While I agree with Jamie Oliver’s “diagnosis,” I disagree with parts of his “cure.”  I sincerely doubt that more government funding into school lunches is going to solve the problem.  After all, government is a big part of the problem in the first place as the clip The Case Against Jamie Oliver explains.

I’ve never placed the responsibility for my health, or the health of my family on government, doctors or anyone else. The interests of government and big business are seldom in alignment with what’s in my best interest, or the interest of my family.  The real answer is for all of us to step up to the plate (or better yet, clean up what we put on the plate) and get the job done ourselves.  Believe me, it’s worth it!

Good Nutrition Helps Children Behave Better

Good nutrition not only affects good health, it also affects mental and emotional well-being.  Consuming empty calorie foods like refined sugar, white flour, polished white rice and refined vegetable oils leads to empty heads and affects schooling, behavior and social skills.  When my children were young we had none of these foods in our home and babysitters always said we had the best-behaved kids they had ever seen.

Instead of drugging  kids with harmful medications, we should be feeding them better quality foods. But kids aren’t going to eat these foods at school if they aren’t fed these foods at home.  Unfortunately, many parents say, “But my kids won’t eat healthy food.”  This makes me think, “Who’s in charge of the home, the kids or adults?”  If you don’t buy it, they won’t be able to eat it.

If parents knew how much easier it is to be a parent when you’re feeding your kids correctly, most parents would immediately take steps to change their family menus.  In fact, when kids are fed right, incidences of hyperactivity and antisocial behavior dramatically decrease.

Improving Your Family’s Diet Without Stress

So, take charge of what you feed your family, but not as a dictator.  Do it as a leader, which means start by setting a good example.  With a little parenting skill, your kids will learn to eat what you make available and enjoy it.  So, for starters, here are a few tips.

First, get the junk food out of the home. When unhealthy food isn’t in your home, both you and your children will be less likely to eat it. When you want a treat go out and get it, but don’t keep it in the house.

Second, learn how to prepare healthier versions of your family’s favorite foods. Take a cue from Food Network star chef Emeril Lagasse and “kick it up a notch” by learning how to make your family’s favorite foods using better ingredients.  This makes improving nutrition less stressful.

For example, children love sweets, so don’t deprive them of all treats.  Instead, gradually substitute raw honey, pure maple syrup, xylitol and other natural sweeteners for refined sugar in their diet.  You can also use whole grains instead of white flour.  Start by mixing whole grains and white flour 50-50 and gradually increase the whole grain content.

Third, when changing children’s diets, focus on the positive. Talk more about what’s healthy to eat than what’s bad for you.  Remember that what you focus on, you tend to magnify.  So give kids healthy food first. Place vegetables like carrot and celery sticks and a healthy dip out for them to eat as you are preparing the meal.  If they are hungry enough, they will eat this wholesome food  while waiting for something else.  Increase portions of vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and whole grains while decreasing portions of meat and dairy foods.

Also, don’t try to control everything your children eat. What they eat when they are away from home isn’t really in your control and trying to control it engenders rebellion.  A “treat” now and then won’t hurt them if their general diet is good.  If you teach them the benefits of eating wholesome foods in a positive manner and set a good example, they will learn to control themselves.  You can’t watch them constantly, especially when they become those delightful creatures that we call teenagers!

Fourth, because they aren’t going to always eat right, take out a little “nutritional health insurance” and give them some supplements.  All the  supplements we discussed in last weeks issue of Nature’s Field can also be used for kids.  Nature’s Sunshine’s Sunshine Hero’s line features  probiotics, minerals, enzymes, vitamins and minerals, antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids available in chewable form.  These products taste good enough you shouldn’t have any problem getting kids to take them.

Finally, here are some specific tips for helping kids to eat better.  For starters, I’ve used licorice root to help stabilize children’s blood sugar and take away their cravings for sweets.

I’ve also used the approach of asking older kids to refrain from eating certain foods for just one week, after which they get to have a meal where they eat all they want.  They usually feel better at the end of the week, and after they indulge in their sugar, dairy, wheat or whatever, they feel horrible.  This helps reinforce the message that this food is making them sick.

