My Wellness Plan has changed. Based on feedback I received from my clients, I have modified my Wellness Plan so it is now a packet of three Follow-Up Nutrition Consultations that must be used within 18 months instead of a packet of five Follow-Ups used within 30 months, as it used to be. The change makes it less money to pay upfront for clients who want regular nutrition tune-ups during these still-difficult financial times. But by purchasing the plan and investing in their health, clients on the Wellness Plan get 20 percent off the regular price of three Follow-Up nutrition counseling sessions. Because the new Wellness Plan lasts a shorter time period, it also makes it easier for me to keep track of bookkeeping-wise. If you have had at least one previous consultation with me and are interested in the Wellness Plan, you can learn more about it at my Nutrition Services for Existing Clients page.

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by Melissa Diane Smith

Three types of genetically modified (GM) corn that have been approved for human consumption have been linked to organ damage in mammals, according to a new study.

Researchers from the Committee of Research and Information on Genetic Engineering (CRIIGEN) and the Universities of Caen and Rouen in France analyzed data that had been previously obtained to assess the effects on various organs in rats of three approved types of GM corn eaten for just 90 days. The corn varieties studied were NK 603, which had been genetically engineered to tolerate Roundup herbicide, and MON 810 and MON 863, which had been genetically engineered to produce two new insecticides. According to the researchers, these types of GM corn are potentially eaten by billions of people and animals worldwide.

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by Melissa Diane Smith

(Opinion) There are many positive signs that there is a growing movement of people trying to get healthy: More people are eating gluten free, more are buying organic foods, more are paying out of their own pockets for complimentary and alternative medical treatments, and more are growing their own food in their own gardens.

But amidst those encouraging trends, there are several key health and nutrition concepts that most people, including many who eat gluten free, are missing or have never even heard. Part of my mission for this site is to inform you about health information you don’t hear elsewhere. So, to provide food for thought for the new decade, here is my list of the top concepts people need to understand to protect their health in the next decade and beyond:

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by Melissa Diane Smith

(Opinion) The decade of 2000 to 2009 was a breakthrough decade in our awareness and understanding of gluten intolerance.

In 2000, celiac disease was considered very rare and non-celiac gluten sensitivity was hardly on anyone’s radar screen (except for a few researchers’ and doctors’ – and mine as well. I published Going Against the Grain in 2002.)

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by Melissa Diane Smith

If you know wheat bothers you but have never been tested for gluten sensitivity or celiac disease and continue to eat wheat, you likely are putting your life at risk. A large 2009 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that people with diagnosed, undiagnosed and “latent” celiac disease (also called gluten sensitivity) have a higher risk of death, mostly from heart disease and cancer.

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