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Blog: On Health. On Writing. On Life. On Everything.

The Next Swine Flu Season

A panel of scientists have concluded that given the high level of immunity in the world wide population, the relative mildness of the H1N1 flu and the low probability that it might mutate to something much more threatening, the next flu season does not need to be marred by fears. So, don’t fear! Get enough sleep, eat your veggies and enjoy your life! Read More 
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Gluten Intolerance On the Rise

Not only is gluten intolerance widely under-diagnosed, it is also getting more common, especially in the elderly. The reason are still puzzling the researcher. I would venture four explanations (there are very likely more!): 1. Increased use of antibiotics. Antibiotics disturb the fragile balance of bacteria in the gut – there fore it is always good to question your doctor’s wisdom to prescribe and antibiotic. And if you really have to take one, also take plenty of probiotics – but not at the same time: Space it so that you take the probiotic in between antibiotic doses. 2. Increased use of adulterated “foods” – stuff your body doesn’t even recognize as food: additives, preservatives, colorings, prescription and recreational drugs (it is totally beyond me why those drugs are called “recreational’!), “new and improved” food items like Olestra, and so on, and so on. 3. Increase use of milk and dairy products that are highly changed through pasteurization, homogenization and addition of modern “food technology.” Mind, I don’t condone unpasteurized milk for reasons of infection. But I just think milk is for cow babies – and should stay with them. 4. Our eating habits: Not chewing well enough, eating late at night, eating snacks all the time. That way, the body is always busy with digesting – never has time for repair. On the other hand, it is never too late to clean up your eating act: Eat fresh, unadulterated foods, cook for yourself and your family – there is no pursuit more worthwhile in life! Read More 
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Dough-Less Apple Pie

I's apple time! One can buy a whole bag full for a dollar or two – or one just picks them up where they lie and rot otherwise. It is always amazing to me how little people care for food available for no money at all. When I grew up in post-war Germany, we children were always hungry. The grown-ups probably too. But they didn’t let on. The best food we children could dream of was the hot chocolate pudding sauce served in school (thanks to the Marshall Plan, I think!). Most children had a military mess tin that at lunch break got filled with some indefinable soup. For many it was the only warm meal of the day. My father did not allow his children to take part in school lunch. Number one, we were relatively well off – patients often paid in naturalia: a kilogram of butter here, a feathery chicken there. But my father also thought – far-sighted physician that he was – that the public lunch was not healthy. We harvested berries and cherries and pears and apples from the garden. My grandfather made the most wonderful apple jelly each fall which we would eat all winter. Here’s my favorite apple recipe. It’s very easy to do – and absolutely delicious: Remove the apple cores - but not the skins. Cut the apples in slices and put them in an oven pan in two layers. Sprinkle nuts and raisins over each layer. Add a few dabs of ghee (butter fat) or a few drops of olive oil. Bake on low for a long time – at least an hour. For nuts, all of them work. Yesterday I used sunflower seeds on the first layer, walnuts on the second. Sliced almonds are good, too. Instead of raisins, you can use dried cranberries, dried blueberries, dried cherries. What do they say? Enjoy! Enjoy it often during the season! Read More 
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