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We recently had pleasure to join others interested in improving our food system at a forum held at Uncommon Ground in Chicago.  Speakers included Representative Jan Shakowsky, Helen Cameron, owner of Uncommon Ground, and Claire Benjamin of Food Policy Action. The topic was the overuse of antibiotics in industrial animal farming. Did you know that 80% of all antibiotics administered are given to animals on factory farms? This overuse is causing the rise of antibiotic resistant bacteria that do not respond to treatment for both common and rare infections. Care to learn more?  Here's some links on the topic: Antibiotic Resistance - from the...

Probiotics have been quite the hot topic for some time now. But have you heard about Prebiotics? We are beginning to understand more about the importance of these beneficial bacteria, Probiotics, or microflora, in our guts — not only in maintaining digestive health, but also in boosting our immune systems. Dietitian Jo Ann Hattner, coauthor, with Susan Anderes of  “Gut Insight: Probiotics and Prebiotics For Digestive Health and Well-Being” explains: "probiotics do not thrive on their own. They have to be replaced every few days, and they have to be nourished. Bacteria have to eat, too,” Hattner says, and it turns out...

Michael Ruhlman does great writing on food and cooking, but he also writes about our food system and healthy eating. His recent blog post about how our eating and cooking habits have changed in the last 100 years. His discussion with doctor Roxanne Sukol highlights several major changes in our food supply that have resulted in our current epidemic of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic illness. "Obviously the tidal wave of diet books and diet advice and fad diets hasn’t worked, since the problems have only increased. Indeed, he suggests that diet books and trend diets may be a part of the cause."...

by Anna Lappé via Time Just in case you're undecided, we will make the case on why your kids should be eating organic A poll out last week from the Organic Trade Association found a sharp decrease in parents who say price is a key factor limiting their organic purchases. “Parents in charge of the household budget recognize the benefits of organic,” said the trade group’s Laura Batcha. “And they’re willing to pay a little more to know that they are giving their families the highest-quality and most healthy products being offered in their local store.” We can already hear...

You may have heard this term thrown around lately. Nutrient dense foods contain the micronutrients; vitamins, minerals and trace elements that we need for optimal health. Consume these foods and they will help your body to acquire more: Vitamins A, E, K, C, B, Folate, Zinc, Magnesium, Omega 3 Fatty Acids, a wide range of antioxidants, and micronutrients to help support your liver and detoxification systems, as well as your immune system. That's a lot to keep track of and most of us don't have the time. Basically you want to focus on food that is minimally processed and close to...