Unintended Consequences And The Standard American Diet

In India, the government offered a bounty on rats. The intention was to eradicate a noxious pest. One unanticipated result was the establishment of rat farms, where rats were bred and harvested for the bounty. In Florida, a worker at a dog kennel noticed lots of snakes on the premises. He systematically killed them all. Then the rat population increased dramatically.

These are examples of the Law of Unintended Consequences, which states that any human action—whether or not it produces the desired result—is likely to produce an entirely different result (possibly in conflict with the original intention.) Typically, such results are completely unexpected. Often, they are just as completely undesired.

Let's review some of the changes which the Standard American Diet has pioneered: American food has been stripped of virtually all of its essential nutrients. Sugar and fat seem to be the major ingredients in virtually every American food. (About 45 percent of the caloric value of our diet comes from fat, and we use about 100 pounds of sugar per person per year.) Our consumption of hydrogenated fat is the highest in the world. We have virtually eliminated vegetables from our diet. We have drastically reduced the variety of foodstuffs we eat. We no longer rotate our diet with the change of the seasons. We consume about six pounds of synthetic food additives per person per year. Our widespread use of denatured flours, refined sugars, devitalized fats and oils, and synthetic food additives has been in effect for about one hundred years. Speaking in individual terms, this is a long time. In terms of the human race, it is a very short time. These dietary changes are quite radical w hen compared to human dietary tradition. And they don't seem to be good for you, either. As the American diet has changed, so has our health. Americans now lead the world in obesity, diabetes and heart disease. In fact, consumption of the Standard American Diet constitutes a chronic metabolic insult. Ours is the only civilization in history which has single-handedly managed to break its food.

How did this come to pass? We did it ourselves. There doesn't seem to have been any kind of evil conspiracy, or divine intervention. It just kind of happened, as the result of many un-coordinated, short-sighted decisions—made with the very best of intentions by people who were only trying to improve the lot of suffering humanity.

Here is a timeline of this nutritional revolution:

1755: William Cullen produces ice by causing water to evaporate in a vacuum container.
1765: Spallanzani suggests preserving by means of hermetic sealing.
1795: Francois Appert designs preserving jar for food.
1802: Thomas Moore invents the refrigerator.
1802: World's first successful beet sugar factory begins operation.
1805: First important shipment of ice from New England is made by Frederick Tudor.
1810: Francois Appert wins prize for developing practical canning process.
1810: First tin can is patented.
1811: Work started on the National Road.
1812: British sailors eating canned soups and meat.
1818: Peter Durand introduces the tin can in America.
1819: Canning firms operating in New York City.
1820: William Underwood opens a canning factory in Boston.
1820: More than 9000 miles of surfaced roads in the United States.
1825: Thomas Kensett patents tin-plated cans.
Before 1830: Flour sieved through bolting cloth.
1834: Jacob Perkins invents first mechanical refrigerator.
1839: Glass bottles yield to tin cans.
1840: 4,500 miles of canals carry U.S. goods.
1843: Norman Rillieux patents his multiple-effect evaporator for sugar cane.
1853: National Road turned over to the states.
1855: Patent issued in England for dried milk.
1856: Gail Borden receives patent for condensed milk process.
1858: John L. Mason perfects the mason jar.
1860: More than 88,000 miles of surfaced roads in the United States.
1861: T.S. Mort builds first machine-chilled cold storage unit.
1861: 3,500 steamboats operating on western rivers.
Civil War: Both armies use canning to supply troops.
Civil War: northern plains begin using hard spring wheat.
1862: Beginning of transition from subsistence to commercial farming.
1864: First salmon cannery in the United States.
1864: Louis Pasteur invents pasteurization (for wine).
1865: Thaddeus Lowe invents ice machine.
1865: Patent for dried eggs issued.
1866: America's first refrigerated railroad car is built in Detroit.
1869: Hippolyte Mege-Mouries develops oleomargarine.
1870: Karl von Linde uses ammonia as refrigerant, begins its manufacture.
1870's: Introduction of roller milling for wheat.
1874: H. Solomon introduces pressure-cooking methods for canning foods.
1874: Refrigerator cars are used regularly to ship meat from Midwest stockyards to the east.
1874: Margarine introduced to the United States.
1877: Joel Tiffany patents a successful refrigerator car.
1877: Frozen mutton shipped from Argentina to France.
1878: Gustav de Laval invents the centrifugal cream separator.
1878: Full-scale egg dehydrating plant in operation.
1879: 40 tons of frozen mutton shipped from Australia to London.
1880: Canned fruits and meats first appear in stores.
Late 1880's: Mechanically refrigerated cars running on railroads.
1890: The Babcock test makes dairymen honest.
1892: First cans of pineapples.
1895: Lewis B. Halsey begins commercial production of pasteurized milk.
1897: American Sugar Company is formed.
1900: Dairy products a full-fledged industry.
1903: The great corporation is the basic unit of American industry.
1910: Steel-roller flour milling is commonplace.
1915: Ford produces his millionth car.
1919: 265,000 miles of railroad lines in America.
About 1920: Mechanical refrigerators for homes appear.
1920's: Solvent extraction replaces expeller-pressed process for oils.
1927: Airplanes first used to dust crops with insecticides.
1930: Thomas Midgley invents Freon.
1930's-now: Small farms yield to giant food companies.
1930's: The first packages of frozen food, developed by Clarence Birdseye, appear on the shelves of 10 grocery stores in Springfield, Mass.
Post-WWII: Restructured foods.
1990's: Recombinant DNA biologically engineered foods.

