Minerals
I've been giving some thought to minerals in our diet lately. I say that because when I take on a new client, the first thing I ask them to do is keep a diet record. I was just looking at the records of three new clients I have now, and they don't look that bad, really. But it doesn't seem... well... rich. The meals sound empty, not chock full of goodness at all.
Even if you're not eating junk food, it seems that most food we eat is really lacking good nutrition. Most of it very low in minerals. The minerals I'm talking about includes those major minerals we need as well as trace elements. We need iron, magnesium, manganese, calcium, zinc, copper, selenium, and a little tiny bits of other things too. I hear a lot about 'alkalizing diets' and a lot of what I think of in alkalizing diets are introducing more mineral-rich foods. Not pills with mineral supplements, real food.
I'm not totally against supplements but to me they illustrate our arrogance at thinking we know everything a body needs from food. I know humans can live on a wide variety of different diets, but they are all made of complex food stuffs. We eat plants and animals raised on the earth all assimilating and concentrating minerals in a complex of protein structures. But we know we have depleted soils. Especially where I live, in the Pacific Northwest, the rains make our soils acidic and constantly in need of extra lime and fertilizer to get good growth that comes easily east of the mountains. So I wanted to do a post that, while not a magic bullet to improve your diet, might give you some different ideas on how to get more minerals in your diet. Here and there... every day... a little of this and a little of that. It's the way we absorb them best, really. So here goes.
Depleted soils
Do you grow food in your garden? When you fertilize, think twice about that bottle of miracle grow. Is that what YOU want to eat? You can mix up your own fertilizer and add natural rock powders to your soil. Lime and dolomite lime give you calcium and magnesium. And buy a bag of kelp powder. Mix it into your fertilizer for your soil and give some of the complex mineral and iodine mixture from the sea to your garden. Feed it to your livestock too. Some are close enough to the sea to bring a load of actual sea weed home in the truck and mix it into their compost.
Salt
Natural, unrefined salt still contains trace amounts of minerals other than sodium chloride. Those other minerals give it a complexity of flavor. Keep a nice grey Celitc Sea Salt of other unrefined salt next to your stove for cooking and on your table. Yes, it is more expensive. But it's not really THAT expensive. Here is a nice little article about salt a friend just sent me.
Sweeteners
Sugar is just sugar. Like refined salt, it just gives you sweet without anything else. What about iron-rich molasses? Or REAL maple syrup? Or if it's for your oatmeal, how about chopping up a couple of dates and passing on the sweetener? It may take you time to adjust your tastes to this. Because it's complexity rather than that straight SWEET flavor you're adjusting to. Give it a chance.
Bone broths
The mineral-protein matrix of bones is an absolute gold mine for your health. You can buy bones just for the purpose of making broth, or use the chicken carcass after your Sunday roast chicken. Cook it long enough (or pressure cook it) so that when you chill it, it sets like jello. That means you've hit the jackpot. After you make your chicken or beef broth, divide it into a few different pots and freeze in portions you can use for soup and sauces. Sally Fallon's book, 'Nourishing Traditions' has a lot to say about this... and many other good things.
Unfermented whole grains
As I have talked about in other posts, whole grains might have a lot of minerals in them, but they aren't particularly bioavailable unless handled with care. Whole grain crackers and the like are still kind of empty bits of fiber and carbs. Not bad, but not full of goodness either. Brown rice should be soaked and cooked for a long time as described here. Soak your oatmeal overnight in some whey as described in this old post.
Green food
Anything green has a lot of magnesium. A magnesium is at the center of every chlorophyll molecule, so just keep eating green. Likely you'll get a bunch of calcium with it too. Find a way to eat a green salad, sauteed Swiss chard, kale chips, steamed broccoli or roasted Brussels sprouts every day. At LEAST once a day. Oh, and then there is the ultimate green vegetable... sea weed.
Sea veggies
Oh, you've just got to get yourself some of this. What, you've never had them? Pound for pound, I think they must be the best source of minerals and trace elements. And there are different kinds that give you different flavor profiles and nutrient profiles. In 'Eat Your Sea Veggies', I list the ones that I use the most and how I use them. A day does not go by when I don't put a pince of dulse in some oatmeal, make some miso with kombu and wakame, put a few dark strands of arame in my salad or use the kombu to cook some chickpeas for hummus.
