Friday Morning Farmer’s Market June 6, 2008

It’s early — not even 8:30. We’ve been up for 2 hours.

I’m sitting here trying to figure out what to make for dinner. I think Kate and I will head over to the Venice farmer’s market and see what’s there. We’ve never been to that one before.

I’d really like to make a quiche, and a salad and some soup… but we can’t have cream on the GAPS diet. But I had an idea — I could do a quiche made with yogurt instead of cream. If I add enough bacon and some cheese, it will probably be good.

I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Update on the Growing Challenge June 4, 2008

I joined the Growing Challenge a while ago. As part of the Growing Challenge, I’m supposed to increase the number of fruits or vegetables I am growing (from last year), and I’m supposed to grow them from seed.

I did that. However, I’m also supposed to post about gardening once a week. I have not kept up that end of the bargain.

I have had some family emergencies going on that have been taking all my energy, my thoughts, and my focus.

So, to make up for it, I’m posting this mega-update of what’s going on in my garden.

We had a new wall put in:

They just finished it yesterday. It used to be an old fence that was literally falling down. So we extended the brick wall. Now I’ll be able to garden all the way to the front!

They also put in this new gate:

Here are the first tomatoes of the season!

These are the first tomatoes of the season — cherry tomatoes! They were volunteer seedlings that came up from last year’s plants.

Here they are:

They look kind of sickly but it’s because I waited too long to transplant them. They’ll come back. Or they won’t. And if they don’t, they’re not hardy. In which case, I don’t really care.

My mom taught me this about gardening a long time ago — she always said she didn’t care if plants died. If they weren’t tough, she didn’t want them. Makes sense to me. Survival of the fittest and all that.

Plus, gardening is not something you should ever get uptight about. It should be fun and relaxing and enjoyable.

Here’s my thyme and sage:

Same story with these guys — I let them get leggy and then pruned the shit out of them. So they look kind of unhappy now. But they will be OK.

As with the cilantro and parsley:

Lemon balm (this was 10 times its size before I pruned it):

Here are some purple potatoes:

I took some purple potatoes that we never got around to eating and threw them in a pot full of soil. And look what happened! It was so easy!

Here’s some rosemary:

These are actually two rosemary plants. I dug them out of the vegetable garden and threw them in a pot. I’ll transplant them tomorrow. (Baby woke up from her nap so I had to stop.)

Strawberries, lettuce and chives:

Kate and I usually eat all the strawberries as we garden — otherwise the birds get them. I need to cover them with a bird net.

Here’s my avocado tree:

Just planted it about a month ago. If we do leave LA and move up to a farm in Washington State, I will really miss being able to grow avocados and citrus.

Here’s a hibiscus:

When I was little, my mom was always growing hibiscus. It was her pride and joy — I guess because it’s not so easy to grow hibiscus in Texas. Here in Southern California, they grow like weeds. This one badly needs transplanting.

Did you know you can make tea out of hibiscus flowers? You can! Hibiscus iced tea is really delicious — like Celestial Seasonings Red Zinger. (I wonder how it would be made into kombucha…)

Here are a couple more trees I got recently, lime and blood orange:

Still don’t know where I’m going to put them…

Here’s one of the lemon trees (there are two) Seth had in the yard when I moved in:

It’s so nice to be able to just go in the back yard and get a lemon whenever you need one.

I just got this Meyer lemon tree:

Meyer lemons are sweeter than regular lemons. I have had Meyer lemon trees at two of my former homes in California — they are so fabulous!

Here’s my new grape vine, planted in the back corner of the yard:

Not sure how long it will take to produce grapes. But the real reason I bought it is so that I can use them for my lacto-fermented dill pickles. Grape leaves are the key to crunchy, crispy pickles! (I’d also love to make dolma one of these days…)

Here is the first bloom from one of the hydrangeas:

I have no idea what these are:

Some kind of flowers I planted in the shade garden. We’ll see what comes up!

