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Oats for Breakfast

18/6/2013

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Oats help lower cholesterol and reduce artery inflammation. We eat oats every morning of the year.  There is nothing better to start a wintery day than with whole oat porridge.

We make our porridge or muesli from whole, hulled oats.  The eventuating brew is sweeter than rolled oats and with a bit of freshly chopped apple delicious; cream, milk or sugar spoil the flavours.

Whatever your brew, it will keep for 3 days in a sealed container in the fridge.

I use five different methods of preparing oats, four styles of porridge and a Bircher style muesli.  Try them all and make your choice.

Always soak your whole hulled oats in water for between 8 and 24 hours, then rinse and strain.  At the end of the cooking process add salt to taste.

Porridges.

Oven  - Cook, with 3 cups water, covered, in the oven for 2½  hours at 130°,

Slow cooker - cook with 3 cups of water for up to 3 hours in a slow cooker.   

Saucepan - bring to boil in the evening then leave it standing, covered.  In the morning bring it to the boil a second time and simmer until the constituency is similar to rolled oat porridge.

Vacuum Flask - In the morning put 1 cup whole hulled oats in a 1.5 litre vacuum flask and add hot water.  In the evening ease the water from the flask, rinse the oats in more hot water easing the water out again, then fill the flask boiling water and seal it.  In the morning, shake the flask, then open and pour out the delicious porridge.

Thermomix – I have just purchased one of these and it seems that a good brew can be had by placing the strained oats in the bowl, cover and chopping the grain for 3 seconds/speed 7.  Then add 2 cups water and cook for 20 minutes at 100° for 20 minutes/speed 2.

   
Bircher Meusli

In a blender, blend with 1 cup of water, or more to achieve your desired consistency, include an apple, 6 dates, any other dried fruit or nuts you wish.  Delicious and so good for you.

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Fasting

17/6/2013

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We are just coming off our first water/juice fast and letting ourselves gradually get back into eating.  We feel wonderful, even slightly euphoric! 

I have a small wheat grass juice extractor, which when fed roughly blended fruit and veges, works well.  We followed Jason Bennett’s excellent fasting advice.  Six weeks into the Life Plan course and all going very well.

It was a lot easier than we thought; we suffered no hunger pangs, nor any sense of weakness and we can now understand many of the benefits that arise from the occasional fast.

Next time we will do 48 hours!
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Avoiding cancer by lowering IGF-1

11/6/2013

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The following letter was received by me from Dr Furman, an highly intelligent advocate for plant based whole food, with a deep knowledge of how to avoid cancer.

April 3, 2013

Most people are aware of the connections between red and processed meats and cancer – that there is convincing evidence that these dangerous foods are a cause of colon cancer.1 In addition, cooking any meat at high temperatures (for example, grilled or fried chicken) forms carcinogenic compounds such as heterocyclic amines, which contribute to cancer risk.2,3 However, animal foods such as non-fat dairy products, egg whites, and fish are considered healthful by most people.  It not yet widely recognized that foods such as these, since they are so high in animal protein, can also contribute to increased cancer risk.  

When we consume animal protein, the body increases its production of a hormone called IGF-1, (insulin-like growth factor 1). IGF-1 is one of the body's important growth promoters during fetal and childhood growth, but later in life IGF-1 promotes the aging process.  Reduced IGF-1 signaling in adulthood is associated with reduced oxidative stress, decreased inflammation, enhanced insulin sensitivity and longer lifespan.4 In contrast, IGF-1 has been shown to promote the growth, proliferation and spread of cancer cells, and elevated IGF-1 levels are linked to increased risk of several cancers, colon cancer included.5-8  Several observational studies have suggested that high circulating IGF-1 may translate into promotion of tumor growth in the colon.  For example, one study in men and one another in women found that those with higher levels of IGF-1 had double the risk of colorectal ca ncers compared to those with lower levels.9,10

Which foods raise IGF-1?
Since the primary dietary factor that determines IGF-1 levels is animal protein, the excessive meat, fowl, seafood, and dairy intake common in our society elevates circulating IGF-1. Refined carbohydrates, like white flour, white rice, and sugars can also raise IGF-1 levels, because they cause rapid increases in insulin levels, leading to increases in IGF-1 signaling. In fact, IGF-1 signaling is thought to be a major factor in the connection between diabetes and cancer.11,12

It is the amino acid distribution of animal protein that sparks IGF-1 production.13 For this reason, isolated soy protein, found in protein powders and meat substitutes, may also be problematic because the protein is unnaturally concentrated and its amino acid profile is very similar to that of animal protein.

How can we keep IGF-1 in a safe range?
Reducing IGF-1 levels by dietary methods is now considered by many scientists to be an effective cancer prevention measure.  Minimizing or avoiding animal protein, isolated soy protein and refined carbohydrates can help to keep our IGF-1 levels in a safe range. Green vegetables, beans and other legumes, and seeds are rich in plant protein and they have cancer-preventive, not cancer-promoting properties. For optimal cancer protection, vegetables, beans, fruits, intact grains, nuts and seeds should comprise the vast majority of our calories.

