"When you are clear, what you want will show up in your life, and only to the extent you are clear."
Janet Attwood
Author
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
What you have
"If you look at what you have in life, you'll always have more. If you look at what you don't have in life, you'll never have enough."
Oprah Winfrey
Television Host, Actress and Producer
Oprah Winfrey
Television Host, Actress and Producer
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Great thoughts
"Nurture your mind with great thoughts, for you will never go any higher than you think."
Benjamin Disraeli
1804-1881, British Statesman and Prime Minister
Benjamin Disraeli
1804-1881, British Statesman and Prime Minister
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Soy foods 'reduce sperm numbers'
Soy foods 'reduce sperm numbers'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7519459.stm
A regular diet of even modest amounts of food containing soy may halve sperm concentrations, suggest scientists.
The study, published in the journal Human Reproduction, found 41 million fewer sperm per millilitre of semen after just one portion every two days.
The authors said plant oestrogens in foods such as tofu, soy mince or milk may interfere with hormonal signals.
However, a UK expert stressed that most men in Asia eat more soy-based products with no fertility problems [because it is fermented].
Animal studies have suggested that large quantities of soy chemicals in food could affect fertility, but other studies looking at consumption in humans have had contradictory findings.
The Harvard School of Public Health study looked at the diets of 99 men who had attended a fertility clinic with their partners and provided a semen sample.
The men were divided into four groups depending on how much soy they ate, and when the sperm concentration of men eating the most soy was compared with those eating the least, there was a significant difference.
The "normal" sperm concentration for a man is between 80 and 120 million per millilitre, and the average of men who ate on average a portion of soy-based food every other day was 41 million fewer.
Dr Jorge Chavarro, who led the study, said that chemicals called isoflavones in the soy might be affecting sperm production.
These chemicals can have similar effects to the human hormone oestrogen.
Dr Chavarro noticed that overweight or obese men seemed even more prone to this effect, which may reflect the fact that higher levels of body fat can also lead to increased oestrogen production in men.
Worried men
However, the study pointed out that soy consumption in many parts of Asia was significantly higher than even the maximum found in these volunteers.
Dr Allan Pacey, a senior lecturer in andrology from the University of Sheffield, said that if soy genuinely had a detrimental effect on sperm production, fertility might well be affected in those regions, and there was no evidence that this was the case.
"Many men are obviously worried about whether their lifestyle or diet could affect their fertility by lowering their sperm count.
"Oestrogenic compounds in food or the environment have been of concern for a number of years, but we have mostly thought that it was boys exposed in the uterus before birth who were most at risk.
"We will have to look at adult diet more closely, although the fact that such large parts of the world have soy food as a major part of their diet and don't appear to suffer any greater infertility rates than those on western diets suggests that any effect is quite small."
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7519459.stm
A regular diet of even modest amounts of food containing soy may halve sperm concentrations, suggest scientists.
The study, published in the journal Human Reproduction, found 41 million fewer sperm per millilitre of semen after just one portion every two days.
The authors said plant oestrogens in foods such as tofu, soy mince or milk may interfere with hormonal signals.
However, a UK expert stressed that most men in Asia eat more soy-based products with no fertility problems [because it is fermented].
Animal studies have suggested that large quantities of soy chemicals in food could affect fertility, but other studies looking at consumption in humans have had contradictory findings.
The Harvard School of Public Health study looked at the diets of 99 men who had attended a fertility clinic with their partners and provided a semen sample.
The men were divided into four groups depending on how much soy they ate, and when the sperm concentration of men eating the most soy was compared with those eating the least, there was a significant difference.
The "normal" sperm concentration for a man is between 80 and 120 million per millilitre, and the average of men who ate on average a portion of soy-based food every other day was 41 million fewer.
Dr Jorge Chavarro, who led the study, said that chemicals called isoflavones in the soy might be affecting sperm production.
These chemicals can have similar effects to the human hormone oestrogen.
Dr Chavarro noticed that overweight or obese men seemed even more prone to this effect, which may reflect the fact that higher levels of body fat can also lead to increased oestrogen production in men.
Worried men
However, the study pointed out that soy consumption in many parts of Asia was significantly higher than even the maximum found in these volunteers.
Dr Allan Pacey, a senior lecturer in andrology from the University of Sheffield, said that if soy genuinely had a detrimental effect on sperm production, fertility might well be affected in those regions, and there was no evidence that this was the case.
"Many men are obviously worried about whether their lifestyle or diet could affect their fertility by lowering their sperm count.
"Oestrogenic compounds in food or the environment have been of concern for a number of years, but we have mostly thought that it was boys exposed in the uterus before birth who were most at risk.
"We will have to look at adult diet more closely, although the fact that such large parts of the world have soy food as a major part of their diet and don't appear to suffer any greater infertility rates than those on western diets suggests that any effect is quite small."
Statins May Spur Dementia
The "statin" drugs are increasingly prescribed in the current obsession about cholesterol levels. Here's a disturbing piece about dementia being related to these drugs.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Playing Through Your Pain
Whether you play golf or not, you surely know the name Tiger Woods. So bear with me. This message isn't so much about golf as life.
Almost a month ago now, Tiger outlasted Rocco Mediate in this year's U.S. Open. Playing the course at Torrey Pines in San Diego, the two were tied after four days. They were still tied at the end of an 18-hole playoff. Tiger won in sudden death on the 19th. Some say it was the greatest U.S. Open in history.
No, the score wasn't the lowest ever. No, it wasn't won by an eagle from the fairway. No, there was no miracle shot that ended things. The miracle was that the man who won was able to complete the competition.
Tiger Woods played the tournament with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and two stress fractures below the left knee. As I watched part of the Open on TV, it was obvious that the world's greatest golfer was in excruciating pain at times. His powerful swing would contort his whole body, wrench his injured knee in particular, and register quite dramatically on his ordinarily poised face.
Golf is only a game, but watching a professional athlete compete through such pain was inspiring. He could have simply withdrawn because of the injury. Fans would have been disappointed but would have understood. He could have played to his pain and hit the ball less aggressively. He might have fallen back into the pack and taken a high score and low finish. He would have none of it.
Tiger played through his pain. He wouldn't quit. He gave his best on every hole. He insisted on playing to his full potential - even when the potential was putting both his body and mind under incredible stress. Hooray for him!
The winner of this year's U.S. Open had successful reconstructive surgery on his damaged knee about ten days later. He will miss the remainder of this year's PGA tournament events, of course, while he rehabs the knee. But few people doubt he will be ready to play the tour next year. He is, after all, Tiger Woods. He is the ultimate competitor. He doesn't quit.
There are pains of all kinds. Physical trauma, broken relationships, failed ventures, consequences of wrongs done - all are different and all the same. And each of us has to decide about quitting, playing to the pain, or working through.
As you're deciding what to do with yours, think about why so many people are speaking of Tiger Woods with such admiration these days - even the folks like me who hardly know which end of a golf club to hold.
True courage isn't just outlasting difficulty but turning it into triumph.
Rubel Shelly
Rubel Shelly is a Preacher and Professor of Religion and Philosophy located in Rochester Hills, Michigan. In addition to church and academic responsibilities, he has worked actively with such community projects as Habitat for Humanity, American Red Cross, From Nashville With Love, Metro (Nashville) Public Schools, Faith Family Medical Clinic, and Operation Andrew Ministries. To learn more about Rubel please go to: www.RubelShelly.com
Almost a month ago now, Tiger outlasted Rocco Mediate in this year's U.S. Open. Playing the course at Torrey Pines in San Diego, the two were tied after four days. They were still tied at the end of an 18-hole playoff. Tiger won in sudden death on the 19th. Some say it was the greatest U.S. Open in history.
No, the score wasn't the lowest ever. No, it wasn't won by an eagle from the fairway. No, there was no miracle shot that ended things. The miracle was that the man who won was able to complete the competition.
Tiger Woods played the tournament with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and two stress fractures below the left knee. As I watched part of the Open on TV, it was obvious that the world's greatest golfer was in excruciating pain at times. His powerful swing would contort his whole body, wrench his injured knee in particular, and register quite dramatically on his ordinarily poised face.
Golf is only a game, but watching a professional athlete compete through such pain was inspiring. He could have simply withdrawn because of the injury. Fans would have been disappointed but would have understood. He could have played to his pain and hit the ball less aggressively. He might have fallen back into the pack and taken a high score and low finish. He would have none of it.
Tiger played through his pain. He wouldn't quit. He gave his best on every hole. He insisted on playing to his full potential - even when the potential was putting both his body and mind under incredible stress. Hooray for him!
The winner of this year's U.S. Open had successful reconstructive surgery on his damaged knee about ten days later. He will miss the remainder of this year's PGA tournament events, of course, while he rehabs the knee. But few people doubt he will be ready to play the tour next year. He is, after all, Tiger Woods. He is the ultimate competitor. He doesn't quit.
There are pains of all kinds. Physical trauma, broken relationships, failed ventures, consequences of wrongs done - all are different and all the same. And each of us has to decide about quitting, playing to the pain, or working through.
As you're deciding what to do with yours, think about why so many people are speaking of Tiger Woods with such admiration these days - even the folks like me who hardly know which end of a golf club to hold.
True courage isn't just outlasting difficulty but turning it into triumph.
Rubel Shelly
Rubel Shelly is a Preacher and Professor of Religion and Philosophy located in Rochester Hills, Michigan. In addition to church and academic responsibilities, he has worked actively with such community projects as Habitat for Humanity, American Red Cross, From Nashville With Love, Metro (Nashville) Public Schools, Faith Family Medical Clinic, and Operation Andrew Ministries. To learn more about Rubel please go to: www.RubelShelly.com
Why Tofu Wrecks Your Brain
Eating high levels of some soy products, such as tofu, could raise the risk of memory loss.
A study that examined more than 700 elderly Indonesians found that high tofu consumption (at least once a day) was associated with worse memory, particularly among those over age 68.
Soy contains phytoestrogens, which may heighten the risk of dementia.
However, tempeh, a fermented soy product made from the whole soy bean, has been associated with better memory. This could be related to the fact that it contains high levels of the vitamin folate, which is known to reduce dementia risk.
Sources:
a.. BBC News July 4, 2008
a.. Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders June 27, 2008; 26(1):50-57 [Epub Ahead of Print]
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
The deceptive hype created by the soy industry -- which in many ways is not much different than that of the pharmaceutical industry -- has unfortunately been very successful in convincing millions of people that soy is a health food.
Their brainwashing propaganda has cleverly created "healthy soy" -- one of the biggest health myths in the health food industry to date.
I recently had the opportunity to interview Dr. Kaayla Daniel for my Inner Circle Experts Series, and I also reviewed her book, The Whole Soy Story, which covers this issue at great depth. It's a must-read if you're still convinced that soy is good for you and your children, because nothing could be further from the truth.
It is crucial, however, to make a distinction between the health effects from fermented versus non-fermented soy, which I will go over toward the end of this comment, because as you will see, fermented soy dishes do have some redeeming qualities that conventional soy products lack.
Perfect Food or Brilliant Propaganda?
In recent years soy has emerged as a 'near perfect' food, with supporters claiming it can provide an ideal source of protein, lower cholesterol, protect against cancer and heart disease, reduce menopause symptoms, and prevent osteoporosis, among other things.
But how did such a 'perfect' food emerge from a product that in 1913 was listed in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) handbook not as a food but as an industrial product?
Lipid specialist and nutritionist Mary Enig, PhD shed some light on this issue when she said, "The reason there's so much soy in America is because they [the soy industry] started to plant soy to extract the oil from it and soy oil became a very large industry. Once they had as much oil as they did in the food supply they had a lot of soy protein residue left over, and since they can't feed it to animals, except in small amounts, they had to find another market."
In short, the soy industry CREATED a market where there was none, to profit from their waste products. It required multi-million dollar advertising campaigns and intense lobbying to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but now about three-quarters of U.S. consumers believe soy products are healthy.
It's like a re-run of the water fluoridation propaganda machine, which began in the 1940s as solution to the fluoride pollution from aluminum plants. The disposing of fluoride had become a costly problem that needed a radical solution. The solution was to create the false belief that fluoride had some health benefit, and today, not only are you likely consuming this toxic waste product in your municipal tap water, but you may even believe it's good for your teeth, AND industry is getting PAID rather than paying for toxic waste removal.
Soy has become a grossly misunderstood food category, to be added to the ranks of coconut oil, saturated fats and vegetable oils. The two former have gained a negative reputation where a good one actually applies, whereas vegetable oil, along with soy, have emerged with sparkling reputations that cover up an unsavory truth.
The Truth About Soy
For just a brief look at what's really going on, consider that numerous studies have found that soy products can actually:
a.. Increase thyroid damage, especially in women
b.. Increase the risk of breast cancer in women, brain damage in both sexes, and cause abnormalities in infants
c.. Contribute to thyroid disorders, especially in women
d.. Promote kidney stones
e.. Weaken your immune system
f.. Cause severe, potentially fatal food allergies
Despite these findings, many people still want to believe the hype, thinking that these studies must somehow be wrong. But the content of soy itself should be a clue. For example, non-fermented soy products contain:
a.. Phytoestrogens (isoflavones) genistein and daidzein, which mimic and sometimes block the hormone estrogen
b.. Phytates, which block your body's uptake of minerals
c.. Enzyme Inhibitors, which hinder protein digestion
d.. Haemaggluttin, which causes red blood cells to clump together and inhibits oxygen take-up and growth
e.. High amounts of omega-6 fat, which is pro-inflammatory
Furthermore, most soybeans are grown on conventional farms that use toxic pesticides and herbicides, and many are from genetically engineered plants. When you consider that two-thirds of all processed food products contain some form of soy, it becomes clear just how many Americans are consuming GM products, whose long-term effects are completely unknown.
Like Feeding Birth Control Pills to a Baby
One of the most disturbing ill effects of soy has to do with its phytoestrogens, which can mimic the effects of the female hormone estrogen. These phytoestrogens have been found to have adverse effects on various human tissues, and drinking just two glasses of soy milk daily for one month has enough of the chemical to alter a woman's menstrual cycle.
The FDA regulates estrogen-containing products, however no warnings exist on soy.
Soy products are particularly problematic for infants, and soy infant formulas should be avoided at all cost. It's been estimated that infants who are fed soy formula exclusively receive the equivalent of five birth control pills worth of estrogen every day!
When testing the blood of soy formula-fed infants, concentrations of isoflavones have been found to be 13,000 to 22,000 times higher than natural estrogen concentrations in early life. It should be obvious that the potential damage to your child can be quite significant. Not to mention the fact that soy formula lacks other vital nutrients for normal and healthy brain- and biological development.
Soy Also Contributes to Dangerously Lopsided Intake of Essential Fats
One of the most important things you can do for your overall health is to balance your intake of omega-3 and omega-6 fats. These two types of fat are both essential. However, the typical American consumes far too many omega-6 fats in their diet while consuming very low levels of omega-3.
The ideal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats is probably close to 1:1. But the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 today averages from 20:1 to 50:1!
That spells serious danger for your health. Even the mainstream health media is now reporting that lack of high quality omega-3 is one of the most serious health issues plaguing contemporary society.
The primary sources of omega-6 are corn, soy, canola, safflower and sunflower oil; oils that are overabundant in the typical American diet. And when you consider the fact that some form of soy or corn (oftentimes both) is found in just about every processed food product on the market, it really helps to explain these excessive omega-6 levels.
What About Soy as a Source of Protein?
While soybeans are relatively high in protein compared to other legumes, they are still a poor source of protein because other proteins found in soybeans act as potent enzyme inhibitors.
These "anti-nutrients" block the action of trypsin and other enzymes needed for protein digestion, effectively cancelling out any potential benefit you may have thought it had.
Regular soy consumption can also lead to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake.