Anyway, these are just some different ideas of different pantry items to always have on hand, and different ways of cooking and seasoning your food to make it more nutrient-dense for you and your family. You won't feel a difference overnight, but over the years, you will make a much healthier family from it.
Even if you're not eating junk food, it seems that most food we eat is really lacking good nutrition. Most of it very low in minerals. The minerals I'm talking about includes those major minerals we need as well as trace elements. We need iron, magnesium, manganese, calcium, zinc, copper, selenium, and a little tiny bits of other things too. I hear a lot about 'alkalizing diets' and a lot of what I think of in alkalizing diets are introducing more mineral-rich foods. Not pills with mineral supplements, real food.
I'm not totally against supplements but to me they illustrate our arrogance at thinking we know everything a body needs from food. I know humans can live on a wide variety of different diets, but they are all made of complex food stuffs. We eat plants and animals raised on the earth all assimilating and concentrating minerals in a complex of protein structures. But we know we have depleted soils. Especially where I live, in the Pacific Northwest, the rains make our soils acidic and constantly in need of extra lime and fertilizer to get good growth that comes easily east of the mountains. So I wanted to do a post that, while not a magic bullet to improve your diet, might give you some different ideas on how to get more minerals in your diet. Here and there... every day... a little of this and a little of that. It's the way we absorb them best, really. So here goes.
Depleted soils
Do you grow food in your garden? When you fertilize, think twice about that bottle of miracle grow. Is that what YOU want to eat? You can mix up your own fertilizer and add natural rock powders to your soil. Lime and dolomite lime give you calcium and magnesium. And buy a bag of kelp powder. Mix it into your fertilizer for your soil and give some of the complex mineral and iodine mixture from the sea to your garden. Feed it to your livestock too. Some are close enough to the sea to bring a load of actual sea weed home in the truck and mix it into their compost.
Salt
Natural, unrefined salt still contains trace amounts of minerals other than sodium chloride. Those other minerals give it a complexity of flavor. Keep a nice grey Celitc Sea Salt of other unrefined salt next to your stove for cooking and on your table. Yes, it is more expensive. But it's not really THAT expensive. Here is a nice little article about salt a friend just sent me.
Sweeteners
Sugar is just sugar. Like refined salt, it just gives you sweet without anything else. What about iron-rich molasses? Or REAL maple syrup? Or if it's for your oatmeal, how about chopping up a couple of dates and passing on the sweetener? It may take you time to adjust your tastes to this. Because it's complexity rather than that straight SWEET flavor you're adjusting to. Give it a chance.
Bone broths
The mineral-protein matrix of bones is an absolute gold mine for your health. You can buy bones just for the purpose of making broth, or use the chicken carcass after your Sunday roast chicken. Cook it long enough (or pressure cook it) so that when you chill it, it sets like jello. That means you've hit the jackpot. After you make your chicken or beef broth, divide it into a few different pots and freeze in portions you can use for soup and sauces. Sally Fallon's book, 'Nourishing Traditions' has a lot to say about this... and many other good things.
Unfermented whole grains
As I have talked about in other posts, whole grains might have a lot of minerals in them, but they aren't particularly bioavailable unless handled with care. Whole grain crackers and the like are still kind of empty bits of fiber and carbs. Not bad, but not full of goodness either. Brown rice should be soaked and cooked for a long time as described here. Soak your oatmeal overnight in some whey as described in this old post.
Green food
Anything green has a lot of magnesium. A magnesium is at the center of every chlorophyll molecule, so just keep eating green. Likely you'll get a bunch of calcium with it too. Find a way to eat a green salad, sauteed Swiss chard, kale chips, steamed broccoli or roasted Brussels sprouts every day. At LEAST once a day. Oh, and then there is the ultimate green vegetable... sea weed.
Sea veggies
Oh, you've just got to get yourself some of this. What, you've never had them? Pound for pound, I think they must be the best source of minerals and trace elements. And there are different kinds that give you different flavor profiles and nutrient profiles. In 'Eat Your Sea Veggies', I list the ones that I use the most and how I use them. A day does not go by when I don't put a pince of dulse in some oatmeal, make some miso with kombu and wakame, put a few dark strands of arame in my salad or use the kombu to cook some chickpeas for hummus.
Anyway, these are just some different ideas of different pantry items to always have on hand, and different ways of cooking and seasoning your food to make it more nutrient-dense for you and your family. You won't feel a difference overnight, but over the years, you will make a much healthier family from it.