Miralax is a polyethylene glycol (PEG) laxative, which has been prescribed because it is "gentle."
However, PEG is used, experimentally to fuse mammalian cells together in the laboratory. I think it is probably fine, now and then, for relief or medical procedures, but I do not recommend it as a regular thing, and will survey the literature and watch the tabloids (just kidding!) for more information.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Fluffy, Dairy Free, Gum Free, No-Grit Gluten Free Pancakes
It seems every Gluten Free blogger has their own pancakes. The fact is, they seem to be the easiest place to start, and besides, how many people do you know that don't love pancakes?!
I never thought I would end up in the Dairy Free crowd, and to be honest, I'm not entirely Dairy Free, right now. I've gone back and forth with having milk, no milk, milk, no milk. But I think I'm going to start easing out of the milk, cheese, and other dairy products. This is for health reasons, and hopefully, a good effect is that I'll lose some more weight.
Yes, I know, pancakes aren't the best thing for weight loss, but if the amount of satisfaction I got out of eating these is any indication, they MIGHT just count toward foods that reduce appetite! They have a bit more fiber than the other pancakes I've made in the past.
I've tried millet pancakes, buckwheat pancakes, sorghum pancakes, and now, I think I have my favorites! My girls loved them, too. My son may be the pickiest eater, so we'll have to see how he likes them.
I hope you have an all-purpose GF blend on hand. If not, mix this up, first. You'll need at least 1 cup of the mixture:
So, here is the recipe, and how-to.
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1 cup all-purpose rice flour blend
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup ground flax
4 t. baking powder
3/8 t salt
2 beaten eggs
1 cup milk, divided into 1/2 and 1/4 cups
1/2 cup + 2 T piping hot water
1/4 cup cooking oil
2 T sugar
Tip: Flip when the pancake is bubbly on the top and dry around the edges.
Note: I encourage you to try these just as written, unless you have an allergy that precludes that. There is no vanilla, partly because I forgot, but they also didn't end up needing it. I think the sugar is optional, too. There is plenty of room for individuality without changing the recipe. After the first go, if you want, make your modifications. :) I loved these, as-is, with some margarine (non-trans-fat, still not the best, I know) and syrup.
PS. I don't have the best camera right now, so if you take a picture and would like to donate it to my page until I get my own, I will publish it and give YOU the credit. If you want to do this, please make sure you make them EXACTLY and that they are the prettiest of the batch. ^_^
Update: These reheat nicely! I wrapped them in aluminum foil and put them in the oven for a few minutes. They came out piping hot and not the least bit rubbery!
I never thought I would end up in the Dairy Free crowd, and to be honest, I'm not entirely Dairy Free, right now. I've gone back and forth with having milk, no milk, milk, no milk. But I think I'm going to start easing out of the milk, cheese, and other dairy products. This is for health reasons, and hopefully, a good effect is that I'll lose some more weight.
Yes, I know, pancakes aren't the best thing for weight loss, but if the amount of satisfaction I got out of eating these is any indication, they MIGHT just count toward foods that reduce appetite! They have a bit more fiber than the other pancakes I've made in the past.
I've tried millet pancakes, buckwheat pancakes, sorghum pancakes, and now, I think I have my favorites! My girls loved them, too. My son may be the pickiest eater, so we'll have to see how he likes them.
I hope you have an all-purpose GF blend on hand. If not, mix this up, first. You'll need at least 1 cup of the mixture:
http://www.gygi.com/blog/2012/07/20/gluten-free-baking-the-conversion-chart/
So, here is the recipe, and how-to.
Fluffy, Dairy Free, Gum Free, No-Grit Gluten Free Pancakes
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup ground flax
4 t. baking powder
3/8 t salt
2 beaten eggs
1 cup milk, divided into 1/2 and 1/4 cups
1/2 cup + 2 T piping hot water
1/4 cup cooking oil
2 T sugar
- Begin heating the water. It does not need to be boiling, but it does need to be very hot.
- Measure out and blend together the sorghum flour and ground flax seed into a medium mixing bowl.
