What was on your raw 'thanks-giving' feast menu this year?

My daughter and I were grateful to share our feast, friendship and gratitude with good friends and a menu of:
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If your looking for answers about the raw food diet and lifestyle, I'm excited to share a new resource that's now available.

Mark Perlmutter, the producer of "Raw For 30 Days" has put together an A-Z encyclopedia of Raw Food including living and raw food experts, celebrities, chefs, doctors that are changing the way people approach health and wellness today.

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Essential fatty acids are an important part of a well balanced diet, especially if you're trying to lose weight. What is surprising is that many people don't know fat is essential to maintaining normal weight as well as many other health benefits. Our country has fallen in love with "low fat"... and in part, it's making many people fat. If your body senses a lack of fat intake, it starts storing it... and surprise, surprise, you stay fat!

Fish is routinely recommended by many as a great source of EFA's although there's one small problem.

"...nearly all fish and shellfish contain traces of mercury."
FDA / EPA What You Need to Know About Mercury in Fish and Shellfish

"Children under age 5, nursing mothers and women who are pregnant or trying to conceive should avoid fish with the highest mercury levels -- tile fish, swordfish, king mackerel and shark. They should also limit their fish intake to no more than 12 ounces a week of fish and shellfish that contain low levels of mercury, foods such as shrimp, salmon, pollock, canned light tuna and catfish.

Albacore tuna is higher in mercury than canned light tuna, so consumption of albacore tuna should be limited to nor more than six ounces a week, the experts write.

Eating a variety of fish may reduce the potential negative effects of environmental pollutants. Try to avoid farm-raised fish, which tend to have more fat and calories and slightly less protein than wild fish. Farm-fed fish may also contain higher levels of contaminants due to toxins in their feed, according to the experts."
HealthDay

Why is mercury bad? Well, for many reasons, and the report above, directly from the FDA plays down the effects on everyone except for young children, and pregnant and nursing women. Unfortunately it's a little more serious than that:

"Canadian scientists studying the toxic effects of mercury have made a major breakthrough, showing for the first time how the metal that gave rise to the expression 'mad as a hatter' actually debilitates and destroys parts of nerve cells.

The finding, announced yesterday, is likely to raise further controversy over exposure to mercury in dental fillings and food, and provide new clues to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

Three scientists at the University of Calgary exposed the brain cells of snails to small amounts of mercury and found the damage caused by the silvery-grey metal was similar to that seen in brains of humans suffering from Alzheimer's.

The protein in snail brain cells is identical to that in the nerves of human and other higher animals.

One of the co-authors of the paper, Dr. Fritz Lorscheider of the university's faculty of medicine, said the research highlights the need to reduce public exposure to mercury. The experiments used mercury levels that are typically found in people who have a large number of amalgam fillings.

"What it really means is that we . . . need to be far more concerned about sources of mercury exposure,' Dr. Lorscheider said.

A paper outlining the findings is being published as the cover story in the April issue of the British journal NeuroReport.

Almost everyone in North America is exposed to trace amounts of mercury. Fillings emit mercury vapour when people chew. Mercury concentrations have been rising in many seafoods, as fish absorb metal dispersed by coal-burning power plants and mining.

Until now, scientists have known that mercury is a potent nerve poison, causing tremors, loss of memory, insomnia, depression and personality changes, but they did not understand how."
Scientists unlock mystery of mercury's harmful effects

I don't know about you, but would you knowingly eat a poison that could cause tremors, loss of memory, depression and countless other effects. Would you feed it to your children? Especially if you had options? Since you can get EFA's from many other sources, why risk your health and the health of your children? Is it worth it?

To me, another reason for the vegan diet... for your health and your life.

Peace.

For some time I've been researching the role the sun plays in our life and how it relates to our diet and health. It's been fascinating to say the least what's been revealed to me.

Here's the story...

Nothing in our world could live without the sun. Can you imagine living in total and constant darkness? There would be no food, fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds... any living food requires the sun to grow and mature. There would be no animals since animals need to eat the foods that grow from the sun's energy.

And humans would most likely become extinct since we need the suns energy to live. Those that live on a raw and living foods diet get the most vitality from the sun since they're getting it from every fruit, vegetable, nut and seed they eat. Do you notice that most of those around you that eat processed and 'junk' foods (the SAD diet) look less lively, are paler, normally heavier and don't have the best attitude?

Animals require it also and get the sun's energy in the plants, fruits, nuts and seeds they eat as well.

Do you see the importance, no, the vitality of the sun in our world?

I've also researched and interviewed those that 'sun gaze'. They gaze directly at the sun (during the early sunrise or late sunset when UV rays are lower) and enrich their bodies with the sun's energy. They've experienced tremendous benefits, including lowering your irritability, anger, frustration at first, then later a more peaceful approach towards living, less of a need for food (you're getting the sun's energy directly, rather than from the produce you eat), increased self-confidence, reduction or elimination of diseases and ailments (including depression) and much more. I have friends that sun gaze and have seen these benefits evolve over time as they increased their sun gazing. (For your reference, I strongly encourage you to visit these sites - and others - if you are interested in learning more about sun gazing and the power of the sun: www.SolarHealing.com and www.SunGazing.com)

Unfortunately most in our world today believe the sun is 'evil' and we need 'protection' from it, in the form of sunscreens and lotions. Interestingly, it's the sunscreen and other protection systems that are actually causing many diseases and ailments since the sun provides so many benefits, staying away from it and lathering up with chemicals only enhances the level of toxins in our bodies that lead to disease.

