Dave's Direct = The Best Meat I Have Ever Tasted!

Technology can be such a wonderful thing! Months and months ago, I received an invitation from a Facebook friend to "Like" a Facebook page called 'Freebies 2 Deals'. I looked at it and couldn't decide if I wanted to or not and so I left it alone and then forgot all about it. Well I decided it was about time to go and clear out invites I didn't want since they were piling up and I came across that one again. I decided to like it and am I ever glad I did!! I would glance over all the deals that Freebies 2 Deals would post and I either didn't need it or didn't want to go through the trouble. And then, blessedly, I happened upon a deal for Dave's Direct. Check out the website STAT!

Dave's Direct does only ALL-NATURAL, HORMONE-FREE, ANTIBIOTIC-FREE meats!! Ahhhh, now your talkin' my language Freebies 2 Deals! Their piedmontese beef (a double-muscled cattle) interested me immediately and I browsed through all their packages offered. You can even build your own package to meet your own taste. And GREAT prices is the cherry on top!

So, I talked to the Husband about making the purchase and ten minutes later I had a Friends and Family package ordered. They can deliver to your house but I opted for the pickup since it's cheaper. Lucky me they had the pickup just the following morning at the Thanksgiving Point Golf Club House in Lehi, UT and I made my order just in time!

An extremely friendly Christine helped me out and gave me information and even had a ribeye and all natural chicken breast on the grill!! I tried them both and I thought I died and gone to heaven! Why? Because meat that hasn't been pumped full of fillers and dyes and hormones and antibiotics is REALLY tender and flavorful!! Most people have no idea what they are missing. The only seasonings used was a little salt, pepper and garlic powder. The piedmontese rib-eye was FIVE-STAR. Delicious.

I truly wish that we didn't live in a country where an FDA or USDA exists - that there would be no one to outlaw drinking raw milk and squak about those who grow organic crops and meat - something we should be free to do as we please. Everyone would be incredibly healthier without people to decide for us what we take into our bodies. Grow your own gardens, even the smallest bit helps! And try to buy local and organic wherever possible.

I plan on giving Dave's Direct my business...I recommend you try them out and see the difference for yourself!

Organic All The Rage

With everyone turning green and organic, it makes sense that huge companies that sell us crappy dead food and make billions of dollars would want to get in on that chunk of change. Where people can make a buck, they will - and they will do it at the cheapest cost to them which means that the product you buy will be compromised. For example, Stevia has been around for ages. Real, pure Stevia isn't cheap. But the 'health' industry has caught onto Stevia and now you see it on the shelves in regular stores and I'm sure everyone is aware of the recent commercials advertising juice drinks (like Sobe) that now contain Stevia and no sugar. Well, this is what my head has put together. 1) Look at the ingredients if you buy Stevia. Is it just Stevia?? Or are there other ingredients...like other artificial sweetners and/or fillers that will make the product and cheaper - and unhealthy. Most of the different brands I see on the shelves do contain things other than Stevia - and I put it right back on the shelf. 2) All these sports/juice drinks that advertise the use of Stevia are still NOT GOOD for you. And I would bet a pretty dollar that they aren't using straight pure Stevia - because that would cost more.

So what I am getting at here is that everyone wants to make money off the health industry so be careful when you go to the store and you pick up, say, a box of organic health cereal. I'm not a fan of cereal but that is a post all in itself, but how do we know what's really in there? Yes you can look for the USDA approved organic seal - but!

Check out this chart that shows who owns some of the popular organic food products out there. You'll be surprised!! I know I was. My brain says: "If Kellogs really cared about making 100% healthy, organic, enzyme-full food...wouldn't they make ALL their cereal like that?? Why would they make sugar cereal which is literally killing people from the inside out?? How are we, as consumers, supposed to believe that Kashi is going to be healthy for us, when their other cereals are so very not??

Food for thought.

What's The Difference?

I was chatting with my college roommate the other day about healthy choices and she had a lot of questions - I told her to email them on over and I would do my best to answer them.

Keeping in mind that I am not a professional - nutrition was once going to be my profession but now it is just a hobby - I will answer what I know and what I think:


-Where do I shop for healthy foods if I don't have a whole foods-type store near me?

