cannabisnews.com: Get Hemp To The Jive: Day 1 Get Hemp To The Jive: Day 1 Posted by FoM on January 06, 2001 at 06:50:47 PT By Joel Miller Source: WorldNetDaily With the DEA threatening to ban nonintoxicating hemp products for various, spurious reasons, I think it’s wise to take a quick look at what we’ll be losing if we allow this unconstitutional powergrab to go forward. Making an end-run around the legislative process, the DEA will accomplish its hemp ban by bureaucratic fiat -- administrative rule -- and entirely skirt Congress, the constitutionally vested body for making laws. Not only does this outrageous move show flaming contempt for our representative form of government -- sidestepping those properly responsible to, and empowered by, the people to make laws -- but it also shows a grossly asinine attitude about an amazingly helpful plant. In the next few days, I plan to use this space to catalogue just some of the valuable uses of the hemp plant and why the DEA and its supporters should think more than twice about banning its use. Hemp As Food: While the idea of wolfing down products from a plant related to marijuana might strike someone as a bit odd, there’s little to fear. Because hemp has less than 1 percent THC, it’s harmless in the dope category. What hemp does offer, however, are big pluses in the health category. Hemp seed oil is a tremendously good source for the two essential fatty acids our bodies need but do not produce: omega 3s and omega 6s. What’s more, despite the fact that these fatty acids can be found in some other sources, as Dr. Andrew Weil of the University of Arizona College of Medicine pointed out in a March/April 1993 article for Natural Health magazine, hemp oil contains the best ratio of omega 3s to 6s -- one to three. A widely respected author of numerous books and articles, Dr. Weil points out that “Deficiency in omega-3 fatty acids can lead to skin diseases, heart disease and inflammatory conditions along with premature aging and disorders of the central nervous system.” Further, he recommends a good intake of omega 3s “to promote cardiovascular health and protect against many cancers, including breast cancer.” And where do you get your vital fatty acids? “Omega-3's come primarily from salmon, herring, sardines and other oily fish from cold waters, as well as from egg yolks. ...” While flaxseed will also work well, “the best source of omega-3's in the vegetable kingdom is hemp seeds.” For those inclined toward vegetarianism, are worried about environmental toxins in animal sources of omega 3s, or are allergic to them (like yours truly), hemp is a Godsend for maintaining good health. Beyond that, hemp seeds are a prime vegetable source for complete proteins, containing all eight amino acids -- and according to some, hemp seeds taste better than their vegetable-protein rival, soy, while also being more easily digested. Further, as Weil’s 1993 article keenly points out, hemp seeds are the only edible seeds to contain a very rare nutrient -- gamma linoleic acid, or GLA, which is an active agent in lowering cholesterol. Babies are, of course, fairly hip on GLA, since one of the primary methods of getting the nutrient is through our mother’s milk. But since nursing is out for most of us well-adjusted ruddy Americans, the question arises about how best to ingest this oh-so healthy vegetable wonder. Dr. Weil recommends simple roasting and eating the seeds. Indeed, the restaurant Cheba Hut in Tempe, Ariz., shells and roasts its own hemp seeds for its brownies and sandwiches. Whole hemp seeds can be used for snacks, in cooking, even roasted and mixed in coffee. Processed hemp seeds can be used to make non-dairy milk, various styles of cheese and ice cream, or ground up and used in spreads similar to peanut butter. After the seeds have been crushed for their oil, they can be processed into protein powder (hemp seed meal contains about 25 percent protein), baking flour and can even be used in brewing beer. Unrefined hemp oil can be taken daily as a dietary supplement or used in salad dressings and cooking in place of other vegetable oils. For topical dry-skin care, refined hemp oil can be made into lotions and creams for your parched epidermis and can even be used to treat skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. Skin-friendly soaps are also easily made from hemp oil; mentioned only for the sake of infamy, Dr. Bronner’s “magic soaps” contain hemp oil. “Eventually,” writes D. Paul Stanford in the Oct. 5, 2000, Arizona Republic, “even desperately behind-the-curve companies like Franco-American and Campbell's may jump on the hemp bandwagon. Who knows? Maybe someday there will even be a hemp roll-up treat for kids.” Unfortunately, if the DEA has its druthers, kids will go to jail for eating those hemp roll-ups. And, unlike hemp, jail's not so healthy. Joel Miller is the commentary editor of WorldNetDaily. Source: WorldNetDaily (US Web)Author: Joel MillerPublished: January 6, 2001Copyright: 2001, WorldNetDaily.com, Inc.Address: PO Box 409, Cave Junction, OR 97523-0409Fax: (541) 597-1700Contact: letters worldnetdaily.comWebsite: http://www.worldnetdaily.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:CRRHhttp://www.crrh.org/Dr. Andrew Weilhttp://www.drweil.com/Hemp Today, Gone Tomorrow?http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread8204.shtmlCannabisNews Articles - Joel Millerhttp://cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=Joel+Miller Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #1 posted by sm247 on January 06, 2001 at 08:03:47 PT banning hemp well if the dea can ban hemp then why can't they ban alcohol lets see the boozers of this country scream for an end to prohibition again like the 1920's cause they sure can't get off their drunk a$$ and write congress in support for ending our prohibition but they sure hit up every pothead they meet for a big fattie~~~~~~~~ Don't tread on me... 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