Illinois illegally seizes bees resistant to Monsanto's Roundup

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The Illinois Ag Dept.  illegally seized privately owned bees from renowned naturalist, Terrence Ingram, without providing him with a search warrant and before the court hearing on the matter, reports Prairie Advocate News.

Behind the obvious violations of his Constitutional rights is Monsanto. Ingram was researching Roundup’s effects on bees, which he’s raised for 58 years.  “They ruined 15 years of my research,” he told Prairie Advocate, by stealing most of his stock.

A certified letter from the Ag Dept.’s Apiary Inspection Supervisor, Steven D. Chard, stated:

“During a routine inspection of your honeybee colonies by … Inspectors Susan Kivikko and Eleanor Balson on October 23, 2011, the bacterial disease ‘American Foulbrood’ was detected in a number of colonies located behind your house…. Presence of the disease in some of your colonies was confirmed via test results from the USDA Bee Research Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland that analyzed samples collected from your apiary….”

Ingram can prove his bees did not have foulbrood, and planned to do so at a hearing set in April, but the state seized his bees at the end of March. They have not returned them and no one at the Ag Dept. seems to know where his bees are.

The bees could have been destroyed, or they could have been turned over to Monsanto to ascertain why some of his bees are resistant to Roundup. Without the bees as evidence, Ingram simply cannot defend against the phony charges of foulbrood.

Worse, all his queens died after Kivikko and Balson “inspected” his property, outside of his presence and without a warrant.

Of note, Illinois beekeepers are going underground after Ingram’s experience and refuse to register their hives, in case the state tries to steal their private property on phony claims.

Sources: realfarmacy.com

globalresearch.ca

Health Benefits of Watercress

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Watercress is a popular european leafy green herb that grows along springs and slow running water streams. It has a faint pepper taste to it, and has been used in ancient times for medicinal uses in Europe, Central Asia and the Americas. It is closely related to mustard greens, garden cress, cabbage and arugula. 

This leafy herb contains more vitamin C than some fruit and vegetables! You can get over 72% of your daily vitamin C from just 100 grams of watercress leaves. Vitamin C helps to scavenge free radicals and reactive oxygen species. Vitamin C not only helps boost your immunity against infection, but it also helps prevent iron deficiency anemia, and helps maintain bone health and keep skin supple and radiant looking.

This amazing little herb also happens to be one of the best vegetable sources for vitamin K! Just 100 grams of watercress leaves will leave you absorbing over 200% of your daily recommended amount of vitamin K! Vitamin K is important in bone health by promoting the strengthening and formation of bones (osteotrophic activity). Vitamin K also reduces the amount of neuronal damage in the brain and thus has been used in treatment of patients with Alzheimer’s disease.

Vitamin A, which is important for skin, eye, bone, hair and nail health is a fat soluble vitamin that is stored in our liver. Vitamin A acts as an antioxidant in our bodies, however, it is the carotenes (i.e., alpha carotene, beta carotene; the precursors of vitamin A) in the watercress that can either be turned into vitamin A or turned into antioxidants (the body does this! It is very intelligent and will turn carotenes from the plant into vitamin A only if your body needs it. The rest will function in your bloodstream as antioxidants – so you can’t really overdose on carotenes). Watercress is particularly rich in vitamin A with 100g of the leaves providing you with 70% of your RDA of vitamin A.

Watercress is also rich in B vitamins which help to relieve stress, treat anxiety and depression, aid in memory and relieve PMS. Some B vitamins also help cells burn fats and glucose for energy, whereas others help make serotonin (the feel-good neurotransmitter created in our brain). Not only do B vitamins do all of the aforementioned, but they also assist with the production and repair of DNA!

Glucosinolates in watercress help to boost and regulate activity of detoxification enzymes in the liver. When consumed, the glucosinolates in watercress are converted to isothiocyanates, which then have the ability to inhibit tumorigenesis by modulating the metabolism of carcinogens. This effect found to have an even stronger impact when consuming watercress that has not been cooked.

As an anti-inflammatory, watercress has been used for treating eczema, acne and other skin issues (again, we can thank vitamin’s A and C here). It can also be used as a liver tonic to help aid your liver in the detoxification process. It is also interesting to note that watercress is (in terms of calories) 85% protein, making it a great source of plant protein for vegans.

Next time you make a green juice, or a salad, add in some watercress to pack in some of the amazing benefits listed above! Your body will love you for it!

Sources:

Gill, C., Haldar, S., Boyd, L., Bennett, R., Whiteford, J., Butler, M., Pearson, J., Bradbury, I., & Rowland, I. (2007) Watercress supplementation in diet reduces lymphocyte DNA damage and alters blood antioxidant status in healthy adults. Am J Clin Nutr, 85, 504-510.

