2 cups almond milk
1 Tablespoon Flax Oil
Cinnamon, Nutmeg
Broccoli Sprouts or Microgreens (from Trader Joes)
Kale (half a bunch)
Spinach or Chard (half a bunch)
A small bit of watercress
Mint
Basil
2 Avacados

It makes 6-8 cups, and I drink it over two days.
1 packet Truvia
A handful of blueberries
Occasionally, a scoop of unsweetened cocoa powder, a few pieces of celery, or a cucumber.

1 cup of unsweetened So Delicious coconut milk, 4 pastured omega 3 raw eggs, Nutiva coconut manna (large tablespoon) 1/4 cup of raw heavy cream, 1/4 cup of raw unsulphured coconut flakes and 1/4 of Navitas 100% cacoa nibs with cinnamon, nutmeg, one packet of stevia with inulin, and one teaspoon of 100% cacoa powder, Maca powder and Chia powder.....all blended with ice to make a daquari like breakfast drink.  The carb level is below 10 gms and it is loaded with protein and MCT.  Total Paleo smoothie to start a day.

With all due respect, I'll never understand the need for smoothies as long as there are eggs.

KEFIR!!

Coconut milk and avocado, sweetened with Truvia and/or a few blueberries.

I have to try Vladimir's recipe though. I've never done the green thing...

@Patty

Eggs for me too, please!

I still have all of my teeth. I prefer to eat my food, not drink it.

Smoothies (and milk) are ideal for babies and people who can't chew.

Once I gave up artificial sweeteners in additon to added sugars, my sense of sweet changed dramatically.  A lot of foods I used to love are now sickeningly sweet.

It took me months to adjust to my new taste buds, and initially, I was not thrilled about theh change.  However, it did remove the need for virtue to avoid sweets.

i am curious what the blood glucose response to fruit would be in the presence of a fat like fish oil or coconut milk?  doesn't fat blunt this process?

4 raw eggs (from organically reared and free range hens certified salmonella free) and a few berries all whisked up - simple and yum.

I've cut way back on the fruit in my smoothie, and replaced some with a stalk of celery, which gives it a fresh taste.

I think it is safe to say that diabetics should generously include blueberries in their diets. Blueberries actually may increase insulin sensitivity, lower blood glucose, triglycerides and abdominal fat.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090419170112.htm

here's a couple of my favorite smoothies.

Hemp-Whey smoothie
1 scoop unsweetened whey powder (vanilla or chocolate)
1 scoop Hemp protein powder
1/4 c. coconut milk
1 packet stevia sweetener
4 oz unsweetened keifer
8 oz hemp milk.
Options - add a few blueberries, or almond extract, or cocoa powder, or grated unsweetened coconut

Green Smoothie
8 oz V8 or other veggie drink
juice from 1 lemon
1-2 inch fresh ginger, sliced
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tsp turmeric
3 ribs celery, coarsely chopped
1 cup fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup fresh parsley
1/2 green pepper
1/2 avocado
1 T flax oil or 1 scoop hemp protein

Does anyone have any cookbook or recipe website recommendations for what ingredients I should eat? I've cut way back on sugar and carbs and have lost some weight. I'd like to take things to the next level, but I'm really struggling with finding recipes, especially with a variety of ingredients. I feel like eggs and veggies are the only foods "allowed". Thanks in advance for any help.

Very nice topic.  While I minimize these for myself I make one for my 2.5 year old.  I has to many carbohydrates but the trade is to get some nutrients he would otherwise not get.

This morning was 1/2 Banana, Coconut water 2tbs, 1tbs raw cocoa powder, Almond butter 1tsp, 1 egg from a local farm, heavy raw cream 1/4 avocado, 1 cup raw spinach.

This is generally consumed by him over a full day so the overall impact is lower.

Right on Patty! Eggs rule.

Wow! Great ideas.

