Hi,

I would like to recommend a book that I believe everyone should read.

It's the Good Fat Cookbook by Fran McCullough.

The last half of the book is low carb recipes but it is the first section
that is the most interesting.

I found this book last summer and decided to make some of the changes to my diet. I eliminated all processed foods, trans fats, polyunsaturated oils and fast foods.

I was trying to get my arthritis and fibromyalgia under control. The 60 pounds that I have lost so far was only a side effect of those dietary changes.

My diet is very simple. I only eat what I cook. And I only use 5 fats: lard, coconut oil, olive oil, peanut oil and butter. I refuse to buy salad dressing because of the soybean oil (mayo, too) and I make my own.

I found a local farm that sells eggs from barnyard chickens. You wouldn't believe how good they are. And so fresh. Nothing like the grocery store eggs.

In addition, I take a tablespoon of pharmaceutical grade fish oil every day.

My body is simply functioning better than it has in years!!

Please do the best thing you can do for yourselves. Read and follow the guidelines in Fran's book.

Thanks for listenting!

I would like to add one more thing.

Please stop using pasturized, homogenized milk.

Buy whole fresh raw milk only. In the book, Ms. McCullough
discusses the hazards of pasturized milk products.

I switched to raw milk from a local dairy almost a year ago and
the difference is nothing less than amazing. I am no longer
lactose intolerant. Raw milk contains the enzymes that you need
to digest it. Enzymes that are destroyed in the pasturization process.

Check the website for the Weston A. Price foundation to figure out how you can purchase raw milk. www.westonaprice.org
or go to www.realmilk.com
for more info on the differences.

This is one of the major factors in my weight loss and a lessening of allergic symptoms, including some food allergies that I no longer have.

Good Luck and Best Wishes to you all.

Pegatha

Pegatha, Thank you for the information. I will be looking further into these ideas. I live close to the Amish, so maybe I could find the milk on their farms. Thanks again. Vonnie

I'm lactose intolerant too. But I don't really like the taste of any kind of milk, but as soon as I reach my goal weight, I'll check out raw milk

Pegatha, It's great to hear someone else who is concerned with exactly what food does to our bodies. I have been on the SCD diet for over a year and I love it! (It is supposed to help fibro)
I use only cold-pressed, unrefined coconut and olive oil and (here's the kicker) milk and meat from grass fed cows. From what I have read, the omega 3s (in grass fed) reverse inflamation and too much omega 6s can cause it.

Most meat, milk, cheese, & butter is all omega 6s with "barely detectable traces" of omega 3s. Grass fed products are the opposite.

My closest buddy was diagnose with UC, and after 4 months on the SCD diet, he is cured. I had to force him to stop taking the fish oil - he thought it was helping, but it was not. These suppliments are known to cause inflamation because of the high amount of omega 6s in them. As soon as he stopped taking them, his bleeding went away; enough proof for me!

Because of what I have read, I have made drastic changes in what types of products I eat and how I cook them:

Overheating (like microwaving) kills all the nutrients. I steam all my veggies now for just a few minutes.

I use only REAL sea salt, since I found out table salt is not salt at all, and plus we need the added minerals that is in real sea salt. Alot of the minerals in sea salt are essential to regulate body temperature, water (which we are made of, and need in every cell in our bodies) and mood! Lots of depressed people could benefit greatly from having REAL sea salt, and I curse the people who took our salt away and have been feeding us fake salt for over 50 years!!!!

I guess I have ranted enough..hee hee thanks for listening!

Wow! Cool thread! This is all the same way of eating that Schwarzbein recommends, for the most part.

I've been eating whole foods for 3 years now and have lost nearly 80 pounds just eating whole foods. I don't eat low carb perse, but lower compared to the way I used to eat (crap mainly).

I think I will check out that book, I'm sure I will find some interesting reading--thanks for the heads up on that one!

I don't drink milk at all anymore, so it won't really matter for me there. But I was getting the grass fed beef at Trader Joe's til they stopped carrying it. Not enough interest. BUT they said they will order it for me special if I buy 4 packages of it. So that's cool.

