What if one of your co-workers has an accident or a heart attack? What if you are jogging in the park and see someone in distress? What if you are in a restaurant and one of your family members begins to choke and cannot breath? Will you know what to do?

I participated in a CPR/First Aid class at the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce that answered many of these questions for me! What an informative and wonderful class. I learned so much! Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas provided the wonderfully trained staff that teach these classes at businesses, as well as at the hospital. Super staff, great instruction, and really – a lot of fun, too.

In America we have increasing rates of obesity, cancer, diabetes, arthritis, stroke, and cardiovascular disease — almost every chronic disease of aging.  The vast majority of these chronic diseases are related to diet and exercise. And that is the main reason I entered the field of sustainability –  for me it was about sustainable food systems! I was trying to care for and feed my young family “real food” in an age of “fake food” and increasingly sedentary lifestyles. I wanted to make a difference by influencing a more sustainable society.

I feel fortunate today to be working with businesses and community leaders who have the power to influence our future in a more positive, healthful, and sustainable way. Scripps Memorial Hospital Encintas is a wonderful example of that influence. Earlier this year the hospital embarked on a major facility-wide “Green Initiative”. The goal of an inspired leadership was to make a connection between human health and the environment, and to be an example and a leader for their community.

I feel fortunate to be working with them on this plan; and confident that they will have a great influence on the community and the region in their sustainability efforts. Human health and the environment are intricately linked.

If you want to make sure that someone around you will know what to do in an emergency, or if you want to ensure the health and safety of your loved ones, I encourage you to call 760-633-6791 or email ENCWellBeing@Scrippshealth.org to schedule a class for your business, or your family & friends, and tailored to your specific needs! Awesome, fun, and all about your health, safety, and sustainability!

Cheaper, Healthier, and Socially Sound.

Mark Bittman is a journalist.  He has traveled around the world tasting and writing about food.  He has written cook books, and hosts television programs about cooking.  In a recent book, Food Matters:  A Guide to Conscious Eating, Mark Bittman asserts that as long as we eat more vegetables and whole grains, the result will be better health for us and for the world in which we live.  Pretty simple, really.

Bittman asserts, “The destiny of the human race and that of the planet lay in our hands and in the choices—as individuals and as a society– that we make.”

We all make choices every day.  The quality of those choices, derived from a thoughtful decision-making process will inevitably be better.

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New York City passed some very progressive menu labeling laws. According to a FoxNews.com article, “Restaurants in New York City with 15 or more outlets nationwide now must conspicuously post the nutritional content of each item on their menus. Similar legislation is coming to San Francisco and Seattle, and is under consideration in about a dozen other cities and state legislatures.”

Some restaurants in New York City are stepping up, with or without legislation. “We want to be up-front and tell our customers exactly what’s in the food,” says founder Anthony Leone, who started the business (Energy Kitchen) five years ago.

Active families have developed a pattern of eating out.  This is a part of our culture, and this trend is not expected to change dramatically. The trick is to have healthy, local, delicious, and nutritious options. These options also need to consider smaller portion sizes and price. Today’s economy is not dead, it is just selective.

2009 Restaurant Industry Forecast

California is now the first state to require restaurant chains to reveal how many calories are in their standard menu items.

I LOVE CORN! I grew up in southern MN buying sweet corn with my mother from the backs of farmers’ trucks during the harvest season. My mother said it was best if it was prepared straight from the field for dinner.  Pick it, boil it, and eat it! And oh, is that good! I also remember going to the Corn Fest in WI every year where they roasted fresh ears of corn by the bushel-full.  They used paint brushes to cover them with farm fresh butter (no RSBT in those days).  And jars of salt were hung from make-shift scaffolds for an extra spice. Bands were performing and children were playing. Oh, those were the days…

My father calls this part of the U.S. “God’s Country”. And I do believe that he is correct. It is an amazing place in our country, and in the world. But now the corn grown there is not for us to feast on as it used to be.  It is used primarily for manufactured sweeteners and animal feed. You can learn more about this when you see the film by two young men determined to discover the genesis and path of our food production. They set out on a journey to grow one acre of corn, and they learned more than they ever knew they would. See King Corn. You can rent it at your local video store. It is worth a watch.