Get a little dirt on your hands...

Well, I might have finished lambasting poor old David Koch over his misplaced breastfeeding comments, but can’t stop about those good gut microbes. Great advice from Dr. Mercola who suggests that working in your garden and opening your windows to let the fresh air in are simple measures to enhance the health of the gut microbiota. 

Read the article in its entirety, its a goodie and Mercola’s recommendations are absolutely spot on and do-able. Who can say that they consume 30-40 different species of plants in a week??? Now that’s really something to aim for! 

Good place to start would be half a dozen different varieties of leaf lettuce in your backyard garden along with herbs like mint, parsley, coriander, basil, thyme and dill. Then pick them fresh and make them part of as many meals as you possibly can. 

Last night I managed mignonette, butter and cos lettuces (thanks Dave and Pauline), rocket, radicchio, cabbage, cauliflower, capsicum, mushroom, carrot, cucumber, tomato, Spanish onion, mint and parsley. Night before that it was potatoes, kumera, pumpkin, aubergine, fennel, brown onion, capsicum, tomato and rosemary - that’s 22 different ones already. A fruit salad for breakfast tomorrow will bring it close to 30. Then the challenge will be 10 more ... asparagus, broccoli, kale, spinach ...  I’m going very easy on the grains, but they count too ... couscous, quinoa, barley ... getting close to 40! What’s your score? Need some great recipes and the dirt on starting a garden?

Gut health and auto-immune disorders

Early exposure to good gut microbes might protect against these increasingly common disorders, which include diabetes type 1

Sounding like a record stuck in a crack, I know I’m on the “healthy gut microbiota” soapbox at least once a week. But there is good reason! Compelling research is appearing at a great rate, healthy early exposure is key and probiotics during preconception and pregnancy provide a very simple but absolutely fundamental health-promotion measure, so I can’t let the opportunity go by.

This latest study involved putting normal healthy gut bacteria from male mice into females, who are much more likely than males to suffer from an auto-immune disorder such as MS (multiple sclerosis), rheumatoid arthritis, lupus or type 1 diabetes. Establishment of gut microbiota in the females gave them strong protection from the auto-immune disorders, but unexpectedly also increased their levels of the sex-hormone testosterone, which researchers say was instrumental in conferring protection. 

As I’ve said more than once, the gut story is unfolding at an exponential rate, which should put a high potency probiotic at the top of your “must-have daily” list of nutrients at any age or life stage. More to the point however, getting it right in the next generation will have far-reaching and positive consequences! As well as probiotics for the prospective mum, think normal vaginal birth and breastfeeding.

Who needs food additives?

Hello, hello, now we finally have researchers acknowledging that a food additive that might be considered safe in an adult may be very damaging in a child. What’s more they want future research to look at the “holistic” combination of additives, rather than one in isolation! This isn’t exactly rocket science ... a child, with rapid growth rate and metabolic and detoxification processes still developing, will potentially experience unsafe or toxic cumulative exposure in relation to his body weight.

Well yesterday it was soft drinks and today it’s food additives, but here it is again. You can’t wait for manufacturers to change the additives, reduce the dose or substitute a benign option. Your child doesn’t need a diet that is full of food additives - end of story! Neither do you and this is particularly the case when you're TTC, pregnant or breastfeeding! 

Organically grown or raised, whole and unrefined, fresh and prepared from scratch. 

The equation is simple and the whole story, that starts with making a backyard garden, includes composting and establishing a worm farm right through to getting your child involved in the preparation of healthy meals that he will also enjoy to eat is just a click away!

Soft drinks are in the spotlight...

While walking early this morning, the picnic detritus after Australia Day celebrations brought to mind the initiatives aimed at cutting the consumption of soft drinks. Sadly this is shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted and particularly irritating is Coca-Cola’s holier than thou bleating about everybody “working together” to provide low-calorie options. Never mind that Coca-Cola penalises buyers by charging more for smaller quantities, puts vending machines in schools and other institutions and markets aggressively in developing nations with door-to-door sellers preying on the ignorant and ill-informed who think that a sugar drink is a healthy drink. All of that won’t go away in a hurry because it would drastically affect the bottom line of the company and good guys like New York’s Mayor Bloomberg, who has filed a lawsuit to ban jumbo-sized soft drinks, is a man with a difficult furrow to hoe. 

