E Coli, She coli, He coli, NO ME COLI

Bleach your kitchen counters. Kill all microbes. Is that wise? Let us understand the risks.

Cases of food poisoning have increased since the 70’s. Strawberries, sprouts and now spinach. And green onions. All from mega producers and consumers of millions of pounds yearly of the products.

"In the spring and summer of 1982, McDonald's held a special promotion -- two burgers for the price of one -- that led to the first reported outbreak of E Coli a food-borne bacterial infection that now sweeps the nation with some regularity." McDonald's, Jack in the Box, Schwan, Taco Bell, Taco John ...the beat goes on and on!

Concentration in agriculture processes of meat, dairy and vegetable production and increasing importation of fruits and vegetables from countries with poor hygiene is likely the major reason. "Billions of farm animals are overcrowded in stressful, unsanitary sheds, pens, cages and stalls; no wonder we are increasingly plagued with infectious food-borne diseases. Animal factories are a public health threat. We shouldn't have to cook the crap out of our food." Michael Greger, M.D in the Wall Street Journal.

A second reason is increased use of medicines that shut off the stomach acid. With acid shut off our God given food sterilizer, our strongly acid stomachs, cannot work. Food contaminated with smaller numbers of food poisoning bacteria thus causes disease.

A third reason, especially for the dramatic 500% increase in outbreaks at restaurants, is the poorly
paid workforce at franchise restaurants. This results in rapid turnover, low morale and inadequate training.

The fourth reason is clearly non intuitive. Use of plastic gloves has been pushed at street fairs, restaurants and cafeterias in schools and hospitals,.Our hands have oils on them with natural antibacterial activity. Gloves, machine made, have no such activity. Actually the increased moisture and warmth under the gloves provides a perfect incubator allowing bacteria to thrive. People wearing gloves contaminate them more over time - they itch and scratch the same places that contaminate our ungloved hands. Don't believe me just stand afar and see for yourself.. Gloves give a false sense of security so hand washing is a low priority.

The Solution lies in having a two tier system of regulation in agriculture, food and meat production. One should be for the small scale producer and one for the corporate.mega producer of the same. In
biological systems small mistakes are magnified.

Large scale production should be actively discouraged. ..."half the nation's states now have reported cases of human E. coli 0157:H7 infection,"

Mistakes by small producers have limited impact. Small producers sell locally . Their customers know them. Small producers are directly accountable to the people. Neither the government nor the courts are needed. The small have a healthy regard for power. Large corporations, with their public relation machines and lawyers, do not and have become increasingly unaccountable to the people, their government and the courts.

More regulations have been proposed. "Officials Consider Spinach Labeling Plan"
Regulations only drive the small producer out. In biological systems that is courting disaster.
E.F. Schumacher, Nobel Prize winning author, has written a beautiful book “Small is Beautiful, Economics as if People Mattered"

In the case of food, small indeed is beautiful.
Small has less pesticides,
Small has less antibiotics,
Small has less hormones,
Small is actually cheaper
Small uses less energy..
It is local. It is safer.

Please eat food we know, from people we know.

And handwashing with solid soap and water is all that is needed. The CDC also has other thoughts

Do not get caught up in this media frenzy.
Understand the risks. Read "Eat Your Spinach" by Marc Siegel in the Wall Street Journal Sept 18th.

10,000 people have died in rollovers accidents EACH year for the last 10 as SUV's became popular. That is what we need to regulate not spinach!

E Coli, She coli, He coli, NO ME COLI.

Why we become deaf

I used to love going to India.

But progress came rapidly. Now I go because my family is there. And like others leave the city every chance I get.

Motors,  electric and gasoline took over all aspects of life. Everyone wanted to do everything faster and quiet was owned in common by all so like our clean air was free for all to plunder.

And each year the horns got more in number as well as loudness. The honk of the car became a scream. As noise ( link to noise and health) increased the noise makers became noisier

The old bus horns became the ear splitting air horns.

 The old train whistles became louder. And people became angry?

And more, And more became deaf. WHY. Read this link also.

And a long article in Hindi that I wrote for Rajasthan Patrika when the train whistle at night first got

to me in 2006! Available by email only.

Horn bajaana Gaali dena!

Exercise the bane of modernity

To save knees, bend them & stand while brushing teeth

They are falling. And getting hurt, seriously.

Two did, not too long ago. In Jaipur.

One in the bathroom. One, I believe, on one of the non existent sidewalks common to most of urban India. Others have fallen, too, family and friends, and broken bones.