Rose, P., Won, Y., Ong, C., & Whiteman, M. (2005) B-Phenylethyl and 8-methylsulphinyloctyl isothiocyanates, constituents of watercress, suppress LPS induced production of nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2 in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Nitric Oxide, 12, 237-243.

Getahun, S., & Chung, F. (1999) Conversion of glucosinolates to isothiocyanates in humans after ingestion of cooked watercress. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev., 8, 447-451.

U.S Non GMO and Organic Shopping Guide for Consumers

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We hope you find this useful.

Other Articles you may like:

6 Ways To Buy Organic On A Budget

Reducing Your Risk To Pesticides: 47 Fruits and Veggies and Their Pesticide Load

6 Ways To Buy Organic On A Budget

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1. Put your green bargaining cap on and talk with farmers at the markets to negotiate a lower price for your produce. We know they work hard for their money but it can’t hurt to ask. Bartering for fare isn’t as strange as it sounds. Maybe they’ll unload the less popular fruits and vegetables for less too.

2. Everyone’s looking for the perfect specimen. You might want to choose produce that’s been passed over, because of minimal bruising and spotting, and ask for a lower price. Let’s face it, basil is going to wilt anyways once you chop it up or cook it so buying some that’s already on its way isn’t going to affect its flavor. It just means that you’ll want to use it sooner than later — which isn’t a bad thing.

3. More and more of the bigger food warehouse stores (like Sam’s Club, for example) are carrying organic items. If you can buy in bulk (dried beans, rice, canned tomatoes, organic coffee, etc.) this will save you a few dollars too. If you want to buy vegetables in greater quantities because of price, some will freeze nicely if slightly blanched beforehand. Asparagus, green beans, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, turnips and squashes can all be frozen.

4. Before you go to the Farmer’s Market and get pulled into the romance of it all (“I must have those gorgeous garlic scapes – now what do I do with them?”), plan ahead and go with a set list in mind. If an item is too expensive because it’s just come in season, wait a week and the price may go down.

5. The proliferation of websites that sell organic food and related items is ever-growing and with the incentive of free shipping on some sites, this may be a great alternative for you. Amazon.com is even dabbling in selling organic grocery store items, so you’ll have a variety of sources from which to choose.

6. Just as you search for coupons in your local supermarket flyers (or watch them haphazardly fall out of your weekend newspaper), many of the organic brand websites offer a way to print out coupons too. If you don’t have access to a printer, some of the websites will simply send you the coupons if you supply your snail mail address.

What To Do When You Can't Find Organics Or Pesticide-Free Fruits and Vegetables? If you don't have the advantage of buying organic and your local supermarket only carries fruits and vegetables that have been sprayed with pesticides, reduce your risk by finding out which ones are the worst. Check: Reducing Your Risk To Pesticides: 47 Fruits and Veggies and Their Pesticide Load

Source: http://preventdisease.com

47 Fruits and Veggies and Their Pesticide Load

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Every year, new research is published showing the toxicity of pesticides to human health and the environment, often at doses previously declared "safe" by the pesticide industry and the government. 

As acknowledged by the U.S. and international government agencies, different pesticides have been linked with a variety of toxic effects, including:

·         Nervous system effects

·         Carcinogenic effects

·         Hormone system effects

·         Skin, eye and lung irritation

Pesticides are unique among the chemicals we release into the environment; they have inherent toxicity because they are designed to kill living organisms, insects, plants, and fungi that are considered "pests." Because they are toxic by design, many pesticides pose health risks to people, risks that have been acknowledged by independent research scientists and physicians across the world.

Protecting our families' health from chemical exposures can start with minimizing children's exposure to pesticides. It is now well established that pesticides pose a risk to vital organ systems that continue to grow and mature from conception throughout infancy and childhood. Exposure to pesticides and other toxic chemicals during critical periods of development can have lasting adverse effects both in early development and later in life. The metabolism, physiology, and biochemistry of a fetus, infant or child are fundamentally different from those of adults; a young, organism is often less able to metabolize and inactivate toxic chemicals and can be much more vulnerable to the harmful effects of pesticides. The nervous system, brain, reproductive organs and endocrine (hormone) system can be permanently, if subtly, damaged by exposure to toxic substances in-utero or throughout early childhood that, at the same level, cause no measurable harm to adults. The developing brain and endocrine system are very sensitive, and low doses at a susceptible moment of development can cause more of an effect than high doses. It is especially important to reduce pesticide exposures of babies and young children so as to minimize these risks.

What Can I Do to Reduce My Risk?

Addressing the risks of pesticide exposure first and foremost requires information, which is frequently made unavailable to the general public by the government agencies. To counteract this trend for secrecy, EWG believes that:

People have a right to know what's in their food, so they can choose foods with less pesticides.

·    The government can and should take steps to dramatically reduce the number and amount of toxic chemicals, including pesticides, in the food supply.

