Health Benefits of Natural Yeast
Guest blog by Caleb Warnock, author of The Art of Baking with Natural Yeast: Breads, Pancakes, Waffles, Cinnamon Rolls and Muffins and the national bestseller Forgotten Skills of Self-Sufficiency Used by the Mormon Pioneers.

© 2012 Caleb Warnock. The contents of this blog post are not in the public domain and may not be used without the express written permission of the author.                    

Few people realize that the yeast in grocery stores is not a naturally-occurring substance. Laboratory created in 1984, the yeast sold today is so foreign to our digestive systems that some people develop allergies to the yeast itself. This quick-rising yeast appears increasingly connected to the nutritional and digestive disorders that plague so many. Natural yeast flattens the glycemic index, takes away heartburn and acid reflux forever, helps prevent or reverse gluten intolerance and, in some cases, full-blown Celiac’s disease, turns natural phytic acid into an anti-oxidant, controls allergies, and turns flour into a yeast that is both pre-biotic and pro-biotic.

Beyond health benefits, natural yeast is simple to use, costs nothing, tastes wonderful, completely cuts out the need to buy commercial yeast, and drastically reduces the need for baking powder and baking soda. You can easily use it not only to make bread, but also waffles, pancakes, breadsticks, pizza dough, scones, rolls, and even old-fashioned root beer.



Yeast is a single-celled fungus, and the first domesticated living creature in history. Modern science has identified more than 1,000 different varieties of wild yeast. These organisms are so small that hundreds of millions, if not billions, fit into a single teaspoon.

Wild yeast is everywhere -- in the air you breathe, on the bark of trees, on leaves. Ever seen the white film on backyard grapes? That’s wild yeast. The same film can be found of juniper berries. For centuries, both berries have been used as natural “start” for bread yeast.

But not all yeast varieties are the same. For example, the kind of yeast used to make beer is not the same kind of yeast used to make bread. Different natural yeasts have different flavors -- some are strongly sour, some are mildly sour, and some are not sour at all. Natural yeast is sometimes mistakenly referred to as sourdough, but with the right strain of yeast, it doesn’t have to be sour unless that is the flavor you prefer. Some natural yeasts are better are raising bread than others. This is why the best strains of natural yeast has been passed down through generations and communities. Hundreds of people around the nation have gotten free, non-sour natural yeast starts from me.

Until the 19th century, homemade yeast was the only kind there was. In 1857 Louis Pasteur discovered that living organisms -- yeasts -- were responsible for fermentation. Yeast was already an important business, even though no one had understood how it worked. The production of commercial yeast began in France in the 1850s. In the U.S., compressed yeast cakes were introduced to the nation at Philadelphia’s Centennial Exposition in 1876 , which drew 10 million visitors. When America entered World War II, yeast companies developed dry yeast for the military which did not require refrigeration. And then in 1984, rapid-rising yeast was invented in U.S. laboratories.

Today that yeast has all but replaced natural yeast. But not everyone is convinced that the convenience of super-fast yeast outweighs the health benefits of the slow rising process of natural yeast.

A word of caution. If you type “sourdough starter” into Google, you will get hundreds of recipes for starting “sourdough” from commercial yeast. But very little grocery store yeast is now true natural yeast. The best way to get real natural yeast is from someone using a documented strain. The author, Caleb Warnock, mails flakes of natural “sweet” yeast to anyone who requests them at no charge, along with instructions for growing out the yeast. And once you have a start of natural yeast, you can have it for the rest of your life. You can dry it, freeze it, keep it in the fridge, or grow it on your kitchen counter. To get a start of the author’s documented 200-year-old strain of natural yeast, send an email to calebwarnock.yahoo.com.

Here is the link to my blog, and you can click on the cover of the new cookbook to look inside the book. Not to press my luck, but if you order two copies, the shipping is FREE!

CalebWarnock.blogspot.com 

Side note: Caleb is a great friend of the Jolleys. We are so pleased to share his new book with you and hope that you find MANY healthy recipes to enrich your life and make it yummier!

