Lisa Says: This article was published last year in Psychology Today and offers compelling information as to the wildly different rates of ADHD from America (9%) to France (0.5%), and the different approaches used.  Food for thought.

Why French Kids Don’t Have ADHD

French children don’t need medications to control their behavior. Published on March 8, 2012 by Marilyn Wedge, Ph.D. in Suffer the Children

In the United States, at least 9% of school-aged children have been diagnosed with ADHD, and are taking pharmaceutical medications. In France, the percentage of kids diagnosed and medicated for ADHD is less than .5%. How come the epidemic of ADHD—which has become firmly established in the United States—has almost completely passed over children in France?

Is ADHD a biological-neurological disorder? Surprisingly, the answer to this question depends on whether you live in France or in the United States. In the United States, child psychiatrists consider ADHD to be a biological disorder with biological causes. The preferred treatment is also biological–psycho stimulant medications such as Ritalin and Adderall.

French child psychiatrists, on the other hand, view ADHD as a medical condition that has psycho-social and situational causes. Instead of treating children’s focusing and behavioral problems with drugs, French doctors prefer to look for the underlying issue that is causing the child distress—not in the child’s brain but in the child’s social context. They then choose to treat the underlying social context problem with psychotherapy or family counseling. This is a very different way of seeing things from the American tendency to attribute all symptoms to a biological dysfunction such as a chemical imbalance in the child’s brain. Continue reading »

Lisa Says: good article from the Wall Street Journal showing yet more research showing for those already diagnosed with heart disease a diet with “the highest intakes of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and a higher intake of fish relative to meat poultry and eggs—were 35% less likely to die from a repeat heart attack or stroke”.  Enjoy.

Diet’s Role In Lowering Risk of Repeat Heart Attacks 

By JENNIFER CORBETT DOOREN 

Updated December 3, 2012, 6:42 p.m. ET

Patients with heart disease frequently assume that medication is enough to forestall a repeat heart attack or stroke, but a large new study shows the preventive power of a healthy diet.

Diet Colors: The American Heart Association advises eating vegetables of various colors.

The findings from a report, released Monday, looked at the impact of diet in addition to the medicines routinely used to treat cardiovascular disease. Although it is widely accepted that healthy diets are powerful tools to prevent cardiovascular disease, less is known about the impact of diet on people who already have the disease.

People with the healthiest diets—those with the highest intakes of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and a higher intake of fish relative to meat poultry and eggs—were 35% less likely to die from a repeat heart attack or stroke during the length of the study, compared with those with the least healthy diets, according to the five-year study of 32,000 people in 40 countries.

They also were 28% less likely to develop congestive heart failure, 14% less likely to have an additional heart attack and 19% less likely to have a stroke.  (link to rest of article) Continue reading »

Lisa Says:   Good info on the amazing benefits of breast feeding over formula for both baby and mom, then touches on what to do if issues occur or when it may not be advisable.  Enjoy the article:

Breastfeeding: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

What Is Breastfeeding?

Breastfeeding, also called nursing, can be an easy and inexpensive way for a mother to feed her child.

According to the Policy Statement on Breastfeeding from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), women who don’t have health problems should exclusively breastfeed their infants for at least the first six months of life. The AAP also suggests that women try to breastfeed for the first 12 months of life because of the benefits to both the mother and baby.

What Is Breastfeeding?

Breastfeeding, also called nursing, can be an easy and inexpensive way for a mother to feed her child.

According to the Policy Statement on Breastfeeding from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), women who don’t have health problems should exclusively breastfeed their infants for at least the first six months of life. The AAP also suggests that women try to breastfeed for the first 12 months of life because of the benefits to both the mother and baby. Continue reading »

Lisa Says:  Great tips from Berkely’s Farmers Market on how to extend the life of your produce safely.

Here are storage tips from the Berkeley Farmers Market. Take a look at these ideas for creative and waste-free ways to extend the life of your produce, in and out of the refrigerator.