Our bodies need the energy of the sun, the Vitamin D that only the sun can provide which has now been a proven disease fighter and can prevent 77% of all cancers, as recent scientific studies have shown in women.

Why would the establishment want to keep us away from the solution to 77% of all cancer?

One word: MONEY

You see, there is significantly less amount of money to be made from prevention. By encouraging the use of sunscreens and other 'protection' the medical and related industries (health care, cosmetics, lotions, pharmaceuticals, etc) are guaranteed long term profits by treating those with one form of cancer or another. We see health care and treatment costs skyrocketing every day with the increase in diseases and ailments we are experiencing as a nation. Who benefits from this?

It's incredible to believe that this is happening to you and I, but nonetheless it's true.

I encourage you to take responsibility for your own health, to do your own research and do what you think is right for you and your family.

The sun has incredible energy, healing energy that we can't live without.

To your best health!

Mark

Just ran across this introductory video of some tasty and healthy holiday recipes. The recipes are made from fresh, raw ingredients and made to satisfy anyone, raw or not. Dorit, the guest chef, shows you how to make a complete holiday meal, from soup to dessert. She also gives you tips on why presentation is important, especially when serving family and friends. This video is one of many raw and vegan health related educational materials from Storm and Jinjee Talifero of The Garden Diet. View the introduction video at RawFoodHowTo.com and to download the complete video, visit Natural Paradigms.

Giving you thanks and joy-filled holidays!

Mark

I've always recommended organic produce. Not only is organic produce grown without chemicals, it also has more nutrients, is good for our environment and just plain tastes better.

Well now, the "organic" foods standard is at risk of being lowered by a "sneak attack", a combination of large corporations, agri-business interest groups (lobbyists) and our government. Below is the background of this threat directly from the Organic Consumers Association. Please take a moment and take action to help maintain the highest standards for organic farming as possible. If the standards are lowered organic integrity will be comprimised and consumers will lose faith in organic foods. Our health, the health of all Americans are at stake. Thank you!

After 35 years of hard work, the U.S. organic community has built up a multi-billion dollar alternative to industrial agriculture, based upon strict organic standards and organic community control over modification to these standards.

Now, large corporations, such as Kraft, Wal-Mart, & Dean Foods--aided and abetted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and members of the Organic Trade Association, are moving to lower organic standards by allowing Bush appointees in the USDA National Organic Program to approve a broad list of synthetic ingredients and processing aids that would be allowed in organic production. Even worse these proposed regulatory changes will reduce future public discussion and input and take away the National Organic Standards Board’s (NOSB) traditional lead jurisdiction in setting standards. What this means, in blunt terms. is that USDA bureaucrats and industry lobbyists, not consumers, will have near total control over what can go into organic foods and products. (Send a quick letter to your Congresspersons online here)

During the next week, acting in haste and near-total secrecy, the U.S. Congress is being lobbied by industry to vote on a rider in the House/Senate Conference Committee to the 2006 Agriculture Appropriations Bill that could take away control over organic standards from the National Standards Board and put this control in the hands of federal bureaucrats in the USDA (remember the USDA proposal in 1997-98 that said that genetic engineering, toxic sludge, and food irradiation would be OK on organic farms, or USDA suggestions in 2004 that heretofore banned pesticides, hormones, tainted feeds, and animal drugs would be OK?).

For the past week in Washington, OCA has been urging members of Congress not to reopen and subvert the federal statute that governs U.S. Organic standards (the Organic Food Production Act: OFPA), but rather to let the organic community and the National Organic Standards Board resolve our differences over issues like synthetics and animal feed internally, and then proceed to a open public comment period. Unfortunately most members of Congress seem to be listening to industry lobbyists more closely than to us. We need to raise our voices. (Send a quick letter to your Congresspersons online here)

In the past, grassroots mobilization and mass pressure by organic consumers have been able to stop the USDA and Congress from degrading organic standards. This time Washington insiders tell us that the "fix is already in." So we must take decisive action now. We need you to call your Congressional Representatives and Senators today. We need you to sign the following petition and send it to everyone you know. We also desperately need funds to head off this attack in the weeks and months to come. Thank you for your support. Together we will take back citizen control over organic standards and preserve organic integrity.

Call the Capital Switchboard here: 202-224-3121, and tell your Congresspersons not to support any ammendments to the ag appropriations bill that would lower organic standards. You can send a quick letter to your Congresspersons online here: www.organicconsumers.org/rd-ofpa.htm

Read more about the status and what's at stake at the Organic Consumers Association web site.

To your best health!

Mark
Vegan Raw - The Ultimate Diet For Weight Loss, Health and Life

Along with a diet rich in fresh, organically grown foods, consideration should be given to the clothes you wear as well. Not only for the fact that your skin is in constant contact with your clothing, but also for the way certain fabrics are made and their impact on our environment.
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