Alkaline Year

Day 123 This Alkaline Year: Tax Junk Foods?

2010-02-28T11:09:00.000-08:00

From articles in the Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition, (Volume 4, July, 2009) it has become clear that the Federal government’s Farm Bill, intended to stabilize and support the American farm, has evolved into a system that severely influences major public health issues.

In the first article cited above (pp. 393-408), Richard J. Jackson and associates from the UCLA School of Public Health defined these primary issues as: 1) rising obesity; 2) food safety; and 3) environmental health, especially the public exposure to pesticides and other toxic substances. “By generating more profit for food producers and less for family farmers; by amplifying environmentally destructive agricultural practices that impact air, water, and other resources, the Farm Bill influences the health of Americans more than is immediately apparent,” Jackson wrote.

In the second article (pp. 251-291), David Wallinga from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health suggests: “For at least 50 years, American agriculture policies have promoted production of, and ultimately lower market prices for, commodity crops like corn, wheat and soybeans. Over the last three decades in particular, these “cheap food” policies have exacerbated the negative impacts of an industrialized agriculture on the health of the agro-ecosystem, as well as on the health of the humans who must share and be sustained by it.”

The third article, Linkages to Achieve Healthier Diets and Healthier Communities ( Mary Story, Michael Hamm and David Wallinga, pp. 219-224), grew out of the April, 2009 Airlie Conference, in which 100 experts in health, nutrition, obesity, sutainable agriculture, economics, business, marketing, and public policy, met to discuss how the nation can moved toward a healthier and more sustainable food system. The article’s authors noted: “It is increasingly clear that public health dietary guidelines and obesity prevention cannot be met without a focus on the food system, from field to fork.”

The article noted that U.S. farm policy for commodity crops has helped to make the sweeteners and fats added to processed foods some of the cheapest substances available today. By contrast, fruits and vegetables receive little government support and their cost has risen relative to inflation.

As the U.S. Farm Bill had received its six-year passage the year preceding the Airlie Conference, there was little danger that any major effective measures could come out of this gathering, which was sponsored by, among others, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation.

I would like to suggest what may be a more efficient way to change farm policies that adversely affect our health: tax junk foods.

This of course would involve convening an intelligent panel of experts to determine what, exactly, is junk food. French fries? Potato chips? Candy bars? Peeps? Ice cream? Cookies? Colas and other soft drinks? Breads? Doughnuts? Cakes? Maple bars? Feedlot-farmed beef, which are most hamburgers? Sweetened cereals? These would be tops on most lists. Would the proposed tax be applied to items in grocery stores alone, or would they extend to fast-food chains and other restaurants?

Of course, during the legislative process, the question of whether beer, wine, and spirits are junk foods would arise. I’d include all three; although both already are taxed, a little extra might cut down on the drinking situation. I can think of only one country—Russia—where alcohol plays as important a negative role in human health as it does in this land of ours.

Is it possible that, with higher prices on junk foods, combined with government supports for organically-grown fruits and vegetables, we might become wiser about our food choices? I think so.

Day 122 An Earthquake, A Tsunami and A Road Race

2010-02-27T16:07:00.000-08:00

In the wake of the 8.8 Chilean earthquake and just before the ensuing tsunami in Hawaii, this morning I ran my first road race in 20 years. A 5K benefit held at the retirement community of Quail Creek for the Green Valley Food Bank and the Animal Rescue League, it was exceptionally well organized. The new Fivefingers shoes; after three weeks’ breaking-in time, let me run a little farther forward than normal, which may have given me some sort of “sprinters’ push.” What I mostly felt was that my 10 toes were helping with the effort, a fine sense of solidarity there!

Although my time wasn’t exceptional—39:35—it put me first in my 70-74 age group. I was humbled, however, by a trim woman who ran ahead of me during the whole race, enabling me to use her and her friend as pacers. Afterwards, she allowed to being 79 years old! I can only be happy that she’ll graduate to the 80-84-year-old group next year when I move up to the 75-79 group, so we won’t be in direct competition!

Another satisfying part of today’s run was having my blood pressure checked right afterwards; it was 124/81. A couple of weeks ago, at the doctor’s office where I went to get authorization to take a DEXA test for bone density, the top part was at least 20 points higher, because I was late and bothered by that. Those numbers illustrate the danger of accepting blood pressure as a fixed, unchanging measurement, and also point out the benefits of serenity!

Speaking of the DEXA test, I’m doing a six-months experiment to find out whether taking 360 mg. of calcium and 800 IU of Vitamin D3 twice daily (for a total of 720 mg. of calcium and 1600 IU of D3), at a different time than 2230 mg. of strontium citrate, will increase my bone density. Hence the DEXA test, which initially showed some bone deterioration.

The Vancouver, B.C. company which produces the calcium and strontium, AlgaeCal, Inc., is so confident of their products' effiiency that they offer your money back if there is no positive change within the six-month period. Sounds like a winning gamble to me!

Back to the Chilean earthquake and pending Hawaii tsunami, I’m sort of numb. Will this be as heart-breaking as the Haitian disaster? The Red Cross must have a huge extra need of funds, so giving there will likely be my response. Perhaps the Boston Marathon might enlist its runners to make the effort for Chilean relief? I’d thought of organizing a run this summer, to benefit either our cash-strapped Orcas Historical Museum or a group that provides frail seniors with travel to doctors’ appointments; would Chile be a better target for that energy?

Day 121 (Feb 26) Are Most Cancer-Inhibiting Foods Alkaline?

2010-02-26T16:17:00.000-08:00

In my opinion, the best TED talk was given earlier this month by Dr. William Li, President of the Antiangiogenesis Foundation. He provided a list of substances which, his research indicates, inhibit the growth of cancer cells.

What is fascinating is that there isn’t an ounce of meat, or poultry on the list; nor are there any “dairy” foods. Apparently it isn’t intended to be a definitive list; he adds “others” at the end.