This is what the shade garden looks like:

I’m calling this a before photo — I plan to do a lot to this side of the house to make it look a whole lot better.

Here’s the before photo for the front yard:

That’s it for today. I’ll keep you posted.

Metabolic Temperature Graphs June 1, 2008

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know that Seth and I are both suffering from adrenal fatigue (and possibly low thyroid function as well). I started supplementing with 50 mg of Iodoral per day, as well as dessicated adrenal gland a couple of months ago. Seth started taking the supplements a few weeks ago.

We are also off all sugar and starches (we have been on the GAPS diet for over a month). Seth is down to one cup of coffee a day and I’ve given it up completely. (This is all necessary for adrenal recovery.) We are also trying to get more sleep and relaxation (not so easy with two businesses and a baby, but we try.)

Additionally, we are taking a couple of grams of vitamin C per day. We are starting on licorice extract this week. We are also taking extra cod liver oil (for they thyroid), and sea salt in water (for the adrenals).

Dr. Rind has a great website with lots of information on how to recover from thyroid and adrenal imbalance. This page is all about how to chart your temperature.

We have been doing this for the past few weeks. All you have to do is take your temperature 3 times a day, ideally 9 am, 12 noon, and 3 pm. Then you take the average of those 3 temperatures and plot it on the graph.

If you take your temperature 3 times that day, put a 3 on the chart (put 2 if you only take it twice, and 1 if only once). There is also a space down below to make notes of any changes — for example, if something stressful happens or if you change something such as the amount of supplements you are taking.

Here’s my temperature graph:

The temperatures are along the left — on the vertical Y axis (in Celcius and Farenheit). The X (horizontal) axis represents each day. So you can see how I charted a number (usually 3, sometimes 2) on the X axis which represents my average temperature each day.

Obviously my temperatures are pretty low. And they are not stable. This signifies low adrenal function (and possibly also low thyroid function). Low temperatures are indicative of low thyroid (or hypothyroid) function, but they can also be indicative of adrenal exhaustion. Unstable temperatures (up and down) indicate adrenal fatigue.

Here’s Seth’s temperature graph:

Seth’s temperatures are much lower than mine — and much more unstable. However, he started supplementing more recently. It also looks like his temperatures are beginning to stabilize — just in the past few days. We’ll see…

Here is what it says on Dr. Rind’s site about interpreting results:

Thermal activity reflects metabolic activity. A low temperature means low metabolism and vice versa. For example, the temperature typically found in someone who is old, frail, pale and weak is low and typically ranges from 95 to 97 degrees if no infection is present. A healthy person will have an average temperature of 98.6 degrees, but may have a 100 degree or higher temperature in a hyperthyroid state or as high as a 104 to 105 degree temperature if there is a fever present ­ these are high metabolic states.

Wide variability in daily temperatures indicates a weak adrenal function since the adrenal glands help the body maintain stability. Good adrenal function produces a stable temperature. As adrenal function improves, the temperature variability decreases and vice versa. As adrenals get stressed (either from emotional stress, excess metabolic stimulation such as excessive thyroid stimulation, or for other reasons), the variability increases.

In a hypothyroid state, the day-to-day averages are low and very stable. In a hypoadrenal state including adrenal exhaustion or adrenal stress, the temperatures are low and unstable — one day they may average 96 degrees and one to two degrees higher the next day.

It looks like Seth may be beginning to stabilize. I’m not really seeing any improvement in my chart yet — but I have been having some extremely emotionally stressful days, due to my current family emergency. So it may take me a while longer to recover. I’ll keep tracking it.

Note: It is imperative to get a good thermometer if you want to do this. Most thermometers are wildly inaccurate. Dr. Rind recommends the digital Lumiscope thermometer. I found it on Drugstore.com for $6.

Keratosis Pilaris May 29, 2008

Ugh! I have it, too! After I wrote that post this morning, I took a shower and looked at the backs of my arms. Not as bad as Seth — but I have it!

