Back-to-School Snack Ideas

Back to school means back to packing lunches and snacks. We want to pack healthier foods and avoid the highly processed, sugary, genetically modified foods, but how do we do it?

Preparing natural, homemade on-the-go food is surprisingly easy and fun. Here are four healthy snack options:

1. Energy Bar. This snack does not require a dehydrator, but does require a food processor. Ingredients include almonds and/or seeds, along with dried fruit.

I call my recipe "The Andy Bar" after my college nickname. You can easily adapt this recipe and choose your own brand name. Be creative and have fun labeling!

View the Andy Bar recipe

The next three snacks require the use of a dehydrator or makeshift dehydrator. Snacks that are dehydrated at temperatures below 116 remain raw. Raw foods maintain their enzymes and therefore are healthier foods.

Your oven makes an excellent dehydrator. Set the oven at its lowest temperature. (This will probably be somewhere around 170 degrees.) Prop open the oven door to help lower the drying temperature. Place a fan in front of the oven to keep the air flowing and avoid condensation.

2. Fruit Leather. Virtually any fruit and any fruit combination will work. This is one of the simplest snacks to make, provided you have a food processor and an oven or dehydrator. I ferment the fruit to lower the sugar content, and my kids still love it! Feel free to be creative with additions like cinnamon, ginger, and other natural ingredients.

View the Fruit Leather recipe

3. Dried Fruit. Apples, bananas, and mangoes lend themselves well to this process. Simply slice and dehydrate using your oven or dehydrator. You can maintain the color of the fruit by dipping first in lemon juice. Or you can slice and sprinkle with cinnamon and dehydrate.

View the Dried Fruit recipe

4. Chips. The Snack Food Association says that potato chips are America's number one snack. According to the trade group, tortilla chips rank as number two. There's no doubt we like salt and we like crunch. However, our love for convenience as well as the crunch may come with a price. When carbohydrate-rich foods like potatoes are cooked at high temperatures—as is the case with all potato chips—a chemical by-product is produced called acrylamide. The World Health Organization acknowledges that acrylamide is a carcinogen. (See their information note titled Acrylamide in Food is a Potential Health Hazard to learn more.)

The alternative? Potatoes can be safely dehydrated to preserve their nutrition and avoid acrylamides. Sweet potatoes can also be dehydrated and salted. However, for the most crunch and the least starch, try kale chips! Kale chips can be as simple as mixing oil and salt with freshly washed kale, or you can add flavor and nutrition by incorporating other greens, vegetables, or spices.

View the Spicy Kale Chips recipe

It's not easy to forsake the convenience of on-the-go snacks, but with a little creative energy you may find yourself enjoying familiar foods in a whole new way!

Aerial Spraying in Texas: Five Questions

The mayor of Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, exercised his emergency powers last week and agreed to allow aerial mosquito spraying in response to the West Nile virus outbreak.

Photo courtesy of The Dallas Morning News

Residents were encouraged to minimize exposure by closing windows, keeping pets inside, and avoid being outside.

As an onlooker, I find myself asking questions about this news story. I no longer accept conventional health information without thinking through the issues. In the years prior to our unfortunate toxicology lesson, I would not have considered asking questions. Now I know better.

Here are five questions I have about the aerial spraying in Texas, along with carefully researched answers.

1. What is in the pesticide?
   
   Answer: The product used for the aerial spraying consists of a compound known as Duet. Duet is manufactured by Clarke, a pesticide company based in Chicago. It is a combined mixture of sumithrin and prallethrin. Both of these are considered pyrethroids, derived from chrysanthemum flowers. This sounds innocent enough. However, according to the following fact sheet offered by the organization Beyond Pesticides:
   
   

   Almost all synthetic pyrethroid mosquito products use synergists like piperonyl butoxide (PBO), a petroleum distillate, which increases potency and compromises the body's ability to detoxify the pesticide. Petroleum distillates are carcinogenic and linked to birth defects and other illnesses.

   The information on pyrethroids says nothing about the inert ingredients of the product, which generally are not made public and contain numerous hazardous chemicals.
2. Does this method of pest control work?
   
   Answer: I don't have a PhD in toxicology to know the answer to this question, so I asked toxicologist Dr. Jack Thrasher for his opinion:
   
   

   As has been published by the experts, spraying does not kill all of the adults nor does it kill the mosquito larvae. Larval-eating fish and draining of ponds are the most effective methods.