I compared the list, given below, with my acid-alkaline food guide, and found that nearly all of these substances—more than 90 percent--are alkaline. That doesn’t seem like a coincidence. The notable exceptions are tuna, soy beans, and red wine, which are highly acidic.

Would I eat everything on the list regularly? No, but I think it’s a step in the right direction, especially for anybody who has concerns about cancer. Although I’m not drinking red wine at present, a glass every month or so in the context of mostly-alkaline nutrition shouldn’t hurt me or anybody else. But “moderation” means such different things to different people that I wouldn’t endorse drinking anything alcoholic.

In fact, the current state of public acceptance of “experts” and nutrition reminds me of the old drunk who lived in our community when I was little. He owned a resort and played wonderful barroom piano whenever he dropped by our home. But the time came when he was diagnosed with serious liver disease, and Dr. Heath told him he needed to stop drinking. God bless him, he probably tried, but found sobriety difficult, so he went doctor-shopping until he found a medic who said he could have an occasional drink. ‘Occasional’ soon went back to morning, noon, and night.

Here’s Dr. Li’s list, which I’ve taken the liberty of alphabetizing:

Apples, Artichokes, Blackberries, Blueberries, Bok choy, Cherries, Dark Chocolate, Garlic, Ginseng, Grape seed oil, Grapefruit, Green tea, Kale, Lavender, Lemons, Licorice, Maitake mushrooms, Nutmeg, Olive oil, Oranges, Parsley, Pineapple, Pumpkin, Raspberries, Red grapes, Red wine, Sea Cucumber, Soy beans. Strawberries, Tomato, Tuna, Turmeric.

DAY 111 THIS ALKALINE YEAR; 'DUMBTH' TO THE NTH

2010-02-17T13:41:00.000-08:00

The multi-talented Steve Allen coined the term ‘dumbth’ to cover his contention that Americans’ public discourse and poor decision-making shows that we are not operating with full decks. The term came readily to mind while reading the comments on CNN’s story about Kevin Smith, a fat director who was kicked off Southwest Airlines, although he’d bought two tickets, when the flight was full and they needed his second seat.

Some 527 persons commented on the article; many of these became entangled in other arguments such as whether noisy babies should be allowed to fly, Mr. Smith’s general character, advice to him or to the airline, or international relations. Regarding the latter, someone suggested that in Europe, Americans are recognized by the size of their bottoms, another reader retaliated by stating that in the U.S., Europeans are recognized by their body odor and ugly shoes.

I know that many overweight artists—and I assume that Mr. Smith is among them—feel that exuberant eating is at the core of their talent. Singers, for instance, may believe that huge bodies are more resonant. Although I think they are mistaken, it certainly is within their rights to eat as much of anything as they can afford, as long as that doesn’t negatively affect others. Being crowded by an obese neighbor on a cross-country flight is an adverse effect.

One solution to the problem of overweight row-mates: airlines could offer measurement devices similar to those used to determine whether luggage fits into overhead compartments. At the boarding gate, each passenger would do a quick sit and if they didn’t fit, would be asked to wait until the flight was loaded.

As Mr. Smith had apparently purchased two tickets ahead of time, I think the airline should have honored that. It might have been in its best interest to have previously made a flat policy stipulating that such tickets would only be honored when the flight was not full. But they can’t have it both ways; that would be ‘dumbth’ at its nth.

DAY 109, THIS ALKALINE YEAR: Have Your Chips and Eat Them Too

2010-02-15T10:25:00.000-08:00

Far less hands-on than frying, baked chips and other vegetables can provide nutritious, tasty side dishes. My current favorites are parsnips, moderately alkaline-forming, full of vitamins and even a hint of sweetness for those of us for whom sugar is out.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees while slicing three medium parsnips into ¼-inch rounds. Into a large glass baking pan, put 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and ½ teaspoon nutmeg. Dump in the sliced parsnips, mix thoroughly, and place in oven to bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot, with salad and a vegie burger. Serves 2-4 eaters.

Baking can, of course, be done with potatoes or carrots, although they’re more acidic than parsnips, turnips, or beets. With the latter two, I’d use turmeric or garam masala rather than cinnamon and nutmeg. Salt the latter to taste, of course.

DAY 106, THIS ALKALINE YEAR

2010-02-12T16:59:00.000-08:00

TED Prizewinner Lacks Knowledge of Human Biochemistry

Until I looked at one of his first TV shows—featuring a beef-and-ale stew--I was delighted to read that Jamie Oliver won the imaginative TED Prize, given to meaningful speakers each year at a nonprofit group’s conference. The $100,000 prize carried with it the right to make a “wish” that could change the world, and his wish was for an overhaul of America’s poor decisions about eating, which he rightly noted are shortening life spans and increasing health care costs.

I watched his TED speech and applauded his suggestions for ways to combat obesity at home, school and Main Street. Some of these included teaching cooking skills in schools, encouraging supermarkets to include food education, and a return to more care in cooking at home.

However, one of the poorest decisions this so-called celebrity chef (He stars in a new reality show called “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution) could have made was to feature a meat-and-ale stew on one of his first U.S. TV shows. Meat is one of the most acidic eating choices anybody can make, seconded only by alcoholic beverages. In addition, with the filthy conditions under which most beef is raised in this and other countries, and the genetically-engineered corn with which cattle are stuffed, meat is OUT on any sensible diet.

As Robert Young, PhD, has patiently explained many times, when our diet is primarily acidic, as are standard American meals, our bodies lay on fat in order to encapsulate the acids so they won’t damage our tissues and organs. This can be demonstrated, shown, proven. What will it take to get well-intentioned people such as Oliver to understand simple, biochemical facts?

And from an ecological point of view, as John Robbins points out, with 25 percent of the world’s mammalian species threatened with extinction and livestock grazing being the leading cause of species in the U.S. and abroad being threatened or eliminated, cattle are a wasteful species, uneconomical in the long run.