But whatever the industry might and might not be doing, the facts are clear: sugar-containing soft drinks are devoid of nutrition, fattening, do not quench thirst and are directly linked to depression and anxiety. Don’t wait until your kids have developed a taste for them. Don’t look to manufacturers, governments or public officials to do something - do it yourself. 

Your own diet during pregnancy has a huge bearing on the diet your child will favour. Wholefoods grown on healthy soil set taste-buds to appreciate subtle flavours of vegetables and fruit. Make sure your zinc status is adequate during pregnancy and breastfeeding. This ensures adequate taste sensation in your child, which means he’ll be less likely to reach for very sweet, salty or spicy food or drink. Breastfeed and offer only water when other drinks are required. 

Tell your children why you do what you do, why they eat and drink what they do and always set a good example! Explain that each can of soft-drink has seven teaspoonsful of sugar which is seven teaspoonsful more than they need to fuel their brain and body! Kids can understand a story simply told and that some particular foods and drinks aren’t for daily consumption. They can also be quite righteous in their avoidance so watch out for any infringements. 

They might even influence their peers! Think about that  ... a young, water-drinking, soft drink-avoiding, vending machine-boycotting peer-pressure group! Bring it on!

Eat lamb - we're Aussies!

Well it’s Australia Day and we’re celebrating! A quick look at what’s happening around the globe reminds us that we all have a great deal to be thankful for, particularly the relative peace and harmony in which we live. 

Given that the 2011 Census revealed that over a quarter (26%) of our population was born overseas and a further one fifth (20%) had at least one overseas-born parent, Australia’s society is still remarkably free of racial tension. Yes, you will find examples of racism, concern about the influx of asylum seekers and questions about the dilution of the “original” Anglo-Saxon stock with Asian blood, but for the greater part our citizens from across the globe comfortably co-exist. Indeed Australia’s artistic, musical, academic, culinary and sporting worlds and a great deal more have been immeasurably enriched and enhanced by the diverse contributions of our migrants! 

Therefore when a candidate for a fledgling political party asks where he can find non-Halal lamb, someone should tell him to “put a sock in it!” Jamie Cavanough, who is standing for Bob Katter's Australian Party claims he does not want meat that has been turned to face Mecca and blessed, nor does he want his money to go to the Muslim community. If they weren’t so potentially divisive, his comments, in their stupidity are hardly worth reporting. In the final count, in being exhorted to eat lamb on Australia Day, someone conveniently forgot that sheep came to our shores along with the first white settlers. If we want to be absolutely true to our Australian heritage, the lean, fat-free, grass-grazed kangaroo meat is the way to go and being free-range and unblessed should offend no-one. Mind you, someone will probably complain that we’re the only country that eats the animal that graces its coat of arms. Happy Australia Day! 

Raising girls? ... or raising boys? ... same challenges? ... or different?

Steve Biddulph says that raising girls has never been more challenging. Steve’s a guru in my book, wonderfully insightful, compassionate Dad and hugely successful author. Millions have read his “Raising Boys” and now he’s turned his attention to girls. He says that girls are growing up totally conflicted with a plethora of diverse messages selling heightened sexuality and the importance of body image, alongside exhortations for them to be anything they want to be and successful in any field that floats their boat - even if that boat sails into the battlefield it appears!

Mixed messages indeed and while I am a fan of Steve’s work with no experience of raising girls I think there’s something fundamental that should never be forgotten. Our work as parents is to raise children (and I make no distinction between boys and girls) who can resist the crowd, ignore the tribal mind and most importantly, be true to their own heart’s longing and soul’s delight. 

Not an easy task in a day when the media is more powerful and more pervasive than ever before and when too much of the parenting work is “off-loaded” to nannies, day and vacation carers and teachers. But raising kids with high self-esteem, who are resilient and resistant to media and peer group pressure has never been more important and is the main responsibility of their parents, not carers, grandparents, day-care, schools or other institutions. It’s a full time job that means a full time commitment, it’s not something to undertake lightly. Are you up for the job? Find out what’s involved in the sort of parenting that today’s boys and girls need ...  

