MSG might make your food taste better, but is it worth it?  Obesity is one of this nations biggest problems and MSG has been linked to the cause.  It is also said that toxic compounds can associated with such neurological diseases like Multiple Sclerosis, brain cancers, ADHD and more.  Of course, the FDA still stands by their claim in amounts that would be used for cooking.  They did admit that MSG symptom complex – short-term responses to the ingestion of MSG – is a problem for some people.  The symptoms can include such reactions as headaches, sweating, nausea, chest pain and more.  The only way to avoid this effect is to stay away from Monosodium Glutamate.

This additive is presented to us as a food product that is harmless, but it is poison.  At the very least, it is completely unnecessary and as a matter of precaution, if nothing else, an additive that we should do our best to avoid.

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A macrobiotic diet is different from a vegan diet. A vegan diet is exclusively greens while a macrobiotic diet includes some foods from animal sources, although in limited amounts only. In some ways, a vegan diet shares common food staples with macrobiotic diet such as brown rice and beans but their principles are different. Generally, macrobiotics is based on healthy eating practices that were applied before, when artificial and chemical compositions in food are unheard of.

Macrobiotic dieters state that macrobiotic is a way of life and not a diet which focuses on nutritional value of the food they eat. They believe that in order for the body to achieve maximum health levels, everything inside it should be in perfect balance. This means that a dieter should not deprive the body of nourishment but not overeat. Macrobiotics also has set of rules for cooking and what to eat on certain seasons such as spring, summer, fall and winter. You will also have to learn how to do a macrobiotic diet properly, if you are planning to engage with one.

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Vitamin and mineral supplements have become the need of many health-conscious people, especially those who have learnt about the anti-aging and anti-oxidant effects of vitamins. Of these, Vitamin E and Vitamin C are particularly sought at health food stores due to their heavily advertized claims of effectiveness against ageing and preventing/healing infections. Naturally obtained from vegetables and fruits, these vitamins are sold in numerous supplements, commonly as pills and powder. However, a new research, led by Dr. Jennifer Lin (of the Brigham And Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts), has found that vitamin pills do not carry the health benefits obtained from the dietary sources of those same vitamins. The study was conducted on more than 7500 women and the results came after a follow up stretched over nine years.

Dr. Lin’s research concludes that antioxidant supplements containing Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and/or beta carotene do not offer any significant health benefits like preventing cancer or earlier aging. These findings agree with an earlier research, published in November 2008, involving about 15000 American men who did not show any cancer-prevention effect from the regular use of Vitamin C and Vitamin E supplements. However, the general consensus on eating a healthy and balanced diet stays valid as before. Fresh vegetables and fruits are the best and most health-friendly sources of essential vitamins and minerals.

What is important to remember about these findings? That, more than anything else, it is not a certificate to give up all calorie-rich diets and binge on vegetables and fruits. Strong immunity also requires enough calories to fight infections. Calorically restricted diet may work for some overweight people (though not indefinitely for them too), it gives a person to diseases more easily than those having healthy caloric levels. A recent study led by Professor Elizabeth Gardner, of the Michigan State University, concludes that caloric-deficient people are likely to fall a prey more easily to flu and other viral conditions and would need longer to recover even if they take the healthy levels of vitamins and minerals. This is in line with the term ‘balanced’ so frequently used with ‘diet’.

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In general, there are a few good indicators of equine health/diseases: the skin of a healthy horse should be smooth, glossy, and elastic enough to move freely over the body underneath it; the skin of a grass-kept horse may be more greasy (which is normal and helps keep them warm); tight and dry skin (sensed by feeling and not just by looking at it) usually indicates dehydration and deficiency of essential fat beneath the skin; the membrane covering a healthy horse’s eyes, tongue, and gums should look salmon pink and not yellow, pale, or red (which indicate equine anemia and/or fever); excess sweating or signs of dried sweat also point to pain or fever.

Members of equestrian communities can prevent health problems in horses during winter by regular grooming, bathing (when necessary), and using healing agents for treating infections, wounds, and scratches. Here are some tips on better winter care for the horses in your equestrian community:

General Body Grooming: With a currycomb, remove the dirt and any other deposits on/in the hair coat. It is helpful to spray a silicon-free equestrian hair care product on the body of the horse, finally followed by grooming with a slippery finish brush in order to facilitate future cleaning.

Bathing: While giving the horse a winter bath, you must remember that the barn should be heated to make sure that cold does not take your horse to illness. A warm-water bath, once a week, will do to keep the horse clean and free from infectious microbes. Vetrolin or any other safe body wash may be added to the water for better cleaning. The horse should be dried well with a towel and, if one likes, a hair dryer can be used but avoid burning the horse’s skin/coat by holding the dryer on a single part; keep it moving over the body.

Skin Care: Daily examination of the horse’s skin is needed to catch any signs of skin infections, scratches, inflammation, redness, or abscesses etc. Cleaning the affected area well with and applying a good antibacterial/antifungal agent on it, after drying, is required to heal the skin of infectious attacks. The pasterns are particularly vulnerable to scratches. Trimming the fetlock hair periodically and treating with an antibacterial/antifungal ointment is therefore a necessary part of good equestrian care.

