As we explained in this blog, the best ways to maintain a healthy gut is by being mindful of the foods you choose to eat. However, not all of the nutrition advice available online is reliable and some of it is downright wrong.

Another important point to bear in mind is that one-size-fits-all diet recommendations are not necessarily the answer. In other words, the diet that helped your friend, work colleague or family member will not necessarily be as helpful for you. As such, it is better to focus on the particular ways the foods you choose can support your gut health.

We interviewed gut health dietitians Andrea Hardy, Paula Crespo, Kate Scarlata, Megan Rossi and Mariana Camarena on frequent misconceptions you can find on your way to a healthy gut and how to fix them.

Andrea Hardy: The most common myths I hear are usually around restrictive diets there seems to be a new one each month! Between gluten-free, dairy-free, lectin-free and even vegetable-free, there is an array of restrictive diets focused on removing foods and, often, moralizing food decisions. My nutrition motto is If something scares you, its probably not true. Listen to that gut reaction and trust that nutrition science is rarely that sensational or extreme. All foods you enjoy can fit within a balanced diet. I prefer people focus on what they can add rather than take away!

Paula Crespo: I think that the most common misconception is to not believe how something so abstract or invisible as gut microbiota can be so important to maintaining overall well-being. In general, people dont understand that the gut microbiota is as important as other organs. [I debunk this by giving] specific nutritional recommendations for improving intestinal health. I also personalize those recommendations according to each individual case and condition, and say Just try. This is harmless, it is just food. Please just try and lets see what happens after following these recommendations daily for at least two months.

Kate Scarlata: One common misconception is that FODMAP carbohydrates are bad for you. While some FODMAP food sources such as high fructose corn syrup offer little beneficial nutritional value, other foods that contain FODMAPs such as cashew nuts, pistachios, kidney beans, and onion, to name a few, are rich in healthy prebiotic fibers.If a person tolerates these FODMAP-containing foods, they should be included as part of a healthy diet. A low-FODMAP diet has science to support its use in irritable bowel syndrome, but for the majority of people that do not experience IBS, FODMAP-rich foods can be enjoyed and many FODMAP-rich food sources are fiber-rich and offer health benefits.

Megan Rossi: One common myth is that you need to be following a restrictive diet for good gut health. In fact, the opposite is likely: its more about what you INclude rather than EXclude. Indeed, research has shown people who eat at least 30 different types of plant-based foods each week, compared with those who ate 10 different types, had a more diverse range of gut bacteria, which is typically used as a marker of good gut health. Whats more, cutting out whole food groupsfor example cutting out whole grains and legumes on the paleo dietcan negatively impact your GM. It may also increase your risk of nutritional deficiencies.

Mariana Camarena: The I have to detox to clean my gut myth is one of my favorites. The body has its own detox system supported by the lungs, the colon, the liver, the kidneys and the lymphatic system, which are all programmed to detoxify the body constantly. We dont need a detox diet with enemas to ensure gut health; we just need to maintain a proper diet, exercise regularly, drink plenty of water and sleep well. That is the route to a good and natural detox.

To sum up, although lots of dietary patterns and advice have been touted to have beneficial effects for gut health, not all of them necessarily work for your particular situation. Rather than focusing on what you can take away in your diet and on sticking to restrictive diets for a long while, it is a better approach to focus on what you can add. In case of any doubt or question, ask a registered dietitian before completely eliminating a food group that you love.

Note: original answers may be edited for style and length.

View post:
How to find the right nutrition advice for a healthy gut? Registered dietitians debunk 5 common gut health myths - Gut Microbiota for Health

Highlights

Whether we like it or not, the elongated period of staying at home has had unprecedented changes on our diet. Some people have started becoming more diet-conscious while at home, avoiding heavy food that could impact health severely at times. Other people are guilty of overindulgence - reaching out for a snack more frequently. Lockdown has meant irregular schedules and changes in working routine too. As countries begin to open up restrictions, it's important to find ways to restore rhythm into our regular working lives and our diets too.

1. Adopt Simplicity

While we were at home, we experimented with new and innovative recipes that we had never tried before. But once lockdown ends, it means getting back to the rigours of life like before. Your motto during this time should be, "Not every meal has to be an event". Keep it simple and make easy recipes for at least some meals to save time on preparation as you resume work.

2. Switch Your Meals Around

Sometimes we don't feel like eating an entire meal, as a drink or a heavy snack often suffices and satiates our appetite. It can be a good idea to practice intermittent fasting by skipping first or last meal of the day. But it is always good to consult a dietitian or nutritionist before making the switch.

(Also Read:Celebrity Nutritionist Pooja Makhija Shares 5 Nutrition Tips For Those Working From Home)

3. Get Creative With Leftovers

It's not necessary to cook every meal from scratch. Leftovers can be creatively used to make a brand new dish altogether. Another idea could be to cook a bit extra during one meal and save time by reusing leftover preparations in the next one.