I, too, prefer whole foods. But many people like the idea of making a smoothie and consuming it on the run, so I try to help them make healthier alternatives.

Smoothies can be a delicious indulgence on occasion, too. My favorite is to combine unsweetened cocoa powder with peanut butter, along with unsweetened almond milk and some coconut milk. A little sweetener is required due to the bitterness of the cocoa. It tastes like a Reeses peanut butter cup.

I am a long time reader of this AWESOME blog - thanks Dr. Davis for all your time and effort. Thanks also to all that comment - I read every single one.

As Dr. Davis said, some excellent ideas here. I myself love a couple of eggs for breakfast but when the weather warms up I like doing a smoothie instead. Mine includes:

4 cups or so leafy greens (organic baby spinach, kale, dandelion, collards etc)
1/2 can coconut milk
2 Tbsp coconut oil
2 eggs (raw)
a handful of frozen berries (maybe 1/4 cup)
a drop of vitamin K2

You can add darn near anything to this (fish oil, cod liver oil, other powdered or liquid supplements). It looks green but the taste is not objectionable. It is not sweet but the handful of berries makes it palatable without overloading the carbohydrates. I have tested my blood sugar after drinking this and most often even after only 1 hour, a nice even 78. I drink the whole thing for breakfast M-F and it fills me up until early afternoon. It also gives me a great sense of satiety that I don't get with anything else - I just feel good!

For people who like having a smoothie/shake I really encourage you to add some leafy greens. I think the best one to start with would be organic baby spinach. It is very mild and an excellent way to add some to your diet.

I've started making eggnog (sugar-free and alcohol-free, of course) for breakfast. I throw in my vitamins, too. I've choked on pills before, so this is a good way to take them.

@Davide, the study you refer to is a rat study funded by people who sell blueberries. The article doesn't say what the rest of the diet was, but if it was low-nutrient pseudo-food that's sometimes used in rat studies, adding back pretty my anything with nutrients would have improved the rats' health. In real life, eating a bunch of fruit raises your blood sugar if you're diabetic.

Oops--make that "pretty much anything."

Hey, Doc.

Blueberries are supposedly extremely healthful.

You wrote something about 8-10 blueberries to put into a smoothie.  Is that the amount one should eat to get full advantage of their healthful properties without the disadvantages of their sugar?

Can one eat more if combined with other low glycemic foods that will presumably blunt the effects of the sugar?

Thanks.

Doc,
You wrote in a comment:

"A little sweetener is required due to the bitterness of the cocoa. It tastes like a Reeses peanut butter cup."

Sounds good.  What sweetener do you recommend?

Thanks

I've been diagnozed with pre-diabetes (fasting glucose: 105mg/dl, HGB A1C 5.8%) last July and have since then been trying to lose weight and change my diet. Luckily, my lipid panel seems ok (Chol 160mg/dl, triglyc 107mg/dl, HDL 60mg/dl, VLDL 21mg/dl, LDL 79mg/dl). However, I have been having a hard time finding low GI foods/snacks that will let me life within a 1600 cal/day diet to maintain sufficient cal deficit for weight loss of ~1-1.5 lbs/week.

Here is the smoothie I have been making, not for breakfast, but rather for post-gym recovery and "dinner-dimmer" to avoid binging.

1/4c frozen blueberries

1c unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1t ground chia seeds

1t glutamine

1sc whey protein powder (Jillien Michel's)

1/2 banana

1-2c spinach



Fairly satisfying and pretty yummy!

Is a smoothie made with fruit that bad for you if you exercise on a regular basis. ie. 1 hour a day fairly intense workout. Won't all the carbs be "used up".  My smoothie
All organic ingredients
eggs
spinach
coconut milk
chia seeds
cinnamon
blueberries
bannana

Dr Davis
How can peanut butter be good.
Think about the lectins.

