Stevia comes from the leaves of a tropical plant native to South America. Though it is 200-300 times sweeter than table sugar, stevia is not a sugar. Unlike other popular sweeteners, it has a glycemic index rating of less than 1 and therefore does not feed Candida (yeast) or cause any of the numerous other problems associated with sugar consumption. 

Stevia has been used as a sweetener for centuries, but as is often the case in our country, the interests of big business have superseded common sense and fair play. By law, stevia cannot be sold or labeled as a sweetener or food additive, only as a supplement. 

Some people complain of its strong licorice-like aftertaste, but now some companies claim to have a refining process that eliminates it. Even with its aftertaste, stevia is a perfect sweetener for strong sour flavors such as lemons. (It makes great lemonade!) You can also use stevia with other sweeteners to strengthen the sweetness of a recipe while still preparing a meal with relatively low sugar content. 

For more information about Stevia and the FDA’s decision not to allow stevia as a food additive, check out NaturalNews.com

Agave nectar is produced from the juice of the agave plant, the same juice which is fermented to make tequila. Agave juice is filtered and heated then concentrated into a liquid, with a viscosity similar to maple syrup. It is much sweeter than sugar but has a much lower glycemic index.

Agave nectar is high in fructose and low in glucose. Lighter grades have a mild, neutral flavor. The amber and dark grades offer the delicate flavor of agave with increasing intensity.

We at OLM do not recommend agave as an alternative sweetener. Too much fructose is no better for you then too much glucose. How much is too much? Not much at all. Excess fructose cannot be processed in the liver and gets converted into insulin resistant fatty triglycerides. And raw agave nectar is still heavily processed and not really “raw”.

I know a couple who buys only organic meat. Most of their processed food, like energy bars, is organic. They made the decision to start buying organic food years ago, and yet they still drink soda every day! That’s like a crack addict trying to cut down on smoking. I just want to yell at them, “Save your money! Buy the cheap meat. Buy the frosted flakes and the power bars. Cut out the soda!”

There are 10 to 12 teaspoons of sugar in one can of cola! People who drink soda are destroying their bodies’ ability to properly utilize the nutrition they are trying to get from their organic foods. If you want to improve your health, the first step is to cut out the refi ned sugars like high fructose corn syrup and white table sugar. The next step is to eat more raw fruits and vegetables. The third step is to get a proper multivitamin/ mineral that is easily assimilated. I’m sorry to say that buying organic is not at the top of the list.

I know this is Organic Lifestyle Magazine. It may sound as though I am telling people to stop buying organic foods. I’m not. I’m saying that if you care about the environment, you have every reason to buy organic foods. If you care about fair treatment of animals, you should certainly buy organic meat. But the people I am specifically speaking of are pharmaceutically dependent soda junkies, and I just have to wonder why. They don’t get it. The only reason they are buying organic foods is for their health. And they just can’t figure out why they’re spending so much money at the grocery store and not getting any better. They say they may not be able to keep buying organic if gas prices continue to go up. This couple is even trying to conceive a child, and they can’t figure out why she can’t get pregnant!

Health is so simple, yet we have convoluted it and perverted it and allowed ourselves to be brainwashed. Eat what we ate before cancer, diabetes, ADHD, and auto-immune diseases were rampant. Eat what we ate before we had a food industry bombarding us with commercials. Eat fresh, raw fruits and veggies!

If you are trying to improve your health, you need to start thinking for yourself. Quit believing everything you hear from a company that is trying to sell you something. I see so many people who have decided to follow the advice of a study that says coff ee is good for them, because they’re addicted to coff ee. If I were to show them a study that says coffee is bad for them, they would dismiss it. This isn’t education, it’s self delusion.

Simplify things. Think for yourself. Eat more raw fruits and vegetables. Eat fewer refi ned and processed foods. You will notice a diff erence, not just with your health, but in your pocketbook, too.

If you have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, feel sleepy in the afternoon, or find yourself having trouble focusing all day, these 10 strategies should help you have more energy.

