healthnut

She’s skinny, and she doesn’t skimp on olive oil!

http://www.youtube.com/user/DepressionCooking

Altoprev, Atorvastatin, Crestor, Fluvastatin, Lescol, Lipitor, Lovastatin, Mevacor, Pravachol, Pravastatin, Simvastatin, Rosuvastatin, Vytorin, and Zocor are all statin drugs that can make you fat. They reduce the cholesterol by inhibiting a liver enzyme called HMG-CoA reductase from making a fat soluble vitamin called CoQ10 or Q10 that our bodies need to reduce muscle aches and to maintain proper metabolism. Without adequate CoQ10, cells get damaged, the immune system becomes compromised, and the metabolism slows down; hence weight gain!

Studies have shown that among the obese population, a deficiency in CoQ10 makes it more difficult to lose weight. But once given CoQ10, weight loss becomes easier.

Contrarily to this, the National Health Institute, an unbias resource of health information, has stated that the use of CoQ10 supplements may not adequately reduce the adverse effects of statins. Although these adverse effects are not clearly stated, the adverse effects of statins are primarily related to muscle damage. Yes, muscle damage!

Should you wish to get off of statin, consult with your doctor FIRST before seeking alternative treatments. Untreated high cholesterol can lead to other serious complications including heart diseases and strokes.

Additional Info:

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-coenzymeq10.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090127090735.htm

http://blog.perriconemd.com/what-is-coq10/

If you eat alot of salads, it is best to douse them in a food grade hydrogen peroxide before consumption. Spring mixes, romaine lettuce, butter lettuce, spinach, kale, chard, arugula, cabbage, escarole, and endive are all healthy and low in calories. But they also account for 24% of all food borne illness. In fact, leafy greens tops the list as the riskiest foods to eat.

http://cspinet.org/new/pdf/cspi_top_10_fda.pdf

The Top 10 Riskiest Foods to Eat According to the FDA

1) Leafy Greens
2) Eggs
3) Tuna
4) Oysters
5) Potatoes
6) Cheese
7) Ice Cream
Tomatoes
9) Sprouts
10) Berries

If you can get oats, get them.  They’re rich in undigestible carbs and fat digesting enzymes.

“Oats contain from two to five times the fat that wheat does, mainly in the bran ad endosperm rather than the germ, and also carry large amounts of a fat digesting enzyme.”

“They’re rich in indigestible carbohydrates called beta-glucans, which absorb and hold water, give hot oatmeal its smooth, thick consistency, have a tenderizing, moistening effect in baked goods, and help lower our blood cholesterol levels.  The glucans are found mainly in the outer layers of the endosperm under the aleurone layer, and so are especially concentrated in oat brans.”

- From “On Food and Cooking” by Harold Mc Gee

Health experts love to preach about the goodness of a plant based diet but almost never do you hear them talk about the bad side.   Not all foods are in their edible state, and some do carry natural occurring toxins.  These toxins are NOT the byproduct of pesticides by ARE the plants’ natural defenses.   They occur in both organic and conventional grown foods.    If you use a high speed blender, such as a Vitamix, or even a juicer, be wary NOT to exploit the “power of bio availability” by grinding everything into pieces thinking you are gaining some health benefit.  You may be gaining some “poison” instead.  The seeds from oranges or cherries, for instance, contain cyanide.

Here’s a partial list of the potential toxicities in some of the more common foods:

1)  CELERY - Very low in calories and rich in Vitamin K, celery should be eaten fresh.  Prolong storage and extreme cold temperature can induce psoralens in celery.  “Psoralens are chemicals that damage DNA and cause blistering skin inflammations…Psoralens are absorbed through the skin during handling, or by being ingested with the vegetable, either raw or cooked.  They lie dormant in skin cells until they’re struck by ultraviolet rays in sunlight, which causes them to bind to and damage DNA and important cell proteins, according to “On Food and Cooking” by Harold Mc Gee.

2)  BRAZIL NUTS - Nuts are generally healthy, but more than a few pieces of Brazil nuts per day can be hazardous.    Brazil nuts are EXTREMELY HIGH in selenium, radium, and barium.  Selenium is a trace mineral, which means we need very little of this.    Too much selenium will induce selenosis, ie. make your hair or nails fall out.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A37112-2003Dec28&notFound=true

“The Brazil nut tree absorbs radium from the soil and concentrates it in the meat of the nut. Research into the radiation risks of consuming the nuts is scarce. A report published in the journal Health Physics in 1968 noted the high level of radioactivity, concluding that “it is to be expected that individuals who regularly eat Brazil nuts for many years will eventually build up elevated radium body burdens.” The Food and Drug Administration has no recommendation on Brazil nut consumption other than warning of a possible allergic reaction, as with other nuts. “

3)  POTATOES - Potatoes with either sprouting roots or green pigments should be discarded because they contain solanine and/or chaconine.  According to Wilkipedia, “Solanine poisoning is primarily displayed by gastrointestinal and neurological disorders. Symptoms include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach cramps, burning of the throat, heart arrhythmia, headache and dizziness. Hallucinations, loss of sensation, paralysis, fever, jaundice, dilated pupils and hypothermia have been reported in more severe cases.In large quantities, solanine poisoning can cause death. One study suggests that doses of 2 to 5 mg per kilogram of body weight can cause toxic symptoms, and doses of 3 to 6 mg per kilogram of body weight can be fatal.”

http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/toxicagents/steroid.html

“…the concentration of these glycoalkaloids is highest in potato sprouts and green potato skins, and tomato vines and green tomatoes. Care should be taken to prevent the exposure of potatoes to sunlight. These alkaloids are not destroyed by cooking or drying at high temperatures. New potato varieties can not be introduced unless they contain less than 20 mg glycoalkaloids/100 g.”

http://postharvest.ucdavis.edu/datastorefiles/234-182.pdf

4)  FAVA BEANS - Favism occurs when the blood cells get destroyed after consuming fava beans.  Fortunately, this does not occur in everyone but in a small population, mainly in people of southern Mediterranean decent.

http://www.g6pd.org/favism/english/index.mv?pgid=intro

5)  PARSLEY - Like celery, parsley should be eaten as fresh as possible because of psoralens.

6)  PEARS, CHERRIES, PLUM, APPLES, BITTER ALMOND, APRICOT KERNELS OR SEEDS - All of these contain cyanide and should never be grinded into pieces with a Vitamix.  Bitter almond is illegal in the US, but I have purchased them by accident from a store, so be wary.   Also be wary of herbal supplements containing one of these ingredients.

7)  ALOE VERA - Aloe vera is often used as a first aid ointment but sometimes people blend some aloe vera in their smoothies.    Because there is very little evidence on the benefits of eating aloe vera, it is best not to imbibe in aloe vera.    They do  contain “…saponin-like glycosides that break down to anthraquinones (Fuller and McClintock 1986 p280)”

http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/php/plants.php?action=faqs&num=7

8)  TOMATOES - DO NOT EAT or JUICE the leaves, stems or blossoms of tomatoes because they contain solanine.

http://www.tomatoesareevil.com/tomatohealth.htm

9)  APRICOTS - Unripe apricots (green) contain cyanide releasing “amygdalin” or “prunasin” glycosides.

http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/php/plants.php?action=faqs&num=9

10)  RICE - According to “On Food & Cooking”, “Raw rice almost always carries dormant spores of the bacterium Bacillus cereus, which produces powerful gastrointestinal toxins.  The spores can tolerate high temperatures, and some survive cooking.  If cooked rice is left for a few hours at room temperature, the spores germinate, bacteria multiply, and toxins accumulate.”