I tend to focus on the benefits of foods without asking if there are any health risks. I tend to focus on my idea of optimum health while searching for the perfect foods to help me get there, but are those “perfect” foods, those “superfoods,” causing me more harm than good? Do the risks outweigh the benefits?

I have learned that spirulina does have many incredible health benefits, but I have also learned that spirulina and other blue-green algae also have many shocking health risks as well.

Intuitively, I’m not surprised. I have three bottles of E3Live left untouched for years in my freezer because my intuition convinced me to not consume it again. That E3Live still sits in my freezer because it is hard to dump something that cost so much. I’ll let go soon, especially after learning what I have. I do admit that I hope that new research emerges that proves otherwise. Should I hold onto it a bit longer? If I determine two years from now that it is in fact more beneficial to my health will it still be safe to consume after I scrap off the freezer burn? Only time will tell, but today, I do not feel safe consuming blue-green algae or spirulina.

Do you consume blue-green algae or spirulina?

If so, please note that the more peer-reviewed studies that Dr Michael Greger studies and shares over the years, the more he proves that blue-green algae and spirulina are more harmful than beneficial to human health as they contain neurotoxins, hepatotoxins (compounds toxic to the liver) as well as BMAA (beta-N-methylamino-L-alanine).

BMAA has been implicated in neurodegenerative diseases and is found in the brains of those whom have ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), Parkinson’s and dementia complex.
These BMAA diseases attacked the Chamorro people of Guam who were eating flying foxes, who in turn were eating the seeds of a cycad tree, whose watery roots concentrated the toxin from a blue-green algae in the ponds where they grew.

I first became aware of the potential toxicity of spirulina this past winter when listening to Dr. Michael Greger’s interview on Rich Roll’s podcast. Before that I had no idea. After listening to that podcast, I visited NutritionFacts.org to find more information regarding the liver toxins and BMAA dangers, but Greger covers the neurotoxin dangers more thoroughly during his interview with Rich Roll.

Before I move onto Chlorella, I would like to acknowledge that spirulina does have many health benefits, but there are also many peer-reviewed studies showing that spirulina and other blue-green algae pose many health risks as well. One must decide if the benefits outweigh those risks.

In my opinion, the current risks outweigh the overall benefits after exploring all that I have thus far. The one downfall our society has going against us is that there is little money invested in nutritional research as well as peer-reviewed studies regarding the “safety” of many “super foods,” so I have personally been learning by trial and error as well as by intuitive eating while also keeping my eyes open for any credible research that may guide me to better overall health.

In the end, what we consume is a personal decision, and I am trying to choose well with the little information that we have to provided for us to make informed decisions.

Chlorella

The good news?? Chlorella is NOT a blue-green algae and does not have any of these harmful risks (Greger also covers the peer-reviewed research that supports this more thoroughly during his interview with Rich Roll.

And yes, I personally prefer and consume Ultimate Superfoods Real Raw Chlorella Powder (I am often asked which brand I use) when eating and/or juicing cilantro or other great heavy metal detoxifiers because without when also consuming chlorella, the chlorella prevents those heavy metal that the cilantro pulled out of my muscle, tissue, cells, et cetera from entering my brain (I learned this the hard way and experience many awful migraines when completely a heavy-metal detox incorrectly) because the chlorella attracts and clumps up the heavy metals causing them to be transported to the bowel instead of allowing them to flow into the brain.

From my research, chlorella is considered to be one of the best detoxifiers and is said to be able to remove alcohol from the liver and heavy metals (as discussed above) as well as pesticides and PCBs from body tissues. Chlorella can also absorb toxins from the intestines, improve bacterial flora in the bowel, eliminate intestinal gas and help relieve chronic constipation. However, I have also read that about a third of those who try chlorella cannot tolerate it. This may be due to a cellulase deficiency, so supplementing with cellulase may eliminate one’s issue with chlorella.

All I have to say is cheers to chlorella for not only saving me from heavy-metal detox headaches as I dealt with high levels of beryllium and nickel, but for also proving to contain little to no harmful toxicities according to today’s recent peer reviewed studies! At least we still have chlorella!

To explore the risks of blue-green algae and spirulina, please visit Dr. Michael Greger’s non-profit site NutritionFacts.org:

• Spirulina: Potential neurotoxicity is another concern regarding spirulina supplements
• Spirulina: Concerns about spirulina supplements extend to liver toxicity
• Blue-Green Algae & Spirulina: The risks associated with these supplements may outweigh the benefits
• Chlorella does not have the toxins which may be present in blue-green algae supplements and spirulina

Our Marble Station

During the month of May, my family of four, my sister Anna, and my friends Lexie, Tracy, Jan, Amanda and Karen have all vowed to not complain for 31 days, but to instead focus more on gratitude, love and kindness (and for my girls politeness counts too!).

Gratitude

When we express our gratitude in any and/or all situations, fear (which causes anger, sadness, resentment, et cetera) cannot be present. Those  emotions are not possible when gratitude is practiced daily. When we are grateful for anything at all, the only emotion that is present is love. Pure and unabiding love. And to make the switch from complaining to gratitude, all we need is a simple change of perspective.

Native American Story

The choice of complaint or gratitude is ours with every decision we make. “It’s like the Native American story of the old man who told his grandson, ‘There is a battle between two wolves inside all of us. One is Evil (it is anger, envy, greed, resentment, inferiority, lies and ego), and the other is Good (it is joy, peace, love, humility, kindness, empathy and truth).’  When the boy asked, ‘Which wolf wins?’ the old man quietly replied, ‘The one you feed.’” (Buddhist Boot Camp) Let’s feed our gratitude and love for all!

Spiritual Studies to Spiritual Practice

I’ve have been studying under many great teachers over the years (a post listing my resources will be coming next), and as I discussed in a post at the beginning of the year, I have chosen to take a step away from blogging to embrace my studies, my practice, my purging, my one-on-one relationships, my new emerging missions/talents, my gardening and much more – all of which have been bring much excitement and joy into my life.

However, I return to you today because, after much transformation throughout each day as I learn, discover, grow and befriend different layers of myself as I continue to work my way to my core being, I wanted to share with you one way that I decided to teach my girls some of the lessons that I’ve been practicing myself.

Before I share our new adventure, I would like to dedicate this experiment to an amazing woman, Yulady Saluti. Yulady and I connected through my blog and have become friends, and I am grateful to have her as an influence and guiding light in my life. If you know of Yulady, you know what an inspiration she is to every life that she touches, and her recent battle with cancer has caused her to shine even brighter. Yulady’s beautiful spirit and her shining love for all, as well as her husband’s unabiding love and support, also made breast cancer shimmer beautifully as it faded out of her life. Needless to say, her strength, commitment, love for herself as well as for others and her ability to combat breast cancer with dignity, confidence and loving kindness made her shine brighter than anyone I’ve ever met. I am grateful for Yulady. Yulady is a blessing to all of those that she comes into contact with, and it is because of her sharing her personal 30-day No Complaint Challenge that I decided to modify it a bit so that my girls, Greg and I could all benefit from it too as a family. Yulady, Thank you for all your inspiration! I continue to send you tons of love as well as positive and healing energy to your beautiful spirit and soul!  You are truly loved by many! Namaste!

Setting up No Complaints, Only Love and Gratitude for My Girls

All four of us have two jars: one complaint jar and one gratitude jar.

On one side sits our complaint jars. These jars contain 30 marbles each at the start of everyday, and for every whine, complaint or negative word (tone counts too as tone is 90% of body language), one marble is removed and placed in the bowl in the center (we will keep a paper tally when away from home and we will count the marbles at the end of each day while completing our log).

Next we have our gratitude jars. Our jars start out empty but every time we are polite, speak a positive, or share a statement that expresses our gratitude regarding any aspect of our lives or anything reaping love and kindness, we’ll receive a marble in our gratitude jar.