It is believed that it is this ability to interfere with enzymes and amino acids that might be one of the reasons for why soy has such a negative effect on your brain. Isoflavones in tofu and other soy foods might exert their influence by interfering with the tyrosine kinase-dependent mechanisms required for optimal hippocampal function, structure and plasticity.
High amounts of tyrosine kinases are found in your hippocampus, a brain region involved with learning and memory. One of soy's primary isoflavones, genistein, has been shown to inhibit tyrosine kinase in the hippocampus, effectively blocking the mechanism of memory formation.
If You Want to Benefit From Soy, Make Sure it is Fermented !
There are some redeeming qualities to soy, however these are found primarily in fermented soy products like tempeh, miso, natto and soybean sprouts.
If you want to get some health benefits from soy, stick to these four forms and pass on ALL processed soy milks, tofu, soy 'burgers', soy 'ice cream', soy 'cheese', and the myriad of other soy junk foods that are so readily disguised as health foods.
The study above affirms this as well, showing that consumption of tempeh was related to better memory, particularly in participants over 68 years of age. Their explanation for this difference between (unfermented) tofu versus (fermented) tempeh is that the fermentation process produces high amounts of folate, which might have a protective effect against the phytoestrogens.
Additionally, not only does the fermentation process blunt the anti-nutritive effect of the soybeans' phytic acid, it also produces probiotics -- the "good" bacteria your body is absolutely dependent on - that increase the quantity, availability, digestibility and assimilation of nutrients in your body.
As a side note, formaldehyde (used as a preservative) was also introduced as a potential culprit rather than the tofu itself in this article. Granted, formaldehyde is somewhere at the very bottom of the list of things you want to consume for good health, but even so, there are so many studies confirming the benefits of fermented soy and the dangers of non-fermented soy products in general that I believe preservatives play a secondary role in the outcome, if any.
Soy is a broad and deep subject that cannot be fully covered in a single article, so for further reading, I recommend you review my related articles below as well as my Soy Index Page, which contains links to many of my best articles and important research findings on soy.
A study that examined more than 700 elderly Indonesians found that high tofu consumption (at least once a day) was associated with worse memory, particularly among those over age 68.
Soy contains phytoestrogens, which may heighten the risk of dementia.
However, tempeh, a fermented soy product made from the whole soy bean, has been associated with better memory. This could be related to the fact that it contains high levels of the vitamin folate, which is known to reduce dementia risk.
Sources:
a.. BBC News July 4, 2008
a.. Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders June 27, 2008; 26(1):50-57 [Epub Ahead of Print]
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
The deceptive hype created by the soy industry -- which in many ways is not much different than that of the pharmaceutical industry -- has unfortunately been very successful in convincing millions of people that soy is a health food.
Their brainwashing propaganda has cleverly created "healthy soy" -- one of the biggest health myths in the health food industry to date.
I recently had the opportunity to interview Dr. Kaayla Daniel for my Inner Circle Experts Series, and I also reviewed her book, The Whole Soy Story, which covers this issue at great depth. It's a must-read if you're still convinced that soy is good for you and your children, because nothing could be further from the truth.
It is crucial, however, to make a distinction between the health effects from fermented versus non-fermented soy, which I will go over toward the end of this comment, because as you will see, fermented soy dishes do have some redeeming qualities that conventional soy products lack.
Perfect Food or Brilliant Propaganda?
In recent years soy has emerged as a 'near perfect' food, with supporters claiming it can provide an ideal source of protein, lower cholesterol, protect against cancer and heart disease, reduce menopause symptoms, and prevent osteoporosis, among other things.
But how did such a 'perfect' food emerge from a product that in 1913 was listed in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) handbook not as a food but as an industrial product?
Lipid specialist and nutritionist Mary Enig, PhD shed some light on this issue when she said, "The reason there's so much soy in America is because they [the soy industry] started to plant soy to extract the oil from it and soy oil became a very large industry. Once they had as much oil as they did in the food supply they had a lot of soy protein residue left over, and since they can't feed it to animals, except in small amounts, they had to find another market."
In short, the soy industry CREATED a market where there was none, to profit from their waste products. It required multi-million dollar advertising campaigns and intense lobbying to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), but now about three-quarters of U.S. consumers believe soy products are healthy.
It's like a re-run of the water fluoridation propaganda machine, which began in the 1940s as solution to the fluoride pollution from aluminum plants. The disposing of fluoride had become a costly problem that needed a radical solution. The solution was to create the false belief that fluoride had some health benefit, and today, not only are you likely consuming this toxic waste product in your municipal tap water, but you may even believe it's good for your teeth, AND industry is getting PAID rather than paying for toxic waste removal.
Soy has become a grossly misunderstood food category, to be added to the ranks of coconut oil, saturated fats and vegetable oils. The two former have gained a negative reputation where a good one actually applies, whereas vegetable oil, along with soy, have emerged with sparkling reputations that cover up an unsavory truth.
The Truth About Soy
For just a brief look at what's really going on, consider that numerous studies have found that soy products can actually:
a.. Increase thyroid damage, especially in women
b.. Increase the risk of breast cancer in women, brain damage in both sexes, and cause abnormalities in infants
c.. Contribute to thyroid disorders, especially in women
d.. Promote kidney stones
e.. Weaken your immune system
f.. Cause severe, potentially fatal food allergies
Despite these findings, many people still want to believe the hype, thinking that these studies must somehow be wrong. But the content of soy itself should be a clue. For example, non-fermented soy products contain:
a.. Phytoestrogens (isoflavones) genistein and daidzein, which mimic and sometimes block the hormone estrogen
b.. Phytates, which block your body's uptake of minerals
c.. Enzyme Inhibitors, which hinder protein digestion
d.. Haemaggluttin, which causes red blood cells to clump together and inhibits oxygen take-up and growth
e.. High amounts of omega-6 fat, which is pro-inflammatory
Furthermore, most soybeans are grown on conventional farms that use toxic pesticides and herbicides, and many are from genetically engineered plants. When you consider that two-thirds of all processed food products contain some form of soy, it becomes clear just how many Americans are consuming GM products, whose long-term effects are completely unknown.
Like Feeding Birth Control Pills to a Baby
One of the most disturbing ill effects of soy has to do with its phytoestrogens, which can mimic the effects of the female hormone estrogen. These phytoestrogens have been found to have adverse effects on various human tissues, and drinking just two glasses of soy milk daily for one month has enough of the chemical to alter a woman's menstrual cycle.
The FDA regulates estrogen-containing products, however no warnings exist on soy.
Soy products are particularly problematic for infants, and soy infant formulas should be avoided at all cost. It's been estimated that infants who are fed soy formula exclusively receive the equivalent of five birth control pills worth of estrogen every day!
When testing the blood of soy formula-fed infants, concentrations of isoflavones have been found to be 13,000 to 22,000 times higher than natural estrogen concentrations in early life. It should be obvious that the potential damage to your child can be quite significant. Not to mention the fact that soy formula lacks other vital nutrients for normal and healthy brain- and biological development.
Soy Also Contributes to Dangerously Lopsided Intake of Essential Fats
One of the most important things you can do for your overall health is to balance your intake of omega-3 and omega-6 fats. These two types of fat are both essential. However, the typical American consumes far too many omega-6 fats in their diet while consuming very low levels of omega-3.
The ideal ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats is probably close to 1:1. But the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 today averages from 20:1 to 50:1!
That spells serious danger for your health. Even the mainstream health media is now reporting that lack of high quality omega-3 is one of the most serious health issues plaguing contemporary society.
The primary sources of omega-6 are corn, soy, canola, safflower and sunflower oil; oils that are overabundant in the typical American diet. And when you consider the fact that some form of soy or corn (oftentimes both) is found in just about every processed food product on the market, it really helps to explain these excessive omega-6 levels.
What About Soy as a Source of Protein?
While soybeans are relatively high in protein compared to other legumes, they are still a poor source of protein because other proteins found in soybeans act as potent enzyme inhibitors.
These "anti-nutrients" block the action of trypsin and other enzymes needed for protein digestion, effectively cancelling out any potential benefit you may have thought it had.
Regular soy consumption can also lead to chronic deficiencies in amino acid uptake.
It is believed that it is this ability to interfere with enzymes and amino acids that might be one of the reasons for why soy has such a negative effect on your brain. Isoflavones in tofu and other soy foods might exert their influence by interfering with the tyrosine kinase-dependent mechanisms required for optimal hippocampal function, structure and plasticity.
High amounts of tyrosine kinases are found in your hippocampus, a brain region involved with learning and memory. One of soy's primary isoflavones, genistein, has been shown to inhibit tyrosine kinase in the hippocampus, effectively blocking the mechanism of memory formation.
If You Want to Benefit From Soy, Make Sure it is Fermented !
There are some redeeming qualities to soy, however these are found primarily in fermented soy products like tempeh, miso, natto and soybean sprouts.
If you want to get some health benefits from soy, stick to these four forms and pass on ALL processed soy milks, tofu, soy 'burgers', soy 'ice cream', soy 'cheese', and the myriad of other soy junk foods that are so readily disguised as health foods.
The study above affirms this as well, showing that consumption of tempeh was related to better memory, particularly in participants over 68 years of age. Their explanation for this difference between (unfermented) tofu versus (fermented) tempeh is that the fermentation process produces high amounts of folate, which might have a protective effect against the phytoestrogens.
Additionally, not only does the fermentation process blunt the anti-nutritive effect of the soybeans' phytic acid, it also produces probiotics -- the "good" bacteria your body is absolutely dependent on - that increase the quantity, availability, digestibility and assimilation of nutrients in your body.
As a side note, formaldehyde (used as a preservative) was also introduced as a potential culprit rather than the tofu itself in this article. Granted, formaldehyde is somewhere at the very bottom of the list of things you want to consume for good health, but even so, there are so many studies confirming the benefits of fermented soy and the dangers of non-fermented soy products in general that I believe preservatives play a secondary role in the outcome, if any.
Soy is a broad and deep subject that cannot be fully covered in a single article, so for further reading, I recommend you review my related articles below as well as my Soy Index Page, which contains links to many of my best articles and important research findings on soy.
Can You Trust Chemotherapy to Cure Your Cancer?
(NaturalNews) Former White House press secretary Tony Snow died in July 2008 at the age of 53, following a series of chemotherapy treatments for colon cancer. In 2005, Snow had his colon removed and underwent six months of chemotherapy after being diagnosed with colon cancer. Two years later (2007), Snow underwent surgery to remove a growth in his abdominal area, near the site of the original cancer. "This is a very treatable condition," said Dr. Allyson Ocean, a gastrointestinal oncologist at Weill Cornell Medical College. "Many patients, because of the therapies we have, are able to work and live full lives with quality while they're being treated. Anyone who looks at this as a death sentence is wrong." But of course we now know, Dr. Ocean was dead wrong.
The media headlines proclaimed Snow died from colon cancer, although they knew he didn't have a colon anymore. Apparently, the malignant cancer had "returned" (from where?) and "spread" to the liver and elsewhere in his body. In actual fact, the colon surgery severely restricted his normal eliminative functions, thereby overburdening the liver and tissue fluids with toxic waste. The previous series of chemo-treatments inflamed and irreversibly damaged a large number of cells in his body, and also impaired his immune system -- a perfect recipe for growing new cancers. Now unable to heal the causes of the original cancer (in addition to the newly created ones), Snow's body developed new cancers in the liver and other parts of the body.
The mainstream media, of course, still insist Snow died from colon cancer, thus perpetuating the myth that it is only the cancer that kills people, not the treatment. Nobody seems to raise the important point that it is extremely difficult for a cancer patient to actually heal from this condition while being subjected to the systemic poisons of chemotherapy and deadly radiation. If you are bitten by a poisonous snake and don't get an antidote for it, isn't it likely that your body becomes overwhelmed by the poison and, therefore, cannot function anymore?
Before Tony Snow began his chemo-treatments for his second colon cancer, he still looked healthy and strong. But after a few weeks into his treatment, he started to develop a coarse voice, looked frail, turned gray and lost his hair. Did the cancer do all this to him? Certainly not. Cancer doesn't do such a thing, but chemical poisoning does. He actually looked more ill than someone who has been bitten by a poisonous snake.
Does the mainstream media ever report about the overwhelming scientific evidence that shows chemotherapy has zero benefits in the five-year survival rate of colon cancer patients? Or how many oncologists stand up for their cancer patients and protect them against chemotherapy treatment which they very well know can cause them to die far more quickly than if they received no treatment at all? Can you trustingly place your life into their hands when you know that most of them would not even consider chemotherapy for themselves if they were diagnosed with cancer? What do they know that you don't? The news is spreading fast that in the United States physician-caused fatalities now exceed 750,000 each year. Perhaps, many doctors no longer trust in what they practice, for good reasons.
"Most cancer patients in this country die of chemotherapy... Chemotherapy does not eliminate breast, colon or lung cancers. This fact has been documented for over a decade. Yet doctors still use chemotherapy for these tumors... Women with breast cancer are likely to die faster with chemo than without it." - Alan Levin, M.D.
An investigation by the Department of Radiation Oncology, Northern Sydney Cancer Centre, Australia, into the contribution of chemotherapy to 5-year survival in 22 major adult malignancies, showed startling results: The overall contribution of curative and adjuvant cytotoxic chemotherapy to 5-year survival in adults was estimated to be 2.3% in Australia and 2.1% in the USA." [Royal North Shore Hospital Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) 2005 Jun;17(4):294.]
The research covered data from the Cancer Registry in Australia and the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results in the USA for the year 1998. The current 5-year relative adult survival rate for cancer in Australia is over 60%, and no less than that in the USA. By comparison, a mere 2.3% contribution of chemotherapy to cancer survival does not justify the massive expense involved and the tremendous suffering patients experience because of severe, toxic side effects resulting from this treatment. With a meager success rate of 2.3%, selling chemotherapy as a medical treatment (instead of a scam), is one of the greatest fraudulent acts ever committed. The average chemotherapy earns the medical establishment a whopping $300,000 to $1,000,000 each year, and has so far earned those who promote this pseudo-medication (poison) over 1 trillion dollars. It's no surprise that the medical establishment tries to keep this scam alive for as long as possible.
In 1990, the highly respected German epidemiologist, Dr. Ulrich Abel from the Tumor Clinic of the University of Heidelberg, conducted the most comprehensive investigation of every major clinical study on chemotherapy drugs ever done. Abel contacted 350 medical centers and asked them to send him anything they had ever published on chemotherapy. He also reviewed and analyzed thousands of scientific articles published in the most prestigious medical journals. It took Abel several years to collect and evaluate the data. Abel's epidemiological study, which was published on August 10, 1991 in The Lancet, should have alerted every doctor and cancer patient about the risks of one of the most common treatments used for cancer and other diseases. In his paper, Abel came to the conclusion that the overall success rate of chemotherapy was "appalling." According to this report, there was no scientific evidence available in any existing study to show that chemotherapy can "extend in any appreciable way the lives of patients suffering from the most common organic cancers."
Abel points out that chemotherapy rarely improves the quality of life. He describes chemotherapy as "a scientific wasteland" and states that even though there is no scientific evidence that chemotherapy works, neither doctor nor patient is willing to give up on it. The mainstream media has never reported on this hugely important study, which is hardly surprising, given the enormous vested interests of the groups that sponsor the media, that is, the pharmaceutical companies. A recent search turned up exactly zero reviews of Abel's work in American journals, even though it was published in 1990. I believe this is not because his work was unimportant -- but because it is irrefutable.
The truth of the matter would be far too costly for the pharmaceutical industry to bear, thus making it unacceptable. If the mass media reported the truth that medical drugs, including chemotherapy drugs, are used to practically commit genocide in the U.S. and the world, their best sponsors (the pharmaceutical companies) would have to withdraw their misleading advertisements from the television media, radio stations, magazines, and newspapers. But neither group wants to go bankrupt.
