Then, with one glance at gleaming new juicer sitting at ready on kitchen counter, it became Obvious. All claims about benefits of juicing must be true!

You might have heard about Juicing, and trendy juice bars in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and other major cities. But for some, juicing has become a way of life. And now Gram understands why. Energy, weight control, restful sleep, no indigestion (not even one bout of acid reflux) - overt bonanza of juicing, even in early stages. And this, during a stressful period on Day Job! "My, my," thought Gram; "Like a natural tranquilizer in a glass."

And is it tasty! Never mind all health benefits - terms like natural enzymes and phytochemicals purported to fight disease/ dis-ease in human body. Well, those, too. Who among us wouldn't like to be healthier and feel better, less lethargic and out of sorts?

But having a background in human services, Gram has long known that a client's mood swings and even a teen's unruly behavior can be improved with a sound, nutritious diet. More people have various food allergies than one might suspect. So it stands to reason that what we eat or don't eat can affect way we feel. If we think of our bodies as efficient machines, then we are more likely to think of food as fuel.

Since juicer arrived, Gram has assembled a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables at least once a day. Scrubbing produce with a stiff vegetable brush, lining up items to go into juicer, we've aimed for a quart of juice at each session. Some super vegetable combinations: cucumber, celery, spinach, green pepper, a small apple (nothing peeled, mind you - just core apple and seed pepper); carrots, apples, yellow squash, celery, lemon (again, nothing peeled except for removing lemon rind); tomato, carrot, celery, kale. Fruit juices that are very good: cantaloupe, apple, carrot; watermelon, lemon, celery; blueberry, honeydew; pineapple, orange, lemon. Each juicing experiment has resulted in another "favorite." In vegetable combinations, we've added a tablespoon or two of wheat germ or brewer's yeast, to add protein. Also, an assortment of sprouts - but keep reading for more about sprouting.

In meantime, we'll be juicing. Is there really a Fountain of Youth? Our juicer just may be closest thing.

All you need for a kitchen powerhouse of fresh foods and unparalleled nutrition during winter months: a few Mason or mayonnaise jars, several 4" x 4" squares from old pantyhose (the top part is best), and some rubber bands. You also need a safe source of seeds and dried beans, most likely your local health or natural foods store -- because whatever you use must be organic, e.g., not treated with chemicals.

Diabetes has been dramatically on increase for past century. Today about 23 million Americans are diabetic and one quarter of those are undiagnosed. Whereas people don’t generally die of diabetes, they just go blind or lose their limbs, it often leads to heart disease. And heart disease is our biggest premature killer.

Native Americans, who at one time had no diabetes, now have highest incidence in world. What happened? Traditionally, they had lived on an all natural, unrefined diet. Once they were moved to reservations, their only choice was a modern “white man’s diet” of refined foods. Since then, there’s been a huge jump in incidence of Native American diabetes. Among Pima Indians in Southwest Arizona, 40% of population are type 2 diabetics. Interestingly enough, they’re eating many of same foods that they were eating on their traditional diet. Only today, they’re using refined versions of those foods – refined corn products, refined sugars and refined grains.

Although we’ve known this information for many years, a peer review study just published in this month’s American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has proven that whole grains, such as brown rice, oatmeal and whole wheat, can help protect people from diabetes.