Natural Choices — Health Food, Organic Produce, Gluten Free, Vitamins, Supplements — Columbus, Bartholomew County, Indiana

Posts Tagged ‘fresh produce’

There’s quite a buzz about the new Farmers’ Market in Columbus, Indiana!

Mark your calendar and put a reminder on the steering wheel so you don’t forget to stop on the way home from work!

Fresh produce straight from the farm

Wednesdays

From 4 – 7 p.m.

 Natural Choices Community Market

North parking lot

Fill your basket with farm fresh fruits and vegetables at the Natural Choices Farmers' Market.

Of course, the store will be open during Farmers’ Market hours so you can get all the shopping done at one time.

“At Natural Choices,” owner Carolyn Behrman says, “our No. 1 goal is to provide the Columbus area with high-quality, healthy eating options as we work together to improve the health of our community.”

Carolyn has scouted the area to find local farmers who grow a good variety of produce. Now is the time to bring vegetables and berries home to either can or freeze them. With a little preparation you can be sure your family will enjoy the flavor of summer all through the winter months as well – and there is nothing better than delicious green beans or a tomato sauce made from farm-fresh tomatoes on a cold winter’s night!

Drive, bike or walk over and after making your selections at the market, pop inside the store to find packaged and frozen foods, gluten-free foods, organic and locally grown produce, beef and buffalo meat, as well as a wide selection of dietary supplements, health and body products, pet supplies and cleaning products.

Reduce the toxins in your home and food. Find out how at Natural Choices!

See you at the Farmers’ Market on Wednesday!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

The other day I was in Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana. I have said it before and I will say it again, I love going in there because I always find something new or learn something. I have to allow at least an hour because I wander the aisles, perusing products on the shelves.

Using unsalted butter means you can add salt to your own tastes.

I was checking out the literature that Carolyn Behrman always has available and I found a brochure from Frontier Natural Products. It was in the Spice Savvy series and it was titled, Flavored Butters & Oils. 

This particular topic caught my eye, because for starters, I love butter and secondly, I have decided I would find new ways to season my food so I could eliminate as much salt in my diet as possible - because of blood pressure issues.

Anyway, inside was all sorts of information I could use, but there was also a recipe for Lemony pasta butter, which, when I took it home and tried it, was fabulous! I didn’t need any more salt – AND, I didn’t add the tomato-based sauce that always leaves me with indigestion.

Lemony Pasta Butter

• 1/2 cup softened butter or margarine
• 1 teaspoon chervil leaf
• 1 teaspoon marjoram leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon peel
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Store in a small glass jar in the refrigerator, or freeze for use as needed.

They suggested adding a little Parmesan cheese and coursely ground pepper (which I did) and using it on pasta for a main dish. As a side note, they said to try it on potatoes! Now doesn’t that sound yummy?!!

Fresh salad ingredients at Natural Choices!

In the same brochure they have a recipe for breakfast butter that sounds delicious on a warm biscuit or muffin. I know I will be trying that one soon.

Not only do you find all these little gems of information at Natural Choices, you will find the spices and other ingredients you need as well. Plus, fresh, organic produce for a companion dish. Pasta with a big garden salad is one of my favorite meals. Knowing that much of the produce is locally grown, tells me that it is not weeks old before I eat it. Being organic means that it is GMO (genetically modified organisms) free. Which I really appreciate!  I just love going there!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Hot flashes can be so extreme that it almost becomes funny because it is so relentless, and well, what else can you do? At one point, my husband and son were convinced I would wear out the switch on the fan because every three minutes it was going from off to full blast back to off.

The hot flashes have abated (after eight years!) and now I look back and say I should have found some natural way to tolerate them. I kept telling myself, “Oh, it won’t last long. I can tough it out.” Well, I suppose I am a very patient person to have tolerated it that long without relief. You don’t have to tolerate the uncomfortable feeling and flushed and sweaty appearance.

I just love the “Ask the Doctor” series of literature Carolyn Behrman keeps on the shelves at Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana. It’s probably a good thing she doesn’t have an easy chair next to them because she’d think I moved in … anyway, back to what I discovered there. 

Marcus Laux, ND, answers questions in one piece called Menopause — Black Cohosh. He gave some information that surprised me (years ago women didn’t live long enough to experience menopause!!) and some that pleased me (there are safe and effective nutritional supplements that treat most menopause-related symptoms without HRT- (hormone replacement therapy) associated risks).