In June, 2002 the Journal of the American Medical Association recommended that every American use a daily multi-nutrient supplement to address the issue of deficient diets. What makes this unusual is the fact that mainstream medicine has fought tooth and nail with the forces of vitamin and mineral supplementation for decades. Previously, supplementation had been characterized by them as a mostly harmless waste of money.

Perhaps there may be some hope, after all.

When Eating Try Choosing Healthy

Vegetables, fruits, and grains are normally low in fat and have no cholesterol. Most are great sources of dietary fiber, complex carbs, and vitamins. The American Heart Association recommends that you eat foods that are high in complex carbs and fiber.

Below are some tips for making healthy food choices:

- Coconut is high in saturated fat, while olives are high in monounsaturated fats and calories. You should use these items sparingly to avoid getting too many calories from fat.

- When vegetable grains are cooked, saturated fat or cholesterol is often added. For example, egg yolks may be added to bread or even pasta.

- Processed, canned, or preserved vegetables may also contain added sodium. With some people, too much sodium (salt) may lead to high blood pressure. There are some food companies that are actually canning vegetables with less salt. You can look for these in the market area or choose fresh and even frozen vegetables.

- Nuts and seeds tend to be high in calories and fat, although a majority of the fat is polyunsaturated or monounsaturated. There are some varieties, macadamie nuts for example, that are also high in saturated fat.

Foods that are high in soluble fiber are a great choice as well. Examples include oat bran, oatmeal, beans, peas, rice bran, barley, and even apple pulp.

Whenever you are looking for healthy food choices, always make sure you read the nutrition label or information about the food. You can then determine what the food contains and how healthy it truly is for your body. By taking your time and making your healthy food choices wisely, you'll have a lifetime to enjoy the foods that will take care of you.

How to Preserve Strawberries, Pears, and Zucchini for Year-Round Breakfast Enjoyment

Once the fruits and vegetables come on in our gardens, yards, or orchards, we love enjoying the fresh produce. But fruits and vegetables don't last long and it is a long wait until next year. Here are recipes for preserving that garden or orchard bounty so you and your family can enjoy it year-round. The Strawberry Jam is easy with no cooking necessary but it tastes so good. The Pear Honey is a favorite of mine as it is a very old family recipe. Zucchini Marmalade turns this little squash into a great breakfast treat! I'm sure it is because I am a senior citizen now, I love things that remind me of my childhood growing up in rural Southern Indiana. Although I never plan to live there again, it was a great place to grow up.

QUICK AND EASY STRAWBERRY JAM
2 cups fully ripe, completely crushed fresh strawberries
1 box Sure-Jell
3/4 cup water
4 cups sugar

Mix the sugar into the crushed strawberries; let stand 10 minutes. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Mix the Sure-Jell and water together in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Stir the Sure-Jell into the strawberry mixture. Stir for 3 minutes. Ladle the mixture into freezer containers, cover with lids and let set at room temperature for 24 hours. Store in freezer. This is good as a jam and also as a topping for ice cream.