   Dr. Thrasher cites Beyond Pesticides' article West Nile Virus/Mosquito Management.
   
   Licensed pest control operator Gene Helmick-Richardson has a PhD in Entomology and actively opposes aerial spraying. In his blog titled Why Aerial Spraying for Mosquitos is a Terrible Plan, Richardson states, "I oppose any widespread spraying of adulticides for mosquito control because it simply doesn't work. It is a waste of time and resources when we should be focused on scientifically proven strategies to control this problem."
   
   The organization No Spray Nashville looked at 14 communities with mosquito control programs in place. Seven of them sprayed pesticides as a regular part of their programs. The other seven communities did not. The study, conducted in the years 2002 and 2003, found that:
   
   

   The communities that sprayed had an average of 1.37 people with West Nile virus per 100,000. The communities that didn't spray had 1.19 people with West Nile virus per 100,000. The results show no significant difference in West Nile virus rates between communities that spray and those that don't.

3. What are the environmental implications?
   
   Answer: There are more questions than answers. Intuitively we know that if our goal is to kill the mosquitoes that carry the West Nile virus, surely we risk killing beneficial insects as well. If we reduce the number of beneficial insects, don't we risk increasing the bad ones? Clarke, the manufacturer of Duet, admits that the spray is toxic to honeybees. We know that honeybees are essential for the pollination of many fruits and vegetables. (The local CBS affiliate's story West Nile Spraying Could Affect North Texas Bees discusses this in detail.)
   
   Texas A&M is attempting to track the environmental impact by offering a survey to local residents, stating:
   
   

   The survey is designed to be completed approximately one week after completion of aerial spraying. This delay is necessary because we would like you to have enough time to assess impact over several days, since insect populations are naturally variable from day to day.

   If we used non-toxic methods for mosquito control, would we need such a survey?
4. What are the health implications?
   
   Answer: Pyrethroids are known endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), a class of chemicals that researchers have recently found can mix up critical hormonal signals even in extremely small amounts. This defies the traditional toxicological premise that more exposure means higher risk. The American Medical Association is already calling for reduced exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals. A study released this spring by the Endocrine Society concludes:
   
   

   Whether low doses of EDCs influence certain human disorders is no longer conjecture, because epidemiological studies show that environmental exposures to EDCs are associated with human diseases and disabilities.

   Many of these effects wouldn't be noticed for years, even decades, which makes the benefit/risk evaluation difficult if not impossible.
5. Are there alternatives to aerial spraying?
   
   Answer: There are a number of options. According to Dr. Gene Helmick-Richardson (article cited above):
   
   

   It starts with controlling the breeding sites. All stagnant water pools in the area should be located and either drained, treated with larvacides, or populated with mosquito fish. Educational programs like NY's Fight the Bite program and similar outreach programs have proven effective in preventing exposure and limiting populations of mosquitoes. The manpower and expense involved in such programs, which include stricter code enforcement, free distribution of larvacides, and even door-to-door visits by volunteers or trained staff are not very high when compared to the cost of aerial pesticide application. And besides, they actually work.

   Beyond Pesticides provides an outstanding fact sheet titled Backyard Mosquito Management, offering numerous non-toxic suggestions for mosquito control. Don't miss these options if you're fighting your own mosquito battle this summer!

Concluding thoughts:

Even without convincing research, I would oppose aerial spraying. Planes spraying small doses of hazardous chemicals above my home violates my freedom to choose what is best for my family. My home's ecosystem, our pets, and our children are all at risk without my permission.

A practice I'm willing to question.

Five Ways to Stimulate Hair Growth

Hair loss (alopecia) is common to both men and women. Causes may include hereditary factors, hormonal changes, infection, toxic exposures, cancer treatment, malnourishment, and even hair treatments. According to the Mayo Clinic website:

Overuse or improper use of hair-coloring products, hair straighteners and permanent waves can leave your hair brittle and prone to breaking off at the scalp. Excessive hairstyling or hairstyles that pull your hair too tightly cause traction alopecia.

Keep in mind that some hair loss is normal. On average we lose between 50 and 100 hairs a day.