Many doctors go as far as prescribing chemotherapy drugs to patients for malignancies that are far too advanced for surgery, with the full knowledge that there are no benefits at all. Yet they claim chemotherapy to be an effective cancer treatment, and their unsuspecting patients believe that "effective" equals "cure." The doctors, of course, refer to the FDA's definition of an "effective" drug, one which achieves a 50% or more reduction in tumor size for 28 days. They neglect to tell their patients that there is no correlation whatsoever between shrinking tumors for 28 days and curing the cancer or extending life. Temporary tumor shrinkage through chemotherapy has never been shown to cure cancer or to extend life. In other words, you can live with an untreated tumor for just as long as you would with one that has been shrunken or been eliminated by chemotherapy (or radiation).
Chemotherapy has never been shown to have curative effects for cancer. By contrast, the body can still cure itself, which it actually tries to do by developing cancer. Cancer is more a healing response than it is a disease. The "disease" is the body's attempt to cure itself of an existing imbalance. And sometimes, this healing response continues even if a person is subjected to chemotherapy (and/or radiation). Unfortunately, as the previously mentioned research has demonstrated, the chances for a real cure are greatly reduced when patients are treated with chemotherapy drugs.
The side effects of the treatment can be horrendous and heartbreaking for both patients and their loved ones, all in the name of trustworthy medical treatment. Although the drug treatment comes with the promise to improve the patient's quality of life, it is just common sense that a drug that makes them throw up and lose their hair, while wrecking their immune system, is doing the exact opposite. Chemo-therapy can give the patient life-threatening mouth sores. It attacks the immune system by destroying billions of immune cells (white blood cells). Its deadly poisons inflame every part of the body. The drugs can slough off the entire lining of their intestines. The most common side effect experienced among chemo patients is their complete lack of energy. The new additional drugs now given to many chemo patients may prevent the patient from noticing some of the side effects, but they hardly reduce the immensely destructive and suppressive effect of the chemotherapy itself. Remember, the reason chemotherapy can shrink some tumors is because it causes massive destruction in the body.
If you have cancer, you may think that feeling tired is just part of the disease. This rarely is the case. Feeling unusually tired is more likely due to anemia, a common side effect of most chemotherapy drugs. Chemo drugs can dramatically decrease your red blood cell levels, and this reduces oxygen availability to the 60-100 trillion cells of your body. You can literally feel the energy being zapped from every cell of your body -- a physical death without dying. Chemo-caused fatigue has a negative impact on day-to-day activities in 89% of all patients. With no energy, there can be no joy and no hope, and all bodily functions become subdued.
One long-term side effect is that these patients' bodies can no longer respond to nutritional or immune-strengthening approaches to cancerous tumors. All of this may explain why cancer patients who do not receive any treatment at all, have an up to four times higher remission rate than those who receive treatment. The sad thing is that chemotherapy does not cure 96% to 98% of all cancers anyway. Conclusive evidence (for the majority of cancers) that chemotherapy has any positive influence on survival or quality of life does not exist.
To promote chemotherapy as a treatment for cancer is misleading, to say the least. By permanently damaging the body's immune system and other important parts, chemo-therapy has become a leading cause of treatment-caused diseases such as heart disease, liver disease, intestinal diseases, diseases of the immune system, infections, brain diseases, pain disorders, and rapid aging.
Before committing themselves to being poisoned, cancer patients need to question their doctors and ask them to produce the research or evidence that shrinking a tumor actually translates to any increase in survival. If they tell you that chemotherapy is your best chance of surviving, you will know they are lying or are simply misinformed. As Abel's research clearly demonstrated, there is no such evidence anywhere to be found in the medical literature. Subjecting patients to chemotherapy robs them of a fair chance of finding or responding to a real cure and deserves criminal prosecution.
Andreas Moritz's book, Cancer is not a Disease - It's a Survival Mechanism, explains the root causes of cancer and how to eliminate them for good. Available through (www.ener-chi.com) or (www.amazon.com) .
About the author
Andreas Moritz is a medical intuitive; a practitioner of Ayurveda, iridology, shiatsu, and vibrational medicine; a writer; and an artist. He is the author of The Amazing Liver and Gallbladder Flush, Timeless Secrets of Health and Rejuvenation, Lifting the Veil of Duality, Cancer Is Not a Disease, It's Time to Come Alive, Heart Disease No More, Diabetes No More, Simple Steps to Total Health, Diabetes -- No More, Ending the AIDS Myth and Heal Yourself with Sunlight. For more information, visit the author's website (www.ener-chi.com).
The media headlines proclaimed Snow died from colon cancer, although they knew he didn't have a colon anymore. Apparently, the malignant cancer had "returned" (from where?) and "spread" to the liver and elsewhere in his body. In actual fact, the colon surgery severely restricted his normal eliminative functions, thereby overburdening the liver and tissue fluids with toxic waste. The previous series of chemo-treatments inflamed and irreversibly damaged a large number of cells in his body, and also impaired his immune system -- a perfect recipe for growing new cancers. Now unable to heal the causes of the original cancer (in addition to the newly created ones), Snow's body developed new cancers in the liver and other parts of the body.
The mainstream media, of course, still insist Snow died from colon cancer, thus perpetuating the myth that it is only the cancer that kills people, not the treatment. Nobody seems to raise the important point that it is extremely difficult for a cancer patient to actually heal from this condition while being subjected to the systemic poisons of chemotherapy and deadly radiation. If you are bitten by a poisonous snake and don't get an antidote for it, isn't it likely that your body becomes overwhelmed by the poison and, therefore, cannot function anymore?
Before Tony Snow began his chemo-treatments for his second colon cancer, he still looked healthy and strong. But after a few weeks into his treatment, he started to develop a coarse voice, looked frail, turned gray and lost his hair. Did the cancer do all this to him? Certainly not. Cancer doesn't do such a thing, but chemical poisoning does. He actually looked more ill than someone who has been bitten by a poisonous snake.
Does the mainstream media ever report about the overwhelming scientific evidence that shows chemotherapy has zero benefits in the five-year survival rate of colon cancer patients? Or how many oncologists stand up for their cancer patients and protect them against chemotherapy treatment which they very well know can cause them to die far more quickly than if they received no treatment at all? Can you trustingly place your life into their hands when you know that most of them would not even consider chemotherapy for themselves if they were diagnosed with cancer? What do they know that you don't? The news is spreading fast that in the United States physician-caused fatalities now exceed 750,000 each year. Perhaps, many doctors no longer trust in what they practice, for good reasons.
"Most cancer patients in this country die of chemotherapy... Chemotherapy does not eliminate breast, colon or lung cancers. This fact has been documented for over a decade. Yet doctors still use chemotherapy for these tumors... Women with breast cancer are likely to die faster with chemo than without it." - Alan Levin, M.D.
An investigation by the Department of Radiation Oncology, Northern Sydney Cancer Centre, Australia, into the contribution of chemotherapy to 5-year survival in 22 major adult malignancies, showed startling results: The overall contribution of curative and adjuvant cytotoxic chemotherapy to 5-year survival in adults was estimated to be 2.3% in Australia and 2.1% in the USA." [Royal North Shore Hospital Clin Oncol (R Coll Radiol) 2005 Jun;17(4):294.]
The research covered data from the Cancer Registry in Australia and the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results in the USA for the year 1998. The current 5-year relative adult survival rate for cancer in Australia is over 60%, and no less than that in the USA. By comparison, a mere 2.3% contribution of chemotherapy to cancer survival does not justify the massive expense involved and the tremendous suffering patients experience because of severe, toxic side effects resulting from this treatment. With a meager success rate of 2.3%, selling chemotherapy as a medical treatment (instead of a scam), is one of the greatest fraudulent acts ever committed. The average chemotherapy earns the medical establishment a whopping $300,000 to $1,000,000 each year, and has so far earned those who promote this pseudo-medication (poison) over 1 trillion dollars. It's no surprise that the medical establishment tries to keep this scam alive for as long as possible.
In 1990, the highly respected German epidemiologist, Dr. Ulrich Abel from the Tumor Clinic of the University of Heidelberg, conducted the most comprehensive investigation of every major clinical study on chemotherapy drugs ever done. Abel contacted 350 medical centers and asked them to send him anything they had ever published on chemotherapy. He also reviewed and analyzed thousands of scientific articles published in the most prestigious medical journals. It took Abel several years to collect and evaluate the data. Abel's epidemiological study, which was published on August 10, 1991 in The Lancet, should have alerted every doctor and cancer patient about the risks of one of the most common treatments used for cancer and other diseases. In his paper, Abel came to the conclusion that the overall success rate of chemotherapy was "appalling." According to this report, there was no scientific evidence available in any existing study to show that chemotherapy can "extend in any appreciable way the lives of patients suffering from the most common organic cancers."
Abel points out that chemotherapy rarely improves the quality of life. He describes chemotherapy as "a scientific wasteland" and states that even though there is no scientific evidence that chemotherapy works, neither doctor nor patient is willing to give up on it. The mainstream media has never reported on this hugely important study, which is hardly surprising, given the enormous vested interests of the groups that sponsor the media, that is, the pharmaceutical companies. A recent search turned up exactly zero reviews of Abel's work in American journals, even though it was published in 1990. I believe this is not because his work was unimportant -- but because it is irrefutable.
The truth of the matter would be far too costly for the pharmaceutical industry to bear, thus making it unacceptable. If the mass media reported the truth that medical drugs, including chemotherapy drugs, are used to practically commit genocide in the U.S. and the world, their best sponsors (the pharmaceutical companies) would have to withdraw their misleading advertisements from the television media, radio stations, magazines, and newspapers. But neither group wants to go bankrupt.
Many doctors go as far as prescribing chemotherapy drugs to patients for malignancies that are far too advanced for surgery, with the full knowledge that there are no benefits at all. Yet they claim chemotherapy to be an effective cancer treatment, and their unsuspecting patients believe that "effective" equals "cure." The doctors, of course, refer to the FDA's definition of an "effective" drug, one which achieves a 50% or more reduction in tumor size for 28 days. They neglect to tell their patients that there is no correlation whatsoever between shrinking tumors for 28 days and curing the cancer or extending life. Temporary tumor shrinkage through chemotherapy has never been shown to cure cancer or to extend life. In other words, you can live with an untreated tumor for just as long as you would with one that has been shrunken or been eliminated by chemotherapy (or radiation).
Chemotherapy has never been shown to have curative effects for cancer. By contrast, the body can still cure itself, which it actually tries to do by developing cancer. Cancer is more a healing response than it is a disease. The "disease" is the body's attempt to cure itself of an existing imbalance. And sometimes, this healing response continues even if a person is subjected to chemotherapy (and/or radiation). Unfortunately, as the previously mentioned research has demonstrated, the chances for a real cure are greatly reduced when patients are treated with chemotherapy drugs.
The side effects of the treatment can be horrendous and heartbreaking for both patients and their loved ones, all in the name of trustworthy medical treatment. Although the drug treatment comes with the promise to improve the patient's quality of life, it is just common sense that a drug that makes them throw up and lose their hair, while wrecking their immune system, is doing the exact opposite. Chemo-therapy can give the patient life-threatening mouth sores. It attacks the immune system by destroying billions of immune cells (white blood cells). Its deadly poisons inflame every part of the body. The drugs can slough off the entire lining of their intestines. The most common side effect experienced among chemo patients is their complete lack of energy. The new additional drugs now given to many chemo patients may prevent the patient from noticing some of the side effects, but they hardly reduce the immensely destructive and suppressive effect of the chemotherapy itself. Remember, the reason chemotherapy can shrink some tumors is because it causes massive destruction in the body.
If you have cancer, you may think that feeling tired is just part of the disease. This rarely is the case. Feeling unusually tired is more likely due to anemia, a common side effect of most chemotherapy drugs. Chemo drugs can dramatically decrease your red blood cell levels, and this reduces oxygen availability to the 60-100 trillion cells of your body. You can literally feel the energy being zapped from every cell of your body -- a physical death without dying. Chemo-caused fatigue has a negative impact on day-to-day activities in 89% of all patients. With no energy, there can be no joy and no hope, and all bodily functions become subdued.
One long-term side effect is that these patients' bodies can no longer respond to nutritional or immune-strengthening approaches to cancerous tumors. All of this may explain why cancer patients who do not receive any treatment at all, have an up to four times higher remission rate than those who receive treatment. The sad thing is that chemotherapy does not cure 96% to 98% of all cancers anyway. Conclusive evidence (for the majority of cancers) that chemotherapy has any positive influence on survival or quality of life does not exist.
To promote chemotherapy as a treatment for cancer is misleading, to say the least. By permanently damaging the body's immune system and other important parts, chemo-therapy has become a leading cause of treatment-caused diseases such as heart disease, liver disease, intestinal diseases, diseases of the immune system, infections, brain diseases, pain disorders, and rapid aging.
Before committing themselves to being poisoned, cancer patients need to question their doctors and ask them to produce the research or evidence that shrinking a tumor actually translates to any increase in survival. If they tell you that chemotherapy is your best chance of surviving, you will know they are lying or are simply misinformed. As Abel's research clearly demonstrated, there is no such evidence anywhere to be found in the medical literature. Subjecting patients to chemotherapy robs them of a fair chance of finding or responding to a real cure and deserves criminal prosecution.
Andreas Moritz's book, Cancer is not a Disease - It's a Survival Mechanism, explains the root causes of cancer and how to eliminate them for good. Available through (www.ener-chi.com) or (www.amazon.com) .
About the author
Andreas Moritz is a medical intuitive; a practitioner of Ayurveda, iridology, shiatsu, and vibrational medicine; a writer; and an artist. He is the author of The Amazing Liver and Gallbladder Flush, Timeless Secrets of Health and Rejuvenation, Lifting the Veil of Duality, Cancer Is Not a Disease, It's Time to Come Alive, Heart Disease No More, Diabetes No More, Simple Steps to Total Health, Diabetes -- No More, Ending the AIDS Myth and Heal Yourself with Sunlight. For more information, visit the author's website (www.ener-chi.com).
Thursday, July 24, 2008
The achiever
"It is time for us all to stand and cheer for the doer, the achiever - the one who recognizes the challenges and does something about it."
Vince Lombardi
1913-1970, American Football Coach
Vince Lombardi
1913-1970, American Football Coach
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
What shapes you
"Be careful the environment you choose for it will shape you; be careful the friends you choose for you will become like them."
W. Clement Stone
1902-2002, Author and Businessman
W. Clement Stone
1902-2002, Author and Businessman
Toxic Metals: The Reason You Still Feel Sick
Dr, Kaayla Daniel and Dr. Galen Knight have observed that even when people follow healthy dietary guidelines, they can still have serious health problems. They may digest their food poorly, experience digestive distress, or be generally sickly.
One reason may be toxic metals like:
a.. Mercury
b.. Aluminum
c.. Cadmium
d.. Arsenic
e.. Lead
f.. Nickel, and other metal poisons that flood the environment and invade your body.
These toxic metals can cause or contribute to a long list of diseases including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and other brain and neurological disorders. While the medical establishment recognizes the acute toxicity that comes from high levels of metals in your body, far more people suffer the adverse effects of low-level, chronic exposure.
Sources:
a.. Mad as a Hatter -- How to Avoid Toxic Metals and Clear Them From the Body (PDF)
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
Most people are absolutely clueless about just how toxic mercury is. It is toxic at one in one billion-part quantities. That is about the same concentration of one grain of salt in one swimming pool. That is why having mercury fillings is such a major challenge to your health.
Heavy metal toxicity, just like chemical toxicity, has become one of the most pressing health hazards of our day. Your body is assailed by chemicals and heavy metals on a daily basis, oftentimes from the most innocent-looking sources, from your everyday cookware to your child's rubber ducky.
It has now gotten to the point where babies are being BORN toxic due to the toxic load of their mothers. A 2004 study by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that blood samples from newborns contained an average of 287 toxins, including mercury, fire retardants, pesticides and Teflon chemicals.
