Yesterday, June 21st, was our 46th wedding anniversary. So happy to be celebrating one of the happiest days of my life with the love of my life. We had a wonderful weekend with our family and close friends and then took off to an Inn in the New Hampshire mountains by ourselves.
We are now well settled back in our Canada house and back to my course work as well. Last week started review for this week’s test which was released today. It covers the last 10 week’s of lectures and information. I actually enjoy reviewing and reading my notes as it helps me put things in perspective and reminds me of things I really want to remember. We focused on where we are in the journey to be a Health Coach and we were asked to recommit to our intentions that we set at the beginning of the course way back in January. I believe my intentions have changed but I am no less committed to where I am going with this program. I am even more committed since my heart attack three weeks ago and determined to learn as much as I can so that I can share it with others. The learning is on-going.
We learned more this week about the evolution of diet as we explored the diet of the “hunter-gatherer” vs the diet today. It has obviously changed but the major changes are in the way the food was grown and fed vs how food is raised today. The obvious with animals that were free range as opposed to those who are raised and fattened in feed lots. Our grains were full of fiber and today the fiber has been stripped from the grain. Food that today is “fortified” in reality means that the nutrients have been stripped from the food and then the vitamins and fiber have been added back in through processing. Once again the focus is on eating whole foods and eliminate processed foods from the diet.
The item under debate this past week was dairy. A surprise to me is that the milk in the US has been genetically modified since 1994. In 2007 17% of all cows in the US were injected with a something called rBGH. Milk from these cows contains elevated levels of Insulin Growth Factor-1, a hormone linked to increase risk of cancer. Most of the industrialized nations of the world, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and all 25 nations of the European Union, have disallowed the use of rBGH. Wonder why? We also had a discussion about raw milk and that many people who are lactose intolerant can tolerate raw milk. I personally do not drink milk and avoid most dairy products. I eat plain Greek yoghurt and that’s about it. My husband, however, tolerates milk products just fine and enjoys a glass of milk on occasion. Bio-individuality.
This week’s recommendation. Eat real food. Check out Nina Planck at her website Click Here. Nina is the author of The Real Food Cookbook. I think you will enjoy her take on food.
Enjoy your week. I am studying and hope to pass my test and then get on with summer and going to the Farmer’s Market and enjoying my grand-daughter who is coming to stay for the summer.
Lou