Grass-Fed Products Taking Off - Simple Solutions for Many Problems

By Dr. Mercola

Grass-fed beef accounts for just 0.5 percent of all retail beef sold, according to the National Cattlemen's Beef Association…¹ but it's a growing niche. White Oak Pastures, the largest organic farm in Georgia, produces about 8,000 pounds of grass-fed ground beef daily.

Grass-fed beef is just one of the farm's products. It also raises nine other species of free-ranging animals. In 2014, the farm, which was recently featured by the New York Times, brought in about $28 million in sales.²

The farm's owner, William Harris III, is a rancher, once of the conventional kind. But he grew disenchanted with the way the business worked, and he was suffering financially. As he made positive changes toward more natural farming, his hard work and perseverance paid off.

Solving the Slaughterhouse Problem

Unbeknownst to many Americans, access to slaughterhouses is one hurdle that keeps many small farmers from ultimately succeeding. All farmers must use USDA-approved slaughterhouses, and laws place special restrictions on grass-fed slaughtering. If a grass-fed rancher doesn't have access to a slaughterhouse, he cannot stay in business.

This shrewd strategy effectively maintains the status quo of CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations), because grass-fed ranchers are often forced to ship their cattle hundreds of miles for "processing" – a move that's both costly and stressful. Large slaughterhouses can also refuse smaller jobs, as they—just like CAFOs—operate on economy of scale. As explained by The Carnivore's Dilemma:³

"At harvest time, small family farmers are forced to transport their animals to the nearest legal 'processing plant' that will accept their animals. These plants often do not conform to the high standards farmers have for their animals' welfare, but the farmers have no choice.

Basically, there may be plenty of demand for grass-fed beef, and plenty of supply, but USDA rules and regulations prevent the American-bred supply from ever reaching the customer...

Across the US, smaller slaughterhouses catering to grass-fed ranchers have been closing up shop, pushed out by larger processors, adding to the shortage of processing facilities to choose from. As reported in the New York Times regarding White Oak Pastures:⁴

"Watching his calves get loaded onto an 18-wheeler for the drive west to a feed lot and slaughterhouse helped convince Mr. Harris that maybe he should stop raising cattle the way his father did.

He knew that his animals would spend sometimes 30 hours on those trucks, with the ones on the bottom getting covered in feces and urine. 'It's like raising your daughter to be a princess and then sending her to the whorehouse,' he said."

Harris has been able to grow White Oak Pastures so successfully, in part, because it has its own slaughterhouse. In fact, it's the only farm in the country with federally approved slaughterhouses for both poultry and mammals.⁵

Switching to Grass-Fed Farming Took Business to the Next Level

Harris' tale is an inspiring one, especially for farmers considering a switch. It shows that making the switch from conventional to grass-fed can be done. Harris did have to borrow money and use government and industry grants to get started, but the business took off to the next level. The New York Times reported:⁶

"That trip [to the slaughterhouse] was just one factor that prompted him to reconsider his operations in the 1990s. His cattle monoculture wasn't doing that well financially, and it was becoming less satisfying.

He stopped some practices, like putting hormone pellets into his cows' ears. Mr. Harris also noticed an emerging market, one in which people were willing to pay more money for beef that was raised differently.

By 2000, he stopped using chemical fertilizers on his pasture… By 2006, he got his beef into Whole Foods… A year later, his sales had jumped to half a million dollars."

Our food system is in dire need of change in order to protect human health, but it's a system that is difficult to change. It's not impossible, however, and you can still make a difference even if you have nothing to do with farming – by supporting the farmers who are raising food responsibly.

Most Grass-Fed Beef Sold in the US Is Imported

As more people change their shopping habits, it will help to drive up demand and encourage more US ranchers to make the switch to grass-fed. As it stands, most of the grass-fed beef sold in the US is actually imported from Australia and New Zealand.

Chipotle is one of the latest companies to turn to Australian ranchers to meet demand for grass-fed beef, as American suppliers are falling short, and/or cannot compete with Australia's lower prices. In a Huffington Post op-ed published last year, Chipotle founder Steve Ells said:⁷

"Over the years, we have had great success serving the premium beef we call Responsibly Raised... Nevertheless, sometimes the existing supply of the premium meats we serve is unable to meet our growing demand...

Rather than serve conventionally raised steak, we recently began sourcing some steak from ranches in Southern Australia, which is among the very best places in the world for raising beef cattle entirely on grass.

The meat produced by these ranchers is 'grass-fed' in the truest sense of the term: The cattle spend their entire lives grazing on pastures or rangelands, eating only grass or forages... In the short-run, the grass-fed beef purchased from Australia will continue to supplement the premium Responsibly Raised beef we have long purchased from across the U.S.

But over time, we hope that our demand for grass-fed beef will help pave the way for more American ranchers to adopt a grass-fed program, and in doing so turn grass-fed beef from a niche to a mainstream product."

Grass-Fed Meat and Dairy Are Better for You

People have many reasons for switching to grass-fed products – the health benefits, the ramifications for the environment, the humane treatment of animals, or all of the above.

A joint effort between the USDA and Clemson University researchers determined a total of 10 key areas where grass-fed is better than grain-fed beef for human health.⁸ In a side-by-side comparison, they determined that grass-fed beef was:

Lower in total fat	Higher in beta-carotene	Higher in vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol)
Higher in the B-vitamins thiamin and riboflavin	Higher in the minerals calcium, magnesium, and potassium	Higher in total omega-3s
A healthier ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids (1.65 vs 4.84)	Higher in CLA (cis-9 trans-11), a potential cancer fighter	Higher in vaccenic acid (which can be transformed into CLA)

To be clear, there's a lot of confusion about the term "grass-fed," and in many cases, it's an abused term like the word "natural." Some producers of beef will misuse this term because the rules around it are still somewhat undefined. Most all calves are fed grass for a certain amount of time.

This is one factor that allows less scrupulous producers to get away with calling their beef grass-fed. The key to a truly grass-fed product is actually the finishing. Optimal beef is both grass-fed and grass-finished beef.

Of course, it's not only beef that's ideally grass-fed. Chickens fare better when raised on pasture, as do dairy cows. Milk from cows raised primarily on pasture has also been repeatedly shown to be higher in many nutrients, including vitamin E, beta-carotene, and the healthy fats omega-3 and CLA. Unfortunately, only about 22 percent of US dairy cows have access to pasture, and even then access tends to be very limited.⁹

Soil-Conservation Farming Is on the Rise

Download Interview Transcript

As we're seeing a growing interest in healthier ways to raise food, like out on the pasture instead of confined in a factory-like environment, more farmers are seeking out "agricultural production systems that model nature." Among them is soil-conservation farming, which involves a number of methods to enhance soil, like leaving fields untilled and using "green manures."¹⁰ The New York Times reported:¹¹

"Such farming methods, which mimic the biology of virgin land, can revive degenerated earth, minimize erosion, encourage plant growth and increase farmers' profits, their proponents say. And by using them, Mr. [Gabe] Brown… has produced crops that thrive on his 5,000-acre farm outside of Bismarck, N.D., even during droughts or flooding. He no longer needs to use nitrogen fertilizer or fungicide, he said, and he produces yields that are above the county average with less labor and lower costs. 'Nature can heal if we give her the chance,' Mr. Brown said."

Gabe Brown and other regenerative farmers are basically just mimicking nature, to the best of their ability. They don't till and try to minimize the disturbance of the soil as much as possible. They also pay great attention to diversity, using cover crops such as native grasses. Tilling is probably one of the most destructive aspects of modern-day industrial agriculture, as it disrupts and destroys soil biology. Using the following five tenets of soil regeneration, you may be able to add an inch of topsoil in a five-year period:

1. No-tillage. This prevents soil erosion and also allows soil microbes to thrive.
2. Plant diversity and rotation
3. Multispecies cover-cropping. While home gardeners can add crop cover like mulch or wood chips, large-scale operations can achieve the same results by planting cover crops. Gabe grows cover crops on every acre of cropland each year. The cover crops may be grown before a cash crop, along with a cash crop, or after.

But it's the cover crops that provide the carbon that becomes that all-important "armor" on the soil surface. Cover crops also act as insulation, so the soil doesn't get as hot or cold as it would if bare. This allows microbes to thrive longer. Also, the soil biology heats up the soil, which can extend your overall growing season in colder areas

4. Maintaining living roots in the soil year-round. It's important to have living plant roots in the soil as long as possible throughout the year. To accomplish this, use cover crops when not growing a cash crop.
5. Livestock integration and diversification

Cleaning Up with Compost

It's estimated that one-third of the surplus carbon dioxide in the atmosphere stems from poor land-management processes that contribute to the loss of carbon, as carbon dioxide, from farmlands.¹² Carbon farming is a simple solution that involves applying compost to farmland, which traps carbon dioxide in the ground (for decades, centuries or more) while also absorbing it from the air. The process, known as "carbon sequestration," will help:

Regenerate the soil	Limit agricultural water usage with no till and crop covers
Increase crop yields	Reduce the need for agricultural chemicals and additives, if not eliminate such need entirely in time
Reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide levels	Reduce air and water pollution by lessening the need for herbicides, pesticides, and synthetic fertilizers

As reported by the Press Democrat:¹³

"Advocates say if compost was applied to just 5 percent of California's grazing lands, the soil could capture a year's worth of greenhouse gas emissions from the state's farm and forestry industries… Research conducted in Marin County and in the Sierra foothills revealed that a single dusting of compost on rangeland can boost the soil's carbon storage for at least 30 years.