"The far bigger concern, however, is that peanuts contain lectins which are believed to have inflammatory and atherogenic potential.  Most plants contain lectins, some of which are toxic, inflammatory, or both. Many of these lectins are resistant to cooking and to digestive enzymes, and some have been scientifically shown to have significant GI toxicity in humans. Lectins from grains (especially wheat) and legumes (including peanuts and soybeans) are most commonly associated with aggravation of inflammatory and digestive diseases in the body. (As an aside, dairy from cows fed grain-based diets can also contain these grain-derived lectins.)

Recent research by Dr. Cordain has suggested that these lectins may effectively serve as a “Trojan horse” allowing foreign proteins to invade our natural gut defenses. Cordain reports, “An experiment conducted by Dr. Wang and colleagues and published in the prestigious medical journal Lancet revealed that PNA got into the bloodstream intact in as little 1-4 hours after subjects ate a handful of roasted, salted peanuts.” (Unfortunately, the abstract of this study is not available without a subscription.) The lectins can cause damage well beyond the gut – commonly in joints, brain, and skin of affected individuals. Continued exposure of the gut by these toxins leads to a persistent stimulation of the body’s defense mechanism in a dysfunctional manner, i.e. autoimmune disease. (Allergies fall into that category as well.)" from Dr Loren Cordains Paleo Diet

8 oz. unsweetened silk almond milk
1/2 avocado
1 teaspoon cinnamon
handful of 10% unsweetened cocao
2-4 oz. blueberries or 2 whole strawberries.

previous comment mistake.

make that handful 100% unsweetened cocao, not 10% unsweetened cocao.

whey powder
coconut milk
cocoa powder
stevia
vanilla seltzer (Polar)
few ice cubes
Opt: raw egg

Nutty Monkey
unflavored or vanilla whey powder of your choice
1/2C coconut milk
1/2C unsweetened almond milk
spoonful almond butter
1t banana flavor
1/2t coconut flavor
1/2t vanilla
as much ice as you do or don't want

Peanuts to my knowledge are extremely unhealthy due to lectins

I always use home made kefir fermented 24 to 48 hours room temp and another few days in fridge to get rid of almost all the sugar.  My favorite smoothie:
12 oz kefir (from raw milk)
1 egg (yes raw but only from one local farmer)
1 1/2 tablespoonsful cocoa powder
1/2 avocado when I have
1/2 tsp glucomannan powder
and whatever else I feel like throwing in including left over veggies.
Because my kefir is so sour, I do use stevia to sweeten.

I hope you don't mind if I take issue with a few things:  Lots of recent information on artificial sweeteners increasing risk of heart attack and stroke.  There are lots of other problems with sucralose and aspartame too.  Peanuts are virtually all contaminated with a mold toxin called aflatoxin and should be avoided.  Extra light olive oil has been heavily processed, often with chemicals and is more toxic than healthy.  I'm hoping you meant extra virgin olive oil?

One odd comment by Dr. Davis seems to be the low amount of blueberries.

Most berries don't contain that much fructose, and blueberries (anthocyanins) have health benefits on their own. Even for lipid numbers --
http://inhumanexperiment.blogspot.com/2009/08/anthocyanins-from-berries-increase-hdl.html


I don't think 5g of sugar from half a cup of berries will put someone over the edge, if taken with fiber and/or protein. I have also read that blueberries will actually lower one's serum glucose levels.

And did you mean extra-virgin olive oil?

i also do the egg-nog thing:

raw eggs
cream or coconut milk
vanilla extract
stevia
freshly grated nutmeg on top

Continued great ideas!

Ari--

While there are individual differences, 8-10 blueberries will just stay below the threshold of most people's tolerance before boosting blood glucose. (It can vary, depending on what else you eat with it, time of day, your weight and state of insulin sensitivity, etc.)

I prefer stevia. Xylitol and erythritol are other excellent choices, provided you watch out for appetite stimulation.

Comments about peanuts--

I know of those data. I'm just not sure about how genuine those concerns are.