On our chart, we will track the complaint marbles lost each day while logging that number in its appropriate column. We will also count log the marbles earned in our gratitude jar while placing that number in its appropriate column.

Just Gratitude, No Complaints

One of my friends suggested that I should “fully remove any negativity and not even mention the word complaint on the chart, just have gratitude.”

I thought about that for awhile, but from using our marble reward system over the past three years (I started it off with rewards only: helping one another, helping with chores, being polite, etc.), I’ve learned after being daunted by some behavioral issues (many of those occur after my girls have been glutened, a couple days before they get sick and when they rewire on their birthdays and half birthdays) that the unfavorable behavior wasn’t eliminated without a warning of losing a marble, so I started subtracting marbles. I must note that my girls receive 25 cents for each marble that they earn, and once they earn a large amount, they deposit their marble money in their ING Savings Accounts (now Capital One), and since Ainlsey is saving for her house farm and Sydney for her dance studio, losing a marble is unthinkable to them (especially to Ainsley), and from experience with what works with my girls, a marble deduction warning immediately turns their behavior around, so I am going to keep track of both. I also have faith that we all will see much improvement with this setup, and I also think that keeping track of our individual complaints will be a positive aspect of this experiment. After one day, I’ve learned that keeping track of our complaints makes me pay attention to when I personally complain. I’m more mindful.

Also, today, Ainsley and I had a discussion regarding stating a fact verses making a complaint. She presented a great logical argument supporting that her statement was not a complaint, it was merely a fact, and for that I praised her for standing up for what she believed to be true and for presenting a convincing and articulate argument. Needless to say, she did not lose a marble for what I initially thought was her complaining. Without the complaint jar and without keeping track of our complaints, we most definitely would have missed that wonderful teachable moment and my building her confidence and self esteem.

Day 1: No Complaining

(Morning) The day started off well. I have to say that Gregory is such a key component in my emotional, mental and physical well-being as he constantly provides immense support, guidance and endless encouragement. Our day did not start off perfect to say the least. Our day started off with a dilemma, and yet again, Greg helped provide a perspective that put me at ease and that dried my tears. Not one complaint, just pure overflowing gratitude and humor after a productive discussion to solve the problem at hand.

As for our girls, Ainsley understands our experiment more than I could ever have hoped (as seem above), and as she earned 3 gratitude marbles before heading off to school at 7:30, she also learned a lot from Sydney. Ha! The look on Ainsley’s face when Sydney lost a second marble for complaining about losing the first was priceless! But as Sydney went off to find her munka (blanket) and to regroup, I knew that that moment was a huge teachable moment and lesson for Ainsley as she figures out what this experiment entails. I am sure that this month will be completely transforming for us all, and I look forward to this journey! ♥

(Early Afternoon) I dealt with my iMac freezing up for well over 30 minutes while forcing programs to quit, rebooting, contacting Apple, etc. all while not complaining! Just before that, Greg sent me a text voicing his gratitude at how much I have been saving each month. We had one of those months of new tires, repairs, recital costs, medical expenses, et cetera that blew up our credit card, and because I have cut our costs in every area possible these last 4+ months, everything was in place to allow for a month of unexpected expenses while causing us to not exceed our monthly income. Needless to say, Greg earned himself a gratitude marble, but more importantly, the way he made me feel was priceless. I admit that he always voices his gratitude as well as his love to me, Ainsley and Sydney daily, but I’ve never sat down and written and taken a looked closer at how his gratitude “fills my bucket” (Have You Filled a Bucket Today? is one of our favorite children’s book) and impacts me as a whole. His gratitude even made me physically feel better, not just the expected positive mental and emotional reaction. I physically felt great and was ready to conquer the world – or rather my written achievement list that sat next to me.

Time passed, I dealt with a large delivery, ran a couple errand, picked up my girls, made lunch, etc….

(Late Afternoon) It has been an interesting afternoon after picking my girls up from their supplemental school for homeschoolers. It is only the first day of No Complaints, Only Love and Gratitude, but I am more mindful of my girls’ complaints and of the causes of those complaints than I have ever been before.

Like us all, my girls have their triggers. Here are some of their triggers that I noticed today: Sydney not being prepared for large transitions (1, 5 and 10 minute warnings will solve this), expectations not being met (an easy fix too – e.g. before a specific event plays out, I need to ask her how she will feel if her friend is unable to make a scheduled play date, what would make her feel better at that time, and how does she think her friend feels too [depending on the reason for the cancelation]? – we didn’t have a play date scheduled today, but this has been an issue in the past), GI symptoms/gluten reaction (she should receive a dozen complaint passes for this one because not only can I empathize with how’s she’s feeling, we also try to keep with our schedule when what she really needs is prolonged mama cuddles on the couch), needing to reconnect and/or physical contact (cuddles, hugs, etc.) with mama or daddy, being tired from a full schedule (Wednesdays are our busiest days: AM supplemental school from 8-12, come home for lunch, practice the piano and then head to gymnastics for a 1.5 hour practice). With a full schedule that both of my girls refuse to change because they love their supplemental school as well as all their activities, I find that with my slowing down while we are home together and with my filling their buckets whenever possible helps them stay more positive and happy.

To be able to spend more time with my girls, especially when they need that time, I try to prep for each day as much as I can while they are sleeping or in school so that I’m not saying to them: “I can’t right now. I’ll cuddle/play/go outside with you as soon as I’m done with (this or that).”  I also find that when I ask them to wait once, I then discover another task that needs to be completed and then another… That excuse is why I stay off the computer when my girls are awake and around asking for my attention, and that is also why I have to start ditching my iPhone more. Seriously, I blink and time flies by.

Luckily, after day one, I am determined to slow down even more in every way that I can for the sake of my girls’ emotional, mental and spiritual well-being. My remaining mindful and involved in the present moment is what my girls need, and if I don’t give them that now, then when?

Cheers to more music, more dancing as the sun shines on our disco ball, more cuddling as my girls and I read to one another and cheers to more cuddles and staying mindful and connected in the present moment. I am well aware that all my girls want is for Greg and I to spend time connecting with them whenever possible, and when we are distracted by less important things, they make their complaints known, so as they sleep in their beds, I smile to myself because of my deeper awareness of want they need to be successful and because of my determination to give them just that. My girls don’t need things, they need human connection. Isn’t that what we all want? To be loved? And instead of giving them things, we have been spending time together bonding while simplifying our lives and our possessions as we all have been purging and passing our things along to others. I feel lighter, my girls feel lighter, and my husband feels lighter, but let me get back to this experiment….

Cheers to a successful (well kinda – I lost a complaint marble, Greg too) first day! Cheers to being more aware and even more determined to guide my girls to greatness through love, kindness, cuddles, interaction and continued expansion and spiritual growth. Cheers to all of you who have chosen a positive and loving journey! Namaste!

Much Love! Priscilla

Both of my girls and I have a nickel allergy as well as Celiac Disease (good old genetics!).

Nickel is found in many foods and some reports assert that the rate of nickel allergies are on the raise as more and more people are eating healthier and more plant-based diets. Nevertheless, if you suffer from a nickel allergy, your doctor may prescribe a low-nickel diet if you are highly sensitive. I have been prescribed a low-nickel diet and my eczema fades and disappears as long as I stay away from my trigger foods. Here are the lists of foods to avoid as mention in my earlier post here.

“Relationship between nickel allergy and food” (abstract found below) by Ashimav Deb Sharma

Nickel is a ubiquitous trace element and it occurs in soil, water, air and of the biosphere. It is mostly used to manufacture stainless steel. Nickel is the commonest cause of metal allergy. Nickel allergy is a chronic and recurring skin problem; females are affected more commonly than males. Nickel allergy may develop at any age. Once developed, it tends to persist life-long. Nickel is present in most of the dietary items and food is considered to be a major source of nickel exposure for the general population. Nickel content in food may vary considerably from place to place due to the difference in nickel content of the soil. However, certain foods are routinely high in nickel content. Nickel in the diet of a nickel-sensitive person can provoke dermatitis. Careful selection of food with relatively low nickel concentration can bring a reduction in the total dietary intake of nickel per day. This can influence the outcome of the disease and can benefit the nickel sensitive patient.