Each of us can opt for food safety today by choosing to purchase produce low in pesticides and by buying organically-raised fruits and vegetables as frequently as possible. With this first step we can protect our families' health and preserve our own future and the future of the environment from the harmful effects of pesticides.

The following chart ranks the highest (100 score) and lowest (1 score) pesticide loads of popular fruits and veggies. 

RANK	FRUIT OR VEGGIE	SCORE
1 (worst)	Peach	100 (highest pesticide load)
2	Apple	93
3	Sweet Bell Pepper	83
4	Celery	82
5	Nectarine	81
6	Strawberries	80
7	Cherries	73
8	Kale	69
9	Lettuce	67
10	Grapes - Imported	66
11	Carrot	63
12	Pear	63
13	Collard Greens	60
14	Spinach	58
15	Potato	56
16	Green Beans	53
17	Summer Squash	53
18	Pepper	51
19	Cucumber	50
20	Raspberries	46
21	Grapes - Domestic	44
22	Plum	44
23	Orange	44
24	Cauliflower	39
25	Tangerine	37
26	Mushrooms	36
27	Banana	34
28	Winter Squash	34
29	Cantaloupe	33
30	Cranberries	33
31	Honeydew Melon	30
32	Grapefruit	29
33	Sweet Potato	29
34	Tomato	29
35	Broccoli	28
36	Watermelon	26
37	Papaya	20
38	Eggplant	20
39	Cabbage	17
40	Kiwi	13
41	Sweet Peas - Frozen	10
42	Asparagus	10
43	Mango	9
44	Pineapple	7
45	Sweet Corn - Frozen	2
46	Avocado	1
47 (best)	Onion	1 (lowest pesticide load)

Source: http://preventdisease.com

How To Defeat Industrial Oil Spills With Mushrooms

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With the latest oil rig catastrophe today and the increasingly common sight of oil spills in the ocean and on land, new solutions are being developed to combat this pollution of our health and environment. With the traditional "solutions" to cleaning oil spills coming under increased scrutiny for their lack of effectiveness, bacteria and mushrooms are now being used to naturally clean up oil spills.

Mycoremediation is an incredible technique using fungi to break down oil and other contaminants. This short film shows how the Amazon Mycorenewal Project  initiated the first ever trials using myco-remediation in highly polluted areas of the Ecuadorian rainforest.

For more information, including how you can help to support this project: http://bit.ly/Gaiamycoremediation

To help support this important work, please donate here: http://bit.ly/HelpCleanForests

More information:
How fungi -- mushrooms -- mycelium can help save the world http://bit.ly/65J05u

Paul Stamets is a guru of all things Fungi http://www.fungi.com/mycotech/index.html

Scientists who question GMOs are being censored and threatened

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They are distinguished scientists and their careers are in ruins. Both scientists choose to look at the phenomenon of genetic engineering. Both made important discoveries. Both of them are suffering the fate of those who criticize the powerful vested interests that now dominate big business and scientific research.

Statements made by scientists themselves prove that 95% of the research in the area of genetic engineering is paid by the industry. Only 5% of the research is independent. The big danger for freedom of science and our democracy is evident. Can the public -- we all -- still trust our scientists?

Download / Stream the whole movie here: http://www.onlinefilm.org/en_EN/film/52070

Grow 20 sq. ft. of vegetables in only 4 sq. ft. of space

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John from Growing Your Greens takes a field trip to the San Francisco Green Festival to scope out the latest in green products. He finds and shares with you the Phytopod which lets you have a instant garden built for production in just 4 square feet of space.

This a another great idea for growing your own food when you have limited space. As John notes in the video, you can get nearly the same amount of space out of a Phytopod grow system as you can with a traditional raised bed. These awesome grow set ups can be used indoors and outdoors or on your patio!

Delicious, Fresh, Raw Vegan Taco's

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This recipe is based on my love for mushrooms and zucchini (which makes up the base of the "meat") - it turned out insanely amazing, and leaves you feeling great! So enough talk, and more recipe. See below for the ingredients, and simple process to create your own fresh, raw vegan tacos! 

Ingredients:

"Meat"

1-2 cups cremini mushrooms, chopped finely

2 medium zucchini's, chopped into little cubes

1 medjool date, soaked in water until squishy - blend the date in the soak water to make a sort of "sauce", and add 1/2 - 1 tsp taco seasoning* (I make my own homemade, see below for recipe), mix again

Salsa:

4 Tomatoes, chopped finely

1 Garlic clove, crushed

3 tbsp finely diced red onion

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro (aka. corriander)

Juice of 1/2 a lime

Taco essentials:

1 Head Romaine

1 Carrot, shredded (the "Cheeze")

1/2 long english cucumber, chopped into tiny pieces

Instructions:

Take the medjool date & taco seasoning sauce, and mix with zucchini and mushroom so it covers all the little pieces. Take this mixture and let it dehydrate in the dehydrator at a low temperature for a couple hours, or you can skip this step if you don't have a dehydrator and just let the flavours mingle for a couple hours in a covered bowl (it really doesn't matter if this mixture is more moist or dry, it will taste the same in the end)

To make the salsa, simply combine all the ingredients labelled under salsa, and let sit for an hour to let the flavours blend.