Zucchini Relish 

Finally! It’s time for another Healthy recipe! It’s been a busy summer. It is now time to enjoy the benefits of harvesting our garden. One of our favorite recipe finds for zucchini is this relish. We honestly prefer it above all others, and sometimes even replace pickles with it. This is a definite keeper!

Zucchini Relish

10 Cups ground zucchini

4 cups chopped white onion (use a yellow onion if you like it a bit more sweet

2 cups chopped green bell pepper

2 cups chopped red bell pepper

5 Tblsp salt

Optional: outer meat 1 jalepano pepper 

Syrup:

3 cups sugar

2 ½ cups cider vinegar

1 Tblsp turmeric

2 tsp celery seed

1 Tblsp dried mustard

1 Tblsp corn starch

1 Tblsp black pepper

Combine zucchini, onion and bell pepper in a large roaster pan and sprinkle with the salt. Cover with water and let sit in refrigerator for at least 3 hrs or overnight. Next rinse and drain well. Return mixture to roaster pan.

In a large bowl, combine all syrup ingredients.  Pour over zucchini mixture and stir.  Bring to boil; lower heat and simmer 30 minutes. Do not boil.  Transfer to pint jars, wipe rims of jars and then seal with screw-band and lid immediately.  I use a steam bath. Once water is boiling, steam for 10-15min @ full boil. Allow to cool 30 min. before lifting canner lid. Lift slowly. Place jars on towel and cover with another towel. Listen for the neat little pop which means the jar has sealed.  Store in a dark, cool pantry.  If the center of the lid is not indented when jars are cool, that means it did not seal Refrigerate those jars.  Makes approx. 10 jars.

Recipe in part by: 101 Things to do with Zucchini, altered a bit by Debie Jolley

  

Healthy Recipe Day! - Avocados in ways you've not experienced!

Dr. Jolley loves all of his food made from scratch as much as possible and is an amazing chef when it comes to making his own.

For Father’s Day I decide to make him homemade Fajitas. Lately I’ve been on a health kick myself. As I contemplated buying the guacamole from the store (to save time) I looked at the ingredient list. The prominent ingredient was ‘canola oil.’ Yuck! I knew I could do better, so I determined to buy the avocados fresh and make my own. Finding a good recipe was hard, so I ended up combining two and ad-libbing for this amazing result!

Guacamole to die for Recipe – and yes it is healthy!

2 medium very ripe avocados (soft to touch, but not blackened inside)

½ of a small onion, cut up

1 clove of garlic minced

¼ cup fresh cilantro

1 Tblsp Fresh lemon juice

¼ tsp salt

1 medium tomato diced

(optional) ½ cup sour cream 

Cut avocados in half and remove pits. Scoop out the flesh and place in blender. Place all ingredients into the container. Secure the lid select variable slow speed and then increase to medium. Run for 15-30 sec. Leave slightly chunky but mostly smooth.

Makes about 2 cups

Keeping reading to the end of this post for the Health Benefits!

Enjoy!

Avocado Shake Recipe

This is popular in Brazil and other warm climate countries.

As avocados are a fruit and not a vegetable, this combination makes perfect sense. The flavor is subtle and very addictive! The recipe is lightened up for less calories. It is so good! Give it a try and see what you think. (Definitely not a guacamole taste.)

Yields: 2 servings
Prep time: 5 min

Ingredients:

1 rip avocado, peeled and pitted*
2 cups ice (16 to 20 ice cubes)
1/2 cup< fat-free sweetened condensed milk
1/2 to 1 cup cold non-fat milk**

* The best avocados to use are those that gently yield to pressure and are free from dark blotches inside the fruit.

** Depending on how large the avocado is and how thick you want your shake.

Preparation:

Scoop the avocado flesh into a blender. Add the ice cubes, condensed milk, the least amount of non-fat milk; puree until completely smooth. Taste and add additional milk if a thinner consistency is desired. NOTE: I like to use the maximum amount of milk.

