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Adding in omega 3 fatty acids is easy when you shop at the co-op. You will recognize your omega 3’s that are coming from cold-water fish, like salmon in the frozen section. But, did you know that other animals produce this oil also? All people need this oil, so in areas that historically didn’t have access to cold-water fish, they got this nutrient from free-ranging (grass-fed and grass-finished) animal products, including eggs and meats. When animals eat their normal diets, they produce omega-3 fats from the vegetation they eat. This also includes deer and other game animals. You’ll also find canned salmon to be a good, convenient source of omega 3s that can help keep our skin healthy, along with adequate water intake, would be recommended to prevent dry skin from cracking in the winter.

Just because it’s winter doesn’t mean we can’t get dehydrated. Activities like skiing and shoveling burn tons of calories, and can cause us to perspire. Even if you’re inside all day talking, you lose the water vapor from your speech and can get dehydrated. Caffeine makes this worse, of course, so if you have a job where you are inside talking all day and you drink tea or coffee, you’re bound to be more at risk for fatigue, poor concentration, dry skin, and dry hair. Remember that healthy people without kidney problems need to drink ½ their body weight in ounces of water daily, so that a 150lb person would consume 75oz of water, or about 9 cups.

Kick-start the New Year with your local food Co-op

If you are overwhelmed by other people making intimidating New Year’s resolutions, resolve to simply shift the balance of things you do already. A simple walk around our co-op will give you the tools to make some small additions that can make a big difference.

Our co-op has a loose and bagged tea section. Adding a cup of green tea to your daily routine adds antioxidants and can help balance hormones. In fact, green tea blocks the hormone that causes baldness. Although coffee is a good source of antioxidants as is tea, it can cause hormonal disruption in women, and likely in men, as it has an effect on estrogen. Starting with a cup of tea instead of coffee can help you have more balanced energy and can add health to your body. If you use tea that contains caffeine, like green tea, remember to drink a cup of water for every cup of caffeine you consume to avoid dehydration.

A new mother asks:My baby turned 5 months old. How many times a day/times can I feed her rice cereal? And when can I switch to a different baby food?

My response:

Why would you give rice cereal? Babies can’t digest grains until age 2. Rice has little fiber, few nutrients, and no fat. It’s just plain calories with no nutrients. Why waste calories on rice when there are so many healthy foods that will fill the baby up so it can sleep through the night, like meat, and vegetables? Those should be baby’s first food. Chew the meat up a little first for baby. Baby will love it and it will give calories to sustain it throughout the night. Rice cereal will leave him hungry in just a few hours, and then you’ll be the one suffering.

Formulae are generally based either on corn syrup, soy, or cow dairy. Goat’s milk is much more similar to human milk than any of the above and will provide your child with a better start. Just add a couple drops of liquid chlorophyll to each quart for iron. Cow’s milk is made for calves which have four stomachs and are 200lbs. Goat babies are 10 lbs and have one stomach. They are also called kids!

The brain runs on sugar. This is why students need to eat a lot when studying, even though they don’t move much. This is also why (possibly) those with memory impairment crave sugar. But, sugar that you eat doesn’t get to the brain the same way in those with memory impairment. They benefit from a special kind of energy called ketones. After starting your loved one on coconut oil (one of the best sources of ketones), you will notice significant improvement, even within the day. You will notice when your loved one has not had his coconut oil, as memory and activities of daily living will be impaired. www.coconutketones.com. The title of this post is Mary Newport’s book on her husband’s reprieve from Alzheimer’s disease.