4. Be Daring

When it comes to easy recipes for working people, there are a plethora of options that can be found. There's no time like now to try out some new recipes, if you find your old ones tedious or time-consuming. It is the way the food is cooked and how it tastes that makes a difference to our habits!

(Also Read:'The Quarantine Plan' by Nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar May Sort Out Your Weekly Diet)

The idea is to resume working life with as much rigour and gusto as possible. We need not make drastic shifts to our eating practices in these trying times. However, it is essential to practice good dietary practices to maintain our health. Eating a balanced diet and generous amounts of fruits and vegetables is a must irrespective of lockdown being present. These are basic diet tips that will go a long way in keeping the body fit and fine, at all times.

About Aditi AhujaAditi loves talking to and meeting like-minded foodies (especially the kind who like veg momos). Plus points if you get her bad jokes and sitcom references, or if you recommend a new place to eat at.

Read the original post:
4 Easy Ways To Restore Healthy Eating Habits Post Lockdown - NDTV Food

Saray Stancic, MD ran her first marathon in 2011. This coming October she will walk 25 miles to commemorate the 25th anniversary of her diagnosis with MS. She was supposed to be in a wheelchair by now. "They told me that I would never walk without a cane and that Icould expect to be wheelchair-bound in 10 to 15 years." Her triumphant story is now the subject of a documentaryCODE BLUE, which is about whymedicines most powerful tool is almost never prescribed.

Dr. Stancic shared her story with The Beet. It all began when as a young medical resident, she was having trouble walking and went to the doctor, who did all the tests, MRI's and blood tests and delivered the devastating news: "You have MS."

"I was a young doctor, and so I took all the meds and did all the things mydoctors advised and I kept getting worse. ThenI read about a doctor who had treated MS patients with diet changes in the Netherlands and I immediately began researching more.Her work led her to a plant-based diet, and successfully overcoming her chronic condition. She has a collection of canes and crutches in the basement she says, a reminder of what might have been, had she not taken her own treatment into her hands and changed her diet.

Dr. Stancic'strue cause now is to change the way the medical community views nutrition.She is on a mission to get hospitals and doctors, nurses, and healthcare professionals of all types to help feed patients healthy plant-based foods, get the fast food and junk out of hospitals, and make nutrition an integral part of medical training.

"They used to let you smoke in hospitals," she points out. "Now that is absurd. Having a Burger King in Rutgers Medical Center is equally absurd. I protested but no one listened. One day I want to be able to say, they used to feed heart patients eggs and bacon and pancakes. It's just insane."The example starts with the doctor, she adds. "Studies show that if a doctor eats healthy and exercises and is mostly plant-based then the patients will be more likely to follow his or her advice," Stancic says.

Dr. Stancic:I am ininfectiousdisease specialist who started her career in the 1990s during the HIV epidemic and at the VA.... As a young woman, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and I was very ill and taking all these medications and depending on a cane and as a young resident, I was really struggling.

"Then one dayI came across an article in 2003 about the effect of diet and chronic illness and specifically this spoke about the effects on MS -- both the cause and the symptoms. Royce Swank wrote an article in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) in 1952 and said that somehow dairy was connected to worsening symptoms of MS. He was looking at the incidence of MS in Norway and saw that those who were consuming a diet high in dairy and animal fat had a higher incidence of the disease and worse disease. So he started "treating" patients with a low-fat plant-based diet and he followed 130 patients over 34 years and he found that those who followed the diet were symptom-free.

"And here I was a physician at 32 and struggling and this was not taught to me in medical school. And this offered me a glimmer of hope and it wasn't just Swank but others too. And it wasn't just diet but exercise and sleep hygiene and stress relief and these lifestyle interventions were ethe best weapons against MS. And of course, I went to my physician and he didn't think there was any merit in it.

"So I had to take my own treatment into my own care and I adopted a plant-based diet because the overwhelming body of evidence pointed to the fact a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds was the optimal diet not only for MS but for all of us. I went off all my medicines and went into that diet.

It's been 25 and I take no medicines and I run every day. October 11th this year 2020 on that day I am going walk 25 miles and celebrate 25 since my diagnosis. And they told me I'd be in a wheelchair within 10 to 20 years. I don't even have a cane. I have a collection of canes and crutches in my basement. I don't need them.

"My hope is to tell the story of the absence of this critical piece of education in our medical schools. All of our doctors are not getting this education which is particularly important in our world today. The rates of obesity are rising, heart disease and diabetes are all rising. And I am an infectious disease specialist and I treat people from a lifestyle basis. We know that those who have bad outcomes from COVID-19 who die from it have obesity and diabetes. and hypertension ... we can prevent 80 percent of these diseases. We can prevent 80 percent heart diseases. . . and isn't it tragic? Every year about 600,000 people diet every year from heart disease and we could save about 450,000 people a year.

"Not only bring education to the community, but to the public. This is what we need today: To prevent diseases and maintain wellness by changing how we eat.