I knew I used to have it — and I think I used to have it a lot worse. But I still have it. Even after taking cod liver oil for 7 months now.

I guess it makes sense though. For one thing, I am trying to rebuild nutritional stores after having a baby — and they say it takes 3 years to do that.

Also, if I have low thyroid function like I think I do, then all the vitamin A I am consuming is probably going to my thyroid gland. Sally Fallon said the thyroid gland needs vitamin A more than any other gland.

So that settles it. We are having chicken liver pate tonight for dinner. With plenty of butter and bone marrow on our almond bread.

I told Seth we are going to eat chicken liver or duck liver pate at least once a week from now on. And I am going to order a bunch of liverwurst and Braunschweiger from US Wellness Meats. We need to up our liver intake!

Real Food: Anchovy Pizza May 29, 2008

I’ve been reading Nina Planck’s book, “Real Food: What to Eat and Why”. It’s so good, even though I’m only halfway through, I just ordered a copy for my sister.

I just read the chapter on fish. It was so convincing — we need to be eating fish as often as possible. Weston Price said the same thing. I have more to say on this topic but I have to make breakfast as soon as Elmo is over — so it will have to be another time.

We do eat fish once or twice a week — usually sashimi. I think we need to be eating fish at least twice a week, particularly oily fish and shellfish.

So tonight, I decided to make anchovy pizza. I’ll make the almond flour dough, and I have some fresh mozzarella I bought at the farmer’s market. I think I’ll add some kalamata olives (Adam’s Ranch, also from the farmer’s market) and some onion, too.

I was also reading about vitamin A deficiency this morning. Seth had asked me what were the red bumps on the backs of his arms and on his thighs. It’s called keratosis pilaris and it is caused by a vitamin A deficiency. This is a pretty common problem — I see it on lots of people. I used to have it when I was younger.

Here’s a photo.

It doesn’t surprise me that Seth is vitamin A deficient. Vitamin A is found in great quantities in liver, cream, butter, and shellfish. He eats shellfish occasionally but he doesn’t eat any of those other foods. He is taking cod liver oil, but probably not enough. He gets 1 teaspoon a day — but he is often busy or out of town. So I am going to give him 2 teaspoons just to make sure we catch up for all those missed days. I’m also going to get him on the Activator X butter oil.

Gotta go fry some eggs!

The Spirit of Deidre Currie Lives On May 25, 2008

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” — Plato

Sometimes terrible things happen in life that make no sense. No matter how hard we try, we can’t find meaning.

My family has been going through some very tough times lately. But no matter how bad you think things are in your own life, I promise you, there are others out there who are fighting harder battles.

The other day, a man named Archie Welch posted a comment on my blog, letting me know about the Deidre Currie festival, an event he was putting on in honor of his wife, Deidre, who passed to the other side in January of 2008, leaving Archie with their newborn baby, Jack.

Here’s their love story in Archie’s words: www.deidrecurriefestival.com/lovestory.html

I can’t even imagine what their family is going through. Not only Archie, who has had to just pick up and keep going, having to take care of a newborn and keep running his business, but Deidre’s extended family as well.

Archie has worked to put together this festival in her honor — Saturday September 13, 2008 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The cost is $45 and the speakers include:

Sally Fallon, President Weston A Price Foundation, Author of Nourishing Traditions
Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride, author of Gut and Psychology Syndrome
Jerry Brunetti, one of nation’s foremost experts on food, farming and health
Karen Lubbers, Michigan farmer, teacher, environmentalist

It is so beautiful that Archie is doing this. This is exactly the kind of thing that Deidre was working to do. The festival will also have a gourmet farmer’s market featuring grass-fed beef, pastured eggs, nitrate free sausages, organic bread, wine, cheeses, and sauerkraut, and much more.

More information about the festival: www.deidrecurriefestival.com/index.html

Archie also mentioned to me in an email (we have been corresponding) that he really wants to find a way to get Deidre’s family (her mother, father, sister and brother) over from New Zealand for the festival. He told me in confidence that he wasn’t sure if he could afford it.