Research has shown that children who have protein for breakfast (eggs, meat, whole milk yogurt, a Love and Peas protein shake, etc.) do much better in school than children who eat sugar-sweetened breakfast cereals.  In fact, children who skipped breakfast entirely did better in school than children who ate sweets and carbohydrates for breakfast.  So, if possible, get your family to eat a good, hearty breakfast with protein and good fats.

And while you’re at it, why not pack them a nutritious lunch instead of having them eat the junk food at school?  That’s a smarter option than spending billions more on school lunch programs that may or may not be the foods you want your kids to be eating.

It follows research that found children became hyperactive when fed a
cocktail of additives used in hundreds of products. (Note: They may be used
in hundreds of products in the UK, but they are used in THOUSANDS of
products in the US.)

Scientists argued many could be protected from developing Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder  -  which can blight entire school careers  -  if the
chemicals were removed from food.

In April, the FSA [British Food Standards Agency] recommended to ministers a
voluntary industry ban should be implemented by the end of next year.

The FSA said it will be writing to food companies shortly to find out what
steps they are taking.

Failure by the food industry to fall into line would see the Government
pursue a full-blown legal ban throughout the EU.

Excerpted from the article by Sean Poulter of the Daily Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1085279/Government-ban-food-additive
s-linked-child-hyperactivity.html

One in 26 U.S. children have food allergies — up 18 percent in the past decade.

In all, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that about 3 million kids have food allergies, which occur when your immune system overreacts to a food it mistakenly believes is harmful. If your immune system determines, for instance, that peanuts are harmful, it will produce specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies to peanuts.

The next time you eat the particular food, your immune system then releases chemicals, including histamine, that are intended to protect your body from the substance. The problem is that these chemicals trigger an array of irritating and potentially very serious symptoms that can impact your respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, skin and cardiovascular system.

In fact, the number of children hospitalized for food allergies has also increased, according to the CDC. Hospital discharges rose from 2,600 a year in the late 1990s to over 9,500 a year in recent years.

Yet, food allergies are not the only ones on the rise.

A national survey conducted from 1988 to 1994 by the National Institutes of Health found that more than 50 percent of Americans ages 6 to 59 are sensitive to at least one allergen. That’s two to five times the rate found in a previous 1976 to 1980 survey.

Why are Allergies Increasing so Dramatically?

One theory is that parents and doctors are now more aware of allergies and their symptoms, meaning they’re more likely to identify the problem.

“A couple of decades ago, it was not uncommon to have kids sick all the time and we just said ‘They have a weak stomach’ or ‘They’re sickly,”‘ Anne Munoz-Furlong, chief executive of the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, told CNN.

Yet, the increases are steep enough to suggest that something deeper is going on. Some potential causes of the emerging allergy epidemic include:

• Over-sanitized environments and too many antibiotics (in food and as medicine). “We’ve developed a cleanlier lifestyle, and our bodies no longer need to fight germs as much as they did in the past,” said Marc McMorris, a pediatric allergist at the University of Michigan Health System, in Live Science. “As a result, the immune system has shifted away from fighting infection to developing more allergic tendencies.”
• Air pollution. Diesel fumes, ozone and other common air pollutants are known to trigger allergies and asthma. As levels of pollution rise, so do allergies. In fact, according to a study led by Joachim Heinrich, Ph.D., of the German Research Center for Environment and Health at the Institute of Epidemiology, in Munich, traffic-related air pollution can increase the risk of allergy and atopic diseases in children by more than 50 percent!
• Children are taking longer to outgrow food allergies than in the past.
• Peanut allergies in children have doubled, studies show, fueling the increase (yet no one knows exactly why peanut allergies are rising).

Source: sixwise.com

As the new school year approaches, parents everywhere are gathering the supplies their kids will need when they head out the door. This fall, arm your kids not just with backpacks but with the nutrition that will help them perform their best.

Nature’s Sunshine has a variety of products designed to help kids stay healthy, happy and ready to learn Highlighted here are a few favorites.

Set Your Child’s Sights on Success with Focus Attention
Focus Attention combines powerful nutrients that help the brain maintain a healthy, balanced level of stimulation. By supplying the brain with the vital nutrients it needs, Focus Attention may help improve your child’s concentration so he or she can thrive at school. Available in capsules and a great-tasting powder drink mix.