More than other common pets, horses need good and regular care throughout the winter to stay healthy and happy. It matters to both horses and their breeders to share their experience of equestrian healthcare with other equestrian communities in order to remove any confusion about equestrian health problems that are not common in general observation.

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Lots of people still get sick even though they exercise, drink lots of water, watch their diet and live a healthy lifestyle.  It is believed that it is because of the chemical residue and other harmful chemicals that people get when ingesting inorganic food.

Eating organic food should not just be practiced just because celebrities are doing it.  We should learn to take care of our bodies and looking good on the outside should start by looking and eating great on the inside.

So which food should we eat organic?  Fruits and vegetables get sprayed by fertilizers, hormones, anti bacterial and other chemicals while they are being grown.  Most fruit and vegetables have thin skin and scrubbing them or letting them sit in a pail of salted water won’t get all the chemical residue out.  So the  best bet when it comes to these is to go organic.  If you can’t find organic fruits and vegetables, find fruit that has thicker skin like oranges and water melon.  Vegeatables like eggplants, green peas and peppers have thick skin too, so they are relatively okay.

If going all organic isn’t within your budget, some websites in the internet provide guides, advice and tips on food that are okay even when not organically grown.  By limiting your intake of inorganic food, you are not only helping your body get healthier, you are also helping the environment.

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Tofu is regarded as one of the ideal vegetarian diets on account of its protein-rich and cholesterol-free chemistry. It is also low in saturated fat and sodium while containing healthy quantities of iron and the B group of vitamins. Since it is easy to chew and digest, tofu is often the preferred food choice of aging people as well as children in their toddler years. Tofu coagulated by means of calcium sulfate is also considered a good source of dietary calcium. Recently, however, some questions have been raised regarding possible health risks associated with tofu consumption.

The main health concern being investigated in relation to tofu’s consumption is that of breast cancer. Like other soy products, tofu is rich in isoflavones – natural estrogens formed in some plants and, therefore, called phytoestrogens. These natural estrogen-like compounds have similar properties as those of the estrogen hormone found in humans, primarily in women. Since increased estrogen receptors are associated with growth of breast cancer, some researchers in health sciences have questioned the safety of tofu on account of its phytoestrogen content. Another study from Loughborough University in England has found a link between elevated levels of phytoestrogens and the onset of dementia in aging people. The study also points to the possibility of dementia resulting from formaldehyde, used in tofu as a preservative in some places.

The findings of the recent researches, linking breast cancer and dementia to tofu’s intake, are not conclusive and need to be verified by further research. It is also known that the phytoestrogens, found in tofu and other natural soy products, are weak and not likely to create health risks. But the general principle of avoiding overconsumption is certainly worth considering while consuming any food species, including tofu and other soy products. Excess intake of tofu may create health problems in some people, especially elderly individuals with a weaker immune system and women having a family history of breast cancer.

So how much tofu is okay to consume? The FDA approves a maximum of 3 ounces (equal to 85 grams) of tofu per day. Some nutritionists think that taking up to 6 ounces daily is safe. In both cases, it is important to remember that high doses of phytoestrogens packed in soy supplements are not healthy. Tofu made by natural methods, on the contrary, is quite a safe and health-friendly vegetarian food when relished in safe quantities.

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The harmful health effects of hormones used for increasing milk production in commercial agriculture can be seen most clearly in the case of rGBH, or recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone, a protein hormone branded commonly as Posalic®. Despite the strong and persistent concern of scientists and farmers, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the hormone in 1993. Research on health-effects of rGBH has revealed that milk produced by cows injected with rGBH carries elevated levels of IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor), another protein hormone, which may be responsible for colon and breast cancer. While further research is needed to verify these initial findings, the safety of rGBH is strongly disputed.

Synthetic or genetically modified growth hormones have also been linked to early pubescence in girls, some of whom have been found to hit puberty as early as in their eight year of life. Other studies have found a decrease in sperm production in boys as a result of exposure to these hormones. Growing children are, therefore, vulnerable to reproductive abnormalities on account of artificially engineered growth hormones for increasing dairy production.

Yet another dark side to the use of growth hormones on cattle is the health risk of antibiotics. The hormones injected into the cattle frequently cause mastitis, which is a painful inflammation of the udders. To treat this condition, the dairy industry injects the cattle with antibiotics that remain in the milk obtained from them. Children fed on this milk get the antibiotics in their blood, something that weakens their natural immunity to fight bacteria and other pathogenic microbes. Continued feeding on antibiotic-containing milk compromises the immunity of children, making them easy victims to all kinds of infections and diseases.

The health risks associated with the use of growth hormones in cattle, for the purpose of increasing milk production, call for the urgent need to discourage such practices on dairy farms. Organic farm communities, which promise natural and safe dairy products, are the ideal solution to this problem. Organic agriculture is eco-friendly, healthy, and conducive to life in the long run. Consumers of dairy products living in urban areas can choose to buy organic, hormone-free dairy products at many superstores. In rural areas, safe milk and other dairy food is easily available at organic farms.

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