Many students I have spoken with over the years have said that one of the most important reasons they have attended the series of classes my husband and I teach is to make sense of all of this health information that they hear. One of the goals we have in teaching our classes is to provide a framework within which students can understand these individual pieces of information and how they fit into the larger picture of health. One of the ways we establish this health framework is though the encouragement of critical thinking.

Before we can proceed, we must consider the question “what is critical thinking?” I have read numerous definitions and points of view on critical thinking, some simple to understand and others more complex. Overall, most of the definitions of critical thinking involve the gathering of as much information as possible, including information in opposition to one’s current point of view, and then making a decision based on this information while still remaining open to possible alternatives, and considering that one has inherent personal biases that can influence the decision made.

In my very young years, I remember learning through memorization of information which I promptly forgot after the test was over, but more importantly, I believed that the information given to me was always accurate. Why wouldn’t it be? Later, I started considering other points of view as having validity and understanding the importance of thinking for myself. At this time, I found it somewhat challenging to make this change, given that I had become so accustomed to just accepting the information handed to me previously. Accepting is easy, thinking requires more effort. After a short period of time, I naturally started thinking for myself and the evaluation of information coming my way became second-nature. I eventually learned that this thought process I had adopted actually had a name: critical thinking.

The reason why I am sharing this story with you is because it is very much related to how some view health information.

To clarify, here is a relevant example:

There are lots of products being sold in the name of health and the people selling those products can be quite convincing. Is all of the information imparted about these products accurate? Or is the person saying whatever is necessary to make a sale?

In my pre critical thinking days, I would have likely accepted this information. Since my introduction to critical thinking, if I am interested in a product, I first gather information on the product, which includes:

1. Reliable information supporting the popular view of the product
2. Reliable information supporting the opposite view of the product
3. Reliable information that supports other views of the product
4. Reliable information that contradicts any of the points of view noted above.

Bottom line, I gather as much information as possible about the subject in question from multiple points of view, and very importantly I also consider what information is supported by human physiology and biochemistry. As I collect more information and make sense of it in a larger context, the least relevant, least compelling, and least accurate information is naturally supplanted by the most relevant, accurate, and compelling information. In a sense, the most accurate information becomes even more apparent, when compared to that which is less accurate or inaccurate.

It is important to consider that information on how the body works is constantly evolving and is and will always be incomplete, so for this reason and others, I remain open minded to changing my decision in the future, when and if compelling new information becomes available. I know this is a lot to consider, but this critical thinking and decision making process has become second nature to me. I liken this experience to learning how to ride a bicycle. It can be a little challenging at first, but soon becomes easy.

The bottom line here is that critical thinking can be very useful in helping evaluate information that comes one’s way. Many times I have heard students say that they feel that they were convinced to buy a product that they ended up wanting to return. Often times, being aware of ways in which one can evaluate information about such products can help people be more objective about their purchases before they hit the “buy” button. Of course, critical thinking can be useful in evaluating all health information, not just product purchases. I must clarify that Rick and I are not opposed to the use of health products, given that we find many to be useful. Both of us find it very useful to approach our buying choices with critical thinking.

The reason why I mention critical thinking in this article, is that in the coming weeks and months I plan to start talking about various studies and research on health and plant-based diet related topics, and will be considering critical thinking in the evaluation of this information. So this article is, in a sense, laying the groundwork for things to come. After all, a building is only as strong as its foundation, and the same is true for health information.

I know that many of you are familiar with this topic, so if you are, great! For those of you that have not considered this information previously, critical thinking can be an empowering tool in helping one with making decisions!

Here are our most recent videos documenting our raised bed garden project. Since we live in northern California, we have dry summers and need to have an irrigation system to water our plants, which is especially handy when we are out of town teaching. This video shows the installation of the irrigation timer:

We have been harvesting the lettuce from our raised bed for a couple of weeks now – it is incredibly fresh and flavorful and has grown surprisingly quickly. Here is a video progress report:

Our raised bed is almost complete. The remaining aspect of this project is designing and finalizing the area around the bed to blend its appearance with the rest of our backyard. We will post a video when this final aspect of the project is finished. Have a great week!

For comparison, here is the size of the lettuce when we planted it:

In less than a month, we are already reaping the benefits of our efforts on this several day project! The lettuce is so vibrant and fresh, and without a doubt we feel that the time and energy we put into this project was more than well worth it.

