Soy-anara

With all the lovely
fruits and veggies
beginning to arrive in
our local grocers and 
farmer's markets this time
of the year, I was already
inspired to up the ante
on healthy eating.


So when my doctor advised

me to avoid unfermented

soy, unless it was organic

edamame or soy nuts,

I figured, 

I'm up for this....
how hard can it be?  

I rarely eat tofu unless

we are eating out an

 Asian restaurant.

I rarely drink soy milk 

unless I have a Chai Tea 

soy latte at a coffee shop.

I rarely cook with soy

products unless I am trying

a recipe that calls for it.

{And soy sauce and miso

are fermented.}

No big deal, right?

Wrong.

So,

so,

SO

wrong.

My friends, when I began

reading labels for soy, I found 

that it is omnipresent....

It's in most brands of

bread

vegetable oil

mayonaise

frozen waffles
tortillas
salad dressing

breakfast bars

canned soup

cereals

canned tuna

meat balls

sauces

protein bars

chocolate

cookies

crackers

frozen foods

baking mixes

chips

ice cream
ice cream cones 

carmel corn

rice cakes

pudding

pet food

just to name a few.

So what?  you ask.

There are a multitude of reasons

to avoid unfermented soy for better

health.  The top case in my mind

is that 99% of soy is genetically

modified {gmo} to be resistant

to pesticides and herbicides and

is considered to be one of the 

most highly contaminated

food products in the U.S.

Ugh.

In North America, only soy

products labelled organic are

guaranteed not to be genetically

modified and not to be treated

with pesticides and herbicides.

But even organic, unfermented

soy may be bad for our health,

despite the millions of dollars

that big food companies

have poured into advertising

and label claims.

Why?

It contains plant estrogens,

toxins and anti-nutrients,

which cannot be removed

through processing, and
can adversely affect 
our well-being.

The bottom line?  Soy oil, soy

flour and processed soy products 

such as soy lecithin and soy protein

isolate, are cheap.  And inexpensive

ingredients mean more profits for

the companies that manufacture

the foods we eat.


Even those we assume
are nutritious.

When was the last time you

added soy lecithin to your 

home cooking?  

The ideal way to avoid soy

is to stick to unprocessed

foods or to make your own.

But since most of us do not

have or make the time to

bake our own bread or

whip up our own mayo,

ice cream, crackers, etc.,

it is imperative to read

labels and to know what

you are consuming.

Because knowledge is

a powerful tool for creating

and maintaining wellness
for ourselves and for
our families.

So, I say, 

soy-anara! 

gmo

unfermented soy.

How about you?

The first wealth
is health.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

xo

Suzanne

PS:

You can learn more about

 the soy controversy 

here, 

here,

and

here.

The Season for Growing Young

So much about the

summertime season

brings out my

inner child.

The thwack! of

a bat when it makes

contact with a

baseball.

The slam of a

wooden screen 

door.

The taste of a

juicy, ripe peach.

The softness of

the morning air

before the day

heats up.

The dit-dit-dit

of the sprinklers.

The joy of watching

a seed become a

seedling.

Bare feet on

cool grass.

Thunderstorms.

Porch swings.

Root beer floats.

I was watching

a video blog a

few weeks ago

and the blogger 

reminded viewers

that when we were

little, we would

proudly announce

that,

I'm six and half,

but soon I will be

seven!

And you were very,

very excited at the

prospect of becoming

older.

She pointed out that

it would be oh-so-cool

if we heard adults

say,

I'm 36 and a half, but

soon I will be 40!

embracing our wisdom

and the prospect of

a new season of life.

That's how I feel about

the summer; it makes

me grow younger, at

least for a few months,

as I celebrate the simple

pleasures that seem to

abound at this time.

It's May 18th,

but soon it

will be July 4th!

I have already warmed

the bleachers at 10 baseball

games, often viewing the 

sun setting below the 

horizon. The lights, the 

cheering, the scent of 

popcorn wafting on the 

breeze, take me back to a 

time when life seemed 

like nothing but a giant

possibility.

What summertime

joys make your 

heart

sing?

Can you feel

yourself,

growing

younger?

xo

Suzanne

The Other List

Beware the

barrenness

of a 

busy

life.

~ Socrates

Two weeks ago as I 

was preparing to go out

of town for a long

weekend, I found myself

overwhelmed

with my to-do list.

As I plowed on through 

it, a check mark next to 

each completed item, it 

suddenly occurred to me 

that some 

very

important 

tasks were not 

on

that list.

For fun {and as break

from the more mundane

jobs} I made

The

Other

List.

Kiss my husband.

Cuddle my dog.

Laugh with my kids.

Send an I am thinking

of you text to a friend.

Snip a lilac.  

Inhale the scent.

Spend five minutes 

stretching.

Turn on some music.  

Sing.....loudly!

{Yes.  Sadly, there
are days when these
gorgeous things
do not happen.}

I noticed that consulting

The Other List as I went

about tackling the regular

docket of chores lifted my

whole need-to-do mentality

to a happier, 

brighter 

level.

It also helped to insure 

that another day would not

go by where I hadn't taken

the time 

to

sing 

cuddle 

laugh

kiss 

stretch

love 

or appreciate the small

wonders of this journey

that I am so very, very

fortunate to be living.

{I do not want to

be that busy person

who Socrates talked

about!}

And I loved, loved, 

loved putting a check

mark next to each

of those things on

my Other List.

What would 
you write on
your own

Other List?

xx

Suzanne

PS:  Visit me here,
today : )


PPS:  Congrats to, the

winners of the Novica

giveaway,
Beatnheart &
SuzyMcQ!!