There are numerous options for treating hair loss, including these natural ones:

1. Avoid chemicals in hair care products, especially hair dyes. Look for natural alternatives. See this article for more.
2. Reduce your intake of processed and sugar-laden foods. Add nutrient-rich foods to your diet to promote the growth of healthy hair.
3. Avoid pulling, twisting, or rubbing your hair.
4. Create herbal infusions. Many herbs stimulate hair growth. Herbal options include:
   
   • Burdock
   • Nettle
   • Birch
   • Rosemary
   • Yarrow
   Recipe:
   Combine 2 tbsp. of each of the above herbs in a glass jar. (Feel free to use what you have on hand.) Add 2 c. boiling water and allow to infuse for 2-3 hours. Strain into glass container. Allow to cool. Shampoo and rinse hair. Pour warm infusion into hair. Massage into scalp. Towel dry (do not rinse). Style as usual.
5. Massage your scalp on a regular basis. According to the book Organic Body Care Recipes by Stephanie Tourles:

   The scalp, like your toes and fingers, is one of the hardest places on your body for blood to reach. A daily scalp massage is not merely an indulgence, but an important beauty ritual.

   Formulate your own massage blend by combining one or all of the following essential oils with jojoba oil:
   
   • 40 drops rosemary essential oil
   • 25 drops basil essential oil
   • 20 drops lemon essential oil
   • 15 drops lavender essential oil
   • 15 drops lemongrass essential oil
   • 10 drops peppermint essential oil
   Combine essential oils with 1/2 c. jojoba oil. Place in bottle and shake vigorously. Place 2 tsp. of blend in bowl. Dip fingertips into mixture and massage your scalp for 3-5 minutes. Leave on overnight if desired and lightly shampoo the next morning.

Unexpected Lessons

The year I turned 50, my world unexpectedly collapsed. My 49th year was spent struggling with aging issues. I wondered if I should keep coloring my hair, questioned why I was so depressed at the thought of turning 50, and grieved that my youth was growing distant. As the health of my children deteriorated and I found myself in one emergency room after another, I put my aging issues on the back burner.

This week I turned 55. I've had time to reflect on growing older. I've also had time to think about suffering, loss, depression, and grief in ways I would never have imagined. I haven't resolved my struggles. In fact, I have more questions than ever. But I've learned to live with them and embrace them. As Rainer Maria Rilke suggested, "Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves."

I celebrate this milestone with humble gratitude that, despite my weaknesses, I have learned some valuable and unexpected lessons.

Here are five things I've learned since turning 50:

1. Hard doesn't mean impossible.
   "Can't" was a big part of my inner vocabulary. I didn't realize this until we were faced with seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Now I understand that life may be hard or difficult, but not impossible. "I can't" has become "I can try."
2. My voice matters.
   As our medical needs grew in the days following my 50th birthday, I found myself at the mercy of more than 60 medical professionals. I felt voiceless and inadequate, drowning in a sea of expertise. Something was wrong and I knew it. I faced a difficult choice. Do I listen to the experts or trust my instincts as a mother? My decision to listen to my mother's heart has made all the difference.
3. Embrace reality.
   As life became increasingly difficult, I found myself idealizing my past. "If only" and "I wish" kept my heart and mind directed to our old life. "Someday" kept me idealizing our future. Only when I chose to embrace reality did I find myself able to connect with our present. Today is all we have and all we're meant to live.
4. My health is my own.
   When our health declined I looked to a doctor to fix us. I resisted responsibility for my family's health. After exhausting our options, I knew it was time to try a different path. Food became our best prescription for recovery. My kitchen became our pharmacy. Taking charge of one's own health is both empowering and rewarding.
5. Keep going.
   My health and mind collapsed the day our world collapsed, and I struggled to get through every minute of every day. My unrelenting fatigue, along with the sudden loss of my mother, took me deeper into despair and discouragement. I hung onto one thought: "Don't give up." Even if I wasn't "succeeding" and our lives were still in turmoil, at least I was trying. There is much to gain simply by taking the next step.

I no longer see aging as something to deny and defy. Now I understand the truth. Aging is both a privilege and an opportunity, as expressed in these words by poet Robert Browning:

Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be . . .

Out of these painful years has come a clear mission to educate and empower others through the organization momsAWARE This week on my husband's radio program (Chris Fabry Live!), I discussed the issue of hair coloring. To prepare, I colored my hair using 100% botanical products. I took before and after photos. Here is the "before":

To see the "after" and learn more about the hidden hazards of hair dyes, see our article To Dye or Not To Dye.

If you'd like to hear the interview, visit the Chris Fabry Live! website to listen online or download the podcast.