I just had an idea… what if we raised some money for him to get Deidre’s family over for the festival? I’m not sure how much he needs but every dollar would help.

I feel so bad for Deidre’s parents — not only did they lose their beautiful young daughter, but their grandson is so far away. (Archie did say he’s planning to move to New Zealand next year, just so that he and Jack can be closer to Deidre’s family.) I’m sure it would mean so much to her family members if they could attend this festival.

I’m pledging $100.

If you want to donate some money to the cause, leave a comment below or send me an email at inasnit@gmail.com.

You can make your check out to Archie Welch. I will email you an address (I’ll get a P.O. box) where you can mail your check.

It doesn’t matter how much you send. Even $5 would make a difference.

Please forward this post to your friends — or post about it on your own blog — let’s get the word out.

Melasma and Adrenal Exhaustion May 24, 2008

I’ve had melasma for a few years now. A lot of women get it when they are pregnant but I actually started seeing it on my face in 2004.

From what I’ve been reading (and listening to a lecture by Dr. James Wilson), melasma is caused by adrenal fatigue.

I swear it’s starting to lighten. Ever so slightly. I think giving up coffee and taking the adrenal gland is helping!

Smoothie Recipes May 19, 2008

I’ve been making a lot of smoothies lately. It’s such an easy and quick way to provide nourishment. I especially like them because they make it so easy to take coconut oil. If you’re not doing dairy, just use coconut milk. I’ve been making these for Seth and he LOVES them!

They also make a great breakfast if you’re tired of eggs — or on the run. Or you can make them for a fast and easy lunch. They are so filling — they keep you going for hours.

I hit upon a couple of really great recipes I thought I’d share. The measurements are approximate — adjust to taste.

Chocolate Banana Smoothie
1 banana
1 cup kefir, raw milk, yogurt, or coconut milk
1 TBS raw honey
2 raw egg yolks
2 TBS coconut oil
1 TBS organic cocoa powder

Peach and Cantaloupe Smoothie
1 banana
1 cup kefir, raw milk, yogurt, or coconut milk
1 TBS raw honey
2 raw egg yolks
2 TBS coconut oil
1 large peach, or 2-3 small peaches (peeled and pitted)
1 cantaloupe wedge, minus the rind (about 1/4 of a cantaloupe)

Vanilla Banana Smoothie
1 banana
1 cup kefir, raw milk, yogurt, or coconut milk
1 TBS raw honey
2 raw egg yolks
2 TBS coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla extract

I sometimes also add a few TBS of raw cream (for me, not for Seth yet), just to make them even more nutritious.

Container Gardening May 16, 2008

I’ve got to do some gardening today. My tomato plants are getting big and I need to move them. I also need to move all the herbs out of the garden and into containers — so I will have more room for vegetables.

I’m almost ready to move my seedlings out, too. I need room in that vegetable bed.

I figure I can put all the herbs in containers. As well as some other plants — like the strawberries.

I have about 20 feet along the wall where I could put these containers. And I could easily string some drip irrigation — rigged up from the hose. I could put that on a timer so it gets watered once or twice a day.

Problem is, I don’t have enough containers. I don’t want anything fancy. This is not for show — this is for food production.

I was thinking I could build some out of wood. But that’s a lot of work — and it can get expensive.

Maybe recycle some plastic containers. That is, if I had a bunch of plastic containers. Where does one find old plastic containers?

Let me know if you’ve got any ideas. I’m feeling stumped and I need to move on this.

Easy Japanese Dinner May 8, 2008

I’m excited! I have been cleaning out the garage and going through boxes and boxes of books (we bought some more bookcases so we could unpack my books — I have a lot). Anyway, I found a really nice Japanese cookbook that I haven’t used in years (since it was packed in a box).

There are lots of great recipes. Lots of rice and noodles of course, which we can’t do. But there are some GAPS-friendly recipes.

