There’s ‘inside of’ or contents/liquid within and then there’s ‘in’ as in components of all including the plastic bottle itself. It’s truly a head knocking, disbelieving wonder that baby bottles and baby formulas are still being bought and used to feed babies considering all the deadly ingredients being disclosed in both:

(1) Bisphenol A - used to make the hard transparent polycarbonate plastic of the bottle for the formula and water bottles in case you pour water from one to the other. According to David Santillo, a scientist at the Greenpeace research laboratory in Exeter, England, “It is a hormone disruptor able to mimic and interfere with hormone systems in animals. Newborn babies are at a very sensitive stage of their development and the last thing you want to be doing is dosing them with a very potent hormone disruptor.”

(2) Monsanto Co.’s recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST) or (rBGH) recombinant bovine growth hormone – an artificial version of the naturally occurring bovine growth hormone which forces cows to produce 15% more milk than usual. Regarding its safety, it’s rated with pesticides.

Even though most cows are not treated with rBGH, you must check the label or call the companies because milk from many dairies is mixed together before being packaged and that means most milk sold in the US probably includes some containing rBGH from treated cows. rBGH was approved in 1993 by the US Department of Agriculture. ‘Organic’ milk and milk not labeled organic but ‘rBGH free’ can be found but all labels must be read. The good news is that many stores and supermarkets are now selling the hormone free milk under their own store brands with more stores coming on board: Safeway, Walmart, Sams Club… Read the rest of this entry »

Pregnant women and nursing moms take note. You can have a lifelong influence on your child’s eating habits and food choices from womb to tomb. Yes, it’s a documented fact, and it’s about time that the journal, Pediatrics, came out with this ‘discovery’ that has actually been around for eons of time. It stands to reason that if the predisposition of drugs and alcohol from the parents can be passed on to our children, then why not their predisposition for healthy food? And that being so, think of the possibilities with organic and the best quality fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Nursing moms are often advised to stay away from gas producing foods which are known to make their babies colicky. Along with advising what to stay away from, take some good advice about what to eat and how to prepare all these healthful yummy foods, because you really are
eating for two and also giving your child his intuitive whole foods menu that will be with him for the rest of his life.

Lead Pediatrics researcher Julie Mennella points out what a lovely system it is when mom’s dietary flavors are transmitted through the amniotic fluid and milk so the baby already likes what it eats before and after birth when mom eats those foods on a regular basis. And don’t lose heart ladies if you didn’t start during your pregnancy. Even if your child is starting on solid foods but also breastfeeding, you can still begin. If at first he or she does not like the foods, but you keep eating them on a regular basis, their tastes will change to your’s. Amazing. Ain’t nature grand? Our ancestors knew it!

Eating those fresh organic vegetables and fruits and whole grains during pregnancy will make everyone healthier, more familiar and a lot easier down the road in the kitchen. But if all is introduced post natal, you can add to the taste with herbs and spices and you’ll still have takers.

To help your baby digest whole grain brown rice when he/she starts solid food, here’s a tip: wash 1 cup of brown rice several times through a strainer, place in a medium saucepan with 7 cups of water and a tiny pinch of salt, bring to a boil and simmer until rice is very soft, still liquidy, glisteny and glutinous looking — about 30 minutes or more. Push rice through a strainer straining out husks but with the pulp remaining in the bowl. Discard husks, or better still, mix into a muffin batter. The remaining pulp is what you want. Allow it to cool and feed your baby a nutritious whole grain base with the rest of his/her meal.

Organic/natural ingredients taste best.

Just fabulous for the whole family. Sophisticated and playful, delightful and fun.
You be the judge.
An easy one dish entrée that can be prepped and refrigerated ahead of time, even frozen.

You’ll need:

2 Pounds Jumbo Shrimp, Peeled & deveined and slightly *butterflied
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt or to taste
3-4 Cloves Fresh Garlic or to taste, minced
1 Cup Bread Crumbs natural, flavored or plain and use your choice of herbs: oregano, basil, etc.
1/3 Cup Fresh Parsley chopped
1/2 teaspoon Lemon Juice, freshly squeezed
Just a slight pinch of Cayenne Pepper or to taste, strictly personal
Couple of dashes of Worcestershire Sauce, again to your taste
1/3 Cup White Wine, yes again, to your taste
Enough Water with wine for gravy to come up 1/2 of baking dish side
1/4 Cup Butter (4 Tablespoons) or more if you prefer richer taste
Paprika to sprinkle all over top
White Basmati Rice or another of your choosing following package cooking instructions, but should be light & fluffy
OR Pasta: angel hair or fine linguine

*score length of back of shrimp with knife where deveined to flare out flesh – looks prettier when cooked

One 9×13 inch glass baking dish, buttered
350 degree oven for about 30+ minutes, oven rack in middle

To prepare:

Preheat oven. Place all shrimp in baking dish. Add next 7 ingredients and gently stir through.
Add wine and water. Dot top with butter and sprinkle all with paprika. Cover with aluminum foil. Can be refrigerated for a day or frozen at this time. Bake 30+ minutes or until shrimp are pinky white.

Depending on how you like your gravy, you may have to add more liquid and/or bread crumb mix for desired thickness and amount. My family likes lots of gravy so just before shrimp are done I take the dish out of the oven to countertop closing oven door, and comfortably fill up dish with more wine/water, bread crumbs and adjust seasonings. Return covered dish to oven and finish baking, about 5 minutes. Take out of oven. More seasonings can still be added while hot. Serve over rice or pasta. Deelish!