Those that fall are younger.
Our world may be too flat. Maybe there is too much asphalt, concrete, carpet. Maybe we have forgotten how to balance ourselves. Some have deficiency of B12 our balance vitamin, a problem due to decreased absorption after age 60.

Knee replacements nowadays also are common at 50. We are not as strong. We sit. Every chance we get. But not on the floor. In the car, at work, on the toilet we sit comfortably. Even at prayer meetings, disregarding tradition, more sit on chairs as getting up is too difficult.

The problem likely is that the quadriceps or quads for short, the muscles in the front of our thighs that critically support and protect the knee, are weak. The knees bear more stress and wear out. Vitamin D deficiency may be a problem, more on that another day.

We walk. Some. But walking alone is not enough to make quads and knees strong. Though it does help balance, especially if we walk on uneven ground. Safely.

Momma walked daily all her life, in the park near our ancestral home, till her knees just hurt too much. At 84 she wanted new knees! Papa lived to 92. He loved his garden. Every morning 2 hours on his haunches, hand spading the ground up and down as he moved around. This was his morning till he was 80. His knees strong till he died 12 years later.

For strong quads bend your knees while standing.
Bend your knees as you brush your teeth.
Bend your knees while you shave.
Bend your knees waiting for the train, the bus, the plane.
Bend your knees, supporting your weight. As often as you can.
Bend slightly, gorilla like, holding your weight, slightly spreading the legs might help with balance, and tense your quads. Do this many times a day.

Our quads are our knees. Strong quads save knees. From the surgeon.

As you get stronger quads, in 6 weeks, or 12 if you are older, bend deeper, and hold. Comfortably.
Next walk down steps for 6 weeks, adding more flights weekly. As comfortable, walk up steps.  

The more you do the more you can do.
Use it or loose it.

Remember to bend your knees in prayer.
Faithfully.

Go anywhere everywhere.

They go anywhere. Often they have to as they have no where to go. I am talking about toilets or the lack thereof in India and shit. There must be amazing amounts of shit in the soil, air and water in India.

Did you know that toilets on trains in India drop shit directly down to the open ground below the running train. Billions of Indians shit a gazillion microbes traveling in trains.  And the trains disseminate them widely throughout the land! India has the largest passenger train system in the world.

What about those fancy western style toilets in cities used to flush shit out of site.  Most of that likely goes as untreated sewage into open drains thence to streams and rivers. Everywhere!

Maybe this shit everywhere is the hidden attraction of trips to India. Could it be that subconsciously we want to be exposed to this vast microbial cocktail.

Next time you eat a green leafy salad in India, think of shit.

Because its likely there. 

20 pounds/ 9kg in 10 years.

You are angry at yourself. 20 lbs! How did that happen.

Be kind to yourself. Since 3500 kcal equals 1 pound wt gain you only had 20 extra calories a day...(20x365x10divide by 3500=almost 20!). Just 140 extra a week!

How much stricter could you be with your eating. Though we all need to pay more attention to what we drink. 1 can of sweet drinks such as Coke, Pepsi, etc contains 140 calories. So just 1 a week could give you 20 pounds/ almost 9 kg in 10 years.

Weight gain is very hard to understand. Brown skin, dark skin people genetically do not  seem to handle sugar as well as Caucasians.  Thus for most Asians, Hispanics and Blacks as well as Native Americans sugar is a slow poison. The record numbers of diabetics in India since the TV marketing blitz for Coke, Pepsi and similar drinks is sobering. 

The power of multinational corporations using TV to change long held eating and drinking beliefs and culture in India and China is indeed fearsome. 

After turning America into an obese nation in 30 years Coke and Pepsi have to make profits on the people's of Asia and Africa.

As Gandhi said to change the world begin with the children. So these corporations did. Money was given to Schools for the well to do to sell soft drinks on campus and competitions were sponsored. Money was being invested to change the next generation into lovers of Coke etc. By 2003 WHO had declared that in emerging economies such as India it was the children of the well off who had become obese.

Rural folk have been targeted now. In the Golden Temple in Amritsar on my visit in 2008 Coke was cheaper than milk! And a blatant campaign at the holy KUMBH Mela Khushion ka sangam. Equating drinking Coke with Happiness and the rivers confluence.

Caveat emptor! Buyer beware.

The world is too flat.

Balance is a problem as we get older.

Many fall too easily.

I think our world may be just too flat. We do not exercise our balance (proprioception)system on a daily basis. Wherever we walk or run is so very predictably flat, what with concrete or asphalt everywhere.
Challenge yourself on rough terrain or just walk on grass or gravel whenever possible.

Your knees and ankles would be happier too.