- When the water is very hot or boiling, measure and pour into the sorghum-flax mixture. Cover and allow to stand for about 5 minutes. You may want to turn your skillet on. I find the best results by using medium-low heat.
- Meanwhile, mix together the GF all-purpose blend, baking powder and salt.
- Beat the eggs, add 1/2 c of the milk, and the oil.
- To the sorghum mixture, add the dry ingredients, mixing as well as possible, then the wet ingredients, and blend well. Add a little more milk, as needed, by 1/8 cupfuls, until desired consistency is reached. These do not need to be slightly lumpy. They'll cook up fine, even if smooth.
- Check the skillet for readiness by dropping a little water on it and seeing if the water skitters and boils off. Pour by 1/4 cupfuls or desired size.
Tip: Flip when the pancake is bubbly on the top and dry around the edges.
Note: I encourage you to try these just as written, unless you have an allergy that precludes that. There is no vanilla, partly because I forgot, but they also didn't end up needing it. I think the sugar is optional, too. There is plenty of room for individuality without changing the recipe. After the first go, if you want, make your modifications. :) I loved these, as-is, with some margarine (non-trans-fat, still not the best, I know) and syrup.
PS. I don't have the best camera right now, so if you take a picture and would like to donate it to my page until I get my own, I will publish it and give YOU the credit. If you want to do this, please make sure you make them EXACTLY and that they are the prettiest of the batch. ^_^
Update: These reheat nicely! I wrapped them in aluminum foil and put them in the oven for a few minutes. They came out piping hot and not the least bit rubbery!
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Why We Need to Differentiate Genome Augmenting Methods
It keeps coming up, and so I thought I'd write a blog post about it: Which are GMO's and which are not?
Wheat is not a GMO. If anyone was going to lie and say Wheat was a GMO, certainly the Non-GMO Project would, but they don't. Here, they list the current GMOs, here in the USA: http://www.nongmoproject.org/learn-more/what-is-gmo/
Wheat is on the "Monitored" list, but is not a current GMO. Rather, it has been bred to possess more gluten than wild-type because gluten is the molecule that gives bread its structure and texture.
So, aren't we just playing semantics if we harp about GMO versus nonGMO if the organism is genetically changed in some way?
Yes, and no. Biotechnological genetic modification is a specific process that has come under fire in recent years, partly for what the process can do to the environment, for the fact that it isn't required to be labeled, and for diseases that have cropped up in greater abundance than ever-before recorded. It's the dog of the family, meaning: it's getting blamed for everything.
But the way wheat has been changed is through a process that has been around for ages and ages, and in fact, happens naturally in the wild. We could wait around for nature to cause widespread mutations that benefit both the plants and ourselves, which could take eons, or we can force the hybridization process to benefit ourselves. If it hurt the plant, it would die.
It could be that the increased amounts of gluten in the wheat have caused otherwise nonreactive people to become ill, or it could be that along with the increase in gluten, another part of the plant that ends up in our food that might assist in the development of celiac disease and gluten sensitivity has increased as well. A lot of these changes don't occur in isolation.
Another reason why we might want to be careful with our terminology is because we want doctors and researchers to hear us and do something, anything they can, about these illnesses that are reaching epic proportions. If we come in, guns blazing, railing on about GMOs, then find out they really aren't GMOs and the doctor already knows that, I'm not sure how much the doctor will be inclined to listen. However, if the doctor realizes we know our stuff, he or she may be more inclined to hear our complaints and do something about it.
On the note of getting the doctor to listen, I did have a nurse practitioner say that wheat is a GM food. While I try not to judge someone's abilities on such statements, it made me pause. I think she is a GREAT NP and the office is AMAZING! I really love that place. I will use the office in the future if the need arises. So, no, I didn't "throw the baby out with the bathwater." It's just that the claim she made took me aback.
Stay well,
RG
Wheat is not a GMO. If anyone was going to lie and say Wheat was a GMO, certainly the Non-GMO Project would, but they don't. Here, they list the current GMOs, here in the USA: http://www.nongmoproject.org/learn-more/what-is-gmo/
Wheat is on the "Monitored" list, but is not a current GMO. Rather, it has been bred to possess more gluten than wild-type because gluten is the molecule that gives bread its structure and texture.
