Got a Kid with a Food Allergy? Avoid Bakery Items at the Grocery Store--

A few months ago I went to a party with my two girls. There was all sorts of yummy food there for everyone (and I was thrilled to not have to cook). I found some dark chocolaty brownies in the kitchen and kept sneaking back there to have a bite (or two or three--). Finally, my two year old daughter followed me there and asked for some. It was only a matter of time!

I flipped over the package, and found no offending ingredients or nut warnings(for my girl has a severe nut allergy). They were from Wegman's, a grocery store that has the finest prepared food one could ever hope for (and lots of great organic and natural foods). I often have grocery store envy when my mom shares with me what she bought at Wegman's, because there is not one where I live. So, I gave her a small piece of the brownie, and we went on our merry way.

Later, I told my mom about this. Being her investigative and inquisitive self, she went to the bakery counter at Wegman's and asked if the brownies (and their other baked goods that weren't labeled with any nut warnings) were indeed nut free, and made in nut free facility, or at least a nut controlled environment.

The kind bakery manager declared that no, the brownies were made with the same equipment and kitchen as the batches made with nuts, and that they were only as nut free as the baker's ability to clean and use different utensils for each batch. In other words, there was no way to guarantee there were no nut residues in any of the bakery products. My mom explained our situation, and that labeling should catch up with the packaging. If some poor child was to have a reaction, the store would have a major liability problem on their hands. He assured her that they would change the labeling, and he communicated this (supposedly)to his supervisors.

Its been months since then and of course the labeling hasn't changed. Thankfully my daughter did not have a reaction, but she could have. I worry about all the kids who are more allergic than she is, and even when their parents are dutifully checking the labels, one of them could have a serious reaction.

So, the take home message, sadly, is to avoid the bakery items at the grocery store unless they have a clear label that they are nut free (or whatever the allergen is--). I guess I will have to learn to be more sneaky with my chocolate intake!

Do you Eat Fish?

I am a vegetarian, and have been for a long, long time. But I do worry about my girls getting enough Omega-3 fatty acids in their diets, and of course protein. So, we've given our daughter wild salmon before (with my husband cooking it- I can't get over the skin thing). I've avoided farmed salmon because of the environmental problems associated with it--and there are many (read this for more information).

There is much more to this story, however. Turns out, eating farmed salmon is also risky for all of us humans, especially small developing ones. Apparently, eating farmed salmon dramatically increases your exposure to cancer causing PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls). Read the Environmental Working Group's detailed study about this and problems with the EPA's outdated recommendations for eating farmed salmon--there are also tips for reducing your exposure in the prepping and cooking process.

The impact of eating farmed fish is also harmful to a developing fetus. This article explains how unborn children can suffer reduced IQ, reduced attention span, behavioral problems, and problems with the immune and reproductive systems' development. That is a long and scary list. Read here for more information.

What fish is the safest to eat? CHEC shares a great list of safer fish choices with tips for reducing exposure in the preparation and cooking stages as well. Check it out.

Safe Fish CHEC List

Farmed salmon also has less of the beneficial Omega-3 acids, yet another reason to buy and eat wild salmon if you eat fish! USDA testing revealed farm salmon contains 35% less Omega-3s, according to the EWG.

The list of reasons to avoid farmed salmon is long, this is only one tired parent's summary and short review of this issue.

Cabot Please Stop Using rBGH!

I learned awhile ago now at my the co-op that Vermont's major cheese maker, Cabot Creamery, is one of the last holdouts still using milk from cows treated rBGH (recumbent bovine growth hormone).

What is rBGH? It is a growth hormone used on cows to increase their milk production, but it comes with a host of problems for both the cow who is made to take it, and the consumers who ingest it through their milk.

rBGH apparently causes great harm and misery for cows. According to a panel of animal health experts appointed by the Canadian Veterinary Medicine Association, it causes mastitis, lameness, hoof disorders, and a significantly shorter life span. Being a nursing mom, I have great empathy for any creature that is made to overproduce milk. It is painful enough when my daughter goes on a nursing strike-- I can't imagine this kind of pain, day after day. Not to mention the fact that if a cow does get mastitis, or another infection due to rBGH, they are given antibiotics, which ends up in the milk and contributes to the growing problem of antibiotic resistant bacteria.

There is mounting evidence that rBGH causes an increased cancer risk in humans, specifically breast and colon cancer. Read this for more information. Is this another reason for the increase in cancer rates in the U.S., especially breast cancer?

rBGH is banned in almost every industrialized nation because of these human health and animal safety concerns (again another example of how the U.S. is falling behind--).

Most dairy farms have reacted to consumer concern, and are only accepting milk from farmers who pledge not to use rBGH. You can see these labels on all sorts of brands of conventional milk, such as Hood, Booth Brothers and others. Stoneyfield Farms has a great record of environmental stewardship and activism on this issue (see the link for more ways to take action against rBGH).

I want to support our local creamery. Organic cheese is seriously expensive! I recently spent way too much money on cheese at the co-op, and it is almost gone. I absolutely adore cheese, and my family eats it in droves. What can we do?

Write Cabot and tell them to stop using rBGH milk in their cheese. Robert Stammer is the CEO, and the address is: Cabot Creamery, One Home Farm Way, Montpelier, Vermont 05602. Their parent company is Agri-mark, their CEO is Paul Johnston, at PO Box 5800, Lawerence, Massachusetts 01842.

Thanks to Hunger Mountain Co-op for this contact information and basic information about rBGH.

I will miss my Cabot sharp cheddar. Sigh.