Pour into two (2) tall glasses and enjoy!

Makes 2 servings.

I  Love the ice cream version: 

1/2 large Avocado (take off outer shell and pit)

1 ½ Cups Low fat Ice Cream

1/2 cup of sugar

½ cup milk 

Blend together on high until smooth

Makes 2 servings

Recipe source: Whatscooking America.net

About Avocados

Many people dismiss the health benefits of avocado simply due to its high calorie count. With 322 calories per avocado it is quite high in calories, but that’s not the entire story. Avocados have 54% of your recommended daily value of fiber, which gives this fruit much of its fat burning abilities.

Sometimes called the alphabet fruit because just one avocado provides your body with vitamins A, C, E, K and B6 so you can be sure you’re getting plenty of body nourishments with each bite. Other vitamins found in relatively large quantities in an avocado include riboflavin, niacin, foliate and pantothenic acid.

When you’re looking for avocado nutrition facts, pay close attention to potassium because one avocado has 975 mg.

It’s important to note that the outer dark green skin of the avocado is inedible, as is the huge pit in the center. Halve an avocado and remove the seed prior to eating. Slice & scoop or simply scoop out the yummy green center!

Health Benefits of Avocados

The foliate contained in avocados is mostly responsible for reducing the risk of heart disease, especially compared to people who have a diet low in foliate. The vitamin E in an avocado has also been linked to a healthy heart, something needed to keep you successfully burning fat all day long.

Another health benefit of avocado is that it is extremely helpful in preventing both rheumatoid and osteoarthritis. The many different antioxidants found in avocados help reduce inflammation, a major concern for sufferers of either type of arthritis. Avocado nutrients responsible for this health benefit include vitamins C & E as well as manganese.

Perhaps the biggest health benefit of avocados is that by adding avocado to certain foods, you can improve your absorption of nutrients. This means that when you combine other fat burning foods with avocado, you can improve your nutrient absorption up to 400%!

Avocados provide many general health benefits, in addition to its fat burning benefits due to its vitamin E and glutathione, which protects you against tons of diseases including several forms of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and cholesterol.

Avocados also help reduce the signs of aging, regulate blood sugar and promote eye health.

Health Benefits Source: http://www.fatburningfurnace.com/blog/avocado-nutrition-facts

Just a reminder about all the fun we will be having next week! FREE Games, FREE Prizes, FREE Bounce House fun for kids, FREE Basketball shoot.

Come and enjoy the DBoys BBQ and Grill. Great food you won't to miss. Also get a chance to Dunk the Doc! Dunking tank with none other than Dr. Jolley himself waiting to be dunked! It's the place to be After the Parade and Before the Rodeo!

Have you wondered if your child is embarrassed by her smile?

Children with crooked teeth often get bullied or teased for their appearance.  They appear less intelligent, less confident.  Have you ever seen anyone smile with their hand over their mouth?



Does that show confidence? Crooked teeth do not just go away on their own.  How do you think an unattractive smile will affect his/her opportunities for employment or marriage?

As a member of the International Association for Orthodontics, Dr. Chris Jolley has studied hours and hours of orthodontic continuing education over the past 20 years.  He has treated numerous children and adults with crooked teeth just like your child’s. 

Dr. Jolley can help your child achieve the winning smile he/she deserves. He really cares that your child gets the beautiful, confident smile that he/she can enjoy for the rest of his/her life.

Call our office for a free consultation 801-796-0344

Healthy Recipe Thursday. Homemade Bread!

When I married Dr. Jolley, he would make the most delicious homemade bread! Yes Dr. Jolley can cook! While I claim to be a great cook, bread making was not something I had ventured out to yet. After all a lot can go wrong, right? Not with this recipe. Dr. Jolley had me give it a try and wala! I would dare say this is a no fail recipe and easy to follow. I've been making this bread for 9 years now. People think I'm an expert at bread making lol. (I'll introduce you to the real Bread Expert in August with some exciting stuff!) Anyhow, the staff always gets excited when I bring a hot loaf of my bread into the office. Here's the secret recipe ~

 

The Jolley’s Famous Bread

100 % Whole Wheat Bread 

Prep Time:  45 min.              Baking Time:  40 min.

