The “fact” that junk food is cheaper than real food has become a reflexive part of how we explain why so many Americans are overweight, particularly those with lower incomes.

“I frequently read confident statements like, ‘when a bag of chips is cheaper than a head of broccoli …’ or ‘it’s more affordable to feed a family of four at McDonald’s than to cook a healthy meal for them at home.’ This is just plain wrong,” says New York Times Op-ed Columnist Mark Bittman in: Is Junk Food Really Cheaper?

Supermarket tomatoes may look delicious — smooth, red and unblemished — but for the most part, they taste like nothing at all.

Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit

“I think tomatoes in grocery stores are like food porn in the purest sense of the word,” author Barry Estabrook tells Weekends on All Things Considered host Guy Raz. “They tantalize you, they make you think, but they don’t deliver.”

Estabrook is the author of a new book, Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit. It lays out why supermarket tomatoes tend to taste so bad — and how they got that way. Learn more about the Troubled History Of The Supermarket Tomato in this NPR special feature.

Payola for Prescriptions – Ethical or Not?

Julie Dixon writes…

Think there’s no such thing as a free lunch? Well, think again, my friends! That is, if you’re a physician or nurse practitioner.  And a pharmaceutical company wants to be your BFF.

It’s common practice in the pharmaceutical industry for companies to woo potential prescribers of their pills with free meals, gifts, free samples, etc.  And you know what? The practitioners are more than OK with it. Ninety percent of NP’s polled in a recent study said it was acceptable practice to attend meals sponsored by drug companies.  And very few (around one percent, to be precise) believe the freebies have a significant impact on their prescribing practices.  They’re downright outraged by the accusations, actually:

“I blame the pin-striped MBAs, who mistakenly believe that physicians are going to prescribe certain medicines because the company plies them with pens.” – anonymous doctor (source)

But the stats don’t lie.  Gifts — even small ones — have been shown to have an impact.  Is this ethical?  Would you want your doctor prescribing something for you based on the great (free!) dinner he or she was taken out to the week before? Does it really impact consumers (i.e. patients) at all?

One potential way that patients are harmed by these types of practices is in free samples.  A doctor is given samples to distribute.  Patients take the samples and then when they run out, fill a prescription for the same drug — without realizing there may be cheaper generic alternatives available.  The drug company makes more money, and all are happy — right?

Read the Full Article Here: http://freshsqueezeddaily.net/?p=1114

Big pharma has paid US doctors $150m already in 2011
by pmlive.com

A report by the Financial Times has claimed a group of pharmaceutical companies has paid doctors in the US almost $150m so far during 2011.

Prepared in conjunction with the data provider, PharmaShine, the figures show the money was paid by pharmaceutical firms, including Eli Lilly, AstraZeneca (AZ) and Pfizer, for doctors’ travel and entertainment expenses as well as education and consultancy fees.

Of those companies who have released data, Lilly is reported to have paid $48m and Pfizer to have paid $42m.

AZ, who recently launched a database containing payments made to doctors and institutions, said $24.7m was paid out in associated compensation for the second quarter of 2011, with $8.1m going to individual physicians and $16.6m going to institutions.

In a post on the company’s AZ Health Connections blog, US compliance officer, Marie Martino, gave reason as to why the company was releasing its data.

She said: “AstraZeneca believes it is important to be open about how we conduct our business, and this new reporting expands on a major initiative announced three years ago to provide greater public visibility into how we do business.”

Around 165,000 doctors have received related payments in 2011 so far, compared to 262,000 doctors who received payment in 2010.

The report comes at a time when US government agencies are preparing guidelines to make the publication of industry support for medical professionals compulsory by 2013.

This is part of ongoing US healthcare reforms as an attempt to allow better, more consistent understanding of the pharmaceutical industry’s relationship with healthcare professionals in the US.

In the UK, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) changed its code of practice at the beginning of 2011 to help increase transparency of working practices between the pharmaceutical industry and healthcare professionals to help increase trust.

Companies will have to declare payments to healthcare professionals for services including speaker fees, advisory boards and consultancy, and sponsorship for attendance at meetings on an annual basis. The first declaration will be made in 2013 for payments made in 2012.

Read the Full Article Here:  http://www.pmlive.com/find_an_article/allarticles/categories/General/2011/august_2011/news/big_pharma_pays_us_doctors_$150m_in_2011

Government regulation of genetically engineered crops, already weak, is increasingly non-existent. The latest example of this new hands-off policy is the commercialization of Monsanto’s first flagship product for the produce aisle: genetically engineered sweet corn, containing the Bt toxin and herbicide-resistant genes.