Click on the covers for sample chapters

More on breastfeeding in public - the definitive last word

I couldn't put it any better than the Sydney Morning Herald's correspondent, Richard Scully of Invergowrie. Sane and balanced, this "bloke" puts it very simply
"Koch also seems to think that this is a debate where one can ''agree to disagree'', and that one opinion is as good as the next. He is wrong. This is not, nor has it ever been, about mere ''opinions''. It is about civil rights and the law: Australian women have the right, endorsed by bipartisan political support, and upheld by the majority of citizens - to breastfeed in public wherever and whenever they so please. To ask them to stop, or refuse them service, is to act unlawfully under the Sex Discrimination Act (1984), quite apart from displaying a breathtaking impertinence and lack of courtesy."
More comments in much the same vein - gratifying to read!

More on the asthma and allergy issue

"FAST food could be behind surging rates of allergies and asthma among children, an international study has found."

And this was a really big study (319,000 13 to 14-year-olds from 51 countries and 181,000 six to seven-year-olds from 31 countries) that seems set to put to bed the “hygiene hypothesis” as the cause of the allergy epidemic. The paper said the link between fast food and asthma and allergies could be related to higher saturated fatty acids, trans fatty acids, sodium, carbohydrates, sugar or preservatives. I’d also like to think it put to bed the ridiculous and potentially damaging new recommendations from Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) to introduce solids at 4 months. 

The other “surprise” from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood showed that kids who ate more fruits and vegetables had better lung function than those who didn’t. Well fancy that ...

And Australian scientists at Macquarie University, after reviewing decades of evidence have determined that “Consumption of a high fat, high sugar, Western style diet leads to the long-term impairment of brain functioning and may contribute to the development of neurodegenerative conditions.”

Whoever would have guessed ...?

Tragically, massive funds are allocated to this type of research that simply points to the entirely self-evident, logical and common-sense. Another example of the madness that has infected Western society when we have studies to prove that man-made and manipulated are never a match for what nature designed and refined over millenia. Any questions?

Asthma in your family? Look to your gut...

A reminder from the natural health guru Dr. Mercola about the need to establish good gut health during pregnancy. This is a story that will not go away, in fact I’d suggest attention to the health of the gut must be your first priority at any time. If babies are on your agenda, begin well before conception and include the prospective father in the equation! It’s a certainty that future research will confirm the plethora of health issues that we can link to compromised gut health. 

For example, children who were already predisposed to asthma (due to their mother having the condition) were twice as likely to develop asthma if their mother used antibiotics during the third trimester. The increased asthma risk supports the theory that those beneficial gut bacteria, which are decimated by antibiotics, play a role in the development of asthma. Co-author Dr. Hans Bisgaard told Reuters Health: "We speculate that mothers' use of antibiotics changes the balance of natural bacteria, which is transmitted to the newborn, and that such unbalanced bacteria in early life impact on the immune maturation in the newborn."

So a vital prerequisite for your newborn is establishing a healthy gastrointestinal tract. Regardless of age, your gut is your first line of defense in terms of immunity. 

Brings me back to the ridiculous new guidelines that our Australian National Health & Medical Research Council have put in place in an effort to stem the allergy epidemic that they “can’t explain.” If they took a look at where immunity begins and the many ways in which it is currently compromised their advice might have merit, rather they are advocating earlier introduction of solids, at 4 months rather than 6 (the current recommendation of bodies such as WHO). When totally breastfed babies normally indicate readiness for solids (reaching for food from your plate) at 8-9 months, solids at 4 months is a completely counter-intuitive recommendation and one likely to exacerbate the allergy and intolerance problem!

David (Koch) ... the dinosaur!

So 100 mums did as promised and breastfed their babies outside the Sunrise studios in Sydney’s Martin Place at 7am this morning. The posters they displayed and the online comments made interesting reading ...“I prioritise my child’s needs over the attitudes of dinosaurs”,“you are a Neanderthal sir!”, “Where's the radio button on the poll for 'Do you think Kochie is an idiot for his remarks?'"                                                                                                                   Not all condemned David Koch however, some in fact agreed with him and thought the women were “militant” and “creating a storm in a teacup.” 

