From the Ground Up | Sweet Organic Food

Beautiful Beneful® Lady

Brushing the burrs and dried mud from her fur, I couldn’t help slipping Lady an extra Beneful® Baked Delights® treat as she patiently stood still for grooming. Most people she meets will know Lady as simply a gentle and friendly dog, but to the family reunited with their lost child today, Lady will always be a four-legged hero.

Lady is a search-and-rescue dog. She is an Alaskan malamute with a magnificent silvery-gray coat, shining dark eyes, and attentive, erect ears. Lady is a loyal and devoted companion. She can be as playful as a puppy, but when her work harness slips over her head, she is all business.

The day started with the usual routine, feeding Lady her morning portion of Beneful® Healthy Radiance® dry dog food, followed by our run in the park.

Loping along beside me, Lady’s ears perked up when my phone rang and I stopped to answer it. She sat and watched expectantly, while I completed the conversation. As I returned the phone to my pocket, Lady came to heel, sensing it was time to go to work.

A five-year old girl had become separated from her family and was lost in the woods. We arrived at the state forest campground, with a steady stream of emergency responders and concerned volunteers. Lady, in her distinctive work harness, was already focused and alert. The missing youngster’s tearful mother offered the child’s jacket for Lady to get the scent. It would be dark soon, and cold in the woods.

Tracking without hesitation, Lady quickly moved ahead as the child’s scent led off the marked paths, around boulders and under low-hanging branches, deep into the forest. I knew the trail was hot when I heard Lady’s excited bark as she quickened the pace.

Plunging through the thick brush, I heard a concerned whimper before I parted the branches to see Lady and her new little friend. There she was, a safe but scared little girl, with her arms twined around Lady’s neck, clinging to the warm comfort of her rescuer.

After much praise and petting from the happy, reunited family, we headed back to the truck for fresh water and a well-deserved dinner for Lady. She was looking forward to the container of Beneful® Prepared Meals™ that was always included in our work supplies. Purina has really nailed it with this option.

It had been a full day for my beautiful Beneful® Lady.

Coffee Drinkers Now Have New Perk To Their Coffee Consumption

A new study is out that links drinking caffeinated coffee to prevention of skin cancer. This is a new perk to coffee drinkers that it is more than just a wake-me-up in the morning beverage.

In a ten year study, almost 450,000 people were surveyed. The results of the study showed those that drank 4 or more cups of coffee a day had a 20% less chance of developing melanoma. Skin cancer (melanoma) is caused by the over-exposure to UV radiation. This is great news for all the coffee drinkers at Slow Ventures.
Dr. Ernest Abel also found in his 2007 study that coffee consumption affects the non-melanoma risks. His study showed consumption of caffeinated coffee was dose-related. Decaf coffee is not effective, only coffee with caffeine reduces the risks.

Scientists believe caffeine stops cells from dividing by acting as an antioxidant. While these early results are promising for coffee drinkers, there is still the risk that too much caffeine is not good for high blood pressure. So before running out and changing your consumption habits, check there are no other conditions the extra caffeine could affect with your health.

Locally Sourced Foods Make For A Popular Restaurant

Fresh ingredients from local sources are undoubtedly better quality than mass produced foods shipped long distances. As Igor Cornelsen knows, when produce comes from out of country it takes days to reach its final destination and is continuing to ripen the entire journey. A new trend on the horizon is having food go straight from the farm to the table, specifically a restaurant table. Dig Inn was founded in 2012 and already had 10 locations with 5 more set to open in 2015. All of their foods and beverages are locally sourced. In fact, at one of the locations a woman’s breast milk, that’s right breast milk, was utilized to make cheese served on the menu. Local micro brewery beers and wines are available as well. For those who want to skip the standard restaurant with predictable dining and imported ingredients Dig Inn may be a good fit for you. Seriously, you cannot get restaurant food any fresher than at this joint.