Monsanto’s new sweet corn produces Bt toxin, a genetically modified version of an insecticide from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. Until now, Monsanto’s Bt corn and cotton crops have mostly been used in animal feed and highly processed ingredients. Even with this limited exposure, Bt toxin has already been found in the blood of pregnant women and fetuses. No one knows what will happen to people who eat Monsanto’s new Bt sweet corn, but Bt crops have proven deadly for grazing animals from livestock to monarch butterflies.

Monsanto’s new sweet corn is also “RoundUp Ready,” meaning it can tolerate unlimited amounts of Monsanto’s herbicide RoundUp. Roundup causes endocrine disruption, damage to DNA, reproductive and developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, and cancer, as well as birth defects. Many of these effects are found at very low doses, comparable to levels of pesticide residues found in food and the environment. Monsanto’s new sweet corn will have a lot more RoundUp on it than non-genetically engineered varieties.

This is outrageous! We’ve got to fight back against unregulated, unlabeled genetically engineered foods!

Take action…

Natural News asks, “How would you like a big, juicy burger loaded with onions, mustard, ketchup – and a big helping of drug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), a bacteria linked to a wide range of human diseases?”

If you find that dish stomach-churning instead of appetizing, then maybe you should think twice before eating not only meat, but chicken and turkey too, at least in the U.S..

According to a nationwide study just released by the Flagstaff, Arizona-based Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen),meat and poultry from U.S.grocery stores have an unexpectedly high rate of dangerous disease-causing bacteria, including antibiotic resistant superbugs. In fact, almost half (47 percent) of all meat and poultry samples tests were contaminated with S. aureus.

What’s more, 52 percent of these contaminated meats contained superbugs, meaning the bacteria were resistant to multiple classes of antibiotics.That adds up to multi-antibiotic resistant Staph germs being present in about one out of every 4 samples of meat, chicken or turkey.

“For the first time, we know how much of our meat and poultry is contaminated with antibiotic-resistant Staph, and it is substantial,” Lance B. Price, Ph.D., senior author of the study and Director of TGen’s Center for Food Microbiology and Environmental Health, said in a statement to the media.

The research, published today in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, is the first national investigation of antibiotic resistant S. aureus in the U.S. food supply. The scientists collected and analyzed 136 samples of beef, chicken, pork and turkey sold under 80 brands in 26 retail grocery stores in Los Angeles, Chicago, Fort Lauderdale, Flagstaff and Washington, D.C..

So where does this downright nauseating contamination come from? The TGen researchers reported that DNA testing shows the food the animals themselves were fed is likely the major source of contamination.

“The fact that drug-resistant S. aureus was so prevalent, and likely came from the food animals themselves, is troubling, and demands attention to how antibiotics are used in food-animal production today,” Dr. Price adds.

The dirty truth many Americans – especially meat eaters – don’t want to face is that conditions on so-called industrial farms are not only often inhumane but downright sickening. Animals raised for slaughter are packed together densely and steadily fed low doses of antibiotics in their food. The new report concludes these industrial farms are the ideal breeding grounds for drug-resistant bacteria that can move from animals to the human population.

“The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria – including Staph — remains a major challenge in clinical medicine,” Paul S. Keim, Ph.D., Director of TGen’s Pathogen Genomics Division and Director of the Center for Microbial Genetics and Genomics at Northern Arizona University (NAU), emphasized in a media statement.

“This study shows that much of our meat and poultry is contaminated with multidrug-resistant Staph. Now we need to determine what this means in terms of risk to the consumer,” Dr. Keim, a co-author of the paper, added.

But doesn’t the U.S. government routinely survey retail meat and poultry for drug-resistant bacteria? The study points out the feds only check for four types of superbugs — but S. aureus is not among them. The paper urges a more comprehensive inspection program and points out S. aureus can cause devastating health problems.

While it’s true Staph germs can usually be killed with proper cooking, the scientists pointed out Staph still poses a substantial health risk through improper food handling and cross-contamination in the kitchen. Infections with S. aureus can cause a range of illnesses from minor skininfectionsto life-threatening diseases, such as pneumonia, endocarditis (inflammation of the heart) and sepsis (infection in the bloodstream).

