Re: Probiotics from dirt; Commentary - Any other gardeners here?

[Guest guest]

Jan, Wholehearted agreement from me!! I've eaten more dirt than you can count,

especially once I was able to sneak from my mother who was germafobic. I always

let my own kids be as dirty as they wanted, fed them on the run whatever they

would eat wherever they were, and still enjoy fruits and veggies right after

picked from the tree or bush. I don't even wipe them off. Of course, when buying

foods at the market I do wash them and watch for germs bc I don't know who's

touched them or what they've been exposed to before they went on the neat

shelves, or how long they sat there. My younger daughter gets all her veggies

and fruits delivered weekley from an organic coop, and started feeding them to

her now very healthy, sturdy and tough 16 mon.old (after a few infancy feeding

problems and alarming weight issues). I agree that most people, not just

children, do not allow exposure to enough bacteria to get it to thrive in their

gut. My husband (city raised) and I grow our own veggies as much as we can,

winter (whatever that is in Southern CA) and summer (mostly year round). I also

just planted 10 new fruit trees to replace several that I've lost to old age and

disease and plan to replace the 3 dying apricots (my favorite) this fall bc I

can't squeeze one more fruit out of any of them. I only hope I am around to

trudge down the slope to pick the first fruits in a few years! My g/son is going

to build some terracing and put stepping stones down bc I'm not as graceful as I

never used to be, but we want to make sure I can harvest w/o breaking anything

important. Digna

Probiotics from dirt; Commentary - Any other gardeners here?

Hi All,

Just some commentary, musings from the gardening side of myself. Any other

gardeners/farmers out there care to chime in? Probiotic experts?

(I just spent a few hours pulling weeds and digging and planting - returned

from 7 months of travel to start a LATE garden this summer. . . but June when

I just picked lilacs isn't that late in my area.)

I grew up on a farm, my father a successful farmer from a long line of

farmers. My mother always loved working in her huge garden, and of course, as

one

of 10 children, I was expected to work in both the fields and the garden and

with the animals. Between my father's farming, animal husbandry and hunting

and my mother's garden, we probably produced/ate 70% of the food we ate.

Well, now, at 50 y/o, it must be genetic. I can't resist getting in the

dirt, raising my own food when I can, even on a very small scale, buying from

a

CSA or farmers market - when I can, when I need more food.

So, thinking about dirt and probiotics.

After pulling weeds, getting dirt on my hands and under my fingernails, I

brushed my hands off and since my husband and I were a bit hungry, pulled a

snack of organic chips and fresh salsa out and proceeded to dip a couple

chips.

Then, I realized I'd not washed my hands. . . I was working outside and

brought the snacks outside after all. I wonder how many probiotics I and other

farmers consume because we're not " germ paranoid. "

It dawned on me that when growing up, we would usually wash our hands before

eating meals, but when meals were served " in the field " - of course, we

just brushed off the dust or dirt and ate. That was daily during harvest

season.

I've been wondering why we need to suggest people EAT bacteria (probiotics)

and a whole INDUSTRY had grown around making sure we get our bacteria. (i.e.

probiotics)

I got it. . . Children sadly don't play in dirt enough today. People don't

have gardens. Everybody washes their hands compulsively. People grow up in an

environment where there's no " natural " around them, as they attempt to

decorate their abode in " natural tones. "

Okay, now, . It seems my bros/sisters (from 44 - 65 y/o with an 83 y/o

mother) are much healthier than the average person I see. I recall local

friends/farmers with a daily diet of eggs, bacon, red meat, organic game and

fish,

butter - but also fresh fruits or vegetables with each meal - or berries in

pie

- , lots of exercise and sunlight (Vitamin D farmer tans) and minimal " junk

food " or artificial flavors or additives. They lived healthy lives till they

were 90+.

I can't help but think that if more Americans got closer to where their food

comes and from/the earth, maybe we'd find healthier patients as well.

I think I'll continue to recommend whole, organic foods, minimally processed

and always, as tolerated, more fruits and veggies than the " usual " person

eats.

Okay, if you've read this far, thanks for listening . . . as always, I love

input, agreement, disagreement, and discussion! At least this one wasn't my

usual frustrated or angry rant. . . just some musings with strong opinions!!