Buying Food That are Fresh

Buying food stuffed in cans required in diet and are commonly rich with brackish and preservatives in today's food markets. The treat of sparkle goes from unmarked fruits and vegetables, to frozen foods, and down to canned foods. Last on the inventory, these canned things are gradually fetching a thing of the older.

When the canned foods go through the cooking handle, this heating process destroys about one-third to one-half of the vitamins An and C, riboflavin and thiamin. And then the sit on the shelves as they are stored, behind an additional 5% to 20% . Nevertheless the remaining vitamins only lessening their ideals vaguely.

A lot of yield when selected for crop will create to spend some of its nutrients. If it is handled correctly and canned promptly, it can be more than, or as nutritious as moist fruit or vegetable. This bright construct will exhaust half or more of its vitamins with the first two weeks: but if not reserved calm or preserved, the light vegetable or fruit will consume almost half of its vitamins within the first few days. The median consumer is advised to eat a strain of food types each day as compared to only one brand of food.

The thing to recollect is everything depends on the time between the harvesting and the canning and freeing process. Generally, the vegetables are picked immediately and taken to canning or freezing divisions when their nutrient exchange is at its crest. How the food is canned affects the nutrient esteem also. Vegetables boiled for longer than required and in large amounts of water misplace much of their nutritional esteem as compared to those only lightly steamed.

When we choose cool vegetables or fruit at the ranch, they are always more nutritious than canned or frozen - this is a statement. If you cannot buy fresh, at slightest buy frozen.

Backyard Poultry - Easy Backyard Chicken Coops

Welcome back! I hope you enjoyed my first article which introduced you to the benefits of raising your own backyard chickens! Do you have those chickens ordered yet? Actually, before you get those bantams or Rhode Island Reds ordered, you will need to be prepared! Don't wait until the birds have arrived to figure out where you are going to put them. It's a lot of needless stress on you and the birds! Preparation in this area will most definitely contribute to a successful poultry operation.

Click for Easy To Follow Chicken Coop Plans

To begin, you will need to provide adequate housing for the chickens. You will need to determine approximately how many chickens you will need to meet your family's demand for eggs. On average, a healthy, well-fed hen will produce 1 egg per day. There will be factors that may alter this, such as weather, light, feed, etc. However, once you determine the number of chickens you will need, plan your housing based on the fact that an averag e sized chicken requires approximately 1.5-2 square feet inside the coop, and approximately 8 square feet outside in order to get adequate exercise. You will also need to provide 1 nesting box per 4 laying hens. This should give you a rough estimate as to how big your coop will need to be. In addition to building or buying a shelter, you will need to make sure that this shelter provides adequate ventilation, is "predator" proof, and is well lit. If you want eggs, you will need good lighting! Your "outside" yard will not only need to be built in such a way as to keep the chickens in, but to keep the predators out! This includes predators that fly, and those that burrow. It is suggested that when you build your fence, that you bury the wire at least 6-12 inches deep, and toe the bottom of the wire out so that if "something" does dig, it will hit wire first. Also, don't forget to provide a place for the birds to "roost" inside the coop for their evening snooze.

Of course you will need to have feeders and waterers for your chickens. It is best to have the type of feeders which can be hung from the ceiling. These feeders prevent the birds from contaminating the feed. Chickens require quite a bit of water, so it is important to have waterers inside and out of the coop. Older chickens can drink out of open pails or containers, but it is nice to also have a waterer from a feed store, as they are also designed to keep chicken poop out and clean water in...sorry, that's just a reality! Both feeders and waterers can be homemade and made cheaply. We have feeders made out of coffee cans, and waterers made with canning jars. Your chicken operation does not have to cost you a claw and a beak!