All that said, I commend Mr. Oliver on wanting to prevent obesity among American and other children and adults. A better understanding of nutritional chemistry and biochemistry would serve him well in his mission.

Day 98 Full Day: Scary Road, Great Hummus, SHOES Arrived!

2010-02-05T20:26:00.000-08:00

Day 98 Full Day: Scary Road, Great Hummus, SHOES Arrived!

Today has been one of those lovely, relaxed journeys that make retirement worthwhile! Well, it wasn’t all relaxed. Jack likes to explore side roads and byways, so we took a 21-mile dirt road from Green Valley, Arizona, across the Santa Rita Mountains. The narrow, rutted road winds up through a canyon, with many hairpin turns, each one being a potential death scene should we meet anybody coming from the other direction. Fortunately, we didn’t!

We had lunch in an old hotel in Patagonia, a restaurant called Home Plate which not only boasts photos of baseball greats but also serves the best hummus I’ve ever eaten. It tasted like a normal hummus recipe with the addition of ground, dried tomatoes and basil. Four YUMs for that lunch!

Had already done the five-mile run with Binka-dog in the morning. By the time we arrived home, Jack was ready for a nap and I wanted to row and do the weight-machines workout, along with ten minutes of stretching. The hot tub at the athletic center has jets that hit all the sore muscle groups.

Back home again, my new running shoes, the Fivefingers, had arrived! They come with helpful instructions for donning them (“With the single strap fully open, insert your foot while gradually aligning each toe to the appropriate toe pocket—it’s often best to start with your big toe and work down to the little one. . . Check to make sure one toe is in each pocket"); even so, the process took me half an hour for the first foot and 15 minutes for the second one. My toes weren’t used to being told what to do.

“Now that I have these on, they’re staying on. I may sleep in them tonight,” I told Jack when all ten toes were in their right places, and I’d pulled up the heel cup and fastened the strap.

“That’ll certainly give you a running start tomorrow morning,” he said mildly.

I went out and ran a couple of blocks on macadam, then a few feet on the crushed rock that around here constitutes most of our front yards. Felt fine on both surfaces. The layer of rubber on the soles and around the toes is plenty to cushion against the pebbles.

Despite the colors blending well--black Vibram soles, grey and grey-green fabric uppers, the Fivefingers appearance is, well, weird. "I feel like an ape," I told Jack.

"As long as it's a female ape," he said.

Running will never be the same. I’m looking forward to that.

Day 95 Least, Most Pesticide-Free Vegetables

2010-02-02T19:18:00.000-08:00

Are some nonorganic vegetables safer than others? The answer seems to be a qualified “yes.”

Based on data from nearly 87,000 tests for pesticide residues in produce (collected by the U.S. Dept. Of Agriculture and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, analysts from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) have developed a shopper’s guide to vegetables containing the most and least pesticides (see Foodnews.org).

Based on this guide, you might want to buy the organic versions of these vegetables: peach, apple, bell pepper, celery, nectarine, strawberries, cherries, kale, lettuce, imported grape, carrot, and pear, as these are on the EWG’s “dirty dozen.”

The fewest pesticides, generally in produce with the thickest skins, are found in onion, avocado, sweet corn, pineapple, mango, asparagus, swet pea, kiwi, cabbage, eggplant, papaya, watermelon, broccoli, tomato, and sweet potato.

EWG researchers indicate that people who eat the 15 least contaminated conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables ingest fewer than two pesticides a day, while people who eat the 12 most contaminated produce take in an average of 10 pesticides daily. Their conclusions: eat a varied diet, rinse all produce, and buy organic when possible. I often buy COSTCO’s avocados and grapefruit, non-organic but huge, flavorful, economical buys.

In addition to the food-news Website mentioned above, www.earthshare.org is another good source of information. And www.responsibleconsumer.net, www.betterworldshopper.com, and www.greenamericatoday, are all good sources.

DAY 91, THIS ALKALINE YEAR Barefoot Running

2010-01-29T06:25:00.000-08:00

What does barefoot running have to do with eating alkaline? I’ve noticed over the years that many runners and, of course, other athletes, have succumbed to the so-called killer diseases. Outstanding among them, of course, was Jim Fixx, who ran in one of the Boston Marathons in which I competed. (My time of 3:23.13, I cannot resist mentioning, was better than his; funny how one remembers things like that!) His other lifestyle habits, including nutrition, were lousy even by the standards of that time. I’ve seen many good runners destroy their abilities by scarfing down junk food and what seems to be our national poison of choice, beer. I feel excited about experimenting with what could be a technological advance in footwear, precisely because I believe that to eat alkaline is to establish a solid nutritional basis for the body and mind to adapt to new circumstances, to work well into highest old age.

This running barefoot is not as simple as it sounded in yesterday’s blog. Long-time heel strikers who have always run in protected running shoes may experience sore calves and arches and stiff Achilles tendons if we overdo workouts with minimal or no footgear. You’ll find history, videos showing the suggested foot strikes, and training tips at the Website http://barefootrunning.fas.harvard.edu. The site also has good biographies of the researchers working on the footstrike issues. These include Daniel E. Lieberman, PhD, professor in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard.

While mid-foot and forefoot strikes produce minimal impact force that may lead to lower rates of injury than experienced by conventionally-shod runners, it’s important not to overdo while adapting to barefoot workouts. Dr. Lieberman and his colleagues specify running no more than a quarter mile to one mile every other day, and to increase distance by no more than 10 percent per week. With this slow transition, accompanied by stretching calves and hamstrings, it will take months to make the transition.

The Website videos are especially good for developing knowledge about the “barefoot” way of striking, or touching the ground. This should be a gentle, relaxed landing on the mid-foot or forefoot, gradually letting the heel down.