Now, on to the latest videos:

Here is video number 3 showing the planting and irrigation setup for the lettuce bed:

Here is video number 4 showing the ball valve and drip emitter installation:

Next week: Part 5 of this video series, showing the installation of the irrigation timer.

Part 1 shows the planning of our raised bed:

Part 2 shows the construction of our raised bed:

Next week, we will post parts 3 and 4, showing the installation of the irrigation system and planting of the lettuce.

What we  historically did for this challenge was to shade the lettuce with large beach and patio umbrellas. Of course, gardening stores do sell shades specific for this purpose, but this year we came up with a more permanent solution, which was to build a raised bed for the lettuce in an area of our yard that gets some sun in the morning, but is shady during the hottest part of the day, the afternoon. This location will be especially important as the growing season progresses and the daily temperature rises.

The area where we built the lettuce bed is adjacent to our house, and in the morning until about midday, the lettuce receives sunlight and then as the sun moves across our yard in the afternoon, our house shades the lettuce. So far so good! The lettuce has been growing beautifully, but the real test will be later in the season as summer approaches.

Here are some photos showing the transformation of an unused weedy area into our lettuce bed!

Here is the area weeded and leveled for construction of the bed:

Here is the bed:

With added soil: 

 With plants and irrigation tubing:

A couple days later, the irrigation tubing is hooked into the system, drip emitters are installed, and lettuce plants are growing!

 We’ll post updates as the season progresses and stay tuned for a series of videos documenting the building of our lettuce bed!

April 1^st is upon us and here in northern California, Rick and I have been preparing our backyard raised beds for planting. This year, we are planting many of our garden staples such as heirloom tomatoes, squash, bell peppers, basil, and some plants we have not grown before, such as mizuna and stinging nettle. One plant that grows year round in our garden is tree collard greens. We have several tree collard plants that have been in our garden since we moved into our house a few years ago, and they are still going strong and producing beautiful large deep green leaves.

What we love about our tree collards is that they are relatively low maintenance and are a reliable source of greens for us. Of course, we rotate our greens for variety so we are planting a variety of other greens in our garden this year, which we will cover in another blog post or video. We enjoy greens from our tree collard plants mostly in smoothies, but occasionally may put them in juice or a salad. These collard greens are tender and easily digestible for us in comparison to collard greens we find in the store that have a tougher consistency. We have observed over the years, that the greens that we grow in our garden tend to be softer and more tender than commercially available greens. Although this may not be true across the board, this is just an observation from our own personal experience.

Here is a sampling of the nutrients found in regular collard greens:

How do these numbers compare to the nutrients found in actual tree collard greens? We have yet to know, given that I have not yet been able to find neutral information on the nutrients measured in actual tree collard leaves. I would not be surprised if they are similar. This is the beauty of science and research, there is much that is known and much that has yet to be known. Happy spring!

Chinese flowering cabbage from one of our local farmers markets

One of the many questions that Rick and I are asked about raw food is where to find it at reasonable prices. In my last blog post, I wrote about wholesale produce markets, which can really help one save money when produce is purchased in quantity, providing that one has access to a wholesale produce market. What about areas where one does not have access to such a place? One alternative is a local farmers market.

We love farmers markets. They are a great place find locally grown produce and to interact with the farmers directly, if they are present to sell their produce personally – and many of them do so. Numerous times I have asked the farmers about their food producing techniques, an opportunity that I find to be very valuable. For me, this is a great way to have knowledge of how our food is produced and how it is handled. I have also found the food to be exceptionally fresh! An average head of lettuce purchased at our local farmers market lasts about 2 weeks before showing signs of withering. Produce that I buy at our local farmers market is often picked the same day that I buy it – how much more fresh can one get! Given that our diets are based on fresh produce, Rick and I buy in large quantities, and many of the farmers often give us a price break on the food we buy. Several of the farmers from whom we buy know us by name and actually anticipate our arrival at the market, by putting aside the usual foods that we buy from them. Talk about personal service – we really enjoy having a personal connection with the people from whom we buy food!