Tonight I’m going to make:

Homemade Miso Soup
Wakame with Shrimp and Cucumber with Vinegar Dressing
Steamed Baby Bok Choy
Sashimi (depends on what’s fresh but most likely salmon and tuna, and Seth’s favorite, ikura)

The homemade miso soup is not hard to make. I already got the ingredients — naturally fermented miso, naturally fermented soy sauce, bonito flakes, and wakame. Need to pick up some scallions. I’m skipping the tofu.

The salad is easy too — just 6 shrimp, 1/4 cucumber, and some dried wakame that you blanch. Steamed bok choy (I have some in the fridge I need to use up) and for sashimi, all you have to do is slice it.

I think this morning I will make omelettes with tomato and avocado — just for a change of pace.

GAPS Diet: Day Eight May 4, 2008

It’s officially been over a week now and we are still going strong. We went out last night on a pseudo-date (it was a business party, so not really a date, but we still had a great time). Seth really wanted some pizza. I talked him out of it. He thanked me this morning.

He also wanted some Bourbon. He said, “Whiskey is allowed on the diet — occasionally.” I realized he was right. It’s in the book. So we both had a glass. He had his with ice and I had mine neat with a water back. I forget the name of it — some small distillery I’d never heard of. It was really good.

It has been unbelievably easy for me to give up coffee. I don’t miss it at all. And I’ve had no withdrawal symptoms. I think it’s something to do with the Dandy Blend. Since I can’t have milk or cream with my “coffee” (ahem - Dandy Blend), I’ve really been enjoying it on ice.

So here’s what I’m cooking this week….

Last night we had sausage (Rocky Canyon sausage — YUM so delicious) and chicken broth.

Tonight I made Roast Duck, Kohlrabi and Beet Greens Sauteed in Duck Fat, and Green Beans.

I got the duck from Healthy Family Farms (at the Saturday Santa Monica Farmer’s Market). Oh my God was it good. Seriously. I would eat roast duck over roast chicken any day. It has more fat I think so it’s much more succulent. You don’t even have to baste it.

I took a little of the duck fat and added it to a cast iron skillet, and sauteed the kohlrabi and beet greens in that. You just peel the kohlrabi into thin strips with a potato peeler. The add the rinsed beet greens. After they are cooked, season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Delicious. Both Seth and Kate ate every bite.

Kate also ate the liver from the duck, which I sauteed in duck fat and seasoned with sea salt (it was sooo good — I had a few bites, too).

Tomorrow night we will have beef stir fry. I bought some fresh oyster mushrooms, fresh snow peas, fresh red bell pepper, and canned water chestnuts. And some Schezwan sauce (made with honey instead of sugar or high fructose corn syrup). The beef is from Rocky Canyon.

I’ll let you know how it turns out. Of course we’ll have it sans rice.

WordPress Gaffe: “Possibly” Related Posts April 28, 2008

The key word here is “possibly”.

This morning I noticed something funny on my blog. When I clicked to read the comments on one of my posts, I saw something I had never seen before. It said “Possibly Related Posts” and there were some links to other posts.

Only I didn’t recognize them. These weren’t my posts. They were posts on other people’s WordPress blogs. Only there was nothing distinguishing them as coming from other people’s blogs — so they looked like my posts.

For example, on a post called “The Miracle of Kefir” which is all about how one woman regulated her menstrual cycles by drinking kefir, the following showed up:

Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)

* Considerations to Take Into Account for Taking Birth Control Pills
* Speaking of Cramps…
* SNL’s “Annuale” commercial

Nothing to do with kefir or health or nutrition. I guess they are vaguely related to my post because they are about birth control pills and menstruation.

Here’s my beef though — there is no indication that these are posts on other people’s blogs. The way it’s designed makes it looks like these are links to other posts on my blog.

What had WordPress done? And why had they done it without telling us?

I googled it and found the answer.

WordPress.com has activated a feature without warning that has many up in arms of protest, making it one of the least welcoming additions to WordPress.com.