"Even the way we train physicians is inhuman. They are on-call 24 hours at a time. So they have no time to eat or sleep and no time to exercise. The hospitals should be the example of how we treat humans. Inside Rutgers ... I can tell you there is a Burger King inside... and that to me is unacceptable. I have tried everything, petitions, signs, stood inside the hospital and our community that is struggling with heart disease and hypertension and obesity.

"We need to change medical school and the hospital's food environment. Our patients in the hospital who are healing and recovering from illness should be fed a plant-based diet. We can't serve bacon and eggs and pancakes to someone recovering from a heart attack or heart surgery.

"You used to be able to smoke in the hospital in the 1960s. Today we know better. Today we know that these foods are fueling the disease states: Obesity and hypertension and heart disease. And those are fueling the COVID-19 crisis... this is like a perfect storm, it's come together. And how can you ignore that?

"We need to change the medical school education, as well as pharmacists and nurses and everyone in the health care community. We know that doctors, those who are the ones giving the message to their patients are most likely the ones practicing this lifestyle himself. That doctor who is exercising and eating plant-based and meditating and taking care of themselves is more likely to counsel and educate their patients as well.

"The patients take it more seriously when the doctor is an example. Erika Frank has published literature on that. So those doctors who set an example and those patients are more likely to take it more seriously. They think, If my doctor does it then I should as well.

"I work with patients to practice what I call Lifestyle Medicine. I tell them to optimize every aspect of their life. I spend 2 hours with patients and help them realize they don't have to be hypertensive or obese or have heart disease. I counsel them that they can make changes that will intervention and reverse their disease. They can. That' s what I want for every human being is to optimize and empower them to live their best lives.

"I also mentor youngdoctors and help them integrate this lifestyle medicine into their practices, because we want to treat the disease and teach and educate people about lifestyle medicine.

"I am not against medicine and I think it is an important part of the management and armament against diseases. I am an infectious disease specialist. Where would we be without antibiotics? But many of the diseases we treat are preventative and only 3 to 5 percent of the NIH budget goes toward prevention. But while the advances in medicine are important we know that prevention is even more important. Prevention is always preferred over cure.

"In 2010 I ran a marathon. It was an extraordinarymoment for me. I am blessed and hope to spread this healing message far and wide."

"For the film, interviewing doctors like Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn (below) and Dr. Ornish was meaningful. We all care about spending time and resources on prevention.Seven of the top 10 causes of death in America are chronic diseases, two of which, heart disease and cancer, account for nearly 50% of all deaths.

"US health care costs are approaching 3 trillion dollars per year with 86% of these dollars goes to manage chronic illness.Yet studies tell us thatby changingour lifestyle, including diet, physical activity, cigarette smoking, and managing body weight, we can prevent nearly 80% of chronic diseases that gravely compromise our quality of life. We have to change this paradigm."

More Information About Code Blue:

Code Bluereveals lapses in the current state of medicine and provides a common-sense solution by featuring the practice of lifestyle medicine to prevent, manage and reverse chronic diseases. The film presents the hurdles faced to the proposed shift: antiquated curricula in medical schools, confusion in the media, inadequate government policies, and the underlying influences of the pharmaceutical and food industries.

Code Bluefollows passionate physician Dr. Saray Stancic, as she reflects upon her journey from a multiple sclerosis diagnosis to wellness through her own adoption of lifestyle medicine. Dr. Stancic introduces us to expert physicians and scientists who are paving the way to make the meaningful and necessary change in our healthcare environment, in turn, empowering audiences to stand up and reclaim control of their health.

In Code Blue, the doctorswho have rallied around her and been interviewed for the movie reads like a Who's Who of plant-based medicine, including:

See more here:
This Doctor Treated Her MS By Switching to a Plant-Based Diet - The Beet

Obesity has long been a public health problem in the United States that providers have struggled to address, but medical experts say the latest research suggests doctors need to adopt a new "multipronged strategy" to help patients lose weight, Laura Landro reports for the Wall Street Journal.

Obesity is a chronic condition. Here's one expert's take on how to treat it like one.

The U.S. obesity rate has risen steadily over the past two decades, with the latest data showing 42.4% of adults ages 20 and older were obese in 2018, and 9.2% were severely obese. According to Landro, providers have long struggled with helping patients lose weight, often relying on diet and exerciseand treating poor results "as a failure on the part of patients."

But some medical experts say the Covid-19 epidemic's impact on patients with chronic conditions has put a spotlight back on obesityand a new wave of research that shows it takes a combination of strategies to combat the condition.

Recent studies have given medical experts more insight into how obesity affects the body and one's ability to lose weight, Landro reports.

Rekha Kumar, an endocrinologist at the Weill Cornell Medicine Comprehensive Weight Control Center, said, "Nobody is denying that there is behavioral component to obesity, but it is shortsighted and dangerous to fully blame an individual's behavior when there is so much evidence that the human body does not function normally in the condition of obesity."

