Reflections on Mothers Day - what makes a mother?

Reflections on Mothers Day

What makes a mother?   Are we mothers by virtue of becoming pregnant and then giving birth?  Or does motherhood really start after our physical bodies have taken care of all the biology?  After all, it’s not like we have much to do with creation itself, other than the obvious, of course. After all, nature is pretty much in charge. Yes, we have to get through the morning sickness, feeling bloated and the pain of delivery, but what really makes a mother? 

I had an interesting conversation with my mother today and it made me reflect on this very question. My mom is almost 89 years old and while she is in generally good health, her memory has been failing and she needs 24 hour care because she suffered a fall a few years ago that required hospitalization. However, what is quite remarkable is that whenever I have spoken to my mother in the last several years, she has always described herself as being content. Given that I would never have described my mother as being “content” during the first 8 decades of her life, you can see how this might have made me take notice.

Somehow, my mother has been able to find a way to be at peace with not only her life but also with her own mortality. What is even more remarkable is that my mother has become incredibly pleasant – again, probably not an adjective that I would have used to describe my mom in the past.  Artistically gifted, intelligent, persevering, anxious, talented – for sure, pleasant…not so much. Whether it is my mothers memory limits or her emerging maturity, I don’t really know, but what matters is that she found a way to age with grace. I think that we all hope to find this kind of peace in our lives, and I am grateful that my mother was able to experience this – at least until very recently.

The History of Genetically Modified Orgamisms (GMOs)

Given the interest and activism around the question of labeling genetically modified organisms (GMOs), we thought it would be a good time to go into more depth about this important topic.

In our previous articles, we have discussed the many concerns about genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Unfortunately, we have reached a point where GMOs make up a majority of certain crops (e.g. corn, soy, sugar beets, canola, etc.) that are grown in the United States. We feel this might be a good time to expand on the history of GMOs, how we got to this point, and try to understand how GMOs made their way into widespread use in agriculture.

In this post, let's take a brief look at the history of how GMOs came into existence.

New FDA Warning About Tylenol

Last week, the FDA released a warning about 3 rare but potentially fatal skin disorders associated with taking acetaminophen (Tylenol, paracetamol). We’ve discussed some of the dangerous side effects of acetaminophen before, but these new warnings were unknown at the time. So what did the FDA say, and how did they learn about the new side effects of this not so safe over the counter drug?

How Safe Are Supplements?

In recent years, there has been much controversy about the safety and efficacy of dietary supplements. Are they as safe as pharmaceutical medications? Should you be concerned that  they could make you sick? Interestingly, in the United States and Europe, regulatory agencies (FDA, EMEA, etc.) are trying to, or have succeeded in, restricting or blocking the sale of many dietary supplements to the general public. You might think that they are trying to regulate these supplements because they are trying to protect you from “dangerous” supplements that could harm you, but is this really the case?

Washing Produce - The Dirty Truth

The “five second rule” is a cute thing we reference when someone drops something on the ground, but the reality is that almost all plants live (or spend some time) on the ground before they end up in stores for us to buy and eat. To say that some plants are “dirty” belies the truth that plants quite literally grow in the dirt. Between pesticides, bacteria, viruses, and just plain dirt, the food you buy in stores often carries more than just nutrients into your body.

The brightly colored produce you see in the market might look cosmetically “clean”, but what you can’t see are the residues of pesticides and microscopic bacteria or viruses that can make you sick. Even though it is time consuming, it is really important to clean your produce thoroughly to protect yourself from these hidden dangers.

Is water alone enough to do the job? What about products made to wash off pesticides from produce? What is the best way to clean fruits and vegetables to remove dangerous chemicals and pathogens?