Bologna? I Think I'll Pass....

I have had a thing about processed meats for a number of years now – never been one to enjoy a hot dog, bologna makes me woozy and well, I could go on and on. So in the course of researching my new book, I found validity for my feelings, sodium nitrite proved that my ick feelings about processed meats were dead on.

As a food additive, sodium nitrite (also beware of sodium nitrate) serves a dual purpose since it both alters the color of preserved fish and meats and also prevents the growth of Clostridium botulinum, the bacteria which causes botulism. Sodium nitrite can turn your meats and fish the bright red color that you generally associate with freshness, when in fact the product can be anything but.

While sodium nitrite will prevent the growth of bacteria, it is also toxic for mammals. Recent studies have found a link between high processed meat consumption and colon cancer, possibly due to preservatives such as sodium nitrite. The evidence doesn't stop there, a recent study shows a 67% increase in pancreatic cancer for people consuming moderate amounts of processed meat on a frequent basis.

But leave it to our friends at NewsTarget.com to up the grossness factor a few more notches with the video below. This humorous take on a frightening subject will make you think twice before ordering pepperoni on that pizza or buying a hot dog from the corner vendor – I promise!!

All Chickens are Not Created Equal

Last night I was talking to a friend who mentioned a new line of “Hormone-Free” chicken. I had researched that a bit when it first became available because I admit, the low price was intriguing.

Well the first thing I learned was that all chicken is “Hormone-Free.” According to the USDA Food Inspection Safety Service, no hormones are to be used in the raising of chickens. So the new line of chicken – simply slick marketing.

But I wasn’t done looking, nope, I figured since I had been writing about eggs, chickens, canaries and mutated fish, I would continue on and answer as many poultry questions as possible.

According to Delicious Organics, “Organic Chicken” has always been fed only organic grains – which means they are non GMO; no chemicals or pesticides were used on the farm for at least three years, and the feed is routinely checked and verified for organic standards. “Organic Chicken” was NEVER given any antibiotics, hormones or drugs, it was raised humanely and in a stress free environment, and allowed free-range, meaning it had daily access to fresh air and sunshine outdoors – basically, the bird was given room to move in an area that was clean and safe.

Now another common slick marketing trick in chickens can be the word “Natural” which is simply a label for ANY food product that does not contain artificial flavors, colors or preservatives, and has been minimally processed – although the definition for “Natural” is moving far away from that – but that’s another post. In this instance, think about it, all chickens are “Natural.”

“Free Range” is another label oftentimes given to chickens – and essentially means that during their lifetimes, they were given room to move. “Free Range” only means however, that they were allowed access to the outdoors. It doesn’t mean that the area was clean, it doesn’t mean that they were not treated with antibiotics or drugs, and it doesn’t mean they were given only organic, non GMO grains.

The last tidbit I picked up from Delicious Organics is in regards to “Conventional Chicken.” These chickens are raised in confined, tight quarters, oftentimes extremely cramped with damp, ammonia-accumulated and polluted environments with no natural ventilation. They are predisposed to stress and sickness because of their living conditions and sickness spreads quickly. They are in turn treated with antibiotics regularly, fed drugs to enhance their growth and additives to enhance their color. They are fed grains and soybeans that could contain pesticides and more than likely are GMO. And if that isn’t enough, they may be fed animal by-products which is certainly not a natural feed for chickens.

Just as I wrote earlier this year in the blog post, An Egg is an Egg Right? Knowledge is Power. And like the egg, all chickens are not created equal. Consider the quality of foods you want to eat and feed your family, shop with discernment and when slick marketing and other healthy sounding terms cloud the issue, do some research before buying.

One Organic Grande Latte Please

Flipping through a magazine recently, I read that one gourmet coffee to go at your local Starbuck's or downtown coffee house costs more than a pound of organic chicken does in most natural products stores. And that got me to thinking about coffee – maybe because I'm drinking coffee right now and maybe because I just wrote a blog about chicken? Who knows? But coffee is something that I need...want...desire...just flat out require to start my day, complete a good meal, or round out a million other instances in my life.

Now not to get into or start the debate on the goodness or badness of coffee – I'm just saying, coffee is good for me. However, my cup of gourmet coffee to-go generally costs a little more than just your standard double mocha frappuccino or grande latte please – because I always request the organic blend of coffee.

Why go organic with the beans? Well, basically for the same reason you choose organic on everything else – no harmful pesticides and fertilizers. Coffee generally is a heavily sprayed crop, so drinking organic coffee will reduce or eliminate the exposure to toxic herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers. According to the Organic Trade Association, in order for coffee to be certified and sold as organic in the U.S., it must have been grown on land without synthetic pesticides or other prohibited substances, there must be a sufficient buffer between the organic coffee and the nearest conventional crop, and the farmer must have a sustainable crop rotation plan to prevent erosion, the depletion of soil nutrients, and control for pests.