But there are significant hurdles to expanding the practice, including the cost of purchasing and transporting compost to farms. About 30 million tons of organic material ends up in California's landfills, said Torri Estrada, director of policy at the Carbon Cycle Institute. He envisions a network of regional facilities producing compost or farmers and ranchers doing so themselves on-site."

Where to Find High-Quality Grass-Fed Products

The grass-fed market only makes up about 3 percent of the US beef ranchers. Fortunately, that number is growing. Overall, grass-fed beef sales have been increasing by about 20 percent a year for the last six years. It's the only growing segment of the beef industry as a whole. As Gabe Brown said, one of the best ways to drive continued change is to vote with your pocketbook:

"I've come to the realization that we need to educate the consumers and the consumers need to drive the change through their purchasing dollars. Let me tell you of this movement... My son and I started [a grass-fed beef] business in March, and we have zero advertising dollars. We've just been going to local farmers' markets. We already have over 650 repeat customers. We can't keep up with the demand right now. That goes to show you that if that's happening in a rural state such as North Dakota, what's happening in more urban areas?"

Now that you know why it's worth switching over to grass-fed beef and other animal products, the question becomes, where do you find them? Fortunately, it's becoming increasingly easy to find these, and many other organic foods.

• Grass-fed beef: Many grocery chains are now responding to customer demand, and will provide at least a small assortment of grass-fed meats. If your local grocer still doesn't carry any, go ahead and ask the purchasing manager to consider adding it. Some stores, like Publix, will even stock specialty items requested by a single customer. The least expensive way to obtain authentic grass-fed beef is to find a local rancher you can trust, and buy it directly from the farm. Alternatively, you can now purchase grass-fed beef from organic ranchers online, if you don't have access to a local source.
• Raw organic, grass-fed dairy products: Getting your raw milk from a local organic farm or co-op is one of the best ways to ensure you're getting high-quality milk. You can locate a raw milk source near you at the Campaign for Real Milk Website. The Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund also provides a state-by-state review of raw milk laws.
• Organic, free-range eggs: To locate a free-range pasture farm, try asking your local health food store, or check out the following web listings:
• Local Harvest
• USDA's farmer's market listing
• Eat Wild

The Case Against Aluminum in Vaccines - Dr. Suzanne Humphries

By Dr. Mercola

Aluminum is a known neurotoxin, and scientific evidence shows that it can play a significant role in neurological diseases, including dementia, autism, and Parkinson's disease.

For example, a case study from Keele University in the UK¹ published last year unequivocally showed high levels of aluminum in the brain of an individual exposed to aluminum at work, who later died from Alzheimer's disease.

Most people are not exposed to toxic levels of aluminum at work however. Rather exposure occurs via common products such as antiperspirants, food, aluminum-based household products, and vaccines.

According to some experts, including Dr. David Ayoub, whom I've interviewed on this topic, and Dr. Suzanne Humphries, featured in the video above, aluminum in vaccines may pose very significant health risks.

Dr. Humphries has written one of the best books (Dissolving Illusions) out there documenting the historical framework of why vaccines have been an overhyped miserable failure. The book is loaded with hundreds of references, many of which document the vaccine failures.

The toxicity of aluminum—found in a number of common childhood and adult vaccines—may even exceed the toxicity of mercury in the human body.

"Even if vaccines can prevent some infections, considering what's in them, there's no way they can improve overall health," Dr. Humphries says. "And now they want to give vaccines to pregnant women, which in addition to these animal cells and associated genetic material also have aluminum in them."

Aluminum Is Toxic to All Life Forms

In 2013, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's (CHOP) vaccine education center website stated that:

"Aluminum is considered to be an essential metal with quantities fluctuating naturally during normal cellular activity. It is found in all tissues and is also believed to play an important role in the development of a healthy fetus."

This statement was reviewed by CHOP's Chief of Infectious Diseases—the staunch vaccine advocate and vaccine patent holder Paul Offit, MD, who's also notorious for claiming that an infant can theoretically tolerate 10,000 vaccines at once.

Such claims are in stark contrast to real-life incidents where infants have died after receiving certain vaccines or combinations of vaccines numbering in the single digits. In one recent case, a five-month old baby boy died in his sleep after receiving a second round of eight different vaccines.²

Since then, CHOP has revised this ridiculous statement, but still claims that aluminum adjuvants are of no concern, saying that "the aluminum contained in vaccines is similar to that found in a liter of infant formula.³" The site also says that:

"Given the quantities of aluminum we are exposed to on a daily basis, the quantity of aluminum in vaccines is miniscule. Aluminum-containing vaccines have been used for decades and have been given to over one billion people without problem."

What they fail to note is that eating and injecting aluminum is in no way equivalent. When you ingest aluminum, your body will absorb between 0.2-1.5 percent of it, or roughly one percent, according to Dr. Humphries.

A 2010 study published in Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology⁴ also refutes Dr. Offits's and Keith's claims of Safety. Dr. Keith's claim that vaccines do not add significantly to the load of total aluminum is just false, especially because babies' kidneys are not fully functional in the first months of life.

But the first vaccine in the USA, hepatitis B contains 225 mcg of aluminum, which is five times the total exposure of orally absorbed aluminum through the next six months. Premature babies have to deal with this load with even lower kidney function and lots more aluminum that comes from the medications given in the NICU.

When aluminum is injected, your body absorbs 100 percent of it, compared to the miniscule amount of stable silicated aluminum that is swallowed.

The cellular damage from aluminum exposure that Dr. Humphries discusses here is related to intramuscular injection—not ingestion, although the latter is certainly not going to boost your health either, especially if you have impaired kidney function, low albumin, or any underlying conditions for a relatively open blood-brain barrier.

Moreover, CHOP clearly fails to address the reality that as aluminum-containing vaccines—which are known to be neurotoxic—have become increasingly plentiful, neurological diseases such as autism and Alzheimer's have skyrocketed.

On the whole, it seems Dr. Offit has failed miserably in his efforts to review the appropriate literature published on aluminum. For example, the 2011 paper⁵ by Dr. Kawahara, cited in the featured lecture, states that:

"Whilst being environmentally abundant, aluminum is not essential for life. On the contrary, aluminum is a widely recognized neurotoxin that inhibits more than 200 biologically important functions and causes various adverse effects in plants, animals and humans."

In short, aluminum promotes cellular death, and Dr. Kawahara's paper explains why the link between aluminum and Alzheimer's disease failed to be noticed in some earlier studies.

How Aluminum Causes Harm

Aluminum is able to travel into places in your body where it can do significant harm, and your brain is one of the organs that is most sensitive to it. Adverse effects of aluminum exposure include:

DNA alterations, abnormal regulation of gene function, and gene expression interference	It damages cell membranes, and causes your myelin—the insulating layer around your nerves—to stiffen and become dysfunctional
By binding to adenosine triphosphate (ATP), it affects your energy metabolism	Increased vascular endothelial adhesiveness and increased cardiovascular disease risk
Coagulation of proteins, which may alter their function	Enhanced excitotoxicity in your brain, and increased brain inflammation

According to Dr. Humphries, molecular biologists have also clearly demonstrated that exposure to aluminum skews your immune system to the Th2, or antibody driven immune system, which drives allergic responses.

Just How Much Aluminum Does an American Child Get from Vaccines?

While mercury preservative has been mostly removed from vaccines because of its known neurotoxicity, the levels of adjuvant aluminum have virtually no upper limit in the vaccine program. The number of aluminum-containing vaccines children receive today⁶ has quadrupled over the past 30 years. In the 1970s, children got only four aluminum-containing vaccines in their first 18 months of life, but now they typically receive 17.

A chart in Dr. Humphries lecture shows just how much aluminum is injected into an infant following the US vaccination schedule. By the age of 18 months, that infant has already received 4,925 micrograms (mcg) of aluminum, 100 percent of which is absorbed since it's given intramuscularly.

In the 1980s the amount of aluminum you got when following the childhood vaccination schedule amounted to 1,120 mcg, and importantly, it was given in more mature babies, not newborns. Today, American children end up getting a grand total of 6,150 mcg of aluminum if they get all of their recommended vaccines.

A 2002 study that set out to assess the minimal risk level for aluminum from infant diet and vaccines⁷ ended up using research that is far from applicable. To assess whether or not diet and vaccines in combination might result in dangerously high aluminum levels, the researchers looked at studies on rodents who ingested aluminum, and one study involving ONE healthy man with normal kidney function who received 0.7 mcg injected directly into his blood stream—a tiny fraction of what babies get. Intravenous aluminum is much more easily handled than intramuscular injection and Dr. Humphries describes exactly why in her video.

The aluminum he got was also a less toxic form than that used in vaccines. Several vaccines that are on the childhood vaccine schedule were also left out of Dr. Keith's theoretical risk calculation. Based on all this questionable data, it was concluded that between diet and vaccines, the aluminum burden children are exposed to is unlikely to do harm... Clearly, we need better scientific evidence than this.

Kidney function is another important consideration here, as infant kidney function is not equivalent to an adult. Hence excretion of aluminum is not as efficient in infants and young children, yet this fact is almost never taken into consideration—it certainly was not considered when assessing the minimal risk level above. That which is not excreted ends up bioaccumulating in various organs, including your brain, kidneys, and bones.