Since the beginning of WordPress.com, one of the most requested features has been the ability to showcase related posts from our own blogs. WordPress.com has activated this ability, but the links link to WordPress.com blogs, not our own.

This is bad for many reasons, which I’m sure you’ve already thought of. No control. Implied recommendation or endorsement. Inappropriate links. And a lot of confusion for our readers who believe we choose these links or that they will lead to links on our blog related to what we blog about.Source

If you noticed that this is happening on your WordPress.com blog, it’s easy to turn it off.

To turn off the new related post feature on WordPress.com blogs:

1. Go to the Administration Panels > Design > Extras.
2. Check Hide Related Links.
3. Click Update.

Source

I’m going to go turn it off on mine right now.

PS: To the people at WordPress.com: (A) You should notify your users before you do something like that. An email would have sufficed. (B) From a usability standpoint, it’s a terrible idea. I already hate it that if I click on the tags on the post, I go to a general WordPress page with tags. That makes no sense.

Here’s an idea — why not poll your users and see what they want? And why not create some better tools to help us discover blogs we want to read — instead of randomly driving us off to unrelated blogs that we would never want to go to?

As soon as I get a few minutes, I’m going to move my blog over to a WordPress.org blog. I’ve been meaning to do it anyhow.

Seedlings! April 23, 2008

I have more seedlings!

Here are the plants that are sprouting so far:

Chamomile
Basil
Cherokee Tomatoes
Roma Tomatoes
Calendula

Wheee! This is so fun!

Making Masa and Agave Margaritas April 23, 2008

I grew up on Tex-Mex and I love it. Now Seth loves it too. Which would be great… EXCEPT…

I still don’t have a source for decent tortillas and tortilla chips.

Those sprouted grain tortillas are an okay choice (except they do have sprouted soybeans which is NOT good). But they don’t taste that good.

What I really want is a good-tasting, organic, non-GMO, properly soaked corn tortilla. Is that too much to ask for?

Last night we broke down and cheated. Seth really wanted nachos (and, having grown up in Texas, nachos is my favorite meal). So I picked up a bag of organic tortilla chips. Of course they were made with canola oil. So it was, as Sally Fallon says, “a compromise meal”. I have yet to see a nacho chip that was not fried in either canola oil or corn oil or soybean oil. All bad! (And guess what? I am constipated today! I’m never constipated!)

I also made us the most delicious sugar-free margaritas made with agave nectar. Here’s the recipe:

Patron or other good-quality tequila - 3 ounces
Juice of 2 limes
Agave nectar - about 1-1.5 ounces (to taste)

Combine the above in a shaker with ice. Shake and pour into glasses with ice.

After you’ve had this margarita, you will never go back to sugar!

Anyway, back to my search for tortillas. Unfortunately, the good looking tortillas I’ve seen at the store are not organic. I have never seen an organic one. And it’s really important to get organic when eating corn — since most non-organic corn is genetically modified.

Likewise, I’ve never seen organic masa harina for sale.

Masa harina is the flour that is made from corn. You take the corn, dry it, then soak it in water with cal, which is slaked lime. It needs to be soaked at least overnight.

Yensi said in Guatemala they used to soak it for 1-2 weeks. Sadly, she spoke to her grandmother and she said they are not soaking it at all anymore — they just cook it.

I did find some organic masa harina online the other day. But I called the company to find out how long they soaked the corn in the lime water. They said they didn’t soak it — they just cooked it for 40 minutes.

So I guess I won’t be buying any masa harina. I have to make it myself.

But I’ve been doing some research online and you know what, it doesn’t look that hard. All you have to do is soak it and cook it and grind it.

Here is one recipe for masa. On that same site, they sell the cal (slaked lime), the grinder, and the dried corn (they even have one organic variety).

Here’s another recipe for masa. Here’s another source for organic corn — you need to use “dent corn” or “field corn” to make masa.

In Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon says it’s best to grind your own corn, since all flours go rancid quickly. But you can also just soak corn meal with the slaked lime — for about 7 hours. She says you can also use pickling lime.

Mmm — now I will be able to make polenta and corn bread, too! And tamales!

I’m going to order the dried corn, the grinder and the cal today. This may very well be Little Miss Kate’s first grain.

Low Milk Supply Related to Iodine Deficiency? April 22, 2008

Ever since I discovered that I was hypothyroid and iodine deficient, I’ve been digging around on the internet, trying to find a connection between an underactive thyroid gland and iodine deficiency and low milk supply.

I did my best to breast feed Baby Kate but it was not easy. I had to start supplementing at just 4 months. Thank goodness I found the Weston A. Price Foundation and the homemade raw milk formula.

Nonetheless, It was so disheartening to me. I felt like such a failure.

Everyone gave me advice. “Just nurse more. Stay in bed with the baby for 3 days.” Or “Drink more fluids.” I did everything they said to do and more. I even took fenugreek drops and drank the tea.

Nothing worked. My supply dwindled. Nonetheless, I kept nursing and pumping until she was 9 months old. Most people say that’s a pretty good run.

Nobody ever suggested that there could be a physiological reason that I could not produce enough milk. In fact, some women got angry when I asked that question. They said that it was purely cultural. They said that it was my fault for giving my baby a pacifier or a bottle or because I was not nursing often enough.

But I couldn’t help but wonder. Could there be a physiological link? Why was my milk supply so low? Why did I have to pump or nurse frantically every 3-4 hours just to maintain the limited milk production I had?

Meanwhile, Yensi, our nanny, nurses her 16-month-old anywhere from 2-6 times a day. “Some days it’s twice a day, sometimes it’s six times a day.” Depending on whether she’s with Julianna or not. Yensi did not have to lie in bed with her baby to continue to produce milk. She went back to work when Julianna was six months old.

How can she do that? I always thought you had to keep pumping and keep nursing. I’ve even heard mothers say that if you don’t keep nursing all through the night you will lose your supply.

Meanwhile all Yensi has to do is eat a piece of sprouted toast and she feels her milk come in. Whether she nurses a lot or a little, she still has milk. It is not stressful for her — it’s just easy and natural.

Isn’t that the way it’s supposed to be?!

Yes, I know that some women have a better milk supply. But isn’t it possible that there’s something more to this? Could it be that there is something we are lacking in our diet that reduces our milk supply? Could it be a nutritional deficiency?

I started researching it but came up empty. No doctors were making the connection between thyroid disease or iodine deficiency and low milk supply. Nor were lactation specialists talking about it. They were all talking about the dangers of pacifiers and telling the mothers to stay in bed with the baby. Not really an option if you have to go back to work!

Then I found this website — it’s for a class on Lactation Biology taught by Professor Walter L. Hurley in the Department of Animal Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana.

It says the class provides “fundamental information about the biology of lactation in mammals.”

Get ready for this: “Thyroid hormones are essential for maximal secretion of milk.”

Hmm… thryoid hormones. The thyroid gland produces thyroid hormones. So you need a strong thyroid gland that produces lots of hormones if you want to produce a lot of milk.

Let me back up and explain how the thyroid gland works and why iodine is so important. Iodine is stored in the thyroid gland.

According to Wikipedia:

The thyroid hormones, thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3), are tyrosine-based hormones produced by the thyroid gland. An important component in the synthesis is iodine.

So you need enough iodine for the thyroid to produce enough hormones. Where else is iodine stored in the body? In the breasts!

Anyone see a connection here?

I read more on the Lactation Biology website:

Thyroidectomy can be achieved by surgical procedures or by irradiating the thyroid by ingesting radioactive iodine which is sequestered into the thyroid and essentially destroys the thyroid function. Thyroidectomy in cattle by either method results in decreased milk yield.

Injection of thyroid hormone into cattle for 7 weeks at 25% above the normal thyroid secretion rate results in increase milk yield by 27%.