Since we live in northern California, our local farmers markets are open year round. In other areas, we have noticed that farmers markets depend on the local growing season and produce availability. Similarly, the variety of produce at our local farmers market depends on the type of food being grown locally at the time. For example, winter is a great time to find oranges, fall and early winter is the best time to find locally grown almonds, and of course summer is the most abundant season of all! Here, Rick and I can get lettuce and other green leafy vegetables at our farmers market year round, along with a variety of other fruits and vegetables. Such availability makes eating a produce-based diet much simpler.

It is wonderful to see that farmers markets appear to have gained popularity in the last 5+ years, especially in areas that did not have such markets several years ago. It is great to see that the trend of eating more locally grown food and supporting local farmers directly is continuing to grow. I hope that one day this is no longer a trend, but a mainstay in our communities.

Rick and I have visited wholesale markets in both the San Francisco bay area and the New York metro area. We live in the SF bay area, so when we buy from our local wholesale produce markets we buy enough food to last us about 3 weeks. Why so much? The food available at wholesale markets is sold in boxes or cases. This works well for us because the produce is so fresh, that it lasts for often weeks at a time in our large-capacity dedicated refrigerator.

We have found that when we buy lettuce at wholesale, the heads are very large, since very few, if any of the outer leaves have been removed. These heads of lettuce are generally larger than the heads we see at the grocery store, which likely have had leaves removed to maintain a fresh look. I really enjoy going to wholesale markets because of the wide variety of food available, especially organic. A very large percentage of the food that we eat is organically grown here in California.

For produce enthusiasts like us, wholesale markets can be a great way to purchase in quantity and save a notable amount of money. Rick has calculated that on average, we spend about 50% less money on produce from the wholesale markets that we would spend on the same amount of produce at the grocery store. You may be wondering if we go to farmers markets and the answer is yes, we love our local farmers market! We can often find foods at the farmers market that are not available at the wholesale market and vice versa.

The wholesale markets we have attended open around midnight or later and close around 10 am or earlier, depending on the vendor, so Rick and I find ourselves waking at 5 am to beat rush hour to the markets. I especially love these markets, since our need to go shopping for food weekly is drastically reduced. I find myself only having to do some minor fill-in shopping for items not available at the wholesale markets, maybe once a week or twice a month. With this shopping strategy, Rick and I overall spend much less time shopping and have more time available for work and other activities we enjoy.

The challenge is that our local wholesale markets are in San Francisco and South San Francisco which are about an hour and fifteen minutes away from our home if there is little traffic. The wholesale produce market that we have visited in the New York area is in the Bronx, which is also about an hour and fifteen minutes from our parents’ homes, where we stay on our visits to the New York metro area. This market has similar hours to our bay area wholesale markets, but is much larger.

Without a doubt, wholesale markets are certainly an experience and a great way to buy fresh produce in quantity. They can also be a tremendous resource for people who live in areas that have limited access to fresh produce year round, providing that the person lives within driving distance of a wholesale market. Many major metro areas have wholesale markets, and our experience at the two we have visited is that most vendors sell to individuals, although some sell exclusively businesses. You will have to check with individual vendors to learn their sales policies.

My dad enjoys vegetables, such as those found in this salad.

Over the past several years, the longevity field has exploded in popularity as many people have become interested in staying as healthy and fit as possible into their golden years. My dad, who turned 87 this month, has been talking about the importance of fitness and health for as long as I can remember. Over the holidays this year, dad and I talked about the health-promoting habits that have made a difference in his life. Here are 5 things that he mentioned:

1. The importance of moving one’s body – When I was a child, dad started practicing yoga just about every morning upon rising at 5 AM – this was before many people had even heard of the practice. In addition this, my dad has been walking almost daily for the past 30+ years. His walking routine varies depending on the weather and ranges from 2 – 4 miles, with hills included. Dad walks within his body’s ability and he always says that it is important to not “overdo it”. He is happy to have maintained this level of fitness for so many years and does not experience any joint pain or lack of range of motion anywhere in is body. His friends often tell him that he is lucky to be able to move as well as he does, and his response to them is that he is able to do so because he started his exercise routine many years ago and has maintained it since then.

2. The importance of moving one’s mind – My dad is and has always been an avid reader. He loves learning and has numerous interests that keep his mind engaged constantly. Whenever I talk to him, he wants to talk about some new subject or idea he has recently learned. He thinks that this lifetime love of learning has helped him maintain his mental fitness over the years. He has volunteered at a local library for many years, and one of the benefits of this is exposure to lots of books within his areas of interest.