To me, the saddest thing is that there is any comment at all. When a significant proportion of the population fails to see a woman breastfeeding her baby as an absolutely normal activity, wherever that activity might be taking place, what hope do future generations have of their birthright - their mother’s breastmilk? 

My baby's hungry ... so I nurse her!

Totally normal, logical and uncomplicated way to go, well if you’re a breastfeeding mum that is. Unfortunately there’s still a large, insensitive, ignorant bunch of folk out there who don’t see breastfeeding a baby as a totally normal activity that usually takes place whenever and wherever that baby’s need for food, drink or comfort strikes. 

Most recent very public example of ignorance and idiocy was a mum requested to be more discreet when she was observed breastfeeding her baby at a public swimming pool where her older children were in the water. Maybe, just maybe you could forgive a young, brash lifeguard, trying to keep his domain “respectable” but it was follow up comments made by a male morning talk show host that really set the breastfeeders going! 

Here was a wonderful opportunity for a figure in the public eye to loudly and proudly proclaim in support of breastfeeding mums, yet he saw fit to agree that it was an activity best kept out of “high-traffic” areas. The comment itself and the fact that the swimming pool was indoors and a mere handful of others were in attendance makes it small wonder that hundreds of nursing mums are planning a breast-baring/breastfeeding sit-in outside the TV studio! More power to them all and wonderful to see so many young women committed to this normal, healthy activity and prepared to stand up and be counted!

Celebrity chefs bring more power to the slow, natural food movement

Celebrity chefs and other leading opinion-formers are poisoning the debate about genetically modified (GM) food, claims environmentalist and author Mark Lynas. Lynas claims that 3 trillion GM-containing meals have been eaten in the last decade and a half. So exactly what’s your point Mr. Lynas? 

Genetically modified food is a completely uncontrolled experiment that I personally want no part of. Like the introduction of the oral contraceptive pill (OCP), assisted reproductive technology (ART), routine prenatal ultrasound, delivery by C-section, babies sleeping alone, vaccination of infants and so much more, it is now impossible to say definitively what the downsides might be. 

But plenty of consumers just want the produce as nature intended - healthy food grown on healthy soil. In the same way, many know that natural fertility management, conception, pregnancy and birth free from medical intervention, co-sleeping and natural immune enhancement are far healthier options than the man-manipulated/tinkered-with versions. I have no doubt that given enough time we’ll start to see the negatives of introducing GM produce to the wider population, by which time and just like all of the above, it may well be totally entrenched and impossible to reverse.

But then again, there just might be a small glimmer of hope. Many in the EU have completely turned their backs on GM, while the USA, biggest driver of the food industry in the world, has embraced it without too much question - hence those 3 trillion GM-containing meals consumed in the last 15 years. But I’m recently heartened when New Mexico joins Washington and California to become the latest US state asked to consider mandatory labeling for foods containing genetically engineered ingredients. More power to the consumers, with the move for similar legislation gaining momentum in other states. The reason behind the movements ... people want to know what they are eating! Prediction is that there will be a “tipping point” at which Federal legislation will need to address GMO labeling. Who knows - those in power might even begin to address the issue of whether GMO is all it’s cracked up to be? 

TTC? All you need to know, and some of it is ancient history

Three months of coenzyme Q10 supplementation may improve the morphology and motility of sperm in infertile men, according to new data.

Well not so sure how “new” that data really is ... my co-author and I have included a specialty product for men “CoQ10 Lipoic” in our NFM range (for fertility, preconception, pregnancy and breastfeeding) for several years. But researchers reinventing the wheel is nothing new. Just like the whole preconception/fertility story really.

No doubt that both partners actively preparing for conception has never been more important, but it’s not a new idea – even the Ancient Greeks and Romans knew that alcohol, drunk before and around the time of conception, was damaging to the fetus. They banned the drinking of alcohol by young women and newlyweds! Many tribal societies fed special diets to their young women (and young men) of child-bearing age. Back in the 1930s, Dr Weston Price (a dentist) studied communities from around the world and clearly established the link between consumption of a refined Western diet and compromised reproductive outcomes. 