As noted in one 2013 study:⁸

"Alum has high neurotoxic potential, and planning administration of continuously escalating doses of this poorly biodegradable adjuvant in the population should be carefully evaluated by regulatory agencies since the compound may be insidiously unsafe. It is likely that good tolerance to alum may be challenged by a variety of factors including overimmunization, BBB [blood-brain barrier] immaturity, individual susceptibility factors, and aging, that may be associated with both subtle BBB alterations and a progressive increase of CCL2 [a protein-coding gene⁹] production."

Autism Symptoms Related to Aluminum, Acetaminophen, and Glyphosate Exposure

In this video, Dr. Stephanie Seneff discusses her research into vaccines and neurological damage. In 2012, she published a study¹⁰ linking symptoms of autism to aluminum adjuvants and acetaminophen exposure. According to the abstract:

"Our results provide strong evidence supporting a link between autism and the aluminum in vaccines. A literature review showing toxicity of aluminum in human physiology offers further support. Mentions of autism in VAERS increased steadily at the end of the last century, during a period when mercury was being phased out, while aluminum adjuvant burden was being increased.

Using standard log-likelihood ratio techniques, we identify several signs and symptoms that are significantly more prevalent in vaccine reports after 2000, including cellulitis, seizure, depression, fatigue, pain and death, which are also significantly associated with aluminum-containing vaccines. We propose that children with the autism diagnosis are especially vulnerable to toxic metals such as aluminum and mercury due to insufficient serum sulfate and glutathione. A strong correlation between autism and the MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) vaccine is also observed, which may be partially explained via an increased sensitivity to acetaminophen administered to control fever."

In 2014, she published a paper in the journal Toxicology,¹¹ which addresses the toxic effects of aluminum on biological systems. The paper notes that aluminum, while severely toxic by itself, also forms "toxic complexes" with other hazardous elements, including fluorine, and the hazards are compounded when it interacts with mercury, lead, and glyphosate. Dr. Seneff has also published groundbreaking research explaining how glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto's broad-spectrum herbicide Roundup, promotes chronic disease. With regards to the MMR vaccine, Dr. Seneff hypothesizes that the glutamate in the vaccine is another major part of the problem, over and above the effects of the aluminum.

"Glutamate is toxic to autistic kids, because they don't have enough manganese," she says. "So when that extra glutamate is injected in through the vaccine, it goes to the brain, because of the influence of glyphosate. Glyphosate actually opens up the barriers—the gut barrier and the brain barrier—to allow [toxins] to get in... The two are working synergistically... The glyphosate is depleting the manganese, which is causing the glutamate to be toxic, and the glyphosate is causing the glutamate to go into the brain..."

There's also synergistic harm going on between glyphosate and aluminum. Glyphosate chelates aluminum, effectively "hiding" the aluminum molecule inside the glyphosate molecule. When "caged" within glyphosate in this way, the aluminum gets even easier access to sensitive areas because, as mentioned, glyphosate opens up your gut- and brain barriers. Aluminum also piggybacks on your iron transport system, so it has many "helpers" allowing it to get around unimpeded. Glyphosate also brings aluminum into your pineal gland, which may account for why sleep disorders are so common among those with neurological disorders like autism and dementia.

Why Have Hazards of Aluminum Adjuvants Not Been Properly Addressed?

So, you're probably wondering why aluminum is still being used in vaccines if it's so dangerous—especially to infants. The very tail end of Dr. Humphries' talk reveals the most likely reasons for this, and if your initial hunch was that it's related to money, you'd be correct.

In 2004, Dr. Thomas Jefferson and colleagues with the Cochrane Collaboration, which is the gold standard for evidence-based reviews, conducted a meta-analysis¹² on adverse events after immunization with aluminum-containing DTP vaccines, reaching the surprising conclusion that there was "no evidence that aluminum salts in vaccines cause any serious or long-lasting adverse events. Despite a lack of good-quality evidence we do not recommend that any further research on this topic is undertaken." Why would they dissuade any further investigation into aluminum adjuvants when there are still so many open questions, and despite admitting that there's a lack of quality evidence?

The answer, Dr. Humphries notes, is in the report itself, which states:

"Assessment of the safety of aluminum in vaccines is important because replacement of aluminum compounds in currently licensed vaccines would necessitate the introduction of a completely new compound that would have to be investigated before licensing. No obvious candidates to replace aluminum are available, so withdrawal for safety reasons would severely affect the immunogenicity and protective effects of some currently licensed vaccines and threaten immunization programs worldwide."

Cut Down on Meat by Using Mushrooms

By Dr. Mercola

The flavor "umami," which means "delicious" in Japanese, is valued for making foods taste meatier and more satisfying. Umami is the natural flavor of glutamic acid, which, in your body is often found as glutamate; eating umami-rich foods may increase post-meal satiety, helping you eat less throughout the day and ultimately lose weight.

Umami is valued for making foods taste better. When an umami-rich food like is added to soup stock, for instance, it makes the broth heartier, more "meaty", and more satisfying.

Mushrooms, and shiitake mushrooms in particular, are rich in umami flavor. This is why they're often used in place of meat in sandwiches. While I don't necessarily recommend cutting back on meat in your diet, particularly if it's organic and pastured, mushrooms do make an ideal meat "enhancer" for those trying to cut back.

By adding a "mushroom base" to burgers, meat sauce, and more, you can cut the meat in your recipes by half or more, without sacrificing flavor and heartiness. This will certainly shave some dollars off your food budget and, at the same time, will add valuable nutrition to your meals.

How to Make a Roasted Mushroom Base

"At this year's Worlds of Health Flavors conference in Napa, Calif., Pam Smith, a culinary nutritionist, presented delicious recipes by the Chef Clifford Pleau featuring a finely chopped roasted mushroom mix (chefs refer to it as simply 'The Mix'), that she combined with beef for a delicious burger with half the meat…" the New York Times reported.¹

The recipe that follows, posted by the New York Times,² is your basic mushroom base to add to virtually any meat-based recipe. Try substituting half the meat called for with mushrooms, and adjust up or down accordingly.

If you're in a hurry, pick up pre-sliced mushrooms, which will cut down on prep time. Even if you use whole mushrooms and slice them yourself, this recipe is simple and quick. Store leftovers in the fridge and you'll have a healthy meat substitute at the ready.

Roasted Mushroom Base Ingredients: 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (or coconut oil) 2 pounds organic mushrooms, sliced, or quartered Salt to taste Freshly ground black pepper to taste Preparation: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. In a large bowl, toss mushrooms with oil, salt, and pepper. Spread in an even layer on baking sheets and bake in the middle and lower racks of the oven for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, and switching pans top to bottom halfway through. The mushrooms should be tender and dry when done. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Grind in a grinder or pulse in a food processor fitted with steel blade until broken down into small pieces resembling ground meat. Taste and adjust seasoning. The mix will keep for about 4 days in the refrigerator.

Mushrooms Are a Superfood

There's good reason to add mushrooms to just about any recipe you can; they're excellent for your health. You really can't go wrong with any of the edible mushrooms, as they are rich in protein, fiber, vitamin C, B vitamins, calcium, and minerals, along with being excellent sources of antioxidants.

Mushrooms contain polyphenols and selenium, which are common in the plant world, as well as antioxidants that are unique to mushrooms (like ergothioneine, which scientists are now beginning to recognize as a "master antioxidant").

About 100 species of mushrooms are being studied for their health-promoting benefits, and about a half dozen really stand out for their ability to deliver a tremendous boost to your immune system. They've even been studied for their ability to prevent cancer.

The compound lentinan in shitake mushrooms has been found to increase the survival rate of cancer patients.³ And extracts from maitake mushrooms, when combined with vitamin C, were shown to reduce the growth of bladder cancer cells by 90 percent, as well as kill them.⁴

A previous study in the journal Nature⁵ discusses the importance of ergothioneine, which is fairly exclusive to mushrooms, describing it as "an unusual sulfur-containing derivative of the amino acid, histidine," which appears to have a very specific role in protecting your DNA from oxidative damage.

Which Mushrooms Are the Healthiest?

If there's a certain type of edible mushroom that you enjoy, feel free to indulge, as they all have unique benefits. According to Steve Farrar, who has studied mushrooms professionally for the last three decades, Americans consume about 900 million pounds of mushrooms a year, but 95 percent of that is just one species: the common button mushroom and its relatives, the Crimini, and the Portabello mushrooms.

Granted, the button mushroom is an excellent low-calorie food, especially for diabetics. It contains a number of valuable nutrients, including protein, enzymes, B vitamins (especially niacin), and vitamin D2.

However, there are many other types of mushrooms worthy of consideration if you want to improve your diet, including shiitake, reishi, cordyceps, turkey tail, and Himematsutake. You can learn more about these four healthy mushroom varieties in the infographic below.

