Meal Planning
In my book How To Live The Healthiest Life (which you can get here https://howtolivethehealthiestlife.com/ if you don’t already have a copy) I formerly had a link to a site no longer available.
The website whfoods, previously run by the George Mateljan Foundation, was a valuable resource for nutritional analysis and whole-food recipes. Since it’s no longer available, here are some alternative websites that offer similar tools for analyzing your diet and providing healthy recipes to support meal planning:
My New Roots (http://www.mynewroots.org) – This site, created by a holistic nutritionist, focuses on plant-based, whole-food recipes with vibrant, nutrient-dense ingredients. It includes detailed nutritional insights and a variety of recipes, from breakfast puddings to hearty mains, ideal for health-conscious meal planning.
Love and Lemons (www.loveandlemons.com) – Run by Jeanine Donofrio, this site emphasizes seasonal, vegetarian recipes with a user-friendly recipe index. It’s great for finding fresh, healthy meal ideas and includes filters for dietary restrictions, making it easy to tailor recipes to your needs.
Clean Eating Kitchen (http://www.cleaneatingkitchen.com) – Created by Carrie Forrest, a nutrition expert, this site offers over 700 gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free recipes. It’s a solid resource for clean eating with practical meal prep tips and a focus on whole foods, similar to WHFoods’ approach.
Skinnytaste () – Gina Homolka’s blog provides healthy, family-friendly recipes with a focus on low-fat, nutrient-rich dishes. It includes nutritional information for each recipe, making it a good tool for analyzing and improving your diet.
Eatright.org (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics) – This site offers evidence-based nutrition information and meal planning resources. While it’s less recipe-heavy than WHFoods, it provides tools for assessing dietary habits and making informed food choices, backed by professional dietitians.
These alternatives align with the WHFoods mission of promoting whole, nutrient-dense foods and offer recipes to support healthy meal planning.
Hope this helps!
French Fries Versus Baked Potatoes: 1 Raises Diabetes Risk 20 Percent, the Other Doesn’t
RaraAvisPhoto/Shutterstock
Potatoes have long had a bad rap for being high in carbohydrates. A new study backs that concern—at least in part.
That weekly french fry habit could be setting you up for diabetes decades down the road.
Research found that eating french fries just three times per week may significantly raise Type 2 diabetes risk—but surprisingly, other potato preparations showed no increased risk at all.
“Our findings suggest it’s not fair to put all potatoes in the same basket,” lead author Seyed Mohammad Mousavi told The Epoch Times.
How You Like Your Potatoes Matters
The study, led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, tracked more than 205,000 adults across three major U.S. observational health studies for 30 years. Participants regularly reported what they ate, along with details about their health and lifestyle.
The study found that every three extra servings of potatoes per week was associated with a 5 percent increase in Type 2 diabetes risk. For french fries, that jump was even higher—20 percent per three servings.
In contrast, eating baked, boiled, or mashed potatoes was not associated with an increased risk, suggesting that french fries are the main driver behind the link between potatoes and diabetes.
French fries are often loaded with salt, which can raise blood pressure and trigger inflammation, increasing the risk of Type 2 diabetes. However, it’s more than just the fat and salt content driving the diabetes risk.
“French fries are typically deep-fried at very high temperatures, which can produce harmful compounds,” Mousavi said. One such compound is acrylamide, which is formed during browning and linked to inflammation, insulin resistance, and blood vessel damage.
“Due to their deep-fried nature, [fries] are also much higher in calories than baked or mashed potatoes,” said Melissa Mitri, a registered dietitian-nutritionist and owner of Melissa Mitri Nutrition, who was not involved in the study.
The large amounts of oil used in frying also introduce trans fats, which further increase insulin resistance and inflammation. Combined with the high-temperature cooking that breaks down resistant starches, french fries become a perfect storm for blood sugar chaos.
Potatoes and Type 2 Diabetes
Even aside from french fries, people who ate seven or more servings of potatoes per week had a 12 percent higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. The risk rose with greater intake.
While preparation plays a key role in how potatoes affect diabetes risk, it’s worth noting that they still have a high glycemic index, meaning that they can rapidly raise blood sugar.
Potatoes are a common source of carbohydrates, especially starch, which the body quickly breaks down into sugar. Because of this, eating potatoes can cause a sharp rise in blood sugar levels soon after a meal.
Frequent blood sugar spikes force the pancreas to release more insulin repeatedly. Over time, this constant demand can cause insulin-producing cells to wear out or stop working properly. This contributes to insulin resistance and reduced insulin production—both key drivers of Type 2 diabetes.
The glycemic index ranks how quickly and how much different foods raise blood sugar levels after eating. A higher glycemic diet is associated with an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, as high glycemic foods cause a rapid and significant rise in glucose levels.
A potato’s glycemic index depends on how it is prepared. Mashed and boiled potatoes have higher glycemic indexes because cooking breaks down the potato’s structure and makes the starch easier to digest, leading to faster spikes in blood sugar.