That's why many medical experts are calling for providers to shift away from focusing strictly on behaviors like diet and exercise, and adopting a multipronged approach. Landro outlines three developments gaining attention "that hold promise."

1. Relying on obesity-medicine specialists

Most doctors have not received specialized training on obesity, which has proven to be a "longstanding obstacle to a more-comprehensive treatment" of the condition, Landro writes.

Doctors who lack specialized training on the topic might focus too much on diet and exercise, rather than other factors like genetics, psychological and environmental factors, or the body's natural response to a decrease in calories.

Obesity-medicine specialists on the other hand are trained to consider how biological, psychological, environmental, and genetic factors play a part in a patients' ability to lose weight.

Doctors with specialized training also know how to prescribe other strategies, like medication or weight-loss surgeries. Caroline Andrew, an obesity specialist at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York who often treats patients waiting for a joint replacement procedure, relies on a variety of services to help her patients lose weight, including weight-loss drugs or referring patients to a dietician or behavioral health counselor.

2. Educating general practitioners

The American Board of Obesity Medicine has certified more than 4,000 obesity specialists in the United States and Canada, but that is still not enough obesity specialists to treat all patients, Landro reports.

That's why Louis Aronne, director of Weill Cornell's weight-control center, says "the average doctor" needs to be better trained to speak with and treat patients who have obesity. Weill Cornell's training program includes sensitivity training for doctors who treat obese patients and how to approach conversations around diet and exercise.

For instance, instead of mandating a specific food regimen, doctors, Landro writes, should consider patients' food preferences as well as diets they've tried in the past and devise a weight-loss program that meets their unique needs. It also teaches "office staff to be careful with language, such as 'a patient who has obesity' instead of 'obese patient' to avoid labeling patients by their disease," Landro writes.

Sadaf Mustafa, an internal-medicine doctor at MedStar Health and assistant professor at Georgetown University School of Medicine who became certified in obesity medicine two years ago, said the training helped her understand how medications for other common conditions, like depression and diabetes, can cause weight gain in patients.

"The impact of changing from one medication group to another can give them a huge benefit," she said. "That was a big eye-opener for me."

3. Incorporating medications and surgery into care

While weight-loss drugs and surgeries can be highly effective for some patients, doctors often only prescribe them as a last resort, Landro writes.

But the resistance to these methods is changing, especially now that research shows some surgeries are effective on a larger range of patients than doctors previously projectedand the latest procedures and medications have proven to be safer than older options, Landro reports.

According to Landro, some of the barriers that once prevented physicians from relying on medications and surgeries are being removed as more insurers are broadening their coverage requirements for weight-loss.

Gayle Novak said a combination of the weight-loss drug Qsymia and a specialized diet plan helped her lose weight that was causing health issues, like high blood pressure. Novak said the doctor "really took the time to know me, know my history, know my medical issues and understand what does and doesn't work for me" (Landro, Wall Street Journal, 6/8).

See the article here:
The 3 new ways doctors are trying to fight obesity - The Daily Briefing

Vertical vegtable farms will be located in 10 sites throughout Jersey City to help provide residents access to healthy fresh food.

Vertical vegtable farms will be located in 10 sites throughout Jersey City to help provide residents access to healthy fresh food.

The public will get access to free fresh vegetables grown in Jersey City through the nations first municipal vertical farming program, according to an announcement by Mayor Steven Fulop.

Some 19,000 pounds of fresh vegetables will be grown in 10 sites throughout the city through a partnership with AeroFarms, the world leader in vertical farming, and the World Economic Forum (WEF), which selected Jersey City as its partner in the Healthy Cities and Communities 2030 Initiatives.

As we work through our municipal budget that has been decimated due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we are making choices on what programs to keep, Fulop said. It is clear that the virus has had a disproportionate impact on people with pre-existing heart conditions, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes which is directly linked to a persons diet, and as a result, we feel it is more important than ever to focus on food access and education.

Jersey City has had 6,481 COVID-19 cases and more than 479 COVID-19 fatalities as of June 8, and according to the city, a disproportionate number of those impact economically challenged areas of the city.

We know diet is a key predictor of life expectancy, and the Coronavirus has made clear the huge inequities on food access and food education that exists in different communities, said the citys Director of Health and Human Services (HHS) Stacey Flanagan.

Grown around the city

The Vertical Farming Program will consist of 10 vertical farms throughout Jersey City, in senior centers, schools, public housing complexes, and municipal buildings. The 10 sites will grow 19,000 pounds of vegetables annually using water mist and minimal electricity.

The Jersey City HHS will run the program with a health-monitoring component to track participants progress under a greener diet in the areas of blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, and obesity. Crops will be integrated with other Healthy Food Access initiatives including senior meal programs.

The program is free, but residents must participate in the healthy eating workshops and agree to quarterly health screenings.