3. Relaxation is important – I work a lot, given the nature of my career. This work ethic extends to just about everything else I do, so when I am spending time working on projects with dad, I work on them until completion, even if it takes quite a bit of time and focus. When dad sees me working like this he commends me for my dedication and reminds me to take rest breaks, since he feels that rest is just as important as work. He also has told me on many occasions that excessive stress is “not worth it”. He thinks that a little stress can be a good motivator, but that constant stress can be harmful. He has always encouraged me to transform stress into action and not to worry about the things I can’t control. As much as that sounds like common sense, it’s always a good reminder.

4. A sense of humor is invaluable – Need I say more?

5. You are never too old to change – AKA flexibility of thinking. My dad has always said that “what you learn is important and how you apply what you have learned is equally important”. Dad thinks of himself as being selectively open minded, similar to me. He likes to educate himself well about subjects so that he can make a decision based on a substantial amount of information – sounds like critical thinking, which I talk about in our Science of Raw Food Nutrition classes.

When I first started becoming interested in health back in the late 1980s, dad was curious about the information I was learning and he was impressed with my health improvements. He made some changes to his diet here and there over the years, but did not really maintain the changes. About a year and a half ago, dad decided that he was ready to make some dietary changes and to move toward a plant-based diet. Over the past year and a half, he has noted that the more whole natural plant foods he consumes, the better he feels. He says he has more energy, thinks more clearly, has experienced improvements in his short and long term memory, can climb hills more easily while on his walks without having to rest at the top of the hill, etc. Myself and other family members have noticed these differences, too. 

Dad attributes his improvements to both diet and exercise, but feels that diet especially has played a role, given that he has already been exercising for many years. He emphatically says that his changes have improved his life dramatically, and he thinks that at 87 years old, this has made all the difference in the world for him. He always says that age need not be a factor in one’s decision to make health promoting changes in one’s life and he is happy that he had the open mindedness to do so.

And – Introducing unfamiliar raw food kitchen appliances to loved ones

And – Nutrient analysis of the ingredients in celery, cucumber, carrot juice

Rick and I gave my dad a juicer for Christmas, so today we set it up and made a couple of juice recipes. He was very excited to use the juicer, since he loves fresh vegetable juice and finds the operation of the juicer to be relatively simple. Last Christmas, we gave dad a high powered blender, which he does not really use all that much, except when Rick or I make him smoothies or salad dressings with it. Today, he told me that the blender is a little challenging to clean, and he would prefer a smaller machine. This illustrates some notable points for introducing unfamiliar appliances to loved ones:

1. Operation of the machine has to be simple in the eyes of the beholder – this means set-up, clean-up, and everything in between. Different machines may be easier for some people versus others. For example, I find the operation of the high powered blender to be easier than the juicer, but my dad finds the opposite to be true for himself.

2. The person has to be really interested in actually using the machine or the final product has to be tasty or otherwise inspiring enough for the person to spend time making the recipe . My dad loves fresh vegetable juice – celery, cucumber, carrot. Great recipes that showcase the flavor of healthy foods can make all of the difference in how much motivation someone has to use the appliance, but dad and I have found simplicity of operation to be just as important.

3. Used machines in good working order can be a good option to see if the person is interested in the machine. Last year, Rick and I purchased a used high powered blender for sale locally at a great price, rather than buying a new one. This way, dad was able to try out the blender without a large financial layout. We may end up purchasing him a smaller blender, but since we were able to find such a good deal on the used high power blender, we could actually sell it for more than the purchase price. However, we have no plans to sell this blender because even though dad may not use it, Rick and I certainly will when we are visiting him.

Additionally, it is our opinion that one cannot put a price on personal health, and we have found that kitchen equipment that we have purchased over the years, new and second-hand, has been well worth the investment.

Here is the simple juice recipe my dad made today:

Two carrots

Three stalks of celery

One cucumber

Here is a nutrient analysis of the ingredients in the juice:

This nutrient content is notable for 136 calories. Where are the dark leafy greens in this recipe? Well, dad is not a huge fan of dark leafy greens in juice, yet. The good news is that he does like them in green smoothies.

Best wishes for a healthy and happy 2013! Cheers!