June 2012
103 posts
BPA May Cause Brain Tumors, New Research Finds
More bad news connected with the controversial chemical BPA (bisphenol-A) found in a variety of cans and plastics, including baby bottles. New research now suggests that it may be a contributing factor in developing a common type of brain cancer. http://dlvr.it/1nYDdl
5 Nifty New Uses For Egg Cartons
After they’ve finished keeping your eggs safe, most egg cartons get relegated to the recycle bin. (Please, not the trash!) As a weekly essential in many refrigerators, that’s a lot of disposed egg cartons. Put your leftover egg cartons to good re-use with these five nifty (and crafty!) ideas.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1nTCqC
Popsicle Recipe with Cherries, Lemon &... Beer!
You read that right: Beer popsicles! These spiked frozen pops are an homage to our childhood summer days, with the adult kick of a crisp, refreshing beer. Fresh cherries and lemon juice are a sweet-tart choice, pairing just fabulously with the honeyed, banana-like flavors of Hefeweizen beer. Get the recipe here.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1nTCs9
The Battle of the Bulge Continues: ‘Get...
The controversial Supreme Court ruling that upheld President Obama’s Affordable Care Act yesterday has many speculations swirling about the future of medical coverage and treatments in America. No stranger to the discussion are the nation’s obese—representing one-third of all adult Americans according to the Centers for Disease Control—and contributing significantly to the...
7 Summer Snacks for High Energy Living
Summer’s here, and we are loving it! We’re donning our best bikinis, jumping into swimming pools, and running through the grass in flip-flops with giant smiles. While you’re outside running through sprinklers and trekking around the beach, it’s easy to get a bit hungry, no? These seven high-energy summer snacks will help keep you fueled without weighing you down. Now get back outside and play!...
Cherry Tomatoes: How to Choose Them, How to Use...
Cherry tomatoes are one of the only varieties that, even in the winter, don’t take on that orange, mealy appearance that has us all running from greenhouse grown globes. Cherry tomatoes retain most of their sweetness, even off-season… which is only a hint of what true, organic, seasonal cherry tomatoes should and do taste like.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1nGJbD
5 Must-Read Sustainable Summer Cookbooks
Bust out the grill, snip the garden herbs, and roll up your sleeves, because it’s time for another cookbook review roundup! This collection includes a few of my personal fave cookbooks already on hand, plus a few news ones that we’ve just been introduced to here at _Organic Authority_. Read on for the roundup of this season’s health- and locavore-minded cookbooks.
Read more…...
FDA Approves First Weight Loss Drug Since the...
Approval of the nation’s first weight loss drug in 13 years came by way of the FDA earlier this week with the authorization of Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc’s Belviq. http://dlvr.it/1n78jX
An Antioxidant Treat: Make Your Own Green Tea Ice...
Originally from China, green tea is noted for its antioxidant properties and is regarded as a “super food.” Some evidence suggests that regular green tea drinkers enjoy a reduced risk of heart disease and certain types of cancer. Whatever the health benefits, green tea tastes delicious and offers an original flavor for your next batch of homemade ice cream.
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Potato Salad Recipe With Artichokes, Feta Cheese &...
Although feta originated in Greece, French feta, milder and less salty, is better for this salad because of the saltiness of the olive relish. You can make the olive relish up to a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until ready to use.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1mzZx9
The Cup Runneth Over: Yogi Tea's Colossal Collapse...
In December 2011, Oregon Circuit Court Judge Leslie M. Roberts ruled in favor of the plaintiffs—former employees and members of the spiritual organization Sikh Dharma Worldwide founded by Yogi Bhajan. They alleged misconduct and misappropriation of funds by the management team at Golden Temple, the parent company of iconic organic food brands Yogi Tea and Peace Cereal, also founded by Bhajan....
Too Soon? Kashi Launches Certified Organic Cereals...
Kellogg’s Kashi cereal division announced the launch of two new certified organic cereals on Tuesday: Simply Maize and Indigo Morning. The announcement comes just weeks after a photo condemning the cereal company for hidden genetically modified ingredients went viral on the Internet. http://dlvr.it/1mq2qQ
Rustic Recipe: Summer Fruit Crostata With A...