The program is part of the broader initiative from the World Economic Forum (WEF) toward partnerships with cities. Earlier this year the WEF selected four cities (Moscow, Mumbai, Austin, Jersey City) to launch the Healthy City 2030 initiative, which will target measurable changes to the health of each community.

The Healthy Cities and Communities initiative is a flagship effort of the World Economic Forum. In collaboration with both private-public sector stakeholders, the initiative aims to catalyze new ecosystems that will enable socially vibrant and health and well-being centric cities and communities, said Mayuri Ghosh, Head of the HEFs Healthy Cities and Communities initiative. Establishing a secure supply of nutritious food via locally sourced vertically farmed greens in collaboration with AeroFarms has been a key accomplishment of the Forums partnership with Jersey City. The shared insights will be incorporated into efforts underway in other global cities.

AeroFarms CEO David Rosenberg said he is excited to work with Jersey City, noting that structural food problems have come to lights because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The world needs more distributed, localized food production systems, said Rosenberg. We also need new ways to get healthy food to our most disadvantaged members of society. I am honored to work with Mayor Fulop and the people of Jersey City to find better solutions.

This partnership will allow us to provide thousands of pounds of locally-grown, nutritious foods that will help close the hunger gap and have an immeasurable impact on the overall health of our community, Fulop said.

Tackling food deserts

The vertical farming program is the latest initiative Jersey City has launched around food access.

According to a 2018 city report, much of Jersey City could be described as a food desert.

The USDA defines a food desert as a low-income census tract where either a substantial number or share of residents has low access to a supermarket or large grocery store.

This means at least 500 people or 33 percent of the population live more than a mile from a supermarket or large grocery store.

According to the city, these deserts have led to an increased rate of diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and other diet-related illnesses in the more marginalized communities of Jersey City. Neighborhoods without healthy options such as Ward A and Ward F also have high concentrations of fast-food restaurants.

To address this the city has also offered more than 5,000 food market tours to educate seniors on healthy eating, and the grant program on the Healthy Corner Store initiative.

That initiative is a citywide effort to increase healthier food options in neighborhoods that lack access, including the Greenville and Bergen-Lafayette areas.

The initiative provides corner store owners with training assistance, marketing materials, consumer education resources, and equipment so that they can offer healthier food options.

For updates on this and other stories checkwww.hudsonreporter.comand follow us on Twitter @hudson_reporter. Marilyn Baer can be reached atMarilynb@hudsonreporter.com.

Read the original here:
Growing up - The Hudson Reporter

The World Food Programme has warned that the COVID-19 pandemic could cause one of the worst food crises since World War II. It predicts a doubling of the number of people going hungry more than half of them in sub-Saharan Africa. While wealthier people stay inside and practise physical distancing, the economically marginalised populations risk going out in search of food. They take decisions between livelihoods and life in the most extreme cases. Such food inequities show the need for system-level action.

So far, the global food system has proven to be resilient to the COVID-19 pandemic. Food is still being produced, processed and distributed. Unfortunately, the systems underlying injustices and inequities continue too. Around 1.58 billion people globally cant afford healthy diets.

These inequities are especially stark on the African continent. Even before the COVID-19 crisis, the African food system was ailing. Food is perennially in short supply. In 2018, more than 250 million people in sub-Saharan Africa experienced severe food insecurity, incomes for farmers are lower than anywhere globally in real terms, and more than 30% of children are stunted partly due to poverty and poor diets.

Read more: Malnutrition and epidemics are intertwined. That makes fixing food systems crucial

Africas food system is no stranger to crises. Droughts, El Nio events, pests and diseases, terrorism, migration, and political upheaval have all taken a toll. Crises like these shock the system, causing crop and food losses, pushing people into poverty and putting more people at risk of severe food insecurity and malnutrition.

Read more: How changes in weather patterns could lead to more insect invasions

Each crisis tends to be met with a response to mitigate the harm, but the system always seems to return to its earlier undesirable state.

The shock set off by COVID-19 is likely to be different. Thats because it is causing simultaneous and synchronised system failures that will erode economic opportunities now and potentially for years to come. For example, tourism will be hit by limitations on travel and gatherings.

What we see happening as a result of actions to contain COVID-19 is more like a global natural disaster.

Its also an opportunity for a different kind of recovery. With less inertia resulting in a return to the previous state, alternative scenarios become plausible. In this respect its similar to the oil crisis of the 1970s, which changed societies fundamentally.

Going back to business as usual investments in agriculture and food systems could reproduce those systems inequities. Instead, recovery efforts should be geared towards creating a better future.

Researchers have already done the background work to inform this process.

We believe it is possible to redesign food systems to deliver healthy foods, allow farming families to make a good living, and support thriving societies while generating sustainable ecosystem services. The COVID-19 recovery is a time to put decades of data about this to work.

Here we outline three ways to improve agriculture in line with the sustainable development goals: to make systems resilient, sustainable and fair. The examples have all been developed and tested by researchers at universities and research centres.