The Great Dutch Famine or Hunger Winter as it was known, which lasted from October 1944 to May 1945 provides us with some fascinating insights. Studies have shown that women exposed to the food shortages before and around the time of conception, had poorer reproductive outcomes than the women who were subjected only to food shortages during their pregnancy. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The next generation was shown to be prejudiced if the mother was in utero during the first trimester when her mother was exposed to food shortage. Those early observations became later research in the field of epigenetics and is what makes active preparation of both prospective parents in the time before conception so incredibly exciting and worthwhile! 

All the details of what to do, what to eat, what to avoid and best products to support your combined efforts in Healthy Parents, Healthy Baby and for those who want even more detail and the research behind the recommendations, you’ll enjoy my first book The Natural Way to Better Babies, which was inspired by my own very positive experiences! Conceived in the first cycle of TTC at 37, wonderful healthy pregnancy, three hour labour, successful long-term breastfeeding and repeat experience when I was 42. Best of all, my boys now 27 and 23 years old have always enjoyed the most robust physical and mental health! 

Never too soon to get started - the health of your children is in your hands!

Supplements ... give us the freedom to choose

The setting of maximum permitted nutrient levels (MPLs) across the EU (written into the 2002 EU Food Supplements Directive) was always going to be been a contentious issue. Citizens of the UK, who have long enjoyed the most generous (and truly useful) levels of vitamins and minerals in their supplements will be most adversely affected, not to mention the potential loss of jobs and livelihoods across the health food/natural medicine/specialist supplements sectors. Seems that it’s France and Germany prepared to sacrifice higher dosage levels in the interests of “harmonisation.”

But UK MPs aren’t taking the proposed changes lying down, with Liberal Democrats and Labour MPs coming together, at the same time that David Cameron is making noises about renegotiating UK’s position in the EU. We can only hope that those MPs and common sense prevail. 

“the maximum permitted levels of vitamins and minerals issue is a political and economic issue, masquerading as a public health issue. The science on which it’s based is junk, as we have shown in two peer-reviewed papers. We hope that Ms Hoey and others will be able to make clear to commissioner Borg that the EU should stop meddling with people’s civil liberties, particularly over how they choose to manage their health!”

Hear, hear!

Still can't beat storage in glass

Scientists have disputed a study associating food contact material Bisphenol A (BPA) consumption to higher risk of heart and kidney disease in children and adolescents.

Well I’m still not convinced that BPA is safe and plenty of research points to the fact that trace amounts, particularly in a child’s body, are the greatest issue. 

Remember this mnemonic to help you through the plastic minefield, be aware too that a great deal of exposure to Bisphenol A comes from the linings of cans. 

4 5 1 and 2 - all the rest are bad 4U (Annie Murphy Paul - ‘Origins’)

So organically grown, fresh whole food, prepared from scratch and stored in glass is the healthiest and safest whichever way you cut it :) More on plastic products in both my books. Click here to read sample chapters.

Healthy Parents, Healthy Baby - Your Guide to Preconception and Pregnancy

Healthy Parents, Healthy Toddler - Your Guide to Birth, Breastfeeding and the Toddler Years

Working more (or less) - who benefits?

Why you shouldn’t work less was a headline that caught my attention. According to this author and according to the law of "diminishing marginal utility" eight hours at work and three with your family can make you happier than eight hours with your family and three at work. 

“In the language of economics, the marginal utility of time with your kids - the happiness you get from the last hour you spend with them - is declining as you spend more hours.”

Beats me how any intelligent human being can subscribe to a theory that brings it all down to their own personal “happiness.” Parenting is a full time job and like all jobs, it has moments of boredom, sameness, challenge and dissatisfaction, dare I say - it's not an endless pleasure cruise. But it’s undoubtedly the most important job you’ll ever do and the satisfactions of this particular job will surpass any professional triumphs, accolades or achievements. More to the point, the benefits that your child gets from having a full time one-on-one carer, are incalculable. 

