Health

This post is part of an ongoing series on Wellness, which looks at the importance of health and healing in living a Simple, Good, and Tasty lifestyle. Also check out the previous Wellness posts on massage as preventative care and the controversies around calcium.

This is the seventh post in the series Great Grains, highlighting unusual whole grains and easy ways to incorporate them into your diet. Check out recent posts on teff, barley, and rye.

In recent years, the gluten-free (GF) diet – which began as the only effective treatment for celiac disease – has gained mainstream popularity.

When I feel like rewarding myself, I have a number of go-to indulgences: organic dark chocolate and an espresso, a pedicure with nail art, a superfluous movie night (no substance, please), a leisurely afternoon in the hammock with a book. But one thing you don’t see on my “Indulgences List” is massage. That’s because, in my opinion, massage is not a treat or an indulgence, but actually an essential component of any preventative health routine.

This is the fifth post in the series “Great Grains," highlighting unusual whole grains and easy ways to incorporate them into your diet. Check out posts on bulgur, millet, rye, and

If you are on any type of local food listserv in Minnesota, you’ve received an invitation, or two, or ten to the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy’s Food + Justice = Democracy national meeting, convening September 24 -26 in downtown Minneapolis.

IATP’s goals for the convergence are lofty; the conference is billed as a national meeting to change the food justice narrative, where “participants will co-create a national food justice platform to push our government and our political leaders to prioritize a fair, just and healthy food system.”

In my life, I have access to everything I need and want and more. I often go through my day without thinking about this privilege, easily fulfilling my daily desires: moving from the food coop or farmer’s market to the drugstore to the gas station to the post office, all within minutes of my home. Having just spent a year living in South America, away from all of these conveniences, I have gained a renewed and humbling appreciation for all that I have in America. As a middle class, white American, I experience an access and abundance that is quite extraordinary. In Minneapolis, I also have the good fortune of working as a public health nutrition educator and cooking instructor. Much of my work aims to improve the access and ultimately the health of other Americans who, for a variety of reasons have less ease within the system.

*The information and opinions contained herein are for educational and entertainment purposes only. They are not intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical and health advice. The reader should always consult his or her healthcare provider to determine the appropriateness of the information for their own situation.

This is part 2 of a series about changing your relationship with food. Part 1 was Eating to Love: The Challenge to Eat Responsibly.

I hired a new doctor this winter and had a pre-visit questionnaire prior to my first appointment. Among other questions about my health, the nurse’s aid asked me, “Do you get a least three servings of milk or milk products every day.” To which I responded very confidently, “Yes.” 

“That’s terrific!” she said. 

I had just lied to a health professional. 

I have a problem. I am a meat lover and a devotee of all things rich, creamy and sweet. Eggs are my favorite breakfast food. When I eat a Hostess Cupcake, I enjoy it immensely and without a trace of irony.

So what's the problem? Is there anything easier, gastronomically speaking, than to find a good cut of meat or low-cost dairy products or processed foods in the United States? Even consumers who balk at the worst and most cruel aspects of modern industrial farming can, with relative ease, find sources of  grass-fed beef (humanely raised and slaughtered), free-range eggs, milk and cheese from benign family farms if they're willing to spend a few dollars. The world should be my oyster. Pun intended.