Despite these dire warning signs, giant corporations and industry advocates like DuPont and The American Chemistry Council are fighting tooth and nail to block any and all proposed bans on toxic agents that happen to be part of their profit-making schemes. According to EnviroBlog, the latest army of lobbyists is trying to crush U.S. Senate Bill 1313, which calls for a ban of perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) in concentrations exceeding 0.1 percent from food packaging, for example.
And California State Senate Bill 1713, which would ban BPA from baby bottles and toys, is also under attack by hired guns who are trying to scare everyone into believing this bill will put an end to all canned and jarred goods.
If there ever was a time to get more involved in the political process - as these are serious survival issues -- now might be a good time.
How Do You Know if You're Suffering from Heavy Metal Toxicity?
Acute heavy metal toxicity is a lot easier to diagnose than that of chronic exposure.
Indications of acute toxicity include:
a.. Sudden, severe cramping and/or convulsions
b.. Nausea
c.. Vomiting
d.. Sweating
e.. Headache
f.. Difficulty breathing
g.. Impaired cognitive, motor and language skills
Symptoms of toxic build-up due to chronic heavy metal exposure, however, are much more subtle, in large part because these symptoms are so "common," such as:
a.. Fatigue
b.. Digestive distress, and reduced ability to properly assimilate and utilize fats
c.. Aching joints
d.. Depression
e.. Impaired blood sugar regulation
f.. Female reproductive problems such as menstrual difficulties, infertility, miscarriage, pre-eclampsia, pregnancy-induced hypertension and premature birth
Sound like anyone you know?
Add to that your exposure to toxic fluoride in your municipal drinking water, which actually increases your body's uptake of aluminum, in addition to all the other health damaging effects it has in and of itself, and it's no wonder you're feeling less than great.
Why is Your Diet so Important When it Comes to Heavy Metal Detox?
In addition to limiting your exposure to toxic metals, which I will go over shortly, you need to focus on eating a healthy diet, preferably based on your nutritional type to reap the maximum overall health benefits.
The Weston A. Price diet recommendations, which were written in 1920 and still, like all truths, hold true today, includes these timeless guidelines:
a.. Eat foods that are natural, unprocessed, and organic (and contain no sugar except for the occasional bit of honey or maple syrup).
b.. Eat foods that grow in your native environment. In other words, eat locally grown, seasonal foods.
c.. Eat unpasteurized dairy products (such as raw milk) and fermented foods.
d.. Eat at least one-third of your food raw.
e.. Make sure you eat enough healthy fats, including those from animal sources like omega-3 fat, and reduce your intake of omega-6 from vegetable oils.
As Dr. Daniel et.al. explain in this article, optimal nutrition is essential when dealing with heavy metal toxicity because if you are deficient in essential metals, your body will use toxic heavy metals as "stand-ins" instead. For example:
a.. Calcium is replaced by lead, which deposits primarily in bone, and disrupts the formation of red blood cells. Lead contributes to poor bone health such as osteopenia and osteoporosis.
b.. Zinc is replaced by cadmium, which tends to accumulate heavily in your kidneys. Cadmium overload is associated with peripheral neuropathy.
c.. Magnesium is replaced by aluminum, which, among other things, induces neurochemical changes and has been identified as a contributing factor to developing Alzheimer's.
d.. Manganese is replaced by nickel, which is carcinogenic.
Secondly, you also need vital nutrients to aid your natural detoxification process.
A lot more information about this subject will be discussed in my upcoming Inner Circle interview with Dr. Kaayla Daniel, co-author of the article above and the book, The Whole Soy Story, which I recently reviewed in my brand new Book Reviews column.
I also highly recommend subscribing to the Weston A. Price Foundation's journal, Wise Traditions. This quarterly journal is dedicated to exploring the scientific validation of dietary, agricultural and medical traditions throughout the world. It features informative and thought-provoking articles on current scientific research; human diets; non-toxic agriculture; and holistic therapies. It also offers sources for organic foods that have been conscientiously grown and processed.
You can find their membership form at this link.
Guidelines for Reducing Your Heavy Metal Exposure
It may seem like a fight you're destined to lose, however I firmly believe you can reduce you exposure to heavy metals quite dramatically, thereby giving your body a fighting chance to eliminate accumulated toxins and restore health.
These guidelines can help limit your exposure:
a.. Use glass, cast iron, carbon steel, titanium, and enamel cookware. Both aluminum and Teflon are well known for their toxic dangers, and stainless steel can expose you to carcinogenic nickel.
a.. Minimize consumption of restaurant food as restaurants are required to use stainless steel pots and vats.
a.. Avoid stainless steel thermoses; the glass lined kinds are best. Later this year I will be offering glass water bottles that can also be used in lieu of a thermos, with neoprene sleeves to protect them from breaking.
b.. Avoid cosmetics with aluminum bases, mineral powders that contain bismuth, and aluminum-laden antiperspirants, which have been shown to increase your Alzheimer's risk by as much as 300 percent!
a.. Avoid vaccinations that inject mercury or aluminum directly into your bloodstream.
a.. Avoid and remove dental amalgam fillings.
b.. Avoid stainless steel orthodontics such as braces and palate wideners.
c.. Avoid costume jewelry if you are sensitive to metals.
d.. Avoid smoking and second hand smoke as it causes cadmium poisoning.
e.. Make sure you purchase your natural herbal remedies from a reputable source with strict quality testing. Some colloidal silvers can lead to silver poisoning, and some folk remedies can be high in mercury, lead and arsenic, either due to alleged medicinal properties or through unintentional contamination.
f.. Avoid conventional household cleaning products.
g.. Avoid conventional insecticides and herbicides. Also be VERY cautious when using the "natural alternative" Borax (boric acid), which can also cause serious health problems, including death.
One reason may be toxic metals like:
a.. Mercury
b.. Aluminum
c.. Cadmium
d.. Arsenic
e.. Lead
f.. Nickel, and other metal poisons that flood the environment and invade your body.
These toxic metals can cause or contribute to a long list of diseases including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and other brain and neurological disorders. While the medical establishment recognizes the acute toxicity that comes from high levels of metals in your body, far more people suffer the adverse effects of low-level, chronic exposure.
Sources:
a.. Mad as a Hatter -- How to Avoid Toxic Metals and Clear Them From the Body (PDF)
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
Most people are absolutely clueless about just how toxic mercury is. It is toxic at one in one billion-part quantities. That is about the same concentration of one grain of salt in one swimming pool. That is why having mercury fillings is such a major challenge to your health.
Heavy metal toxicity, just like chemical toxicity, has become one of the most pressing health hazards of our day. Your body is assailed by chemicals and heavy metals on a daily basis, oftentimes from the most innocent-looking sources, from your everyday cookware to your child's rubber ducky.
It has now gotten to the point where babies are being BORN toxic due to the toxic load of their mothers. A 2004 study by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that blood samples from newborns contained an average of 287 toxins, including mercury, fire retardants, pesticides and Teflon chemicals.
Despite these dire warning signs, giant corporations and industry advocates like DuPont and The American Chemistry Council are fighting tooth and nail to block any and all proposed bans on toxic agents that happen to be part of their profit-making schemes. According to EnviroBlog, the latest army of lobbyists is trying to crush U.S. Senate Bill 1313, which calls for a ban of perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs) in concentrations exceeding 0.1 percent from food packaging, for example.
And California State Senate Bill 1713, which would ban BPA from baby bottles and toys, is also under attack by hired guns who are trying to scare everyone into believing this bill will put an end to all canned and jarred goods.
If there ever was a time to get more involved in the political process - as these are serious survival issues -- now might be a good time.
How Do You Know if You're Suffering from Heavy Metal Toxicity?
Acute heavy metal toxicity is a lot easier to diagnose than that of chronic exposure.
Indications of acute toxicity include:
a.. Sudden, severe cramping and/or convulsions
b.. Nausea
c.. Vomiting
d.. Sweating
e.. Headache
f.. Difficulty breathing
g.. Impaired cognitive, motor and language skills
Symptoms of toxic build-up due to chronic heavy metal exposure, however, are much more subtle, in large part because these symptoms are so "common," such as:
a.. Fatigue
b.. Digestive distress, and reduced ability to properly assimilate and utilize fats
c.. Aching joints
d.. Depression
e.. Impaired blood sugar regulation
f.. Female reproductive problems such as menstrual difficulties, infertility, miscarriage, pre-eclampsia, pregnancy-induced hypertension and premature birth
Sound like anyone you know?
Add to that your exposure to toxic fluoride in your municipal drinking water, which actually increases your body's uptake of aluminum, in addition to all the other health damaging effects it has in and of itself, and it's no wonder you're feeling less than great.
Why is Your Diet so Important When it Comes to Heavy Metal Detox?
In addition to limiting your exposure to toxic metals, which I will go over shortly, you need to focus on eating a healthy diet, preferably based on your nutritional type to reap the maximum overall health benefits.
The Weston A. Price diet recommendations, which were written in 1920 and still, like all truths, hold true today, includes these timeless guidelines:
a.. Eat foods that are natural, unprocessed, and organic (and contain no sugar except for the occasional bit of honey or maple syrup).
b.. Eat foods that grow in your native environment. In other words, eat locally grown, seasonal foods.
c.. Eat unpasteurized dairy products (such as raw milk) and fermented foods.
d.. Eat at least one-third of your food raw.
e.. Make sure you eat enough healthy fats, including those from animal sources like omega-3 fat, and reduce your intake of omega-6 from vegetable oils.
As Dr. Daniel et.al. explain in this article, optimal nutrition is essential when dealing with heavy metal toxicity because if you are deficient in essential metals, your body will use toxic heavy metals as "stand-ins" instead. For example:
a.. Calcium is replaced by lead, which deposits primarily in bone, and disrupts the formation of red blood cells. Lead contributes to poor bone health such as osteopenia and osteoporosis.
b.. Zinc is replaced by cadmium, which tends to accumulate heavily in your kidneys. Cadmium overload is associated with peripheral neuropathy.
c.. Magnesium is replaced by aluminum, which, among other things, induces neurochemical changes and has been identified as a contributing factor to developing Alzheimer's.
d.. Manganese is replaced by nickel, which is carcinogenic.
Secondly, you also need vital nutrients to aid your natural detoxification process.
A lot more information about this subject will be discussed in my upcoming Inner Circle interview with Dr. Kaayla Daniel, co-author of the article above and the book, The Whole Soy Story, which I recently reviewed in my brand new Book Reviews column.
I also highly recommend subscribing to the Weston A. Price Foundation's journal, Wise Traditions. This quarterly journal is dedicated to exploring the scientific validation of dietary, agricultural and medical traditions throughout the world. It features informative and thought-provoking articles on current scientific research; human diets; non-toxic agriculture; and holistic therapies. It also offers sources for organic foods that have been conscientiously grown and processed.
You can find their membership form at this link.
Guidelines for Reducing Your Heavy Metal Exposure
It may seem like a fight you're destined to lose, however I firmly believe you can reduce you exposure to heavy metals quite dramatically, thereby giving your body a fighting chance to eliminate accumulated toxins and restore health.
These guidelines can help limit your exposure:
a.. Use glass, cast iron, carbon steel, titanium, and enamel cookware. Both aluminum and Teflon are well known for their toxic dangers, and stainless steel can expose you to carcinogenic nickel.
a.. Minimize consumption of restaurant food as restaurants are required to use stainless steel pots and vats.
a.. Avoid stainless steel thermoses; the glass lined kinds are best. Later this year I will be offering glass water bottles that can also be used in lieu of a thermos, with neoprene sleeves to protect them from breaking.
b.. Avoid cosmetics with aluminum bases, mineral powders that contain bismuth, and aluminum-laden antiperspirants, which have been shown to increase your Alzheimer's risk by as much as 300 percent!
a.. Avoid vaccinations that inject mercury or aluminum directly into your bloodstream.
a.. Avoid and remove dental amalgam fillings.
b.. Avoid stainless steel orthodontics such as braces and palate wideners.
c.. Avoid costume jewelry if you are sensitive to metals.
d.. Avoid smoking and second hand smoke as it causes cadmium poisoning.
e.. Make sure you purchase your natural herbal remedies from a reputable source with strict quality testing. Some colloidal silvers can lead to silver poisoning, and some folk remedies can be high in mercury, lead and arsenic, either due to alleged medicinal properties or through unintentional contamination.
f.. Avoid conventional household cleaning products.
g.. Avoid conventional insecticides and herbicides. Also be VERY cautious when using the "natural alternative" Borax (boric acid), which can also cause serious health problems, including death.
Why are Cholesterol Drugs Being Recommended for 8 Year Olds?
For the first time, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has recommended that some children as young as 8 should be given cholesterol-lowering drugs to ward off future heart problems.
Dr. Stephen Daniels, who is on the academy's nutrition committee, says the new advice is based on mounting evidence that damage leading to heart disease, the nation's leading killer, begins early in life. The drug treatments would be targeted at kids at least 8 years old who have too much LDL, or "bad," cholesterol along with other risky factors, including obesity and high blood pressure.
Cholesterol screening is also now being recommended for kids with a family history of high cholesterol and those who are overweight, obese or have other heart disease risk factors. Screening should take place after age 2 but no later than age 10, according to the AAP.
Sources:
a.. ABC News July 7, 2008
a.. Pediatrics July 2008, Vol. 122 No. 1, pp. 198-208
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
It never ceases to amaze me just how far the drug companies push the limit of what they can get away with. Simply an absolutely amazing testimony to the effectiveness of their brainwashing and manipulation by investing in key non-scrupulous professionals and organizations.
Every few years, the number of people who "need" cholesterol-lowering (statin) drugs is suddenly expanded. At this rate, it won't be very long before someone suggests that everyone take them, cradle to grave. The companies that make the drugs would certainly approve of that idea.
Although the AAP maintains that these new guidelines have nothing to do with any commercial entities, the New York Times uncovered some pretty glaring connections.
For starters, the AAP has received contributions from several drug makers, including:
a.. $433,000 from Merck
b.. $835,250 from Abbott Laboratories' Ross Product Division
c.. $216,000 from the Bristol-Myers Squibb company Mead Johnson Nutritionals
Meanwhile, several members of AAP's nutrition committee, which developed the new guidelines, also have ties to drug makers:
a.. Dr. Stephen Daniels has consulted for Merck and Abbott Laboratories (although not on cholesterol drugs)
b.. Dr. Nicolas Stettler of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia worked on clinical trials for Merck's Mevacor and a failed Pfizer cholesterol drug
c.. Dr. Jatinder Bhatia, chief of neonatology at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, has listed financial relationships with Bristol-Myers Squibb's Mead Johnson unit, Abbott's Ross Products and Dey Laboratories, which is affiliated with Merck
Cholesterol-lowering drugs are already the most used prescription drugs in the United States, so their makers really didn't need to target the youngest members of society to increase their bottom lines, but they did anyway.
Five cholesterol drugs have already been approved for kids with genetic cholesterol disorders:
a.. Bristol-Myers Squibb's Pravachol
b.. Pfizer's Lipitor
c.. Merck's Zocor and Mevacor
d.. Novartis's Lescol
But the new guidelines push it even beyond kids with a genetic disorder; they also include children who have high "bad" cholesterol, obesity, high blood pressure and other factors.
Why Cholesterol Drugs are Bad for You . and Even Worse for Your Kids
You should know that among the many dangers of statin drugs is an increased risk of heart disease. This is because patients taking statins become depleted in Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), which leads to fatigue, muscle weakness, soreness and, ironically, heart failure.
The FDA has had a petition to label statin packages with a warning about statin-induced CoQ10 depletion for years, but nothing has been done about it.