Through the years I’ve had a few discussions that have all pointed to one thing. Those children, whose parents worked full time, just wished their mum or dad could have  been at home more. In the final countdown, if you’re having a family simply to enable your own happiness, wouldn’t a dog be a whole lot simpler?

2000 year old food supplements!

"Italian researchers have uncovered zinc food supplements aimed to treat eye problems from a shipwreck off the coast of Tuscany."

Wow, what an astounding finding...and even more interesting, the zinc carbonate was blended with animal and plant lipids and pine resin, and sealed in an oxygen-free container. The researchers know the reason for the supplement because of its shape, which corresponded with writings of the time and that additives and sealants were designed to improve efficacy and stability. Interesting that the tradition of zinc for ophthalmic and dermatological conditions is very old as well as knowledge of how to make it work better and last longer!

Zinc’s long been a favourite supplement of mine. Considered the most important trace element for the woman about to become pregnant, zinc is involved in every aspect of reproduction. Ensuring optimal zinc status before conception and maintaining it throughout pregnancy and breastfeeding will pay big dividends - from improving fertility, through preventing stretch marks and post-natal depression to optimal immunity, brain and eye function and skin integrity in your baby. But zinc deficiency is also the most widespread in the Western world, luckily there’s a cheap and simple test that you can do yourself and you can read all about it in Healthy Parents, Healthy Baby. 

Wonder if the Tuscan’s had a way to suss out zinc deficiency?

Which brings me to deficiency of another sort... George The Airedale has done it again. He's in disgrace! Alerted by his consumption of items (see post January 02), I moved all apparel to the second bedroom and closed the door. Undeterred, he wormed his way through the 10 cm opening from the balcony and jumped up on the bed. I reckon this is the desperate act of a nutrient deficient dog. Given that his usual demeanour is totally indolent, undemonstrative, horizontal and non-athletic, but also given that his most recent appetite took the crutch out of my brand new swimsuit, destroyed a sports bra and another pair of knickers I am convinced he needs fresh meat! Noting that only intimate items, those in close contact with flesh, or that once were part of something living, in the case of shoes and sandals, have been to his taste. 

No doubt in my mind that a dog eating nothing but canned food is just as deficient as the humans who eat only processed and refined and the Tuscans knew it too!  Whole, fresh, grown on healthy soil and boosted by probiotics and robust nutritional support. Yep, I know it’s my soapbox again, and yep found a way to insert my message into the most esoteric and the most prosaic...sigh

The Mediterranean diet is under threat

“The Mediterranean diet is under threat as cash-strapped consumers in southern European countries are spending less on fresh foods and more on cheaper packaged foods, according to new research.”

How sad is this? Whenever I travel in Mediterranean countries I’m delighted by the wide variety of fresh, whole, healthy foodstuffs available around every corner and in multiple growers’ markets across the region. My February 2012 sojourn in Istanbul was no exception and despite snow on the ground, I was overwhelmed with choice of healthy grain dishes (think beyond wheat), vegetables, seafood and meat in mouth-watering combinations. Pomegranates and pomegranate juice, the very essence of food and drink for fertility, were everywhere! Notable by their relative absence were packaged, fast-food items. The fact that large numbers of the population still smoke like trains is another issue - but I digress.

One significant, but under-estimated feature of Mediterranean diets, is their emphasis on enjoyment of the meal, time out in sociable surroundings with a glass of wine to enhance the lovingly prepared food and the pleasant company. But add it all up ... right combo of food groups, healthy oils, time taken to prepare and savour, a glass of vino and the health issues in these societies are nothing compared to those in the Western world where 50 years of refining, packaging, processing and increasingly, eating on the run, have taken their toll. The so-called “French Paradox” has confounded researchers for years. The French eat three times more saturated fat yet have only one third of the coronary artery disease of Americans!

We can only hope that the economic malaise afflicting Greece, Spain, Italy and potentially others, doesn’t completely reverse long-established and well-balanced attitudes to food - the aptly named “mindful eating”. After all, when times are tough, a fine meal and a cheering glass of wine may be the best single antidote to the doom and gloom. Vive le paradoxe francais!