Author: Sharon
New US Nutritional Guidelines
Yeah to some, nay to many. Can you see which are good/bad changes?
Specific guidance include:
- Prioritizing Protein: While previous Dietary Guidelines have demonized protein in favor of carbohydrates, these guidelines reflect gold standard science by prioritizing high-quality, nutrient-dense protein foods in every meal. This includes a variety of animal sources, including eggs, poultry, seafood, and red meat, in addition to plant-sourced protein foods such as beans, peas, lentils, legumes, nuts, seeds, and soy.
- Avoiding highly processed foods: For the first time, the Dietary Guidelines call out the dangers of certain highly processed foods – a common-sense and vital public health point. The guidance calls to “avoid highly processed packaged, prepared, ready-to-eat, or other foods that are salty or sweet” and “avoid sugar-sweetened beverages, such as soda, fruit drinks, and energy drinks.”
- Avoiding added sugars: While previous Dietary Guidelines did not take a hard line against added sugar (especially for children), this guidance says, “no amount of added sugars or non-nutritive sweeteners is recommended or considered part of a healthy or nutritious diet” and calls on parents to completely avoid added sugar for children aged four and under.
- Ending the War on Healthy Fats: The guidance calls for receiving the bulk of fat from whole food sources, such as meats, poultry, eggs, omega 3–rich seafood, nuts, seeds, full-fat dairy, olives, and avocados. When cooking with or adding fats to meals, the guidelines call for using the most nutrient-dense natural options with essential fatty acids, such as olive oil.
- Heralding whole grains and avoiding refined carbohydrates: This guidance takes a firm stand to “prioritize fiber-rich whole grains” and “significantly reduce the consumption of highly processed, refined carbohydrates, such as white bread, ready-to-eat or packaged breakfast options, flour tortillas, and crackers.”
- Including diets lower in carbohydrates to manage chronic disease: The guidance makes the science-based and common-sense recommendation that individuals with certain chronic diseases may experience improved health outcomes when following a lower carbohydrate diet.
Considering that only 1-3% of Americans identify as vegan, and about 4% of Americans identify as vegetarian (which includes vegans), we do not have much political pull in contributing our excellent lifestyle results to these guidelines. There are mixed results here, more veggies, less ultra processed foods… but so much saturated fats, not enough unprocessed carbs & fiber.
Choose wisely and to thine ownself be true.
Medicalizing Motherhood
Jan 10, 2026
Free Book download
Brief Summary of the Article
- Purpose of the Book:
Medicalized Motherhood: From First Pill to Permanent Patient is a free book arguing that modern medicine increasingly turns women—especially mothers—into long-term patients through unnecessary and cascading medical interventions. - Core Argument:
Medical interventions in women’s reproductive lives often create problems that justify further interventions, fostering dependency rather than health. - Key Evidence & Influences:
- Historical examples of unnecessary hysterectomies.
- Research showing most recommended hysterectomies were avoidable.
- Critiques of modern obstetrics that claim it creates risks and then “rescues” women from them.
- The “Cascade of Interventions”:
- Documents 123 interventions spanning pre-conception through postpartum.
- Shows how early steps (e.g., birth control, fertility testing) lead to later ones (e.g., IVF, induction, cesarean).
- Emphasizes that interventions compound rather than remain isolated.
- Book Structure & Content:
- Organized chronologically across six phases of motherhood.
- Includes analysis of the medical business model and how maternal confidence is undermined.
- Adds five new interventions and a new chapter on how women can reclaim decision-making.
- Practical Tools Included:
- Birth plan templates, question checklists, provider interview guides.
- Quick-reference cards and visual maps of intervention cascades.
- Resources for women processing past birth trauma.
- Why It’s Free:
- The author wants the information accessible to all women, especially those early in the system.
- Funded by paid subscribers, but no payment required to download or share.
- Overall Message:
Awareness of how medicalization works empowers women to ask questions, interrupt unnecessary interventions, and make more informed choices about their care.
