Healthy by Nature radio show this week: We have one of those rare and much appreciated shows where a doctor skilled in integrative medicine (the best of nature and science) answers your questions. Alfred Johnson, DO is an expert in solving the mysterious, like the conditions mainstream medicine says have no known cause and/or no cure (they just offer to alleviate symptoms). His specialties include allergies, chemical exposures, Lyme disease, headaches, hormones and much more. His tools include thermography, hyperbaric oxygen and chelation. Please call Dr. Johnson during the show with questions at 1-800-281-8255. Click here to find podcasts, show archives and how to listen nationwide.
 
Are your pans adding ingredients to your recipe?

Aluminum. Have you seen an old pitted aluminum pan? Did you ever think about where the metal went that used to be in those tiny pot holes? (Please forgive yet another pun.)  The answer is that someone swallowed it along with their meal! Acidic foods are especially good at dissolving aluminum. I once put aluminum foil over the top of a glass baking dish of lasagna. When I took the casserole out of the refrigerator the next day, the foil was peppered with holes large and small. Apparently, the foil was touching the tomato sauce and it dissolved the metal overnight. Aluminum is certainly not a required mineral but rather a health concern. One scary fact is that aluminum is found in the tangled mess of brain tissue in Alzheimer’s patients. We have many other sources of unwanted aluminum such as antiperspirants (not deodorants), vaccinations, highly advertised multivitamins, some heartburn meds and the heating elements in hot water heaters and coffee pots. It just doesn’t make sense to add a controllable source like cookware to that list.

Non-stick pans. We are cautioned to avoid overheating coated pans because of the Perfluoroalkyl acid fumes they release (like PFOA and PFOS). Folks who have exotic birds know that Teflon® fumes can actually kill their beloved pets. Just this week a couple in North Texas lost 2 beautiful Macaws to fumes generated by their self-cleaning oven (sadly, too common). Remember that canaries were used in times past to detect toxic gas in coal mines? Most humans are not quite that delicate, but who knows how much chronic disease results from a lifetime accumulation of little insults like fumes from a pan?

For example, research indicates these chemicals disrupt hormones, raise insulin levels, damage liver cells, raise cholesterol, increase the risk of obesity, and leave the bodies of pregnant women to preferentially accumulate in the fetus. With high industrial exposure the sky is apparently the limit on side effects. There are also other sources of the chemicals such as the breakdown of compounds used in commercial food packaging, microwave popcorn and factory treatments for fabrics, carpets and stain-resistant clothing.

Although it is likely that no amount of the PFOA’s is really safe, T-fal is a non-stick brand that at least features a Thermo-Spot indicator which supposedly alerts you that the pan is ready but not yet too hot. Even better, I like the sounds of a new green ceramic non-stick called Orgreenic that does not rely on the usual non-stick coating.

Other types. Stainless steel is considered safe, as is glass cookware. Enameled cookware is probably okay because the cooking surface enamel is made from glass. However, I would avoid pans made in China because so many Chinese exports are contaminated with toxic metals such as lead. Iron skillets are supposed to be good if you have iron deficiency anemia, but perhaps not so good if you aren’t. Well-used old iron skillets have such a thick coating of “seasoning” that the food probably doesn’t even come in contact with the iron.

Not cooking. This seems like a good time to mention that cooking in any type of cookware denatures the food to some degree. Lightly steaming vegetables like carrots in a steamer basket doesn’t do much harm and may help us utilize the nutrients. But, in general, the longer food is cooked, the more nutrient value is lost. Besides heat-sensitive vitamins and fragile plant antioxidants, raw foods also contain helpful enzymes that can be lost to heat.  I recommend incorporating at least some raw foods into each meal. A salad is an obvious choice, but there are several “uncookbooks” with wonderful recipes for raw dishes.
 
Last Week
LINK to Archive. Patient advocate and author, Julia Schopick, discusses her book, Honest Medicine. In it she writes about effective, safe and low cost remedies for auto-immune diseases such as Lupus, MS, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Chron’s as well as for other serious conditions such as liver disease, epilepsy and non-healing wounds. Sadly, these remedies are ignored by conventional medicine. There is more info on her website and in this video.

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My first book : Natural Alternatives to Nexium, Maalox, Tagamet, Prilosec & Other Acid Blockers. Subtitle: What to Use to Relieve Acid Reflux, Heartburn, and Gastric Ailments.

My latest book: Aloe Vera-Modern Science Sheds Light on an Ancient Herbal Remedy

The information contained in this newsletter has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The contents are for informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice.

Copyright 2013 Martie Whittekin, CCN