The World Health Organization has identified a double burden of malnutrition: poor nutrition along with overweight or obesity. This is a growing problem worldwide.

There are various ways agriculture can help tackle the problem. Among them are better integration of crops and livestock, climate smart agriculture, conservation agriculture, and using woody perennials in fields and landscapes to ecologically increase productivity of more diverse food items.

The underlying ideas are focusing on more integrated farming systems that use species diversity as a source of resilience and diversified diets while reducing the use of harmful chemicals.

Artificially stabilised starch food markets distort prices and consumer incentives. When governments subsidise inputs for certain crops, their production becomes relatively cheaper and so do consumer prices. So, especially poorer consumers are more likely to choose these starchy food items that do not provide sufficiently balanced nutrients.

Nutrition-sensitive agriculture supporting diverse diets needs to be encouraged instead. Smart subsidies could steer food production into a state that supports healthy food choices and increases biodiversity in landscapes.

People living in rural regions should not have to depend on agriculture alone. Complementary opportunities should be part of rural development and human wellbeing. The most vulnerable rural people are the least likely to progress through agriculture because their farms are small.

There should be a greater variety of ways to meet everyones aspirations and needs. Activities such as processing harvests and adding value to products will also improve the functioning of food systems so these activities should be supported and encouraged. Young people who are turning away from agriculture could play a pivotal role in developing complementary businesses in rural spaces.

Human modification of the natural environment is linked to health problems ranging from stress to infectious disease. With direct effects on diets, pollution, climate change, and disaster risk reduction, agriculture is central in achieving the majority of the sustainable development goals.

The various linkages between the health of natural resources, agriculture or agroforestry, humans and the environment have to be recognised and purposefully managed to optimise impacts and avoid unintended consequences.

These building blocks provide starting points for a new political discourse about agriculture. It should be guided by the overall goal of a resilient, sustainable and fair food system. Resulting strategies must consider the variety of biophysical, social and economic conditions across African countries.

We believe it is now time to focus on the opportunity this crisis has brought and build back better. While medics and humanitarian aid agencies prepare for the worst, scientists too must choose their contributions.

COVID-19 emergency funds could change the trajectory of agriculture. Its time to build scientists into the planning for the future and initiate the development of a comprehensive strategy for Africas future food solutions.

Here is the original post:
COVID-19 recovery is a chance to improve the African food system - The Conversation Africa

Students at greenhouse at Journey Elementary, a project led by the Casper Community Greenhouse Project. (Brendan LaChance, Oil City)

CASPER, Wyo. The Casper Community Greenhouse Project are working to transform a 5.83 acre piece of land near Rocky Mountain Oncology into a large community greenhouse, market and event space they are calling Grow Casper.

Casper Community Greenhouse Project Director LeAnn Miller told the Casper City Council on Tuesday, June 9 that Grow Casper includes plans for:

Everything on this property will be an edible landscape, Miller said adding that the space would be used to host festivals and events in an urban environment.

Article continues below...

Miller said that the Casper Community Greenhouse Project has support from a number of partners such as the Wyoming Medical Center, who have provided access to the land. The Casper Community Greenhouse Project has a five year lease for the land with the option of renewal, she explained.

She added that work on the space has already begun. The cornfield has been tilled and some raised beds are in place and already growing things.

She added that greenhouses and other aspects of the project are also underway. Grow Casper is located at Venture Way and Second Street.

Miller added that this is not the first project the Casper Community Greenhouse Project has spearheaded. Theyve built greenhouses at Evansville and Journey Elementary Schools in Casper to support educating children on where food comes from.

Miller said that a survey of 1,000 children found that 41% of kids under the age of 8 didnt know:

The new Grow Casper community greenhouse and garden space would help educate people generally about how to grow food and the importance of a healthy diet.

Miller said that a healthy diet full of locally grown foods can help prevent diseases like diabetes, stroke and heart disease.

Eating good food and local food is much more nutritious, she said. Food can be our medicine.

Miller asked the Casper City Council to become partners on the project by providing about $36,000 to provide water and sewage to the property. She said that there is some water infrastructure in place, but that further development would improve the situation.

Since the Casper Community Greenhouse Project does not own the land, some on the council expressed concern that their lease might not be renewed at the end of the five year term.

Vice Mayor Khrystyn Lutz recommended the council hold off on committing any funding until the council could get some assurances from the WMC and Natrona County that Grow Casper could keep their lease to the land beyond their current five year lease.

She also asked that the council receive further information from City Manager Carter Napier as to whether the city has the optional one-cent sales tax funding necessary to support the project prior to committing funding.

Councilman Bob Hopkins added that he would to have further information on the project provided by the citys Planning Division regarding the Casper Community Greenhouse Projects plans and designs for the space.

Council decided not to give direction as to whether they would commit the funding until they receive such further information on the project.