Embed this infographic on your website:

<img src="http://media.mercola.com/assets/images/infographic/mushrooms.jpg" alt="7 Superfoods" border="0" style="max-width:100%; min-width:300px; margin: 0 auto 20px auto; display:block;" /><p style="max-width:800px; min-width:300px; margin:0 auto; text-align:center;">Mushrooms are packed with numerous vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that provide outstanding health benefits. Discover more about this <a href="http://www.mercola.com/infographics/mushrooms.htm"><strong>emerging superfood</strong></a> through this infographic. Use the embed code to share it on your website.</p> <pre style="max-width:800px; min-width:300px; margin: 20px auto 0 auto; padding:10px; border:solid 1px #999999; background: #ffffff; white-space: pre-wrap; word-wrap:break-word;"><code><img src="http://media.mercola.com/assets/images/infographic/mushrooms.jpg" alt="Mushrooms" border="0" style="max-width:100%; min-width:300px; margin: 0 auto 20px auto; display:block;"><p style="max-width:800px; min-width:300px; margin:0 auto; text-align:center;">Mushrooms are packed with numerous vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that provide outstanding health benefits. Discover more about this <a href="http://www.mercola.com/infographics/mushrooms.htm"><strong>"emerging superfood"</strong></a> through this infographic. Use the embed code to share it on your website.</p></code></pre>

Click on the code area and press CTRL + C (for Windows) / CMD + C (for Macintosh) to copy the code.

Try This Beet, Mushroom, and Beef Burger

For a unique twist on a beef-mushroom burger, try this delicious recipe from the New York Times.⁶ It includes the mushroom base recipe above along with a couple of other healthy surprises, like beets, shallots, and chives. Each burger contains just two ounces of beef, but tastes so good you won't even miss it.

Beet Mushroom Beef Burger Ingredients: ¼ pound peeled roasted beets (1 medium) ½ pound roasted mushroom mix (recipe above) ½ pound organic grass-fed ground beef 1 tablespoon minced chives 1 shallot minced 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (more or less to taste) Salt freshly ground black pepper Olive oil [or coconut oil] for cooking (no more than 1 tablespoon) Preparation: Grate beet on large holes of a grater. In a large bowl, mix together all of the ingredients except the oil for cooking until well-combined. Shape into 4 patties. I like to pile the mixture into a 3-inch ring and pull the ring away. When I place the patties in the hot pan, I press them down with the back of my spatula so they are about 1-inch thick. Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat and add a small amount of olive oil, just enough to coat pan. Cook patties for 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan and serve. You can use a bun or not (I think they are fine without). Baby arugula, mizuna, or spicy microgreens make a very nice accompaniment. The burger mix will keep for a day or two in the refrigerator.

How Vaccine Adjuvants Affect Your Brain

By Dr. Mercola

Vaccine safety is certainly a highly controversial topic this year, and in this interview, Dr. Lucija Tomljenovic helps shed light on an important aspect of this discussion, which is how vaccine adjuvants can affect your brain.

Dr. Tomljenovic is a post-doctoral fellow at the University of British Columbia (UBC), where she works in neurosciences and the Department of Medicine.

"The reason why I got interested in this area is [because] there is a lack of research demonstrating safety," she says.

"When one reviews most of the pharma-based trials on the safety of vaccines, you will see that they either use another vaccine as a placebo or the aluminum adjuvant, and neither of those constitutes a proper placebo.

It's very easy to claim that the product is safe if you're using a comparator that inherently might be toxic."

Another factor that triggered her skepticism about what was being reported in the peer-reviewed literature was her coming face to face with scientific corruption. A former boss actually asked her to falsify data on an experiment they were doing with statin drugs.

They were testing a cholesterol-lowering medication in mice, and more mice were dying from the statin treatment than from the placebo treatment, which in this case was plain water.

"When the result came, my boss told me to ignore the dead mice from the statistics, because it wouldn't look good on the drug. I thought to myself, 'I didn't get a PhD degree to lie to earn money,' so I quit my job," she says.

“I started questioning what else have we been sold in sciences that were dodgy data...My boss was receiving money from the drug companies, and obviously they would have not given more money to a lab that published unfavorable reports about their drugs.”

Aluminum Adjuvants Are Falsely Assumed Safe

When asked about why researchers (and the peer-reviewed journals who review these studies) allow the use of improper placebos—meaning placebos that may be toxic rather than inert—when testing vaccines, she suggests increasing their sales as a primary motivating factor.

It's sobering to realize that when the aluminum adjuvant was first approved for use in vaccines, some 90 years ago, it was approved because of efficacy. It was never actually tested for safety. Even the total allowable limit was based on efficacy data, not safety data. They just assumed it was safe.

"I have a document from 2002 from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)... discussing the assessment of vaccine ingredients... and testing specifically in animal models," she says.

Back then, the FDA stated that the routine toxicity studies in animals with vaccine ingredients have not been conducted because it was assumed that these ingredients are safe. When I read that I was kind of pulling my hairs out [thinking] ‘So, this is your indisputable evidence of safety?’

These documents never made it to mainstream media. It's just a lie perpetuated over and over again; that we've been using these things for over nine decades and it's been proven safe. No, it's been assumed safe."

This document is readily available. On pages 11 and 12 of this document, titled: Workshop on Non-Clinical Safety Evaluation of Preventive Vaccines: Recent Advances and Regulatory Considerations,¹ it says: “Historically, the non-clinical safety assessment for preventive vaccines has often not included toxicity studies in animal models. This is because vaccines have not been viewed as inherently toxic

In contrast to most drugs and biological products that are predominantly developed to treat ill patients, vaccines primarily are given to large numbers of healthy people, oftentimes predominantly healthy infants and children. And this places significant emphasis on their safety.”

So we see it is just empty talk. They say safety is of great importance, but then they go ahead licensing products that have not been adequately tested.

Why Are Aluminum Adjuvants Used in Vaccines?

You might wonder why aluminum is used in vaccines as an adjuvant in the first place. An adjuvant is an agent or compound designed to increase your immune response.

Now, your immune response is subdivided into two immune responses: the humoral immune response and the cellular innate immune response. The adjuvant only increases your humoral immunity. It does not affect your cellular innate immunity.

The challenge is that there's really no good testing system for the innate immune system, but they technically can measure antibody response. So that's what's being used.

Aluminum is very effectively able to increase antibodies. But that doesn't appear to actually improve long-term immune responses to infections and disease, which is what most people imagine vaccines will do.

What many fail to realize is that vaccines only work short-term for one aspect of the immune system, not the total immune system.

When you get a wild, acquired infection, it does stimulate the innate immune system, which is how you end up with permanent life-long immunity once you've recovered. This never happens with a vaccine.

"The problem is that people are being brainwashed into this idea that high antibody titers equal protection against diseases, and it's simply not true," Dr. Tomljenovic says.

"Proof of that are cases where you get outbreaks of infectious diseases in fully vaccinated populations, where over 95 percent are vaccinated, and they still get the disease.

The other side will always say, “We need to increase the boosters.” Does it ever occur to these people that these disease outbreaks might be [happening] because [the vaccine] is not doing what they think it should be doing?”

Rates of Autism Have Risen in Tandem with Vaccine Burden

Together with Christopher Shaw, a professor in the department of ophthalmology and visual sciences at UBC who also chairs the CMSRI's scientific advisory board, Dr. Tomljenovic has published a number of papers^2,3,4,5,6 that suggest aluminum-containing vaccines may be unsafe.

Not surprisingly, their work has been heavily criticized. The UBC, however, has defended and stands behind Shaw's and Tomljenovic's work on aluminum toxicity.⁷ So what does their research show that has everyone in such a tizzy?

"In the original study we gathered data that's available from the US Department of Education about autism rates in the last couple of decades. We have done a similar analysis looking at autism rates in various other countries like UK and the Scandinavian countries.

We found that the countries that have the heaviest vaccines schedule (the children are vaccinated with a great number of vaccines) have higher autism rates compared to countries that do not vaccinate children with as many vaccines.

If you look at the temporal trend in the US, you see a significant correlation over the last three decades between the number of vaccines and autism rates. The autism numbers have been skyrocketing. They always say it's only because the diagnosis of autism is better. But that's a bogus argument because just in the last five years there's been about a 70 percent increase in autism. This is not due to better diagnostic criteria, and it sure isn't a genetic epidemic, because genes in a population do not change in a five-year span. These arguments are just silly," she says.

Correlations such as these do not prove causation, however. To prove a plausible theory, you have to actually test it, to see if the theory holds. At present, the animal model is the best way to do this, as large-scale testing of toxic substances on humans is unethical. This kind of toxicity research on animals should have been done prior to approval, but it wasn't. There's also a large-enough pool of unvaccinated children that could be used to compare health outcomes. As noted by Dr. Tomljenovic, this kind of comparative research also should have been done but hasn't:

"They should've tested vaccinated versus non-vaccinated, the population of vaccinated kids versus non-vaccinated kids, and assessed the health outcomes. But that study has never been done because it has been claimed that it's unethical not to give children vaccines. Well, again, that's an assumption. If you claim that, don't call me a quack scientist, because your science is quack also, because you're putting out assumptions. They're untested. The same goes for safety."

Animal Study Demonstrates Harm of Aluminum Adjuvant

In one of their studies,⁸ Shaw and Tomljenovic injected mice with aluminum at the equivalent dose given to American children through vaccines, and they spaced out the injections based on the mice's developmental stages. (On a side note, to find out how much aluminum you or your child actually receives from various vaccines, see this vaccine excipients list.⁹) What they found was that once the mice reached adulthood (which occurs at the age of six months), the treated mice had permanent behavioral impairments.

There was a significant increase in anxiety and a reduction in exploratory behavior. There was also a reduction in social interactions between the mice. "That was a huge confirmation that our initial assumption or correlation [between the number of vaccines and rising autism rates] might be something more than just correlation," she says.

