Dr. Lowman’s latest Nature’s Secrets column in newsobserver.com:
It has become an onerous challenge to eat healthy and with a clear conscience. Fish is either endangered or overdosed with mercury, not to mention the ethical issues associated with harvest techniques. Beef and milk are laced with antibiotics, and the industrialized production associated with chicken and turkey is akin to an X-rated horror film.
One well-kept secret in the culinary world of eating healthy is quinoa (pronounced “keen-wah”). Considered the food of the gods in the Andes Mountains where it originated, quinoa is about as close to culinary heaven as any omnivore could wish. Along with corn and potatoes, quinoa was a staple of the Andean diet when the Inca civilization thrived several thousand years ago. In Bolivia, teams of Inca runners carried messages across great alpine distances, sometimes covering 150 miles in one day. These amazing athletes chewed coca leaves mixed with ash from the quinoa plant, increasing their oxygen levels because quinoa released alkaloids in the coca. It was considered sacred food: It inspired long-distance running and also was considered a spiritual tonic.