1. Stop Drinking Coffee

Look into the effects coffee has on your kidneys and adrenal glands. Coffee stimulates the production of adrenaline and puts excessive wear and tear on the adrenal glands. The higher your caffeine intake, the more your body stops producing energy on its own and the more it relies on caffeine’s effects on your body chemistry.

2. Eat a Healthy Breakfast

Don’t skip breakfast, but don’t eat an unhealthy breakfast either. They say it’s the most important meal of the day. It sets the tone. Pancakes and fake maple syrup will put you on a sugar high. You’ll either crash and burn or ride that rollercoaster all day.

3. Eat better and More Often

Eat every 4 to 5 hours: Eating throughout the day provides your brain and body with a constant source of fuel. This 4-5 hour eating strategy can dramatically prevent dips in your blood sugar levels. Concentrated sources of sugar like soda, candy, fruit juice, jam, and syrup will create radical spikes in your blood sugar that leave you feeling tired as soon as the level drops. And even though refined grains you eat in white bread, crackers, bagels, and pasta do not naturally contain sugar compounds, they are metabolized into sugar very quickly and can create the same effect.

4. Drink More Water

Most people are dehydrated. Dehydration causes a host of problems including irritability, low energy levels, poor concentration, and lethargy.

5. Deep Breathing

If you find yourself yawning, try some deep breathing exercises to revitalize yourself.

6. Have a Positive Attitude

Negativity drains your energy. Remember, lack of exercise and vitamin deficiencies make it harder to have a positive attitude.

7. Exercise

The twenty minutes you spend exercising could pay you back an hour or more due to better focus and deeper, higher quality sleep. Stop saying you don’t have time to exercise. If you are too busy, you don’t have time not to.

8. See a Doctor

A naturopathic doctor can tell you if your thyroid glands are not working properly and if you need a thyroid supplement, if you’re B vitamin deficient, or if you need adrenal support. Problems in these areas will lead to chronic tiredness and poor sleep.

9. Get Enough Sleep

While the amount needed varies, experts say adults should get
seven to nine hours per night. Regardless of the numbers, if you’re dragging yourself out of bed in the morning, fighting off the need to nap in the afternoon, or falling asleep watching TV, you’re probably not getting enough.

10. Get Quality Sleep

6 hours of deep sleep is better then 9 hours of tossing and turning.

Sometimes it doesn’t say organic, but it is. Sometimes it says organic, but it’s not. At least not by the definition you’d expect. When it says Certified Naturally Grown, wildcrafted, or organic, what do the labels really mean?

USDA Organic Certification

Unfortunately, some short-lived botanical sprays and a few herbicides and insecticides are sometimes allowed during organic cultivation.

Single-Ingredient Foods

Single ingredient foods are foods that are uncombined with other foods. Think fruits, vegetables, milk, meat, eggs, cheese etc. When these foods are labeled organic, we know the farmer met the USDA standards to achieve certification.

Multi-Ingredient Foods—Organic

Here’s where things get tricky. You’d think if your sausage was labeled organic it would be organic. But there are three USDA organic labels for multi-ingredient or processed foods. Their differences are not obvious at first glance.

100% Organic

This one is self explanatory. All of the ingredients are organic.

Organic or Certified Organic

95-99% of its ingredients by weight are organic. The sausage may be 100% organic, but if the processor could not find organic sausage casings, the casings aren’t. This label allows food processors to use a number of ingredients that are not readily available in organic form.

Made with Organic Ingredients

70-94% of the ingredients must be organic. The organic seal cannot be used on these food items.

Just a bit misleading, isn’t it? I don’t know about you, but if I saw something that said it was made with organic ingredients, I’d think it was made with organic ingredients!

Certified Naturally Grown

Certified Naturally Grown is a non-profit, alternative, organic certification program. Nearly 500 farmers from 47 states are members. This group strives to preserve high standards for organic farmers while removing the financial and logistical barriers small

Wildcrafted

Wildcrafted plants are uncultivated plants gathered from their natural habitat. Care is taken to ensure sustainability, to take no more than the plant can give, the scatter a plant’s seeds, etc. Wildcrafted is superior to organic if picked where there is no runoff from polluted water or contamination from exhaust. Unlike organic produce, wildcrafted produce is never sprayed—with anything. Wildcrafted foods are pure—as nature intended.