After that, the duo went on to do some gene-based studies, specifically looking at the expression of genes in the mouse brain. They selected 17 candidate genes that are involved in neural function and immune response, and looked to see if there was any change in their expression either at the gene level or the protein level. Here, they discovered:¹⁰

• A significant increase in tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) interferon gamma (IFN-gamma), and a chemokine called macrophage chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), which is a macrophage-attracting factor. These are indicative of an inflammatory response in the adult mouse brain
• A significant decrease in a neurotransmitter called acetylcholinesterase (AChE), which is related to depression and anxiety

When You Alter Your Immune System, It Affects Your Brain Function

The changes seen at the genome level and the behavioral level are consistent with findings from studies done on deceased autistic patients, in which chronic brain inflammation was identified. It's important to realize that autism is not just a brain disorder; it's also an immune system disorder. Dr. Tomljenovic calls it an immune system brain disorder, as the two systems are connected.

"The backbone of this research was done 30 years ago. We already knew that there is a significant connection between the immune system and the central nervous system. They communicate. You cannot influence the immune system at the periphery without changing something in the brain. Most of us know that from experience, because when you get the flu, your brain doesn’t function very well. That mental fogginess and chronic fatigue, they are clear neurobehavioral changes in response to an immune stimulus [infection].

It's a neuroendocrine axis—basically, the immune system at the periphery and the central nervous system talk to each other. Again, if you increase an immune response artificially at the periphery, you are going to mess up the brain. They’ve done that artificially using what they call viral and bacterial mimics. I thought, “Oh, that spells like antigens in vaccines,” Because that’s exactly what’s being used. Commonly in this type of research strong adjuvants are added to exaggerate the immune response...

There is a huge body of research that shows that if you overstimulate the immune system at the periphery, especially in the critical stage of early development, you are going to influence the brain in a negative way, and by doing so, you can create irreversible damage. Again, this is research that is rarely discussed, because it really shows that there is reason to question the safety of the burden of vaccines given to infants.”

It’s frustrating to realize that the kind of research and the technology Dr. Tomljenovic incorporated to measure these neuroparameters, has been long available and could have been performed two or three decades ago—it’s that basic. And what the research reveals is that it is not just that aluminum is a neurotoxin, which it certainly is, but also, it is the exaggerated adjuvant-induced immune response that is causing trouble.

What this means is that even if they replaced aluminum with another adjuvant, you’d still get the same problem. This is undoubtedly a problem of enormous proportions for the vaccine industry, which explains why this kind of research isn’t done on a routine basis, and why Shaw’s and Tomljenovic’s work is under such heavy fire.

The pair has also investigated the cross-reactivity between the antibodies that are raised against vaccine antigens. As it turns out, some of them cross-react with our own tissues. Many viruses and bacteria share genetic similarities with human proteins.

For example, there may be a peptide sequence in the wall of the virus that mimics the structure of a human protein. So, the antibody that is raised against the virus will then also recognize these epitopes in your own tissues that mimic the virus. This has the potential to cause severe harm, and can significantly raise the risk of autoimmune disorders.

HPV Vaccine May Raise Your Risk of Autoimmune Disease

For example, Tomljenovic in collaboration with the team led by professor Yehuda Shoenfeld (world expert in autoimmune diseases who heads the Zabludowicz Autoimmunity Research Centre at the Sheba Hospital in Israel) has demonstrated how the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine can raise your risk of brain autoimmune disorders.

This was done by vaccinating young mice with the equivalent of three doses of Gardasil, which is what young girls are receiving. As a result of these vaccinations, the mice developed anti-HPV antibodies, which were found to preferentially bind to a protein in the mouse brain. Dr. Tomljenovic explains:

“[I]f you coat a plate with HPV antibodies and if you apply the serum [blood] from the mice to this plate, the serum from the mice that have been vaccinated with Gardasil and have concentrated antibodies in serum, you can detect the binding between the antibody fraction and the HPV fraction that’s on the plate. Now, if you apply a mouse brain protein extract, you get inhibition of binding of the anti-HPV antibodies to HPV. Why? Because they [the anti-HPV antibodies] are preferentially binding to the mouse brain protein extract.

The presence of cross-reactive anti-HPV antibodies in the blood of vaccinated girls will increases their risk for developing immune-mediated nervous system disorders, which incidentally appear to be the most commonly reported worldwide, following Gardasil. We have done the analysis on adverse events reported following HPV vaccination. It was published it in the Annals of Medicine. We took vaccines safety databases from various countries, and then we rated the adverse effects reported based on organ system. We found the most commonly reported adverse events following HPV vaccination are nervous system disorders of immune origin.

What was interesting is that in 2013, Japan Institute of Pharmacovigilance picked up our paper. I had an email from a doctor saying, “Can you send us the raw data, because we would like to add our Japanese data to your set and see if they match,” and I said, “Yes, please do.” And the match was perfect. After that, the Japanese Institute of Pharmacovigilance and the Japanese government, and health authorities, held a hearing on concerns about the safety of HPV vaccines. Because again, they were introduced in Japan and universally recommended, and there were many adverse effects reported thereafter. Following the hearing, the Japanese government and health authorities decided to stop recommending the HPV vaccine.¹¹"

Japan No Longer Recommends Gardasil

Japan issued the first suspension of the government's recommendation to get vaccinated against HPV in June 2013. The Japanese Government and Health authorities then organized a symposium on HPV vaccines,^12,13 which occurred in February 2014. Important testimony was delivered by one doctor who had treated over 20 cases of MS after Gardasil vaccination. Pharmaceutical representatives were trying to say that such side effects are psychogenic, but how can a psychogenic disorder cause MS lesions in a person’s brain—and in a girl who was perfectly healthy prior to vaccination? “They didn’t have an answer to that,” she says.

“All these problems started in temporal association with the vaccine. Just out of precautionary principle, you would think that they would have the common sense to at least halt the use of the vaccine until more research is done. But no, they just want to force it, and they parrot that it is safe. They do not have any proof of safety other than manipulated research.”

This symposium was followed by a large press conference, attended by Dr. Tomljenovic and research colleagues from France and the US. Since then, attempts by the makers of HPV vaccines to reinstate active recommendation of HPV vaccination by the Japanese Government have all failed, and Merck—which manufactures Gardasil—warned investors that Japan's decision would have "a significant negative impact" on sales.¹⁴ GlaxoSmithKline's HPV vaccine Cervarix also saw a downturn in sales immediately following the original suspension.

French Researchers Find Link Between Aluminum Adjuvant and Alzheimer's

A team from Créteil and the INSERM Institute in France also presented data from animal experiments at the Japanese symposium, which show that if you inject the aluminum adjuvant, a portion of the aluminum is engulfed by macrophages. Some of these macrophages eventually find their way into the mouse brain.

The transport in the brain is dependent on the same chemokine, MCP-1, macrophage chemoattractant protein that Shaw and Tomljenovic found increased in their aluminum-exposed animals. Part of the problem is that the aluminum accumulates, and it stays in the brains of mice up to one year after injection because there’s no recirculation to take it out.

“This is a common problem with aluminum, because it’s got a strong positive charge, 3+,” Dr. Tomljenovic says. “What other research has found is that in Alzheimer’s patients, the chromatin fractions in the nucleus of the cell, where your genetic material is stored, accumulate aluminum. Because the DNA has a negative charge on the outside, it binds the positive aluminum.

Thus aluminum disrupts the chromatin structure and in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients it was found that aluminum binds to selective promoter areas of genes that encode proteins that are essential for neural function. In this way aluminum inhibits the expression of these genes.

Again, the problem is that once the aluminum gets into the nucleus of the cell, there is no way of getting it out. It just stays there. The finding by the French team is that even the aluminum you inject in the periphery can get into the brain, which is a concern...

The fact is that the aluminum we get from vaccines is not rapidly excreted, and most of it does remain in your body because it bypasses the gastrointestinal system. If aluminum was rapidly excreted, as the health authorities would like us to believe, then it would be a pretty lousy adjuvant.”

ANY Adjuvant Is Likely to Carry Risk of Autoimmune Disease

I want to stress the point Dr. Tomljenovic makes about the harm produced by stimulating an exaggerated immune response, which is what vaccines are designed to do—this is the function of the adjuvant. The problem is, even if aluminum is removed from vaccines, the risk of immune system brain disorder remains even if the new adjuvant is non-toxic. As she explains, by the virtue of over-stimulating your immune system, you run the risk of breaking self-tolerance. Research supporting this was also presented in Japan during its governmental hearing on HPV vaccines.

What the team of Japanese researchers led by Dr Shunichi Shiozawa found¹⁵ is that the repeated stimulation with the same antigen overcomes the genetic resistance to autoimmunity. At present, we’re giving children booster shots at regular intervals with the same antigen. And the research shows that when you do this—when you stimulate the immune system on a regular basis—you break the tolerance to autoimmunity. This is a really crucial piece of information that people need to become aware of.

How Can Safety Be Proven When Proper Safety Studies Are Lacking and Health Statistics Indicate Otherwise?

In light of these findings, it is not surprising that Shaw and Tomljenovic are under fire. However, the critics really do not have much to counter with, besides ad hominem attacks. One recent critic blasted the study saying it was irresponsible to publish this type of research because it might erode the confidence in vaccines. “I think the opposite is true because if you’re trying to enforce military measures, I think that erodes the confidence. Because a truly good product does not need military-type of enforcement,” Dr. Tomljenovic retorts.