So, aren't we just playing semantics if we harp about GMO versus nonGMO if the organism is genetically changed in some way?
Yes, and no. Biotechnological genetic modification is a specific process that has come under fire in recent years, partly for what the process can do to the environment, for the fact that it isn't required to be labeled, and for diseases that have cropped up in greater abundance than ever-before recorded. It's the dog of the family, meaning: it's getting blamed for everything.
But the way wheat has been changed is through a process that has been around for ages and ages, and in fact, happens naturally in the wild. We could wait around for nature to cause widespread mutations that benefit both the plants and ourselves, which could take eons, or we can force the hybridization process to benefit ourselves. If it hurt the plant, it would die.
It could be that the increased amounts of gluten in the wheat have caused otherwise nonreactive people to become ill, or it could be that along with the increase in gluten, another part of the plant that ends up in our food that might assist in the development of celiac disease and gluten sensitivity has increased as well. A lot of these changes don't occur in isolation.
Another reason why we might want to be careful with our terminology is because we want doctors and researchers to hear us and do something, anything they can, about these illnesses that are reaching epic proportions. If we come in, guns blazing, railing on about GMOs, then find out they really aren't GMOs and the doctor already knows that, I'm not sure how much the doctor will be inclined to listen. However, if the doctor realizes we know our stuff, he or she may be more inclined to hear our complaints and do something about it.
On the note of getting the doctor to listen, I did have a nurse practitioner say that wheat is a GM food. While I try not to judge someone's abilities on such statements, it made me pause. I think she is a GREAT NP and the office is AMAZING! I really love that place. I will use the office in the future if the need arises. So, no, I didn't "throw the baby out with the bathwater." It's just that the claim she made took me aback.
Stay well,
RG
Monday, June 23, 2014
Celiac Disease and Cold Sores
Well, this is my current situation, and so, I thought I would write about it.
The summary to this post, in case you're in a hurry: Cold sores SUCK!!!! (We don't say "suck"...but they do.)
Cold sores, or fever blisters, are not caused by having a cold or fever. They are caused by the Herpes Simplex Virus I (HSV-1). Other Herpes viruses include genital herpes and chickenpox. They also have similar mechanisms. A recurrence of cold sore or shingles or other outbreaks tend to happen when your immune system is looking the other way, or you are immuno-compromised, ie. being treated for cancer or you have immuno-deficiency. Here's a link with further details about Oral Herpes: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000606.htm
I'm writing this within the 72-hour period. I still have occasional tingles and itches and wicked nerve...zzzeerrrabbsz, followed by even more itches. I have swollen lymph nodes at my jaw on the same side, under my chin, and at my elbows. There is some mad immune-system stuff going on, right now.
So, what happened? Did I get the flu? A cold? Did I watch a class full of slobbery toy-sharing toddlers? No, I got glutened.
At least, I think that's what happened. All the symptoms fit. Also, I've been under tremendous stress, lately. A close family member was diagnosed with cancer.
Did I mention that I've started walking? Yeah, about an hour each time I go out. I'm averaging about three times a week, right now.
Increased sunshine + emotional stress + glutening = cold sore. Oh, yeah, it was bound to happen.
I think that having your immune system max out in response to gluten is a good way to reduce your immunity to other pathogens and antigens.
What have I been doing about it?
1. I made homemade Baby Bell lip balm. It's quick. It's fun. It feels ssssssssssssssooooooooooooo good.
2. Oh, right, I put my Clean&Clear moisturizer on it. OWWWW! But a good hurt. I think. It had that warm, sort of medicated lip balm feeling.
3. I put salt on it. Yeah, just table salt. No, it didn't hurt.
4. I started taking L-Lysine, an amino acid that we must get from our diets, as we can't make it ourselves, like we can most of the other amino acids our cells use. 1000mg, three times a day.