While I love Cordain's work and I have read the few studies on this question, I am not convinced that anything but habitual and substantial exposure has any adverse effect. In other words, if I have a tablespoon of peanut butter once or twice a week, does that really have adverse effects?

There are indeed foods that can exert undesirable health effects in such small doses. I'm not convinced that peanuts are among them.

Dr Davis once mentioned that a level handful of berries is all you can eat in one day. I still love my cup of dark berries (from a Three Berries bag from Costco) every night on top of the handful, which I eat with almond milk and flaxseed in the morning. Given that I don't eat other carbs or dairy, I wonder whether this is why my Hemo A1c is now 5.7, which is high for a non-diabetic.

Doc,
Is heavy cream a good ingredient for a smoothie?  Being unable to find any coconut milk with kosher certification, I figured that heavy cream sounded tasty.

I figured if it's milk fat rather than lactose, the insulin increase might be small.

Any thoughts?

Large handful spinach
half avocado
2 cups water
2 packets sun crystals (2g sugar total)

For those of you that use greens, what type of blender do you use?  Will a standard type blender work, or do you have a Vitamix?

Teresa

1/3 cup frozen blueberries
2 tbs flaxseed
1/3 cup 2% plain yogurt (homemade)
1.5 cups spinach
1/3 avocado
1/3 cup coconut milk
1.5 scoops Optimum Nutrition  Gold Standard Whey
enough water to blend
  416 calories
  35 g protein
  24 g carbs (10 g sugar, 5.3 grams fiber)
  24 grams fat (2.5 omega-3)

Insulinotropic Properties of Dairy Protein.


Milk consumption modifies the insulinemic and glycemic response to carbohydrate-rich food in both type II diabetic and healthy subjects [42]. A population-based prospective study (CARDIA) revealed that dairy consumption was inversely associated with the incidence of all components of the insulin resistance syndrome (IRS) among overweight individuals (BMI>=25kg/m2). Each daily occasion of dairy consumption was associated with 21% lower odds of IRS. These associations were similar for blacks and whites and for men and women [43]. Of the milk proteins, whey leads to higher pre-meal insulin concentrations than casein [44] and may contain the predominant insulin secretagogue because the insulin area under the curve (AUC) after preloads of 25 g carbohydrate with 18.2 g of whey protein was 50% higher than after milk or cheese [42]. Addition of whey to a meal containing rapidly digested and absorbed carbohydrates, stimulated greater plasma insulin concentrations (+57% after lunch) and reduced postprandial blood glucose (–21% at 120 min AUC) in type II diabetic subjects [45]. Amino acids may be the primary factor accounting for the insulinotropic effect of whey protein. Healthy subjects that ingested mixture of leucine, isoleucine, valine,lysine and threonine resulted in glycemic and insulinemic responses similar to those after whey ingestion [46] suggesting that branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are the major determinants of insulinemia as well as lowered glycemia caused by the whey drink. However the BCAA mixture did not stimulate incretin (GIP and GLP-1) response while the whey drink did suggesting that the action of whey is not simply related to amino acid content and presumably due to the action of peptides. The authors concluded that whey-induced hyperinsulinemia occurs by two or even more separate pathways, one connected to the significant increment in certain amino acids but the other connected through the incretins, which are believed to interact with bioactive peptides derived from proteins [46].

Continuation...
My understanding of the research paper segment I posted above (google for source if curious) is that:
1- yes, milk increases insulin production, confirming the blog starting premise
BUT
2- opposing the blog unproven conclusion that does NOT lead to diabetes, on the contrary:

A population-based prospective study (CARDIA) revealed that dairy consumption was inversely associated with the incidence of all components of the insulin resistance syndrome (IRS) among overweight individuals (BMI>=25kg/m2). Each daily occasion of dairy consumption was associated with 21% lower odds of IRS. These associations were similar for blacks and whites and for men and women [43]. O

Dr Davis
Can it be healthy to eat sunflower seed butter(with a lot Omega 6)
extra light olive oil(that is refined) and Soymilk (we all know that it is unhealthy)

Read opinions from Weston-Price Foundation about Soy.


