By Beth Bader •
July 16, 2008
© Elena Elisseeva | Dreamstime.com
Magic Mushrooms
Shiitake Mushrooms may contain compounds that improve the function of the immune system. The compounds are called high-molecular-weight polysaccharides (HMWP) are more prevalent in mushrooms grown on oak logs. More good news for mushroom lovers, the shiitake compound eritadenine may help lower cholesterol levels. Hey, at $12.99 a pound, this may finally be the cash crop you can legally grow in your basement. (Science Daily).
Can Scum Save the World?
No, not Dick Cheney. He’s too busy possibly censoring scientific reports on health impacts of global warming. I’m talking about pond scum. Plant biologists are researching pond scum, otherwise known as duckweed, as a solution to global warming, pollution from agricultural runoff, AND world hunger. Now, that’s some scum. (Science Daily).
More updates after the jump.
By Katy Farber •
May 23, 2008
Just a day or two after my posts about GM foods, I received an email newsletter from the Organic Consumers Association.
They report in this article Fifty-Three percent of Americans Say they Won’t Buy Genetically Engineered Food, from a CBS/NY Times poll:
“53%: Percentage of polled Americans who say they won’t buy food that has ingredients from genetically engineered (GE) plants.
65%: Actual percentage of products on grocery store shelves that contain unlabeled GE ingredients (usually soy or corn derived).
90%: Portion of U.S. grown soybeans that are genetically engineered.
99%: Estimated likelihood that the U.S. sugar supply will start to be sourced from genetically engineered plants this year.”
By Katy Farber •
May 21, 2008
On my blog, Non-Toxic Kids, I posted an article yesterday that shares some background about genetically modified foods, especially soy, and the environmental and health risks involved with eating and growing GM crops. You can read the full article here.
There was way to much information for just one post! So I decided to write here about how to avoid eating genetically modified foods. Which presents a challenge, since they are everywhere and in the majority of food in conventional grocery stores.
Thankfully, Greenpeace Canada has created an extensive, printable shopping list of companies that have no GM ingredients in their foods (happy face), companies that are working to eliminate GM foods from their products but aren’t there yet (neutral face), and companies that are most likely to contain GMO ingredients (sad face). This is a handy list, and I am thrilled to have found it and to share it with you here.