I’m running five miles a day and preparing to compete in two small races in March, so I’ll heed Dr. Lieberman’s advice to supplement forefoot or midfoot striking with the way I normally run, to stop if anything hurts, and to do a good portion of the daily workout with my “normal” old heel strikes. Having suffered a stress fracture back in the 1970s, I don’t want that again, nor any arch or other pain.

The process of adjusting my foot strike can begin long before my FiveFingers shoes arrive. This is because I’m too cheap to pay for fast delivery; they’re coming via ground mail. And I usually go barefoot, or wear socks, inside the tile-floored house: another notch in the adjustment process.

After listing all the sensible precautions, the Website notes: “Many people who run very slowly find that forefoot striking actually makes them run a little faster.” This is seductive! A couple of weeks ago, in this blog, I noted running something like 12-minute miles. After re-measuring the course, my time was more like 15-minute miles and it’s still in the 14-minute range. For my age groups in the two races, based on last year’s winning times, it will need to be in the 11-minute range. And most of the training will need to be in my dear old Nikes.

DAY 90 THIS ALKALINE YEAR: To Shoe or Not to Shoe?

2010-01-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

Is it crazy to want to run barefoot? Maybe, but I’m thinking about trying just that. My old Nikes are beginning to feel clunky. While there are no major studies on the subject, some researchers feel that shoeless running is less stressful on the feet than running with well-supported shoes. The rationale is that the latter cause the heel to strike before the mid-foot and toes, which could be responsible for some heel and ankle problems. Don't have those, thank heavens!

Nonetheless, I look back nostalgically to my early running days, on stony beaches (ocean-smoothed rocks and gravel), when I went barefoot all summer, and later, when tennis shoes were my only available footgear. Nike makes a great shoe and I’ve subscribed happily to their rationale for years.

However, a small northeastern company called Vibram is making shoes they call FiveFingers, which are about as close to running barefoot as you can get. Instead of buying by conventional shoe size, you order by the length of your foot, in about 1/8-inch increments.

As soon as I find a measuring tape, I’m planning to order some. Will report back!

DAY 89 THIS ALKALINE YEAR: Posting While Standing Up

2010-01-27T07:09:00.000-08:00

A funny thing happened on the way to resuming this blog! I got caught up in a bunch of other concerns. From now on, this is going to be an occasional blog, although some weeks it may be more prolific than others.

First of all, to catch up on the groceries cost, which I’d promised earlier: the January grocery bills totaled $382.32. That’s less than $100/week for our two-person family, and it included non-food items such as laundry soap, rock salt, and sundries such as shampoo. Keeping track gave me new respect for the whole shopping process, as well as letting me know that eating alkaline (at least 80 percent for the month) is no more expensive than a budget that would typically include meats, soft drinks, processed foods and other items that I consider to be unhealthy.

This has been a useful exercise for me because it made me realize that our own budgetary strains, such as they are, may relate more to eating out than to what I’m serving at home. Next month, I’ll keep track also of the latter.

Second, a whole new perspective on exercise is starting to unfold for me, as the result of an article by Maria Chang, a medical writer for The Associated Press. Writing from London, she did a very good job of summarizing how current research is suggesting that health authorities “rethink how they define physical activity, to highlight the dangers of sitting.”

I also loved her lead paragraph: “. . . Sitting is deadly.” All of us who’ve sat in front of computers or even typewriters for long periods of time have sensed that, surely.

In an editorial published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Elin Ekblom-Bak of the Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, wrote that after four hours of sitting, genes regulating the amount of glucose and fat in the body start to shut down.

Is it possible that we need to limit how much time we spend sitting? Some of the most telling research that suggests we should, comes from a prospective study that tracked more than 17,000 Canadians for more than a decade, which found that people who sat more had a higher death risk, “independently of whether or not they exercised".

Americans, according to a 2003-04 study, spend more than half our time sitting, whether working at our desks or driving our cars, Chang noted.

Although more research is needed to understand how much sitting is harmful, and how we can offset its effects, it may be helpful to analyze your own current processes and see where you might want to make changes from sitting. For instance, I realized a couple of weeks ago that my former habit of playing computer games at night was inhibiting my ability to get to sleep. My mind was still preoccupied with the games, including a delightful Scrabble take-off called Lexulous, so that I couldn’t shut down and sleep. Maybe standing at the computer would help?

Am still running five miles a day, and recently added some circuit training to balance my (deficient) upper-body strength with well-developed lower-body muscles. The circuit training includes rowing, which, again, is sitting! Obviously there are alternatives and it will take time for me to incorporate them.

Another set of exercises, adapted from Paul and Gail Dennison’s fine book, Brain Gym, is good for starting the day with gentle activity. The best two in the small regime that I enjoy are the Cross-Crawl, in which you lift one leg and touch your knee with the opposite hand, slowly and rhythmically, 10-20 times; and Lazy 8s, in which you extend your arms in front, clasp hands with fingers intertwined just below eye level, thumbnails facing toward you. Holding your head still, trace a horizontal 8, or infinity sign with your hands, and follow with your eyes.

Perhaps doing such relaxing activity at “standing breaks” from work, would be one way to break into the sitting habit without seriously disrupting concentration. Another possibility, mentioned above, is standing at your computer, perhaps walking down the hall to talk to a colleague instead of calling him. If health authorities take the sitting problem seriously, computer desks could be redesigned to help users to stand at least part of the time while working.

I’ve watched colleagues get tubbier over the years, and it usually does correlate with sitting a lot. Even if it’s for a noble purpose, you might serve any goal better by being less sedentary. Me, too! I'm going to start by posting this while standing up!

DAY 77 This Alkaline Year A Research Day

2010-01-15T17:11:00.000-08:00

Today is relatively quiet, no major news on the alkaline front, so I’m using the time to research watering systems, including rain catchment systems, both for the three raised beds I’ll be planting this coming spring and fall, and for the 40-50 lavender plants around my small farm. Blog will resume tomorrow.