• Asparagus—Place the upright stalks loosely in an glass or bowl with water at room temperature. Will keep for a week outside the fridge.
• Basil—Difficult to store well. Basil does not like to be cold or wet. The best method here is an airtight container/jar loosely packed with a small damp piece of paper inside, left out on a cool counter.
• Beets—Cut the tops off to keep beets firm, and be sure to keep the greens! Leaving any top on root vegetables draws moisture from the root, making them loose flavor and firmness. Beets should be washed and kept in an open container with a wet towel on top. Continue reading »

Lisa Says: The Environmental Working Group’s 2012 Guide to Pesticides in Produce is out! It’s a great resource listing produce that average the highest, and lowest, pesticide use.  Enjoy.

EWG’s 2012 Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™

Eat your fruits and vegetables! The health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables outweigh the risks of pesticide exposure. Use EWG’s Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides^™ to reduce your exposures as much as possible, but eating conventionally-grown produce is far better than not eating fruits and vegetables at all. The Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce^™ will help you determine which fruits and vegetables have the most pesticide residues and are the most important to buy organic. You can lower your pesticide intake substantially by avoiding the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables and eating the least contaminated produce.

Continue reading »

Lisa Says:  Here’s CNN’s take on the national story of the Environmental Working Group’s Annual Sunscreen (Hazard) Guide.  Finally, main stream attention to the harmful ingredients in personal care products, and info on how to truly protect our health.  Enjoy!

Avoid sunscreens with potentially harmful ingredients, group warns

Lisa Says: Great Article from the PA Lancaster BFBL chapter’s e-newsletter: 

 The Truth about Prices at Farmers Markets

 ”You’ve probably heard that buying from farmers markets is more expensive than buying from a grocery store. We want to debunk some of these myths.  More and more research is being done that compares prices at farmers markets with those in grocery stores. And the numbers may surprise you.

 According to research done by the Seattle  Neighborhood Farmers Market Alliance and the results of another study reported by  KOMO News, a Seattle-based news network, certain produce is definitely lower in cost when bought at a market. This was the case for collard greens, which only cost 75 cents a local farmers market compared to a range of $1.33 to $2.49 at other grocery stories. While this may not be the case for all produce, the article estimates an average of 62 cents of savings for a variety of produce compared with grocery store prices.

 Another study by  NOFA Vermont shows that if you’re looking for organic, farmers markets are the place to shop, with some price variation among other, conventionally grown products.   The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture also demonstrated that local prices at farmers markets were often equal to or lower than grocery store prices.

 Being a smart consumer also helps. Just like shopping at a supermarket, there are tips to finding the best deals at a farmers market.

 1. Shop around. Walk the market first and compare prices for the items you are interested in.

 2. Build relationships with standholders. They may offer you a better deal, fill you in on what produce to expect for the next market day, or offer you bumped and bruised produce for a lower cost.

 3. By knowing your farmer, you may be able to forego buying organic only because you know that how they grow those strawberries you’re eyeing up.

 4. A  Business Insider article recommends shopping late in the day or in inclement weather. Vendors are hoping to make their daily quota and by the end of the day, they do not want to take the remainder of their produce back home. Often, prices are reduced by the end of the day.

 5. Remember that the produce you are buying locally will last longer than what you can find in the store. You also are more likely to get the specific amounts you desire (a half a pint of brussel sprouts, a small bunch of grapes) which reduces the amount of waste from having too much of some items.”

Lisa Says:  Per CBS’s 60 Mintues Ovetime show, “This week on 60 Minutes, Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports on new research coming out of some of America’s most respected institutions, which find that sugar– the way it’s being consumed by Americans today– is a toxin. And it could be the driving force behind some of this country’s leading killers, including heart disease.

 We at Overtime couldn’t believe our ears when we heard this report. We knew sugar was bad, but a “toxin”? We give our kids that stuff!

We weren’t quite sure how to apply the new science in the 60 Minutes report to the challenges of everyday family life, so we sat down with Dr. Sanjay Gupta for some practical advice. Both a doctor and a father of three, Dr. Gupta offers his take on how a typical American family should think about the sugar in their diet.”   View the video here.