Disease Proof : Disease Proof : Health & Nutrition News & Commentary : Dr. Joel Fuhrman

It’s been in the news for a couple weeks now. But in case you haven’t heard. There’s a big peanut butter-salmonella outbreak going on. Kellogg’s recalled many products, like snack crackers, using peanut butter after people in 43 states fell ill and at least six have died; the Associated Press reports.

Actually, this isn’t the first peanut butter-salmonella recall. Back in 2007, Peter Pan and Wal-Mart brand peanut butter sickened over 300 people in 41 states. That’s why I buy natural peanut butter. I’d rather stir my peanut butter, than puke it up!

Oh, and this summer tomatoes got a bad rap for salmonella too. But it turned out to be some ornery jalapeño peppers instead. Muy mal.

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In a statement last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said genetically engineered animals, not including cloned animals, hold substantial promise for improving public health, i.e. these creatures can enter the food supply, but not before rigorous scientific testing. However, the FDA will not require companies to label that their meat has come from genetically engineered animals, outraging consumer groups. One organization claims the FDA is disregarding consumers' right to choose; CNN investigates.

There’s a bizarre compulsion in this country to futz with what Mother Nature took millions of years to perfect, like do we really need purple tomatoes infused with snapdragon genes or carrots with scorpion parts? I doubt it. Not to mention, an experiment in 2007 showed rats fed genetically modified corn developed signs of kidney and liver disease after 3 months.

And as for cloned meat, it won’t be labeled either and many health experts don’t want it.

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You’d certainly be better off eating them, but here’s a time-lapsed look at what happens to various fruits and vegetables left to decompose for 74 days. It’s pretty amazing to see how quickly the strawberries fall apart and how durable the onions are. And the potatoes are certainly opportunistic! That growth you see towards the end is sprouting out of the spuds. I’m part nerd, so I find this stuff fascinating.

Now, for the opposite end of the plant lifecycle, check out the organic tomato I grew on a pile of garbage this past summer. “On the path unwinding. In the Circle. The Circle of Life.”

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