Nutrition

Thoughts about phytase, phytates & phytic acid

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phytase, phytates & phytic acid

I mis-spoke in my blog about Grains and Iron. I said that humans don’t have the enzyme phytase. That isn’t completely true (I learned tonight). We do have phytase, but we have such a tiny amount of it that our bodies are not able to process unfermented grains.

I read an article that compared the amount of phytase in a human gut to the amount in a rat’s gut. The article is called Phytase activity in the human and rat small intestine. My husband thinks the things I read are boring, what do you think? 🙂 I get excited over studies like this! 🙂

Baby Steps to Healthy Eating: Avoid Sugary Breakfasts

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avoid sugary breakfasts

  My friend Heidi e-mailed me last week and asked for some ideas of a baby step she could take towards healthier eating for her family. I wrote the Food Challenge in April and challenged you all to eat the way I think is ideal and healthy, but didn’t think about the fact that the whole thing … Read more

When life happens, ideals go out the window…

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I’ve written lots of encouragement 🙂 here for staying on the GAPS diet and doing everything “just right” (I’m a first born–a rule follower–a perfectionist). Today, I’m writing about how to let the perfection go when you can’t do everything “just right.” This is our second night with 4 precious new children in our home. … Read more

Food and Grace

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I’m not talking about praying at the dinner table. 🙂 Today we had our homeschool co-op, and I learned that two of my boys were “teaching” the other kids that their snacks were unhealthy, and that donuts are full of chemicals (I told them about the Krispy Kreme Deconstructed article that I had read), and that if everyone just ate like us, they’d be healthy….

I had a talk with my boys about GRACE when we got home, and about judgement. And about not telling people “you’re wrong for doing such and such” because people don’t usually learn or make life-changes that way, and it just simply isn’t polite. Farm Boy 1 said “I just want everyone to be healthy.” For him, I think it’s a matter of compassion–he wants to fix every problem in the world. He thinks by telling people the problem, they’ll automatically want to jump on board and fix it and everyone will have a good, healthy life. Farm Boy 2 wants to make sure everyone knows the RIGHT way to do things. He’s got a bold personality and he’s not afraid to tell people what he thinks is right and wrong. I’m thankful for his strong stance against the many wrong things in this world, but he needs to learn to temper his boldness with some grace.

Supplements vs. Whole Foods

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Jetsons family taking pills for dinner

Once upon a time (when I was in high school), I embarrassed my brother (who was with me) by going into a GNC mart in the mall and asking if they sold any pills like the Jetsons had–you know–a whole meal in a pill? To my dismay, they didn’t have any such “quick fix.” I wanted it to be easy to get good nutrition. I don’t think I’m alone. That’s the biggest complaint I hear about the GAPS Diet (or eating whole foods in general): people don’t want to cook whole foods, because it takes too much time, and they’ll have to think too much about food, and they’ll have to spend more time in the kitchen and in the garden (or at least at the farmer’s market).

It all begins in the gut, but it may not be your fault

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This is Part 2 of “It All Begins in the Gut.” I’ve been thinking about this subject, and I wanted to clarify some things. I don’t want to give the impression that if you’re sick, it’s only because of something you did.

It all begins in the gut, but not necessarily yours…

GAPS Diet: How We Got Started

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The GAPS Diet: How We Got Started

I mentioned the other day that there were lots of health issues going on in my family. When I saw the cover of Breaking the Vicious Cycle, I knew I had to read it.   “Diet for Chron’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Diverticulitis, Celiac Disease, Cystic Fibrosis and Chronic Diarrhea.”   I didn’t know if I … Read more