In addition to my painful and itchy eczema rash, my other symptoms consist of headaches, fatigue and irritability.

Other sources of nickel to be aware of:

• Orthopedic joint replacements (I am grateful that I was able to heal my herniated disk without surgery [August to October 2012] because after my nickel allergy was discovered in November 2012, I read several cases where patients had to have their orthopedic devices removed because of abnormal and immense pain and inflammation – the source was a nickel allergy that was aggravated by the nickel content of their implanted device – most of those patients knew not of their nickel allergy prior to surgery)
• Prosthetic heart valve replacements
• Pacemaker casings and leads
• Dental appliances (braces, alloys including fillings, and prosthetic devices such as bridges, crowns, etc.)
• Jewelry: rings, necklaces, bracelets, jewelry clasps, etc. (“Hypoallergenic” solid gold [12 carat or more] and silver jewelry should be safe – nine carat gold and white gold both contain nickel)
• Body piecing jewelry and earrings
• Watchbands
• Clothing fasteners, zippers, buttons, snaps, bra hooks, etc. (my jeans are my hurtle, but I can have my tailor swap out the buttons and rivets – I just made this discovery today!!)
• Hair clips/pins
• Belt buckles
• Metal eyewear/eyeglasses
• Coins
• Metal tools
• Cellphones (Android and iPhones are nickel free)
• Keys (I love that our Prius is keyless!)
• Stainless steel pots and pan
• Stainless steel silverware (I use bamboo)
• Kitchen utensils (many of our utensils are bamboo too)
• Cabinet handles
• Metal Teapots

Consider using at-home nickel test kits (several are on the market) to detect potential sources of exposure. You can always take a test kit with you when shopping and test your jeans, etc. while in the dressing room.

Did I rid our home of all nickel? No, but awareness is key, and we wash our hands often. Like with many other things in life (e.g. non-toxic home improvements, greening our home, getting Greg and the girls to go completely vegan, etc.), we will continue to make changes along the way until our home is not a large threat. My biggest hurtle is wearing jeans (my girls never wear jeans). I am one who is in the habit of checking my zipper often. Now, I have to be extremely mindful of when I touch the metal on my jeans, and when I do, I must wash my hands immediately while also being mindful of not touching my face.

I know that I should already be out of that habit after being celiac since December 2009, but like my husband (also celiac) says, “The average person touches their face around 2,000 times a day. After going GF, I may touch my face about 500 times a day while you must touch your face at least 5,000 times a day. Please stop…” I’m a work in progress. This nickel allergy is definitely causing me much progress!

As my nickel journey continues, I have to admit that it was a hard pill to swallow a constant when reading many scholarly articles.  Those studies reported that once one develops a nickel allergy, the allergy will remain present throughout the rest of that person’s life. Life-long anything stinks. I prefer constant change, especially changes that lead to a symptom-free life.  :)

Much Love! Priscilla

More Information:

• Individual variation in nickel patch test reactivity (this article is really interesting!)
• Mercury and nickel allergy: risk factors in fatigue and autoimmunity
• Epidemiology of nickel allergy 

Yes, I am atopic (as are both of my girls) but that doesn’t mean that we are not able to find relief from asthma, allergies, and/or eczema. I’ve been told that I have to live with rash for the rest of my life and that there is not “cure.” Not True.

Now knowing that both of my girls also have a nickel allergy (they both have never had their ears pierced – one theory of how people develop the allergy) and that Ainsley too experiences of eczema around her eyes, I am determined to learn all that I can about nickel it food, products, etc.

The following picture is what I constantly experienced before learning about my nickel allergy. This occurred on both eyes and on my arm (still does, just much worse and in larger areas but only when I consume a food containing nickel).

These pictures were taken within 5 days of one another in November 2011.

I admit that for that last 4 plus years and before my doctor discovered the trigger of my eczema flareups, I have occasionally been using topical cream that I recently learned from both my holistic doctor and my eye doctor that Mometasone Furoate Cream can cause glaucoma and cataract when used near the eyes (great!! what damage have I done while seeking relief and while being so vein??).  Yes, the prescribing doctor told to use it sparingly and that it shouldn’t be used on my face but if I used it only when needed I’d be okay. It was ultimately my decision to fill the prescription and to use it and that’s what I did while desperately searching for relief from my symptoms. Nevertheless, the cream helped to stop my raw skin from peeling off in thick layers day after day and it stopped the constant itching while also relieving my pain, so ultimately, I used the cream to find relief and to feel pretty again.

In addition to the Mometasone cream, I was also prescribed Ketoconazole of which my holistic doctor has okayed for further use. He also told me to throw away the Mometasone, and instead, he provided me with HyperOxy.

Please note that the only products I use on my skin are coconut oil (moisturizer), occasionally jojoba oil and RMS Beauty’s coconut-based makeup (I wear makeup 2-6 times a month). Coconut oil is great for so many things and I am sure it helps, but it has not prevented my flareups during the last 2.5 years of use.

HyperOxy Ozonated Olive Oil: Extra Virgin Cold Pressed Olive Oil infused with Activated Oxygen (Ozone) – Ingredients: Olive Oil, Ozone, Oxygen

Now, when I have a flareup, I wash those areas (around my eyes my right cheek by my mouth and on my left bicep) with Ketoconazole, and I then apply a healthy layer of HyperOxy before going to bed. The shampoo helps remove the dead skin while the oil helps provide me relief. HyperOxy does not provide the magical qualities that my former glaucoma- and cataract-causing cream did, but I greatly welcome any relief possible during a flareup.

Five hours after I drank juice containing nickel containing fruits and veggies. This picture was taken after I used the shampoo and after I applied my first application of HyperOxy before going to bed.

Thirty hours after juice consumption. The clear right eye (my left) seen above has taken a turn for the worse.

After a flareup, it takes a couple of weeks for my symptoms to fade, and my symptoms go beyond my eczema (e.g. headaches, fatigue, irritability, etc.). I have found that just like with gluten and Celiac Disease, the longer I am nickel free, the more intense my symptoms during my next exposure, and as I write this

The flareup in the two above pictures were taken the past two nights (20 and 21 March 2013) after drinking a small amount of juice that contained a small amount of kale – YES, KALE!!! Oh, I am still grieving… No kale and no cashews!! Cashews are in so many raw vegan creamy/cheese-like recipes.

Nevertheless, during these past four months since being nickel free (my doctor assisted with my nickel/heavy metal detox), I have been conducting tests to see how much nickel my body can tolerate. My findings: one cashew, one scoop of Rockin’ Wellness (I was given a sample last summer and I longed to try it), a kale chip, several sips of juice containing kale all triggered a flareup in less than 30 minutes.

Kale, Soy (no biggie), and cashews are definitely off limits. However, I’ve also cut out most greens and still have to reintroduce many back into my diet. I know that small amounts of spinach doesn’t trigger any of my eczema (a major plus), neither does broccoli nor asparagus. I eat tons of avocado (a fruit, but still green) as well as bell peppers, cucumbers…

Pineapple is on Mayo Clinic’s list (my doctor provided me with two lists – neither I have found online but I do have my hard copies), and pineapple was in the juice that also contained kale, so I guess the jury is still out on pineapple since I haven’t consumed it on its own.

My doctor, from experience, asserts that not all the foods listed as high nickel foods trigger his nickel allergy and that I will experience the same. Together we are working on determining which foods are safe and which are not.