In the simplest terms, any food grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides can be labeled organic. People who do not understand the organic food movement often argue that there is no significant difference between organic and so-called conventional food. There is however, a lot more to the argument than meets the eye.

For most of humankind’s history, food crops grew utilizing natural fertilizers such as animal manure, dung and decomposed plant materials, otherwise called compost. Creating good soil was the focus. Crops took nutrients from the soil and all crop refuse was returned to replenish the nutrients removed. Adding these natural elements back to the earth feeds not only the plants, but also the micro-flora and micro-fauna that provide micro-nutrients for the soil, which are subsequently extracted from the soil by the plants.

Pesticides were not necessary because strong, healthy plants, grown in healthy soil, were disease resistant. Predators attack the weak and ill formed. Plants grown in soil that is complete with all the nutrients nature provides grow strong, healthy, and are resistant to disease.

This changed in the mid 1800’s when Justus von Liebig, a German scientist, discovered nitrogen as an essential plant nutrient. This led to the invention of nitrogen-based fertilizer and the propagation of plants utilizing Liebigs’s “Law of the Minimum”. This principle states that the one essential mineral which is in the relatively shortest supply, limits a plant’s development. This concept determines the amount of fertilizer to apply in modern agriculture. Plant growth in conventional agriculture is controlled not by the total resources available, but by the scarcest resource. Minimal plant nutrient requirements are chemically synthesized and added to the dirt. The soil is no longer the source of plant nutrition, but only a receptacle for holding plant roots.

Subsequently, the plants themselves are weak and must be protected against attack from insects, funguses and other pests by the application of synthetic chemical insecticides and other toxic poisons. These poisons get into the food and cannot be removed. The toxins then enter our bodies through ingestion of the food and may lead to other health problems.

Food grown by conventional methods conforms to specific standards designed to meet a consumer demand subliminally created. Much of it is genetically altered or hybridized through genetic modification. All of the food looks the same. It is often picked unripe to aid storage and ease shipping, and then gassed with more chemicals to ripen the fruit before it is presented to buyers. The food is unblemished in appearance, but bland and tasteless. The nutrient content of conventionally grown food is limited and must be supplemented by vitamin and mineral tablets in order to maintain consumer health.

Organic growers use natural materials that are available in the environment around them to grow high quality food. The food is higher in quality because it contains all of the nutrients available from soil enriched by inclusion of natural materials. Equally important, organic food has no synthetic chemicals added as nutrients, to control pests or aid harvesting. This produces food that is better tasting with higher nutritional content. Sometimes organic food is not as pretty to look at like as “steroid food’ found at the local grocery store. However, to clearly know the difference, just eat some food grown organically. The absolute, unequivocal proof that organic food is superior to conventional food is simple. The proof is in the tasting!

Oh Organics, My Organics

“Organics” have arrived. They are more popular than ever, but what exactly is organic food? How does organic farming differ from conventional farming? How does the organic labeling process work? And, what does it all mean to you, the well-intentioned consumer? You might be surprised by some of the answers.

Over the past few decades, organics have moved from the “lunatic fringe” to the red carpet. Literally. This paradigm shift was most evident at the 2004 American Music Awards held in Los Angeles. Each year, celebrities, usually accustomed to receiving gaudy gift bags brimming with fancy fragrances and trendy technology, were instead presented with a more natural offering: “ecogift bags” filled with organic treats like Annie’s Homegrown Organic Macaroni and Cheese, Taylor Maid Farms organic coffee, and organic cotton tote bags from Patagonia.

Organics are not only en vogue among luminaries and de rigueur among foodies, middle America is going organic, too. The 2002 Organic Consumer Trends Report found that thirty-nine percent of the U.S. population uses organic products.

Organic food production is a $16 billion-a-year industry, according to the Organic Trade Association (OTA) – and it is rising precipitously. Even though organic still accounts for a mere 3% of overall food sales, it is growing at a sizzling rate of 17-20% per year as compared to a glacial rate of 2-3% for conventional foods.