He provides a chart with menopausal symptoms, the nutritional supplement/herb that can be used to treat it and the clinical evidence found for its use. This is the information:

For hot flashes: Use black cohosh and ginseng to stop or reduce hot flashes

For lack of energy: Use ginseng to increase energy and reduce stress; and green tea to increase alertness

For mood variations: Use black cohosh, ginseng and kava to improve mood, increase energy and calm nerves

For lack of sleep quality: Use valerian to improve quality of sleep and to decrease time to fall asleep and night awakenings; and hops to improve sleep

For inability to relax: Use kava to calm nerves and ease anxiety

Black cohosh, lovely to look at, great for hot flashes!

About black cohosh, he does say,

Since very long-term studies have not been completed, there have been recommendations to limit the use of black cohosh to six months. However, black cohosh has been in continuous use in Germany since 1956 and no evidence of toxicity, side effects, or drug interactions ever has been reported.

About the other herbal supplements, he says,

The other herbal products have been studied long term. Again, no adverse effects have been identified with long-term use of these herbal supplements. However, kava, valerian, and hops may potentiate the use of alcohol and other sedating medications. Avoid alcohol and other sedating medications when using kava, valerian and hops.

There is a lot of great information in this series of literature. You should stop by Natural Choices to see the “Ask the Doctor” brochures that address a wide variety of health and medical issues. After reading them, you can check out the huge selection of nutritional supplements, pure and natural products and organic foods including the fresh organic produce!

There truly is something for everyone at Natural Choices!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Summer produce is so yummy.

This is a great time of year to get fresh, local produce. I truly enjoy buying a boat-load of green beans and strawberries and adding them to every meal. They just taste so much better. I like to buy locally grown produce because I know it hasn’t been picked green and ripened during a multi-day trip to my area. That’s the first step to healthier living. The next is to find local organically-grown produce, which is a bit more difficult.

What makes it easier in Columbus, Indiana is that Natural Choices stocks locally grown, organic produce every day of the week. Fresh from the fields, delivered right away and replenished as the supply runs low. Great for the farmers, for Natural Choices and especially for us, the consumer.

Let Natural Choices know if you have a special request.

Carolyn Behrman, the owner, has a sign up at the store that asks for requests. She means if you want a particular vegetable or fruit, ask her and she will do her best to find it and stock it. All her produce is fresh and organically grown. At Natural Choices it’s an ever-changing, colorful display that you will feel good about putting on the table for your family.

Olive oil is healthy for you and tasty, too!

Now is the time to stock up on the fresh vegetables and fruits. As you purchase too many to eat in the course of regular meals, do a little planning for the rest of the year. Prepare the excess produce for the freezer or can them so you can have a tasty supply through fall and over the winter. There’s nothing better than a little taste of summer when the winter winds and snow begins to fly. Just the thought makes me take the time to fill my freezer. Don’t delay and miss the window of opportunity.

While you’re at it, check out the selection of organic olive oils at Natural Choices to go with the fresh produce. Healthy for you and good to eat, too.

Isn’t summer just grand?

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Argh!!!! … or … Ahhh???

Badger anti-bug balm convenient tins fit easily in your purse or tote.

Along with the all the little pleasures of summer time come all the little annoyances – like mosquitoes and gnats. I don’t know which I dislike more. We all understand the bites and itches of mosquitoes, but gnats, well, one in my nose or ear can just about drive me insane, especially so in the midst of an otherwise peaceful night’s sleep.

But, once again, as with so many things, the way to repel the little nippers is to confront them with chemical repellents. But putting those chemicals on my skin – or the skin of those I love – just makes me cringe. So I am declaring this a DEET-free summer! I have found the perfect product at Natural Choices to get me through the summer DEET-free.

Badger anti-bug balm contains no chemicals and is – wait for it – USDA certified organic!! The active ingredients listed are citronella oil, cedar oil, lemongrass oil, rosemary oil and geranium oil. Just rub it on and you’ll smell much better than the exhaust from a city bus (which is what bug repellents smell like to me) AND you won’t be scratching and itching all night either.