Below I will share the information that my doctor provided for me, but before I get to that, I just did a google search and found  Elizabeth Tehrani over at eHow.com states that raspberries, pineapple, figs (of course I just added three fruitful fig trees to my garden last year and how already reaped a bountiful harvest, so let’s hope that figs aren’t an issue!), dates (oh no, this could explain a lot!), and prunes should be avoided. Apples, tomatoes, oranges, grapefruit, and other citrus fruits are low in nickel content but can exacerbate allergy symptoms (another explanation of why I look so hideous after drinking Greg’s green juice – also contained citrus).

In addition to the painful itchy rash that now resides around both eyes and parts of my cheeks and neck, I am battling headaches, fatigue and irritability.

Do you suffer from a topical nickel allergy while still knowing that you can feel better? If so, get tested, conduct a heavy metal detox, experiment with the elimination diet while avoiding foods that contain nickel in addition to avoiding nickel throughout everyday life. Frequent hand washing also minimizes exposures.

As you can see, unlike living a 100% gluten-free lifestyle, my journey of living a nickel allergy has just begun and I have much to learn. It figures! I get to a place where living GF became second nature as our gluten exposures have become a rarity. Now, I have a new issue to adjust to and to learn about. Wish me luck! This has been a daunting ride so far as, like the medical industry, I still know very little about where nickel is hiding. The great thing is that I am figuring this new lifestyle out more and more everyday and this too will become second nature with rare exposures.

While texting my celiac sister this morning while sharing the above pictures, along with my feelings, she just so happened to flip to this article:

Yay for iPhones being nickel free!!!

My Feelings Regarding My Nickel Allergy and Current Eczema Flareup

As for my feelings, here’s what I shared with my sister: “At times, I feel ripped off. First gluten and now this… I though that I found a safe/healthy lifestyle where I wasn’t restricted… (high-raw/raw vegan depending on the season) I could eat any fruit, veggie, nut or seed I wanted, but now my two favorites are off limits. I’m adjusting, and even though I’ve thought many times that I’ll just load up on kale and cashews again and get my body back to the point where my symptoms are less severe just constant, I know what it feels like to feel great and symptom free and I can’t go back. I also don’t know the longterm damage caused by ignoring this allergy. I know what gluten can do to my health but not nickel, and unfortunately, it’s an area with little research…”

Does a nickel allergy suck for a grain-free vegan? Absolutely! It sucks for anyone! Am I upset? Sometimes I grieve when I come across one of my favorite recipes, walking past kale in my natural food store, seeing a new yummy recipe one of my favorite blogger’s page, but regardless of those moments, I know that I’ll figure this one out just like I figured out how to maintain a 100% GF home from food to non-toxic cleaning supplies and health and beauty products (and that is with sticking with products manufactured in a gluten-free facilities – better safe than sorry). I admit that this will take some time, but I will get better at protecting me and my girls from a nickel exposure.

Now, for nickel in food…

The Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research

“The MFMER provides the following list of foods to avoid if you suffer from a nickel allergy.” (Since I am a gluten-free vegan, I am omitting all animal and wheat products.)

Please note per MFMER: “There are limited data on nickel content of foods. The (below) information is based on known values, and reports from scientific literature.”

Foods to Avoid

• all canned vegetables and fruits
• beans (green, brown, white)
• sprouts
• kale
• leeks
• lettuce
• peas (including split peas)
• spinach - I appear to be okay with spinach
• fresh and dried figs
• pineapple
• prunes
• raspberries
• buckwheat
• millet
• chocolate and cocoa drinks
• teas from dispensers
• nuts: almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts – I react immediately to a single roasted cashew but nut to 1/4 cup of raw almonds
• sunflower seeds
• marzipan
• licorice
• baking powder
• lentils
• linseed
• soy powder
• vitamin/mineral supplements containing nickel

Foods Allowed

• asparagus
• beets
• broccoli
• brussel sprouts
• cabbage
• cauliflower
• corn
• cucumber
• dill
• eggplant
• mushrooms
• parsley
• peppers
• potatoes
• peaches
• pears
• raisins
• rhubarb
• all berries minus raspberries
• rice cereals
• yeast
• coffee and tea (not strong and in moderation)
• alcohol

Low Nickel Foods that Aggravate Nickel Allergy

• beer
• wine (especially red wine)
• raw tomatoes, onions and carrots
• apples and citrus fruits and their juices

It is interesting to compare the above list with the list provided by The New Zealand Dermatological Society:

Foods to Avoid

• baked beans
• green beans
• broccoli
• peas including split peas
• canned fruits and vegetables
• dried fruit
• nuts
• cocoa
• drinking chocolate
• chocolate
• hot water from the tap
• anything acidic (like tomatoes) cooked in a stainless steel pan
• leafy green vegetables

Foods Allowed

• rice
• lots of wheat products – that list is uber depressing!
• beetroot
• cabbage
• cauliflower
• leeks
• parsnips
• potatoes
• spinach
• fruit – raw and stewed
• tea and coffee
• cordials
• beer wine

As you can see, the lists contradict one another, and to make the determination of which foods contain high levels of nickel even more daunting, one of my Facebook followers shared this list here (click here) that she has been using (you’ll find even more contradictions to this very large puzzle) when she commented on the picture below.

“When I consume foods with nickel, my eczema flares up around my eyes (red, inflamed skin that flakes off in layers/sheets) and is painful and itchy. My reaction occurs within minutes and takes about 2 weeks to fade.
I wonder if the two organs impacted the most from my allergy are my kidneys and liver or if my flareups primarily appear around my eyes because my skin there is just extra sensitive.”

Do you have known nickel allergy and have advice to share? Or do you have a suspicion that a possible nickel allergy is preventing you from feeling your best? If so, share you story, thoughts and/or experiences in the comment section below. I’d love to hear from you!

Much Love! Priscilla

My friend borrowed Average Joe on the Raw (another fav!). Which health documentaries are your favorites?

Greg called me this afternoon from work to share his friend’s gratitude to me for her reclaimed health.

Last summer I lent her the documentaries below and she changed her diet. Yesterday she received her results that showed a significant drop in her cholesterol and she also received the news that she no longer has to take her cholesterol or blood pressure medication. NO MORE PILLS!!!

I love when others take control of their health and reap amazing life-changing benefits! I couldn’t be happier for her!

The documentaries I shared with Greg’s colleague:

• Forks over Knives
• Hungry For Change
• Average Joe on the Raw
• Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead 
• Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days

Since she asked to borrow my DVDs again so that she can take better notes, I will also be sharing the new additions to my collection with her:

• Genetic Roulette Movie 
• Seeds of Freedom (watch free online)
• Food Matters
• Raw for Life: The Ultimate Encyclopedia of the Raw Food Lifestyle

Please, keep sharing your journey and your wisdom while saving one life at a time! Everyone has the ability to reclaim their health – they just need to know where to start!!

Here are some of my other favorites:

• Tapped (watch free online)

Much Love!
Priscilla

During my orientation last week at the Community Food Bank of New Jersey, I could not stop thinking about what I learned that day.

I’ve always been one to donate gluten-free food to my local food bank, but I never stopped to wonder if the food I was donating could be accepted and used or even opened by anyone of the recipients.

After volunteering at Kathleen’s Closet (100% of the proceeds go to supplying food to the food bank) this past Friday, I learned about many existing groups of people living in tent communities throughout the woods in my area. These communities are not uncommon, as my friend Erin from Healthy Home Magazine shared with me: “We have a community of families living in tents that moves from church to church in our area. Right now, it is just down the street and breaks my heart every time I drive by.”

These communities as well as many other homeless communities including those who live in motels depend heavily on the food bank.

The number of homeless people in our country is overwhelming, and to make matters worse, the number of people left homeless in New Jersey has skyrocketed since Superstorm Sandy.

Perspective is an amazing thing and has driven me to create Open Your Heart: Can Openers to Feed the Homeless!

When learning that most of those whom are homeless are unable to accept canned food because they do not have access to or the money to buy a can opener and that even those living in motels are limited and rely on flip-top microwaveable meals over canned items because they do not have access to a tool that I used to take for granted, I decided to take action. Nevertheless, I have decided that this huge problem has a simple solution — a solution that I could solve.