Agree about the salt thing. The salt on tables is fake and you need to use a lot more of it. This is why sea salt is better and tastes better--you get more flavor with less of it. I like the flaked style, too.

Please keep ranting! I started a thread about a month or two ago in the SCHWARZBEIN FORUM about if the hormones and stuff in corn fed meats are killing us, and I didn't get as much interest in the thread as I thought I would. Very disappointing.

Well if anyone here is into it, dredge up the thread and check it out, there is some good stuff in it to ponder and I would LOVE to see the responses.

I've been buying mostly organic range/grass fed meats, except this past week. We bought a new fridge and well there went the meat budget.

Thanks again for a great thread! --Betty

Also wanted to add agree about the microwaving thing. We got rid of ours a long long time ago. Firstly we never really used it for other than heating up leftovers or water. But mainly, it took up way to much counter space for something that rarely got used.

The first time I heard about nuking food damaging it and being harmful to eat was in of all places a book about cooking whole foods for DOGS. Yes, I cook for my dogs--you and I could eat this stuff, it's all freash and yummy.

But anyway, it's funny that the dog cookbook would have this kinda info, and nothing in my people cook books.

So it seems a few people like to rant also! Well you have no idea how happy that makes me! So I had to come back and rant a bit more.

I’ve spent a lot of time researching health benefits of foods; what is good and what is toxic, supplements, oils, and what is the least processed with the most live ingredients/ vitamins and minerals…. on and on and on. I email or phone the companies now, to find out exactly what is in the stuff and how much it’s processed, and what type of processing.

REAL SEA SALT: Solar dried, not processed, not ground and from the sea is best. So far, I have only found one brand that is good – celtic sea salt, light grey*- whole salt. Once ground, it loses about half of its value, you should grind it yourself before eating. I just dump the big crystals on my food and I don’t mind it at all!

Mined salt/mined ‘sea’ salt is half as nutritious as celtic sea salt and the minerals are not as balanced. The salt at grocery stores marked “sea salt” is horrible. Don’t let it fool you! It is so highly processed it is not worth buying at all – you may as well buy Mortons because you are paying extra for “sea” on the label and nothing more.

Note: If you use only REAL sea salt and never, ever eat processed foods, it’s good to keep a bottle of iodine around and slather some on before bed once a month. This way, you will not lack iodine.

GRASS FED: A lot of the companies that list “grass fed” or “free range” are full of bull! You really have to check them out to make sure they are not just offering a 2’ x 2’ plot of dirt for the animal and calling it free range or grass fed because there are no set standards for this right now.

I have written to these companies and I use their products because of what I have found out:
Organic Valley products are 80% grass fed (wheat, corn soy fed also)
Natural By Nature is 90% grass fed (very little soy, if any at all, wheat and corn fed also).
Grateful Harvest from Uruguay - %100 percent grass fed beef and it is so tender and tasty!
I have seen a few mail order cheeses and butters that are %100 grass fed and very expensive.

Some site I found helpful:
Vet who cured his self and pets of Fibro/celiac;, I found this site more helpful than a lot of human sites:
http://www.dogtorj.com/pages/556833/index.htm
Site on benefits of saturated fats vs. unsaturated (coconut and cocoa butter is good for you!) http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/...cle.jhtml?term=

Thanks for letting me rant. Such joy in ranting!

Hey thanks for all that info!

Well the salt I get is from Trader Joe's and comes in its own grinder. I don't know the origin of it but it's not pure white, a bit grey looking. I like th way it tastes.

RE iodine, I eat out enough to get plenty of crappy salt and iodine, so I think I'm okay there.

RE the grass fed meats, I was getting mine from TJs as well and it seems that it was not popular enough so like I said I need to call ahead and order it. I'm not really interested in buying meat from another country in general, so I'll have to take my chances with the so-called grass fed when I can find it.

I mean, I try to do well, but sometimes I don't feel like spending an extra $100 a week for the best of the best. I figure, at least I'm not eating the way I was 3 years ago. That's definitely a step in the right direction.

Truth be told, I avoid stress pretty well and like to think of myself as happy go lucky most of the time. If I spend too much time focusing on the food being all organic and perfect, I will most likely suffer symptoms of stress and counteract any benefit I was getting from eating the better food, if ya know what I mean!

