Conscious Choice Seattle: Time Tested, Locally Approved

December 2006 | Locally Yours

Time Tested, Locally Approved

Food from our backyard you may have overlooked for cold and flu season

By Jennifer Adler M.S., C.N.

We already know eating locally is lighter on the planet and sweeter on our taste buds. Now, add to the list of benefits that it helps us acclimate to the seasons (i.e SADD), and it is hard not to frequent the farmers’ markets.

One way our body registers the seasons, is by our diet. For example, it takes bananas a year of sun to produce the sugar and potassium levels found in their fruit. When our kidneys register these high nutrient levels in our blood, after digesting such an unseasonal treat, they mistakenly think we are surfing in sunny Hawaii, and our skin is soaking up lots of sun for vitamin D production. The natural reaction is that our own body’s vitamin D production slows.

Eating with the seasons

Studies from the University of London indicate that during the fall and winter in less sunny climates like the Pacific Northwest, potassium and sugar levels decrease in foods such as potatoes. This deficiency in sugars and potassium signal the body to activate vitamin D production. Maintaining this balance is an important step toward enhancing immunity.
Here are some local foods, from our Northwest backyard you many not have considered to help you through this drizzly, sniffling, easy-to-get-sick season.

Salmon: Eating more of our local cold-water fish can boost our immune systems as well as our moods during the darkest months of the year. These fish are rich in essential fatty acids. They are called “essential” because our body cannot produce them. They must come from our diet and are needed by every cell in our body especially those in the brain and immune system.

Oysters: Trivia fact: South Bend, Washington, is the oyster capital of the world. Oysters are abundant in zinc; No food compares. Zinc is critical for immune system function. It inhibits virus production and viral RNA synthesis. Yes, eating them raw gets you more of the essential fatty acids as well as zinc and taurine, but the point is to eat them. If you don’t like them raw have them smoked and packed in olive oil.

Seaweed (with Miso soup): Seaweed offers the broadest range of minerals of any food. It contains virtually all ocean minerals, which coincidentally (or not) are the same minerals present in human blood. We are susceptible to illness when in a state of deficiency—seaweed is nutrient dense. It is also easy to harvest, which gives you an excuse to get in your kayak.

Nettle tea : Stinging nettle is an infamous, abundant plant of the Pacific Northwest. When dried for tea it loses its sting. Nettle has historical value as a medicinal and nutritional treasure as it is very high in calcium, magnesium, trace minerals and chlorophyll. It also has expectorant, anti-inflammatory and immune stimulating properties. Stretch your comfort zone to a beverage beyond the Seattle staple and check your own backyard before you go and buy it.

The body leans toward health, tending to mend itself if allowed. Through local nutrient- dense foods we can support vitality during cold and flu season.

Jennifer Adler M.S., C.N. provides nutrition counseling at her private practice, Realize Health, www.realizehealth.com. She stays hydrated, full of oysters and rarely gets sick.

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