Some of the other risks of statin drugs include:
a.. Weakness
b.. Muscle aches
c.. An increase in cancer risk
d.. Immune system suppression
e.. Serious degenerative muscle tissue condition (rhabdomyolysis)
f.. Potential increase in liver enzymes so patients must be monitored for normal liver function
These, of course, are the risks to adults. But when you give drugs designed for adults to children, anything can happen because children metabolize drugs differently. At least one expert has expressed concern that statin drugs may impact a child's endocrine system, which regulates growth and development.
And there is absolutely no long-term data showing that statin drugs are safe for kids, who will likely be put on the drugs for many years, if not a lifetime.
If You are Worried About Your Child's Cholesterol
First, keep this in mind: It is VERY rare for anyone to need cholesterol-lowering drugs. Among the more than 20,000 patients who have come to my clinic, only four or five of them truly needed these drugs, as they had genetic challenges that required it. If you or someone you know is taking them, odds are very high, greater than 100 to 1, that you or they don't need it.
And this applies to children too.
Most often, cholesterol becomes high as a result of excess inflammation in your body. Far from being harmful, the cholesterol is released into your bloodstream to help repair damage by producing new cells.
So the solution is not to lower your cholesterol, it's to address what is causing the excess inflammation.
In kids, this is caused largely by the very same things it is in adults:
1. Eating too many sugar and grains
2. Eating trans fats
3. Not exercising
4. Emotional stress
If these items sound familiar in your family's lifestyle, now's the time to change it. You do not need drugs to get healthy, you just need to follow these eight steps:
1. Make sure you and your kids are getting plenty of high-quality, animal-based omega3-fats. I prefer those from krill oil.
2. Reduce, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars in your family's daily diet.
3. Eat the right foods for your nutritional type and make sure your kids are eating right for theirs.
4. Make sure your family eats a good portion of their food raw.
5. Get the right amount of exercise. When you exercise you increase your circulation and the blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of fighting an illness before it has the opportunity to spread.
7. Address your emotional challenges. I particularly love the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) for stress management. EFT is also easy for kids to learn and use.
8. If you are having troubles following this advice (exercising regularly, staying away from sugars, and eating right for your type) then you might want to try the hypnosis program I recommend for diet and exercise adherence.
Dr. Stephen Daniels, who is on the academy's nutrition committee, says the new advice is based on mounting evidence that damage leading to heart disease, the nation's leading killer, begins early in life. The drug treatments would be targeted at kids at least 8 years old who have too much LDL, or "bad," cholesterol along with other risky factors, including obesity and high blood pressure.
Cholesterol screening is also now being recommended for kids with a family history of high cholesterol and those who are overweight, obese or have other heart disease risk factors. Screening should take place after age 2 but no later than age 10, according to the AAP.
Sources:
a.. ABC News July 7, 2008
a.. Pediatrics July 2008, Vol. 122 No. 1, pp. 198-208
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
It never ceases to amaze me just how far the drug companies push the limit of what they can get away with. Simply an absolutely amazing testimony to the effectiveness of their brainwashing and manipulation by investing in key non-scrupulous professionals and organizations.
Every few years, the number of people who "need" cholesterol-lowering (statin) drugs is suddenly expanded. At this rate, it won't be very long before someone suggests that everyone take them, cradle to grave. The companies that make the drugs would certainly approve of that idea.
Although the AAP maintains that these new guidelines have nothing to do with any commercial entities, the New York Times uncovered some pretty glaring connections.
For starters, the AAP has received contributions from several drug makers, including:
a.. $433,000 from Merck
b.. $835,250 from Abbott Laboratories' Ross Product Division
c.. $216,000 from the Bristol-Myers Squibb company Mead Johnson Nutritionals
Meanwhile, several members of AAP's nutrition committee, which developed the new guidelines, also have ties to drug makers:
a.. Dr. Stephen Daniels has consulted for Merck and Abbott Laboratories (although not on cholesterol drugs)
b.. Dr. Nicolas Stettler of the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia worked on clinical trials for Merck's Mevacor and a failed Pfizer cholesterol drug
c.. Dr. Jatinder Bhatia, chief of neonatology at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, has listed financial relationships with Bristol-Myers Squibb's Mead Johnson unit, Abbott's Ross Products and Dey Laboratories, which is affiliated with Merck
Cholesterol-lowering drugs are already the most used prescription drugs in the United States, so their makers really didn't need to target the youngest members of society to increase their bottom lines, but they did anyway.
Five cholesterol drugs have already been approved for kids with genetic cholesterol disorders:
a.. Bristol-Myers Squibb's Pravachol
b.. Pfizer's Lipitor
c.. Merck's Zocor and Mevacor
d.. Novartis's Lescol
But the new guidelines push it even beyond kids with a genetic disorder; they also include children who have high "bad" cholesterol, obesity, high blood pressure and other factors.
Why Cholesterol Drugs are Bad for You . and Even Worse for Your Kids
You should know that among the many dangers of statin drugs is an increased risk of heart disease. This is because patients taking statins become depleted in Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), which leads to fatigue, muscle weakness, soreness and, ironically, heart failure.
The FDA has had a petition to label statin packages with a warning about statin-induced CoQ10 depletion for years, but nothing has been done about it.
Some of the other risks of statin drugs include:
a.. Weakness
b.. Muscle aches
c.. An increase in cancer risk
d.. Immune system suppression
e.. Serious degenerative muscle tissue condition (rhabdomyolysis)
f.. Potential increase in liver enzymes so patients must be monitored for normal liver function
These, of course, are the risks to adults. But when you give drugs designed for adults to children, anything can happen because children metabolize drugs differently. At least one expert has expressed concern that statin drugs may impact a child's endocrine system, which regulates growth and development.
And there is absolutely no long-term data showing that statin drugs are safe for kids, who will likely be put on the drugs for many years, if not a lifetime.
If You are Worried About Your Child's Cholesterol
First, keep this in mind: It is VERY rare for anyone to need cholesterol-lowering drugs. Among the more than 20,000 patients who have come to my clinic, only four or five of them truly needed these drugs, as they had genetic challenges that required it. If you or someone you know is taking them, odds are very high, greater than 100 to 1, that you or they don't need it.
And this applies to children too.
Most often, cholesterol becomes high as a result of excess inflammation in your body. Far from being harmful, the cholesterol is released into your bloodstream to help repair damage by producing new cells.
So the solution is not to lower your cholesterol, it's to address what is causing the excess inflammation.
In kids, this is caused largely by the very same things it is in adults:
1. Eating too many sugar and grains
2. Eating trans fats
3. Not exercising
4. Emotional stress
If these items sound familiar in your family's lifestyle, now's the time to change it. You do not need drugs to get healthy, you just need to follow these eight steps:
1. Make sure you and your kids are getting plenty of high-quality, animal-based omega3-fats. I prefer those from krill oil.
2. Reduce, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars in your family's daily diet.
3. Eat the right foods for your nutritional type and make sure your kids are eating right for theirs.
4. Make sure your family eats a good portion of their food raw.
5. Get the right amount of exercise. When you exercise you increase your circulation and the blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of fighting an illness before it has the opportunity to spread.
7. Address your emotional challenges. I particularly love the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) for stress management. EFT is also easy for kids to learn and use.
8. If you are having troubles following this advice (exercising regularly, staying away from sugars, and eating right for your type) then you might want to try the hypnosis program I recommend for diet and exercise adherence.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Doing small things well
"Bigness comes from doing many small things well. Individually, they are not very dramatic transactions. Together though, they add up."
Edward S. Finkelstein
Author
Edward S. Finkelstein
Author
Friday, July 18, 2008
Why Low Cholesterol is NOT Good For You
Too little of one type of cholesterol has been linked to memory loss and Alzheimer's disease.
Scientists studied more than 3,500 civil servants to investigate how levels of HDL or "good" cholesterol were associated with memory. HDL cholesterol can influence the formation of the beta-amyloid "plaques" that are a distinctive feature in the brains of Alzheimer's patients.
Higher levels of HDL are also believed to protect against damage to blood supply caused by the narrowing of the arteries.
After the five-year study period, the researchers found that people with low levels of HDL were 53 percent more likely to suffer memory loss than people with the highest levels of HDL.
Those with impaired memory are at an increased risk of developing dementia later in life.
Sources:
a.. BBC News June 30, 2008
a.. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology June 30, 2008
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
There's plenty of confusion on the issue of cholesterol. I was also caught up in the nonsense. When I finished med school 25 years ago I was convinced your cholesterol could not be low enough.
So with a low-fat diet and plenty of exercise and oat bran (no drugs) I was able to get my cholesterol to a ridiculous level of 75. Yes you read that correctly -- my TOTAL cholesterol was a measly and pathetic 75 points. Fortunately, I later realized that it should be nearly three times as high as that to stay healthy, certainly no lower than 150.
However, due to misinformation in the media and drug pushing by multinational corporations, the majority of people worry about their cholesterol being too high and are clueless about the dangers of low cholesterol, especially when done artificially with drugs.
In an effort to clear up this massive confusion I recently completed a Special Report on Cholesterol that should put a lot of the misunderstandings to rest. These special reports are usually offered for $9.95. However, I'm making this PDF report available to ALL my readers for free because it's simply too important not to share with everyone.
What you need to know first and foremost is that cholesterol is good for you. It's present in every single cell in your body where it helps to produce cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D and bile acids to help you digest fat.
Cholesterol also helps in the formation of your memories and is vital for neurological function, which is why the above finding that low cholesterol is linked to memory loss is not at all surprising.
In fact, when your cholesterol levels go too low, a host of negative things happen in your body.
The Risks of Low Cholesterol
Impaired memory and dementia are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to low cholesterol's impact on your brain. Having too little of this beneficial compound also:
a.. Increases your risk of depression
b.. Can cause you to commit suicide
c.. May lead to violent behavior and aggression
d.. Increase your risk of cancer and Parkinson's disease
Unfortunately, in the United States lowering cholesterol levels has become so common that nearly everyone reading this either knows someone struggling to do so, or has struggled to do so themselves.
Your Cholesterol Will Normalize When You Address its Cause
Contrary to popular belief, high cholesterol is not a disease in and of itself. It is actually a response to something gone awry in your body. You see, cholesterol is produced whenever your cells become damaged, as it's a necessary component in making new, healthy cells.
So if you have a lot of damaged cells, you're also going to have a lot of cholesterol in your bloodstream. This is a good thing, in a sense, because it means your cells are being repaired. Now, while most conventional doctors would see all that cholesterol and put you on toxic cholesterol-lowering drugs, a more knowledgeable doctor would search for what's causing the damage in the first place.
And often it's inflammation brought on by:
a.. A diet too high in sugar and grains
b.. Too many processed, overcooked foods
c.. Not enough exercise
d.. Emotional stress
e.. Smoking
Again, all of the details on how to naturally bring your cholesterol to exactly where it needs to be are in my new Cholesterol Special Report. The remedy involves, of course, addressing the items I've mentioned above by making simple lifestyle changes that are outlined in Take Control of Your Health.
Whatever you do, don't fall for the mistaken belief that the lower your cholesterol goes, the better. If you lower your cholesterol through artificial means (statin drugs) without addressing the underlying causes, your body will continue to degenerate.
Leave the decision of how much cholesterol your body needs up to your body, and make the right lifestyle choices to keep your cells in their top condition. This way you get the best of both worlds: the right amount of cholesterol and a body in tip-top shape.
Scientists studied more than 3,500 civil servants to investigate how levels of HDL or "good" cholesterol were associated with memory. HDL cholesterol can influence the formation of the beta-amyloid "plaques" that are a distinctive feature in the brains of Alzheimer's patients.
Higher levels of HDL are also believed to protect against damage to blood supply caused by the narrowing of the arteries.
After the five-year study period, the researchers found that people with low levels of HDL were 53 percent more likely to suffer memory loss than people with the highest levels of HDL.
Those with impaired memory are at an increased risk of developing dementia later in life.
Sources:
a.. BBC News June 30, 2008
a.. Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology June 30, 2008
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
There's plenty of confusion on the issue of cholesterol. I was also caught up in the nonsense. When I finished med school 25 years ago I was convinced your cholesterol could not be low enough.
So with a low-fat diet and plenty of exercise and oat bran (no drugs) I was able to get my cholesterol to a ridiculous level of 75. Yes you read that correctly -- my TOTAL cholesterol was a measly and pathetic 75 points. Fortunately, I later realized that it should be nearly three times as high as that to stay healthy, certainly no lower than 150.
However, due to misinformation in the media and drug pushing by multinational corporations, the majority of people worry about their cholesterol being too high and are clueless about the dangers of low cholesterol, especially when done artificially with drugs.
In an effort to clear up this massive confusion I recently completed a Special Report on Cholesterol that should put a lot of the misunderstandings to rest. These special reports are usually offered for $9.95. However, I'm making this PDF report available to ALL my readers for free because it's simply too important not to share with everyone.
What you need to know first and foremost is that cholesterol is good for you. It's present in every single cell in your body where it helps to produce cell membranes, hormones, vitamin D and bile acids to help you digest fat.
Cholesterol also helps in the formation of your memories and is vital for neurological function, which is why the above finding that low cholesterol is linked to memory loss is not at all surprising.
In fact, when your cholesterol levels go too low, a host of negative things happen in your body.
The Risks of Low Cholesterol
Impaired memory and dementia are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to low cholesterol's impact on your brain. Having too little of this beneficial compound also:
a.. Increases your risk of depression
b.. Can cause you to commit suicide
c.. May lead to violent behavior and aggression
d.. Increase your risk of cancer and Parkinson's disease
Unfortunately, in the United States lowering cholesterol levels has become so common that nearly everyone reading this either knows someone struggling to do so, or has struggled to do so themselves.
Your Cholesterol Will Normalize When You Address its Cause
Contrary to popular belief, high cholesterol is not a disease in and of itself. It is actually a response to something gone awry in your body. You see, cholesterol is produced whenever your cells become damaged, as it's a necessary component in making new, healthy cells.
So if you have a lot of damaged cells, you're also going to have a lot of cholesterol in your bloodstream. This is a good thing, in a sense, because it means your cells are being repaired. Now, while most conventional doctors would see all that cholesterol and put you on toxic cholesterol-lowering drugs, a more knowledgeable doctor would search for what's causing the damage in the first place.
And often it's inflammation brought on by:
a.. A diet too high in sugar and grains
b.. Too many processed, overcooked foods
c.. Not enough exercise
d.. Emotional stress
e.. Smoking
Again, all of the details on how to naturally bring your cholesterol to exactly where it needs to be are in my new Cholesterol Special Report. The remedy involves, of course, addressing the items I've mentioned above by making simple lifestyle changes that are outlined in Take Control of Your Health.
Whatever you do, don't fall for the mistaken belief that the lower your cholesterol goes, the better. If you lower your cholesterol through artificial means (statin drugs) without addressing the underlying causes, your body will continue to degenerate.
Leave the decision of how much cholesterol your body needs up to your body, and make the right lifestyle choices to keep your cells in their top condition. This way you get the best of both worlds: the right amount of cholesterol and a body in tip-top shape.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Where to find happiness
"Plenty of people miss their share of happiness, not because they never found it, but because they didn't stop to enjoy it."
William Feather
1889-1981, Writer
William Feather
1889-1981, Writer
Moringa Oleifera as an Eco-friendly Solution
Moringa Oleifera, commonly known simply as Moringa. Moringa is one of
eco-friendly plants that help the world hunger and sick people. It is
a soft-wooded tree that grows to about 20 feet tall, with corky bark
and small feathery leaves. Its root is just like a Japanese wasabi or
horseradish.
Moringa is entirely edible, from leaves to roots. The moringa plant
is drought resistant and grows practically anywhere around the world--
even lands with poor soil, near the sea and dry areas, and can even
withstand severe drought once the plant is established.
Seeds sprout readily in one week. Alternatively, one can plant a
branch and within a week, it will grow by itself with another sprout.
