Green Options

Zinc is an essential mineral that carries out numerous functions in your body, including promoting a healthy immune system, protecting the liver from damage and it even helps you to heal from wounds. Find yourself deficient in this mineral and your libido will be screaming out to be fed. Zinc is vital for testosterone production, which affects sexual desire, vigor and stamina in both men and women. Zinc deficiencies in men can cause sexual performance problems, which can be embarrassing and uncomfortable for everyone involved. Zinc also helps to prevent PMS symptoms in women and plays an important role in the function of the prostate gland in men. Semen also contains zinc; not enough zinc in your diet and those little guys may be too weak to get to where they need to go. On the other hand, in Chinese Medicine it is believed that excessive ejaculation can reduce the amount of zinc in your body, leading to a loss of sexual desire. It’s a vicious cycle isn’t it? Zinc also allows acuity of smell and taste and a deficiency could lead to a loss of those senses. What a bummer it would be if you couldn’t smell and taste all the sexy food you have been working so hard on.

So how do you know if you are deficient? Some common signs of a possible major deficiency in zinc are acne, fatigue, white spots on your fingernails, hair loss, high cholesterol, prostate trouble, irregular periods, impotence and infertility. However, even a minor deficiency can affect your sexual desire and function, so taking the time to make sure you are getting enough of this mineral during the day can have a positive outcome on your romantic evenings. If you are concerned, there is an oral test that can be done at a doctors’ office, as well as a blood test to determine if you are zinc deficient. Vegetarians and vegans need about 50% more zinc in their diet then meat eaters. Since there is an array of plant-based zinc sources, there is no need to panic and since most Americans are believed to be deficient in this vital mineral, it’s time to eat up people!

Sexy Veggie Food Choices: tempeh, beans including lentil, adzuki beans, chickpeas and lima beans, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, nuts including cashews, pecans, pine nuts, almonds and Brazil nuts, honey, tahini, flax seeds, flax oil, peas, blackberries, kiwi, peas, summer squash, corn and sweet potato, oats and seaweeds including kelp and dulse.

Try this recipe for my “Just Can’t Get Enough Granola” to start boosting your zinc today.

With a lot of great health and fitness benefits, honey should be a common staple in people’s daily diets. Other than its great taste, it has numerous benefits for our bodies, immune systems, weight, and energy which you may not be aware of.

Honey is a source of a variety of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. The main vitamins it provides are niacin, riboflavin and pantothetic acid, and the main minerals are calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. Importantly, the amount of these substances in honey varies depending on its floral source, just as its color and taste vary.

On top of this, what are the main health benefits of honey?

The Salamander of myth and legend: a creature which lives in water but renews its life in fire. It’s rubbish, Bunkum, steaming horse manure…  a bit like an electric car with neither plug nor solar panels.

Except no one’s told those clever boffins over at Advanced Power and Energy Sources Transportation (APET) in Hong Kong. According to them, the Salamander and the cordless EV are about to step out of myth and into reality.

APET’s revolution centres upon how zinc air batteries can power EVs. The technology is proven on the small scale: hearing aid battery adverts dominate any Google search for “zinc air battery”.

Furthermore, as zinc air batteries need only zinc, air and water to produce electricity they are likely the most environmentally friendly ones around.

However, upscaling the technology from a hearing aid to a car has always been a problem.

Until now.

If you are thinking about going vegetarian, here is a list of things that should help you to actually do it,… and to stick to it once you’ve started.

University of British Columbia Professor Scott Dunbar of the school’s Norman B. Keevil Institute of Mining Engineering has pioneered a way to genetically engineer viruses to bind with minerals.

Along with colleagues, his team has developed a method to selectively “breed” a viral family to bind to specific minerals. In other words, they are developing viri that can find and bind to a chosen mineral in a sludge pile!

It is estimated that 3 to 7 percent of American children suffer form Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).

That adds up to over 2 million kids, one in every class of 25.

Traditional treatments involve medications such as Ritlin and Adderall, as well as other prescription drugs.  Side effects linked to ADHD medication include depression, anxiety, loss of appetite, inability to fall or stay asleep, rapid heartbeat…the list goes on and on.

