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With spring and summer comes an abundance of fresh produce at farmers’ markets and grocery stores. Fresh fruits and vegetables are a great source of basic levels of dietary nutrients essential to fuel and power our bodies, such as potassium, dietary fiber, folic acid and vitamins A and C. What’s not to love?
Unwashed produce may be harboring some unseen, unwelcome disease-causing organisms (pathogens). Before you fill your plate with a heaping pile of fresh fruits and vegetables, make sure you try to protect yourself from the harmful bacteria and pesticide residue that can linger on unwashed produce.
Unwashed produce can contain harmful foodborne pathogens like salmonella, listeria, E. coli, norovirus and more. Foodborne illnesses can cause a range of negative symptoms—from mild cramps and nausea to fever, diarrhea and severe dehydration.
Even otherwise healthy people are not immune to the effects of toxic exposure. If the produce was treated with pesticides during its growth (as many are), then your vegetables could be loaded with glyphosate and atrazine, two of the most common herbicides used in the United States.
Certain fruits and vegetables are more prone to require pesticide use in their growth (view a list from the Environmental Working Group). Washing and storing your produce in accordance with FDA standards for selecting and serving fresh produce will help reduce your family’s daily toxic load. Remember the three tips below when you come home with your bags of fresh produce.
Be conscious of the produce you select in the store. If you’re hand-picking each of your individual fruits and vegetables, select produce that is not visibly bruised or damaged, as these items may already be rotting. If you are opting for pre-cut fruits and vegetables, make sure the items you select are being stored under proper conditions (e.g., fruit like pre-cut watermelon should be stored in very cool fridge or surrounded by ice to maintain an optimal temperature).
The FDA recommends washing all fruits and vegetables under cold running water to ensure the food you are about to consume is free of harmful bacteria or pesticide residue. Washing your produce with soap or detergent is not recommended, however. Produce with a firm shell layer, including melons, cucumbers and potatoes should be scrubbed with a clean produce brush while running under water to remove any stubborn residue.
The FDA recommends refrigerating all produce, whether fresh, pre-cut or packaged. Take note of your refrigerator settings and make sure you are creating a safe and effective environment for your foods (generally, 40° F or below). Most modern refrigerators have different compartments for fruits and vegetables.
While these measures can help reduce toxic exposure, it is not possible to eliminate the risk completely. Toxins and contaminants enter the body through the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the water we drink. In addition to food poisoning and other acute consequences of foodborne nasties, toxins build up in the body’s cells over time and interfere with normal body functions. Prolonged or heightened exposure can lead to a range of debilitating health issues, including dementia.
Looking for a detox formula to help your body rid itself of toxic chemicals and pesticides? BodyHealth’s Body Detox™ is an all-natural oral spray that can help your body eliminate toxins quickly and safely. Browse BodyHealth’s Cleanse and Detox collection to learn more about Body Detox and the other detoxifying health products.
*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
If you suffer chronic inflammation, chances are you’ve tried everything you could think of to make the pain go away.
The usual solutions people turn to include:
For most people, these solutions fail to provide consistent, long-term relief.
Medications provide short-term relief, special exercises help to some extent, but herbal remedies or supplements may not have worked as well as you hoped.
In today’s highly competitive economy, the new normal is for food manufacturers to use marketing ploys to make their products appear healthy – even when they aren’t.
Maltodextrin is one of the most common, hidden-in-plain-sight cons on the market today. It is glorified, processed sugar that masquerades as “carbs.”
It might sound unbelievable, but read the following quote from BellChem – a top US producer of maltodextrin:
“Maltodextrin is a complex carbohydrate that can be hundreds of sugar molecules in length, which is much larger than the simple carbohydrate arrangement of glucose. Many soft drinks and other flavored beverages contain maltodextrin in their formulas so that they can have a lower amount of sugar on their nutrition facts labels. On the nutrition label, maltodextrin is included under the “Total Carbohydrate” heading, instead of the “sugars” label.”
The Infantry Battalion that I am fortunate enough to command - 3-187 Infantry, the Iron Rakkasans - conducts an event each Spring called the Iron Warrior Challenge (IWC).
The IWC can be a single event or a series of events designed to test Soldiers physically and mentally. The purpose of this event is to link the currently serving Soldiers with those who previously served in the unit, and to remember those that have gone before us and all they endured in the service of our Great Nation. The event was started by GEN (retired) David Petraeus when he commanded the Iron Rakkasans in the early 90s, and has continued on ever since.