Deep-frying also softens the starch inside, but the hot oil forms a crust with some resistant starch that slows digestion. The fat in fries also helps slow down how quickly sugar is absorbed, making the glycemic index of french fries a bit lower than that of mashed or instant potatoes.
Using different food preparation methods can reduce potatoes’ risks:
- Chill potatoes after cooking to increase their resistant starch content, slowing digestion and causing a more balanced rise in blood sugar.
- Bake or boil potatoes with the skin to retain more fiber and micronutrients.
- Boil, bake, or roast potatoes with minimal oil instead of frying to avoid added fats.
- Air-fry potatoes to reduce the formation of harmful compounds produced by deep-frying.
The study found that replacing potatoes with other carbohydrates reduced Type 2 diabetes risk. Swapping mashed, boiled, or baked potatoes for whole grains such as pasta, bread, or farro lowered diabetes risk by 4 percent, while replacing french fries cut it by 19 percent. Substituting fries with whole grains, legumes, brown rice, or vegetables also reduced risk by 19 percent.
The only swap that increased risk was white rice, which was linked to a 3 percent higher risk of Type 2 diabetes. This may be because white rice has a high glycemic index.
“White rice is stripped of fiber and nutrients, digests quickly, and causes sharper spikes in blood sugar,” Mousavi said.
Whole grains have fiber that slows digestion and causes smaller blood sugar spikes.
Effects Surface Years Later
Perhaps most concerning, the study found that potato intake 12 to 20 years before diagnosis had the strongest association with diabetes risk—suggesting that dietary choices in your 20s and 30s could determine your health in your 50s and 60s.
Type 2 diabetes develops gradually, with insulin resistance and inflammation starting decades before symptoms appear.
Who’s Most at Risk
Even after adjusting for genetics, diet, and lifestyle, the link between french fries and diabetes remained strong. It was especially pronounced in people with a higher body mass index (BMI) and in white participants.
Mitri noted that excess weight is tied to inflammation.
“Someone with a higher BMI may have more difficulty responding to insulin,” she said, noting that this can worsen insulin resistance.
Mousavi said, “For people with higher BMI, the same amount of potatoes may have a bigger impact on diabetes risk.”
The study also found that people who ate more potatoes were often less physically active and took in more calories, sugary drinks, and red meat—factors that can raise diabetes risk.
Ron Paul On Mental Health Screening
In 2011, Congressman Ron Paul recognized the dangers of mental health screening for schoolchildren and introduced the Parental Consent Act to block federal funding for such programs, warning they would label kids based on vague criteria and funnel them into pharmaceutical pipelines. He was right. Although the bill did not pass, in 2012 the notorious TeenScreen program—once implemented across 47 U.S. states—was finally abolished after it was revealed that the program had an 84% false positive rate, leading countless students to be misidentified and pushed onto drugs with serious side effects, including suicidal ideation. With a new Illinois law recently enacted to implement “mental health screening” for students in grades 3 through 12, it is time to revisit the abject failures of such screening programs and the never-ending targeting of schoolchildren by the mental health industry.
The Mind Thieves: How 6 Common Medications Are Stealing Our Humanity
(Tom: This is an article well worth reading before you reach for the pill bottle.)
Every day, millions of Americans reach for medications they believe are harmless – a Tylenol for a headache, Benadryl for allergies, Prilosec for heartburn. What they don’t know is that with each dose, they may be systematically dismantling the neurobiological substrate that make us human.
Common over-the-counter and prescription medications that millions take daily are silently rewiring our brains, with acetaminophen (Tylenol) measurably blunting empathy¹, antihistamines increasing dementia risk by 54%², and proton pump inhibitors doubling depression rates³ – yet most users and even many doctors remain unaware of these profound neurological effects. Research involving millions of patients reveals that 10% of dementia cases may be directly attributable to anticholinergic medications like Benadryl⁴, while 52 million Americans taking weekly acetaminophen experience measurable reductions in their ability to feel others’ pain⁵. These findings expose a massive gap between public perception of medication safety and the mounting scientific evidence of harm, particularly as 54% of elderly Americans now take four or more medications simultaneously (aka poly-pharmacy)⁶, creating dangerous cumulative effects on brain function. The magnitude of this hidden epidemic is staggering: medications marketed as harmless are fundamentally altering how we think, feel, and connect with others.
Finish reading: https://open.substack.com/pub/sayerji/p/the-mind-thieves-how-6-common-medications
I’ve Got You
Every afternoon, without fail, Winston, my brindle Great Dane, performs his daily ritual. He goes to the toy basket, sifts through a dozen perfectly good toys, and pulls out one specific, old, worn-out tennis ball. He doesn’t chew it or play with it. He simply carries it in his mouth with the utmost care, finds a spot on the living room rug, and lies down, resting his big chin on it.
At first, I thought it was just a strange habit. A running joke in the family was that it was his “emotional support ball.” But the more I watched him, the more I realized it was so much more. He just cherishes it, holding onto it as if it’s the most valuable thing he owns.