Start their Day the Herbasaurs® Way!
Herbasaurs products are designed specifically with kids’ nutritional needs in mind. While mass-market vitamin supplements can be loaded with sugar and other extras kids don’t need, Herbasaurs products are sweetened naturally and contain no artificial colors, flavors, sucrose or starch. So you can feel confident giving them to your kids every day.

Chewable Multiple Vitamins and Minerals
Getting your kids to eat their fruits and veggies might be a struggle, but you’ll never have to beg them to take their vitamins! This great-tasting chewable, naturally sweetened with xylitol, fructose and citrus flavors, contains 12 essential vitamins plus minerals and iron.

Liquid Multiple Vitamins Plus Iron
Recommended for children who prefer a liquid, this formula has a pleasant orange flavor. Each dose equips kids with a full day’s supply of 12 essential vitamins plus iron and zinc.

Chewable Antioxidants with Grapine®
Herbasaurs Antioxidants help young, growing bodies fight the damaging effects of free radicals caused by oxidation, pollutants, the sun and even exercise. Each lemon-lime flavored tablet offers antioxidant protection with beta-carotene, vitamins C and E, Grapine and licorice flavonoid extract.

Chewable Elderberry Plus
With a host of germs out there just waiting to be shared, it’s nice to know you can strengthen your child’s defenses before sending him or her off to school each day. Chewable Elderberry Plus contains elderberry, reishi mushroom and astragalus for immune and respiratory system support—in a great-tasting lemon-lime Dinotab®.

Great Taste Makes Vitamin C an Easy Pill for Kids to Swallow
Kids and adults alike can enjoy the protective benefits of Vitamin C. Nature’s Sunshine chewable wafers are made with vitamin C and whole orange juice, along with rose hips, orange and natural lemon-lime flavor. Each tablet delivers 410 percent of the Daily Value to keep kids’ immune systems strong.

Keep Kids’ Digestive Systems in Balance with L. Reuteri
A healthy intestinal tract is home to billions of delicate microorganisms that aid in the digestion process. Stress, environmental conditions and antibiotics can destroy them, but NSP probiotics—including L. Reuteri—help repopulate these tiny friends. This strain of friendly flora is chewable, suitable for young children and requires no refrigeration—making it a great choice both for travel and daily use at home.

Herbasaurs Homeopathic Medicines—Perfect for What Ails Your Little Ones
Nature’s Sunshine offers many products designed to keep your kids healthy. But even with a strong line of defense, there are still times when your little ones get sick. Herbasaurs Homeopathic Medicines help them recover fast.

Cold
Herbasaurs Cold offers relief of symptoms of minor colds, including runny nose, sneezing, headache and minor sore throat pain.

Cough Syrup
Herbasaurs Cough Syrup affords relief from coughs due to common colds or minor throat and bronchial irritation.

Teething
Herbasaurs Teething formula offers temporary relief of minor gum soreness due to teething in infants and children.

Bedwetting
Herbasaurs Bedwetting is a natural homeopathic medicine to assist a child’s body in overcoming nighttime bedwetting.

Calming
Herbasaurs Calming aids children experiencing restless sleep, fussiness and irritability accompanying minor illness and teething.

Stock up on the best back-to-school supplies around—quality supplements from Nature’s Sunshine. you can order at www.mynsp.com/shari

*     Cancer
*     Fertility problems
*     Brain tumors
*     Childhood leukemia
*     Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
*     Birth defects
*     Irritation to skin and eyes
*     Hormone or endocrine system problems
*     Nervous system damage

Those especially at risk from pesticides are children, whose bodies are still developing, along with pregnant women, whose unborn children are extremely susceptible to damage from these toxic chemicals.

Even low levels of pesticides, consumed over time, can be problematic. A study in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, for instance, found that people who had been exposed to low levels of pesticides were 1.13 times as likely to have Parkinson’s disease as those who had never been exposed.

And if you eat produce, there’s a good chance you’re being exposed. According to Hazardous Pesticides in the European Parliament, released October 2007, the eight food samples they tested, which ranged from oranges to strawberries to grapes, contained 28 different pesticide residues, with an average of almost five per fruit.

The pesticides included:

*      10 known carcinogens
*      3 neurotoxins
*      3 reproductive or developmental toxins
*      8 suspected endocrine disrupters
*      2 contaminants classified as “Highly Hazardous” by the World Health Organization

Three of the eight food samples contained pesticide residues so high they were technically illegal to sell, and the oranges contained illegally high levels of imazalil, a carcinogen. By eating just one orange, a 5-year-old would receive 70 percent of the “Acute Reference Dose” for that chemical.

