I wanted to pass along great ideas from two GreenSmoothieGirl.com readers who wrote me, on how they’ve been successful at getting their kids to eat raw vegetables and fruits:

Use a muffin/cupcake pan and put raw almond butter in one hole, raw hummus in one hole, and fresh guacamole in one hole.   Put cut-up fruits, nuts, and veggies in the rest.   On the far side, you could put some yogurt  blended with berries, next to several holes filled with apple and orange slices.   In several holes, you could put carrots, asparagus (trees!), red bell pepper, and macadamias and walnuts.   The last few holes you could fill with dried apricots or raisins, or a piece of dragon fruit or kiwi slices.

Tonya said, “Both my kids were excited and went to town tasting all the little fruits and veggies and dipping them into different sauces.   It was so colorful and chopped up toddler size.   They loved it.   I was amazed to see that they were going for the asparagus and the red bell pepper first!”

Another mom wrote me and said she told her son that his first green smoothie was called SuperSonic Power Ranger Blaster Juice.   (I was thinking you could label the glass with this title, make up a story about its superhero powers, really go with it.)    Her son  drank it right up and wanted more the next day!  

Nutrition can be fun.   Whole plant foods are pretty and appetizing, especially when you’re creative like these two moms are.   This is really the opposite approach to making it a chore and ranting, “Eat your veggies or you get no dessert!”

Fish oil vs flax oil: which is better?   Fish oils are rich in Essential Fatty Acids, and most people  have thought for the past 10+ years that they are the best source.   This is because  research on EFAs focused on the fish oils for many years.   A very recent study said those taking isolated fish-oil supplements did not have better cardiovascular markers, contrary to popular belief.   Harvard-educated M.D. Donald Rudin says that his own research yielded better results with flaxseed oil.

Fish oil is problematic for a few reasons.   First, contaminants  in water sources mean a lot of fish  contain mercury or other heavy metals, or toxins called lipid peroxides.   Second, some experts say fish oil is  indigestible in the gut (that’s why you burp it up for hours after taking it).   Third,  heat destroys  the EFA alpha linolenic acid in cooking, which is something to consider if you’re getting your EFAs from eating fish.   Fourth, fish oil is  about five times more  expensive, ounce for ounce, than  flax oil.    (And probably about 20 times more expensive than whole flaxseed!)

Fish oil advocates claim that you get EPA and DHA (two fatty acids) from animal sources, whereas flax is low in DHA.   True, but on the other hand, the human body needs very little DHA, as it is stored in the cells and does not need to be replaced often.

Further,  flax is a whole plant food with lots of fiber and many other virtues, including anti-inflammatory, tumor-inhibiting, and mood- and hormone-regulating compounds.   In fact, I believe flaxseed to be potentially the most nutritious food on the planet.   The fish oil vs flax oil debate isn’t over, but  the more I read  on newer research, the more firmly convinced I become that flax will win in the end.

Yesterday I wrote about the benifits of flax seed.   (I misspelled that word on purpose—long story.)   Possibly the very best way to get Essential Fatty Acids is in the form of flax and/or its oil.   However, two cautions are in order.   First, smell the seeds when you purchase them (and look at the expiration date to make sure that they are fresh).   You can usually tell if they smell rancid.   Grind them in your BlendTec right before using them, as they oxidize quickly and have a shelf life of only a few months.   Second, whole flax seeds pass through the intestine doing little other than absorbing liquid, if they aren’t broken down.   So chew flax very well if you eat it whole, or grind it instead.  

You can get your EFAs easily from high-quality flax oil, which must be purchased refrigerated in dark bottles at health food stores.   Barlean’s and Udo’s are excellent brands that use organic flax and refrigerate it from production to point of sale.   One tablespoon of flax oil daily provides an adequate quantity of EFAs with the ideal Omega 3:6 ratio.   Including the whole seed in your diet, as well, will be less expensive and will add dietary fiber.   We will focus on flax seeds again in Ch. 7 of 12 Steps to Whole Foods.

 In addition to flax, foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids also include walnuts, pumpkin or sesame seeds, avocados, and leafy greens like kale, spinach, and collards.   Eating these foods may be even better than eating the oil, because their nutrition will be utilized by the body throughout the day.   I also like hempseed protein powder, which I add to virtually any breakfast (12 Steps to Whole Foods, Ch. 10, or the new recipe collection in my store).   Uses for pumpkin and sesame seeds are found in several chapters of 12 Steps and several of the recipe collections.

www.GreenSmoothieGirl.com

Today I start blogging, in several parts, on good fats.   Hopefully Myth #3 of my Nutrition Manifesto has convinced you to get plenty of good fats in your diet every day?   This week, I’ll post a new YouTube vid showing how to make Flax-Veggie crackers to address ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS, today’s and tomorrow’s topic.   So if you haven’t subscribed to my vids (it’s free!), go to YouTube, find me by searching for “green smoothie” (I’m either #1 or #2), and subscribe!   You’ll be notified every time I post a new demo.   12 Steppers, on April 1, you’ll get a chapter on good fats, with recipes and ideas on how to get them in your diet daily.

Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) are the unsaturated omega-3 (alpha-lenolenic acid) and omega-6 (alpha-lenoleic acid) fats.   They’re called “essential” because the body cannot manufacture them and therefore must be supplied by diet.   (Your body can produce adequate omega-9s if enough essential fats are available.)   These fats support many of the body’s systems, including the nervous, immune, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems.   EFAs are used by the body to make and repair cell membranes and eliminate waste from cells.   They also produce prostoglandins, which regulate blood pressure, clotting, heart rate, and fertility.   EFAs are particularly critical for babies, pregnant women, and children for neural development.

Americans are omega-3 deficient.   We need a ratio of between 1:1 and 4:1 omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acids, but most Americans get between 10:1 and 25:1.   Deficiencies in omega 3, as well as inappropriate omega 6 to omega 3 ratios, have been linked to many of the diseases the U.S. leads the world in: depression, cancer, heart disease, stroke, asthma, lupus, diabetes, ADHD, and Alzheimer’s.   Americans get too much omega 6 partly because of our reliance on processed vegetable oils, which are high in damaged, low-grade versions of that nutrient.

If anyone experiences symptoms of depression, the first thing I recommend trying is flaxseed or flax oil in the diet every day, which can create dramatic improvement.   Yet another reason to enjoy foods rich in EFAs is that they have the effect of combating damage done by the “bad fats.”   The phytoestrogens in flax  are known to  balance hormones for women: too-high estrogen counts tend to come down, and too-low estrogen counts tend to come up, eating flaxseed.   And compounds in this power food are well established tumor inhibitors, so anyone with a history or risk for cancer should take note.

The American Cancer Institute acknowledges 27 different compounds in flaxseed that are anti-carcinogenic!   In recent years, a hot topic of research is the lignan compounds, a special carbohydrate known to prevent both cancer and heart disease, as well as inflammatory conditions.   Flax has the highest known concentration of these lignans, 75 times higher than the next-highest food.

Sold on flax yet?   Read tomorrow for more about eating it.

Q: Dear GreenSmoothieGirl, I was reading about how difficult it is for anyone to get B12.   Do you take any supplements? I’ve transitioned to a raw diet, and assumed all my needs are covered by the massive amounts of fruits and veggies I eat.

A:   You’ll be receiving Myth 4 any day now in your free GreenSmoothieGirl e-letter today (and it will be on the site as well).   To summarize it, I haven’t taken any vitamin/mineral supplements in four years.   Like you, I’ve shifted that spending to whole plant foods, a much better use of my money.

 About Vitamin B12: it’s made by microorganisms in the soil and in the intestines of animals (and humans).   Plants grown in healthy soil with enough B12 will absorb this vitamin, but of course we are mostly eating B12-poor plant foods, because of soil deficiencies.   However, the B12 issue is a much smaller one than the anti-vegans (and the meat/dairy industries) want to make it.   Colin Campbell, Cornell PhD and author/lead researcher of The China Study, says we hold a three-year store of Vita B12 in our bodies.   He says if you do not eat ANY animal products for three years or more, or are pregnant or breastfeeding, you “should consider taking a small B12 supplement on occasion, or [go] to the doctor annually to check your blood levels of B vitamins and homocysteine.”

Q: Dear GreenSmoothieGirl, is that photo on the homepage really you at 41, or is it an old photo like Ann Landers used to use?   Did you retouch the photo?

A: I shouldn’t even run this question, because it’s so self-serving.   But it comes from a European reader, and it’s funny, no?   The answer to the question is, no, I’m not  41 in the photo.   The picture was taken by my 14-year old three months ago when I was still 40.   I needed a photo for the site, since I’m the mom behind the camera, so pictures of me are rare.   I did nothing to it, don’t even know how to doctor a photo.

At age 20, your face is what heredity gave you.   But as the author George Orwell said, “At 50, everyone has the face he deserves.”

I’m going to blog about good fats in the coming week,  starting with  Essential Fatty Acids.  Ch. 4 of 12 Steps (Apr. 1) is about good fats, and  my Flax-Veggie Cracker YouTube vid will be posted any day now.   Getting good fats in your daily diet (and  avoiding bad fats)–and of course,  LOTS of raw veggies and fruits–with some whole grains/legumes for protein and other great stuff . . . it’s the elixir of life.   The fountain of youth.   Very literally the key to your health.   Defy the aging process!