Research has shown that nutrient deficiencies can exacerbate ADHD symptoms.  For many children, proper nutrition may effectively work as an ADHD alternative treatment.  (If your child is currently taking prescription medication for ADHD, don’t stop the medication without discussing it with your physician first.)

According to legend, miso was a gift from the gods to ensure humanity’s health, longevity, and happiness.

It may do just that.

Miso is a traditional fermented Japanese food with amazing health benefits.  This creamy salty paste is commonly made with soybeans, but other beans and or grains such as rice and barley are often used as well.  After being inoculated with a vitamin B12 synthesizing fungus, the mixture of ingredients is allowed to ferment from as little as five days to as long as several years.  The result is a versatile food that contains protein and vitamins such as  B12, along with trace minerals such as zinc, manganese, and copper.

Zinc is being depleted from our soil and therefore, our plant foods contain less of this vital mineral than ever. Currently the best food sources for zinc are some meats, beans, certain dairy and nuts.

The RDA of zinc varies from 3 mg a day (for 7 months-3 year olds) to 14 mg (for lactating teens). To ensure you are getting enough zinc while limiting your meat intake, consume the following foods:

• Cashews (1oz has 1.6mg of zinc), Almonds (1oz has 1.0mg of zinc), Peanuts (1oz has .9mg of zinc)
• Milk/Yogurt (8oz has 1.8mg of zinc), Cheddar Cheese (1oz has .9mg of zinc)
• Baked Beans (1/2 cup has mg of zinc), Garbanzo/Chickpeas (1/2 cup as 1.3mg of zinc)
• Chicken/dark meat (3 oz has 1.8mg of zinc), Turkey/dark meat (3oz has 3.8mg of zinc)
• Pork (3 oz has 2.2mg of zinc)
• Beef (3 oz has 6.0mg of zinc)

What happens when we are zinc deficient? Lots of bad things are possible;

Lithium ion technology has been getting lots of attention recently, but zinc-air tech has been largely ignored–until now. A California start-up called Power Air plans on introducing a PDA-sized zinc fuel cell box that can be used to charge electronics.

My daughter has been complaining that her mouth hurts, and I thought nothing of it because she said she scratched her cheek with her fingernail. Yesterday, I finally looked in her mouth, and there was a huge canker sore, which is a small mouth ulcer. Canker sores can be caused by a minor injury to the mouth, such as my daughter’s fingernail, as well as bacteria, a faulty immune system, stress, certain foods (chocolate, coffee, strawberries, etc.) and/or a diet lacking B vitamins. I wondered if the flush of strawberries from the garden had been impacting my daughter’s canker sore, as well as her weekend full of ballet performances added stress to her little body. There is also some evidence that toothpastes containing SLS, like Tom’s of Maine, may contribute to canker sores.

Most canker sores heal on their own within two weeks, but due to my daughter’s pain, I decided to treat it naturally with herbs and homeopathy that we already had in our home. There are other recommended herbs not included in this list, but this list reflects our current regime without making a special trip to town.

1. Calcarea Carbonica: This homeopathic remedy is often recommended for canker sores, but like all homeopathic remedies, the remedy needs to be selected based on the individual’s symptoms beyond the sore itself. Homeopathy takes a holistic approach when choosing the correct remedy. Borax is more often used for canker sores than calcarea carbonica, but since CC is also a remedy for cradle cap, we already had it.

Wellness Formula is a blend of healing ingredients,

The immune system is our guardian angel if you will, it heals us with unconditional love, responds quickly to outside influences, and protects the body in microscopic, unconsciously controlled ways. When illness attacks hit, there is a way to consciously address these problems to support your natural healing system. The answer is Wellness Formula. It works very well when allergies or colds strike, and when we encounter extreme conditions and need a boost.

A key benefit of the daily wellness vitamins are increased and sustained antioxidant defense.

The maker Source Naturals provides a nice overview on how to befriend your immune system with this formula and explains the benefits of the blend: