Just the other week, I wrote about a California farming community that MUST buy bottled water because the tap water is so polluted from pesticides and other contaminants.

Well, the news about the horrid quality of our drinking water continues.

Trying to figure out why food allergies have exploded over the past 20 years, a team of researchers published a study in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology which said that there is a relationship between the use of a group of pesticides called dichlorophenols and food allergies.

TIME Magazine explained that the study’s participants who had high levels of dichlorophenols in their bodies were 80% more likely to have food sensitivity than those with lower levels, and the authors believe the exposure to the chemicals may be contributing to a hyper-sensitive immune system that recognizes even common food proteins as foreign. Read more »

When I review organic food products, I do my best to make sure that they are available either online or at retail locations throughout much of the country, so readers can go buy them.

Sometimes, however, my excitement about a product is so strong that I have to make an exception.

Over the Thanksgiving holidays, not only was I fortunate to have eaten at Dr. Andrew Weil’s restaurant True Food Kitchen for the very first time, but I was also lucky enough to have discovered Zuké kimchi by the Esoteric Food Company.

For the most part, sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented foods is a very regional business.

So, wherever you go in the U.S., there tends to be a different local producer of these foods. Read more »

When I heard that Men’s Health magazine recently came out with its 125 Best Foods for Men, I was very curious to see what they selected.

Late Monday night, I read about the Stanford University report on organic food, which said that organic and conventionally-grown food offered similar nutritional benefits, and have spent the last few days processing this news.

Here are my key takeaways.

INTELLECTUAL HONESTY MUST REIGN SUPREME

Based on the parameters that the Stanford professors used, it was obvious that organic was going to be the clear loser before they even got started.

Why? Read more »

Let’s put this under the You Just Can’t Make This Stuff Up category.

Under a new USDA fast-track process, a Canadian company is asking the USDA to approve a genetically-engineered (GE) apple that will not turn brown when sliced.

Now for some questions……

What happens when an apple is sliced open and exposed to oxygen? It turns brown.

Does it lose any of its flavor or nutritional value? No. Read more »

In yet another study, we have more evidence that organic is the healthier choice.

A recent report out of the University of Barcelona claims that organic tomatoes have a higher amount of antioxidants than conventional tomatoes.

Researchers used liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry to determine that organic tomatoes have a greater amount of phenolic compounds or polyphenols. Polyphenols, which are natural antioxidants of plant origin, are associated with the prevention of cardiovascular and degenerative diseases, and some forms of cancer. Read more »

There is a battle brewing in California that every American needs to know about.

Even if you don’t live in that state, it doesn’t matter at all. It still impacts every single one of us.

The voting that will take place on the California ballot in November is called Proposition 37. This measure, which will be voted on by the state’s citizens, would require that foods containing genetically-modified ingredients be labeled as such.

And if approved, the implications will be enormous. Other states will be more willing to pass a similar measure and will be less afraid of potential lawsuits from Monsanto et al.

Right now, President Obama and the USDA do not believe that citizens have the right to know if they are eating genetically-modified foods (GMOs) or not. Why? Read more »