References
1.  Continuous Update Project Interim Report Summary.  Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Colorectal Cancer. . World Cancer Research Fund / American Institute for Cancer Research.; 2011.
2.  Thomson B: Heterocyclic amine levels in cooked meat and the implication for New Zealanders. Eur J Cancer Prev 1999;8:201-206. 
3.   Zheng W, Lee S-A: Well-Done Meat Intake, Heterocyclic Amine Exposure, and Cancer Risk.Nutr Cancer 2009;61:437-446.
4.  Bartke A: Minireview: role of the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor system in mammalian aging. Endocrinology 2005;146:3718-3723.
5.  Chitnis MM, Yuen JS, Protheroe AS, et al: The type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor pathway. Clin Cancer Res 2008;14:6364-6370.
6. Werner H, Bruchim I: The insulin-like growth factor-I receptor as an oncogene. Arch Physiol Biochem 2009;115:58-71. 
7. Davies M, Gupta S, Goldspink G, et al: The insulin-like growth factor system and colorectal cancer: clinical and experimental evidence. Int J Colorectal Dis 2006;21:201-208.
8.            Sandhu MS, Dunger DB, Giovannucci EL: Insulin, insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), IGF binding proteins, their biologic interactions, and colorectal cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst2002;94:972-980. 
9.            Ma J, Pollak MN, Giovannucci E, et al: Prospective study of colorectal cancer risk in men and plasma levels of insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and IGF-binding protein-3. J Natl Cancer Inst 1999;91:620-625. 
10.  Giovannucci E, Pollak MN, Platz EA, et al: A prospective study of plasma insulin-like growth factor-1 and binding protein-3 and risk of colorectal neoplasia in women. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2000;9:345-349. 
11.  Cannata D, Fierz Y, Vijayakumar A, et al: Type 2 diabetes and cancer: what is the connection?Mt Sinai J Med 2010;77:197-213. 
12.  Venkateswaran V, Haddad AQ, Fleshner NE, et al: Association of diet-induced hyperinsulinemia with accelerated growth of prostate cancer (LNCaP) xenografts. J Natl Cancer Inst 2007;99:1793-1800. 
13. Thissen JP, Ketelslegers JM, Underwood LE: Nutritional regulation of the insulin-like growth factors. Endocr Rev 1994;15:80-101.

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4 million years of human body development

8/6/2013

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Our bodies are superb pieces of equipment; they have been in development, using the most stringent selection processes, for well over 4 million years.  That they occasionally break down is not the result of our body’s inadequacy, but the result of us mistreating this carefully created unit.

If we tumble down a bank and break our leg, we don’t bemoan the weakness of the limb, we accept that we had put it through undue stress.  We should regard every part of the environment we subject our bodies to in the same light.

From the literature I read, all modern diseases appear have their origins in environmentally caused autoimmune reactions.  As the food we eat is the biggest environmental influence on our bodies, it is to food that we should first address our concerns.

Our formative ancestors ate a miniscule amount of meat. It is only in the past 0.1% of our development (far too short a period for us to make any significant genetic change) that some of us humans have made such a fetish of eating meat and milk.  And it is over this period that the burgeoning of cancers and other debilitating diseases has occurred.

The literature shows overwhelmingly that if we revert to the foods that our bodies are developed to use effectively, we will stop putting them under undue stress; they will perform perfectly, as designed. 

No matter how effective the advertising for unhealthy foods is, you cannot argue with 4 million years of development.

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High Quality Protein - is it better?

5/6/2013

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This is Dr Michael Greger at his best.  His explanations of complex subjects are so clear that we can all follow them.

His essay on the growth hormone IGF-1 is all encompassing.

Or you can cut to the chase and watch this 3  minute video, to get a good grasp on the subject.

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The pH of our blood

2/6/2013

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Blood pH is critical to good health.  The ideal pH range is between 7.35 and 7.45 with the ideal of 7.4.  A blood pH of 6.9, which is only mildly acidic, can cause coma and death.

An acidic body fails to absorb minerals and nutrients; cells loose energy and fail to repair themselves, arteries deteriorate, cancers and other autoimmune diseases develop.

A body under emotional stress, toxic overload or immune reactions will deteriorate into an acidic condition.  Unless an alkaline inducing diet is maintained, the body will seek alkaline minerals, from within itself, (such as calcium) to bring back a balance. 

The modern western diet is high in acid producing foods.  The biggest culprits being meat, fish, eggs, and milk products, followed by processed foods such as vegetable oils, artificial milks, white flour, sugar, artificial sweeteners, coffee and alcohol. 

Alkaline forming foods include almost all plant based whole foods.

The pH level of a particular food is not a measure of its acid or alkaline forming tendency in the body; even citrus and other apparently acidic fruits have an alkalinizing effect once digested. Milk on the other hand dramatically changes to acid in the stomach is so that milk's own calcium component fails to provide an alkaline buffer and the body uses bone calcium to achieve a balance. (NZ has one of the highest scores of broken hips in the world)

Body pH is a sure indicator as to health and proof is to be found in the extreme health and longevity of vegans.

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    Having joined the fast growing group of people who recognise the value of living on plant based whole food, I now want to share my experiences and views with as many others as possible.

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