A few weeks ago, I was sitting on the floor, feeling completely overwhelmed by a big project at work. I was stressed and anxious, just staring into space. I didn’t say a word, but Winston must have felt my energy. He quietly walked over to me with his tennis ball, gently nudged my hand, and nudged the ball into my palm. He looked at me with his soft, knowing eyes, and for a moment, the world felt still. He was offering me his most prized possession, a silent gesture of comfort that said, “I’ve got you.”
Some people might not believe it, but in that moment, I knew. Dogs have a way of seeing straight into your soul and offering exactly what you need, without ever having to say a single word.
Vitamin D and Pregnancy
Have you – or someone you love – faced pregnancy loss, early labor, or complications like preeclampsia or gestational diabetes? I have, and I endured months of fear, anxiety, and worry for myself and my baby because of it. I know many others who have, and I can almost guarantee that you do as well.
Much of this could be very easily avoided – and the change is urgently needed now. In fact, it was needed years ago when we already had the clinical evidence, but inaction and blind eyes kept this knowledge out of the hands of our care providers – as it still does for most women.
I don’t like to say “I wish I knew then what I know now” – but in this case, it’s most definitely true. It wasn’t until I began working for GrassrootsHealth that my eyes were opened to the world of evidence surrounding vitamin D, especially for prenatal health. I had been a health practitioner and nutritionist for years already, helping other women as a fertility and prenatal health specialist. During my own pregnancy, I ate incredibly healthy and took prenatal vitamins along with other supplements I knew would support a healthy pregnancy and baby. Never once did concern for vitamin D for myself or my patients cross my radar.
Hutchinson Effect
The Hutchison Effect refers to a collection of unusual, unexplained physical phenomena observed by John Hutchison during his experiments with high-frequency electromagnetic fields, inspired by Nikola Tesla’s work. These phenomena include levitation of objects, metal warping and melting, materials fusing, and other anomalous effects.
THIS Is How You Change The World. Doing Your Best To Improve Things. Daniel and Daughters.
In 1985, in a quiet village in East Africa, a man named Daniel stood barefoot with his three daughters. His wife had passed during childbirth the year before. He never remarried. He didn’t have the time-or the heart. He was a farmer, a builder, a father, and a dreamer all in one.
Their home had no electricity. Some nights, dinner was just boiled roots and water. But what they had—what Daniel made sure they always had—was dignity.
Every morning before sunrise, he woke his girls and walked them two miles to the schoolhouse. He couldn’t read or write himself, but he sat outside the classroom every day, waiting in the shade, just so they wouldn’t have to walk home alone.
Sometimes he went without food so they could buy a pencil.
He sold his wedding ring to afford exam fees.
He worked three jobs during harvest season just to buy secondhand textbooks—many missing pages.
People laughed.
“They are girls,” they said.
“What future do they have?”
Daniel didn’t answer.
He just kept walking beside them.
Years passed. One by one, they graduated.
One by one, they earned scholarships.
And one by one… they crossed oceans.
In 2025, 40 years after that photo was taken, the world saw something no one expected:
A new image of the same man, standing proudly-this time in front of a hospital-with his three daughters, all wearing white coats.
Doctors.
All of them.
When asked how he felt, Daniel cried softly and whispered,
“I never gave them the world. I just never let the world take their #hope away.”
He grew crops with his hands, but he raised doctors with his heart.
And in the quiet shadow of a man the world never knew, three girls rose… and changed it.
By Harper Lily
Wise Words From Hopi Indian Chief White Eagle
Hopi Indian Chief White Eagle commented a few days ago on the current situation:
“This moment humanity is experiencing can be seen as a door or a hole. The decision to fall in the hole or walk through the door is up to you. If you consume the news 24 hours a day, with negative energy, constantly nervous, with pessimism, you will fall into this hole.
But if you take the opportunity to look at yourself, to rethink life and death, to take care of yourself and others, then you will walk through the portal.
Take care of your home, take care of your body. Connect with your spiritual home. When you take care of yourself, you take care of everyone at the same time.
Do not underestimate the spiritual dimension of this crisis. Take the perspective of an eagle that sees everything from above with a broader view. There is a social question in this crisis, but also a spiritual question. The two go hand in hand.
Without the social dimension we fall into fanaticism.
Without the spiritual dimension, we fall into pessimism and futility.
Are you ready to face this crisis? Grab your toolbox and use all the tools at your disposal.
Learn resistance from the example of Indian and African peoples: we have been and are exterminated. But we never stopped singing, dancing, lighting a fire and rejoicing.
Don’t feel guilty for feeling blessed in these troubled times.
Being sad or angry doesn’t help at all. Resistance is resistance through joy!
You have the right to be strong and positive. And there’s no other way to do it than to maintain a beautiful, happy, bright posture.
Has nothing to do with alienation (ignorance of the world).
It’s a resistance strategy.
When we cross the threshold, we have a new worldview because we faced our fears and difficulties. This is all you can do now:
– Serenity in the storm
– Keep calm, pray everyday
– Make a habit of meeting the sacred everyday.
Show resistance through art, joy, trust and love.”
Hopi Indian Chief White Eagle