It is often cut back year after year in fence rows and continues to
thrive. Therefore, to keep an abundant supply of leaves, flowers, and
pods within easy reach, topping out is useful. Of course, it is
natural and understandable that water and fertilizer make it grow
better.
## Nutritional Value of Moringa
The leaves contain significant sources of minerals and vitamins A, B,
and C. It contains high levels of calcium, phosphorous, iron,
protein, with low fat, and low carbohydrates. Its iron content is
very good for anemia.
We like to believe that if we will plant moringa tree in our backyard
garden as well as all vacant lots around the world, there shall be no
food shortages and malnutrition problems.
According to other sources on the internet, Moringa has seven times
the vitamin C in oranges; four times the calcium and two times the
protein in milk; four times the vitamin A in carrots; and three times
the potassium in bananas.
## Culinary Uses of Moringa
Virtually every part of it is edible. The Moringa leaves are also
eaten as a leaf vegetable, particularly in the Philippines, where it
is called malunggay. It can be cooked in any various ways like that
of spinach. The roots can be pulled out and can be used as
horseradish. Flowers can be eaten as vegetable, or you can use it to
make a tea, and it provides calcium and potassium. From its seed,
quality oil called Ben oil is yield by pressing. The oil contains:
65.7% Oleic acids; 9.3% Palmitic acid; 7.4% Stearic acid; and 8.6%
Behenic acid. The oil is good for cooking and lubricating precision
machines such as watches and sewing machines.
So why I became interested in planting moringa? During the 1940s,
Japan suffered from food shortages. We used desiccated coconut powder
as bread flour mixed with edible grass powder. I can remember how
moringa leaves were dried and powdered to make a bitterly tasting
bread just to survive from hunger. However, it was good that moringa
provided hungry Japanese with enough nutrients.
How did we make bread out of moringa leaves? At first, rinse moringa
leaves and boil it for 4-5 minutes. Then, dry it either under the sun
or windy shade. Grind it and mix with any flour to make cake, bread,
or noodles. This makes a highly nutritious daily meal.
The leaves and flowers are nutritious and helps especially for
children's growth. Leaves can be dried and powdered, and mixed with
any flour to make nutritious cake and bread. Fresh leaves are cooked
just like any other vegetables, or be grinded for juice extract. It
is recommended that the juice be boiled for a minute to remove some
bitter taste and vegetable smell. Boiled juice is mixed with milk and
honey or sugar. Our Pyro-Energen staffs cook the grinded leaves with
chicken to make a good, tasty, and nutritious soup practically on
every daily meal. Oh, that's because our office fence is surrounded
by plenty of Moringa trees.
The ben oil from the seed can be extracted by pressing or mashing it
and boiled with water. Boiling it will make the oil float to the
surface of the water. Scoop it and you can use it as an excellent
cooking or lubricating oil.
Now, do not throw the mashed seed. You can use it for treating
polluted water.
According to the old folks and traditional healers, if eaten, grinded
seeds are good for detoxification of heavy toxic metals in the body,
although we do not have any clinical data for it. But certainly, it
is way better than those foot detox machines sold worldwide.
## Water Treatment with Moringa Seeds
Moringa seeds are also used for water treatment. As seen in the photo
below, the right PET bottle shows artificially made polluted water
out of kitchen wastes. When kept with grinded moringa seeds, the dirt
contaminated in the water settles after a few hours as seen in the
left PET bottle.
http://www.pyroenergen.com/articles08/images/water-treatment.jpg
Moringa's seed can remove hazardous materials from water. The use of
Moringa for body detoxification is also being studied by several
research groups.
According to some scientists, there are several ways to improve the
process of water treatment with the Moringa seed.
Here's the simplest way we knew from old folks:
Dried Moringa seed is grinded or mashed to extract Ben oil (the seed
can be used for water treatment even after the ben oil is extracted).
The ratio of seed and water depends on the purification quality and
speed. 100-200 seeds to a liter of water are recommended. Note that
bacteria cannot be eradicated by the moringa water treatment.
## Moringa for Medicinal Purposes
Moringa is galactagogue, rubefacient, antiscorbutic, diuretic,
stimulant, purgative, antibiotic, and antifungal. What more could you
ask for? It is really a fantastic and a wonder plant.
The seeds are good for hypertension, gout, asthma, hiccups, cancer,
body detox, and anti-aging. It also helps in increasing sperm count.
Oil extracted from Moringa flowers can also be helpful for arthritic
pains, and rheumatic and gouty joints. Its leaves are also used for
hiccups, asthma, gout, backache, rheumatism, and skin wounds and
sores. Moringa leaves are believed to increase the flow of mother's
milk, and good for constipation, ulcers, diabetes, and for
stabilizing blood pressure.
Moringa contains a compound known as Pterygospermin. It has powerful
antibiotic and fungicidal effects especially for skin infection. It
helps slow down skin aging, too.
Moringa contains antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties
effective for chronic swelling as well as trauma.
Traditional healers may know more about the effectiveness of these
herbs.
Proper use of moringa is therefore an excellent eco-friendly solution
for the world.
Now, you can call Moringa Oleifera an eco-friendly miracle tree of
the world. Let us save the world from hunger and from sick people.
Let us plant Moringa, today!
----------------------------------------------------------
About the Author:
Junji Takano is a Japanese health researcher involved in
investigating the cause of various diseases since 1960. In 1968, he
invented Pyro-Energen, the first electromedicine device that
eradicates viral diseases, cancer, and diseases of unknown cause
effectively without side effects.
Free newsletter: http://www.pyroenergen.com/newsletter.htm
eco-friendly plants that help the world hunger and sick people. It is
a soft-wooded tree that grows to about 20 feet tall, with corky bark
and small feathery leaves. Its root is just like a Japanese wasabi or
horseradish.
Moringa is entirely edible, from leaves to roots. The moringa plant
is drought resistant and grows practically anywhere around the world--
even lands with poor soil, near the sea and dry areas, and can even
withstand severe drought once the plant is established.
Seeds sprout readily in one week. Alternatively, one can plant a
branch and within a week, it will grow by itself with another sprout.
It is often cut back year after year in fence rows and continues to
thrive. Therefore, to keep an abundant supply of leaves, flowers, and
pods within easy reach, topping out is useful. Of course, it is
natural and understandable that water and fertilizer make it grow
better.
## Nutritional Value of Moringa
The leaves contain significant sources of minerals and vitamins A, B,
and C. It contains high levels of calcium, phosphorous, iron,
protein, with low fat, and low carbohydrates. Its iron content is
very good for anemia.
We like to believe that if we will plant moringa tree in our backyard
garden as well as all vacant lots around the world, there shall be no
food shortages and malnutrition problems.
According to other sources on the internet, Moringa has seven times
the vitamin C in oranges; four times the calcium and two times the
protein in milk; four times the vitamin A in carrots; and three times
the potassium in bananas.
## Culinary Uses of Moringa
Virtually every part of it is edible. The Moringa leaves are also
eaten as a leaf vegetable, particularly in the Philippines, where it
is called malunggay. It can be cooked in any various ways like that
of spinach. The roots can be pulled out and can be used as
horseradish. Flowers can be eaten as vegetable, or you can use it to
make a tea, and it provides calcium and potassium. From its seed,
quality oil called Ben oil is yield by pressing. The oil contains:
65.7% Oleic acids; 9.3% Palmitic acid; 7.4% Stearic acid; and 8.6%
Behenic acid. The oil is good for cooking and lubricating precision
machines such as watches and sewing machines.
So why I became interested in planting moringa? During the 1940s,
Japan suffered from food shortages. We used desiccated coconut powder
as bread flour mixed with edible grass powder. I can remember how
moringa leaves were dried and powdered to make a bitterly tasting
bread just to survive from hunger. However, it was good that moringa
provided hungry Japanese with enough nutrients.
How did we make bread out of moringa leaves? At first, rinse moringa
leaves and boil it for 4-5 minutes. Then, dry it either under the sun
or windy shade. Grind it and mix with any flour to make cake, bread,
or noodles. This makes a highly nutritious daily meal.
The leaves and flowers are nutritious and helps especially for
children's growth. Leaves can be dried and powdered, and mixed with
any flour to make nutritious cake and bread. Fresh leaves are cooked
just like any other vegetables, or be grinded for juice extract. It
is recommended that the juice be boiled for a minute to remove some
bitter taste and vegetable smell. Boiled juice is mixed with milk and
honey or sugar. Our Pyro-Energen staffs cook the grinded leaves with
chicken to make a good, tasty, and nutritious soup practically on
every daily meal. Oh, that's because our office fence is surrounded
by plenty of Moringa trees.
The ben oil from the seed can be extracted by pressing or mashing it
and boiled with water. Boiling it will make the oil float to the
surface of the water. Scoop it and you can use it as an excellent
cooking or lubricating oil.
Now, do not throw the mashed seed. You can use it for treating
polluted water.
According to the old folks and traditional healers, if eaten, grinded
seeds are good for detoxification of heavy toxic metals in the body,
although we do not have any clinical data for it. But certainly, it
is way better than those foot detox machines sold worldwide.
## Water Treatment with Moringa Seeds
Moringa seeds are also used for water treatment. As seen in the photo
below, the right PET bottle shows artificially made polluted water
out of kitchen wastes. When kept with grinded moringa seeds, the dirt
contaminated in the water settles after a few hours as seen in the
left PET bottle.
http://www.pyroenergen.com/articles08/images/water-treatment.jpg
Moringa's seed can remove hazardous materials from water. The use of
Moringa for body detoxification is also being studied by several
research groups.
According to some scientists, there are several ways to improve the
process of water treatment with the Moringa seed.
Here's the simplest way we knew from old folks:
Dried Moringa seed is grinded or mashed to extract Ben oil (the seed
can be used for water treatment even after the ben oil is extracted).
The ratio of seed and water depends on the purification quality and
speed. 100-200 seeds to a liter of water are recommended. Note that
bacteria cannot be eradicated by the moringa water treatment.
## Moringa for Medicinal Purposes
Moringa is galactagogue, rubefacient, antiscorbutic, diuretic,
stimulant, purgative, antibiotic, and antifungal. What more could you
ask for? It is really a fantastic and a wonder plant.
The seeds are good for hypertension, gout, asthma, hiccups, cancer,
body detox, and anti-aging. It also helps in increasing sperm count.
Oil extracted from Moringa flowers can also be helpful for arthritic
pains, and rheumatic and gouty joints. Its leaves are also used for
hiccups, asthma, gout, backache, rheumatism, and skin wounds and
sores. Moringa leaves are believed to increase the flow of mother's
milk, and good for constipation, ulcers, diabetes, and for
stabilizing blood pressure.
Moringa contains a compound known as Pterygospermin. It has powerful
antibiotic and fungicidal effects especially for skin infection. It
helps slow down skin aging, too.
Moringa contains antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties
effective for chronic swelling as well as trauma.
Traditional healers may know more about the effectiveness of these
herbs.
Proper use of moringa is therefore an excellent eco-friendly solution
for the world.
Now, you can call Moringa Oleifera an eco-friendly miracle tree of
the world. Let us save the world from hunger and from sick people.
Let us plant Moringa, today!
----------------------------------------------------------
About the Author:
Junji Takano is a Japanese health researcher involved in
investigating the cause of various diseases since 1960. In 1968, he
invented Pyro-Energen, the first electromedicine device that
eradicates viral diseases, cancer, and diseases of unknown cause
effectively without side effects.
Free newsletter: http://www.pyroenergen.com/newsletter.htm
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Make "Joy" an "Automatic" Habit
from Dan Robey, at
http://www.thepowerofpositivehabits.com
"Here is another habit you will love because it
brings joy and happiness into your life...automatically.
Here is how it works.
We all have activities that we engage in
that bring us joy and happiness. It could be a craft like
woodworking, or sewing, or a hobby, a recreational
activity or sport. We all enjoy some type of leisure activity
that brings us joy.
Here is an example:
In my life, one activity that brings real joy and
happiness to my life is boating. I live in Miami and I love
to go out in the ocean in my boat. I love seeing the vast expanse
of the ocean, the beautiful blue green waters, it makes
me feel close to nature. I love taking my family and friends
out in my boat, it makes me happy to see the smiles
on their faces as they enjoy the great outdoors.
The problem is that I can only go boating when the weather is
good, and when I have time off from work. How can I
enjoy boating without actually going out in my boat?
One way is to subscribe to magazines about boating, fishing,
and the outdoors. These magazines are automatically delivered
to my door every month, they contain beautiful pictures of
the ocean and boats. They also contain reviews of boating
equipment, maps of places to go, and stories about boating
adventures.
As I read these magazines and look at the pictures, they make
me feel great. They bring joy to my life because they take
me out in the ocean...even if only in my mind.
You can do the same thing. No matter what your hobby
or recreational interest is, I can bet you that there is
a magazine that covers it. There are magazines that cover sports,
fitness, health, hobbies, recreation, lifestyles...you name it.
The beauty of magazines is that unlike the internet, they are
delivered to your door through the mail automatically. They are
physical objects that you can hold in your hand and look at, and
they are very inexpensive. They provide information and images that
can bring joy to your heart...automatically.
Go to your local bookstore and browse thru the magazine section.
Look for magazines that will make you happy in the same way that
the boating magazines make me happy.
Subscribe to them and enjoy them as they come to your home every
month.
The best part about this habit is that when the magazine arrives at
your door and you read it, you will smile....and think of me!"
http://www.thepowerofpositivehabits.com
"Here is another habit you will love because it
brings joy and happiness into your life...automatically.
Here is how it works.
We all have activities that we engage in
that bring us joy and happiness. It could be a craft like
woodworking, or sewing, or a hobby, a recreational
activity or sport. We all enjoy some type of leisure activity
that brings us joy.
Here is an example:
In my life, one activity that brings real joy and
happiness to my life is boating. I live in Miami and I love
to go out in the ocean in my boat. I love seeing the vast expanse
of the ocean, the beautiful blue green waters, it makes
me feel close to nature. I love taking my family and friends
out in my boat, it makes me happy to see the smiles
on their faces as they enjoy the great outdoors.
The problem is that I can only go boating when the weather is
good, and when I have time off from work. How can I
enjoy boating without actually going out in my boat?
One way is to subscribe to magazines about boating, fishing,
and the outdoors. These magazines are automatically delivered
to my door every month, they contain beautiful pictures of
the ocean and boats. They also contain reviews of boating
equipment, maps of places to go, and stories about boating
adventures.
As I read these magazines and look at the pictures, they make
me feel great. They bring joy to my life because they take
me out in the ocean...even if only in my mind.
You can do the same thing. No matter what your hobby
or recreational interest is, I can bet you that there is
a magazine that covers it. There are magazines that cover sports,
fitness, health, hobbies, recreation, lifestyles...you name it.
The beauty of magazines is that unlike the internet, they are
delivered to your door through the mail automatically. They are
physical objects that you can hold in your hand and look at, and
they are very inexpensive. They provide information and images that
can bring joy to your heart...automatically.
Go to your local bookstore and browse thru the magazine section.
Look for magazines that will make you happy in the same way that
the boating magazines make me happy.
Subscribe to them and enjoy them as they come to your home every
month.
The best part about this habit is that when the magazine arrives at
your door and you read it, you will smile....and think of me!"
Achieving your goals
"If you make the unconditional commitment to reach your most important goals, if the strength of your decision is sufficient, you will find the way and the power to achieve your goals."
Robert Conklin
Teacher, Author and Speaker
Robert Conklin
Teacher, Author and Speaker
Statin Use Has Jumped 150 Percent
Use of the cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins rose by 156 percent between 2000 and 2005, rising from 15.8 million people to 29.7 million people. Spending on the drugs jumped from $7.7 billion to $19.7 billion annually over the same period.
The total number of outpatient prescriptions for statins rose from about 90 million in 2000 to nearly 174 million in 2005. Each individual spent $484 a year on average on statins in 2000; this rose to $661 by 2005.