Q: Dear GreenSmoothieGirl, my little girl is anemic and also has been constipated for years. She is taking a prescription iron supplement and also Miralax. Couldn’t I tweak her diet for better iron absorption or something without overloading her on beef, liver, etc?

Q:   Dear GreenSmoothieGirl, I’m trying to figure out what to feed my family, now that we’re committed to eating right, so I’m wondering what your family eats every day.   Could you just give me like  a “day in the life . . .”?

A: Sure.   It’s not that this is the ultimate or the only, but it works for us because I *adore* the pink smoothie  and the granola gives my kids the high calories and good fats they need.   (I don’t need/want as many  calories as they do!)   I do sometimes eat the granola instead, especially if I’ve made the Live Granola in the recipe collection, which I love.    

Breakfast:

Kids: Kefir made from raw goat milk, blended with bananas, in a glass

              plus

              Granola (in recipe collection) with sunflower and alfalfa/clover sprouts added, served with either raw goat milk or rice milk (Rice Dream brand)

Me: Hot-Pink Breakfast Smoothie, 400-500 calories, 9-10% protein

[Note: I've been adding a little kefir, and a tablespoon of hemp protein to increase the protein by several grams.   That's not because I think I need more protein, because I don't (see Myth 1, part 2).   It's because other people think THEY do, so I've been trying out uses for hemp protein for my readers, which is so much better than whey or soy protein powders.    Hempseed is a great way to get more protein!]

Weekends: whole-grain waffles, pancakes, German pancakes, etc. (lots of recipes in Step 10, coming up towards the end of the year for 12 Steps to Whole Foods subscribers)

Lunch:

Kids: whole-grain sandwich, fruit, vegetable (oranges, apples, carrots, celery, baby bell peppers, etc.)

Me: soaked/dehydrated almonds, flax crackers, up to 1 quart green smoothie

After-school snack:

Kids: green smoothie, plus sandwich or toast or popcorn or flax crackers or sprouted/crunchy snack (whatever they get themselves from what I have on hand)

Me: the rest of my green smoothie, if I didn’t already drink it all

Dinner:

1. Big green/vegetable/raw salad with homemade dressing

2. Plant-based hot dish–soups, quinoa dishes, legume/rice/grain/vegetable dishes, etc.  

[Note: I'm about to post new recipe collections for Plant-Based Main Dishes, as well as Sprouted,  Live  Snacks.   12 Step subscribers will get  ALL of this stuff already, but  collections will be available with my very best, tested recipes for others.   My goal with the main dishes is to keep meat lovers happy with hearty, substantive dishes.   Most of the recipes are a "complete protein," and they don't rely on soy.   An upcoming Myth in the Nutrition Manifesto will deal with the controversy of soy, so make sure you're subscribed to my e-letter.]

3. Occasionally some homemade warm cornbread or sourdough bread, too (Ch.  9 of 12 Steps)

4. Sometimes we have a treat like dried fruit, a grapefruit, or one of the healthy desserts in Step 11 (butter-pecan ice cream, chocolate pudding, coconut macaroons or coconut brownies, cherry-almond blondies with  cream sauce, cookies—oh, you 12 Steppers have some fun to look forward to!).

Q: ABOUT SEEDS: In your granola recipe, you indicate soaking sunflower/pumpkin seeds overnight makes them living plants.   I had understood this (making them living plants) didn’t happen until you could see the beginning of sprouting.   Can you do this with flax seeds, soak them overnight and add them to the green smoothie?   I was told if you break/soften the hard shell of the flax seed, the body is able to digest it, getting all the benefits.   Can you grind flax seed and put it in the fridge to be used later?
 

A: Soaking seeds makes them living, yes.   Plants?   Not quite yet.  They’ve germinated even with just a few hours of soaking, and their enzyme inhibitors (as well as  phytic acid) are neutralized.   But the seeds are in the beginning stages of life that fuel the growth of the plant–you’re stealing those enzymes/vitamins/ minerals for yourself before the budding plant can use them.   You could get a sprouting contraption with lights to continue growing them until they are GREENS (or put them in the sun until they “green,” though you risk them molding).   A Yahoo group called “sproutpeople” is dedicated to this.   But I usually eat my sprouts when they are just soaked, or sprouted to ½ the length of the seed or a bit longer.  Soaking flax seeds before adding to your green smoothie—YES, great idea if you don’t mind it thickening your smoothie.   We will do a lot of this in Step  7 of 12 Steps to Whole Foods on sprouting/dehydrating (I always soak flax seeds to make crackers, etc.).   I’ll be doing some YouTube demos on sprouting, making flax crackers, etc. in the next few weeks.   You can subscribe to my YouTube vids so you’re notified when I have a new one.    You can grind the flax seed in advance, but use them within a few days, as flax (especially broken down in any way) oxidizes quickly.