Rising Time:  30-60 min.               Oven Temp.  350º F

Makes FOUR Loaves

5 cups warm water (105-115º F)

2T or pkgs active dry yeast

2/3 cup Honey or Molasses

2/3 cup oil

2T Salt

3T Dough Enhancer

½ cup Vital Wheat Gluten

3 cups Rolled Oats

12-13 cups Whole Wheat Flour

(Grind 8 cups of grain) 

Preparation

1-   Heat Water to 110 º F

2-   Grind wheat (8cups of grain)

3-   Measure oil, pour into a separate bowl.

4-   Use the same cup to measure molasses.

5-   Place warm water, yeast & molasses into a large mixing bowl.

6-   Stir until all is dissolved and let stand in a warm place until raises up and bubbly.

7-   Mix in Vital wheat gluten, Dough enhancer, oil & salt.  Speed #1 on mixer (Slow)

8-   Add oats

9-   Mix in flour 1c. at a time. Up to 10 cups, 1^st Slow speed (#2) then (#4) when thick.

10-W/ last cups of flour, dump on counter & on top of dough.  Knead for 10 min.  Div. into 4 loaves

     11- Place into bread pans and let rise.

    Place towel over loaves while rising

     12- When dough has nearly doubled. Place in preheated oven and bake.      Makes 4 loaves

When bread comes out of oven, rub butter across top of loaf and let cool on cooling rack with a towel placed over it. 

Enjoy with honey or jam! Makes great sandwiches too! 

Pleasant Grove Strawberry Days! Our way of helping you enjoy summer fun.

EVER SEEN A DOUBLE TOOTH?

Many parents wait with great excitement and anticipation for the eruption of their baby's first tooth. Once in a while baby teeth don't quite look right. This can cause extreme worry among parents. Pictured to the left is one such scenario of a baby's two upper teeth. The tooth on the left is a "double tooth" while the one on the right is normal.

Double teeth are two teeth that are joined together by dentin or even by the pulp. If you're not sure what dentin and pulp are, take a look at the layers of a tooth.

In 20 years of dental practice, Dr. Jolley has only seen one case of ‘Fusion’ and that happens to be our own son! He has one giant front bottom tooth with two roots. (The front teeth normally only have one root.)  It was quite exciting and fun for Dr. Jolley to finally see an x-ray of the tooth when our son became old enough. Now that our son has arrived to the age for his permanent teeth erupt, we have been watching this tooth with a lot of curiosity.

There are two scientific terms for teeth that appear to be two teeth stuck together as one tooth: gemination and fusion.

Teeth Stuck Together: What is Gemination?

Gemination is when one developing tooth has split off into two distinct teeth that remain attached to each other and develop together. Gemination comes from the latin word geminus which means twin. You can think of gemination as two "twins" that are permanently attached.

When you count the geminated tooth as one tooth, there are a normal number of teeth in the mouth. The picture of the baby is shown to have gemination because he has all of his other teeth when you count the "double-tooth" as one tooth.

The same boy pictured above, a year or so later. He has all four upper incisors including the double tooth. If he only had three upper incisors including the double tooth, it would be fusion.

Teeth Stuck Together: What is Fusion?

Fusion is when two different developing teeth have joined together to create one tooth. You can think of it as two teeth fusing together. Gemination and fusion look very similar. Sometimes the only way to tell them apart is to count the number of teeth.

When you count the fused teeth as one tooth, the person will appear to be missing one tooth. (See the picture of our son’s teeth shown on the right.) Notice there are only three teeth where there would normally be four, but the one on the left is extra wide.

How Common Are Double Teeth?