Summer fruit is here, and that means it’s time for sweet, flaky pies cooling on the windowsill. This simple, rustic crostata needs no pie pan or fancy decoration, letting the fruit shine with a sweetly-scented cardamom crust.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1ml9f8
Grow It Vertical! DIY Wood Pallet Garden
If your gardening spot lacks space, then grow vertical! Want a cheap way to do it? Reclaim a wooden pallet and turn it into your new garden. A wooden pallet can hold oodles of flowers, herbs, and vegetables—whatever you want to grow. With just the necessity of a wall to lean against, a pallet-turned-garden is perfect for a tiny apartment balcony or a small porch. Those with ample space can also...
4 Fitness Tips from Kate Highstrete of Ballet...
Ballet Bodies is a fitness studio in L.A. that happens to be a little different than most fitness centers. Ballet Bodies was founded by a former dancer with the New York City Ballet, and at the studio, trainers take from – and improve on – the basic fundamentals of Pilates. The goal? To help people achieve an aesthetic as long, lean and beautiful as a ballet dancer’s.
Read more…...
Keep Off the Grass (If You Want to Live): Toxic...
Hybridized African Bermudagrass is being blamed as the culprit in the mysterious sudden death of a herd of cows in central Texas. The cattle, owned by rancher Jerry Abel reportedly began bellowing and convulsing after being let out to feed on the fresh grass. Fifteen of the 18 cattle died within several hours. http://dlvr.it/1mbdMw
Grafted Tomatoes: FrankenFruit Or Better Breed?
If you’ve ever tasted a homegrown or farmers market tomato, you know there’s a big difference between that juicy, flavorful delicacy and the pale, mealy variety you find at the grocery store. So, if homegrown tomatoes taste so much better, why are they selling the other stuff in bulk? The answer is simple: Many of the best-tasting tomato varieties are simply hard to grow, and...
Red, White & Blue Pie: Here's to a Gourmet 4th of...
Growing up, my favorite fourth of July dessert was Flag Cake. Try this grown-up version, with a fresh strawberry filling, homemade whipped cream and delicious organic berries for the fourth, and for picnics and dinner parties all summer long!
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1mV004
Mythbusters: Seasonal, Grass-Fed Beef?
You’d never consider buying an out-of-season peach, and you’d be wary of fresh strawberries in December. Why should beef be any different?
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1mTzyC
7 Things To Do With Sugar (Besides Eat It!)
Trying to kick the sugar habit? Aren’t we all… and it just may help if you begin to see sugar not as a food (as if it ever really was!), but as a DIY-lover’s ingredient. You can do quite a few things with your stashes—white or brown—and turn that once-awful nemesis into a friend worth keeping around. Here are our seven favorite non-food uses for sugar.
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Stanford Inn Launches As America's First Vegan...
Vegans everywhere rejoice! After years of bringing granola bars on every vacation just in case you can’t eat anything on the menu, sitting uncomfortably on leather resort furniture and looking the other way as your travel companions sample non-vegan delicacies you can’t stomach, there is finally a place where you can eat everything on the menu, and enjoy yourself without the...
Organic Food Legend: Organic Valley's CEO George...
Since 1988, Organic Valley has transformed American farmland by helping to create a demand for organic dairy, eggs and meat products from small-scale, family-sized farms. A lifelong farmer and organic advocate, George Siemon founded Organic Valley using his unique combination of having one hand in the soil while seeing the big picture. This has helped propel the more than 1,700 family-owned...
Most Everyone You Know Wants Antibiotics Out of...
A new report released by Consumer Reports finds that most Americans want meat products that are sold in supermarkets to be antibiotic-free. The report, titled “Meat On Drugs: The Overuse of Antibiotics in Food Animals and What Supermarkets and Consumers Can Do to Stop It,” cites that 86 percent of those polled think antibiotic-free meat should be sold in major supermarket outlets,...
A Recipe to Use Up Your Produce: Roasted Summer...
As far as summer produce is concerned, this is the honeymoon period. We’ve just started getting zucchini, eggplant and peppers in our CSAs, and we’re lovingly sautéeing them simply, throwing them into salads and basically gorging ourselves on every last veggie. But soon, memories of last August will start creeping in; soon, you’ll have no idea what to do with the summer squash...
Senate Approves Farm Bill, Rejects Mandatory GMO...
After much debate and input, the Senate has finally passed the Farm Bill: a five-year, $500 billion bill that is rife with controversy, including major cuts to farm subsidies, land conservation efforts and rejecting a measure that would allow states the rights to require the mandatory labeling of foods or beverages that contain genetically modified ingredients. http://dlvr.it/1m1lQ8
Get Sloughy: DIY Coconut Vanilla Sugar Body Scrub
Before you slather on the lotions and sunscreens this summer, prep your skin for show by sloughing away dead skin with a homemade sugar body scrub. This recipe for a do-it-yourself coconut vanilla sugar body scrub will leave your skin ready to flaunt, even in the dreaded swimsuit!
