Saying goodbye to vitamins and other thoughts

You probably have parents or grandparents who amaze you with the variety and type of pills they ingest at each meal. How simple life is - excluding issues such as paying bills, taxes and keeping up with the mortgage - to sit down to eat and only have to attend to food and drink. No vitamins, cholesterol/high blood pressure meds,etc. This well-reasoned piece from Beverly Hills speaks to his waning devotion to vitamins and increased attention to f/v  in his daily routine. From American Chronicle:and Terry Mitchell:

 

After 20 years of taking vitamins and other over-the-counter supplements, and after being an advocate for them for almost as long, I have come to the conclusion that they have all been a waste of time and money. Therefore, once my current supplies run out, I will not be replacing them. Instead, I will take the money that I have been spending on them and use it to buy more fruits and vegetables.

Too many recent studies have shown that taking vitamins in the form of pills is of no benefit whatsoever. And there seems to be some anecdotal evidence that such products might even be harmful. Apparently, the human body just doesn´t absorb vitamins when they are taken that way. The way to get the vitamins one needs is to eat more fruits and vegetables. That´s the way nature apparently intended for us to acquire our vitamins and other nutrition.

TK: He points out that vitamin makers have their own studies:that tout their benefits:

But who are you going to believe, impartial scientific studies or those conducted by corporations who have everything to gain from a particular outcome? Obviously, each individual has to make his or her own decision regarding vitamins and supplements, and I´m in no way trying to tell anyone else what to do. I´m just saying that I´m basing my decision on the available science.

 

 

Other headlines this morning...

 

 

Paint your plate  A f/v promotion in Canada

 

Hefty bag to keep fresh produce longer  Business Wire press release

Pactiv Corporation, maker of Hefty(R: 28.26, -1.5492, -5.2%) brand products, today announced the introduction of new Hefty(R: 28.26, -1.5492, -5.2%) OneZip(R: 28.26, -1.5492, -5.2%) Fresh Extend(TM: 65.48, -1.55, -2.31%) produce storage bags designed to help keep fruits and vegetables fresher longer. These bags offer an easy and ideal solution for storing fruits and vegetables that can help to prevent premature spoilage. Consumers can keep produce fresher longer, which can help them save money. Simply place the unwashed, uncut, dry produce in the bag and slide the bag closed - it's that easy!

 

Good nutrition - healthy eyes  CBS4 Miami

 

 

Students DSL team bring produce stand to campus MIT News - TK:Good idea from MIT -

 

A cooperative effort between students and Division of Student Life is bearing fruit in the form of a campus produce stand that will open for business beginning Tuesday, March 31.The MIT Market will sell fruits and vegetables from noon to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays in the East Campus Courtyard near Walker Memorial. The stand will be run by Russo's, the Watertown-based retailer that won the "Best Produce" category in Boston magazine's 2007 Best of Boston rankings

Pesticide poisoning rise in California Recordnet

Officials tallied nearly 1,500 individual cases investigated in 2007, and pesticides were identified as likely or possibly involved in fewer that 1,000 of them. That was more than double the nearly 700 investigations reported the year before, of which about 300 likely or possibly involved pesticides.Individuals with access to the Internet can more easily access and analyze pesticide illness and injuries in California, as the Pesticide Regulation agency rolled out a new online database. Called the California Pesticide Illness Query, it is accessible through the agency's home page at www.cdpr.ca.gov.

 

 

Ten strategies to eat more vegetables and fruits St. Louis Chinese American News

 

 

Balcony vegetable patch LA Times

Bring dirt to the people, says health advocate

 

 

 

Fresh fruits and vegteables a hit among children, parents at WDC elementary  Wadena Pioneer Journal

Wadena-Deer Creek Elementary started serving healthy snacks on March 9, as part of a grant the school was awarded. The grant totals $38,052 and is part of the 2008 Farm Bill. When asked how he likes having fresh fruit and vegetables for an afternoon snack at school, first-grader Lucas Hinojos replied — in between bites of fresh asparagus — "I love it! Here, try some

 

 

State growers launch "locally growing" campaign Wisconsin Ag Connection

The Wisconsin Potato & Vegetable Growers Association and their grower members are working with the state's grocery stores and restaurants to highlight the benefits of buying Wisconsin-grown produce. WPVGA Director Duane Maatz says the best foods are homegrown--and that is especially true of Wisconsin Potatoes that carry the Wisconsin Home Grown label.

 

Alice Waters: Time for a delicious revolution WRAL.com

After waiting nearly 20 years to see a vegetable garden planted at the White House, Alice Waters is waiting again.But this time it's to see how many Americans will follow the lead of first lady Michelle Obama, who last week made Waters' wish a reality when she dug a shovel into the South Lawn of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. to make way for a garden."The most important thing that Michelle Obama did was to say that food comes from the land," Waters said of the garden groundbreaking. "People have not known that. They think it comes from the grocery store."Waters, a California restaurateur who has championed local and sustainable agriculture since the '60s, believes many health and social woes are tied to what she calls our fast food culture.Her solution? Backyard and school yard gardens that reconnect people with food at its source. Since the early '90s Waters has sought such a garden at the White House, believing it a gesture so strong it could move people nationwide to sow their own plots.

 

First family's garden challenges nation to eat locally grown EON

 

First Lady Michelle Obama broke ground last week on the South Lawn in preparation for the White House's first vegetable garden since First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt's 1943 Victory Garden. Coined a 'Recession Garden' by the media, the First Family's veggie garden is meant to teach American families about the health benefits and economic impact associated with eating locally grown fruits and vegetabl

Community supported farms flourish Democrat and Chronicle.com

 

 

Ask the trainer: get a colorful mix of fruits and vegetables Sheyboygan Press

 

 

Fruits and vegs: too much of a good thing? Viet Nam News Serivce: This goes against the grain...

 

A lot of the fruit that is grown today is much higher in sugar than it would be in the natural environment. Have you ever tasted a wild blueberry? How about a wild apple? On their own, they are delicious, but they aren't nearly as sweet as modern day varieties. Over thousands of years, humans have cultivated fruit to be larger and sweeter than its wild predecessors through hybridisation.But since sugar from fruit is natural, you should be able to eat as much as you want, right? This question is best posed to fruitarians – people who eat nothing but fruit, including nuts and seed-bearing fruits like tomatoes and zucchini.Nguyen Thu Hao, who works at an insurance company, has experienced the bad side of being a fruitarian

 

Ready, once more, to dig in the dirt The Daily Reporter

Right outside my kitchen window, across the driveway from our home, lies a 25 ft. by 40 ft. testament to my good intentions and poor follow-though. It's the outline of our family garden.

 

 

Healthy eating doesn't have to be expensive Times Herald

According to a recent survey, 80 percent of moms would like to get their kids to eat healthier. Families juggle busy schedules that make it difficult to eat together and don't leave enough time to shop or cook. The survey, commissioned by Wendy's, found that nearly 40 percent of moms surveyed feel that healthy foods don't always taste good. For others, the challenge is having a family that doesn't want to eat healthy foods or is on a limited food budget.

 

Families sow seeds of change with gardens Indychannel.com

 

 

According to the National Gardening Association, the number of families growing their own produce will jump more than 40 percent compared to two years ago, the biggest spike in 30 years, 6News' Tanya Spencer reported.