My efforts will in turn impact those living in 18 counties throughout New Jersey.  All of the can openers that I collect will be personally delivered to the Southern branch of Community Food Bank of New Jersey and then will be spread to other counties throughout the state, and if I am so lucky to receive overwhelming support, I will continue to open my heart while supplying other homeless families and communities in other states with can openers as well. However, to achieve this goal, I desperately need YOUR help!

I have started scouring thrift stores searching for gently-used and/or new can openers, asking friends and family if they have an extra can opener sitting in their drawer, and asking the many amazing women in my blogging community for some guidance and direction. They suggested that I create a button for them to place on their blogs (I learned how to make a button today!). They also started mailing can openers to me already! I am truly grateful and look forward to achieving my goal as people continue to open their hearts to feed the homeless.

My plans thus far (feel free to make suggestions and to give me guidance): 

• Use cash donations to buy can openers at the Dollar Tree and/or buy P-38 can openers (designed by the military and costing approximately 48 cents a piece)
• Shop around for gently-used can openers at thrift stores and yard sales
• Post a can opener request on Freecycle and Craigslist
• Ask for donations from others along my journey including you
• Post flyers with drop-off locations
• Provide buttons for other blogs to help me get the word out (see button codes below if you would like to spread the word too)

If you would like to open your heart to provide a can opener to the homeless, please send you donations to the following address:

If you would like your donation to be recognized here on my blog, please include your name, town, state and business/website with link if applicable written on a slip of paper with your donation.

Why I am falling in love with Community Food Bank of New Jersey

Ultimately, I am honored to be a part of an extremely well-run nonprofit over at Community Food Bank of New Jersey. This nonprofit allows nothing to go to waste. The stained clothes that are donated to Kathleen’s Closet are then donated to a sustainable rags program that spans worldwide. The spoiled food that gets donated to the food bank either gets composted or feeds pigs and chickens at a local farm. There is no end to this sustainable nonprofit organization that finds use for everything while allowing all branches to earn and fund money back to supplying food to others.

Before I sign off for the night, I would like to send a HUGE thank you to the following women for their overwhelming help, guidance and support this weekend as they inspired me to take the first steps to help solve this problem in my community:

• Janice Roodsari from MommaWords for coming up with the name “Open Your Heart: Can Openers to Feed the Homeless” and for sending out my first can opener to start my donation drive! Janice also provided me with resources to help me create the above buttons.
• Jen Eyers-McLaughlin from Jen and Joey Go Green for asking me to create a button that she can put on her blog, for explaining to me how to create the button after realizing I was clueless and for sharing her success with me of how she helped raise money for an orphan in Russia.
• Erin Naumowicz from Healthy Home Magazine for her empathetic heart and for providing me with the help I needed in this endeavor.
• Michelle from Everything’s Abuzz for sending me her two extra can openers and for assuring me that she is there for whatever I need.
• Jenn Savedge from The Green Parent for giving me the idea to approach Walmart and like stores and for wanting to write a post to spread the word.
• Danielle Richardet from It Starts With Me for reminding me to utilize Freecycle and Craigslist.
• Kristina Fashjian Greene from The Greening of Westford for suggesting that I ask local companies for cash donations to purchase can openers and/or for their help with spreading the word.
• Kimberly Danek Pinkson from Eco Mom Alliance for her name suggestion “Cut Out Hunger” that I also loved so much and for her enthusiastic support!

The above women are just a few in my amazing blogging community. I am grateful daily for the relationships I’ve made, the support I receive, and for knowing that these incredible and inspiring women are all always a click away and free of judgement and/or criticism – they are always there with hearts full of love while ready to help anyone at anytime, and for that I will forever be grateful!

Much Love! Priscilla

If you would like to post a Open Your Heart button on your webpage, please use the codes below:

150 x 150 button

<a href=”http://www.glutenfreeveganmom.com/2013/02/11/open-your-heart-can-openers-drive-feed-homeless-cutting-out-hunger/”><img src=”http://www.glutenfreeveganmom.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Open-Your-Heart-150.jpg”></a>

This Christmas tree now resides in our front yard!

Well, I was due to return to Facebook yesterday after my 40-day hiatus, and I have yet to return because without the app on my phone and my infrequent computer use, logging onto FB has become an infrequent task, and I have to admit that I greatly enjoyed my FB break while having a new perspective regarding my next path in life.

Since I enjoyed my FB break so much and since it had such a positive impact on my life as a whole, I have decided to not reinstall the Facebook app onto my iPhone. By not having the app on my phone, I will continue to increase the time that I am connecting with others in my non-virtual world. I do admit that I will still continue having a presence in social media thanks to Instagram (gfveganmom) while sharing some of my Instagram pictures on Twitter and on my personal FB page.. I love Instagram because I can take a picture and share it on my personal FB page and/or on my Twitter feed without logging onto either. A couple weeks after my FB hiatus, my mom’s biggest complaint was that she was unable to see pictures of my girls – Instagram not only enabled me to share pictures with her via FB (she’s not on Instagram), it also helped me reach my new goal of taking more pictures of girls – it’s a win-win!

The Importance of Community

Throughout the past couple of years, my intuition has been stressing the importance as well as a strong desire of community. At first, I was able to quiet my intuition a bit when seeking a supportive and loving virtual community online (thank you all for being a part of my inspiring virtual community!). However, after two once-in-a-century storms that were four months apart, I realized that I personally need to inspire closeness in my own communities and amongst my neighbors and friends.  My intuition was telling me this all along, but in the latter half of 2012 is when I realized the changes I needed to make.

I do admit that since my blog took off back on 21 March 2011, I have met so many wonderful people online and made so many great friends with whom I hope to meet face-to-face one day and whose friendships I cherish, but when the power goes out for 4+ days and straight-lined winds take out my surrounding cell towers so that I cannot even call to let my family know that we are okay (and vice versa), that virtual supportive community no longer exists while my immediate community becomes my family’s lifeline.

When thinking of the importance of our non-virtual communities, I think back to the heart-wrenching story of the mother seeking help from her neighbors during Superstorm Sandy to no avail. Her neighbors slammed their doors in her face and said: “I don’t know you, I’m not going to help.”  After her 2- and 4-year-old boys were swept from her arms, “The boys’ mother Glenda Moore, 39, is said to have spent 12 hours screaming in the street after they were swept away, but residents would not help her look for them.” I am daunted by the deaths of Brandon and Connor Moore and by the fact that if we all feel so “connected” with the tremendous advances in technology and with the explosion of social media, why was not one single neighbor willing to help Glenda Moore protect her babies or to help her search for her babies after they were swept from her arms. Nevertheless, learning of Glenda’s story has inspired me to connect with others and to strengthen my existing relationships with those in my own community because without communal support, who can we turn to when we are in need?

I would ultimately love to start a community garden including harvest and canning parties – I just have to figure out how to make this possible and which of my neighbors and friends would be willing to join… I am also brainstorming other ideas.

How I Spent Much of My Time During My Break:

I found great joy developing and maintaining stronger connections and supportive communities with those in my non-virtual life. There has definitely been a huge shift within me during my break as I began to appreciate everything so much more.

In addition to strengthening my connections and staying present during my FB hiatus, I also did the following:

• Laughed and talked with others
• Played games and Barbies with my girls
• Made Christmas presents with my girls for friends and family
• Connected and cuddled with my hubs
• Helped others at every opportunity
• Started a Meetup group
• Enrolled in Russell James’ (The Raw Chef) 10-wk raw course (both online and DVD options)
• Spent TONS of time with family and friends (many beautiful emotional moments experienced when reconnecting)
• Purged, purged and then purged some more (you can follow my book purge conundrum via Instagram)
• Watched many documentaries (I HIGHLY recommend that everyone watch I AM!)
• Read several books (I’m reading Daring Greatly by Brene Brown now)
• Visited my favorite blogs
• Wrote a couple blog posts (FB definitely hindered my blog productivity by far! I plan to blog more and FB less in 2013)
• But ultimately, I reconnected on a deeper level with my loved ones while also nurturing myself and working through my own emotions and thoughts from my past and present as I started to evaluate what I want my life to be like moving forward

DIY wine cork ornaments.

