food : weston a. price
Dr. Weston A. Price traveled the world and studied non-industrialized peoples on a quest for the principles and practices of optimum nutrition. In short, he found that peoples who did not waver from their traditional methods of cultivating, procuring and cooking food were healthiest, while peoples that allowed processed, nutrient-lacking foods into their culture undermined wellness and encouraged disease.

For better or for worse, nutritional choices affect generations of peoples. Our children and our children's children deserve nutrient-dense foods that nourish them physically, emotionally and spiritually.

Why do I believe in principles that seem so far from mainstream culture?

When you distill these principles down to their most basic elements they translate into eating foods from the purest sources available and preparing them in a mindful and loving way.

Can you incorporate some of these principles into your life?

Absolutely. As with anything else in life, do only what resonates with you. Make small changes at first and add new principles as you feel comfortable. This isn't a race or competition. This is about nourishing yourself and your family.

These are some of W.A.P.'s most important principles:
Organic Produce
Eat produce that was grown on an organic farm, free of harmful pesticides and other synthetic chemicals. Go a step further and support local farms. The produce will be fresher and more nutritious, and by buying from local food sources, you'll cut down on our dependency on and expenditure of petroleum products.

Pasture-raised Meat & Eggs
Animals raised on pasture receive vital nutrients from the sun; eat natural feeds; roam the land as they please; and are free of hormones and antibiotics. It only makes sense that the quality treatment of livestock translates to more nutritive meats for the humans that consume them.

Commercially raised animals are packed into feed lots; fed unnatural (and often waste) products; injected with hormones to increase production; given antibiotics to thwart diseases created by cramped, unsanitary conditions; and denied access to the outdoors. As they say, "Garbage in, garbage out."

Here's another factoid -- pasture-raised meats actually contain higher levels of good cholesterol than their conventionally raised counterparts.

Grains & Nuts
Grains and nuts contain varying levels of phytic acid, which make them difficult to digest and can actually draw nutrients out of your body. When grains and nuts are soaked, sprouted or sour leavened, they become easier to digest, and the nutrients they do contain are more readily available to your body.

Raw Dairy
Raw milk and dairy products contain all the essential nutrients and enzymes it was meant to have. Raw (unpasteurized) milk is sweet, rich and delicious.

Pasteurized milk is so common that we wouldn't think of drinking it any other way, but let's take a moment to think about why pasteurization was invented.

Pasteurization was an absolute must when people began treating cows improperly. Instead of leading cows out to pasture to feed on green grass, people kept them in barns and fed them unnatural feeds. Cramped, feces-ridden quarters invited disease and the need for medication. Instead of grass and grains, cows were fed waste products like "slop" (leftover from the beer brewing process).

In an effort to cleanse the milk that came from these sick cows, people boiled the harmful bacteria out of the milk. In addition to boiling out harmful bacteria, pasteurization also kills healthy bacteria (probiotics), nutrients and enzymes responsible for digesting lactose.

The answer to drinking safe, healthy milk isn't boiling the heck out of milk from sick cows. The answer is drinking deliciously healthy, raw milk from cows that thrive on sunshine and grass.

Nutrient-dense Foods
Eat foods that are in its purest state, straight from the ground or the animal, not from the factory.

As life seems to demand more of us, we, as a culture, have reserved little time to nourish our bodies. We've become dependent upon the quickest and cheapest ways to feed ourselves, and large companies have gladly fulfilled this perceived need. They claim to alleviate us from the stress of food preparation, but in the process, they deprive us of what we need most -- nutrient-dense food. Processed foods are stripped of true nutrition and filled with synthetic ingredients that wreck havoc on our bodies.

Fermented Foods
Include fermented foods (like kimchi and sauerkraut) and drinks (like kombucha) in your diet. They contain easily digestible nutrients and healthy bacteria essential to digestive health. Fermented foods actually contain more vitamins and minerals than the food in its original, unfermented state.

As we've become more germ-a-phobic (with the use of anti-bacterials and antibiotics) we've also killed off many beneficial bacteria in our environment and in our bodies. All bacteria isn't bad, and mainstream food companies are slowly catching on to this too.

They're marketing things like yogurt with healthful lactobacilli to heal your digestive issues (which, if you eat real yogurt, it's already in there by the millions). They've even gone as far as to add probiotics to baby food.

Instead of relying on someone else to physically add probiotics to your food, why not eat food where beneficial bacteria naturally occur?

Note to pregnant and breastfeeding women:While there are no large-scale, scientific studies to learn from, some people disagree about the safety of kombucha during pregnancy and lactation. Some say that kombucha is safe for pregnant and lactating women if they had already been drinking it before pregnancy. Others say that kombucha should be avoided entirely by pregnant and lactating women. Still others say that only certain brands of kombucha culture are safe for consumption during pregnancy and lactation. Therefore, please conduct further research and make an informed, individual decision.

Cod Liver Oil
The thought of it would make most people wince at the very least, but I assure you that cod liver oil doesn't have to taste like fish. Taylor and I take a brand that comes in strawberry, lemon or orange. Yes, it's still oily, but at least, it doesn't reek of fish.

Cod liver oil is packed with natural sources of vitamins A and D and all those essential fatty acids. A teaspoon for Taylor and a tablespoon for me every morning.

Limit Soy
According to W.A.P., there are a few things to avoid; however, soy tops the list. Because soy possesses hormone-like qualities, it's best to limit the amount of soy one consumes. This is even more challenging if you eat processed foods because soy bi-products are in just about every box or bag with a barcode on it.

Eating a tofu stir-fry once a week probably won't cause harm; however, when you consider the cumulative amount of soy you consume (especially if you eat processed foods), it's quite substantial.

The effects of soy on babies and young children are even more of a concern because their bodies, brains and supportive systems have yet to fully develop. Concern is so high in other countries that they strictly advise against feeding soy formula to infants.

Supporters of soy often cite Asian cultures as soy consumers. While it is true that Asian cultures do consume soy, they do so in small amounts. They do not consume soy milk and soy cheese and soy "meats" and soy bi-product, sludge in the form of processed foods. Our culture has taken a healthful product (when eaten in moderation) and completely abused it.

Highly processed soy (e.g. when it's turned into a meat substitute) creates two harmful bi-products -- MSG (monosodium glutimate) and asparatame. MSG and asparatame are neurotoxins (which translate to poisons for your brain).

MSG is often disguised in processed foods as "natural flavors," "spices," "flavorings," "seasonings" or as hydrolyzed ingredients.

Soy and its synergistic effects with environmental toxins (like plastics and pesticides) have also been linked to the early on-set of puberty. Putting possible causes aside for a moment, I've seen this firsthand in my students. Girls are getting their periods as early as the third grade!

For more W.A.P. principles and information regarding the science behind them, visit the Weston A. Price Foundation website.

updated 7.30.07