And should you get one of these antibiotic-resistant strains from meat or poultry, treatment can be difficult.

“Antibiotics are the most important drugs that we have to treat Staph infections; but when Staph are resistant to three, four, five or even nine different antibiotics – like we saw in this study – that leaves physicians few options,” Dr. Price states.

Learn more at Natural News…

With the help of the community, we will soon have a dog park in Egg Harbor!

We are thrilled to announce that a conditional use permit has been issued by the Village of Egg Harbor for a dog park to be located in Village View Park on Church St, south of the Peg Egan Performing Arts Center. The park will have two, fenced sections; one for small dogs and a more spacious area for large dogs. Having a place where dogs can run freely and play with other dogs is a valuable asset to both dog owners and our community.

The Village of Egg Harbor has granted use of the land, but in order for our dogs to be safe, the area must be fenced and that’s where all of us come in. We need to come up with the funds to build the fence, provide benches and after that, add a weather shelter for the human visitors. The fallow area within Village View Park that has been designated for our new dog park lies along Church Street from the driveway to Harbor School Road. The area is approximately 100’ x 375,’ with an elevation change and shade trees that will make this park distinctive from those in Sister Bay and Sturgeon Bay.

As is the best practice in dog park design, we will need a 6’ fence with double entrance gates, plus a  gate between the two sections within the park. To accomplish the purchase of the fence, installation, benches, picnics tables and a shelter, we must raise $20,000.

For a $200 donation, you may become the sponsor of a 10’ fence section. Each 10’ section will have a metal plaque giving the donor’s name or memorial dedication. A $500 donation will buy a picnic table with, of course, a plaque acknowledging your gift. A donation in the amount of $1000 will provide the weather shelter. A donation of any amount will be acknowledged with a listing on our donors’ register and earn a bag of dog treats, courtesy of Greens N’ Grains.

This is not a 501 c 3 donation and therefore not tax deductible. If you would like to be a part of this exciting new amenity in Egg Harbor, please make out a check to “Harbor Hounds” and include your mailing address, email address and send your donation to:

Harbor Hounds
5110 Alpen Lane
Egg Harbor, WI 54209

You will receive an email confirmation and regular updates on our progress towards building Harbor Hounds Dog Park in 2011!

Thanks very much!
Kathy Navis 920.868.9999 and Nancy Fisher 920.868.1693

Like the Harbor Hounds on Facebook.

Greens-N-Grains staff member Elise Roberts has recently been hired as the Upper Midwest Regional Organizer for Witness for Peace (WFP).

WFP’s mission is to support peace, justice and sustainable economies in the Americas by changing U.S. policies and corporate practices which contribute to poverty and oppression in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Midwestern branch is sending a delegation to Colombia in April with a focus on “Women Leading the Way to Justice and Peace.”  Please, consider joining this Witness for Peace delegation! Check out the link below and then look over all the great reasons for deciding in the affirmative. Feel free to contact Elise at 920.421.2269 with questions.

Colombia: Women Leading the Way to Justice and Peace
April 10, 2011 through April 20, 2011

Ten Top Reasons to Join a Witness for Peace Delegation:

10. Support a worthy organization and and participate in socially responsible
travel
9.  Make new friends from all over the US and beyond
8.  Join old friends who share your concerns and passion for justice
7.  Immerse yourself into another culture– the food, customs, language,
8.  Find out the truth beyond the media spin
5.  See the U.S. through the eyes of people who live south of the border
4.  Expand you horizons and stretch your mind around new ways of living and
thinking
3.  Build solidarity with those who are working for justice and peace
throughout the Americas
2.  Share your experiences and learnings with your family, friends,
co-workers and community
1.  Help build a better world—because a better world is possible!

Hailed as “the UK’s leading raw chef,” Russell James is also publisher of TheRawChef.com, a great raw food and philosophy resource.

Chef Russell James

“I first came across raw foods in Koh Samui, Thailand, when I was on a 7-day detox fast a a spa there,: says Russell James. “I was on day 5 of the fast and can remember sitting in the beach-side restaurant reading a raw recipe book from their library. Now, it may have been the fact that I hadn’t eaten for 5 days but I was amazed by the recipes in there. I read a description of what raw food is and why it is beneficial, it made so much sense and I had one of those life-defining moments, an epiphany.”

Russell James quickly got excited about the vibrancy and creativity of raw foods and the health benefits they bring. He felt a strong desire to share his discoveries and started food-blogging as a hobby,  posting pictures of his food. People started to notice and comment on how great the food looked.