Councilman Ken Bates(Ward II, Term expires 1/5/21):

Councilman Steve Cathey(Ward III, Term Expires 1/5/21):

Councilman Bob Hopkins(Ward I, Term expires 1/5/21):

Councilman Mike Huber(Ward I, Term expires 1/5/21):

Councilman Ray Pacheco(Ward III, Term expires 1/3/23):

Council members can also be reached by mail at:200 N. David Street, 82601

If you would like to contact members in your specific ward, but dont know which ward you are in, amap is available at the City of Caspers website.

Related Stories from Oil City News:

Read the rest here:
City asked to partner for Grow Casper, large community garden and event space project - Oil City News

Brightseed Danone North America, the worlds largest B Corp and a leader in plant-based food and beverage, has partnered with Brightseed,a biosciences and AI company, to unlock health benefits from plants at an unprecedented speed, using artificial intelligence which they say is set to usher in a new era of discovery and precision nutrition.Brightseeds work combines AI + biomedical processes to fully unlock the benefits of plants for human health. Leveraging its unique AI-powered approach, Brightseed will profile key plant sources for Danone North America to work on revealing previously unknown health and nutrition benefits.

Brightseed is indexing the worlds edible plants and their phytonutrients, i.e., the small molecules produced by plants that can positively impact the optimal functioning of the human body. Less than one percent of existing phytonutrients have been identified or studied, despite their prevalence in diets and traditional usage worldwide.

Brightseed is identifying potential new molecular connections between certain compounds present in Danones raw soy and newfound health benefits previously unlinked to soy.

At Brightseed we believe that were at the tipping point of significantly activating food for health and wellness. We analyze plants at the molecular level in order to understand the specific roles that nutrients play in the proper functioning of our bodies, said Sofia Elizondo, co-founder and COO of Brightseed. Were thrilled to be working with Danone North America as they are equally committed to bringing health through food. Danone North America also believes in the important role that high quality, nutrient-rich diets play in supporting human health, while delivering across brands and products that consumers trust and love.

Related

Link:
Danone North America Partners With Biomedical Artificial Intelligence company to "Unlock Health Benefits from Plants at an Unprecedented...

Lots of people experience bloating, and it can be unpleasant, uncomfortable, and inconvenient.

However, people who suffer from Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) experience symptoms on another level and one influencer is on a mission to help them.

27-year-old Lottie Drynan, who is based in Kent, UK, runs the Instagram accounts The Tummy Diaries and You've Gut This.

She spoke to Insider about how IBS affects her life and what she wants the world to know about the condition.

IBS is the most common functional gastrointestinal disorder, according to the International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders.

It's a chronic condition which affects 10-20% of the global population, but is most prevalent among women in their 20s, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) states.

Drynan says it was worst for her in her early 20s, when IBS affected her life "quite heavily."

Lottie Drynan's IBS was worst in her early 20s. Lottie Drynan

"I suffered from extreme and uncomfortable bloating, anxiety, fatigue, and nausea for a long time until I started understanding my triggers," she told Insider.

"I regularly left work or events early due to needing to be reunited with my hot water bottle or toilet and it made me really miserable.

"I felt constantly confused and frustrated and had no idea what it was that was causing my discomfort.

"I remember looking at my friends who seemed to be able to eat anything or wear anything without worrying about how their tummy would react, and feeling quite jealous."

When you have IBS, a flare-up can cause your stomach to look drastically different within the space of a few hours, as Drynan has experienced many times.

Other symptoms of IBS include constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, according to NICE.

Because IBS symptoms can also be signs of other gastrointestinal issues, it can take a long time for a person to be diagnosed. For Drynan, the process took eight years.

"My symptoms at the beginning were fairly severe so I was passed to a number of specialists for different tests and scopes to rule out any more serious conditions," she said.

She didn't receive much support or information, though, which was ultimately what led her to do her own research.

"When I did finally receive the diagnosis I was given very little help on the next steps or how to manage my illness, therefore decided to start taking more responsibility of my own health," she said.

"I committed to learning through books, podcasts, and anything I could get my hands on from experts in the field."

She then wanted to share what she'd learned to help others.

Drynan says it's a huge misconception that IBS flare-ups are all down to diet.

"This is definitely something I thought for many years," she said.

"It's very easy to see someone on Instagram who has cut out a food group due to IBS and think, 'Oh, I need to do the same then,' but actually we're all very different.

"For some, cutting out a food group may work, but for others we need to be looking at our lifestyle with a more 360 degree, holistic approach; looking at the combined areas of diet, stress, movement, and sleep."

Drynan finds it infuriating when she sees people with IBS being criticized for eating carbs or enjoying a drink.

"It's all about understanding what our body responds well to, and doesn't respond well to, and then making the choices we feel are right for us," she said.

There's no one-size-fits-all solution, she added.

Drynan has been on her own journey to understand what causes her IBS to flare up, and now knows it's mainly stress, although cutting out gluten and fructose has helped her too.