Happy if when giving advice about recipe tell us that some of the ingredients can we
only eat once or twice a week.

I allways read your blog and have liked it very much.

Hi Annonymous,
I am following your comments here and from an earlier posting I believe. Well, am trying to organize some ideas; basicly thinking out loud here. At this point I am not dealing with the diabetic individual's response or diabetic case management.

Some comparative charts I've seen tracking levels of both insulin and blood glucose simultaneously over a few hours come to mind. The initial "spike" in insulin was followed by lesser "flush" of insulin many (not a few, nor several) minutes later, and again a mini "blip" or two  farther along in time. While the blood glucose, for it's part, did not follow a linear rise and linear decline either.

If my memory serves the two factors (insulin increases and blood sugar waves)did not coincide in a proportionate overlay pattern . There was an initial relationship seemingly involving insulin and blood sugar showing up to be seen, as we expect in first meal of the day.

Bloggers seem to propose the  hormone insulin activates in response to blood sugar, "drives" (or tries to drive) glucose into cells and then both go back to discrete levels (if there is no metabolic syndrome). In other words it's unexplicitly
represented as a one step, two step, bow out until next time eat and go back to some baseline.

Studies charting one and not the other give an incongruous picture; the two (insulin and blood glucose) don't seem to dance just with respect to each other. I think this is what you found with the insulin raising properties of dairy/whey having an inverse (reducing) effect in living humans of insulin resistance.

If you have any insight into the signaling role of the hormone insulin I'd like to hear it. Maybe you'd post it back over on the recent thread where Doc showed the insulin response chart. The topic here is "smoothies".

You are right about the misplacememt of my earlier posts - they are not about smoothies but whether dairy is bad or good, the topic of the previous blog.  I've reposted there as well, but here is the summary:

According to research (CARDIA cited above), and regardless of insulin/glucose curves,  DAIRY LOWERS YOUR RISK OF DIABETES.  The more daily servings, the lower the risk.

If you disagree please present support information. This matters to us all who read this type of blog and care for what we eat.

test - had problems posting

Again Annon.,
My thinking is that the factor in dairy responsible for what your study found is Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF); not insulin.
IGF, a hormone acting protein, has hypo-glycaemin effect; it lowers blood sugar. IGF also improves kidney function, engenders nitrogen balance and decreases cholesterol.

IGF I & II are found in cow's milk, but not in whey. The % of IGF content varies with phase of lactation the cow is experiencing.

IGF I in human milk ranges from 1.5 to 19.0 ng/mL -1; at different post natal stages. IGF II in human milk ranges from 2.7 to 35.0 ng/mL -1; at different post natal stages.

IGF I in cow milk ranges from 2.0to 101.0 ng/mL -1; while IGF II
ranges from 2.0 to107.0 ng/mL -1 at different lactation stages. So my suggestion is to look at dairy's IGF to explain the benefit you allude to.

IGF BP2 (insulin-like growth factor binding protein 2) is an
"anti-diabetic" protein; and when upregulated it modulates any acute hypo-glycemic
action of IGF.

I post this here because your last post on "insulin secretagogue" was brief.

Might-o'chondri-AL--

My apologies in the difficulties you are encountering posting comments.

I found several of your comments in the "spam" device set up by Blogger. Once I recognized your insightful commentary and name, I de-spammed them.

I suspect that the Blogger/Google people have expanded their reach for potential spam. Unfortunately, it can mean that meaningful commentary like yours gets mislabeled.

I'm late to the party, but I want to offer (as others have) that ripe avocados make for an incredible smoothie ingredient.  I recently made one comprised of the following simple ingredients: ice, avocado, heavy cream, sugar-free Torani syrup (vanilla).  It was spectacular, and I'm sure that it is easy to adapt and vary it according to personal tastes.

