Proposition 37 - Do We Have The Right To Know?

by guest blogger Jody Perrecone

Californians will be voting November 6th on Proposition 37, also known as the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Foods Act.  It will be asking if   1) it should be mandatory for genetically modified foods to be labeled and  2) foods that contain GMOs no longer be labeled as “natural.”

What is genetically modified food?  It is the moving or modifying or insertion of a gene in a plant (or animal) to modify its characteristics.  A bacteria gene may be inserted in seed that will make it resistant to pesticides. Changing the genes of a plant will allow insecticides or herbicides to be sprayed on fields that will kill insects or weeds but not the plant. 

What’s the harm?  The truth is we don’t know if there are any long term health implications of GMOs.  Suggestions have been made that GMOs may be toxic and cause allergies and cause hormone disruption in humans.

"Natural Foods" - Don't Be Fooled!!!

What comes to mind when you see the word “natural”? Ice cream, key lime pie, chips? Probably not. But that is what I saw on packaging when I made a trip to the grocery store last week.

“Natural” filled the shelves – tortilla chips, lemon-lime soda, crackers made with refined flour, pies, lemonade powder with a long list of ingredients including yellow dye #5, vegetable oil made with genetically modified soybeans, fruit juices with “natural” flavors added, potato chips – the list goes on.

For some reason, I think of “natural” foods as being bananas, broccoli, apples, lettuce, potatoes, carrots and the like – foods that are unaltered and recognizable for what they are.

Unlike many descriptions listed on food packaging, the term “natural” is not regulated by the FDA. Therefore, the term “natural” can be put on anything. A recent study concluded last year 28% of Americans bought more foods labeled “natural”. “Natural” sells. But don’t be fooled! Unless you recognize the food in its truly “natural” state, it has been reconstructed and has had unnatural chemicals and preservatives added.

For optimal health, eat “natural” foods in the form nature intended them to be.

Whole Perspective

Burger and fries - "SAD" diet of the past

by guest blogger Joseph Baker

I was raised on a Midwestern diet of hamburgers, French fries and frothing glasses of ice-cold milk. I once tried to go vegetarian. I gave up that weekend, when a friend unknowingly made me a steak dinner, causing me to promptly cave on my resolutions to eat healthier. This "meat and potatoes" attitude followed me throughout college, until last winter.

I was working out at the gym, and my trainer noticed that I was congested and unable to draw a full, deep breath without coughing. After questioning me about my diet, he recommended that I cut dairy completely out. I started to notice a difference within a week—namely, I felt less sluggish and congested. After researching the negative side effects of dairy, I stopped consuming dairy altogether, except the rare snack of cheese.

Dr. Don & The Plant-Based Pharmacist - Food Subsidies, Lobbying, and the American Healthcare Crisis

Did you ever think about why our healthcare system is setup the way it is?  Or how our agriculture system is organized in a way that promotes the healthcare system by making it easy for people to buy and eat inexpensive foods which make us sick?

Dr. Don Wagner and myself went to the public airwaves with these topics to help others understand what goes on behind the scenes of government, politics, and the agriculture and healthcare industries.  We expose the food subsidy programs which act to further fuel the American healthcare crisis as well as talk about the money being exchanged between pharmaceutical companies and doctors and politicians.  There's a reason why you're bombarded with endless commercials and advertisements for disease promoting foods and medications that don't work to deal with these food choices.  You deserve better.  You deserve to know how to take back control of your life, your health, and your future and that's what Dr. Don and I aim to do by working together to inform you of topics like this.

I've included the links to the two articles I wrote that Dr. Don references throughout the program at the end of this article.  I hope you enjoy them and this show.  Remember, your best way to beat the agriculture and pharmaceutical companies at their own game is to adopt a healthy lifestyle so you can avoid becoming dependent on their products or services. By doing so, you benefit individually and act to end the current healthcare crisis by using less medical resources.  You'll be happier, healthier, and will look forward to the years to come instead of dreading the typical downhill slide that ends in disease and suffering that so many others experience in life.

Dr. Don radio show archive from 12/21/11

My articles on food subsidies, lobbying, and special interests:

Our Taxes - Are They Making Us Sick?

Big Money, Special Interests, and the American Healthcare Crisis

If you like what you see here then you'll LOVE our daily Facebook and Twitter posts!  Also, don't forget to sign up for  Our Free Online Mailing List  to get all the latest updates from the Plant-Based Pharmacist!

by Dustin Rudolph, PharmD
Clinical Pharmacist

Check out Dustin Rudolph's book The Empty Medicine Cabinet to start your journey towards better health. This step-by-step guide leads you through many of today's common chronic diseases (heart disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, and more), giving you the facts on foods versus medications in treating these medical conditions. The book also contains an easy-to-follow guide on how to adopt a whole foods, plant-based diet as a part of an overall lifestyle change, producing the best possible health outcomes for you and your family. Hurry and get your copy today!

We'd love for you to join us in spreading the good word about plant-based nutrition and lifestyle medicine by telling your family and friends about our website at www.PlantBasedPharmacist.com. 

Share and rate this post below or tell us what you think by posting a comment. Thank you again for stopping by and until next time... be happy, be healthy, and live the life you've always dreamed of!

The Food Industry - Behind The Scenes With Robin O'Brien

It's funny how something so simple in life can lead to such a huge change for that person.  And it's even more incredible when that simple event ends up having a profound impact on hundreds, if not thousands, of other people.  That's exactly what an ordinary breakfast of Eggo waffles, scrambled eggs, and a tube of blue yogurt did for Robin O'Brien and her family.

That breakfast turned into an urgent trip to their pediatrician's office as Robin's youngest child had an allergic reaction to the food she ate that morning.  This event completely changed not only the lives of Robin and her family but also the lives of countless numbers of other parents and their children as the truth behind our food industry was about to be unveiled.