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1lrc4j
India Gains Small Victory in the Fight Against...
In a notable victory for India, a country plagued with controversies surrounding the widespread genetically modified crops found across the nation, the government announced that beginning in January 2013 all food products containing genetically modified ingredients must be labeled if they’re going to be sold in the country. http://dlvr.it/1lr1HX
What Is The FDA NOT Telling Us About Antibiotics...
The NRDC (National Resources Defense Council) announced earlier this week that they’ve filed a Freedom of Information Act Lawsuit against the FDA claiming that the agency failed to disclose documents that could prove a significant human health risk exists when consuming animal products that contain high levels of antibiotics, which are routinely fed to livestock animals....
Save The Bees! 6 Ways to Participate In Honey Bee...
Show some love for honey bees in June by participating in Honey Bee Awareness month! To raise awareness for dwindling honey bee populations, Whole Foods Market has designated June as Honey Bee Awareness month. They’ll be offering activities, events and classes at their locations in the southern Pacific region of the U.S. throughout June and July to promote awareness of the importance...
Krissy Ferro Answers: What is REAL Mineral Makeup?
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If you’re among the millions who have made the mineral switch, this is for you. You may be getting much more than you bargained for… that is, more than minerals in your makeup. Professional makeup artist Krissy Ferro has some illuminating information on the subject of mineral makeup.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1ld51T
Bono Blooody Bono: Why Are You Supporting G8's GMO...
Claiming that the continent of Africa is to this century what North America was to the 19th, U2 front man, Bono, has become one of the biggest supporters of the recently announced G8 initiative that’s sending $22 billion dollars in aid, supplied mostly by multi-national corporate conglomerates, to “lift Africa out of poverty” over the next ten years. One of the biggest tools...
Grow This: 16 Plants for Your Own Herbal Tea...
The tea plant—_camellia sinensis_—grows mostly throughout Asian countries producing several varieties of a caffeinated and certainly most pleasurable leaf that’s fermented, brewed and enjoyed around the world. For those who love to sip hot soothing beverages—without the caffeine or just with a different flavor—many non-tea herbal plants have also become favorite pinky-pointing sip-worthy...
From Farm to School: 26 Year-Old Andrea Northup Is...
The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) honors remarkable food visionaries every year with their Growing Green Awards.
“These vanguards are serving up a food system with generous portions of workplace justice, economic viability and ecological integrity,” said Jonathan Kaplan, Director of Food and Agriculture at NRDC. “They are living proof that we can grow and eat food that is good...
DOA: Cows Fed GMO Corn Died, Syngenta Faces...
What’s being called “mysterious cattle deaths” in Hesse, Germany, has led to criminal charges filed against Switzerland-based multinational biotech company, Syngenta, for allegedly covering up animals’ deaths recorded in trials that resulted from the ingestion of the company’s genetically modified Bt176 corn variety. http://dlvr.it/1lLZNQ
EWG Expands Its 2012 ‘Dirty Dozen’ List of Fruits...
Expanding their annual list, the Environmental Working Group, a non-profit research organization, has released its eighth annual ”Dirty Dozen Plus” and the companion list, the “Clean 15,” ranking fruits and vegetables based on levels of pesticide contamination. http://dlvr.it/1l9s8l
6 Ways to Spread The Word With Plantable...
Whether you’re planning a casual dinner party or mapping out your dream wedding, you want your mailed invitation to stand out (and to stay out of your buds’ recycling bins). Also, with the high number (and cost!) of little cards, envelopes and printed papers begging guests to, “please — please — RSVP,” you want to use eco-friendly supplies, right? Luckily,...
Is Exploiting Sex Okay In The Name of Animal...
Philosophers have long contended that we’re at war with our consciousness—reckoning with our mysterious situation in a number of ways. Humanity at large has long suppressed the conundrum of our unknown origin through the distractions of war and oppression, manipulation and exploitation of others—human or otherwise. But as we continue to wade through our quandary, perceivably evolving into...
Fresh Strawberry & Spinach Salad Recipe
It is easy to love this popular combination. Light, healthful, and delicious, it is best prepared when strawberries are at their early-summer peak. The dressing is slightly sweet, and the poppy seeds and chopped pecans add nice texture. Goat cheese, ricotta salata, or feta cheese would make a great addition.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1l6V3f
Chipotle Ups the Ante… Again: Now Serving...
