My Life as a Guinea Pig

"It's much easier to ask for forgiveness, than to ask for permission." It can also be less expensive!

Have you ever wondered if perhaps there is more money going into things that are creating health issues, then money going into solving or curing health issues?  That is not to say that anyone is intentionally using us as guinea pigs, creating health issues for profit... I hope!  This reminds me of a philosophy used by a past employer, who also made several unsuccessful attempts at becoming an elected official in politics. "It's much easier to ask for forgiveness, than to ask for permission." Could it be that big corporations use the same approach for new products? Assuming that it is much easier to fix a problem that "might" occur, if they can be proven responsible, rather than try to figure out the risks.

I have spent many hours tonight, today, this morning... What time is it anyway??? Trying to understand the concern over the deregulation of Genetically Modified (GM) alfalfa.  As if there is some reason that this is worse than GM corn, soy beans or anything else that is genetically modified. There are literally hundreds of articles, references, reports and studies on the subject. The best source, with many resource links, is, in my opinion, Wikipedia's "Genetically Modified Foods". I wish I had looked at this first, instead of last.  

The truth of the matter is that we have been consuming genetically modified foods since the early 1990's, without any useful studies being done prior to there release. I love this statement I found, quoted in Harvest of Fear from an article done by the Chicago Tribune on 9/3/2000, on Genetically Altered Foods: 

"Today the vast majority of foods in supermarkets contain 

genetically modified substances whose effects on our health 

are unknown. As a medical doctor, I can assure you that 

no one in the medical profession would attempt to perform 

experiments on human subjects without their consent. Such 

conduct is illegal and unethical. Yet manufacturers of 

genetically altered foods are exposing us to one of the largest 

uncontrolled experiments in modern history."

--Dr. Martha R. Herbert, pediatric neurologist

The reality of the risks and effects may never be proven, something large corporations may be counting on.  Given all the other environmental factors that effect our lives, how can it be proven that something like "corn" has caused an illness or a disease? Genetically modified corn or organic corn, many would argue that there is no difference. The battle to prove otherwise could take years to fight in the courts, before any action could be taken to prove responsibility for GMO's.  

I looked at many things over the past several hours, including genetics, epigenetics, proteolytic digestion, protein composition & digestive processing, and many other things that I could find to try and better understand the report done by the USDA on Roundup Ready (GM) Alfalfa, to allow deregulation.  

I will leave you to make your own decisions on GMO's (the link above from Wikipedia covers a lot of ground and the 2nd bullet below was the report used for deregulation of GM alfalfa), but here is just one more piece of information to consider. With the understanding that proteins might have an effect on genetics, and more specifically epigenetics that control expression of our genes/DNA which can be turned on or off like a switch:  

• 1st from FAQS  “because many plant proteins lack one or more... Incomplete proteins can, however, be combined... though combinations of incomplete proteins must be consumed at the same time... to obtain the maximum nutritive value from the amino acids."
•  2nd from the USDA, Glyphosate-Tolerant Alfalfa Events J101 and J163: Request for Nonregulated Status Final Environmental Impact Statement— December 2010  “family of EPSPS proteins that naturally occur in crops... that have a long history of safe consumption by humans and animals. Monsanto also explained... and (3) the CP4 EPSPS protein is susceptible to rapid proteolytic digestion in simulated gastric fluid.” Apendex Q, page 5, 1-3 Gene and Gene Product.

My take is that they count on weak plant proteins from GM Crops to be rendered useless in stomach digestion, but what I have found on the internet is that those weak or incomplete proteins can be made complete if consumed with other weak or incomplete proteins from other sources.  

And I didn't even touch on the potential soil and environmental impact! 

One thing you can be sure of is that Shaklee ingredients, including those used for their Alfalfa Complex, will not include genetically modified ingredients.  For my family, and especially my little girl who has Prader-Willi syndrome, Shaklee products give me hope for the future.

Terry Guinn, A Healthier You Too

Treat your family to the quality products they deserve. Shaklee products are always safe, always work, and are always green. If you would like more information about Shaklee products, please contact me, Terry Guinn, Shaklee Independent Distributor, through my website at  www.ahealthieryoutoo.com or if you would like to checkout the products for yourself, go to my Shaklee page at  www.ahealthieryoutoo.myshaklee.com 

Shakleebaby & Shakleekids

Taco Bell-ch

http://terrysnotebook.blogspot.com/

It takes a lot to surprise me these days, and when I saw that Taco Bell was being sued for their potential stretch in using the word beef for something that might not qualify... Well, I thought that to be somewhat humorous, especially since I prefer the chicken products and since I have been playing with fast food for a few months on my other Blog.  It seemed humorous, until I read the full story and then checked out the ingredients page for Taco Bell products.

What first caught my eye was the "anti-dusting agent" and "maltodextrin". Hmmmmm? Of course, we all know that there are a lot of chemicals, compounds and additives going into our foods, especially into our fast foods in order to improve taste, maintain quality and preserve them for long periods of time... You did know that, didn't you?  It seems that the anti-dusting agent and maltodextrin were not the worse things that I would find in my research.


Part of the chemistry experiment that gives us Taco Bell's "Seasoned Ground Beef" includes "fiber" for our diet, in the way of silicon dioxide.  Ok, perhaps my technical understanding of the use of silicon dioxide is too limited to understand the use and safety of this chemical compound that is commonly found in nature as sand or quartz. AND, is more commonly used in the production of glass and optical "fiber"! LOL  Seriously! Check it out at this link.  

Check out the ingredients for yourself at this Taco Bell link.  

As I said at the beginning, I thought this to be humorous because I prefer the chicken products from Taco Bell... Until I read that silicon dioxide was also used in the chicken products, rice, chilli and others, but no more than 2%... Is it just me, or does 2% seem like a lot? 

I will say this for Taco Bell, they have a very detailed list of ingredients and are quite possibly more forth coming and up front than most fast food chains.  They might not be required to list all of these ingredients because of the FDA’s GRAS policy (generally recognized as safe).  A policy that is over my head!

One thing that is not over my head, is the growing trend toward creating the best tasting food that is not necessarily good for you. Looking at labels and understanding ingredients is important for my family because my daughter has Prader-Willi Syndrome.  We are the lucky ones, forced to be health conscious and we have discovered a great company to help us. Shaklee is committed to providing natural nutrition and green cleaning products, plus so much more. Over 80,000 quality tests annually, with a history of over 50 years of helping families.

Isn't it time you took a, run... from the border, and started thinking, outside the... restaurant?

Terry Guinn, A Healthier You Too

Treat your family to the quality products they deserve. Shaklee products are always safe, always work, and are always green. If you would like more information about Shaklee products, please contact me, Terry Guinn, Shaklee Independent Distributor, through my website at  www.ahealthieryoutoo.com or if you would like to checkout the products for yourself, go to my Shaklee page at  www.ahealthieryoutoo.myshaklee.com 

Shakleebaby & Shakleekids