Click for Easy To Follow Chicken Coop Plans

Now, the moment of truth! What type of chickens should you purchase? Really, it will depend on your expectations and needs. Some chickens are dual-purpose. In other words, they are good layers and are more bulky i n size, so that when their best laying years are over (about 3 laying seasons), they can be butchered for meat. Some examples of this type of chicken is a Rhode Island Red, Plymouth Rock, Golden or Black Sex-Link, etc. Some chickens are better layers and do not get as big. One example of this is the bantam. These are small chickens that lay small eggs, but they are wonderful birds and good "brooders". A brooding chicken is one that will lay eggs, and then sit on them, and hatch out her chicks. This is good if you want to have your own hatchery! I also recommend the Buff Orpington chicken for these purposes too. Many chickens today DO NOT sit on their eggs...it's been bred out of them! By the way, you DO NOT need a rooster in order for your chickens to lay eggs...you just won't really need the "broody" type birds in this case, as your eggs will not be fertile. There are many "exotic" type birds on the market as well. One that is very popular is the Araucana. These birds are m ost noted for laying the pink or light green/blue eggs. We had a couple of Araucana, and the novelty was fun. However, I am more interested in lots of eggs, and these ladies had a tendency to stash their eggs so I could'nt find them! At any rate, there are many breeds, colors and arrays of chickens. Get yourself a catalog and read up for yourself on the many types of chickens. You'll be amazed, and you will be able to choose the type of bird that suits your needs the best.

Click for Easy To Follow Chicken Coop Plans

Homemade Canning - Best Kinds of Soup for Home Canning

Canned soup is delicious and easy for lunches, dinners, and even snacks. Store-bought soup often contains large amounts of sodium and even hidden ingredients such as monosodium glutamate, yeast, and unknown spices and added artificial flavorings.

Soup done by homemade canning is not only healthier, it is less expensive than the store-bought versions and you can control what goes into it. Which soups are best for canning at home?

Canned Cream Soup

Tomato, mushroom, celery, pumpkin, squash, broccoli, cauliflower, and other vegetables and blends make delicious creamed soup. Creamed foods are often cooked vegetables run through a blender and then made into a delicious and creamy soup with fresh milk or cream and a variety of spices. These may take a few extra steps to prepare, but are well worth the effort.

To make them a condensed soup, simply leave off the addition of cream and extra water in the recipe you follow and note on the label how much to add for that particular recipe. When opening a jar of creamed soup, simply add the amount of milk or water just like the condensed soup you would purchase at the store, but at a fraction of the cost.

Canned Vegetable Soup

Depending on the recipe, you may or may not need to precook the vegetables. One delicious method of making homemade canned vegetable soup is to save the vegetable refuse from processing other vegetables in a bin in the freezer. These can range from clean potato skin and apple skins and cores to onion peels and lettuce cores. When you have enough to boil for stock, boil them up until soft and then cool the stock. Blend them in a blender and run through a food sieve or mesh strainer to remove the larger particles.

Things to Do With Tomatoes

The English word tomato comes from the Spanish tomatl, first appearing in print in 1595. A member of the deadly nightshade family, tomatoes were erroneously thought to be poisonous (although the leaves are poisonous) by Europeans who were suspicious of their bright, shiny fruit. Native versions were small, like cherry tomatoes, and most likely yellow rather than red.

The tomato is native to western South America and Central America. In 1519, Cortez discovered tomatoes growing in Montezuma's gardens and brought seeds back to Europe where they were planted as ornamental curiosities, but not eaten

Start with great tomatoes and the right cut. You'll get the best results if you buy ripe tomatoes at a farm stand or farmers' market or get them from your own garden. They'll be the tastiest and juiciest, since they've been picked at their ripest. How you cut the tomatoes is important, too. A half-inch dice is the perfect size, because it will give you a juicy sauce while maintaining the integrity of the tomatoes.

Add a good amount of olive oil. The oil serves a double purpose here. First, it combines with the juices drawn by the salt to make the sauce. No oil means no sauce, just tomato juice. Second, a good fruity extra-virgin olive oil will lend its rich flavor to the dish, giving it lots of body and depth.

Toss the sauce with hot pasta. This is key: The heat of just-cooked pasta helps release the flavors in the tomatoes and creates a better integrated dish than if you mixed the sauce with cold pasta. Please send your review to Indo Munch

The high acidic content of the tomato makes it a prime candidate for canning, which is one of the main reasons the tomato was canned more than any other fruit or vegetable by the end of the nineteenth century. For more information http://www.indomunch.com