Chipotle Mexican Grill has announced that effective this month, 100 percent of the fast casual chain’s sour cream and 65 percent of the chain’s cheese will come from milk made exclusively by pasture-raised cows. To qualify as pasture-raised, every cow has daily access to outdoor pastures, and is never fed any hormones, just a vegetarian, plant-based diet, according to the company....
Break Up With Your Chemically-Laden Mascara: Top 7...
Mascara. It’s non-negotiable for a lot of women, taking eyes from barely there to powerful peepers. It darkens, lengthens, thickens, and some even curl, gloss, strengthen and multiply those lashes. But, have you ever taken a close look at what’s in most conventional mascara? It’s more often than not chock full of none too healthy ingredients, including triethanolamine, parabens, diazolidinyl...
9 Ideas to Keep Your Pet Naturally Flea Free
Pet owners know that summertime brings around an influx of fleas, ticks and other such pests. Although popular products like Frontline are effective at pest control and claim to be safe for your animal, many consumers aren’t so sure and would rather choose a more natural alternative. Cheaper versions of these “spot on” flea control products have been associated with adverse reactions in pets,...
Sick of Salads? Dig Into Green Soup
“More green, less everything else.” That was Anna Thomas’ plan when she created her first green soup with mixed greens, fresh herbs, onions and potatoes. She’d stumbled onto a diet-changing discovery: Green soups are delicious, and incredibly good for you!
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1krrWK
Nutrition Labels on Meats Don't Go Far Enough
You may have noticed that your package of ground beef from the supermarket now has a familiar looking nutrition label on the front. New USDA mandates have just recently gone into effect requiring that every package of ground beef or ground turkey, and 40 of the most popular cuts of meat and poultry like chicken breasts, now carry the nutrition information label.
So you’ll finally...
9-Year Old’s Blog Banned (Then Unbanned) Over...
Martha Payne, the 9-year old Scottish student that started the blog Never Seconds, which went viral in a matter of weeks, was forbidden to bring a camera into school, where she was photographing her school lunches for the blog before having the ban swiftly uplifted after word hit the Web. http://dlvr.it/1kj4rL
Why You’re Addicted to Coconut Water (Or Will Be...
Coconut water seems to be everywhere these days, from the hands of celebrities and hipsters to your local grocery store and even popping up in cocktails. Many coconut water lovers claim they are “addicted” to the fresh, salty-sweet-sour taste of this beverage, which commands a high price in the United States for its unique flavor that can’t be found anywhere else.
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Don’t Like Oranges? These 5 Foods Are Packed With...
If vitamin C had a cheerleader, it would certainly be the orange. But while an orange is indeed a rich source of vitamin C, it’s by no stretch the only fruit out there to contain it. In fact, some vegetables even surpass the orange in vitamin C content! Here are five no-brainer foods you’re hopefully already eating to get your vitamin C on.
Read more… http://dlvr.it/1kbyCV
FDA Agrees to BPA Ban in Infant Formula, But...
Despite the FDA’s recent reluctance to ban BPA (bisphenol-A) in food packaging outright, citing a lack of conclusive evidence that the plastic polymer can cause serious human health issues, the agency may now agree to enforce a ban on the substance from use in baby food packaging. http://dlvr.it/1kNd8d
Fiery Blooms: 5 Exotic Sunflower Varieties to...
“Bring me the sunflower crazed with the love of light,” wrote poet Eugenio Montale. If you’re crazed with the love of summer sunshine, why not decorate your world with tall, bright and colorful blooms? Sunflowers are native to North America, grow quickly, require very little care, and are edible for you, the birds and the bees, too. And there are varieties to suit any whim....
4 Remarkable DIY Garden Markers
By now your home garden is thriving. Every night you harvest lettuce and herbs by the armful, and those heirloom tomato seeds you carefully picked out and started are beginning to take form. Everything looks beautiful – except for those makeshift garden markers you stuck in the ground haphazardly. You were in such a hurry to plant your seed starts that when you marked the budding greens, you...
Tweet It and Eat It? Twitter Founders Investing in...
Twitter co-founders Biz Stone and Evan Williams have created quite a buzz by announcing recently that they’ve moved a bit of their focus offline—and potentially into your digestive system—by investing in a vegan mock meat start-up company called Beyond Meat. http://dlvr.it/1kBcD2