Russell discovered a personal artistry in his capacity to create beautiful raw recipes from widely available ingredients and he started teaching people in his local area. News spread and he soon found himself teaching people from all over the UK and even people from other countries who came to learn from him.

He now teaches thousands of people world-wide about raw foods, both through his blog, a YouTube channel, live classes and his recently released homestudy DVD course. He has a recipe book to be released 2011/2012 and a great collection of raw food recipes in his blog.

“Our most recent food investigation has found that many ‘blueberry’ cereals, pastries, bagels, breads and bars are not made with real blueberries at all!” says the Natural News Insider.

Instead, the blueberries are faked using artificial colors (Red #40, Blue #2), partially-hydrogenated oils and liquid sugars like high fructose corn syrup.

Watch this 7-minute mini-documentary exposing the blueberry fraud in the food industry…

Please help share this message especially with moms and parents who buy foods for their children. They may think they’re buying health-enhancing blueberries for their kids, but much of the time they’re actually buying artificial coloring and chemicals, some of which have been linked to an increased risk of ADHD symptoms.

Natural News investigators even found that Total Blueberry Pomegranate Cereal contains no blueberries and no pomegranates!

Read the full report on this investigation of Kellog’s, Betty Crocker, General Mills and Target Stores at NaturalNews:
http://www.naturalnews.com/031054_blueberries_artificial_colors.html

Real blueberries are great for your health and an amazing source of antioxidants. But fake blueberries are made with chemicals and should always be avoided. Read the ingredients labels and avoid buying any foods using Red #40, Blue #1 or Blue #2.

This research was conducted by Mike Adams under the non-profit Consumer Wellness Center: www.ConsumerWellness.org

“In Wisconsin’s Door County, a number of restaurant chefs go out of their way to serve local foods – organic whenever possible,” says Laurel Kallenbach. “Here are five restaurants that deserve special mention.”

Inn at Kristofer’s in Sister Bay, Bluefront Café in Sturgeon Bay, T. Ashwell’s in Ellison Bay, White Gull Inn in Fish Creek and last but not least… Greens ‘n’ Grains Deli in Egg Harbor.

“On a December visit, I ordered a Zucchini Panini,” says Laurel, “featuring crisp slices of raw zucchini and radish with pesto and cheddar. The soup of the day was a Thai Sweet Potato and Red Pepper soup: very warming and satisfying.”

Read her Greenwala feature, Sustainable Dining in Door County, Wisconsin to learn about all of he top picks.

Drinking 500 milliliters of beet juice a day may significantly lower blood pressure, says a British study that found that healthy people’s blood pressure decreased within an hour of drinking the juice, BBC News reports.

The reduction in blood pressure was even more pronounced three to four hours after drinking the beet juice, and some degree of reduction continued for up to 24 hours. The findings were published online in the journal Hypertension.

NaturalNews reports that Beetroots, also known as beets, are packed with blood pressure-reducing, heart disease-preventing nutrients that help maintain healthy active function and boost overall endurance levels in those that consume them. And a new study out of the University of Exeter (U of E) has found that not only do beets benefit athletes by boosting their performance, but they also help the elderly and people with heart or lung diseases to live more active, physically-functional lives.

Published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, the study builds upon a previous one conducted by the university that found that beet juice increases exercise capacity by 16 percent in athletes that drink it. Except this time, these same benefits were found to apply to non-athletes as well, including those that have trouble performing everyday physical activities.

“As you get older, or if you have conditions which affect your cardiovascular system, the amount of oxygen you can take in to use during exercise drops considerably,” explained Katie Lansley, a Ph.D. student from the Sport and Health Sciences department at UofE, and author of the study. “What we’ve seen in this study is that beetroot juice can actually reduce the amount of oxygen you need to perform even low-intensity exercise.”

Beet juice not only dilates blood vessels to improve blood flow and lower blood pressure, but it also reduces the amount of oxygen muscles need during physical activity. This muscle effect makes it significantly easier for people of all ages, no matter what their health condition, to perform both low- and high-intensity physical activities. In fact, researchers noted that those who drank beet juice required 12 percent less effort to walk than those who did not drink it.

Based on a comparison between whole beet juice and beet juice that had its nitrates filtered out, the team was able to conclude that the natural nitrates are the primary active ingredient in beet juice that bring about improved overall performance and heart function.