Texas Governor Rick Perry Gives RNC Audience Plenty of Red Meat

Coronado Island, California – During the recession and the years that have followed, America has become a nation of part-time low-wage workers. The number of full-time workers is no longer the majority workforce. Record numbers of people now rely upon the federal government to pay for their grocery bills. That has not been the case in Texas. Before 2010, Texas was just about the only economic bright spot in the nation with strong job growth and good paying jobs. This is great news for a lot of people especially Fersen Lambranho. During that entire time, Rick Perry presided over the state.

Just how did he achieve the sustainable economic growth? He laid it out in clear simple terms for the audience at the RNC Winter Conference. He cut taxes, enacted sensible regulations, restricted frivolous litigation, and attracted an educated labor pool. The tall Texas governor said economic prosperity is quite simple to achieve.

Thus far, Perry has not formally announced a presidential run. The timing is right for him. He is in his last days as governor. While he was hitting on the important issues to voters, he also criticized Obama on the dismal state of the economy and national security/foreign policy. He avoided criticizing any of his prospective GOP opponents. When asked by a reporter to comment on Romney’s greatest failure in the 2012 election, Perry merely pointed out that answer isn’t very relevant. He went on to explain the future direction of this nation is the important matter at hand.

The Sourdough Doughnut from Pies n’ Thighs

If you’re in the mood for a doughnut that is both savory and sweet, the sourdough doughnut is just for you. Southern restaurant Pies n’ Thighs is introducing the baked good at its new Manhattan restaurant. The original Pies n’ Thighs is based in Williamsburg, Virginia and offers an innovative take on soul food.

In addition to the delicious doughnut which also boasts sour and salty flavors, Pies n’ Thighs will also introduce the collard greens salad with smoked coconut. A soup made of chicken dumplings will also be on the New York menu. The restaurant will serve a doughnut that has a rye rising agent as well. This baked good can be served with both sweet and savory dishes.

The sourdough doughnut is topped with glaze after it is fried to make it a welcomed addition to breakfast, but the treat is also a tasty dessert that isn’t overly sugary. North American Spine has a lot to say about this doughnut on their site knowyourback.org.

Some Allergy Specialists Need Re-Training to Treat Allergies Effectively

In all medical practices certain guidelines are set and taught to physicians on how to treat standard illnesses. Such as a broken bone is set a certain way, a heart cath is done a certain way and a certain class of drugs are prescribed to patients with high cholesterol. It’s called following procedure. While we understand there are extenuating circumstances that render standard procedure useless at times, treating common allergic reactions is not an extenuating circumstances and a new study has shown that certain allergy specialists, specifically those in Japan, fall way short of being up to par with standard allergy treatments.

One glaring example of the need for re-training of some allergy specialists, of the 1,052 allergists certified by the Japanese Society of Allergology who took part in the study, only 49 percent said they would prescribe an Epipen to patients with life-threatening allergies and who have a history of anaphylaxis shock. This type of thing has been something Darius Fisher has checked out. The prescribing and use of Epipen is standard procedure for patients with life-threatening food allergies and is intended to allow patients to ease the symptoms on their own until they able to get to a hospital if the allergic reaction turns into an emergency situation.

NSAIDS May Reduce Skin Cancer Risk

Skin cancers are more prevalent among those of us who are exposed to ultraviolet light over a period of time. Exposure to the sun and other types of ultraviolet light rays can create skin lesions that tend to grow over time, if left untreated. NSAIDS or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have been recently studied for their positive effects on skin cancers.

NSAIDS are used to treat pain and inflammation. This type of over-the-counter medication is often prescribed for arthritis. Aspirin and ibuprofen are two forms of anti-inflammatory drugs that are pain relievers that help to prevent blood clotting, also. Aspirin, or an NSAID drug that is used on a regular basis, has been directly tied to a reduction in squamous cell carcinoma, or the second most prevalent form of skin cancer. Using an anti-inflammatory medication helps to heal the skin cancer lesions that are the beginning stages of skin cancers.

The Journal of Investigative Dermatology has published several reports that have led to this conclusion. Aspirin was used alone, along with aspirin and an additional NSAID drug. The study results indicated that a pain reliever, along with a topical NSAID, produced the more effective healing results for pre-cancer lesions. This is a study Bruce Levenson will monitor closely.