Fortunately, the amount of pesticides you consume is something you can take control of.

How Can You Stop Consuming Pesticides?

There are numerous ways to make sure that the food you and your family depend on is as pesticide- and herbicide-free as possible. The top tips include:

1.      Choose organic produce and animal products (dairy, eggs, meat). By definition, organic producers must “abstain from the application of prohibited materials (including synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and sewage sludge) for 3 years prior to certification and then continually throughout their organic license.”
2.      Wash your produce thoroughly using a high-quality veggie wash. Contrary to popular belief, simply washing with water and peeling fruit and vegetables is not enough to protect yourself and your family from pesticides. It will reduce the levels somewhat, but it will not eliminate them.
3.      If you can’t buy organic, choose the least contaminated produce. According to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a not-for-profit environmental research organization, by avoiding the most-contaminated produce out there, and concentrating on the least contaminated instead, you can reduce your exposure to pesticides by almost 90 percent. (click here for a list of the 20 most contaminated and 20 least contaminated pesticides.)
4.      Choose organic varieties of other foods as well. Pesticide use usually centers on produce, but some studies have found wine, bread, wheat and flour products (such as pasta, pizza, cookies, cereal, and more) to contain high levels of pesticides as well.
5.      Make sure your water is pesticide-free. DEET, a chemical found in insect repellants, has been found in some drinking water supplies. The U.S. government doesn’t have standards for DEET in your water, so to find out if your water is safe you can have it independently tested to find out what, if any, contaminants exist.

Once you implement these tips, you may be wondering, will it really make an impact? According to a study in Environmental Health Perspectives, yes!

When kids switched from conventional food to organic food, their levels of pesticides became undetectable within eight to 36 hours.

“Once you switch from conventional food to organic, the pesticides (malathion and chlorpyrifos) that we can measure in the urine disappears. The level returns immediately when you go back to the conventional diets,” said Chensheng Lu, the lead author of the study and a professor at Emory University’s School of Public Health.

The 20 Fruits and Veggies With the MOST Pesticides

These are the ones that you should always buy organic, if possible. If you do buy conventional versions of the following produce, please be sure to wash them thoroughly (organic produce, of course, should also be washed just in case). These are ranked in order by EWG, with the worst of the bunch, peaches, at #1.

1. Peaches
2. Apples
3. Sweet Bell Peppers
4. Celery
5. Nectarines
6. Strawberries
7. Cherries
8. Pears
9. Grapes (Imported)
10. Spinach
11. Lettuce
12. Potatoes
13. Carrots
14. Green Beans
15. Hot Peppers
16. Cucumbers
17. Raspberries
18. Plums
19. Grapes (Domestic)
20. Oranges

The 20 Fruits and Veggies With the LEAST Amount of Pesticides

According to EWG, the following produce has the lowest pesticide load, ranked in order with the produce with the absolute lowest pesticides first.

1. Onion
2. Avocado
3. Sweet corn (Frozen)
4. Pineapples
5. Mango
6. Asparagus
7. Sweet peas (Frozen)
8. Kiwi
9. Bananas
10. Cabbage
11. Broccoli
12. Papaya
13. Blueberries
14. Cauliflower
15. Winter Squash
16. Watermelon
17. Sweet potatoes
18. Tomatoes
19. Honeydew melon
20. Cantaloupe

Seven years ago my boys were diagnosed with a autistic spectrum disorder called sensory integration disorder and it prompted many of the changes in the article below. There is a night and day difference in my boys when we have been very careful with what they eat. There is no doubt in my mind that their bodies are extremely sensitive to added colors and chemicals in their food and environment, I also see it with many of my clients. While some of these changes may seem extreme, I seen them as much easier than dealing with frequent trips to the doctor or even worse the emergency room!

Here is the website associated the with following story:
www.allergykids.com

After Her Infant Had An Allergic Reaction, Robyn O’Brien Trolled The
Internet For Information Allergies and Additives

By DEBORAH ROBERTS, CATHY BECKER and IMAEYEN IBANGA
June 23, 2008‹

When Robyn O’Brien served her children scrambled eggs one day for breakfast
early in 2006, the mother of four had no clue it would change her life
drastically and forever.