Goals for 2013

Aside from homeschooling my girls and keeping myself and my family happy and healthy, I plan to work on myself while organizing my life throughout 2013. As for what I want moving forward, well, that has yet to be decided, but it does lead me to some of my following goals:

• Give myself more time to reflect, understand and organize my life
• Discover any hidden talents that may be needed to fulfill my unfulfilled potential
• Learn more about the world as a whole
• Seek a new direction that is right for me (I love blogging but I feel that I have a bigger/new calling that I have yet to discover)

Ultimately, besides self-reflection, learning/knowledge, and planning, I have no other expectations – of course I plan to maintain my healthy plant-based vegan lifestyle while nurturing my body; however, I also plan to slow down while nurturing my WILL and honoring my feelings as I feel them (suppressed feelings caused me horrific medical issues during the latter half of 2012 because my biggest lesson during 2012 was that the mind and body are undoubtedly connected and if I don’t feel well [outside of the occasional gluten exposure], suppressed emotions are the cause). I plan on experiencing all of my feelings fully while no longer denying and/or suppressing them as I have in the not so distant past. I will do this by giving myself quiet time along to reflect and to feel.

Suppressed Emotions Negatively Impact Our Health

I’ve learned a lot about the impact that suppressed emotions have on my health and on my life as a whole as I learned first hand this past summer (here’s a short post regarding some of what I experienced).

Dr. John E Sarno’s books Healing Back Pain: The Mind and Body Connection and The Divided Mind: The Epidemic of Mindbody Disorders along with Pema Chodron‘s audio CDs: Getting Unstuck, Don’t Bite the Hook, and Awakening Love and Brené Brown’s book Daring Greatly are are a few of my favorites through my amazing journey of healing last year.

Nevertheless, I plan to continue to improve my mental, physical and emotional health by recognizing and releasing any feelings that surface as I also continue to work on becoming more vulnerable as I dare greatly. I couldn’t be more excited for this journey!!

2013 will be the year of my inner journey as I remain connected to those I love while encouraging others to blossom into their most sparkly selves.

I also plan to take part in many of my joys throughout the year, one being Paul Risse’s fourth Cleanse America: The Act of Love (Jan 4-13) cleanse. Paul’s cleanses are my favorite by far and I love his CA Facebook  cleansing community! During every cleanse, I look forward to the tremendous supportive, emotional openness and the endless love and kindness found on his CA cleanse page – this his different from Paul’s CA fan page (this will be my 4th CA cleanse).

My Presence During 2013

As for what you can expect from me in 2013, you can expect me sharing my bits and pieces of my personal journey as well as some of the treasures that I discover along the way (e.g. favorite books, documentaries, bloggers, websites, etc.). I will be sharing via blog and social media, but I do admit that my FB presence will be greatly reduced compared to my presence during 2011 and 2012.

My primary focus this year is nurturing a better me. A better woman, wife, mother, sister and friend as I figure out my next calling (phase 1: public school English teacher; phase 2: blogger; phase 3: currently unknown – but I do have a couple of ideas). Even though I plan on using 2013 to discovering the next phase in my life, I still plan to continue my blog (part-time), so look for me here, on Twitter, on Instagram (gfveganmom), Google+ (personal page and/or GF/V Mom Page) and/or Facebook. I’ll try to check in from time to time.

So cheers to strengthening our connections with our loved ones, and more importantly, cheers to strengthening the connections within ourselves during 2013!

In 2013, I wholeheartedly know that I will learn a lot, and hopefully I will discover my destined path and my next adventure!

MUCH LOVE TO YOU ALL!!!

Until next time, be well!

Much Love! Priscilla

Derecho took trees down everywhere (30 June 2012)

After the horrific and traumatizing Derecho storm this past 29 June 2012 and Superstorm Sandy on 29 October 2012 – exactly 4 months apart from one another, I have become more dedicated with preparing for more such events.

Derecho hits Atlantic County, NJ

On 29 June 2012, Greg and I were fortunate to have returned from our Las Vegas trip hours before Derecho hit. Hours after we relieved our baby sitter and she boarded a plane bound for Florida, Greg uncharacteristically check the weather radar. When he turned on the Weather Channel a little after 11:00 PM, he ran upstairs, woke me up and said, “Priscilla, I need your help! There is a huge red cell heading our way and it has a hook!”

Greg’s second calling is hands-down meteorology. He can tell me when the sun will come out after a storm within mere minutes. Those who know him question his career choice. I, however, am grateful for all of his gifts no matter which path he has chosen.

Nevertheless, we both ran downstairs and out back. I had to continuously jump up as high as I could to grab our pool rafts as they were spiraling upwards. Greg and I kept grabbing what we could while throwing everything in through our back door. Umbrellas, rafts, tables, toys, our pergola cover, etc. Taking the cover off of our pergola was difficult as the wind was gaining more power as it kept pulling the cover out of our hands while slamming it (and the metal bars in the ends of the cover) overhead and into the side of our house and windows. Greg and I worked quickly and brought what we could indoors and then secured what we could before taking cover indoors.

By the time we were finished, we closed up our house as the sound of a freight train running through our house began to get louder and louder. The power went out before we both ran upstairs, each grabbed a kid, and carried them down into our basement telling them about the storm and to stay in the safest place in our basement. I began to occupy our girls with a card game while surrounding them with our LED lanterns.

Greg would go up to the top off our basement steps and come down white as a ghost multiple times. The sound was unimaginable. Our house was shaking. The trees in our backyard were horizontal instead of vertical. The storm felt like it lasted an eternity.

Before I lost cell service minutes after Greg and I had our girls smiling and safe in our basement, I posted this on my Facebook page: “I’ve never been so scared of a storm in my life. We grabbed the girls and headed to the basement. I’m praying for everyone in this storm’s path. We just don’t get storms like this and I hope we never do again. ♥” That was the last contact I had with anyone outside of my house until we were able to drive south for more gas for our generator.

When home, we didn’t have cell service for days and we were without power for four days. Greg and I had no way to inform our loved ones that we were okay unless we drove down to Marmora (a town 10 minutes south that remained untouched). While Greg was filling every gas can he could find and after I called my sister and texted my other sisters, I posted this on my Facebook page: “After the scariest storm of straight line winds that caused tremendous damage, we are all okay. No power or cell service. We had to drive south (Marmora) to get gas for our generator. The elec co says we’ll have power the earliest Mon but realistically in a week. We got hit HARD and have been declared a state of emergency in Atlantic County. Another storm is expected tonight. Since we are heading home, I’ll lose cell service soon. Much Love! Priscilla”

Luckily, Greg and I have been preparing for events like this and we already had a generator, a stock of food, LED lanterns, batteries, candles (but they irritate my asthma), etc., and I enjoyed the quiet bonding time with my family and having my in-laws stay overnight in our cool basement (they live one mile away and too were without power). My heart broke when my in-laws described how during the storm they both thought they would not survive as they curled up into each other’s arms still in bed while taking in their love for one another during their final moment. The storm came fast and unknown to many. Greg and I were fortunate to have time to take action to prevent significant damage, and in our area, the power and cell service were the first to go and stayed out for days. In my eyes, our power outage wasn’t a big deal, the scariest part was not knowing if everyone was okay and not being able to communicate to others that we were okay. However, even though 22 lives were lost during this storm, I am still extremely grateful that my family and friends all made it through this storm safely and unharmed.