DAY 76 This Alkaline Year: Haiti, Shopping Basket and Footrace Planning

2010-01-14T13:35:00.000-08:00

It seems almost sacrilegious to write about marketing and any kind of eating or workout, while my mind and soul are preoccupied with the horror in Haiti, where an individual could previously have lived for more than 100 days on what I spend in one week on groceries. The medical situation in Port au Prince, including burying the dead, must occur first, but my attention was focused during today’s run on reconstruction. How could that happen, and what can we as a country do to help?

What if we formed, at the national level, a Construction Corps, to include architects, engineers, builders, electricians, plumbers, and construction workers, which would have the initial mission of helping the Haitian people to rebuild? It looks like most of the capital will need to be razed; could the rubble be reprocessed to create new building materials? MIT, where are you?

Such a Corps, with intensive work for six months, could certainly make inroads on helping the Haitian people regain spiritual vision and material progress into whatever the future holds. And Corpsmen, who would be encouraged to donate their time if that could be done without hurting their families, would certainly be in line for top jobs back home once Port au Prince rebuilding was underway. The Haitian people who helped and eventually took over the reconstruction would become more stable and likewise in line for better positions in their economy. What we do for others helps ourselves in the long run.

It is tempting to glaze over the whole issue of birth control while thinking about this, but I do feel strongly that any organization that ignores the problem of overpopulation in this day and age needs to rethink the reasons for its own existence. Jesus Christ said absolutely nothing about birth control, and Biblical injunctions to be fruitful and multiply were issued in an age where there was about one human being for every 25 square miles of tillable land. What has occurred largely as the result of one church mindlessly trying to expand itself has been horrendous even without a major earthquake.

Back to the less emotional issues!

This second week’s shopping started more modestly than the first week, with $55.76 being the total tab for a market basket that also included non-grocery items such as Windex. Good avocados at $1 each, lots of grapefruit at $1/pound. Last night, I transgressed at the cribbage group, where one member brought cookies centered with fresh lemon curd she’d made from lemons grown in our neighborhood. AND I had coffee; I don’t feel bad about it but won’t continue the practice. At another group I belong to here, for instance, last week the donuts and coffee weren’t even appealing.

Today was also a good time to plan strategy for the local 5 K footrace in March. Having now determined that the course previously thought to be six miles was considerably less than that, and further measured (car odometer sets easily to zero at the start) an exact five miles, I graphed possible times for the distance from 12.3-minute miles (today’s run) down to 8.3-minute miles. Of course, since 5K actually is 3.1 miles, I could have made the course that distance, but the longer distance gives me more time to meditate.

How do you increase speed at any age? Running extra-fast for short distances between telephone poles used to help, although in those days I didn’t have much vision about feelings while doing that. Today I reminded myself that it was possible to enjoy these speeded-up times. And although the telephone lines are all buried underground here, street signs serve the same purpose.

An artist friend who is managing her husband's discouraging physical situation (diabetes, Parkinson's and heart disease) wrote yesterday on the subject of caregiving, “By the grace of God may we muddle through this!”

Her words must apply in a larger sense to Haiti as well as to our smaller personal concerns.

DAY 75 THIS ALKALINE YEAR More Garden Dreams

2010-01-13T14:11:00.000-08:00

Because the vegetable gardening field is too large for me to research responsibly, I’m going to blog today about heirloom seeds, on which I’m going to focus in late spring and summer this year. Heirlooms are old cultivars, before 1951 and going back 100-150 years, according to The Heirloom Vegetable Gardener’s Assistant (www.halcyon.com/tmend/heirloom.htm). They are open-pollinated seeds, meaning pollinated by birds or insects. They have the tried-and-true advantage of being easy to grow, a reputation for quality.

Early Jersey Wakefield cabbage, for example, has appeared in American seed catalogs since the 1870s. You’ll want to grow it early if you live in a hot, moist climate, as, according to the USDA, it develops a strong unpleasant smell if left out in very hot weather for too long. It’s included in the kitchen garden sampler from the Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants (www.monticellocatalog.org/outdoor). He and his slaves and, eventually, free men, grew nearly 300 varieties of vegetables in his 1,000-square-foot grden. The sampler, for $16, includes Brandywine tomatoes, cayenne pepper, cos lettuce, early blood turnip-rooted beet, the aforementioned cabbage, prickly-seeded spinach, thyme, and white eggplant. They will ship the sampler in early March, 2010.

The sampler will fill one of my three 5’x10’x3’ raised beds, which are made of Pacific Coast Redwood logs cut some three miles from my place when the logs’ owner wanted to thin his grove. I’ll be able to sit on the edges of these beds to weed without inconvenient bending!

Additional places for finding heirloom seeds include: Nichols Garden Nursery (Mansfield, MO and Petaluma, CA), www.rareseeds.com; R.H. Shumway (Wisconsin), www.rhshumway.com; Heirloom Seeds (Pennsylvania), which offers organic fertilizer and many other garden items including plant labels, 25 for $2.25 for those of us who can’t tell a turnip leaf from a salamander; and the intriguing Heritage Farm (www.seedsavers.org) where for a $40 membership, one can find advice on growing, the opportunity to trade seeds with other heirloomers, as well as a tremendous variety of available seeds.

Hope some of these suggestions work for you; let me know at koltun3@gmail.com.

DAY 74 THIS ALKALINE YEAR: Dreaming A Garden

2010-01-12T17:49:00.000-08:00

Day 74 THIS ALKALINE YEAR: Dreaming A Garden

Winter used to be the time to peruse the plant catalogs; now I study online. It’s much more interesting than most of the staid old catalogs; the new Websites offer much more than seed and starts. Some, such as www.homegrownediblelandscaping@blogspot.com, offer design support. This Pensylvania-based company is big on Facebook. One Seattle-based site, www.eatyouryard.com, states: “The goal of this program is to cultivate year-around gardeners.” And www.kitchengardeners.org offers support, encouragement, and a funny view of Barack and Michelle Obama in a Grant Woods pose with carrots in their mouths.