Some practical info... if you put melted coconut oil in  smoothie, then add a bunch of cold ingredients, you wind up with chunks of frozen coconut oil all over the place.

Instead, add the melted coconut oil to a pastured egg and blend to emulsify.  Now when you add the berries or peaches and milk and such, the coconut oil will stay smooth within your smoothie, which is supposed to be a SMOOTHIE, not a CHUNKY.  ;)

My favorite ingredients besides eggs and coconut oil (which are the basis of all my smoothies, having given up on all protein powders in favor of pastured eggs) are leftover cold coffee, cocoa, raw milk, cream, frozen blueberries (1/2 cup), frozen other berries (full cup), shredded dried coconut, nut butters, stevia to taste - not all at once.  Sometimes, I like a mocha/coffee smoothie, sometimes a fruit smoothie, sometimes a nut butter/chocolate smoothie (can do a "nutella" flavored one or an "almond joy" flavored one).  

Sometimes, I change the flavors up with DaVinci sugarfree syrups, but honestly, I don't consider that "health food".  I've never noticed a reaction to sucralose, but feel it is generally safer to use stevia if one has bg issues, and small amounts of maple syrup or molasses if one does not (they taste too strong to overdo like white sugar).

Google Hinze Hogendoorn http://tinyurl.com/3t48zhf
17-year-old Dutch undergraduate student Hinze Hogendoorn  has created scientific history with his simple experiments.

is there ever any good news from the food science arena?

Metabolite screening should be done to compare with old standard and apparently is being done to some extent; there will always be someone who reacts adversely to what is innocuous to most people.  Since field agriculture is not free of  problems there will always be need for adaptations.

Japanese daikon root pickle made today has a different degree of physiological benefit  than when made with a traditional old cultivar of smaller sized daikon.  Hinze's rats might have found old fashioned fare more appetizing but they don't have to struggle to produce it like hungry people worldwide must try to do.

*  2006 article "Transgenes has less impact on the transcriptome of wheat grain than conventional breeding"
Plant Biotechnology Journal 4, 369 - 380

* 2006 article "Effect of transgenes on global gene expression in soybean is within the natural range of variation of conventional cultivars"
Journal Agricultural Food Chemistry 56, 3057 - 3067

* 2008 article " Microarray analyses reveal that plant mutagenesis may induce more transcriptomic changes than transgene insertion"
Proceedings National Academy Science USA 105, 3640 - 3645

It's astounding that tests are not done -- are not mandated by law and international treaty -- on hybridized plants prior to the plants being sold for human consumption! One doesn't need to be a bio-chemist to see the danger there.  Of course, I have to wonder what kind of tests should be required.  Some dangers may not be readily apparent.  It could take a human generation or two for the problems to be recognized.  We are lab rats!

Our number one forage crop is in danger of infecting the nation's livestock with an organism that is causing infertility in a large percentage of food animals.

Don Huber Interview - Roundup Ready GMOs - PATHOGEN NEW TO SCIENCE.flv
swirly78777@mypacks.net

The URL to the Don Huber video is:  http://bit.ly/k25NpH

Thanks, MK.

Anyone with even a passing interest in food and food safety absolutely need to view the video link posted by MK Davis (no relationship).

Dr. Huber brings an incredible depth of insight into the glyphosate GMO crop question.

I'm surprised to see stuff about hybrid and GMO plants here.  

I was an avid gardener before I became disabled and very gung-ho about using open-pollinated seeds, mostly heirlooms.   Even though I didn't save seed, I only bought open-pollinated seeds and plants in order to encourage their preservation by seed companies.  No F1 seeds for me, and DEFINITELY no GMO.  

When you look into the history even a little bit, you realize even the so-called heirlooms are all pretty new plants.  

It's been a very short period of time that sweet corn has even existed - corn was always a grain, not a vegetable.  