I have to balance, I know you understand that. I do like to eat as well as I can. Whole Foods does sell some grass fed meat, but not much. I mean it is VERY hard to find. A friend of mine is a hunter and I hope he gets a deer next time around since that means WE will also benefit.

I'll check out those links you provided this weekend and see what I come up with. Information is always good. It's just that I can't always afford to do the perfect thing, only hoep to do the best I can at the time.

Agree on the salt thing, I use the good stuff there. But I don't really use much to begin with, maybe a few times a week tops. So a little grinder jar lasts me forever!

Looking forward to more rants! I get smarter each time I come here! --Betty

Betty - you are too kind! And it sounds to me as if you are on the right track. I realized the other day that I am a health "nut" and I don't mind, everyone needs a hobby!

But I do know too much about foods now, and it limits what I eat. It was hard at first but I have adapted well. Even tho I know its pure evil, I still crave kentucky fried chicken!

A number of my friends/relatives ended up with chronic diseases and I began to research them. The doctors only offered pills and more pills. The things I've learned have changed my outlook on eating dramatically. Many people find it extremely difficult to go as far as I have with it, and it is difficult.

Often the best journeys are the ones you take alone. But thru all of this, I have learned to weed thru the massive amounts of information & misinformation on the internet, to read studies and experiments and things that would have baffled me a few years ago with their complexity. I would glady go to bat for anyone who needs help searching on health/food topics, because a few people I know are now cured. CURED! And that is the greatest high I have ever felt, knowing that me sitting here reading and reading has helped to improve someone life! It's amazing.

Take care and be gentle with yourself.
P.S. soy is evil ( i just had to rant a bit, hee hee!)

I am SOY with you on the SOY!

The only soy I will eat once in a while is actual real soy beans, not the powder or soy based products. I have heard a long time ago that the processing of it causes it to be more damagin to us than it is good.

But even soy beans are boring, so I don't eat em often.

On the KFC thing I can NOT relate! I have always hated them. BUT, I'm not special so I can admit that TACO BELL was definitely a toughie for me. I don't think there was anything on the menu that I didn't know up close and personally.

In fact, once in a while, I get the idea that I wouldn't mind having a few little dollar menu items, but that passes.

I wish you had a journal to visit it. Well, stop by mine anytime and have a cup of her tea (organic of course) and your choice of extra crispy or original recipe.

--Betty

Glad to see my lowly recommendation has spurred some interest.

It is an amazing book. Can I rant a little myself now?

In the world according to Pegatha, people I tell about these things are so argumentative. They all say "but that's so bad for you" etc. etc. etc.

And I say "Look at me, I've lost 71 pounds on nothing more than the info in this book". Then they are speechless. I'm sure I don't change their minds, but they don't argue anymore, at least!

One more tidbit. Use coconut oil to be sure. But good old lard is excellent for you, too. It's a monounsaturated fat, like olive oil but without the polyunsaturates, which, of course, cause cancer, and contribute to heart attacks.

Also, be sure to read the section on cholesterol. There are different types in the human body and dietary cholesterol only makes up about 10% of blood levels. The book even states that higher levels in women translate to a longer life. That is so opposite of what the mainstream media and even doctors tell you.

Thanks for listening...

and keep reading.

Pegatha

Mosey, what is UC?

Pegatha, this has been an excellent resourse thread! I hope more will continue to post info!

PS I was at tha bookstore yesterday and I didn't have the info with me to find this book. ARG!

I'll check it out next time. --Betty

Very interesting thread!

Moseyman, what is the scd diet?

I also have been looking at Trader Joe's for their grass fed beef and figured it was selling out by the time I got there. Good to know I can order it.

Please procede with the rants and I'll check back later. -Gail

You guys have really sparked my interest! I may just have to read up on all of this. With regard to the Omega 3's, I have MS and have been told it would be helpful in my treatment course. I am following the Zone diet as of April 8 and feel better than I have in 2 years.
I believe eating plans like Whole Foods and the Zone may be very effective in controlling autoimmune diseases like MS and others mentioned here.
Good for us for taking our well being to the next level!