Sydney goes anaphylactic

The scariest part of the aftermath of Derecho was discovering that Sydney is anaphylactic. Since my in-laws ended up having their power restored before us, I took my girls over the get a break from the heat. Minutes after we arrived, Sydney got stung by a bee for the first time in her life, and because of her allergic reaction to mosquito bites, my mama instinct caused me to immediately rush her to the doctor’s office (she was seen minutes after being stung). Sydney’s pediatrician and I discussed the potential symptoms and treatment plan if those symptoms ended up presenting themselves as Sydney and I left to meet Greg at home so that one of us could run to the store for Benadryl and to fill the just-in-case scripts in case Sydney took a turn for the worst.

When seen by the doctor, Sydney’s right hand and arm was hard and swollen and covered with hives up to the middle of her bicep – she was stung on the tip of her middle finger. Since Sydney also complained that her stomach hurt, the doctor also warned that if she did in fact vomit, she would officially have two symptoms/categories that would then mean that she is anaphylactic. When he warned that she may vomit, I never imagined what was to come.

As Greg met me at home, I didn’t even have Sydney over the threshold when she started projectile vomiting (each round of vomiting consisted of 3 or 4 acts of vomiting during each round – there were countless rounds that lasted for over an hour). Not only did she throw up more than I could have ever imagined possible, Sydney also lost all coloring (her lips and skin went white), had labored breathing, tried but couldn’t talk, and laid limp in my arms as I powerlessly tried to help her before the paramedics arrived.

Greg and I were terrified but while helping Sydney while she dealt with her second round of vomiting, I called her doctor and then ended up calling 911 when her symptoms got worse as I had her in the car to go to the ER. I’ve never felt so powerless and frightened as guilt from listening to others and attempting to drive her to the hospital began to surface. I pushed that guilt aside, called 911 and gave them my friend’s address that was between my house and the hospital as I informed them I was called in transit. After I hung up with 911 and arrived at my friend’s house, I called Greg and told him to meet us at Janet’s house. Janet was, and is always, my calming presence. She helped me with Sydney, occupied Ainsley, and then sent Greg and I to the hospital with Sydney after the paramedics arrived as she cleaned the vomit out of my abandoned car.

These three paramedics were in our ambulance. There was a second ambulance, but unfortunately, everything happened so fast that I am unable to identify the other amazing individuals who helped two powerless parents. Greg and I will always be grateful to their compassion and expertise!

As I rode in the ambulance with Sydney while holding the bowl to her mouth as she continued to vomit for the 40th+ time), the one paramedic told Greg to follow us and that they wouldn’t need to put the siren on while two other paramedics worked on Sydney. However, seconds after we pulled away, Sydney passed out, the sirens went on, and we sped away as Greg had no idea what was happening.

Long story short, my sister (who drove over an hour to relieve Greg at the hospital while staying with me and Sydney that evening), Sydney and I were happily exiting the hospital as I received a text from Greg stating: “Our power just came back on!” The timing couldn’t have been more perfect, especially because Greg and I were up all night with Sydney as it took her a couple days to recover from being stung. Greg and I are now EpiPen parents, but we are also stronger and better prepared parents after having gone through such a traumatic and emotional event during the aftermath of a once in a century storm. Greg and I were powerless on many levels that day!

Superstorm Sandy hits Atlantic City, NJ 

Needless to say, when reading warnings of Superstorm Sandy for our area that strongly asserted that we should “prepare for the worst,” to “prepare for an unimaginable storm unlike any other in our history,” Greg and I went into action! While truly preparing for the worst storm imaginable with Derecho still fresh in our minds.

With Sandy behind us, Greg and I still comment on how lucky we were as our hearts are still heavy for those who lost their lives, their homes. So many are still homeless as they try to rebuild. Our area, however, got lucky as Greg and I are extremely grateful that the storm sped up and didn’t make landfall during high tide as predicted. We are also grateful for the eye passing over us causing us to have several hours reprieve from the strong winds and heavy rain. Needless to say, the Atlantic City/Ocean City, NJ area had major flooding and damage, but nothing like those north of us experienced. Even though we are grateful for dodging the worst, our hearts continue to go out to all of those whom have lost loved ones and to those whom have to rebuild as almost two months later, they still don’t have the comfort of their warm homes back. Please consider donating to Occupy Sandy as 100% of the proceeds go to Sandy victims.

Severe Weather in South Jersey

In addition to the more frequent earthquakes we’ve been having, these once-in-a-century storms seem to be occurring at every turn now.

Last year, the earthquake that hit us a week before Hurricane Irene broke our pool pipes, and unfortunately for us, the pool repair workers lived in the mandatory evacuation zone and left the area before Irene came and before our pool was repaired (we too lived in the evacuation zone, but we live on the mainland, not on an island and my husband refused to leave – I decided to stay by his side). Nevertheless, without a working pool pump, we were unable to drain our pool down to prevent it from overflowing, and during Hurricane Irene, that is exactly what happened.

Luckily, our neighbor and friend Lexie saved the day while sharing her gorilla tape (so we could repair our pool pump) and an extra pump that we used where the water poured into our newly renovated basement. Ultimately, we experienced minimal damage before of the kindness and help of our neighbor.

Surviving just about anything

Nevertheless, this past Thanksgiving, Greg and I were discussing the other ways we intend to prepare for an unexpected disaster. My family members laughed and asked if we too were doomsdayers. I said, “Yeah, I guess we are since we are preparing for any situation,” but it wasn’t until today that I realized the doomsdayers they were really referring to. Ha! My family thought that we too were like the thousands of people preparing for the end of the world on 21 December 2012.

They even joked that we were preparing for zombies. We were joined in on the laughter, especially Greg as he questioned my intentions when buying James Wsley, Rawles’ book How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It. I also love JWR’s blog: Survival Blog.

Nevertheless,, since I stay very guarded with my media and news exposure, it wasn’t until today that I realized that people actually believed that the world was supposed to end today. I, however, see today as a new beginning, as the end of a 24,000 year cycle and as a time for a new awakening as we enter a new cycle. For more about this, please watch 2012 Crossing Over, A New Beginning (Official Film):

Yes, Greg and I continuously try to perfect our preparation for natural disasters, but I welcomed 21 December 2012 with excitement of a new awakening that will be filled with peace, love, kindness and compassion shared by all. I did not fear the end of the world.  In all honesty, I have been feeling the shift for quite some time! Nevertheless, I welcome in 2013 with great excitement as I continue on my own health, spiritual, and environmental journey. I continue to strive to protect and provide my girls while providing them both with optimum health, hearts full of love and kindness, and a cleaner, healthier planet.

What do you envision this new phase to be like? What are your goals and expectations?

My goals are to explore food, nutrition, health, and spiritual awareness more indepthly as I continue on my own eye-opening journey. To expand my self-awareness and this amazing journey that erupted into my new awakening this past fall, I have expanded my collection of Pema Chodron‘s audio workshops and podcasts, and I also just ordered a gently used copy Brene Brown’s Daring Greatly after watching her TED Talk on Youtube – I’m so excited continue my studies and my journey! I also just enrolled in Russell James’ (The Raw Chef) 10-week course that I will start next week. It is 21 December 2012, and I feel centered, alive and full of love while excited to be a part of such a great period in time!

Much Love!
Priscilla

Nature’s Path’s products are Non-GMO Project certified.

However, even though I now keep our freezer stocked with backed goods made with love and without GMOs, my husband still keeps a lookout for prepackaged healthy options, and yesterday, he came home with two boxes of Nature’s Path’s non-GMO, organic waffles.

However, like Vans Foods’ gluten-free waffles, Nature’sPath waffles contain soy.

However, unlike Vans Foods’ waffles, Nature’s Path uses non-GMO organic soy ingredients and their gluten-free products are Non-GMO Project verified.

Do I know for certain if Vans Foods uses GMO soy? No because they won’t fess up and because I haven’t had their GF products non-GMO verified, so in all honesty, I do not have concrete proof that Vans GF product do in fact contain GMO ingredients.