Still too early to order as we won’t be home from Arizona until April and our car won’t hold much more than ourselves, a few bags, and Binka. Here are some more of the Websites to which I’ll turn at that time, or four days before we leave, so they’ll be home when we arrive:

www.ediblelandscaping.com. This Virginia-based company has more fruit and nut trees than actual vegetables, includes the most detailed zone chart I’ve seen, and detailed planting and caring information. Particularly intriguing to me were their Knight asparagus, Arapaho thornless blackberries, and a dwarf blueberry for which I have the perfect pot that would, of course, need netting against our hungry northwest birds. Although almonds don’t usually grow well in the Pacific Northwest, I may try their Halls Hardy Almond, a cross of almond and peach trees.

Again in the starts department (tomorrow I’ll do a whole blog on seeds),

www.tastefulgarden.com, an Alabama-based firm, offers organic fertilizer, no zone chart, but shipping dates for most states. They must know what they’re talking about for Washington state, as they recommend different dates for eastern and western Washington, which if states were based solely on climate would be two different ones. I want ALL of their vegetables, which include skinny little French filet beans, leeks, fennel, zucchini and yellow crookneck squash.

DAY 73 THIS ALKALINE YEAR Good Energy!

2010-01-11T21:40:00.000-08:00

The past week of eating mostly alkaline paid off today in a burst of energy that started when Binka jumped on our bed this morning with her usual demand to go outside. A little later, she and I had a good five-mile run at a leisurely 14-minute pace. Later, talking with the Senior Games people, a kind lady with a British accent told me that the winner in my age group last year covered the course in a little over 10-minute miles. Well! I’ve some work to do!

Rowed 2,000 meters in 14:57 later in the afternoon, and managed to find an hour to write part of a short story. It’s always a good day when the latter happens.

Oatmeal with raisins for breakfast, soup for lunch made from last night’s leftover stew, and a big dinner salad, after which we played four-handed cribbage in a large group for the first time and snacked on an apple back home.

DAY 72, THIS ALKALINE YEAR Tools of the Trade

2010-01-10T19:04:00.000-08:00

One problem of being a snowbird is that my favorite tools are sometimes in the other house. This is particularly true this winter; our Northwest leave-taking was stressful as my husband had suffered a fall so I needed to pack for two of us. What I miss the most is my beloved Vita-Mixer. Here in Arizona I have a blender that doesn’t do the job well. Tonight, for instance, I made garlicky cauliflower, which is supposed to have the consistency of mashed potatoes. The blender purees reluctantly. To make it grind up the steamed cauliflower, I needed to add so much vegetable broth that the dish tasted like watery mashed potatoes.

Next to the top on my tools list is a knife with a heavy blade that will smoosh garlic cloves easily. It, too, is sitting in my Northwest kitchen. I also discovered while eating the cauliflower tonight that I’d used way too much garlic. Half a clove of elephant garlic is plenty to flavor enough cauliflower to feed two adults; had used a whole clove and can still taste it an hour afterwards!

On the whole, however, today has been very good. I spent half an hour on the rowing machine at our neighborhood athletic center, and later jogged two miles with Binka. My athletic aspirations took a great leap when I found that our town has Senior Games in March. I immediately signed up for a 5 K footrace, for which I may have an advantage in that it’s a much shorter distance than the five or six miles I customarily cover, but a disadvantage in that I’ll be at the top of my age group (70-74).

Day 71 THIS ALKALINE YEAR Market-basket Update, New Food Prep Method

2010-01-09T16:23:00.000-08:00

Made this week’s second (and final) grocery shopping, which included the usual tomatoes, almonds, radishes, eggplant, leeks, red onion, garlic, with a few new additions: apples, oranges, cauliflower, quinoa pasta, lemons, rolled oats. Total: $43.13. Total for week: $116.06. Seems expensive; thirty years ago, I fed a family of four on $100/week; this is just for the two of us with occasional guests. Am hoping that total will go down as I pay greater attention to it. Jack is getting into the spirit of this adventure, so perhaps I won’t need to buy much extra food for him.

When you go to all the food-prep effort of chopping and dicing and creating a great meal, it seems counter-productive to let leftovers moulder in the refrigerator, right? My newest food prep method, for the past few nights, has been to make varied vegetable stews, a little more than we needed for dinner, refrigerating, then throwing the leftovers into the blender to make soup for lunch the next day. One meal, which both Jack and I liked, was eggplant cutlets topped with a generous helping of the stew.

To make the cutlets, roast the whole eggplant in a 400-degree oven for 20 minutes, let it cool a little, then peel it and cut four big slices, each about ¾” thick, from the middle. Brush each side with sesame oil, salt and pepper to taste, then set them aside until the stew is almost ready. (You can use the extra eggplant the next day in the lunch soup.) Just before finishing the stew (see below), turn the oven to “Broil.” Set the eggplant slices under the broiler until nicely browned on each side.

For the stew, you’ll already have a beet boiling and a yam nearly baked in the oven. Dice half of a big fennel bulb, as much of the leek as you care to clean (the green part is good nearly up to the top), and brown them in a little olive oil. Chop (each vegetable) and add half a green pepper, a tomato, the baked yam and mostly-boiled beet, and add half a cup of vegetable broth. Add salt and pepper to taste, and spices such as turmeric or garam masala. Cover, lower the heat and let the mixture simmer for five or ten minutes, adding more broth if needed.

While the stew is simmering, broil the eggplant cutlets as suggested above. Spoon the stew liberally over and around the “cutlets” and enjoy!

Day 70 This Alkaline Year Do You Want to Live to 100?