Statins include atorvastatin, sold by Pfizer under the brand name Lipitor; pravastatin or Pravachol, sold by Bristol Myers Squibb; fluvastatin, sold by Novartis under the brand name Lescol, and several others.
Sources:
a.. Reuters June 25, 2008
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
Here's yet another example of how corrupted government "health guidelines" and pharmaceutical industry profits go hand in hand. As some of you may remember, in 2004 the U.S. government's National Cholesterol Education Program panel advised those at risk for heart disease to reduce their LDL (bad) cholesterol to very, very low, levels.
Before 2004, a 130-milligram LDL cholesterol level was considered healthy. The updated guidelines, however, recommended levels of less than 100, or even less than 70 for patients at very high risk.
In order to achieve these outrageous and dangerously low targets you generally have to take not just one, but multiple cholesterol-lowering drugs in combination. The new guidelines instantly increased the market for these drugs.
So it did not come as a surprise to find out that eight of the nine doctors on the panel that approved these absurdly low guidelines in the United States were in fact making money from the cholesterol-lowering drugs they were pushing.
The Dangerous Side Effects of Statin Drugs
Aside from the fact that statin drugs are some of the most unnecessary and dangerous drugs out there -- due to the fact that their use is based on a misinformed notion that cholesterol is the nemesis of good health in the first place -- they're fraught with potentially dangerous side effects.
Now, unlike their predecessors, statin drugs oftentimes do not have any immediate side effects, and they are quite effective, capable of lowering cholesterol levels by 50 points or more.
But there's an ever-growing body of evidence showing that potentially serious side effects begin to manifest several months after the commencement of therapy.
For starters, some of the possible consequences of taking statins in strong doses or for a lengthy period of time include:
a.. Depression of mental acuity
b.. Anemia
c.. Acidosis
d.. Frequent fevers
e.. Cataracts
The most common side effect is muscle pain and weakness, a condition called rhabdomyolysis, most likely due to the depletion of Co-Q10, a nutrient that supports muscle function.
There are no official warnings in the U.S. regarding CoQ10 depletion, and many physicians fail to inform you about this problem as well. Labeling in Canada, however, clearly warns of CoQ10 depletion and even notes that this nutrient deficiency "could lead to impaired cardiac function in patients with borderline congestive heart failure."
The breakdown of skeletal muscle tissue can in turn also lead to kidney failure.
The industry insists that only 2-3 percent of patients get muscle aches and cramps but according to one study, 98 percent of patients taking Lipitor and one-third of the patients taking Mevacor (a lower-dose statin) suffered from muscle problems!
Adding insult to injury, active people are actually more likely to develop problems from statin use than those who are sedentary. In a study carried out in Austria, only six out of 22 athletes with familial hypercholesterolemia were able to endure statin treatment. The others discontinued treatment because of muscle pain.
Why Statins are Unnecessary
I have something to say that may sound shocking to some of you, but if you haven't already heard this it needs to be said: Cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease.
And if you become overly concerned with trying to lower your levels to some set number, you will be completely missing the real problem.
There's so much confusion on the issue of cholesterol, I put together a Special Report on Cholesterol, which I offered up for free in another recent article. These reports are usually reserved for members of my Inner Circle, however, I'm offering this PDF report to ALL my readers yet again, because it contains vital information about cholesterol and the persistent myths surrounding it. Feel free to print it out, forward it, and share the information with your friends and family.
How to Lower Your Cholesterol Naturally
There's really no reason to take statins and suffer the consequences from these ill-conceived drugs. These simple guidelines have the power to lower your cholesterol naturally, without any dangerous side effects:
1. Make sure you're getting plenty of high-quality, animal-based omega3-fats. I prefer those from krill oil.
2. Reduce, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars in your daily diet.
3. Eat the right foods for your nutritional type.
4. Eat a good portion of your food raw.
5. Get the right amount of exercise. When you exercise you increase your circulation and the blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of fighting an illness before it has the opportunity to spread.
6. Avoid smoking and drinking alcohol excessively.
7. Address your emotional challenges. I particularly love the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) for stress management.
8. If you are having troubles following this advice (exercising regularly, staying away from sugars, and eating right for your type) then try the hypnosis program I recommend for diet and exercise adherence.
The total number of outpatient prescriptions for statins rose from about 90 million in 2000 to nearly 174 million in 2005. Each individual spent $484 a year on average on statins in 2000; this rose to $661 by 2005.
Statins include atorvastatin, sold by Pfizer under the brand name Lipitor; pravastatin or Pravachol, sold by Bristol Myers Squibb; fluvastatin, sold by Novartis under the brand name Lescol, and several others.
Sources:
a.. Reuters June 25, 2008
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
Here's yet another example of how corrupted government "health guidelines" and pharmaceutical industry profits go hand in hand. As some of you may remember, in 2004 the U.S. government's National Cholesterol Education Program panel advised those at risk for heart disease to reduce their LDL (bad) cholesterol to very, very low, levels.
Before 2004, a 130-milligram LDL cholesterol level was considered healthy. The updated guidelines, however, recommended levels of less than 100, or even less than 70 for patients at very high risk.
In order to achieve these outrageous and dangerously low targets you generally have to take not just one, but multiple cholesterol-lowering drugs in combination. The new guidelines instantly increased the market for these drugs.
So it did not come as a surprise to find out that eight of the nine doctors on the panel that approved these absurdly low guidelines in the United States were in fact making money from the cholesterol-lowering drugs they were pushing.
The Dangerous Side Effects of Statin Drugs
Aside from the fact that statin drugs are some of the most unnecessary and dangerous drugs out there -- due to the fact that their use is based on a misinformed notion that cholesterol is the nemesis of good health in the first place -- they're fraught with potentially dangerous side effects.
Now, unlike their predecessors, statin drugs oftentimes do not have any immediate side effects, and they are quite effective, capable of lowering cholesterol levels by 50 points or more.
But there's an ever-growing body of evidence showing that potentially serious side effects begin to manifest several months after the commencement of therapy.
For starters, some of the possible consequences of taking statins in strong doses or for a lengthy period of time include:
a.. Depression of mental acuity
b.. Anemia
c.. Acidosis
d.. Frequent fevers
e.. Cataracts
The most common side effect is muscle pain and weakness, a condition called rhabdomyolysis, most likely due to the depletion of Co-Q10, a nutrient that supports muscle function.
There are no official warnings in the U.S. regarding CoQ10 depletion, and many physicians fail to inform you about this problem as well. Labeling in Canada, however, clearly warns of CoQ10 depletion and even notes that this nutrient deficiency "could lead to impaired cardiac function in patients with borderline congestive heart failure."
The breakdown of skeletal muscle tissue can in turn also lead to kidney failure.
The industry insists that only 2-3 percent of patients get muscle aches and cramps but according to one study, 98 percent of patients taking Lipitor and one-third of the patients taking Mevacor (a lower-dose statin) suffered from muscle problems!
Adding insult to injury, active people are actually more likely to develop problems from statin use than those who are sedentary. In a study carried out in Austria, only six out of 22 athletes with familial hypercholesterolemia were able to endure statin treatment. The others discontinued treatment because of muscle pain.
Why Statins are Unnecessary
I have something to say that may sound shocking to some of you, but if you haven't already heard this it needs to be said: Cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease.
And if you become overly concerned with trying to lower your levels to some set number, you will be completely missing the real problem.
There's so much confusion on the issue of cholesterol, I put together a Special Report on Cholesterol, which I offered up for free in another recent article. These reports are usually reserved for members of my Inner Circle, however, I'm offering this PDF report to ALL my readers yet again, because it contains vital information about cholesterol and the persistent myths surrounding it. Feel free to print it out, forward it, and share the information with your friends and family.
How to Lower Your Cholesterol Naturally
There's really no reason to take statins and suffer the consequences from these ill-conceived drugs. These simple guidelines have the power to lower your cholesterol naturally, without any dangerous side effects:
1. Make sure you're getting plenty of high-quality, animal-based omega3-fats. I prefer those from krill oil.
2. Reduce, with the plan of eliminating, grains and sugars in your daily diet.
3. Eat the right foods for your nutritional type.
4. Eat a good portion of your food raw.
5. Get the right amount of exercise. When you exercise you increase your circulation and the blood flow throughout your body. The components of your immune system are also better circulated, which means your immune system has a better chance of fighting an illness before it has the opportunity to spread.
6. Avoid smoking and drinking alcohol excessively.
7. Address your emotional challenges. I particularly love the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) for stress management.
8. If you are having troubles following this advice (exercising regularly, staying away from sugars, and eating right for your type) then try the hypnosis program I recommend for diet and exercise adherence.
Vitamin D: Builds Bones And Much More
I keep posting stuff here about vitamin D. The bottom line? Get out in the sun. It's summertime, and it's the easiest time to get your vitamin D.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080714162515.htm
ScienceDaily (July 15, 2008) - Vitamin D is essential to strong bones. Inadequate vitamin D can lead to osteoporosis, a brittle bone disease.
Recently, researchers have found that vitamin D may help reduce the risk of other diseases.
Fall prevention: With age, decreasing muscle strength can increase the risk of falls and bone fractures. Several studies have found that vitamin D supplements may benefit muscle strength and balance, helping older adults stay steadier on their feet.
Cancer prevention: Observational research indicates that low levels of vitamin D increase the risk of some cancers - including those of the breast, colon, rectum, ovary, kidney, lung and uterus. Although unclear why, vitamin D in adequate amounts appears to help regulate cellular growth, potentially preventing cells from becoming cancerous.
Chronic pain prevention: Vitamin D deficiency is increasingly recognized as an important cause of muscle pain and weakness.
Protection against autoimmune diseases: Evidence is mounting that vitamin D may offer protection from type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis by reducing inflammation and strengthening the immune system. In one study, researchers found a 40 percent lower risk of multiple sclerosis in women who supplemented their diet each day with at least 400 international units (IU) of vitamin D.
Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease: Some research indicates that lower vitamin D levels are associated with a number of factors that affect cardiovascular health, including coronary artery calcification and, possibly, congestive heart failure.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/07/080714162515.htm
ScienceDaily (July 15, 2008) - Vitamin D is essential to strong bones. Inadequate vitamin D can lead to osteoporosis, a brittle bone disease.
Recently, researchers have found that vitamin D may help reduce the risk of other diseases.
Fall prevention: With age, decreasing muscle strength can increase the risk of falls and bone fractures. Several studies have found that vitamin D supplements may benefit muscle strength and balance, helping older adults stay steadier on their feet.
Cancer prevention: Observational research indicates that low levels of vitamin D increase the risk of some cancers - including those of the breast, colon, rectum, ovary, kidney, lung and uterus. Although unclear why, vitamin D in adequate amounts appears to help regulate cellular growth, potentially preventing cells from becoming cancerous.
Chronic pain prevention: Vitamin D deficiency is increasingly recognized as an important cause of muscle pain and weakness.
Protection against autoimmune diseases: Evidence is mounting that vitamin D may offer protection from type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis by reducing inflammation and strengthening the immune system. In one study, researchers found a 40 percent lower risk of multiple sclerosis in women who supplemented their diet each day with at least 400 international units (IU) of vitamin D.
Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease: Some research indicates that lower vitamin D levels are associated with a number of factors that affect cardiovascular health, including coronary artery calcification and, possibly, congestive heart failure.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Being kind
"Select a few people to be particularly kind to today - those you were a little harsh with yesterday."
Norman Vincent Peale
1898-1993, Author and Speaker
Norman Vincent Peale
1898-1993, Author and Speaker
Monday, July 14, 2008
Reasons to say no to vaccines
Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, DO
July 9, 2008
NewsWithViews.com
Vaccinating children has become sacrosanct in our culture. Doctors and government officials insist that vaccines are safe, and parents are pressured into compliance. In fact, parents have been reported to social services by doctors who consider not vaccinating to be a form of medical neglect or child abuse. Legislators across the country are attempting to pass laws in which parents will have no rights to refuse what is injected into their children.
The inconsistency of rules involving the care of children is striking. Mothers are in complete control of their child's health while in the womb. They make choices against eating tuna, taking medications, smoking cigarettes and avoiding alcohol. Mothers may choose to even terminate the pregnancy. But the moment the baby arrives, control over their child's body is forcibly surrendered to healthcare providers and the government. The leg is jabbed with shots, eyes are gooped with antibiotic ointment and the heel is poked to get a drop of DNA-containing blood. With the passage of the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007, signed into law April 24, 2008, the blood will be collected and warehoused for scientific research.[1] Parents have little or no say in any of these events. (see my previous article, "Who Owns Your Child?")
Vaccination is promoted by an industry that capitalizes on fear and the perceived necessity of the procedure has become multi-generationally entrenched. We have been programmed by the medical community and the media to believe that everyone - children and adults -- will become sick, and likely die, unless they are vaccinated. This explains why not vaccinating can be unfathomable to new parents who are unreasonably terrified of what were considered normal childhood illnesses only a few decades ago. The majority adults over 50 years of age remember having measles and the chickenpox. Both were mostly mild diseases, lasting seven to fourteen days, and leaving behind lifetime immunity.
And even though chickenpox is rarely fatal, most parents opt to vaccinate. Merck & Co. estimated that as of December 31, 2007, 80 to 85 percent of all four to six-year-olds had received two doses of Varivax®, at one year and a booster before school.[2] With little attention on the problems with the chickenpox vaccine cited in the media, most don't realize that it can cause harm. Research shows that nearly 1 in 5,000 children who receive the chickenpox inoculation develop shingles within ten years of being vaccinated. Shingles, an intensely painful, blistering rash, is most commonly seen in the elderly or the chronically ill. It was rarely, if ever, seen in healthy children before the introduction of this vaccine. Other serious side effects, such as seizures, pneumonia, and anaphylaxis (a severe allergic reaction), have been reported as a result of Varivax. Before it became available, about 50 children died every year from rare or unusual complications of the chickenpox. Put in perspective, 53 children died in drowning accidents in the [U.S.] state of Georgia in 1999.
Vaccination has been cited as one of the ten greatest public health achievements of the 20th century. However, it doesn't require an advanced degree in science to grasp that the public health accolades, celebrating high vaccination rates and low infection rates, have lead to serious health consequences across the globe. Vaccine ingredients seem to be playing a substantial role.
Problems With Vaccine Ingredients
Gelatin, one of many ingredients in vaccines, is known to cause allergies and asthma. Allergies are now the most frequently reported chronic condition in children, limiting activities in four out of 10 children. Asthma, the second most common chronic childhood disease, affects more than one child in 20. The combined healthcare costs of asthma and allergies have soared to more than $25 billion/year.[3] Vaccines that contain gelatin include chickenpox, MMR, Boostrix (teen pertussis booster), Tripedia (DTaP) and the adult shingles vaccine, Zostrix. Vaccine gelatin may be contributing substantially to the skyrocketing incidence of, and expenditures on, asthma and allergies.
Another vaccine additive, formaldehyde, can interrupt the normal function of the immune system. A colorless, pungent-smelling gas, formaldehyde can cause watery eyes, burning sensations in the eyes and throat, nausea, difficulty in breathing and asthma attacks when exposed to amounts as small as 0.1 parts per million. It is listed as a hazardous chemical on eight federal regulatory lists and considered to be one of the ten worst compounds on the ecosystem and health. Between 10 and 20 percent of general population has a reaction coming in contact with formaldehyde. Topical exposure can cause a mild reaction, such as dry skin and redness. The California Indoor Air Quality Fact Sheet states there is no known threshold level below which cancer risk does not exist.[4] The World Health Association (WHO) recommends that an exposure should not exceed 0.05 ppm or 0.05 mg/kg. So, for 12 pound baby (about 5kg), the maximum exposure should be below 0.25 mg. But with the current schedule, children receive more than ten times that amount, more than 3.5 mg, if they receive every mandated vaccine. Vaccines that contain formaldehyde include DTaP, polio, influenza, hepatitis A and hepatitis B.