Similarly, tomatoes used to be much more acidic than modern varieties are.  It used to be safe to can tomatoes in a hot-water bath.  But new tomatoes need to be canned in a pressure canner... or you have to add acid to the recipe to safely do the water-bath thing and avoid botulism.

Also, most people have no idea how much yummier heirlooms are.  Vegetables for factory farming have been bred for things like uniform harvest by machinery, ability to keep in storage, not bruising when shipped across country, etc.  Not for TASTE.  

A Brandywine tomato (my favorite heirloom) tastes NOTHING like what you can buy in a grocery store - because when individuals were doing the breeding, taste was a factor as opposed to  ease of machine harvest and transport and long-term storage.

You can get good seeds from companies that have taken the No-GMO pledge... such as Baker's Creek Heirloom Seeds, Bountiful Gardens, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, Pinetree Garden Seeds and Seed Savers Exchange.

The largest problem is with corn.  Monsanto corn has a gene that makes the plant resistant to Round-up, their primary pesticide.  Even farmers who intend to raise heirlooms have found their fields pollinated by neighbor's Monsanto corn - and been sued since the gene is patented.  

Farmers that raise heirloom seeds have to raise corn in very isolated spots, and good seed companies test each batch of seed to make sure it's not been infected by the GMO gene.

Almost ALL corn available today is not only not open-pollinated, but not even normal hybrid corn; rather most of it is GMO.  There's a very few sources of things like non-GMO cornmeal and almost no sweet corn.  

Same with soybeans - it's all pretty much GMO.  

IMO, very good reasons to avoid these products in the diet.  I keep a small batch of non-GMO  cornstarch and non-GMO tamari for cooking purposes, but we eat very little corn or soy - and absolutely none of their oils.  Even the non-GMO stuff, corn is very carby, soy causes thyroid issues, and their oils are full of PUFAs. But the small amounts we use in our diet are absolutely non-GMO.

I forget if it's been released yet or not, but there's a GMO alfalfa coming down the pike.  If the gene is as invasive as the corn gene is, soon it'll be hard to find pasture-raised meat and dairy that hasn't been raised on GMO feed.  

The largest problem worldwide is in poor countries, where farmers traditionally saved seed to plant again the next year.  These folks literally cannot afford to buy seeds every year.  When all that is available is patented seed or hybrid seed, they are screwed in terms of being able to raise their own food.  People literally starve due to the geopolitics of GMO seed.

Read up on Monsanto.  They're pretty damned evil.  Probably responsible for more infant deaths than even Nestle.  I personally won't buy products from any company that sells Monsanto products; it's really THAT bad.

Well, I shall stop my rant now.  I've been ranting about this since back when I was in grad school doing recombinant DNA work myself... I'm getting bored with myself.  ;)

I actually stopped by to drop off this link for you, Dr. D: http://www.diabetesincontrol.com/articles/diabetes-news/10953-common-test-predicts-early-death-in-diabetes-

Thanks for the detailed commentary, jpatti. Exceptionally well said.

A return to the simplest forms of farming and plant selection are, I agree, are about the only ways to dodge all the genetic shenanigans provided by agribusiness. Scary stuff.

Now we know who the snesible one is here. Great post!

Thank you! for stating a musing I have expressed for years! Plant breeding starting with Mendel has probably done a whole lot more than soem obscure snippet of gene insertion....not being a proponet here but I agree that a much larger point is missed......but this theme seems to run in a lot of directions in the health world like worrying about "SmartMeters" and their radiation when that cell phone, cordless phone and wireless signals are right there in their face......or how African-American kids in urban environments are asthmatic and all the potential causes make the news  EXCEPT that the notion that that high carb diet they most likely are eating is the main trigger......ditto for all the suffering this population group has later in life.....

thanks for reviving this Mark Twain quote... to book end it  perhaps reviving Parkinson's Law would be appropriate.