News for Now Update: Week ending February 11, 2023

African Heritage Diet Nourishes & Empowers
February is Black History Month, and Tambra Raye Stevenson, founder of Women Advancing Nutrition, Dietetics, and Agriculture (WANDA), is making Black food central. She shares stories of food traditions (from across the US and Caribbean to her ancestral roots in Nigeria) along with science, rewriting the oppressive narratives around Black food to restore its rightful place as healing medicine and cultural empowerment. Read more at Eating Well.

Nitrate Pollution Threatens Well Water
Chemical fertilizers create runoff that can easily seep into groundwater, causing nitrate pollution, and nearby residential wells are at high risk of contamination. In Minnesota, for example, over a million residents rely on well water, and testing has shown at least 9% of vulnerable wells have unsafe nitrate levels. Well owners are left with the responsibility of solving the problem, and financial assistance is limited. Read more at Modern Farmer.

Avoiding Toxicity in Valentine’s Treats
This Valentine’s Day, watch out for candy toxins beyond sugar: Red No. 3 dye, prohibited in cosmetics by the FDA in 1990, is still permitted in food, although 24 organizations petitioned to have it banned last month. Titanium dioxide makes candy smooth and shiny, but it can cause DNA damage. Choosing organic avoids these additives, while preventing heavy metal contamination from chocolate requires additional effort. Read more at the Environmental Working Group.

Crab on the Menu in Neanderthal Diet
Archaeological research in Portugal has uncovered evidence that Neanderthals were cooking and eating crabs as much as 90,000 years ago. Specific burn damage on the crab shells shows they were roasted at controlled temperatures. Along with evidence of other fish and shellfish being eaten, this contradicts some views that Neanderthals were primitive and unsophisticated in their food acquisition and preparation methods. Read more at Phys.org.

The Healthy Hunzas: A Climax Human Crop, by William A. Albrecht, MS, PhD
In this 1962 #TBT article, William A. Albrecht, MS, PhD, describes the Hunza people, native to the Himalayan Mountains, who achieve exceptional health and longevity without modern medicine. Notably, they regularly revitalize their soil, first with complex organic matter, followed by powdered natural rock from the local mountains. This ancient method achieves what scientists now call “chelation” to facilitate crops’ maximum nutrient absorption from the soil. Read more in our Pioneer Archives Post.