She learned this by trying the low FODMAP plan, which is an elimination diet designed to help people find out what foods may be causing problems for them.

You cut out foods which contain high levels of FODMAPs (which stands for fermentable, oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols, all types of carbohydrates) for four to six weeks, then gradually reintroduce them one at a time to see which triggers gastrointestinal issues. This led to Drynan discovering her fructose and glucose sensitivities.

Having reached this level of understanding means her IBS is "fairly manageable" at this point in her life.

"I now know stress to be by far my biggest trigger and I find if I'm having a hard time mentally, this is where I suffer with flare-ups," she said.

yup, bloated but still fabulous #littlemisssunshine I found this old photo from our holiday in Dominican Republic where Ross proposed two years ago. It was a two week holiday and even after eating, drinking and having a bloody amazing time I was only bloated for the last day or two, probably when the home time and back to normality blues hit. I spent a good few years thinking bloating and my IBS symptoms were all down to food and was cutting things out sometimes unnecessarily and was constantly scared to eat in case it triggered my tummy. But as much as diet does play an important part in the happiness of our gut, so does stress, sleep, movement and a whole bunch of other important stuff. Discovering this has had the biggest positive impact on my IBS and has made me more mindful of everything accriss my lifestyle. It doesnt mean I always get it right or follow it down to a T but it does mean I have a much better understanding of the cause when I am bloated. And for me, stress is by far my biggest trigger. This is what made me want to create My Tummy Diary - to try and help others who are struggling look at their gut health with a more 360 holistic lifestyle approach. Im so so excited for it to launch tomorrow morning and if youre struggling with an unhappy tum I really hope it helps you understand your body, and mind better

A post shared by lottie drynan (@thetummydiaries) on May 30, 2020 at 1:29am PDTMay 30, 2020 at 1:29am PDT

Maintaining her mental health plays a huge role in Drynan managing her IBS, so the coronavirus lockdown has been challenging.

"During lockdown my flare-ups have been a lot more regular and I've had to work especially hard to look after my mental health to in turn look after my gut," she said.

"I know that if I keep stress levels low, get a good night's sleep, exercise, and eat food that makes my gut happy then I am usually symptom-free."

On The Tummy Diaries, Drynan breaks down the IBS taboo, showing her bloated stomach and talking about her anxiety.

The reason she started it was that no one else was talking about the issues she was facing.

"I started by mainly just sharing low FODMAP recipes whilst I was in the early stages of following the diet, but as I grew more comfortable with being online I started sharing the more personal sides of IBS, such as the bloating and anxiety," Drynan said.

"I remember being so nervous about posting my first ever swollen tummy picture I'd spent so long feeling ashamed even in front of family and friends and now I was going to share it with strangers?

"But I couldn't believe the reaction I got. So many women and men reached out saying that they never knew others struggled with the same, and how nice it was to know they weren't alone."

Drynan's 44,300 followers regularly thank her for being so open, honest, and real.

"I also get a lot of messages from people saying before my account they didn't realize that factors such as stress, sleep, and movement could impact their gut as well as just diet, so it makes me very happy to be able to educate and help others through my own learnings," she said.

As well as her Instagram accounts, Drynan has recently published "You've Gut This: My Tummy Diary": a journal to help people better understand their bodies, minds, and how their lifestyles could be affecting their gut health.

Through the book and her Instagram accounts, Drynan wants people to feel empowered to work towards feeling better.

Drynan with her new gut health journal. Lottie Drynan

"I talk a lot about the gut-brain connection and am passionate about opening up the conversation and sharing ways we can better understand our bodies," she said.

"I love spreading positivity and one of my favourite things to share is my bloat-friends' outfit finds clothes that make make us feel confident and comfortable even during a flare-up.

"Thousands of women are already using #mybloatedwardrobe and it's amazing to see such a positive community come together."

Whether you have IBS, other gastrointestinal issues, or just want to keep yourself healthy, looking after your gut is important.

"I am a big advocate of putting the effort in to understanding our body and what makes our gut happy," Drynan said.

"I believe that we should all be looking after our gut health, but for those of us who struggle with IBS or other gut conditions, we should be making it a priority."

Although those with IBS may never be able to control their symptoms, Drynan believes you can help reduce them if you understand them better.

And when you do have those inevitable flare-ups, you shouldn't feel ashamed.

"IBS is an illness and has been part of the gut health and poo taboo for so long and I want to help break down that stigma," she said.

"Having IBS can feel very isolating but if we keep talking and keep sharing we can help others feel less alone and empower more people to work towards feeling better."

Read more:

Influencers are posting before-and-after photos to show how bloated women's bodies can get during their periods

Meet Hayley Madigan, the body positive fitness influencer showing that even the fittest, strongest bodies have cellulite too

A deaf fitness influencer says dark rooms, loud music, and Instagram Lives are 'major barriers' to gym class accessibility

More:
Influencer Lottie Drynan's photos show the reality of IBS bloat - Insider - INSIDER