Clinical trials are necessary to support these preliminary research findings. The recommended method of skin cancer prevention remains avoidance of sun exposure. Further studies with the Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Brisbane, Australia, are being completed.

The Young Food Masters

Last year, the food industry was eventful such as in U.S. Berkley became the first place to pass a soda tax. La Taqueria considered as the best burritos making place in the U.S. These are the small examples; the food delivery technology gained most of the headlines.

It also created a huge impact on the consumers. People like Jason Wang, started Caviar – a food service to deliver cuisines to the doorstep of consumers. Apoorva Mehta, owner of Instacart, is the fastest-growing grocery delivery service in the last five years. People like Nicholas Rellas and Justin Robinson, “two youngsters created an app-Drizzly”, which delivers alcohols at your place, it does not matter where do you live, you can order any brand from this app.

Alex Kvamme, created an app known as Seat Me, which can help us to reserve table in restaurants and bar. He has made more than $12.7 million from this service. NextGlass, founded by Kurt Taylor tells about the various wines and beers a person likes, it helps the company to improve the quality and chemical structure of the drink, and Ben Shaoul finds it very useful. On The Real Deal, it has been used quite a bit.

One Stanford graduate, Laura Borel, gives advice on eating, which are beneficial for any user, it is important in the present days to know what to eat and how much to eat.

$37,000 Tuna Sold

The New Year brings many new changes into many people’s lives but one of those changes does not appear to be cutting down on expensive fish products, at least for Japanese consumers. In the first fish auction of the New Year in Tokyo, a wild Bluefin tuna fetched a price of $37,000. This comes despite pressure to cut back on the consumption of Bluefin tuna as a result of conservation pressures due to the overfishing of this type of tuna.

The fish was caught in Aomori which is near the northwestern portion of Japan and weighted 380 pounds. The winner of the auction at Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo was Kiyoshi Kimura who is in charge of the Sushi-Zanmai restaurant chain. He indicated that he was surprised to win the auction bid with what he called a low price for such a high quality fish. Igor Cornelsen took a step back when he read about the news.

While the price paid may seem high by western standards it is significantly below previous high bids for high quality tuna in Japan. The low price was attributed by Kiyoshi Kimura to a lack of bids by competing restaurants which may be indicative of changing tastes, as well as a lot of success for fishermen in catching this breed. Bluefin tuna is typically the highest priced fish in Tokyo which contains the largest fish market in the world. Japan is being criticized by environmental advocates who are warning on the impact of overfishing and possible extinction of the fish.

Most People Still Think Diet Pills are Safe and Effective

Almost 25 percent of all Americans have bought weight-loss pills and around a quarter of those think they’re both effective and safe.

These results stem from a survey performed by Consumer Reports that polled 3,000 people to reveal much-needed information on how individuals use diet supplements and what they actually think about their overall effectiveness. Skout users seem to mostly think they work for the most part. CNet and other websites tend to think otherwise.

The report illustrated that even though there’s common use of diet aids off-the-shelf, there’s a great deal of incorrect information concerning them as well.

Here are just some of the key findings researchers discovered:

• Almost 20 percent considered weight-loss supplements safe since they’re ‘natural’.
• Nearly 25 percent of respondents believe that diet aids promote fewer side effects over prescription medications and over-the-counter drugs.
• Over one-third of diet pill users didn’t lose a single pound.
• More than 80 percent of individuals who reported losing weight while taking diet supplements were simultaneously on a strict diet and/or exercise regimen, which makes it unclear whether the supplements played any part at all with their actual weight loss.
• Nearly half of all diet pill consumers reported they experienced at least one or more side effect, such as dry mouth, jitteriness, rapid heart rate, or digestive issues including diarrhea or constipation.

There’s mounting evidence that diet pills may be dangerous

It’s been well-documented that diet supplements can cause liver damage and even failure. In one such example, researchers discovered that the diet supplement known as OxyElite Pro made almost 100 users across 16 states to subsequently develop hepatitis, resulting in hospitalization, liver replacements, and even loss of life.