2010-01-08T21:29:00.000-08:00

During my travels of the last few weeks, I’ve enjoyed reading John Robbins’ Healthy at 100, an intelligent, sensitive book that explores spiritual as well as physical and mental aspects of increasing your life span. An internationally-known speaker on environmental subjects, he has written several other books, including Diet for a New America. I’ve been intrigued by his work for many years because he walks the talk without being self-absorbed: a particularly worthy goal.

Not having any particular aspiration to live to be 100—at least no more aspiration than I had to run marathons before doing it--Robbins’ book nonetheless underscored for me the importance of living healthily to any age. Doing for others is essential to good health, and he provides numerous insights on this process. He shows, for instance, how all societies where people live the longest have strong community, where wealth means nothing unless it is shared, and where the traditions of caring are strong. Conversely, the societies where wealth is concentrated among very few people who do not share are characterized by short life spans among wealthy as well as poor. I figure our North American society is a mixed bag!

As for the nutritional aspects of living a healthy old age, Robbins provides a fascinating discussion of the China Study, called the most comprehensive examination of the relationship between diet and the risk of developing disease. A cancer survey, initially undertaken at the behest of then-premier Chou En-Lai, involved 880 million Chinese citizens, providing information about the rates of 12 kinds of cancer in different counties of that country. Seven years after his death from liver cancer, the international China Study used this epidemiological base to study the nutrition in in 24 of China’s 27 provinces.

The correlations between eating habits and rates of cancer, heart disease and diabetes were so strong in the more affluent areas where people could afford to eat meat and took to it with gusto, that Dr. T. Colin Campbell, who directed the project, said it would be most accurate to stop referring to “diseases of affluence” and instead call them “diseases of nutritional extravagance.”

Robbins notes: “As a result of the vast amount of information gathered in the China Study, Dr. Campbell came to believe that the scientific evidence indicates a diet based on plant foods with a minimal amount of foods derived from animals as the ideal diet for human beings.”

Sound familiar? That’s Michael Pollan’s “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

Might it be that as we become more affluent, we are faced with more choices of relating to our fellow human beings, and that as we share our food choices as well as other ways of caring, we strengthen our society as well as ourselves? In a stronger society, living to 100 healthily could be the norm.

DAY 69 THIS ALKALINE YEAR A Constitution for Eaters: Voting With Our Dollars

2010-01-07T15:52:00.000-08:00

Michael Pollan’s well-reasoned book, In Defense of Food, lays down three simple but not simplistic rules for eaters that amount to a constitutional framework for healthy living, one that has judicial, legislative and executive aspects. The rules: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

If you accept Rule One, for instance, the judicial part means judging foods by whether they are whole foods or processed. Are they grown locally or have they come from a distance? If the latter, have preservatives been used to keep them fresh? The legislative part means that when eating in company—as most of us want to do—you’re free to make different choices than your table mates; everybody doesn’t have to eat the same way (although the eater should take responsibility for major food prep choices), and neither you nor they need to feel guilty or pressured about that. Finally, the executive part means considering your food decisions carefully, including the money you spend on your choices.

If you’re going to eat organic vegetables, it will probably cost more. Giving up wine and coffee can cut your costs dramatically while furthering your basic alkaline well-being. Says Pollan: “. . . shopping this way takes more money and effort, but as soon as you begin to treat that expenditure not just as shopping but also as a kind of vote—a vote for health in the largest sense—food no longer seems like the smartest place to economize.”

Back on Day 60, I noted: “I am willing to bet all comers that I can save $30 weekly on a two-person budget by eating alkaline, over what I’d buy to make Standard American Meals. The reason: I’ll be buying fresh fruits and vegetables, a little seasoning, rice and coconut milk, olive oil, whole grains such as emmer, quinoa and oatmeal. Most important in the savings, of course, is what I’ll NOT be buying: coffee, sugar, most packaged, processed foods, meats, dairy, starches such as breads, and of course, alcohol. I’d welcome suggestions for the comparison, which I’ll start in January, 2010.”

Okay, it’s pedal-to-the-metal time! For my two-person family, husband not eating as alkaline as myself, grocery bills Jan. 5 totalled $72.96. That included organic avocados, grapefruit, bananas, broccoli, hearts of romaine, almonds, red cabbage, green bell peppers, parsley, anise, salad dressing, salsa, and macaroni and cheese packets, the latter three items being for Jack. He already has cereal, bread, and rice milk on hand from previous shoppings, but this should even out in the next few weeks.

I’m keeping copies of the grocery bills, along with an Excel spread sheet. Let me know how you’re doing; koltun3@gmail.com should reach me.

Time to head out for an easy jog: three miles today.

Hope you enjoy the economic benefits of eating alkaline, as well as improved health!

Back to the Basics!

2010-01-06T21:23:00.000-08:00

DAY 68 January 6, 2010 After a five-week hiatus in which I’ve traveled from Washington state to Boston and then settled into Arizona for the winter, I've made a variety of food choices, tending toward alkaline/vegan but often with a glass of wine at dinner, coffee, breads, and sometimes dessert, I’m ready to start this blog again and of course to rejoin Camp Alkaline. For the last few days, I’m been a devoted camper, and already am beginning to shed a bad cold that followed the poor eating choices. I’ve also acquired a couple of new outlooks: 1) to explore how eating choices help or hinder my daily walking/jogging; and 2) to make my alkaline food look more attractive to both my husband and myself.

Toward Outlook Two, in Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts gift shop, I found a handsome book, Great Chefs Cook Vegan, by Linda Long, who according to the inside cover blurb has been involved with vegan cookery for more than 30 years. I can’t use all the recipes because some call for sugar or artificial sweeteners, or for starches such as potatoes that are acid-forming, but the photography is wonderful and useful and many of the chef's dishes are adaptable.

