Archive for the ‘Health’ Category

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Beware: Sodium selenite in pet food is toxic

Sunday, February 4th, 2018

Charlie & Cloe

By Catherine Haug, Feb 4, 2018 (photo of my cats, right, by me)

This was originally published on my recipe blog, Cat’s Kitchen.

It is generally known that heavy metals are toxic; metals such as mercury, aluminum, cadmium, lead, arsenic and free-iron. There is a common ingredient present in most pet foods that can be very damaging to the health of your dog or cat, even though it is present in very minute amounts: sodium selenite (NaSeO3). It may be toxic to blood, kidneys, liver, skin, central nervous system of your pet.

Selenium is an essential mineral for most animals, but only when it is present in “organic” forms (meaning it is chelated by proteins or amino acids), such as that in selenium yeast (a form of nutritional yeast that has been grown on selenium). In “inorganic” forms which are typically salts (e.g., sodium selenite), it can be quite toxic, even in very small quantities. Also, as counter-intuitive as this sounds, it is a truth: the smaller the concentration of toxic selenium, the greater the harm because small concentrations mimic hormones, especially estrogen.

NOTE: If you take (or give to your pet) a multi-vitamin, multi-mineral, or specific mineral supplement that contains sodium selenite, stop using it and find a safer brand. For example, a widely used supplement that contains this toxic ingredient is Centrum.

See also: Miscellaneous & Information Menu (scroll down to “Pets”) on my Cat’s Kitchen blog. (more…)

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Beware: Sodium selenite in pet food is toxic

Tuesday, January 30th, 2018

By Catherine Haug, Jan 30, 2018

It is generally known that heavy metals are toxic; metals such as mercury, aluminum, cadmium, lead, arsenic and free-iron. There is a common ingredient present in most dry pet foods and some canned pet foods that can be very damaging to the health of your dog or cat, even though it is present in very minute amounts: sodium selenite (NaSeO3). It may be toxic to blood, kidneys, liver, skin, central nervous system of your pet.

Selenium is an essential mineral for most animals, but only when it is present in certain forms, such as that in selenium yeast (a form of nutritional yeast that has been grown on selenium). In other forms (e.g., sodium selenite), it can be quite toxic. Also, as counter-intuitive as this sounds, it is a truth: the smaller the concentration of toxic selenium, the greater the harm because small concentrations mimic hormones, especially estrogen.

NOTE: If you take (or give such a supplement to your pet): a multi-vitamin, multi-mineral, or specific mineral supplement that contains sodium selenite, stop using it and find a safer brand. (more…)

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Moringa: green-leafy veggie (tree) grows well during drought

Friday, December 22nd, 2017

Edible leaves of a Moringa tree

By Cat, Dec 2017 (Photo, right, from Wikimedia Commons)

The leaves of this amazing tree are considered a superfood; plus the tree grows well in a warm, dry climate. Given the progression of climate change in our corner of the world here in NW Montana, this could become an important food source for us as our climate becomes more arid. Plus, its deep roots make it an amazing carbon-sequestor.

Its leaves have the texture of spinach with a radish-like taste, and are packed with nutrients. Use its leaves in salads and soups; add to smoothies or raw veggie juices. Its young seed pods are also edible, similar to green beans.

Important caution: We must be careful when introducing new, non-native species, as they can become problematic, invasive weeds.

Want to know more about this tree, and what makes it a superfood? Read on for more detail. (more…)

Posted in Ecology, Health, Landscaping | No Comments »

GMO ‘Arctic Apple” now in grocery stores

Wednesday, November 22nd, 2017

Frankenfood

by Catherine Haug, Nov 22, 2017 (Image, right, from OCA and used with permission)

HEADS-UP! I wrote about the pending introduction of the GMO Arctic Apple last year, and now it is in about 400 grocery stores in the Midwest, and will soon spread through the country. This apple is genetically engineered to resist browning when cut/sliced. Initially, this Arctic Apple will be sold cut – in 10-oz bags, but in the future could be sold whole. They will not be labeled as “GMO;” instead, you will need to use a cell phone to read the QR code.

This new variety, developed by Okanagan Specialty Fruits, are engineered to suppress the production of the enzyme polyphony oxides (PPO), that causes the browning of the apple’s flesh when exposed to air. 

While the assumption is that a browned apple is a bad apple, that assumption is not true.

(more…)

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How much glyphosate is in your body?

Sunday, October 29th, 2017

By Catherine Haug, October 29, 2017 (Image, right, by C. Haug based on similar image on an Oregon Right To Know email)

Monsanto’s Roundup contains the herbicide glyphosate, which is sprayed on crops all across the US. Those GMO crops that are Roundup-Resistant have the highest levels of glyphosate. Why should you care about this?

Glyphosate is a patented antibiotic, which means that when you consume foods that contain glyphosate, you are disrupting the microbiome in your gut by killing-off not only the bad bugs but also the good ones that your health depends upon. The good bacteria in your gut help you to digest your food, and play a major role for your immune system (among their many benefits).

When your microbiome is out of balance, you are at risk for many scary diseases including dementia, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, cancer, and more. Children with disrupted microbiome are more at risk for ADHD and autism. But its harm doesn’t stop there; as Hippocrates once stated, “All disease begins in the gut.” Science now knows that is because all disease can be traced back to your gut’s microbiome. (more…)

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“Food Evolution”: New GMO technology even worse than Roundup-resistance

Monday, August 28th, 2017

Frankenfood

By Catherine Haug, Aug 28, 2017 (Photo, right, from Organic Consumers Association (14), used with permission)

By now we should all be familiar with herbicide ag chemicals like Roundup, and harm they can cause to the herbicide-resistant crops on which it is sprayed. But the harm they cause to humans who eat those crops, and the soil in which they are grown, is not as well known. For example:

  • Roundup is a patented broad-spectrum antibiotic, which means that as the plant takes it up, it moves to the roots where it kills the soil microbiome that enable to plant to take up nutrients from the soil. This explains why after just a few plantings of the Roundup-resistant crops, they suffer root damage and do not yield a good crop. And other crops planted in the same soil likewise suffer root damage.
  • Its antibiotic nature also means that if you eat any part of a Roundup-resistant plant, you are taking up this antibiotic which then kills/damages the microbiome in your mouth and gut, lowering your resistance to disease and interaction between your brain and your primitive brain (the gut), which can ultimately lead to inflammation in both organs. Inflammation in the brain can manifest as depression, dementia and Alzheimer’s.

And while the harm of existing GMOs is more broad than this one example, new GMO technology pose even more harm. With advances in ag-chemical research, genetic modification techniques are even more sophisticated, and can do even more harm to nature as a whole, including humans. To me, this is downright scary – even more so than the worst horror film you could watch. (more…)

Posted in Agriculture, Ecology, GMO, Health | No Comments »

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