With all the rain, and now hot temperatures here in the Midwest, I know the insects are just days away. I know we’ll be ready with a natural insect repellent. The handy little tins can go in my purse or pool bag and I am set to spend time outdoors – bug and DEET-free!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana is the place for organic products – produce, packaged food, cleaning supplies and personal care items. Stop in or call us today!

Natural Choices has cards for all occasions.

I got an excited phone call from my niece this week. In this age of email and instant everything, I took a little different tack for her birthday. I used the good, old-fashioned U.S. Postal Service to send her a birthday greeting card with a little something “extra” in it. No, not money.

I sent her a Growing Expressions seed card that I picked up at Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana. She followed the directions, soaking and planting the card in a sunny spot in her yard, and with all the spring warmth and rain lately, the wildflowers seeds embedded in the handmade paper were coming up.

You know, it’s a small gift that keeps on giving – and could for years to come! I mean, if she collects the seeds from the flowers this summer and plants them next year, well, she will be reminded that I took the time to think of her as time passes. Some of the seeds in the cards are perennials so she won’t even have to collect those seeds for them to come back next year. In any event, every time she sees them, she’s going to think of someone who cares about her.

It’s a beautiful sentiment and the cards are equally as beautiful.

Having these cards available at Natural Choices makes it an easy shop when I’m already there getting the fresh, organic produce, gluten-free snacks or herbal supplements. That just makes me realize that Natural Choices isn’t just an organic or natural food store, it is my home store! Food, cleaning supplies, pet supplies, make-up, garden supplies, first aid supplies – I can even find resource books and cookbooks there. Stop in and just peruse the offerings, you’ll be inspired, I’m sure!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Natural choices shouldn’t be called a health food store, it’s a healthy living store!!

Isn’t it wonderful to get out in the fresh air again? We are all eager to hike or garden and set off in short sleeves and shorts to engage in all sorts of out-of-doors activities. Later in the day after you get home, you notice a red bump and the fact that it itches. These are the first signs that you have probably been exposed to poison ivy somewhere during the day. It’s the oils from the plant that are irritating, so if you are quick, you can mitigate the spread and save yourself several days of misery.

Burt's Bees Poison Ivy Soap and other products are available at Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana.

Burt’s Bees makes a 99.82% natural Poison Ivy Soap. According to the reviews on their website, the product works and is a mainstay in kitchens and bathrooms around the nation!

According to Burt’s Bees:

This mild, cleansing soap contains Jewelweed to help relieve itching and irritation. You’ll also reap the antiseptic benefits of Pine Tar and Tea Tree oil, so you can enjoy the outdoors comfortably.

About Pine Tar, they say:

Pine Tar – Produced by distillation and applied externally, pine tar is used extensively in the treatment of skin afflictions because it is soothing and antiseptic.

Jewelweed sounds like an oxymoron to a gardener like me, so I couldn’t resist finding out more. I’m glad I did because it is much more than I ever would have expected!

According to Steve Brill, author of Identifying and Harvesting Edible and Medicinal Plants in Wild (and not so wild) Places,

Impatiens species, delicate jewelweed

it’s a great herb to know about. He says,

Although this isn’t one of my favorite wild foods, it’s one of our most important herbs. I call jewelweed the forageris American Express, because I never leave home without it…It’s common, widespread, easy to recognize and invaluable to anyone venturing out-of-doors, because it’s a virtual panacea for skin irritation.

I was interested to know the plant is actually part of the Impatiens species and to learn where the common name, jewelweed, comes from:

The delicate, long-oval, long-stalked leaves are 1/4 to 1/2 inches long, with a few rounded teeth. The upper leaves are alternate, the lower ones opposite. They’re water-repellent, so they look like they’re covered with tiny jewels (raindrops) after it rains, accounting for the name jewelweed.

Jewelweed is combined with pine tar  in the poison ivy soap. One reviewer said it smelled a little weird, but many said it really worked. I tend to think many things smell a little weird, so that doesn’t matter much to me. The part about it working, now that’s important. You know if you have every been exposed to poison ivy and had that itchy rash to contend with! All you have to do is wash the affected areas with the soap. Easy relief!

You can find Burt’s Bees Poison Ivy soap, as well as other Burt’s Bees products at Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana.

Don’t be fooled into thinking Natural Choices is only stocked with food, although it has a great selection of organic produce and one of the largest selections of gluten-free products in Indiana, if not the nation! Natural Choices stocks cleaning products for your home, your body and your pets. They even have garden seeds and mineral make-up.