“Once you have Kraft marketing an organic product, albeit through another brand, you really can’t be more part of the mainstream than that,” said Don Montuori, editor of Packaged Facts, an industry publication.

More people eating healthier food produced in safe and sustainable ways is all good, right? Well, not necessarily.

Double-digit growth can be a double-edged sword. Organic food production is growing so rapidly that it is straining the system. There are not enough organic farms and organically raised animals in the United States to meet demand.

When demand outpaces supply, things can go awry. For example, in 2006, The Cornucopia Institute, an organic watchdog organization, filed a legal complaint before the USDA against Dean Foods, the largest milk bottler in the United States. The complaint alleged that Horizon Organic Milk came from cows reared in factory farms that violated organic standards. Specifically, Horizon’s dairy cows did not have sufficient access to pasture and were kept in inhumane conditions. The case is still pending.

“As organics become more mainstream, the standards are at risk,” says Ronnie Cummins, a national director for the Organic Consumer Organization. “Mass market and organics aren’t always compatible,” he adds.

First, let’s get clear on the differences between organic and conventional farming –how and why the distinction was originally drawn.

In 1990, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Bill included The Organic Foods Production Act, which was created to establish uniform national standards for the production and handling of foods labeled as “organic.” The Act authorized a new USDA National Organic Program to set national standards for the production, handling, and processing of organically grown agricultural products.

The USDA National Organic Program now oversees mandatory certification of organic production. The Act also established the National Organic Standards Board which advises the Secretary of Agriculture in setting the standards upon which the National Organic Program is based. Producers who meet standards set by the National Organic Program may label their products as “USDA Certified Organic.”

Here is the technical definition of “organic food” according to the USDA National Organic Program website: “Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation. Before a product can be labeled ‘organic,’ a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards. Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.”

Fairly clear cut, right? Unfortunately, things aren’t so clear. The ability to emblazon a food product with the word “organic” is a valuable marketing advantage. And, when a subtle advantage can be leveraged for financial gain, it’s a breeding ground for situational ethics — and compromised standards.

Organic certification is intended to protect consumers from misuse of the term, and to make buying organics more straightforward. However, as the demand for organics rise, some large food manufacturers are attempting to weaken organic standards. Even the slightest downgrade in those standards can represent a financial windfall to large food companies.

Some believe that the U.S. government is also seeking to undercut organic standards. For example, Congress passed a $397 billion spending bill that contained a buried provision which could jeopardize U.S. organic standards. The provision, which was slipped into the bill at the last minute without debate, would “permit livestock producers to certify meat and dairy products as organic even if the animals had been fed non-organic or genetically engineered grain.” The provision would override the NOP’s requirement that 100% organic feed be used to produce organic meat products.
While many forces seek to soften organic standards, others go above and beyond to safeguard and uphold them.

“We’re talking about people’s health here,” says Dr. Jack J. Singh, founder of Organic Food Bar, Inc. Health is our most precious asset. Food companies should protect that at all costs! When you run a food company, you are feeding families with children. It is incumbent on everyone in this business to do everything they can to protect people’s health, particularly now as we face a health care crisis in this country.”

What the big companies don’t quite grasp is that unflinching integrity is good for customers – and good for business, too.

• If you want to eat purely organic food, the label should read: “100% organic” and nothing less. Only products made entirely with certified organic ingredients and methods can be labeled “100% organic.”
• Products with at least 95% organic ingredients can use the word “organic” and can also include the USDA organic seal. The other 5% can be conventionally-grown ingredients.
• A third category, containing a minimum of 70% organic ingredients, can be labeled “made with organic ingredients.”
• In most cases, the word “natural” on a product label means very little because, unlike the designation “organic,” the word “natural” has no legal definition.
• Whenever possible, buy food produced closer to home. That way, you know your food is fresher — and you know where it comes from! The recent food scare with China, while unsettling, has compelled many Americans to examine the origins of their food. This is good. The fact is that locally-produced food is better for you, it’s better for your community — and, it’s better for the planet.

To learn more about organics, visit The Organic Trade Association at: http://www.ota.com

For more healthy living tips, visit: http://www.organicfoodbar.com