After emailing Vans Foods three times regarding their use of GMO ingredients, they evaded my question the first two times and completely ignored my most recent and final email as seen below.

Here is my GMO correspondence with Vans Foods:

Priscilla Matuson: “Does your company use GMO ingredients in any of your products?” (Email: October 2012)

Vans Foods: “Thank you for your inquiry. Van’s has proudly baked great tasting, nutritious frozen breakfast foods for more than 20 years. We take great pride in offering health-conscious consumers a wide range of choices including such favorites as our Gluten Free, 8 Whole Grains and Organic waffles.

“We seek to use minimally processed ingredients that you would find in your own kitchen. Van’s products contain no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives and have no high fructose corn syrup or trans fats.  Our three Organic waffles (Totally Natural, Blueberry and Flax) are certified non-GMO by the Non-GMO Project.  We care about this issue and we are actively working on certifying additional items with the Non-GMO Project in 2013.

“In addition, our gluten free waffles, pancakes and French toast sticks are certified gluten free by the GFCO organization.

“As a small company with a passionate team committed to our mission, it’s our goal to earn your trust and loyalty by offering delicious foods that fully meet your health and nutrition needs. For more information on our entire line, please visit the products section of our website at http://www.vansfoods.com/The_Goods/#/all_products” (Email: 16 October 2012).

Priscilla Matuson: ”Do your gluten-free waffles contain GMO ingredients? My family of four are all celiacs” (Email: 20 October 2012).

Vans Foods: “Currently, our three Organic waffles (Totally Natural, Blueberry and Flax) are certified non-GMO by the Non-GMO Project.  We care about this issue and we are actively working on certifying additional items with the Non-GMO Project in 2013″ (Email: 23 October 2012).

Priscilla Matuson: “Thank you but that still doesn’t answer my question. Do your gluten-free waffles currently contain GMO ingredients?” (Email: 24 October 2012)

Okay. I have officially given up and accepted the fact that Vans Foods’ non-reply and evasion of my multiple GMO inquiries speak louder than words.

Fortunately, my husband completely respects that I strongly disapprove of Vans GF waffles being consumed by either him or by our almost soy-free girls.

Even though Nature’s Path waffles contain organic soy, I am okay with our girls eating an occasional Nature’s Path waffle, especially if I need a day or two to restock our homemade gluten-, soy-, corn-, rice-free vegan donuts (modified Welcoming Kitchen recipe), muffins or waffles (modified Babycakes’ recipe) stock in our freezer.

Here are the ingredients in Nature’s Path Buckwheat Wildberry Waffles:

Before I tell you my plastic bag story, I would like to send a huge Thank You to Shane Shirley Smith for asking me to be a part of this incredible event! I am truly grateful for all that Shane does, so please check her out over at Environment Booty, her blog, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest!

Also, be sure to check out Factory Direct Promo’s new Plastic Bag Ban Map!

Reusable Bags: Cart Helper and produce bags (from Etsy)

My Plastic Bag Story

Over eight years ago, I took to strongly refusing plastic (and paper) bags. I was aware of the garbage patches choking the sea life in our oceans, I could see plastic bags blowing around my community more often than not (often times decorating tree branches or hovering over head and out of reach in the wind) because even though many plastic bags are thrown away, they are so aerodynamic that they tend to not stay in one’s garbage can, and even though I deposited my used plastic bags in my local participating grocery store’s plastic bag recycling bin (before my reusable bag days), I still suffered from a great deal of guilt because of all the wasted petroleum that I was directly responsible for when using disposable bags just for my convince. Even though I was refusing plastic bags during the time of the BP oil spill in the Gulf, my plastic guilt increased tenfold because of the other plastic items in my life (Beth Terry has been instrumental in reducing both my guilt as well as my plastic consumption).

My Plastic Guilt

Nonetheless, during the days I struggled with plastic-bag guilt, I loved how IKEA charged a bag fee for every plastic bag each consumer used many years ago. I loved that choosing convince had a financial cost and that that cost was then donated to an environmental charity. Later, IKEA stopped offering plastic bags of which was even better in my opinion, but overall, I loved watching the steps taken to reduce plastic consumption in IKEA stores as I kept telling my husband that IKEA’s model needs to be taken nationwide, or better yet, worldwide. During that time in 2003/2004, I soon learned that IKEA’s model was in fact happening in Bangladesh, Ireland, Switzerland, and many other countries. Now, we need to get the entire U.S. onboard! Check out Plastic Bag Ban Map to see the progress made thus far.

I believe that if our country started with a tax and then moved to a plastic bag ban, we would stop Americans from using 100 billion plastic bags per year, and of those 100 billion bags, it is said that less than 10% are recycled leaving the remaining 90 billion bags to pollute our planet each year like a self inflicted oil spill that is choking life as we know it. According to Salon, a study done over five years ago “found that the inks and colorants used on some bags contain lead, a toxin. Every year, Americans throw away some 100 billion plastic bags after they’ve been used to transport a prescription home from the drugstore or a quart of milk from the grocery store. It’s equivalent to dumping nearly 12 million barrels of oil.” Let’s cleanup our self-inflicted oil spill by refusing plastic!

Knowing that 1 million plastic bags are being used per minute and that “The U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually at an estimated cost to retailers of $4 billion” (The Wall Street Journal) should also inspire us all take take great action.

Nevertheless, that plastic bag guilt lead me to www.reusablebags.com (now www.reuseit.com) where I found my beloved Cart Helper. The first two Cart Helpers that I purchased over eight years ago are still lugging my produce, groceries and other purchases home during each shopping trip.

Greg and I both have a supply of reusable bags in our cars, and if we happen to forget our reusable bags, we still refuse disposable ones. I either load small items in my purse (this causes my to keep the receipt of which also causes me another dilemma because sales receipts contain BPA and I try to refuse receipts at all cost, but that’s a topic for another day) or I reload my items back into my cart causing me more of an inconvenience that is a huge motivator to not forget my bags again.

Household Trash and Recyclables

As for my kitchen trash, I have a compost bucket complete with a lid to keep critters out outside my back door (I mix my kitchen scraps into my compost pile out back several times a week), I also have a small recycling station under my sink and a larger recycling station in my garage.

My under-the-sink recycling station includes bins for paper, plastic, metal, glass and plastic bags (I cut off the zip lock off the plastic bags so that the plastic bag can be recycled).

My garage recycling station contains larger bins for the above items as well as bins for light bulbs, batteries, electronics, etc. Check out this post of me and my girls recycling our old broken computers.

After reading Beth Terry‘s eye-opening book Plastic Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too, I became well aware of the ins and outs of the toxins in plastics, that recycling plastics is not as environmental friendly nor is as answer solving as I had once thought, plus tons more new information as well as completely easy and doable solutions and tips to help me reduce my plastic consumption and my petroleum footprint.

Needless to say, choosing and demanding non-plastic items and packaging is what I try to focus on at all times. However, I haven’t figured out how to buy grapes without the accompanying plastic bag as of yet (grapes are a staple in my girls school snacks when their favorite fruits are out of season during the winter months here in South Jersey), and yet again, I ask myself, “What would Beth Terry do?” She would choose another fruit, and this week, that’s what we do more times than not. Today, my girls left for school with organic Fuji apples in place of their grapes. All is well and plastic free for today!

Recycling aside, when my family and I need a trash bags, we use BioBags. I use the Tall Kitchen BioBags for our household trash and I keep the smaller Food Waste BioBags in my purse so that I can collect trash while walking on the beach or playing in the park. I also use the smaller BioBags to collect trash in the car during long road trips.

Until there is great change as far as plastic bags are concerned, we all can continue doing are part to reduce our plastic bag consumption.

How do you reduce your plastic bag consumption?

Also, when plastic bags sneak into your life either when buying grapes or when receiving a package from Amazon (those strips of plastic balloons), do you have a plastic bag drop-off center at a participating grocery store?

Much Love! Priscilla