Jan 9, 2026 of Low-SOS Vegan Plan
(This blog began 3/15/2015)
MEDITATION:
* The Voice of the Most High
* Charles Capps podcast
EXERCISE:
* Slow jog outdoors 30 minutes
* PT APP workout
–lower body stretch/stengthening
WATER:
(2) × (32) = 64 oz (+)
EATS:
* lowfat dark choco / PB fudge
* chopped cruciferous gorilla salad w/ cornbread
* Actual Veggie burger w/ airfried potato wedges
… SUN HAS SET …
Cmmt: XL indicates uncommonly excessive food, and wautéed means water-sautéed
Dr. Will Bulsiewicz – The Plant Powered Plus Blueprint
Jan 8, 2026 of Low-SOS Vegan Plan
(This blog began 3/15/2015)
MEDITATION:
* Read God’s Promises for Health
* Charles Capps podcast
* Read some of God’s Medicine booklet by K. Hagin
EXERCISE:
* Powerwalk 3 miles indoors
* PT APP workout
–lower body stretch/stengthening
* High-knees slow walking indoors
WATER:
(2) × (32) = 64 oz (+)
EATS:
* tofu scramble (w/ onion, cabbage, tomato, mushrooms, arugula, salsa, avocado chunks), served w/ airfried oilfree corn tortillas
* black bean chili & homemade baked vegan cornbread w/ marinated carrot dog pieces embedded inside
* one small peanut/dark choco XL-cluster AND homemade copycat recipe Dark Chocolate PB Fudge
* cucumber & tomato in lemon juice w/ cornbread
… SUN HAS SET …
* airpopped popcorn 🍿
Cmmt: XL indicates uncommonly excessive food, and wautéed means water-sautéed
Dark Chocolate (cacao) PB “Fudge” Squares (peanuts optional)
COPYCAT RECIPE
Best when you want something **intense and dessert-like**, but still lighter.
**You’ll need**
* 4 tbsp (same as ¼ cup) PB2 PURE peanut powder
* 2 tbsp simple cacao powder
* 1 tbsp maple syrup or date paste
* 2–3 tbsp water (add slowly)
* Few roasted peanuts (optional)
**How**
1. Mix everything but nuts into a thick paste.
2. Press into a small container.
3. (Optional) Press few peanuts into the paste
4. Chill until firm, then cut into squares.
**Texture**
* Like dense chocolate fudge
* Strong cocoa flavor = less sweetner needed
*******
## Side-by-side nutritional comparison
Nutrient (28 g)
Market Cluster | Homemade w/ added peanuts | Homemade w/o nuts
| —– | —– | —- |
| Total Fat | 11g| ~6 | ~2 |
| Saturated Fat | 3.5g| ~1|~.4 |
| Dietary Fiber | 7 g | ~6| ~6 |
| Total Sugar | 8 g | ~3|~3 |
| Added Sugar | 8 g | ~3|~3 |
(REDUCE FAT BY REDUCING PEANUTS)
Over 60? 3 Strength Training Exercises We Should Do For Stability
Each exercise targets a different protective system:
1️⃣ Sit-to-Stand (Chair Squat)
Strengthens the hips, thighs, and core — the muscles required to stand up, climb stairs, and recover from a stumble.
📊 A King’s College London study (2014) showed a 34% improvement in lower-body strength and reduced fall-risk markers in women aged 65–80 using this movement alone.
2️⃣ Standing Side Leg Raise
Trains the deep hip stabilizers that protect balance from the side — where many falls actually occur.
📊 A University of Sydney study (2016) found a 41% improvement in lateral stability and better single-leg balance in women over 65 after targeted hip strengthening.
3️⃣ Single-Leg Standing (Neuromuscular Balance Training)
Retrains the nervous system and proprioception — your body’s ability to react without conscious thought.
📊 Research published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine (Araujo et al., 2022) showed that the ability to hold a 10-second single-leg stance strongly predicts survival and lower fall risk in older adults.
Together, these movements strengthen muscles, stimulate bones, and sharpen balance reactions — the exact combination required for safe, confident aging.
Jan 7, 2026 of Low-SOS Vegan Plan
(This blog began 3/15/2015)
MEDITATION:
* Read God’s Promises for Health
* Charles Capps podcast
* Dr. Akil Taher glorious testimony
EXERCISE:
* PT APP workout
–lower body stretch/stengthening
WATER:
(2) × (32) = 64 oz (+)
EATS:
* sweet potato/oatmeal pancakes w/ blueberries, banana & pure maple syrup
* mug of miso soup & avocado sushi
* 1/2 bean burrito (removed most of flour tortilla)
* one small peanut/dark choco XL-cluster
* sparkling grape juice (no added sugar)
* airfried (oilfree) potato wedges & one mushroom taquito (from frozen, has some XL-oil), radishes & avocado salsa
… SUN HAS SET …
Cmmt: XL indicates uncommonly excessive food, and wautéed means water-sautéed
How Pornography Hijacks the Brain
There has been no greater assault on the human mind in modern history than the plague known as pornography.
Pornography is a huge problem. It goes beyond harming relationships; it literally changes the mind itself. And chances are you know somebody who is addicted to it.
Studies show that 70–90%+ of men under 40 have viewed pornography at some point. The more alarming figure is that 40–60% of men consume it regularly.
The good news is that these changes to the brain are not permanent. They are reversible, so long as the person has the desire to quit.