;-) Hmmm, maybe time to start my own blog. . .

Jan Patenaude, RD, CLT

PS. If this interests you, consider joining the HEN dpg (Hunger and

Environmental Nutritionists DPG) - lots of organic farmer RDs and such in that

group!

Once I joined, I felt " at home. "

Jan Patenaude, RD, CLT

Consultant, Writer, Speaker

Director of Medical Nutrition

Signet Diagnostic Corporation

(Mountain Time)

Fax:

DineRight4@...

Mediator Release Testing and LEAP Diet Protocol for Irritable Bowel

Syndrome, Migraine, Fibromyalgia and more, caused by food sensitivity

IMPORTANT - This e-mail message is intended only for the use of the

individual or entity to which it is addressed, and may contain information

that is

privileged, confidential and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If

you have received this message in error, you are hereby notified that we do

not

consent to any reading, dissemination, distribution or copying of this

e-mail message. If you have received this communication in error, please

notify

the sender immediately by e-mail and telephone ( toll free) and

destroy the transmitted information.

E-mail transmission cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error-free as

information could be intercepted, corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late,

incomplete, or contain viruses. The sender therefore does not accept liability

for

any errors or omissions in the contents of this message, which arise as a

result of e-mail transmission.

**************Gas prices getting you down? Search AOL Autos for

fuel-efficient used cars.

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[Guest guest]

So true! Interestingly even worm infections can be useful in preventing

inflammatory bowel disease-see below...

Hindawi Publishing Corporation

Clinical and Developmental Immunology

Volume 2008, Article ID 567314, 7 pages

doi:10.1155/2008/567314

Review Article

Worms and the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease:

AreMolecules the Answer?

The lack of exposure to helminth infections, as a result of improved living

standards and medical conditions,may have contributed

to the increased incidence of IBD in the developed world. Epidemiological,

experimental, and clinical data sustain the idea that

helminths could provide protection against IBD. Studies investigating the

underlying mechanisms by which helminths might

induce such protection have revealed the importance of regulatory pathways, for

example, regulatory T-cells. Further investigation

on how helminths influence both innate and adaptive immune reactions will shed

more light on the complex pathways used

by helminths to regulate the hosts immune system. Although therapy with living

helminths appears to be effective in several

immunological diseases, the disadvantages of a treatment based on living

parasites are explicit. Therefore, the identification and

characterization of helminth-derived immunomodulatory molecules that contribute

to the protective effect could lead to new

therapeutic approaches in IBD and other immune diseases.

________________________________

From: rd-usa [mailto:rd-usa ] On Behalf Of Digna

Cassens

Sent: Thursday, July 03, 2008 11:29 PM

To: rd-usa ; neuroendolist@...

Cc: cda-listserv ; LEAP_RDs

Subject: Re: Probiotics from dirt; Commentary - Any other gardeners

here?

Jan, Wholehearted agreement from me!! I've eaten more dirt than you can count,

especially once I was able to sneak from my mother who was germafobic. I always

let my own kids be as dirty as they wanted, fed them on the run whatever they

would eat wherever they were, and still enjoy fruits and veggies right after

picked from the tree or bush. I don't even wipe them off. Of course, when buying

foods at the market I do wash them and watch for germs bc I don't know who's

touched them or what they've been exposed to before they went on the neat

shelves, or how long they sat there. My younger daughter gets all her veggies

and fruits delivered weekley from an organic coop, and started feeding them to

her now very healthy, sturdy and tough 16 mon.old (after a few infancy feeding

problems and alarming weight issues). I agree that most people, not just

children, do not allow exposure to enough bacteria to get it to thrive in their

gut. My husband (city raised) and I g row our own veggies as much as we can,

winter (whatever that is in Southern CA) and summer (mostly year round). I also

just planted 10 new fruit trees to replace several that I've lost to old age and

disease and plan to replace the 3 dying apricots (my favorite) this fall bc I

can't squeeze one more fruit out of any of them. I only hope I am around to

trudge down the slope to pick the first fruits in a few years! My g/son is going

to build some terracing and put stepping stones down bc I'm not as graceful as I

never used to be, but we want to make sure I can harvest w/o breaking anything

important. Digna

Probiotics from dirt; Commentary - Any other gardeners here?