The primary and central issue here is that no properly performed safety studies have been done, and by that I'm referring to safety studies that are not corrupted by using toxic placebos, such as another vaccine, rather than a truly inert placebo. "We're not saying stop vaccinating, but stop selling lies, [stop saying] that these things are absolutely safe and that serious adverse risks are so rare that you don't have to worry about them. It's a lie because the proper type of research to answer that question has never been done," Dr.Tomljenovic says.

I couldn't agree more, especially when you add the historical record, which Dr. Suzanne Humphries dissects in her excellent book, Dissolving Illusions. In it, she shows that most infectious diseases were nearly eradicated before the introduction of vaccines. In the end, basic nutritional and hygiene principles such as optimizing vitamin D and avoiding sugar has a far more dramatic preventative effect against illness, and with robust immune function, you can safely recover from virtually any infectious disease and come out the other side with lifelong immunity.

“There is also a research showing how exposure to certain childhood diseases like chicken pox actually has prevented certain types of gliomas [a type of brain tumor],” Dr. Tomljenovic notes. “There are some others that decreased the risk of Parkinson’s. Cancer is also in part a disease of the immune system because a healthy immune system will detect abnormal cell growth. If you compromise your immune system early in childhood, there goes your anti-cancer defense...

People need to do their own research on these things, because we have to make choices every day, and they should be informed choices. If I was to buy a new kitchen appliance I would spend some time researching, comparing prices, and looking at the quality. But when it comes to putting things into our children, we just blindly trust the medical authorities...

You cannot go back on some of these things. I get a lot of emails from parents with vaccine injured children. It must be the most horrible thing for a parent to live with that because they truly believe they did the best for their child. I know many mothers whose girls have died following HPV, and they said, “If I only haven’t listened to that campaign, my daughter would still be alive.”

Sugar Industry Has Subverted Public Health Policy for Decades, Study Finds

By Dr. Mercola

Who writes the policies for public health, and how? This is an important question, and if your initial answer is that policy is created by medical experts, based on the most scientifically compelling evidence available, you'd actually be wrong.

As recent media reports^1,2,3,4 have revealed, dental policy, for example, is heavily influenced by the sugar industry.

Adding insult to injury, the American Dental Association (ADA) takes money from junk food companies as well—the primary purveyors of cavities—and then promotes fluoride as the answer to the sugar damage.

As a result of this collusion, dental policy not only downplays the impact that sugar and processed junk food has on dental health, it also ignores the voluminous evidence demonstrating the toxic nature of fluoride.

The situation is virtually identical in the UK. As noted in the British Medical Journal (BMJ):⁵

"An investigation by The BMJ has uncovered evidence of the extraordinary extent to which key public health experts are involved with the sugar industry and related companies responsible for many of the products blamed for the obesity crisis through research grants, consultancy fees, and other forms of funding."

Cavities Are Not the Result of Fluoride Deficiency

Blaming cavities on lack of fluoride is like blaming obesity on lack of exercise. The scientific evidence does not support either of these notions, and yet they persist—in large part thanks to industry lobbyists working to obscure the facts.

In the case of dental policy, ADA lobbying, using money from the sugar and junk food industries, have played a key role in perpetuating the fluoride myth rather than attacking the real source of the problem, which is rooted in a diet too high in sugars and too low in vital nutrients.

The sugar industry actually operates in much the same way as the tobacco industry back in its heydays.⁶ For over 30 years, the tobacco industry knew that nicotine was addictive and caused lung cancer, and this information was purposefully withheld from the public.

Big Tobacco executives even lied during Congressional testimony, stating they had no knowledge of adverse health effects.

Today, Big Sugar is being equally evasive about fessing up the truth, despite overwhelming evidence showing that excessive sugar consumption—which is part and parcel of a processed food diet—is a key driver of obesity, metabolic dysfunction, chronic disease and, of course, dental cavities.

According to the World Health Organization⁷ (WHO), people across the US and Europe need to cut their sugar consumption in half in order to reduce their risk of tooth decay and obesity.

But how well will such advice take hold when the soda industry is working hand-in-hand with some of our most trusted nutrition experts, including dietitians,⁸ some of whom recently contributed online posts for American Heart Month that included mini-sized coca-colas in their healthy snack recommendations!

Sure, the can may be smaller, but these mini-colas still contain about 5.5 teaspoons of sugar in the form of high fructose corn syrup. For an adult with insulin resistance, this one mini-can alone maxes out your fructose allotment for the day.

Honestly, this is like Big Tobacco making mini-cigarettes and doctors promoting them as a healthy alternative for smokers...

Many Parents Still Grossly Misinformed on Sugar Hazards

The WHO's guidelines call for reducing sugar consumption to 10 percent of daily calories or less, which equates to about 50 grams or 12 teaspoons of sugar for adults. Ideally, the WHO says, your intake should be below five percent. This is more in line with my own recommendations.

I typically recommend keeping your total fructose consumption below 25 grams per day if you're in good health. If you are insulin resistant, diabetic, obese, or have high blood pressure, heart disease, or other chronic disease, I suggest cutting it down to 15 grams per day until your health and weight have normalized.

It's important to remember that added sugar hides in most processed foods, beverages, and condiments (typically in the form of high fructose corn syrup, which research has shown to be far more hazardous to your health than glucose or table sugar).

Fruit juices are also chockfull of added sugars, yet many still mistakenly consider fruit juice to be a healthy beverage choice, especially for young children.

As noted in a recent study⁹ from the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at University of Connecticut, parents have been grossly mislead by marketing and labeling, and have failed to get the message that sweetened drinks are just as hazardous to their children's health as soda.

According to lead author Jennifer Harris, who is also the director of marketing initiatives at the Rudd Center:

"Although many parents know that soda is not good for children, many still believe that sugary drinks are healthy options. The labeling and marketing for these products imply that they are nutritious, and these misperceptions may explain why so many parents buy them."

What's worse, nearly half of all parents surveyed for this study also thought that flavored waters were healthy, which is a gross miseducation about the facts.

Not surprisingly, the American Beverage Association dismissed the study saying:¹⁰: "This is just the latest report coming out of an institution with a long history of bashing beverages, and it undermines parents' ability to make decisions themselves."

The Sugar Industry Has Subverted Public Health Policy for Decades

PLOS Medicine recently published a paper¹¹ titled: "Sugar Industry Influence on the Scientific Agenda of the National Institute of Dental Research's 1971 National Caries Program: A Historical Analysis of Internal Documents."

According to this paper, the sugar industry's interactions with the National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR) significantly altered and shaped the priorities of the National Caries Program (NCP), launched in 1971 to identify interventions that would eradicate tooth decay.

As noted in the paper:

"We used internal cane and beet sugar industry documents from 1959 to 1971 to analyze industry actions related to setting research priorities for the NCP.

The sugar industry could not deny the role of sucrose in dental caries given the scientific evidence. They therefore adopted a strategy to deflect attention to public health interventions that would reduce the harms of sugar consumption rather than restricting intake."

This industry-led deflection strategy included:

• Funding research on enzymes to break up dental plaque, in collaboration with allies in the food industry
• Funding research into a highly questionable vaccine against tooth decay. Another failed research goal included developing a powder or agent that could be mixed or taken with sugary foods to lessen the destruction to teeth caused by the Streptococcus mutans bacterium¹²
• Forming a task force with the aim to influence leaders in the NIDR (nine of the 11 members of the NIDR's Caries Task Force Steering Committee, charged with identifying the NIDR's research priorities, also served on the International Sugar Research Foundation's Panel of Dental Caries Task Force)
• Submitting a report to the NIDR, which served as the foundation for the initial proposal request issued for the National Caries Program (NCP)

Omitted from the NCP's priorities was any research that might be detrimental to the sugar industry, meaning research investigating the role and impact of sugar on dental health. According to study author Stanton Glantz,¹³ "the sugar industry was able to derail some promising research that probably would've been the foundation for regulation of sugar in food." And, as further noted in the featured paper:

"The NCP was a missed opportunity to develop a scientific understanding of how to restrict sugar consumption to prevent tooth decay. A key factor was the alignment of research agendas between the NIDR and the sugar industry. This historical example illustrates how industry protects itself from potentially damaging research, which can inform policy makers today...

Most importantly, these findings illustrate how the sugar industry has protected itself from potentially damaging research in the past; a similar approach has also been taken by the tobacco industry. These findings highlight the need to carefully scrutinize industry opposition to the proposed WHO and FDA guidelines on sugar intake and labeling, respectively, to ensure that industry interests do not interfere with current efforts to improve dental public health." [Emphasis mine]

Chemical Industry Writes its Own Laws Too...

The sugar- and junk food industries are not the only companies influencing government and media, and writing their own laws. Toxic chemical producers are notorious for this as well. Case in point: The Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, which appears to have originated in the offices of the American Chemistry Council. As reported by San Francisco Gate:¹⁴

"It's a high-stakes bill: If it becomes law, it would be the first update in 39 years of federal regulation of toxic substances like asbestos, formaldehyde and hundreds of other chemicals.... The draft bill, obtained by Hearst Newspapers, is in the form of a Microsoft Word document. Rudimentary digital forensics — going to "advanced properties" in Word — shows the "company" of origin to be the American Chemistry Council.