So, before you head to the great out-of-doors stop by and pick up some Poison Ivy Soap and some lip balm and some natural sun screen and some antiseptic as well as some snacks and bottled water. Geez! Maybe you should get a cart and a bigger backpack!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Natural Choices for Healthful Living – a one-stop-shop featuring local, natural, organic foods and products. Just a stop or phone call away!

The longer days and warmer temperatures here in central Indiana signal the arrival of spring. For those of you who are gardeners like me, you can hardly wait for the soil to warm enough to be able to turn it and start planting.

Organic seeds ready for your garden.

I learned something new from Carolyn Behrman the other day when I was in Natural Choices. She showed me a display of organic seeds to grow my own garden. At the time I figured all seeds available around town would be “natural” and therefore, organic, but then I did a little research.

From the Purdue Extension of Purdue University website, I read an article about organic seeds by John Navazio, Organic Seed Alliance and Washington State University. He explains why the seeds I considered “natural” are not organic. He says,

The most immediate effect of using organically grown seeds is the potential to minimize the amount of upstream pollution in the seed production process. Conventionally produced vegetable seed crops rely on petroleum based synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. These seed crops frequently receive heavier applications of insecticides and fungicides than the same crops when grown as vegetables. There are two prominent reasons for this. First, vegetable seed crops are produced over a much longer season than the same crop when it is grown to be harvested in the vegetative stage, hence the need for an increased number of applications of crop protection chemicals to continue to ward off insect and disease pests. Secondly, the regulations controlling the amount and types of pesticides that are allowed for seed crops is much more lenient, which often leads to a “more is better” approach with many growers.

That information was enough to make me decide to drive back to natural Choices in Columbus, for the seeds for my garden this year.

Now I know not everyone is a gardener, or has the time or space for a garden. If that is your situation, don’t fret. You will find a selection of fresh, organic produce in Columbus at Natural Choices ready for you to take home without getting any dirt under your nails!

Either way, just the thought of fresh onions, juicy cucumbers  and tomatoes, tasty green beans, carrots and herbs make my mouth water and I just can’t wait!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Natural Choices in Columbus is not a health food store, it is a real food store.

Now is the time when everything outdoors seems to just ’spring’ forth. The buds are opening, the grass is greening, the sun shines brighter and the rain showers refresh the earth.

It is also the time for us to get outdoors and, after a long winter, get more active.

Are you being robbed of energy?

But for many, fatigue is a chronic problem. Do you find you just don’t have the energy to do everything you would like to do?

It is possible to recapture the vitality you want. Dr. Jacob a Teitelbaum is a world-renowned medical expert on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia. He has spent over 25 years researching, creating and teaching effective therapies for these conditions. He suggests there are three basic steps everyone can take to feel great and have the life they want. Let’s look at the first one.

Step No. 1 is nutrition. Everyone needs to eat well. Nutritionists tell us to limit fats and sugars. Some say it simply: eat mostly plants. It would make sense that the best plants to ingest are those that are fresh and organically grown.

Another part of good nutrition is a good multi-vitamin to ensure you are getting all the minerals, vitamins and amino acids to provide good energy. Dr. Teitelbaum suggests:

…a foundation product to support energy levels (is) a powdered drink mix. In addition to the powdered energy drink mix, it is important to take a high-potency vitamin B-complex supplement. This should include niacinamide, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, pantothenic acid and choline.

Set a goal and sip your way to it.

He also says most Americans are chronically dehydrated and that it is critical to get enough water. So, drink up! Start tracking how much you drink and determine how much more you think you should drink. Add a little every day until you reach that level.

I love the saying, ‘You are what you eat.’ In younger days, it was more of a joke to say I must be really sweet. But now, well, let’s just say I understand the implications of being so sweet! This time of year I am now mostly asparagus!

When I go into Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana, I know I will find the fresh, organic produce my body likes and needs to be healthy. The shelves are lined with options for energy drink mixes, vitamins and supplements that will make me feel energetic and vital. It’s all there – a true one-stop-shop for healthy living. Stop in and maybe I’ll see you there!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Don’t forget if you aren’t in the Columbus, Indiana area, healthy produce, food and natural supplements are available for shipping. Call (812) 375-1677 for all your needs.