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What is Organic?
The Key Message...
Juice Fasting:
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Why Eat Organic?
"Organic" refers to how the food has been grown and processed. The standards for the production, processing and certification of organic foods have been established by the Federal Organic Food Protection Act of 1990. Organically grown foods are grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Instead, common practices used in organic farming and food production include the use of natural fertilizers and composts; crop rotation for building healthy soil; pest and weed control using naturally occurring toxins, predator insects, and hand cultivation. Organic farming is time-consuming and often more costly than the non-organic methods but it provides the highest quality foods without the risk to public health or to the environment.
Organic food tastes better than their non-organic counterparts since well-balanced soils grow stronger, healthier plants that taste better. Current research concludes that organically grown products contain more nutrients as well. Although there is a perception that organic foods are more expensive, a recent article in The Green Guide for Everyday Life reported that a comparison between a selection of conventional food versus a similar selection of organically grown/produced food revealed that organic food was slightly cheaper.
Organic farming respects the balance of nature, reduces health risks, conserves water resources and builds back the soil. It works in harmony with nature providing quality food choices and preserving our natural resources for the next generation.
Source: Boston Common Press; Organic Trade Association
What is the official definition of organic?
The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) defines organic as follows: "Organic is an ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles, and soil biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs and on management practices that restore, maintain and enhance ecological harmony."
What is organic food?
Organic refers not to the food itself, but to how the food is produced. Organic food production is based on a system of farming that maintains and replenishes the fertility of the soil. Organic foods are produced without the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. Organic foods are minimally processed to maintain the integrity of the food without artificial ingrediants, preservatives or irradiation.
How is "Certified Organic" food different from other organic food?
Certified means that the food has been grown according to strict uniform standards which are verified by an independent state or private organization. Certification includes inspections of farm fields and processing facilities, detailed record keeping and periodic testing of soil and water to ensure that growers and handlers are meeting the standards which have been set.
Who regulates the certified organic claims?
The federal government set standards for the production, processing and certification of organic food in the Organic Food Production Act of 1990. A National Organic Standards Board was established at that time and now is developing the guidelines and procedures which will regulate all crops from produce, grains, meat, dairy, and eggs to processed foods. The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture oversees the program. Read & comment on the National Organic Program's Proposed Organic Rule.
Choose foods that are very high in supporting nutrients, low in toxic chemicals (pesticides) Choose ones that begin in nature ? wholesome fresh vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, organic dairy (for those who are not allergic),and fish.
Leafy Greens Such as Lettuces, Spinach, Kale, and Chard. These foods are considered vital and very nutritious. They contain folic acid as well as calcium, iron and other minerals.
Strawberries
Strawberries are red and great, rich in vitamin C and carotenoids.
Grapes
All grapes contain cleansing fibers, B-vitamins and vitamin C, plus some minerals from the soil. Red grapes contain many phytonutrients, including the healthy proanthocyanadins, which appear heart protective.
Rice
Rice is the most frequently consumed food on the planet. And this high-fiber, low-fat staple has many B-vitamins and minerals, including the important anti-oxidant, anti-cancer mineral, selenium.
Cruciferous Vegetables (Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussels sprouts, and Cauliflower)
Because of their healthy anti-cancer phytonutrients, vitamin and mineral content, high-fiber and low-calories, these are excellent foods to eat regularly
Apples
A staple in many diets, they contain cleansing fiber, detoxifying pectin, and many nutrients.
Almonds and Sunflowers Seeds
These nutrient-rich life forms of Nature contain most vitamins and minerals as well as the vital essential fatty acids (EFAs).
Tomatoes & Sweet Peppers
These "fruits of the vine" are full of healthy nutrients that include vitamin C, B-vitamins, carotenoids, and other phytonutrients, especially the prostate-helpful and tissue-supporting lycopenes
Healing Foods that may or may not be available organically grown include: oily (omega-3 oils) fish like Salmon, Olives and Olive Oil (purchase cold pressed in a dark bottle), Wild Berries or Blueberries, and Garlic and Ginger.
It is the healthiest to eat foods grown and cultivated near your area and in the season they are harvested. Seasonal eating is one of the keys to a balanced and wholesome diet. These foods are the freshest, often the most economical, and usually less treated, even non-organic, because they don't need to be protected for shipping long distances.
The Juice Fasting for Health
Weight Loss and Detox
There are several kinds of fasts, from those for religious reasons that fast until sundown to those who take nothing but water for long periods. If the fasting is for health purposes, it makes sense to support your body's needs while you reduce or remove some necessary elements from your diet.
The basic elements that we need to remove from our diet for the sake of our health are cooked food and animal products. This includes the denatured packaged products such as white flour, refined sugar etc. and all animal products such as red meat, poultry, fish and eggs. The only animal product that is usually allowed is a little honey for sweetening purposes. The best single method to accomplish these ends is to juice fast.
In order to do this properly, you will need a juicer which is a machine specifically made for this purpose, It is nor a mixer or a blender. It is not a citrus juicer. it is a device that is made to deliver vegetable juice out of a spout while the fiber is deposited another way.
Some people may enter a juice fast as a way to address some disease condition. Others may use a fast in order to detoxify their body or to lose weight. For whatever reason you may chose to juice fast, one dramatic element is the immediate and dramatic loss of stored body fat. This has multiple health benefits.
Much of the toxins stored in our body are in our body fat. Metabolizing the fat forces the toxins into the blood stream where the body processes them to be eliminated. This elimination is not entirely done through the alimentary canal and the urinary tract. A major organ of elimination is the lungs. We will breathe out some toxins in our breath.
Another major organ of elimination is the skin. We will not only exude toxins from the surface of our skin, causing people to bathe frequently every day, but the skin may erupt in boils as the toxins, especially petro-chemicals accumulate in boils.
As we realize the great load of poisons we have carried by the amount of toxins that are being discharged, we can wonder how we survived at all. One lady of my acquaintance was so severely involved by the heavy discharge of chemotherapy chemicals from her skin that she constantly showered. Also, her breath was foul and her mouth had a chronic horrible taste.
This was all accomplished by juice fasting.
It all depends upon what is the challenge to your body to detoxify and how your body, in its own wisdom, 'decides' to lose the stored poisons.
The 'rule of thumb' is to stay on the juice fast until you have been free of detoxification symptoms for two days. These symptoms can be rather severe, making one to believe that 'the cure is worse than the disease.' However, this is certainly not true in the long run.
It is possible, during an extended fast, that a person may have more than healing crisis. You know that you are succeeding when you have a healing crisis. In cases of severe illness, some practitioners provide a juice fasting program for, perhaps, three days a week and the rest of the time the patient eats normally of selected fresh fruits and vegetables.
Meats are not a part of a recovering patient's diet, especially during the critical detoxification period. After that, some practitioners allow the patient to have small amounts of animal protein sources such as two ounces of white fish or an egg a week. Other practitioners do not allow their patients to eat any animal products during their recovery or sustaining periods.
The prohibited foods include all animal flesh of any kind, including fish, poultry, eggs and dairy products. The only exception for some is the inclusion of a tablespoon of honey once a day for sweetening.
A strict juice fast is sometimes necessary until a good recovery is established. This may take from several days to three weeks or more. Almost always, there is immediate evidence of the success of the fast. The patient will know the next day, the family will know in two or three days and the doctor may see measurable results within a week or so.
Thanks to Juicefasting.org
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