The ACC, as the council is known, is the leading trade organization and lobbyist for the chemical industry. And opponents of the Vitter-Udall bill have pounced on the document's digital fingerprints to make the point that they believe the bill favors industry far too much... In its current form, the bill is opposed by many environmental, health and labor organizations and several states, because it would gut state chemical regulations....

"We're apparently at the point in the minds of some people in the Congress that laws intended to regulate polluters are now written by the polluters themselves," said Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group..."Call me old-fashioned, but a bill to protect the public from harmful chemicals should not be written by chemical industry lobbyists. The voices of our families must not be drowned out by the very industry whose documented harmful impacts must be addressed, or the whole exercise is a sham," Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said..."

Sugar and Beverage Industries Hard at Work Opposing Actions to Curb Sugar Consumption

Overwhelming amounts of research has now identified sugar in all its forms as a driving force in obesity and chronic disease, which is far more serious an issue than dental caries. As a result of the mounting evidence, there's now a proposal to add a line to the nutrition facts label indicating the amount of added sugars in food. Listing the percentage of daily value for sugar on nutritional labels would more readily identify high-sugar foods, and could help rein in overconsumption caused by "hidden" sugars.

Not surprisingly, the sugar and beverage industries are hard at work opposing any and all federal actions that might dampen their sales. For example, the Sugar Association and the American Beverage Association have filed copious amounts of comments with the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, challenging scientific associations between sugar and chronic disease. Industry lawyers have even gone so far as to claim that including "added sugars" on nutrition labels is unconstitutional.

Another effort being vehemently opposed by industry is the proposal to institute local, state, and/or federal taxes on soda. So far, the soda industry has spent $125 million opposing such proposals.¹⁵ Their efforts have been successful everywhere except Berkley, California, where the nation's first soda tax was passed in November 2014.¹⁶ According to one estimate, the one percent per ounce tax may cut sales by about 10 percent.

The Truth About Sugar

Large sums of money have been spent, and scientific integrity has been tossed by the wayside, in order to convince you that added sugars are a "staple" nutrient that belongs in your diet; and that health problems like obesity, chronic disease, and dental caries are due to some other issue—be it lack of exercise, too much saturated fat, or lack of fluoride. Clearly, the sugar industry's ability to influence policy for public health and research put us decades behind the eight-ball, as it were. It's really time to set the record straight, and SugarScience.org was created to do just that.¹⁷

To counter the propaganda provided by profit-driven industry interests, dozens of scientists at three American universities have created a new educational website¹⁸ aimed at making independent research that is unsoiled by industry cash available to the public.

The sugar industry has not only subverted efforts to investigate the role of sugar in dental caries. The same applies to research looking at sugar's impact on other health problems as well. Case in point: A report¹⁹ published in PLOS Medicine in December 2013 looked at how financial interests influence outcomes in trials aimed to determine the relationship between sugar consumption and obesity. The report concluded that studies with financial ties to industry were five times more likely to present a conclusion of "no positive association" between sugar and obesity, compared to those without such ties.

SugarScience.org points out that many people are unaware of just how much sugar they're actually consuming every day, primarily because added sugars hide in 74 percent of processed foods under more than 60 different names. For a list, please see SugarScience.org's "Hidden in Plain Sight" page.²⁰ Even foods that are typically considered "healthy" can contain shocking amounts of added sugar. Fruit flavored yogurt, for example, can contain upwards of 19 grams of sugar; 12 grams of which is added sugar. For someone with insulin/leptin resistance, this one small serving of yogurt alone will put you over your daily recommended limit for total sugar!

Tips for Reducing Your Added Sugar Intake

The easiest way to dramatically cut down on your sugar and fructose consumption is to switch to a diet of whole, unprocessed foods, as most of the added sugar you end up with comes from processed fare; not from adding a teaspoon of sugar to your tea or coffee. Other ways to cut down on the sugar in your diet includes:

• Cutting back on the amount of sugar you personally add to your food and drink
• Using Stevia or Luo-Han instead of sugar and/or artificial sweeteners. You can learn more about the best and worst of sugar substitutes in my previous article, "Sugar Substitutes—What's Safe and What's Not"
• Using fresh fruit in lieu of canned fruit or sugar for meals or recipes calling for a bit of sweetness
• Using spices instead of sugar to add flavor to your meal

Fluoride Is NOT the Answer to Tooth Decay

Instead of focusing on the real cause of dental caries, which is excessive sugar consumption, industry interests were allowed to misdirect scientific inquiry toward prophylactics like fluoride instead. However, decades of research into fluoride have not only failed to support its purported benefits; it actually shows that the health dangers of fluoride far outweigh the marginal dental benefits it might offer. Dental caries can be effectively prevented with means other than fluoridation, thereby avoiding the adverse effects of this cumulative toxin.

Over time, accumulation of fluoride in your body can lead to serious health concerns, from hypothyroidism to skeletal fluorosis and much more. The neurological effects are particularly disconcerting. For example, 43 human studies²¹ have linked moderately high fluoride exposures with reduced IQ. Recent research also claims to have found a strong correlation between water fluoridation and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

As reported by Newsweek:²²

"It's the first time that scientists have systematically studied the relationship between the behavioral disorder and fluoridation, the process wherein fluoride is added to water to prevent cavities. The study,²³ published in the journal Environmental Health, found that states with a higher portion of artificially fluoridated water had a higher prevalence of ADHD. This relationship held up across six different years examined...

In the study, the scientists produced a predictive model which calculated that every one percent increase in the portion of the US population drinking fluoridated water in 1992 was associated with 67,000 additional cases of ADHD 11 years later, and an additional 131,000 cases by 2011, after controlling for socioeconomic status."

In Delaware and Iowa, where water supplies are heavily fluoridated, the diagnosed ADHD rate is 14 percent—or one in eight kids, aged four to 17. For comparison, the national ADHD rate²⁴ reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is 11 percent for kids in the same age bracket. William Hirzy, a former risk assessment scientist at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) commented on the results saying: "The numbers of extra cases associated with a one percent increase in the 1992 artificial fluoridation [figures] are huge. In short, it clearly shows that as artificial water fluoridation increases, so does the incidence of ADHD." Science is replete with warnings such as these; it's high time we stop ignoring them!

Reduce Sugar Consumption to Spare Your Teeth

Water fluoridation really needs to stop. It was never the real answer to tooth decay, and it never will be. Cavities are no more caused by a lack of fluoride than depression is caused by a lack of Prozac... If you want to improve your dental health, look to your diet, and address the diet of your children from day one. Some of the true primary causes of tooth decay cited in the literature include:

• Consistent use of refined sugar and processed fructose found in sugary drinks and processed foods in general
• Children going to bed with a bottle of sweetened drink in their mouth, or sucking at will from such a bottle during the day
• Poor dental hygiene and poor access to and utilization of dental health services, usually related to socioeconomic status
• Mineral deficiencies, like magnesium, which can weaken bones and teeth
• More than 600 medications promote tooth decay by inhibiting saliva

By far, excess dietary sugar is the most significant factor in driving dental decay. WHO and most dental experts agree on this fact. The massive consumption of sugar in the Western diet, particularly fructose in high fructose corn syrup, fuels the fire of tooth decay. Again, one of the reasons why the dangers of both sugar and fluoride aren't common public knowledge is because the sugar industry was allowed to dictate dental health policy and research agendas. As noted by Cristin Kearns who co-authored the featured study: "It's extremely shocking to see how closely NIDR [and the sugar industry] worked together, and how the research priorities between the two groups were so aligned to benefit the sugar industry."

Well, it's time to get over the shock and do something to correct the situation. Part of this course correction is putting an end to water fluoridation, which is doing far more harm than good. The sugar, beverage, and junk food industries have had their way for decades. We now know what kind of world their "science" brings to bear—a world of out of control obesity and skyrocketing disease rates. It's time for a U-turn, and it begins with you.

You do not have to wait for anyone to give you the green-light to change what you eat and drink. Again, if you're insulin resistant, overweight, or suffer from chronic disease, it would behoove you to limit your total fructose consumption to 15 grams per day or less. For all others, aim for 25 grams of fructose from all sources or less, to maintain good health. For more details on optimizing your dental hygiene without fluoride, please see the Related Articles listing.

7 Super Healthy Food Staples, and 7 Superfoods You May Not Know

By Dr. Mercola

Pre-packaged processed foods may be convenient, but if you seek to improve your health, cooking from scratch using fresh unprocessed ingredients is more or less non-negotiable.

Once you're eating non-adulterated foods—foods that are as close to their natural state as possible—then basically everything you eat is a "superfood." You need nutrients—all of them—and nutrients are found in abundance in fresh, raw foods.

Still, suggestions of specific items can be helpful to steer you in the right direction, so to help you get started, I've compiled two lists: one consisting of seven every-day nutritional powerhouses, plus another one with seven superfoods you may never have heard of—because eating healthy doesn't have to be monotonously boring!

1. Homemade Bone Broth

Homemade bone broth is as "staple" as it gets if you want to eat healthier. It's also a really cost effective way to improve your diet, as you can make use of leftover carcass bones that would otherwise be thrown away.

Bone broth helps "heal and seal" your gut, which is so important for optimal health and disease prevention, and it's also excellent for speeding up your recovery time when you're feeling under the weather.

It contains plenty of healthy fat, along with important nutrients like calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulfur, and trace minerals, as well as the broken down material from cartilage and tendons, including chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine.

