One of my requested Christmas gifts last year was Dr. Michael Greger's new book called "How Not to Die".  If you're not familiar with Dr. Greger, he's a highly recognized researcher and speaker on nutrition, and the founder of one of my favorite websites, www.nutritionfacts.org.  I appreciate the depth of research Dr. Greger devotes to his website and freely shares with the public at no charge.

In the book, Dr. Greger lists the top 15 causes of death in the United States, and devotes individual chapters to how nutrition plays a crucial role in the prevention and reversal of each disease.  Just as his website is based solely on evidence-based nutrition research, this book is no different - there are about 130 pages just listing references!

I'm only about 1/4 of the way through the book, but I've skipped around to various chapters and haven't been reading it in order.  (I couldn't wait to read about the THIRD leading cause of death in our country - Iatrogenic Causes (modern medicine)!   One more reason to stay out of the medical system as much as possible).

I've learned so many interesting factoids and research results from my initial reading that I feel led to share some of them with you!  So the next few blog posts may include things I can't wait to share.  For example, the topic of this blog: Have you Had your Pot-Ash Today?

Dr. Greger explains that when any plant is burned to ash and then thrown into a pot of water for boiling, the white residue that remains after skimming the top is known as potash (pot-ash).  Potash has long been used to make everything from soap and glass to fertilizer and bleach.  In 1807, Dr. Greger explains, an English chemist figured out that this 'vegetable alkali' contained an undiscovered element, which he called pot-ash-ium (or, potassium).

Cool, huh?  Dr. Greger explains that every cell in our bodies needs potassium to function, and we need to get it from our diets.  Less than 2% of Americans are currently getting the recommended daily intake of 4,700 mg.  The reason is that we don't eat enough plant foods!

And here's another interesting part......Bananas, although they are marketed for their potassium content, aren't particularly rich in the mineral.  According to the USDA database, bananas don't even make the top thousand foods;  they rank no. 1611, right after Reese's Pieces.  Wow.  You'd have to eat a dozen bananas just to get the bare minimum needed.  The healthiest common potassium-rich whole-foods include greens, beans and sweet potatoes.

I view this as yet one more reason in the big scheme of things that demonstrates we are created to eat plants.  Plants provide every nutrient we need  (that includes protein and calcium), with the exception of B12 - a bacteria that we now sanitize away.   How about a big green salad topped with some beans, and a big bowl of sweet potato stew for dinner tonight?  Then you'll know you've had your pot-ash today.

PS: You can order Dr. Greger's book (or the audio version) on Amazon or at his website listed above.  I highly recommend it.