Hi All,

Just some commentary, musings from the gardening side of myself. Any other

gardeners/farmers out there care to chime in? Probiotic experts?

(I just spent a few hours pulling weeds and digging and planting - returned

from 7 months of travel to start a LATE garden this summer. . . but June when

I just picked lilacs isn't that late in my area.)

I grew up on a farm, my father a successful farmer from a long line of

farmers. My mother always loved working in her huge garden, and of course, as

one

of 10 children, I was expected to work in both the fields and the garden and

with the animals. Between my father's farming, animal husbandry and hunting

and my mother's garden, we probably produced/ate 70% of the food we ate.

Well, now, at 50 y/o, it must be genetic. I can't resist getting in the

dirt, raising my own food when I can, even on a very small scale, buying from a

CSA or farmers market - when I can, when I need more food.

So, thinking about dirt and probiotics.

After pulling weeds, getting dirt on my hands and under my fingernails, I

brushed my hands off and since my husband and I were a bit hungry, pulled a

snack of organic chips and fresh salsa out and proceeded to dip a couple chips.

Then, I realized I'd not washed my hands. . . I was working outside and

brought the snacks outside after all. I wonder how many probiotics I and other

farmers consume because we're not " germ paranoid. "

It dawned on me that when growing up, we would usually wash our hands before

eating meals, but when meals were served " in the field " - of course, we

just brushed off the dust or dirt and ate. That was daily during harvest season.

I've been wondering why we need to suggest people EAT bacteria (probiotics)

and a whole INDUSTRY had grown around making sure we get our bacteria. (i.e.

probiotics)

I got it. . . Children sadly don't play in dirt enough today. People don't

have gardens. Everybody washes their hands compulsively. People grow up in an

environment where there's no " natural " around them, as they attempt to

decorate their abode in " natural tones. "

Okay, now, . It seems my bros/sisters (from 44 - 65 y/o with an 83 y/o

mother) are much healthier than the average person I see. I recall local

friends/farmers with a daily diet of eggs, bacon, red meat, organic game and

fish,

butter - but also fresh fruits or vegetables with each meal - or berries in pie

- , lots of exercise and sunlight (Vitamin D farmer tans) and minimal " junk

food " or artificial flavors or additives. They lived healthy lives till they

were 90+.

I can't help but think that if more Americans got closer to where their food

comes and from/the earth, maybe we'd find healthier patients as well.

I think I'll continue to recommend whole, organic foods, minimally processed

and always, as tolerated, more fruits and veggies than the " usual " person

eats.

Okay, if you've read this far, thanks for listening . . . as always, I love

input, agreement, disagreement, and discussion! At least this one wasn't my

usual frustrated or angry rant. . . just some musings with strong opinions!!

;-) Hmmm, maybe time to start my own blog. . .

Jan Patenaude, RD, CLT

PS. If this interests you, consider joining the HEN dpg (Hunger and

Environmental Nutritionists DPG) - lots of organic farmer RDs and such in that

group!

Once I joined, I felt " at home. "

Jan Patenaude, RD, CLT

Consultant, Writer, Speaker

Director of Medical Nutrition

Signet Diagnostic Corporation

(Mountain Time)

Fax:

DineRight4@...<mailto:DineRight4%40aol.com>

Mediator Release Testing and LEAP Diet Protocol for Irritable Bowel

Syndrome, Migraine, Fibromyalgia and more, caused by food sensitivity

IMPORTANT - This e-mail message is intended only for the use of the

individual or entity to which it is addressed, and may contain information that

is

privileged, confidential and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If

you have received this message in error, you are hereby notified that we do not

consent to any reading, dissemination, distribution or copying of this

e-mail message. If you have received this communication in error, please notify

the sender immediately by e-mail and telephone ( toll free) and

destroy the transmitted information.

E-mail transmission cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error-free as

information could be intercepted, corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late,

incomplete, or contain viruses. The sender therefore does not accept liability

for

any errors or omissions in the contents of this message, which arise as a

result of e-mail transmission.

**************Gas prices getting you down? Search AOL Autos for

fuel-efficient used cars. (http://autos.aol.com/used?ncid=aolaut00050000000007)