One important caveat when making broth, whether you're using chicken or beef, is to make sure they're from organically-raised, pastured or grass-fed animals. For detailed instructions on how to make your own broth, please refer to my previous article: "Bone Broth—One of Your Most Healing Diet Staples."

2. Sprouted Seeds

Another easy and inexpensive way to optimize your nutrition is to add sprouted seeds to your vegetable juice and/or salad. They can easily be grown in your own kitchen, year-round, and are a great way to dip your toes in the water if you're considering growing your own food.

Sunflower seeds are one of my personal favorites, both in terms of flavor and nutritional punch. Once sunflower seeds are sprouted, their protein, vitamin, and mineral content will typically provide you with 30 times the nutrient content of organic vegetables!

Sprouts in general also contain valuable enzymes—up to 100 times more enzymes than raw fruits and vegetables—that allow your body to absorb and use the nutrients of other foods you eat.

For directions on growing seeds into sprouts, please see my previous article, "How to Grow Your Own Food in Small Spaces."

We have kits to grow spouts in our store. Sprouts-as-medicine.com¹ is another good source for things relating to sprouts: their health benefits, recipes, and how to grow your own.

3. Fermented Vegetables

Cultured or fermented foods have a very long history in virtually all native diets, and have always been highly prized for their health benefits. The culturing process produces beneficial microbes that are extremely important for your health as they help balance your intestinal flora, thereby boosting overall immune function.

Fermented foods are also excellent chelators and detox agents that can help rid your body of a wide variety of toxins, including heavy metals. Just one quarter to one half cup of fermented food, eaten with one to three meals per day, can have a dramatically beneficial impact on your health.

Fermenting your own vegetables is a lot simpler than you might think, and is the most inexpensive route. Wild fermentation is when you allow whatever is on the vegetable to naturally take hold and culture the food. Inoculating the food using a starter culture speeds up the fermentation process, however.

If you use a starter culture formulated to produce higher levels of vitamin K2 (which many are deficient in), you will also save money on supplements. (Vitamin K2 is particularly important if you're taking a vitamin D supplement.)

For instructions, and a more in-depth discussion of the health benefits of fermented veggies, please see my previous interview with Caroline Barringer.

4. Avocados

Avocados are an excellent source of healthy raw fat, which most Americans are seriously deficient in. They also provide close to 20 essential health-boosting nutrients, including: fiber, potassium, vitamin E, B-vitamins, and folic acid.

In addition, avocados enable your body to more efficiently absorb fat-soluble nutrients, such as alpha- and beta-carotene and lutein, in other foods eaten in conjunction with it.

Besides eating them raw, you can use avocado as fat substitute in recipes calling for butter or other oils. Another boon of avocados—they're one of the safest fruits you can buy conventionally-grown, so you don't need to spend more for organic ones. Their thick skin protects the inner fruit from pesticides.

5. Kale

Kale contains fiber and antioxidants, and is one of the best sources of vitamin A, which promotes eye and skin health and may help strengthen your immune system. A one-cup serving has almost as much vitamin C as an orange and as much calcium as a cup of milk. It's simply an excellent source of multiple vitamins and other nutrients, including:

Vitamin A	Vitamin B	Vitamin C
Calcium	Lutein (helps protect against macular degeneration)	Zeaxanthin (helps protect against macular degeneration)
Indole-3-carbinol (may protect against colon cancer)	Iron	Chlorophyll

6. Organic Coconut Oil

Besides being excellent for your thyroid and your metabolism, coconut oil is rich in lauric acid, which is capable of destroying a number of different viruses, including influenza and measles. Its medium chain fatty acids (MCTs) also impart a number of health benefits, including raising your body's metabolism.

Coconut oil is easy on your digestive system and does not produce an insulin spike in your bloodstream, so for a quick energy boost, you could simply eat a spoonful of coconut oil, or add it to your food.

It's also the ideal choice for all types of cooking—in fact, it's the only oil stable enough to resist mild heat-induced damage. So, whenever you need an oil to cook or bake with, use coconut oil instead of butter, olive oil, vegetable oil, margarine, or any other type of oil called for in recipes.

Just make sure you choose an organic coconut oil that is unrefined, unbleached, made without heat processing or chemicals, and does not contain genetically engineered ingredients. As an added boon, coconut oil has countless other uses besides cooking and eating; from topical beauty applications to first aid treatments, to general household cleaning.

7. Fresh Herbs

Herbs do more than add flavor; they're also densely packed with valuable nutrients, and many are well-known for having medicinal qualities as well. Turmeric is one example of a spice with potent and scientifically proven medicinal benefits—against cancer no less. Another less dramatic example is plain black pepper, which has been shown to increase the bioavailability of just about all other foods. As a general rule, you really can't go wrong when using herbs and spices and I recommend allowing your taste buds to dictate your choices when cooking.

Seven Superfoods You May Never Have Heard of

If your pantry is already stocked with these basics and/or you're looking to expand your culinary repertoire with some more adventurous fare, the following seven superfoods are ones you may never have heard of before. For a few more, see the featured article in Time magazine.²

Limequat	Limequats are a hybrid cross between lime and kumquat, the latter of which is a sweet but tangy citrus with an edible peel. Limequats are in season between July and November, and contain plenty of fiber and vitamin C. Like the kumquat, they have an edible rind, so it's a good choice for spicing up dishes with a citrusy flavor.
Pomelo	The pomelo is yet another member of the citrus family that is typically overlooked. They look a bit like over-sized grapefruits, and the taste is similar too, although pomelos tend to be sweeter. To eat, remove the thick rind and membrane from each "slice." Just like other citrus fruits, you can eat it as is, or add to salad, salsa, marinades, or fresh juice, just to give you a few ideas.
Hubbard squash	Hubbard squash3 is in season during the winter, when it can be a welcome source of densely packed nutrients, including vitamins A, C, E and K, potassium, folic acid, iron, lutein, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, zeaxanthin, and plant-based omega-3. The featured article suggests pairing roasted Hubbard squash with kale, or adding it to stew.
Celeriac	Celeriac, aka turnip-rooted celery or celery root, is a root vegetable with a taste that resembles conventional celery. You can eat it either raw or cooked, and it's high in vitamins B6, C, and K, along with potassium and magnesium. Time magazine suggests grating some onto salad, along with beets, apples, and walnuts for a flavorful kick.
Teff	Teff, a tiny North African cereal grass grain, has been a staple of traditional Ethiopian cooking for thousands of years. Naturally gluten-free, teff is rich in calcium, manganese, iron, fiber, protein, B vitamins, zinc, and all eight essential amino acids. It has a mild, nutty flavor that lends itself well to a variety of dishes, including stews, pilaf, and baked goods. You could also add it on top of your salad.
Fenugreek	Fenugreek is a curry-scented plant, the seeds of which have traditionally been valued for their medicinal uses,4 which include the treatment of digestive problems, upset stomach, constipation, and gastritis, and much more. Fresh fenugreek leaves can be eaten raw like a vegetable. You can also use them—either fresh or dried—to spice up various dishes. Fresh fenugreek leaves are often used in Indian curries. Fenugreek seeds are rich in minerals like iron, potassium, calcium, fiber, and choline, and can be sprouted for an added health kick.
Purslane	Purslane is a lemon-flavored edible weed that is popular in both Greek and Mexican cooking. Some compare the taste to watercress or spinach. It's rich in plant-based omega-3 fats, vitamins C and E, and pectin. Young leaves and tender stem tips are generally preferred in terms of flavor and crunch, and make a tasty addition to salads and sandwiches.

Take Control of Your Health with Real Food

The need for speed and convenience has resulted in a plethora of processed pre-packaged foods, but while generally less expensive, a processed food diet will typically lead to a downturn in health. Then when years of bad food choices take their toll on health, people want to feel better by tomorrow. They want to be at their ideal weight by next week. And as luck would have it, there is an endless supply of drugs and fake foods available promising to do just that.

Unfortunately, nearly all of these "magic pills" and diets can worsen your health even more in the long run. Ultimately, the simplest and most effective way to achieve good health and a long life is to focus on the nutrition you are putting in your body on a daily basis. Healthy foods not only provide you with life-giving nutrients and fuel for all your organs, they also help you keep an ideal weight.

If you're new to the idea of eating a diet based on whole foods, incorporating as many of the staples listed above as you can will get you off to a great start. For even more advice on how to eat right by focusing your diet on whole, unprocessed superfoods, see my nutrition plan. Once you've got the basics covered, start exploring and expanding your repertoire. There are so many flavors and textures out there—the likes of which you'll never come across in a microwave dinner!

Ideally, opt for organic and/or locally grown foods whenever possible. The following organizations can help you locate organic and locally produced foods, including many of those discussed above.

• Local Harvest -- This Website will help you find farmers' markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area where you can buy produce and grass-fed meats.
• Eat Wild: With more than 1,400 pasture-based farms, Eatwild's Directory of Farms is one of the most comprehensive sources for pastured foods in the United States and Canada.
• Farmers' Markets -- A national listing of farmers' markets.
• Eat Well Guide: Wholesome Food from Healthy Animals -- The Eat Well Guide is a free online directory of sustainably raised meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs from farms, stores, restaurants, inns, and hotels, and online outlets in the United States and Canada.
• FoodRoutes -- The FoodRoutes "Find Good Food" map can help you connect with local farmers to find the freshest, tastiest food possible. On their interactive map, you can find a listing for local farmers, CSAs, and markets near you.