If you don't have access to a Wild Oats or some equally awesome health joint, it should be fairly easy to find your healthy foods in grocery stores or even Walmart. People are becoming more aware of the health hazards that are associated with the food that is commerically prepared and stocked on the shelves and there is a great demand for everything natural and organic, therefore most stores, in order to improve or keep up with their sales, offer natural and organic sections in their stores. If their isn't a designated 'section', then you can usually find a natural version of whatever it is you are looking for right next to the regular version. For instance when I buy my chicken, whether frozen or fresh, I can find the organic chicken right next to it at my regular grocers. And if that doesn't help, it's a matter of knowing what 'healthy foods' to buy. Which I can tackle in another post.

-Just looking at the word organic makes me wary. I associate it with extreme measures that are unnecessary. Why in the world are people buying organic clothing? Isn't that a little extreme? When I go to the supermarket and see organic veggies, they almost always look sickly and are more expensive. I'd rather just buy from a farmer's market. In the winter, I don't see harm in buying regular produce. In my mind, that is still better than buying canned veggies. And are frozen veggies bad for you?

I was thinking about this question - whether buying organic is extreme or not - and I think it depends on your view on our environment and how deep you really want to go into your health. For instance, I had the opportunity to associate with a Bio-Meridian technician, one who actually knew about health and didn't just learn the computer program, and it was very common for people to come in and find out after testing that their system was full of chemicals, pesticides, metals, and all sorts of toxins. That comes from so many things around us - including our environment. While some things may be out of our control, people still want to control what they put in and on their bodies. Buying organic clothing means buying clothing that has been processed with little chemical and harmful impact on the environment as possible. Buying organic food means nourishing your body with food that hasn't been tainted with herbicides, pesticides, fungicides and many other cancer-causing chemicals. Because farmers want to prevent loss by disease or insect, they heavily treat their fields with chemicals and those chemicals come home to you in whatever you buy whether it goes in or on your body. Some people don't go as far as buying organic clothing - I know I don't - but it is true that whatever chemicals that are on your clothing can in fact find their way into your body.

As far as buying organic food in the store, it is more expensive and that's the part that sucks. It should be the other way around but whatever. Depending on what you buy you might find your produce in a slightly sadder shape. But I think it depends a lot on your grocer and their standards. Harmons has great organic produce and even Macys does from time to time. Another reason it may look that way is because it is more expensive and people on a budget will pass it up in favor of something cheaper so it may be sitting there a little longer.

A local farmer's market is a great way to shop - and a local farmer marker who believes in growing organic is even better! I buy regular produce when the organic version isn't available - veggies are still extremely important to the diet and it is far better than buying canned. As far as frozen veggies being good for you - some of it depends on how they are processed before they are frozen BUT the vegetables do get picked and frozen within a short amount of time. When you go to use those vegetables, they are still pretty nutrient packed. I found a pretty good article that goes into further dept about that here.

-You told me beans are better if fresh, frozen or made from scratch. What about when I want to use them in a recipe and it calls for several types of beans? I really like the ease of opening a can and dumping it in. Do the benefits of beans outweigh the risks of them being from a can? (This question could probably be applied to many things.) What about rinsing? Does that do anything to reduce the sodium content? What about if I buy beans with no salt added?

If you are using beans in a recipe and you need several different kinds, unless you are cool enough to have your own bean garden growing, then I would say just used the canned ones and, yes, rinse well - that is, if you are going to ease and convenience.
Beans are very nutritious and full of fiber and even though they have their health benefits even when canned, I BELIEVE that canning does more harm than good.
Reasons being:
There is a substantial reduction of vitamins and minerals that are sensitive to heat during the canning process. Think vitamin C and folic acid, two important nutrients.
The amount of sodium, salt, sugar and other preservatives ARE DEFINATELY harmful to health.
And the presence of the bisphenol A (BPA) in the cans lining has negative effects on human health and environmental condition. Besides BPA, you also have the metal toxicity to worry about. Aluminum can and will find it's way into the very food that it contains.


So - I hope these help and if there are more questions that stem off these answers, then leave me a comment or email me! I'll be glad to put in my two cents or even consult with a professional that I trust to find out!!

Happy Health Endeavors!