Feeding thyroprotein (iodinated casein — milk protein with added iodine) to cows increases milk yield by 10% in early lactation and by 15-20% in late lactation.

I’m going to continue researching this but I have to tell you — I think I am on to something! Finally — a possible answer to why my milk supply was so low.

I’ve decided, based on this information, that I am going to try to go back to breast feeding. I know, Kate’s 12 months now and I could probably just skip it. And it may not work.

But I have two pretty big reasons for wanting to do this:

1.) Immunity. We have not vaccinated her since she was 4 months old (and I regret letting them do that. They gave her 5 shots in one day!). One way to impart immunity to the child is from the inherited immunity of the mother — through the breast milk.

“Through your breast milk, you give your baby immunities to illnesses to which you are immune and also those to which you have been exposed. Nursing also allows your baby to give germs to you so that your immune system can respond and can synthesize antibodies! This means that if your baby has come in contact with something which you have not, (s)he will pass these germs to you at the next nursing; during that feeding, your body will start to manufacture antibodies for that particular germ. By the time the next feeding arrives, your entire immune system will be working to provide immunities for you and your baby. If you are exposed to any bacteria or viruses, your body will be making antibodies against them and these will be in your milk” (La Leche League).

2.) Iodine. I’m concerned about Kate’s iodine stores. If I am iodine deficient, most likely, she is also iodine deficient. Yes, I could supplement her with Lugol’s drops but I would much rather give her iodine through my own breast milk.

Now, as to how hard it will be to restart breast feeding. Some say it can be difficult, but for many mothers, it is totally doable.

I found this website for adoptive mothers who want to breastfeed. It says that most women are able to successfully breastfeed their adopted children. If they can do it, I’m sure I can start again!

First things first though. I need to give my thyroid what it needs — iodine. And I need to support my thyroid and adrenal glands with proper nutrition: glands, vitamin C, amino acids, B complex, etc.

When I correct my hormone imbalance, only then will my milk production increase.

Also, I need to continue to detox these heavy metals out of my body before I start again. I’m going to talk to Dr. Flechas when I have my consultation, see what he thinks, see how long it will take to detox. I’m doing the heavy metal test this week to see what I need to detox– so I should know something by next week.

I’m also going to order the Lact-Aid. This is a wonderful tool that helps you stimulate milk flow while supplementing your baby (with stored breast milk or formula). Of course I will also pump but I think the Lact-Aid will help us tremendously.

I can’t tell you how happy I am to finally be able to finally make sense of this conundrum. Yes, it’s still a theory. Doctors are not aware of this. Nor are lactation consultants. But if this theory works, that’s pretty exciting, don’t you think? And don’t you think the doctors and lactation consultants should be aware of this? Think of how many women could be helped. And how many babies would not need to go on commercial formula.

I will keep you posted…

Lazy Gardening April 7, 2008

I can’t believe it. I went out to the garden this weekend to show my family what was growing and we found 5 or 10 close to 40 small tomato plants that popped up out of nowhere. Isn’t that awesome?!

I was lazy and didn’t take out all the tomato plants right away — left them there for a few months. I guess they went to seed and self-seeded.

There are so many benefits to being a lazy gardener. I find that the less I do, the more I get out of the way and let the garden do what it wants to do, the better. It’s kind of like life. Expect the best, relax, and get out of the way.

Now I don’t have to start any tomato plant seeds. However, I have a couple of heirloom varieties I want to try — so I’ll start a few more. It never hurts to have more tomatoes. I will store my tomatoes in mason jars in the fall. That is what they do in Tuscany — and they have tomatoes all year long.

Now I need to buy some sprouted flour so I can make pizza and pasta!

I haven’t gotten around to planting my seeds yet. Too busy with vacation and I was sick last week, too. But I’m going to do it today! When Kate goes down for her afternoon nap.

I found some more trees at the farmer’s market yesterday. Blood Orange and Mexican Lime:

And here are the strawberries I planted a few weeks ago — already bearing fruit!