more likely due to corporate lobbyist influence rather than any unbiased scientific information regarding our health. And then there is the frightening world of scientific grants given to anyone who can write a good paper, requesting one. Scientists with confirmation bias, that are then given huge grants are the people behind the construction of the food pyramid. Not a good formula to use if you want the unvarnished truth. So who are we to believe regarding nutrition? Our government that is influenced by egotistical scientists and corporate greed, or the wisdom of the people who came before us? My vote is our ancestors. I understand that no one person or organization has all of the answers to our health questions, and so we must glean information from the best fields. And what better field is there than the past? History is a good teacher, if we care to listen. In our modern day and age, truly, for every 5 doctors or scientists that claim something is good for you, there will be 5 who claim the opposite, and all 10 have scientific studies to back their claims. It can be rather confusing to say the least. Facts are paramount to making a good decision, but what happens when facts are incomplete or skewed in favor of profit? And then there is the controversial topic of anecdotal evidence, which is frowned upon by the medical industry. I find it rather ironic that it's okay for them to use it when gathering information for their studies. When someone asks, "How do you feel?" -- you have just entered the statistical world of anecdotal evidence. But when a natural remedy is used and a cure happens, then all of the sudden, anecdotal evidence is considered to be pure hooey, or the result of placebo. Any physical evidence, such as before and after tests are dismissed or claimed to be the result of misdiagnosis, or spontaneous healing. What about studies on natural remedies? Oh, I'm so sorry, but there isn't any corporate money to be had in studying them. This is where history comes into play. How did our ancestors live long enough to pass on their genes for generations? They must have done some things right -- right? Let us ask ourselves some questions, did they suffer from gluten, soy, and dairy sensitivities? If not, then why not? We have their genes inside us, why do we suffer these things? What has changed? I think this book answers these and many other such questions. For those doctors that thumb their noses at Dr. Price's work, if they are honest then they will have to put themselves under the same scrutiny, and I have a feeling that they won't come out smelling like a rose. I must have to say in all honesty that any "hole in one" approach to good health, including food, is automatically suspect, in my opinion. However, my focus here is on the facet of diet, or more specifically, good nutrition. Even so, as good as certain foods like kale, acai berries, fish, olive and coconut oils are, I realize that they aren't the single answer to all of our health problems. And philosophies for good health such as relying on a fist full of chemically derived supplements washed down with a diet soda pop or pot of decaffeinated coffee are flawed to say the least. Or the idea that burning the candle at both ends is offset with a good diet and exercise, isn't a good idea either. Eventually you're going to crash regardless of the amount of kale you eat and how many sit-ups you do. It takes a concert of good habits to be in play to achieve good health such as: cleanliness, diet, emotional well being, exercise, hydration, sleep, and spiritual well being. If any one of these sections are out of tune, then our health will be out of tune. But it is amazing to me just how much our diet effects not only our physiology, but our emotional and mental health as well, which to me, makes proper diet a much bigger slice of the proverbial whole health pie. It is up to every individual seeking knowledge to use a dash of wisdom and a pinch of common sense to sift through all of the conflicting information out there to determine if a health claim is substantiated, conjecture, or fabrication. It is my opinion that this book helps clarify what good nutrition is, and how to get it. If you are on the Hoxsey protocol, the only thing to watch our for in the recipes found in Nourishing Traditions is of course, the four foods that neutralize the tonic, which are: alcohol, pork, tomatoes, and vinegar i.e. acetic acid. Other recipes and ingredients may not suit those with allergies, sensitivities, or hormone issues related to dairy and other foods like soy. The main thing I have taken away from this book is how to prepare foods to make them more nutritious. Foods like grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds definitely need to be either soaked, sprouted, or soured to make the nutrients they contain more bio-available to our bodies. Any recipes that have the "forbidden four" can be used by applying permitted substitutions. For example, if a salad dressing calls for any type of vinegar, then simply substitute it with any fresh citrus juice. The health information peppered through out the book is also very interesting. I also highly recommend stopping by the official Weston A. Price Foundation website, www.westonaprice.org for even more up to date nutritional information, resources, recipes, and other related health topics. While I don't agree with every health claim in the book, e.g. the supreme role of enzymes play in our health, I do agree that our diet has gone too far toward being convenience oriented. Most "fast food" isn't good for us, be they whole foods, or the pseudo-foods dished out in seconds by the denizens of fry cookery. This book sheds some much needed light on at least one facet of good health by how to properly prepare foods based on the tried and true wisdom of our ancestors. For example, the proper way to prepare grains for consumption. Could improper preparation be the reason so many people are suffering from digestive issues? I think that is a big piece to the indigestion puzzle. I have experienced it myself. I would burp quite a bit after eating conventionally prepared bread. But bread made from my sourdough starter doesn't give me a bad case of the burps or a tummy ache. Raw milk and cheeses don't bother me. Brown rice that is pre-soaked and then cooked in saturated fat is more satisfying and delicious than following the package instructions. And so, it is my hope that you will check this book out and put some, if not all of of the tried and true methods our ancestors used to obtain good nutrition and health from whole foods, into practice.
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Hello!Welcome to my blog, dear reader. My name is Heather, and I am a full time housewife and mom living in Whittier Ca. with my wonderful husband of 26 years, and our two sons. I welcome you and hope you enjoy reading what is on my mind. Subscribe to
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