Gemination and fusion have been reported to occur in the baby teeth in anywhere from 0.5% to 2.5% of Caucasian children. It is more common in Asian children, where it has been reported to occur sometimes in excess of 5% of Asian kids.

Gemination and fusion occur most commonly in the upper front teeth. However, it can also occur on the lower teeth as well. As a general rule, if a double tooth is located in the upper teeth, it is probably gemination and if the double tooth is found in the lower teeth, then it is probably fusion.

Interestingly enough that is exactly what we have in our two scenarios. The baby boy pictured 1^st above and to the left, has an upper ‘double tooth’ which is Gemination. Our son, the toddler pictured 2^nd, has a lower ‘double tooth’ which is Fusion.

Can Gemination and Fusion Happen with Permanent Teeth, Too?

Gemination and fusion do occur in permanent teeth, although it is not nearly as common as in baby teeth. It reportedly occurs in one out of every 250 people.

Can Gemination and Fusion Cause Any Problems?

Gemination and fusion in the baby teeth can cause crowding, atypical spacing between the teeth, and can cause problems with or delay the eruption of the permanent teeth underneath.

Because of this, when a double tooth is found, you should have your dentist monitor the permanent teeth underneath it to ensure that they come in normal. (Which means Dr. Jolley can check it during each of your regular 6 month check-ups.) Sometimes, your dentist will have to remove the double tooth in order to allow the permanent tooth to erupt normally. Dr. Jolley's 1st recommendation though is to not pull it until seen as necessary.

Rarely, there are no permanent teeth located under fused double teeth. Your dentist will be able to provide more information about the permanent teeth through a simple x-ray.

One thing to watch out for is the propensity for fused and geminated teeth to have deep grooves between the "two" teeth. This groove can be very susceptible to developing cavities as it is hard to get a toothbrush all the way down in the crevice to clean it properly. You may want Dr. Jolley to put a sealant in this groove to help prevent a cavity. (See our previous blog post or website on sealants.)

How Are Gemination and Fusion Treated?

Dr. Jolley’s recommendation for his own son is to let the tooth run its own course. In other words, we treat the tooth as a normal tooth. There aren’t any deep grooves to worry about, and there is no reason to split the tooth, because his mouth appears to be allowing for ample space for both permanent teeth to come in.

Sometimes, your dentist will be able to shave down and smooth the double tooth so that it doesn't appear very obvious to the casual observer. (Cosmetics shouldn’t be an issue yet.) I say sometimes because the anatomy of twinned teeth can be complex. If the pulp (click here to learn about the different layers of the tooth) is too close to the surface, then the dentist won't be able to shave down very much of the surface.

Very rarely, the dentist may be able to surgically divide the teeth but usually this is not necessary. This often works best with fusion because both teeth usually have their own separate pulp chambers and root systems. In any case, when surgically dividing the teeth, both teeth will need to have root canal treatment performed on them, which can end up being quite costly. Again, not a recommendation by Dr. Jolley.

In case you're curious - no one really notices it at all. Only a few family members asked about the tooth when our son was a baby. When he was pre-school age to present, no one can even tell. Now that his permanent teeth are erupting there is a little bit of crowding and crooked teeth, but Dr. Jolley has learned through his education and experience that the tongue, to some degree, is a natural aid in pushing permanent teeth into place. We are keeping an eye on it and hoping not to have to pull the fused tooth. If we do, even that is minimal in treating it.

Since kids will most likely lose all of their front teeth by the time they're 9, you may elect to do nothing about the double tooth ~ unless it's a huge orthodontic concern. I noticed some pictures on the web show an open bite caused by it, but this is even rarer than the tooth itself. One lady commenting on a blog discussing a geminated tooth said to just "enjoy its cuteness"...and that may very well be sound advice!

Conclusion & Further Reading

Do you have any questions or comments about double teeth? Do you or your child have double teeth? If so, what did you do, if anything, to treat it?

Please share your experiences in the comments section below, so we can all learn from them. Thanks for reading!