“I had made scrambled eggs and put them in front of all four kids and
decided to put them in front of the baby,” the 36-year-old said. “I put them
on her highchair and she didn’t want them, fussed and pushed them away. And
I didn’t think anything of it.”

But 9-month-old Tory’s aversion to the breakfast staple had little to do
with taste, as O’Brien soon found out.

“I put her down for a nap. A few minutes later and there was some mother
instinct in me because I went in to check on her for some reason, which I
rarely do, and her face was swollen shut,” O’Brien said.

A life-threatening reaction to eggs caused grotesque swelling of the
infant’s face and instantly shook O’Brien to her core. She said her
daughter’s severe response prompted her to take a closer look at what she
was feeding all of her children and to educate herself on food allergies.

“I did not know what was happening. I was so unfamiliar with food allergy
and what a reaction looked like,” said O’Brien, who lives in Colorado.
“That’s really when my education began.”

Learning About Additives

What O’Brien soon learned was that artificial dyes are used in sugary
cereals, candies, sodas and other goodies marketed toward children.
Sometimes artificial dyes are even used to simulate the colors of fruits and
vegetables.

What further disturbed O’Brien was the fact that U.S. consumers regularly
ingest the additives in their food, but they have been removed from the same
foods in some other countries.

In fact, Mars Inc. responded to pressure from the British government last
year by removing artificial colors from its well-known Starburst and
Skittles candies sold in the United Kingdom, after a British study bolstered
a hypothesis that such additives increase hyperactivity in children.

Food industry giant Kraft Foods Inc. also did the same thing in early 2007
with its British version of Lunchables.

Whereas British consumers have revolted against artificial food dyes in the
U.K., Americans haven’t been as vocal as their counterparts. That is
something O’Brien hopes to change.
“My goal is simply to have the same value placed on the lives of the
American children,” O’Brien said.

Mom on a Mission

O’Brien even created a Web site, which she launched on Mother’s Day 2006, to
serve as a parental resource and forum on children’s food allergies.

The site is specific with its concerns.

“At AllergyKids, our concern is that industry funding ties between the
agri-chemical companies and pediatric allergists who have served on the FDA
‘generally recognized as safe’ panels and testified to the safety of MSG,
aspartame, glutamate and genetically engineered proteins, may prevent full
disclosure of leading global research highlighting a ban of these
ingredients in Europe, Australia, the UK and other developed countries in an
effort to protect children,” the site says.

O’Brien even created a symbol a green stop sign with an exclamation point
in the center to identify a child with food allergies. It can be put on
lunch bags, wristbands and even shoes.

“My goal now is to say, ‘OK, this is what’s happening. Let’s inspire other
mothers to take control so that our children can benefit like the children
around the world,’” O’Brien said.

In her own life, O’Brien has gotten strict about what she feeds her children
and encourages others to do what she has done: Throw out as much non-organic
processed food as they can afford to. Also, avoid anything that’s
genetically modified, artificially created or raised with hormones and don’t
eat food with ingredients you are unable to pronounce.

“I thought, ‘Well, I want to cook like the moms in Europe and avoid these
chemical additives and see if that makes a difference in my children’s
health and behavior.’ And so we did,” O’Brien said. “We moved from the tubes
of blue yogurt to regular yogurt and we started mixing honey into it. ”

Not everyone in her family was happy about the changes.

“I encountered major resistance from my boys,” O’Brien said. “They loved
that blue yogurt and it was easy and it was convenient, but to see the
dramatic improvement in my boys especially as we cleaned out their diets
it was amazing. It was incredibly inspiring. They slept better; they were
able to concentrate in school. Their behavior improved.”

The Allergies-Additives Connection

It remains unclear whether the chemicals pose any real health hazards to
consumers, though two recent British studies found that certain food dyes,
as well as the common preservative sodium benzoate, may have an adverse
effect on some children’s behavior. Researchers said the increase in ADHD
diagnoses could be partly to blame on the preservative.

“It can affect their focus, their concentration. They become more easily
distractible, become more impulsive. I think we’re looking at a whole
population of kids with skewed immune systems,” said pediatrician Dr.
Kenneth Boch, who wrote a book that supports the theory that food additives
could lead to hyperactivity in children.