In order for a bean to be labeled “Fair Trade” labor and trade standards provide producers with a guaranteed price, which means the farmers are making a living wage and being paid fairly for their crops. All fair trade coffee is not necessarily organic, however, fair trade does require environmental stewardship and approximately 85% of all Fair Trade Certified coffee sold in the U.S. is also certified organic.

For hundreds of years, coffee plants were grown using organic practices, inter-planting coffee with shade trees, composting and eliminating harmful chemicals. These traditional, sustainable plantations often yield the best tasting variety of coffee. Today, however, very few beans are grown using traditional methods. The market is flooded with inexpensive, low quality coffee in “full-sun” coffee fields – which not only are they sprayed and treated with harmful chemicals, it also means deforestation and heavy environmental tolls.

So at the end of the day...or start of the morning, one thing to not skimp on is coffee. Make sure it is organic, preferably fair trade. I promise it just tastes better and you will feel better about drinking it, so brew it up and take a moment to enjoy each and every drop.

$20 Chicken Anyone?

Well if you need another reason to only buy organic poultry, a recent news bit from Taste for Life should do it for you. An antibiotic used to treat food poisoning in humans, fluoroquinolone, was also administered to chickens with respiratory problems until 2005. The FDA banned its use on poultry farms due to concerns over antibiotic-resistant bacteria developing in humans, essentially making fluoroquinolone less effective for those who need it.

But the ban was a little too little, a little too late, because recent research from Johns Hopkins University suggests that the ban may not be enough to protect humans from antibiotic resistance. Scientists tested chicken from farms that stopped using fluoroquinolone three years before the FDA ban – only to find the presence of an antibiotic resistant bacteria. The study indicates that once antibiotic resistant bacteria develops, it can remain in the chickens long after farmers stop using these drugs. It pass through the chicken population through the water, the litter, or poor ventilation.

Now think about it from this angle....if you are working hard to live a life free of chemicals, pharmaceuticals, additives and so on, can you knowingly allow the possibility of second-hand junk coming at you through your food supply? My guess would be that the antibiotics, eaten by the chickens, cooked fresh in your oven, can probably do more harm in the long run than just the development of antibiotic resistance.

Paying $7.00 and up for a pound of organic chicken, not my idea of a good time, but when I consider the alternatives and associated risks, I see it as $7.00 well spent.

Canary in a Coal Mine

Trace amounts of pharmaceuticals could be as close as your next glass of water. Narcotics, birth control pills, antidepressants and other controlled substances are now being found in U.S. rivers, lakes and streams, which is where our drinking water comes from.

As Greg Peterson recently reported in E Magazine, intersex fish in the Potomac River and frog mutations in Wisconsin have federal officials studying the effects of pharmaceuticals in the water supply....and it isn't just a maybe there are pharmaceuticals in the water supply, it's a guess what's here so what do you think we should do about it scenario.

The cumulative effect of the trace amounts of pharmaceuticals that have been found in the water on humans is not yet known, but the Environmental Protection Agency is taking preventative measures because these trace amounts of pharmaceuticals have already been linked to behavioral and sexual mutations in fish, amphibians and birds. And those mutated frogs, well, Peterson reports that the amphibian is considered to be the canary in a coal mine when it comes to water issues.

While the debate heats up with one side saying, much ado about nothing, and the other saying WTF, federal officials studying the human health effects of the pharmaceutical compounds found in the water say they generally serve as endocrine disruptors, including possible links to neurological problems in children and increased incidence of some cancers.

The rising number of Americans regularly consuming pharmaceuticals in part led to the U.S. Geological Survey and EPA finding 80% of the samples taken in 139 streams spanning 30 states contained pharmaceuticals. And many of America's wastewater treatment plants are not designed to remove pharmaceuticals and personal care products from the water supply.

So what to do? Firstly, check to see if there is a pharmaceutical collection station in your community that can properly dispose of old or unwanted prescription medications, because guess what, grandma's plan of putting old and unwanted prescriptions down the drain or into the toilet helped get us here. There are organizations sprouting up through numerous grassroots groups and local governmental initiatives. If there isn't a collection station or movement in your area, find out how you can start one.

If you strike out locally, turn to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and their new partnership with the American Pharmacists Association, they recently launched SMARxT DisPOSAL, a public education project about pharmaceuticals and fish.

And last but not least, whatever you do, do NOT flush pharmaceuticals or personal care products, because the canary, isn't dead yet, but he is mutating quickly.