Monthly Lifestyle Newsletter

What Is Killing America’s Honey Bees?

It is a question that has been plaguing scientists since 2006 when America’s bees began behaving in unusual and inexplicable ways. Normal, healthy adult bees have been abandoning their hives, and leaving their queens, their stored food, and their young. Some beekeepers have reported that 30% to 50% of their bees have disappeared almost overnight. This phenomenon is called colony collapse, and its cause has become a major field of scientific inquiry.[1]

So, what is causing colony collapse? Scientists have studied the few bees left in abandoned hives and have found that they have almost every virus and parasite known to infect the species. As a result, researchers believe that bees’ immune systems are failing. Why? Here are a few of the theories that scientists are studying:

·  Poor nutrition: Beekeepers who provide their bees with nutritional supplements appear to have a lower incidence of colony collapse. Experts theorize that a focus on single crop farming, along with the elimination of weedy areas, has made it hard for bees to get enough protein or all of their essential amino acids.[2]

·  Cell phones: Although cell phones don’t kill bees, research shows that the electromagnet radiation they create may interfere with bees’ ability to navigate and communicate. Research in India and Switzerland has found that cell phone activity creates disturbances in hives and that worker bees tend not to return to hives that are near cell phones. The disappearance of the workers eventually leads to colony collapse.[3]

·  Pesticides: Researchers from Penn State found high levels of almost 100 different pesticides in the wax, pollen, and hive samples they studied. They reported that the toxicity was not high enough to kill honey bees; however, it may reduce their overall fitness.[4] In turn, that may affect the ability of bees’ immune systems to fight disease.

While no single cause of colony collapse has been identified, some speculate that a combination of factors – perhaps all of the above in combination with the mites and fungi that are natural threats to bees – is responsible.

A Liquid Salad from Andalucía

Gazpacho originated in Andalucía, a region in southern Spain. While most of us are familiar with red gazpacho, the original cold soup of the region was white. It was a peasant dish made with bread, garlic, and almonds. It wasn’t until tomatoes arrived in Spain from the Americas that red gazpacho became popular. 

Gazpacho

For the soup:

1 seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped

1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced

3 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, diced

2 garlic cloves, peeled

¼ cup sherry vinegar

½ cup sherry

¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 cups water

Sea salt to taste

Combine the cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, garlic, vinegar, sherry, olive oil, and 2 cups of water in a food processor or blender. Puree the ingredients. Add the sea salt to taste. Pour the gazpacho through a strainer into a pitcher. Chill for about 1 hour.

For the garnish:

2 thick slices bread

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

½ cucumber, diced

½ green bell pepper, seeded and diced

½ red bell pepper, seeded and diced

Sea salt to taste

Preheat oven to 450˚F. Cut the bread into 1-inch cubes. Toss with two tablespoons of olive oil. Spread the bread on a baking sheet and bake on the middle rack until golden brown. Set aside to cool. Pour chilled soup into cups or bowls. Top with toasted bread, cucumbers, and peppers. Sprinkle with salt, drizzle with olive oil, and serve.

What Do You Know About Tomatoes?

Nothing says summer like a salad of tomatoes plucked fresh from the vine. In addition to tasting great, tomatoes offer some impressive health benefits. See how much you know about tomatoes by completing this brief quiz.

1. Tomatoes are:

a.  A fruit

b.  A vegetable

c.  Classified as both fruit and vegetable

2. Tomatoes may lower your risk of:

1. Heart disease
2. Osteoporosis
3. Diabetes
4. Cancer
5. All of the above

3. What is the healing nutrient in tomatoes called?

1. Lycopene
2. Glucose oxidase
3. Anthocynanin
4. Vitamin K

4. Where does the world’s biggest tomato fight take place?

1. Denver, Colorado
2. Bunol, Spain
3. Sutamarchán, Colombia
4. Reno, Nevada

Is Your City Good for Your Health?

According to RealAge.com – a web site on which physicians, epidemiologists, and medical writers report on recent medical and scientific findings – some cities have healthier lifestyles than others. In fact, their residents tend to be at least two years younger physically than their chronological age. As you may expect, the web site also reported that in some cities residents are physically older than their age.

Top 10 youngest cities	Top 10 oldest cities
Salt Lake City – Ogden, UT	Knoxville, TN
San Francisco – Oakland – San Jose, CA	Greensboro – Winston-Salem – High Point, NC
Austin – San Marcos, TX	Nashville, TN
Denver – Boulder – Greeley, CO	Saginaw – Bay City – Midland, MI
Boston – Worcester – Lawrence, MA	Cincinnati – Hamilton, OH
Washington, DC – Baltimore, MD	Tampa – St. Petersburg – Clearwater, FL
San Diego, CA	Oklahoma City, OK
Raleigh – Durham – Chapel Hill, NC	Las Vegas, NV
Minneapolis – St. Paul, MN	Jacksonville, FL
Seattle – Tacoma – Bremerton, WA	Tulsa, OK

The survey’s findings were based on online health assessments taken by 27 million participants over a dozen years. They measured residents’ levels of hypertension, satisfaction with marriage, smoking habits, exercise routines, and sleep habits. If you would like to learn more, just visit www.RealAge.com.

Answers:

1.  C – Tomatoes are classified as both fruits and vegetables.

2.  E – All of the above.

3.  A – Lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that neutralizes free radicals in the body.

4.  B – According to Life.com, more than 45,000 people participated in the 2010 La Tomatina in Bunol, Spain. During the festival about 100 tons of rotten and over-ripe tomatoes are thrown.

Quiz sources:

http://www.aarp.org/health/healthy-living/info-05-2011/tomatoes-healing-powers.html

http://www.life.com/image/90097117

The above material was prepared by Peak Advisor Alliance.

Securities offered through Triad Advisors, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Sorensen Wealth Management (SWM). SWM not affiliated with Triad Advisors.

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[1] Economist, “Buzz off: Investigating colony collapse disorder,” April 26, 2007, http://www.economist.com/node/9070846

[2] Economist, “The bees are back in town,” May 5, 2009, http://www.economist.com/node/13226733

[3] Beekeeping Times, “Mobile Phones and Honey Bee Colonies,” May 23, 2011, http://beekeepingtimes.com/index.php/news-&-events/news-from-all-over/48/373-mobile-phones-and-honey-bee-colonies

[4] Public Library of Science-One, “High Levels of Miticides and Agrochemicals in North American Apiaries: Implications for Honey Bee Health,” March 19, 2010, http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0009754