Outlook One will be easy to measure in another few weeks, as I walk and jog nearly every day. Our dog, Binka, goes with me, and if I miss a day she responds by chewing up the furniture, which provides lots of motivation to get out there. Using today as a baseline, we covered six-and-a-half miles in a leisurely hour and a half: 55 minutes walking the first 3.25 miles and 35 minutes jogging the last 3.25 miles. The times—15-minute miles overall, more than 10-minute miles on the jogging part--are far from the seven and eight-minute miles of my fifth decade; it will be fun to see if that can be whittled down without concomitant aches or pains.

I wish all readers a healthy, successful and joyous new year.

DAY 65 A Four-Day Hiatus

2009-11-30T08:00:00.000-08:00

After five days of poor eating initiatives—a persistent storm of consuming coffee (4-5 cups of decaf with cream and sugar), leftover chocolate mints that I’d resisted at Thanksgiving, turkey hash with curried rice, sweet braided bread that a friend brought from a Swedish bakery in Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood, coffee, cookies and panini at the weekend fair where I was selling my lavender sachets, lots of cheese and crackers—I awoke this morning with a dull headache and flatulence.

The latter always reminds me of my Grandmother, a tiny lady who lived with severe osteoporosis and a stronger faith. One Christmas when she was in her early nineties, after an enormous meal, all the uncles and aunts and parents and children—some sixteen, if I recall correctly—were seated around a blazing fire in the cavernous stone fireplace in our living room. After a while, she excused herself, walked slowly to the library, and closed the door. Even amidst several conversations, everybody could hear what happened next; it sounded as though cannons were being fired in the library. In a few minutes, she slid the door open and walked back to her seat by the fire, a little smile on her face. The rest of us struggled to contain our laughter. Nobody said a word!

Back to the present: my dull headache persists. OK, makes no sense to wallow in this self-imposed misery. Before starting the day, I’ll drink a glass of water with powdered greens, thank Grandmother Ferris for showing me the results of poor eating choices as well as some pretty good things to do—her love of the Biblical phrase, “Be still, and know that I am God” was the basis for my off-again, on-again attempts at meditation and prayer—and live in hope that I’ll return to eating alkaline again today.

What caused my storm of poor eating choices? Certainly the ways I chose to respond to the stresses of an extra-busy week had a lot to do with it, which points me once again toward meditation as the best way out of stress; wasn’t doing much of that this past week either. On my kitchen bulletin board is an aphorism, its source long-forgotten: “Argue for your limitations, and they’re yours; argue for your possibilities and they’re yours too.” It is just possible that I’ll be able to respond differently to stress today. Tomorrow will take care of itself.

DAY 61 A Magnificent Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T21:05:00.000-08:00

This was one of the best Thanksgivings ever! Yes, I broke down and ate everything, except coffee and wine. Everybody brought special dishes: fruit salad, turkey with stuffing and gravy, green beans in sauce, pies; I did yams, mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts and asparagus, and a green salad.

However, it was the people, much more than the food, that made the evening special! Susan Mustard, a fine artist, brought me a magnificent collage she’d made from a photo taken last summer when I was selling lavender wands at the Farmers’ Market! She builds her collages from old book covers, books that other people are throwing away, which she treasures for their beauty and variety. I have loved her collages since I first saw them, and to have this one is deeply moving. Her husband, Jim, is a tractor aficionado who enjoyed talking about the machines with Chris, who repairs and collects these workhorses. Carole, who with Chris and myself, grew up on North Beach Road here, is going to Austin, Texas, for Christmas, and Susan and Jim last year moved here from there.

My old friend Jan, who had a stroke last year that was so severe, the doctor at first didn’t want to order physical therapy because he didn’t think she’d benefit from it, WALKED in on the arm of Robert, her significant other and caregiver par excellence. I was overjoyed that they could come. Even though she still has some physical impairment from the stroke, she retains her amazing intellect.

Chris and Evelyn made a super-moist turkey with Evelyn’s unique stuffing and gravy, and we chatted for a while after the guests left. They are going to spend Christmas in Hawaii with their son and his wife. Our houseguest, Damien, helped people to their cars, cleaned up a smashed dish, and in general was his most caring self.

There is so much to be thankful for, and friends top the list! Happy Friend-giving, everybody!

DAY 60 Eating Alkaline Saves $$$ on Food Budget

2009-11-25T15:21:00.000-08:00

I am willing to bet all comers that I can save $30 weekly on a two-person budget by eating alkaline, over what I’d buy to make Standard American Meals. The reason: I’ll be buying fresh fruits and vegetables, a little seasoning, rice and coconut milk, almonds and sunflower seeds, whole-grain cereals such as emmer and oatmeal, olive oil, instead of what I’ll NOT be buying: coffee, sugar, packaged, processed foods, meats, dairy, starches such as breads, and of course, alcohol. I’d welcome suggestions for the comparison, which I’ll start in January, 2010.

Oops! Missed Day 59; preparing for Thanksgiving! Wishing everybody a happy one!

DAY 58 THIS ALKALINE YEAR: Oncologist Backs Sugar Cutback!

2009-11-23T21:40:00.000-08:00

Birthday lunch for another friend today, with a surprising boost to alkaline theories! The birthday girl is a cancer survivor, still in chemotherapy but will find out tomorrow how the treatment is progressing. Her oncologist told her that sugar feeds cancers, so she did not want dessert, although the restaurant had some beautiful and tempting ones. I and another friend who were with her didn’t have dessert either.

While I had fish (lox with capers) and a little rye bread and sort of a cheesy mixture to spread on the bread, and therefore cannot say it was alkaline except for the greens that came with it, I did continue my 58-day coffee abstinence, didn't even consider wine, and had a very good ginger-lavender tea. I feel excited and uplifted by the experience because it seems that some allopathic physicians, at least, are understanding more about the roles of our common foods.

Another friend and I walked our dogs around the neighboring lake, noticing that the dogs, off their leashes as the area was deserted except for us, covered ten times as much territory as we did! They are such fun to watch: running like greyhounds, the smaller one as fast as the larger pooch.