A new study has found that Vegetarians developed notably fewer cancers of the blood, bladder and stomach.
Overall, their results suggested that while in the general population about 33 people in 100 will develop cancer during their lifetime, for those who do not eat meat that risk is reduced to about 29 in 100.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8127215.stm
The study is published in the British Journal of Cancer.
Fairtrade Sales in the UK grew by 43% to an estimated £700M+, while worldwide sales increased by 22% in 2008 according to a report by the Fairtrade Foundation.
In addition to being paid a price which covers the costs of sustainable production, producer organizations receive a Fairtrade Premium, which allows additional income for community development projects.
Our stores have also seen a jump in interest in Fairtrade products and I’m happy to say that we’re stocking more Fairtrade products than ever before. That’s in no small way thanks to Lisa, the Kingston store manager, who sits on the local Fairtrade committee and has added considerable focus to promoting and stocking fairtraded products across both Food For Thoughts.
Worldwide, the greatest growth areas were in Fairtrade Tea (which doubled), coffee, bananas and cotton. In our stores we haven’t seen much growth in cotton products but we have seen double digit growth in Fairtrade chocolate!
Your Thoughts on the best Fairtraded brands or products?
Hear Alan Martin talking about the fantastic DELO booster caps on Sound Alternatives. you can catch the full interview by logging into www.bonpom.com. Not a member yet? Then now is the perfect time to join. Life is full of adventures, start yours today!
It might be better for the environment - but reusing your plastic shopping bags could make you sick. Stuffing your dirty gym kit - or worse - in the same bag you use for your food shopping poses a health risk, a new study shows.
High levels of mould and bacteria were found in dirty reuseable bags, some even contained faecal matter, researchers said.
A third of the bags tested contained unsafe levels of bacterial contamination, the study showed.
People should treat plastic ‘bags for life’ like kitchen chopping boards, said researcher Dr Richard Summerbell, a microbiologist. ‘People don;t think aof it like that but we shouldworry about hygene,’ he added.
Most of the shoppers’ bags tested were laess than a year old and looked clean - but had never been washed.
Almost two-thirds of them had some bacterial contamination, while new bags were found to be clean. Supermarket checkout staff mightbe transferring microbes from one bag to another, the rport said. Doctors should add reusable bags to the list of possible sources of contamination when investigating food poisoning, added Dr Summerbell.
Prof Martin Adams, an expert in food microbiology at University of Surrey, said he was not fully convinced by the findings of the Canadian research but people should still be concerned about the health implications of reusing bags.
He said: ‘It is common sence that if the bag gets wet inside or something leaks then you should clean it.’ His advice was echoed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Afairs (DEFRA), which is running a campaign to encourage shoppers to reuse their bags.
A spokeswoman added: ‘We wouldn’t recommend using your shopping bags for carrying around dirty gym gear or dirty nappies.’
Would you like to improve your health this summer?
Maximise your health?
Transform your diet?
Learn new healthy cookery skills?
Magalie Papageorge - Nutritional therapist & Food Coach –
will be running a series of Spring/Summer Health Cookery
Workshops/Demonstrations.
Impress friends with mouth-watering recipes?
Spend ½ day learning about healthy cooking techniques, new
foods to include in your diet and enjoy sampling a range of
delicious healthy dishes. I will show you how to transform your
diet with quick and easy nutritious recipes to suit your needs.
SEMINAR 1 - Cooking to improve Energy Levels – I will
show how to use a range of nutrient-dense low/medium GI foods,
alternative ingredients as well as the best protein powder to use
for quick and best results.
Each workshop will focus on a different health topic.
Date: Saturday 6 June 2009. 11am-3pm.
Each session will consist of a 1 hour nutrition information
presentation with 3 hours devoted to the cookery demonstrations
and food tasting.
Each participant will be given a goodie bag with the recipes used
during the cookery demonstration as well as other useful
handouts and a 15% off on your next Nutritional Consultation.
PLACES LIMITED
Price: £65 per person
Tel. 07950291717
Tel. 0845 2252 911 or 0845 2252 811
Email: magalie@vibrantnutrition.co.uk
www.vibrantnutrition.co.uk
Nowadays it seems we live with the constant spectre of the latest super-flu. It sometimes seems that we are just one small viral mutation away from oblivion!
It’s good to know then, that regardless of the type of flu or its origins, nature has provided us with some herbs to help us fight off the effects of these nasty viruses. Standing at the head of the anti-viral herb queue is black elder.
Black elder is a herb that has been used for centuries to fight the symptoms of colds and flu. Modern research indicates that it may well have some of the answers to the modern viral diseases as they get ever more serious.
So what’s so good about black elder then?
Elder has been used for so long in European herbal medicine, and indeed world-wide, that it has become part of folklore and myth…often described as the medicine chest of the countryside!
As an anti-viral agent, black elder has beed used for centuries, being given to fight the symptoms of colds and flu. Conrad von Magenberg was the first to write about elder’s ability to enhance resistance to disease, in the thirteen hundreds.
Research shows that people (and other animals) with colds and flu given black elder recover faster and suffer fewer symptoms. It has to be said though, black elder does not seem to prevent colds and flu, it just deals with them effectively! Clinical trials have shown that black elder helps to limit the course of, and reduce the symptoms caused by several strains of Influenza A and B viruses. Black elder may also have some activity against HIV and the cold sore virus, not to mention the notorious bird flu.
Black elder stops viruses replicating, both in the test tube and in people! THe influenza virus attaches itself to our cells by attaching to specific receptor sites on the cell membrane called haemagglutinins. Once attached the virus uses enzymes to enter our cells. Once in, the virus can multiply. Israeli researcher, MAdeleine Mumcuoglu Ph.D of the Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Centre in Ein Karem, Israel, has researched the activity of black elder extensively. She found principles in black elder that inhibit the viral enzymes effect on our cell membranes within 24-48 hours, and thus block the entry of the virus into our bodies.
What’s more, black elder triggers an immune response to invasion by a virus. As well as raising an antibody response various chemicals called cytokines are raised. These chemicals amplify and direct an immune response to virus infected cells. Black elder is also used to reduce the fever caused by colds and flu. In this respect black elder is probably the best known and longest used fever reducing herb on Earth!
Is black elder safe for everyone?
Black elder is safe for adults and children and can be taken alongside all the usual antiviral and fever lowering drugs.
How much do I take?
Take 20 drops of Swiss Herbal Remedies black elder tincture, in a little water, three times daily. This dosage can safely be doubled when the flu is at its height or is particularly severe.
Food For Thought is proud to stock to award winning dips from Orange Grove Organics http://www.guardian.co.uk/courvoisier500/top-100-food-and-drink Visit www.orangegroveorganic.com and read about the wonderful dips and visit Food For Thought to buy from the selection of five mouth watering dips, perfect for sharing during this party season!
My Aussie niece, Thilini, is fundraising for Leukaemia and is taking part in the Leukaemia Foundation World’s Greatest Shave this year.
Please take a look at her fund raising page by clicking this link:
http://my.imisfriendraising.com.au/personalPage.aspx?SID=43876
Every hour of every day, at least one person in Australia is diagnosed with leukaemia, lymphoma or myeloma.
Every two hours, someone loses their life to blood cancer. Please support Thilini in raising as much as she can for the Leukaemia Foundation. Their vital work provides patients with practical support during their long and tough treatment, as well as funding important research.