That's it! Now take your romaine taco shell, layer the "meat", cucumber pieces, salsa and "carrot cheeze" - this recipe is way up there on my favourite list! Give it a try!

Source: Live Love Fruit

Benefits of Magnesium

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We normally hear about the importance of iron and calcium, and vitamin’s C and D. We don’t hear much about magnesium, however, and this mineral, when one becomes deficient, can lead to severe health consequences. Not only that, but an estimated 80% of Americans are deficient in this mineral, and they may never know it since it is hard to measure with blood testing.

The enzymes in our body require magnesium to undergo their daily reactions. In fact, magnesium is found in over 300 different enzymes in the body which are responsible for things like:

1) Proper Bowel Function 

In the digestive tract, magnesium acts as a coenzyme – it breaks down food and helps assimilate the nutrients into the cells of your body. The hydrochloric acid in your stomach in also dependent on magnesium for its production and assimilation, as well as the bile in your liver.

2) Heart Muscle Contraction

Magnesium helps transport potassium, calcium and other ions across cell membranes, and without proper coordination and participation of magnesium to help these nutrients into cell membranes, then our heart would not properly function. This crucial function of magnesium in our bodies helps promote healthy muscle contraction, normal heart rhythm and healthy nerve impulses.

3) Relaxation of Blood Vessels

Magnesium is vital for muscle relaxation. Arteries and vessels are made up primarily of smooth muscle (the middle layer called the “Tunica Media”), and this muscle contracts and relaxes like a pump, allowing blood to flow through the body. Research has shown that magnesium acts to relax blood vessels (vasodilaton), which is associated with lower blood pressure.

4) Regulating Blood Sugar Levels

In fact, without enough magnesium in your body, you may be prone to developing diabetes. Magnesium deficiency has been directly linked to insulin resistance, and thus, increases your chances of becoming diabetic or developing some other chronic health issue.

5) Proper Formation of Bones and Teeth

We normally only think of calcium when it comes to maintaining healthy bones and teeth, however, magnesium is also a large player in this case as well. About half of your body’s magnesium supply is stored in your bones and it helps strengthen the structure of our bones with the help of vitamin D and calcium.

6) Creation of ATP (energy molecules of the body)

Magnesium is essential for proper ATP synthesis. ATP requires magnesium in order to be stable, and without magnesium, ATP would break down into other components called ADP and inorganic phosphate. Without enough magnesium, our ATP synthesis slows and doesn’t work as it should which can lead to serious health issues.

7) Reduces Cancer Risk

The body’s most powerful antioxidant, “glutathione,” requires magnesium to function properly. When magnesium is present, the body can properly shield itself from heavy metals, environmental chemicals, pesticides and herbicides, all factors that determine your risk for developing cancer. In fact, increasing magnesium to just 100 mg extra per day has been found to reduce a person’s risk for developing colorectal cancer by around 13 percent!

Magnesium has been found to help in a variety of health-related cases, such as those suffering fromfibromyalgia, atrial fibrillation, type 2 diabetes, PMS, cardiovascular disease, migraines, and aging. 

Incorporating magnesium into your diet is not as difficult as it may seem. In fact, many fruit and vegetables contain magnesium, which could dramatically improve your health. Chlorophyll, which creates the beautiful green colour of many of the plant foods we eat, allows the plant to capture solar energy and convert it into metabolic energy. This molecule contains a magnesium atom in its centre, and is also highly similar to the structure of our hemoglobin, meaning that lots of green leafy salads and juices nourish our blood and the cells of our body.

Men should aim for around 320 mg of magnesium per day, whereas women should aim for 230 mg/day.

The best natural sources of magnesium include (per 100 grams):

Sea Vegetables (nori, wakame, dulse) = 770 mg

Raw Cacao = 550 mg

Raw Pumpkin Seeds =  535 mg

Cilantro/Corriander = 694 mg

Almonds = 268 mg

Bananas = 27 mg

Okra = 57 mg

Swiss Chard = 81 mg

Spinach (or any dark leafy greens) = 79 mg

Hazelnuts = 163 mg

Beet Greens = 98 mg

Dates = 77 mg

Figs = 68 mg

Avocados = 29 mg

Sources:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/12/17/magnesium-benefits.aspx

http://www.naturalnews.com/039154_health_benefits_magnesium_dietary_sources.html

Live Love Fruit