5. I slept when I felt like it. hahahahahaha! I got lucky, though, because I didn't have to be anywhere, much, this weekend.
6. I made sure to eat well.
7. I hydrated, as much as possible.
8. I mixed my homemade lip balm with vaseline. Any time I put on the lip balm, it begins to weep. :(
9. I've been taking a multivitamin, which I have not stopped. Since I think iron may be one of the hardest minerals for me to keep in adequate supply, I supplement half of a vitamin containing iron and half containing the other vitamin, which I think has better bioavailability.
Abreva lists the stages of a cold sore, here: http://www.abreva.com/about-cold-sores/cold-sore-stages/
Mine isn't sticking to that timeline. I'm a full 2.5 days early, by the Abreva page. My disclaimer is that it came on very suddenly (tingle to blister stage by late Friday), so this one may be preceding faster than usual, just because of that. I have no proof that anything I've done or am doing is making it heal any faster. In fact, these tingles in my face and swollen lymph nodes tell me I'd better tread carefully.
Okay, time for a snooze.
Regina G.
The summary to this post, in case you're in a hurry: Cold sores SUCK!!!! (We don't say "suck"...but they do.)
Cold sores, or fever blisters, are not caused by having a cold or fever. They are caused by the Herpes Simplex Virus I (HSV-1). Other Herpes viruses include genital herpes and chickenpox. They also have similar mechanisms. A recurrence of cold sore or shingles or other outbreaks tend to happen when your immune system is looking the other way, or you are immuno-compromised, ie. being treated for cancer or you have immuno-deficiency. Here's a link with further details about Oral Herpes: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000606.htm
I'm writing this within the 72-hour period. I still have occasional tingles and itches and wicked nerve...zzzeerrrabbsz, followed by even more itches. I have swollen lymph nodes at my jaw on the same side, under my chin, and at my elbows. There is some mad immune-system stuff going on, right now.
So, what happened? Did I get the flu? A cold? Did I watch a class full of slobbery toy-sharing toddlers? No, I got glutened.
At least, I think that's what happened. All the symptoms fit. Also, I've been under tremendous stress, lately. A close family member was diagnosed with cancer.
Did I mention that I've started walking? Yeah, about an hour each time I go out. I'm averaging about three times a week, right now.
Increased sunshine + emotional stress + glutening = cold sore. Oh, yeah, it was bound to happen.
I think that having your immune system max out in response to gluten is a good way to reduce your immunity to other pathogens and antigens.
What have I been doing about it?
1. I made homemade Baby Bell lip balm. It's quick. It's fun. It feels ssssssssssssssooooooooooooo good.
2. Oh, right, I put my Clean&Clear moisturizer on it. OWWWW! But a good hurt. I think. It had that warm, sort of medicated lip balm feeling.
3. I put salt on it. Yeah, just table salt. No, it didn't hurt.
4. I started taking L-Lysine, an amino acid that we must get from our diets, as we can't make it ourselves, like we can most of the other amino acids our cells use. 1000mg, three times a day.
5. I slept when I felt like it. hahahahahaha! I got lucky, though, because I didn't have to be anywhere, much, this weekend.
6. I made sure to eat well.
7. I hydrated, as much as possible.
8. I mixed my homemade lip balm with vaseline. Any time I put on the lip balm, it begins to weep. :(
9. I've been taking a multivitamin, which I have not stopped. Since I think iron may be one of the hardest minerals for me to keep in adequate supply, I supplement half of a vitamin containing iron and half containing the other vitamin, which I think has better bioavailability.
Abreva lists the stages of a cold sore, here: http://www.abreva.com/about-cold-sores/cold-sore-stages/
Mine isn't sticking to that timeline. I'm a full 2.5 days early, by the Abreva page. My disclaimer is that it came on very suddenly (tingle to blister stage by late Friday), so this one may be preceding faster than usual, just because of that. I have no proof that anything I've done or am doing is making it heal any faster. In fact, these tingles in my face and swollen lymph nodes tell me I'd better tread carefully.
Okay, time for a snooze.
Regina G.
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