Portions of this article were written and edited by Debie Jolley. (Dr. Jolley’s wife) My resource of expertise comes from the answers I get from Dr. Jolley himself. 

Article source:Tom @ http://www.oralanswers.com/2010/09/double-teeth-gemination-and-fusion/

Tom is a 4^th year dental student who has a lot of really interesting articles on his blog! Thanks Tom!

For the record, (Tom, a blogger and dental student) got his facts (the statistics) about gemination and fusion from this book: Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology by Neville. If you want to read more on double teeth, Tom highly recommends that book.

Thumb Sucking
Thumb sucking in preschool children is a very normal response to anxiety and stress and does not point to insecurity or emotional problems in your child. While thumb sucking is normal for infants and toddlers, this behavior should decrease by ages 3-4 and stop by age five. Unfortunately, many youngsters are slow to break the habit. Continued sucking of thumbs or fingers can cause serious dental problems with chewing, speech, and facial appearance in children.

Effects on the Jawbone

The more time a child sucks his thumb and the greater the sucking pressure, the more harm is done to teeth and jaws. Day and night forceful thumb sucking makes front teeth move, and can even reshape the jaw-bone. Upper front teeth flare out and tip upward while lower front teeth move inward.

The reason that thumbs and fingers are effective tooth movers and bone shapers is that the jaw bones of children under age eight are especially soft and malleable. Unfortunately for children and parents, prolonged thumb or finger sucking easily deforms the bone surrounding upper and lower front teeth, producing a hole or gap when teeth are brought together, known as an "open bite".

If a child stops thumb sucking before loss of baby front teeth and permanent front tooth eruption, most or all harmful effects disappear within six months. However, if the habit persists through permanent front tooth eruption, there can be lasting damage: flared or protruded upper teeth, delayed eruption of upper or lower front teeth, and the aforementioned open bite. This can result in chewing difficulties, speech abnormalities, and an unattractive smile.

Do Home Remedies Work?

Some parents try home remedies to break the habit. Some try placing gloves on their children before bedtime. Others paint thumbs and fingers with various foul-tasting substances. All of these measures are typically easy to overcome and, unless done with care or under psychological supervision, may be unsuccessful because thumb sucking is a deeply ingrained behavior.

The Dental Solution: A Crib That's Not for Sleeping

One treatment to break the thumb-sucking habit is a simple device called a "crib." Placed by Dr. Jolley on the child's upper teeth, the crib usually stops the habit cold the first day of use. The appliance's technical name is a "fixed palatal crib," and is a type of brace that sits full-time on the upper teeth and roof of the mouth.

The Tongue and Habit Appliance

The crib consists of semicircular stainless steel wires connected to supporting steel bands or rings. The half-circle of wires fits behind the child's upper front teeth, barely visible in normal view. The bands are fastened to the baby molars. There are a number of different crib designs used, all variations on the same theme.

Dr. Jolley will initially analyze the child’s teeth and jaws to check for problems with tooth position and bite. If the child's teeth and jaws show changes from prolonged thumb sucking, he will usually recommend a crib or a Thumb Tongue Habit Appliance to eliminate the habit.

 It is one of the simplest, yet most effective orthodontic devices. Crib wires prevent the thumb or finger from touching the gums behind the front teeth and on the palate (roof of the mouth). Patients turn the bead with their tongue which replaces the desire to suck the thumb and the child has no incentive to continue.

When Does Crib Treatment Begin?

The ideal time is when upper front baby teeth become loose, just prior to eruption of adult or permanent front teeth. This usually occurs just before or after age six, well beyond the maximum "normal" age for thumb sucking to stop. Prompt thumb removal at this time allows permanent teeth to assume a much better position than waiting until their full eruption to break the habit.

Sucking on a thumb, finger, or blanket may be noted in preteens, teenagers and even adults. Despite the age differences, the initial orthodontic treatment is the same for all: placement of a crib to break the habit. For teens and adults, counseling may be indicated to deal with any underlying psychological problems.

Article source: Stock dental articles