Would you like to combine foods that are tasty and nutritionally powerful?  I know I would!

Here are some of Dr. Rubman’s favorite one-two food punches…

TEA WITH LEMON
Made from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant, tea contains powerful catechins that improve digestion and reduce heart disease and cancer risk. Many tea drinkers already squeeze lemon into their cups because it tastes so great, but it also significantly increases your absorption of the disease-fighting antioxidants in the tea. To extract the most catechins, steep tea in hot water for at least five minutes and don’t reuse tea bags.

Your best bet: All tea is good for you, but white and green teas are richer sources of catechins than black tea.

BEETS WITH VITAMIN C-RICH VEGETABLES
Eating produce with a variety of colors — yellow peppers, orange sweet potatoes, purple eggplant, etc. — gives you the greatest variety of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. You can add more power yet by serving iron-rich greens such as kale, mustard greens, spinach or Swiss chard with vitamin C-packed beets (or tomatoes or lemon). The reason? Vitamin C makes plant-based iron more absorbable by your intestines.

FRUITS WITH… FRUITS
Along the same lines, eating several fruits at one time generates greater antioxidant action than eating single fruits separately. Blueberries top many “Best Fruit” lists, since they are a rich source of polyphenols that reduce inflammation. Combine them with whatever else is fresh, in season and at peak ripeness — raspberries, strawberries, purple grapes, mango, apples, oranges, etc. Aim for three to five servings (each serving one-half to one cup) of different fruits daily. Dr. Rubman said doing this will boost the synergistic effect of these phytochemicals, which work better in combination than alone.

For maximum health: Don’t eat fruit within 20 minutes of meals, before or after, as their sugars will then rest longer in the digestive tract, where they ferment and cause gas.

PASTA WITH TOMATO SAUCE
No doctor has to work hard to convince me to eat this delicious, classic combination! Tomatoes contain the potent antioxidant lycopene, which fights heart disease and certain cancers — since lycopene is fat soluble, the tomato sauce should be made with olive oil, which facilitates absorption. Dr. Rubman said that olive oil is also helpful in offsetting the challenge of digesting gluten in pasta — though he notes that this doesn’t give a pass to people with celiac disease, since the soothing mechanism isn’t sufficient to solve the problem completely.

BEEF WITH MARINADE
Marinate beef before grilling or barbecuing (even if just for 10 minutes or so) to reduce your exposure to cancer-causing heterocyclic amines (HCAs) that are created when meat is cooked at high temperatures. Make your own marinade, since sugar-infused store-bought brands end up increasing HCA production. Look for recipes that use members of the antioxidant, anti-HCA mint family — rosemary, thyme, basil, sage and oregano.

For maximum health: We actually need a little saturated fat for digestive health and other body functions, Dr. Rubman observes — just not at the levels in the typical American diet. Limit your beef consumption to one three-ounce serving per week.

FISH WITH CITRUS
You may have seen or eaten a delicious dish called ceviche, which is made by marinating raw seafood, such as fish, shrimp or scallops in highly acidic citrus juice (usually lemon or lime). What you probably didn’t know is that serving fish with citrus fruits enhances the healthful anti-inflammatory properties of both. Latin American chefs often also toss in other fresh ingredients, such as cilantro, tomato, onion and avocado — excellent sources of antioxidant phytonutrients and flavonoids that likewise discourage inflammation, boost heart health and help flush toxins from the body.

Caution: People with a compromised immune system shouldn’t take chances with raw seafood — you can achieve the same health effect by poaching, grilling or sautéing fish with citrus juice and sprinkling it with cilantro.

BEANS AND GRAINS — NOT NECESSARILY TOGETHER
If you’re a vegetarian or vegan, you probably eat beans and grains together often since it’s widely known that they contain different amino acids that are all necessary to build the complete proteins you require for good health. But did you know that you don’t have to eat beans and grains in the same meal to reap this benefit? Eating them within a single 24-hour period — for example, brown rice with dinner tonight, black bean chili for lunch tomorrow — will do the trick.

For maximum health: Even if you aren’t a vegetarian, declare “Meatless Mondays” — choosing beans and grains instead of meat even one day a week can reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity and cancer.

Making a habit of eating some of these foods together regularly is a great recipe for better health!

I would like to thank Dr. Andrew L. Rubman, ND, founder and director, Southbury Clinic for Traditional Medicines, Southbury, Connecticut for brining us this tasty information! http://www.southburyclinic.com.

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Would you consent to giving your child a vaccine that caused an increased risk of cancer? That may be exactly what you are doing when you consent to Gardasil.

According to Information the manufacturer of this vaccine presented to the FDA prior to approval, if a person has already been exposed to HPV 16 or 18 prior to injection Gardasil increases the risk of precancerous lesions, or worse, by 44.6%.

That statement bears repeating, if you have been exposed to HPV 16 or 18 prior to injection and take the vaccine, you increase your risk of precancerous lesions, or worse, by 44.6%.

Is this information advertised? No! This information was actually presented to the FDA by Merck. It came from their own safety trials. The FDA did not respond by recommending screening for HPV prior to vaccination. The FDA did not even demand a warning be included in the package insert.

Now, Merck’s research is indicating that Gardasil may also ‘provide cross-protection’ against other strains of HPV that are closely related to HPV 16 and 18. (see this article on Medpage Today) This means prior exposure to these additional strains may pose an increased risk for cervical cancer also, if combined with vaccination.

No one appears to be concerned with the increased risk of vaccination combined with prior exposure, as long as you take the vaccine. You will see no advertisements indicating the possibility of increased risk of the very cancer this vaccine is supposed to help you avoid.

Government officials will not be informed of the potential danger. They will be told HPV is the most common sexually transmitted virus in the country and that it must be eradicated. They will be told this vaccine should be mandatory.

As a consumer, you must protect yourself. If you are sexually active or suspect you may have been exposed to HPV, ask your doctor to screen for HPV prior to taking Gardasil. If he, or she, does not know why, educate them. After all, it is your future at stake.

44.6% increased risk of cervical lesions/cancer; or HPV screening before consenting to vaccination — it is your decision. Please, make it an informed one.

I would like to thank Norma Erickson for this highly relevant information, http://budurl.com/gardasil

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