Unique is a good word to describe Marc Koska. “Since I was a kid, I always wanted to get involved in a large intervention on a big scale,” he told Organic Connections. “I was always looking for something. If I had lived 200 years ago, I would have wanted to be the guy who killed all the rats in the Black Death. And I started having that drive when I was about six.” Read the rest of this feature »
For more information visit the Center for Food Safety.
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Learning disabilities are a common problem today and seem to be on the rise. A new article in the October 2009 issue of Behavioral and Brain Functions journal examines how diet-related factors, like synthetic food dyes, mercury contamination and mineral deficiencies, are being linked to such problems.
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In a recent interview with Organic Connections (September–October 2009), iconic chef Alice Waters discussed the vital need for every schoolchild to have a daily healthy lunch. Not only is this important for overall physical well-being, but a child needs proper nutrition in order to study and learn. With the current government provision of $1.00 per meal, real food is nearly impossible to obtain.
The philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
It certainly seems that we have a very short memory in America.
We are constantly searching for “wonder” materials. Wall Street gets excited by them, our government throws open regulatory doors to give them free reign, and corporations can’t wait to be first to market something new. Of course this is good business for PR firms and ad agencies and it gives journalists something to write about. Read the rest of this feature »
The headlines have lately been filled with news of the Obama administration’s proposed healthcare plan. Strongly worded opinions, both pro and con, are being volleyed from each side of the political fence. But one aspect of healthcare not being adequately addressed in the plan—as well as not mentioned in most of the pro or con arguments—is the basic American diet. How healthy can a person be when consuming chemical-laden and nutrient-deficient food with an emphasis on carbohydrates, bad fat, salt and sugar? How many healthcare billions are being spent to address health issues that have their roots in poor diet? It’s a hard number to come by, but according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three-quarters of healthcare spending goes to treat “preventable chronic diseases.” Treatment for obesity alone runs a tab of $147 billion, and that doesn’t figure in diabetes ($116 billion) or cardiovascular disease. Read the rest of this feature »
It would seem obvious that products to cleanse or enhance the care of your skin—the body’s largest organ—should be as natural as possible. Yet, according to the Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database (www.cosmeticsdatabase.com), there are some products on the market containing moderate to high amounts of hazardous chemical ingredients. Read the rest of this feature »
If registered dietitian Ashley Koff sounds like a familiar name to you, that’s probably because you’ve seen her interviewed on television (Good Morning America, Entertainment Tonight and other shows) or read one of her many contributions to the New York Times, Fitness, Shape, InStyle, Teen Vogue, Women’s Health or Food and Wine. Elisabeth Hasselbeck of The View recently sought Koff’s assistance in creating her book The G-Free Diet: A Gluten-Free Survival Guide, which arrives on shelves in May 2009.
Koff’s extensive work in nutrition has led her to a multi-faceted career. She provides nutritional counseling to individuals from all walks of life, from normal career people to celebrities. She advises the media as regards nutrition and also consults with corporations. In 2008, she brought all three of these functions together under the brand “Ashley Koff Approved” or AKA. “AKA is similar to the Good Housekeeping seal, which consumers, the media, physicians and healthcare practitioners can rely on to help them sort through what’s true, what’s authentic, what products they can be looking for, and what are trustworthy food sources,” Koff told Organic Connections.
The amazing pomegranate is one of the oldest fruits known to man. Consisting of rich, red fruit surrounded by a hard leathery skin, the pomegranate has been cultivated and naturalized over the whole Mediterranean region and the Caucasus since ancient times. It was introduced into Latin America and California by Spanish settlers in 1769 and is now cultivated in parts of California and Arizona for juice production.
Leo Galland, MD, has been practicing medicine for over 30 years, including a teaching stint at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He is a pioneer in the emerging field of integrated medicine, which combines the best of alternative and conventional treatments. He is the author of three excellent books, Power Healing, Superimmunity for Kids, and The Fat Resistance Diet, and he currently practices in New York City, specializing in undiagnosed or difficult-to-treat illnesses. We recently sat down with Dr. Galland for a fascinating conversation about health, the state of medicine, the power of nutrition, and magnesium.