Thankfully, mercury (in the form of thimerosal) has been removed from most vaccines. However, measurable amounts are still found in multi-vial flu shots, tetanus boosters, Energix-B (hepatitis B vaccine), Menomune (college meningitis vaccine), TriHiBit and Tripedia (both DTaP vaccines), and Twinrix (a combination hepatitis A and hepatitis B vaccine). Trace amounts remain in many more. Countless children have developed autism and there is strong evidence that their brains were injured by the preservative thimerosal.
Follow the Money
Positioned as a loss leader, vaccines appear to be the economic drivers of both the medical and the pharmaceutical industry. A loss leader is a business technique in which a less-expensive product is sold or given away for the sake of offering another product at a greater profit. This common practice is utilized to introduce new customers to a product, to build a new customer base and/or to secure future recurring revenue. Using a loss leader is more than just a nifty business trick - it can be a very successful economic strategy when executed properly. The classic example of a loss leader is the sale of razor blades. Companies like Gillette essentially give their razor units away for free, knowing that customers will buy their replacement blades, where the company makes all of its profit, for as long as they use the razor.
Vaccines play a similar role for the drug companies. The cost of a vaccine is relatively inexpensive compared to the billions of dollars spent on medical interventions, medications-and even more vaccines-dispensed as a result of a vaccination side effect.
Consider this example: the potential consequences of an inoculation with one of the two newly approved vaccines to prevent a rotavirus diarrheal infection, RotaTeq® and Rotarix®.
Side effects listed on the package insert for RotaTeq include diarrhea, vomiting, irritability, fever, wheezing and coughing. RotaTeq has also been associated with bloody stools, a warning sign of a serious complication called an intussusception. Triggered by the vaccine, intussusception is an event where a portion of the bowel slides into the next, much like the pieces of a telescope, causing an obstruction. Swelling, inflammation, and decreased blood flow to the fragile lining of the bowel cause the intestine to die. Between February 3, 2006, when RotaTeq was licensed, and January 31, 2007, twenty-eight cases of intussusception were reported in infants who received RotaTeq in the U.S. Sixteen of the 28 infants required hospitalization and surgery on their intestine.
In February, 2008, the FDA issued a warning that there was a "statistically signficant increase in pneumonia-related deaths and seizures" associated with the other vaccine for rotavirus infection.[5] To reduce the risk of pneumonia, doctors promote the pneumococcal vaccine, Prevnar®. A side effect of Prevnar, as listed in the package insert, is ear infections, increasing the use of antibiotics. The many rounds of antibiotics required to treat recurring ear infections can cause serious bowel problems, leading to blood tests and evaluations by the pediatric gastroenterologist. The cause of all these additional problems is rarely indentified as a side effect of a vaccination.
All of this can result from a Rotarix or a RotaTeq shot, given to avoid a common infection that most children contract, and recover from uneventfully, by the time they are three years of age.
Another example is the hepatitis B vaccine, given at birth, can cause diarrhea, vomiting, and dyspepsia (a condition associated with gnawing or burning stomach pain and persistent vomiting). Tiny children receive x-rays, undergo procedures such as endoscopy, and are given adult medications such as Prilosec® or Nexium® to resolve their discomfort. Unfortunately, since the dyspepsia is not recognized as a vaccine side effect, additional dosages of the hepatitis B vaccine are administered, often compounding the problem.
Vaccines are the bedrock of expanded illnesses, skyrocketing medical costs and exponential drug sales. But it is more than individual vaccines that are cause for concern. The sheer number of vaccines children now receive between birth and six years of age is staggering and include: Diphtheria (a rare throat infection), pertussis, and tetanus (the DTaP shot); Haemophilus influenza type b (the Hib vaccine); measles, mumps, and rubella (the MMR shot); pneumococcus (the Prevnar vaccine); polio (three strains); rotavirus (five strains); and individual vaccines for hepatitis A, hepatitis B, chickenpox, and meningitis. Flu shots (three strains) are now given annually, beginning at six months of age. That adds up to 113 vaccine antigens by kindergarten given in about 33 shots.
Parents are becoming wary of the many needles being jabbed into their precious babies at the tender age of two, four and six months. In response, the drug companies are combining several vaccines into a single injection. Comvax (hepatitis B and HiB), ProQuad (MMR and chickenpox), Pediarix (DTaP, polio and hepatitis B) and two newly approved vaccines, Kinrix (DTaP and polio) and Pentacel (DTaP, polio and HiB) have been developed. Parents are deceived into believing that the combination shots are fewer vaccines; they are not: The number of jabs is reduced, but the number of antigen doses remains the same.
A significant problem with the combo shots is that, in the event of an adverse reaction, there is no way to determine which component caused the problem. This eliminates the ability to refuse additional doses of a particular vaccine. The ability to make a claim with the Vaccine Injury Compensation program is likewise negated.
For adults who believe the days of deciding about vaccines are over because their children are now teenagers, think again: Teenagers are the new target market for the vaccine industry. Boosters are being recommended for vaccines given before five years of age and the new teen vaccines, Gardasil (for cervical cancer) and Menactra (for college-type meningitis), are being heavily marketed by doctors and the media. The additional vaccines add substantially to the total number of vaccine antigen. If little girls receive all doses of all recommended vaccines, they will have received 156 vaccine antigens and about 45 shots by middle school. Boys, not yet approved for Gardasil, receive slightly fewer: only 144 vaccine antigens and about 42 shots.
Many more vaccines in the pipeline will put teens and adults in the industry crosshairs. In 2007, adult-teen vaccine sales overtook pediatric sales, the first time ever, accounting for 50.6% of all revenues. This development has been attributed to robust sales of influenza vaccines and the success of Merck's advertising to promote Gardasil for the HPV virus. Gardasil alone posted $1.5 billion in sales in 2007.[6]
And yes, it's about the money. In addition to driving revenues as a loss leader, the newer vaccines are driving revenues through direct sales of expensive vaccines. According to Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News,[7]
In 2007, the world market for preventive vaccines totaled $16.3 billion, up more than 38%, from $11.7 billion, in 2006. The market is predicted to increase at a compound annual rate of 13.1% during 2008. This growth rate is unheard of in other drug categories, especially since this is expected to be a challenging year for the pharmaceutical industry. Few other drug categories will see as many new product introductions and such public-policy attention.
In 2007, global sales of pediatric vaccines exceeded $8.0 billion, an increase of 25.2% over 2006 sales of $6.3 billion. This high growth was due in part to continued heavy gains of Wyeth's pneumococcal vaccine, Prevnar, as well as the introduction of Merck's, RotaTeq..This will result in an overall market expansion of 14.2% per year from 2008 to 2013, with total sales reaching $18.8 billion at the end of the forecast period.
Vaccines are promoted as a way to boost the immune system. It only stands to reason that injecting multiple doses of pathogens and measureable amounts of chemicals taxes the immune system instead of enhancing it. I've observed in families who have more than one child and have chosen to vaccinate the first, but not subsequent children, the younger siblings seem to come down with fewer infections and are much healthier overall. I don't believe that's a coincidence.
Preventive measures aimed at enhancing health can be incorporated into simple, lifestyle changes. Here are a few helpful suggestions:
. Staying away from white (refined) sugar and opting for healthy foods and sugar-free snacks is the first step.
. A high-quality, sugar-free, multi-vitamin/multi-mineral supplement is recommended for all ages, too, not just for picky eaters.
. The benefit adequate sleep has on health cannot be overstated. Without adequate sleep, the body is much more susceptible to illness. Toddlers need up to 14 hours a day of sleep, but they typically get only about 10½. Children between the ages of three and six need at least 10 to 12 hours per night; between seven and twelve years of age, 10 hours; and teens and adults need at least 8 hours. Most children get far less; and parents need to enforce bed times for their children, and for themselves.
. Provide your family with clean, filtered water.
. Encourage regular-but not obsessive-hand washing.
. Make sure to get away from the TV and the computer several hours a day to run and play outside. Exercise stimulates the immune system and has a whole cascade of positive effects.
Persons who investigate both sides of this issue rarely continue vaccinating. That speaks volumes. If you do decide to "Say No to Vaccines," you're not alone. Thousands of parents who have experienced first-hand the consequences of vaccination, including autism, are not looking for "something to blame." They are begging other parents to learn about the risks before they proceed. Learn to trust your intuitive sense and investigate the full spectrum of the vaccination issue. You'll be glad you did.
July 9, 2008
NewsWithViews.com
Vaccinating children has become sacrosanct in our culture. Doctors and government officials insist that vaccines are safe, and parents are pressured into compliance. In fact, parents have been reported to social services by doctors who consider not vaccinating to be a form of medical neglect or child abuse. Legislators across the country are attempting to pass laws in which parents will have no rights to refuse what is injected into their children.
The inconsistency of rules involving the care of children is striking. Mothers are in complete control of their child's health while in the womb. They make choices against eating tuna, taking medications, smoking cigarettes and avoiding alcohol. Mothers may choose to even terminate the pregnancy. But the moment the baby arrives, control over their child's body is forcibly surrendered to healthcare providers and the government. The leg is jabbed with shots, eyes are gooped with antibiotic ointment and the heel is poked to get a drop of DNA-containing blood. With the passage of the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007, signed into law April 24, 2008, the blood will be collected and warehoused for scientific research.[1] Parents have little or no say in any of these events. (see my previous article, "Who Owns Your Child?")
Vaccination is promoted by an industry that capitalizes on fear and the perceived necessity of the procedure has become multi-generationally entrenched. We have been programmed by the medical community and the media to believe that everyone - children and adults -- will become sick, and likely die, unless they are vaccinated. This explains why not vaccinating can be unfathomable to new parents who are unreasonably terrified of what were considered normal childhood illnesses only a few decades ago. The majority adults over 50 years of age remember having measles and the chickenpox. Both were mostly mild diseases, lasting seven to fourteen days, and leaving behind lifetime immunity.
And even though chickenpox is rarely fatal, most parents opt to vaccinate. Merck & Co. estimated that as of December 31, 2007, 80 to 85 percent of all four to six-year-olds had received two doses of Varivax®, at one year and a booster before school.[2] With little attention on the problems with the chickenpox vaccine cited in the media, most don't realize that it can cause harm. Research shows that nearly 1 in 5,000 children who receive the chickenpox inoculation develop shingles within ten years of being vaccinated. Shingles, an intensely painful, blistering rash, is most commonly seen in the elderly or the chronically ill. It was rarely, if ever, seen in healthy children before the introduction of this vaccine. Other serious side effects, such as seizures, pneumonia, and anaphylaxis (a severe allergic reaction), have been reported as a result of Varivax. Before it became available, about 50 children died every year from rare or unusual complications of the chickenpox. Put in perspective, 53 children died in drowning accidents in the [U.S.] state of Georgia in 1999.
Vaccination has been cited as one of the ten greatest public health achievements of the 20th century. However, it doesn't require an advanced degree in science to grasp that the public health accolades, celebrating high vaccination rates and low infection rates, have lead to serious health consequences across the globe. Vaccine ingredients seem to be playing a substantial role.
Problems With Vaccine Ingredients
Gelatin, one of many ingredients in vaccines, is known to cause allergies and asthma. Allergies are now the most frequently reported chronic condition in children, limiting activities in four out of 10 children. Asthma, the second most common chronic childhood disease, affects more than one child in 20. The combined healthcare costs of asthma and allergies have soared to more than $25 billion/year.[3] Vaccines that contain gelatin include chickenpox, MMR, Boostrix (teen pertussis booster), Tripedia (DTaP) and the adult shingles vaccine, Zostrix. Vaccine gelatin may be contributing substantially to the skyrocketing incidence of, and expenditures on, asthma and allergies.
Another vaccine additive, formaldehyde, can interrupt the normal function of the immune system. A colorless, pungent-smelling gas, formaldehyde can cause watery eyes, burning sensations in the eyes and throat, nausea, difficulty in breathing and asthma attacks when exposed to amounts as small as 0.1 parts per million. It is listed as a hazardous chemical on eight federal regulatory lists and considered to be one of the ten worst compounds on the ecosystem and health. Between 10 and 20 percent of general population has a reaction coming in contact with formaldehyde. Topical exposure can cause a mild reaction, such as dry skin and redness. The California Indoor Air Quality Fact Sheet states there is no known threshold level below which cancer risk does not exist.[4] The World Health Association (WHO) recommends that an exposure should not exceed 0.05 ppm or 0.05 mg/kg. So, for 12 pound baby (about 5kg), the maximum exposure should be below 0.25 mg. But with the current schedule, children receive more than ten times that amount, more than 3.5 mg, if they receive every mandated vaccine. Vaccines that contain formaldehyde include DTaP, polio, influenza, hepatitis A and hepatitis B.
Thankfully, mercury (in the form of thimerosal) has been removed from most vaccines. However, measurable amounts are still found in multi-vial flu shots, tetanus boosters, Energix-B (hepatitis B vaccine), Menomune (college meningitis vaccine), TriHiBit and Tripedia (both DTaP vaccines), and Twinrix (a combination hepatitis A and hepatitis B vaccine). Trace amounts remain in many more. Countless children have developed autism and there is strong evidence that their brains were injured by the preservative thimerosal.
Follow the Money
Positioned as a loss leader, vaccines appear to be the economic drivers of both the medical and the pharmaceutical industry. A loss leader is a business technique in which a less-expensive product is sold or given away for the sake of offering another product at a greater profit. This common practice is utilized to introduce new customers to a product, to build a new customer base and/or to secure future recurring revenue. Using a loss leader is more than just a nifty business trick - it can be a very successful economic strategy when executed properly. The classic example of a loss leader is the sale of razor blades. Companies like Gillette essentially give their razor units away for free, knowing that customers will buy their replacement blades, where the company makes all of its profit, for as long as they use the razor.
Vaccines play a similar role for the drug companies. The cost of a vaccine is relatively inexpensive compared to the billions of dollars spent on medical interventions, medications-and even more vaccines-dispensed as a result of a vaccination side effect.
Consider this example: the potential consequences of an inoculation with one of the two newly approved vaccines to prevent a rotavirus diarrheal infection, RotaTeq® and Rotarix®.
Side effects listed on the package insert for RotaTeq include diarrhea, vomiting, irritability, fever, wheezing and coughing. RotaTeq has also been associated with bloody stools, a warning sign of a serious complication called an intussusception. Triggered by the vaccine, intussusception is an event where a portion of the bowel slides into the next, much like the pieces of a telescope, causing an obstruction. Swelling, inflammation, and decreased blood flow to the fragile lining of the bowel cause the intestine to die. Between February 3, 2006, when RotaTeq was licensed, and January 31, 2007, twenty-eight cases of intussusception were reported in infants who received RotaTeq in the U.S. Sixteen of the 28 infants required hospitalization and surgery on their intestine.
In February, 2008, the FDA issued a warning that there was a "statistically signficant increase in pneumonia-related deaths and seizures" associated with the other vaccine for rotavirus infection.[5] To reduce the risk of pneumonia, doctors promote the pneumococcal vaccine, Prevnar®. A side effect of Prevnar, as listed in the package insert, is ear infections, increasing the use of antibiotics. The many rounds of antibiotics required to treat recurring ear infections can cause serious bowel problems, leading to blood tests and evaluations by the pediatric gastroenterologist. The cause of all these additional problems is rarely indentified as a side effect of a vaccination.
All of this can result from a Rotarix or a RotaTeq shot, given to avoid a common infection that most children contract, and recover from uneventfully, by the time they are three years of age.
Another example is the hepatitis B vaccine, given at birth, can cause diarrhea, vomiting, and dyspepsia (a condition associated with gnawing or burning stomach pain and persistent vomiting). Tiny children receive x-rays, undergo procedures such as endoscopy, and are given adult medications such as Prilosec® or Nexium® to resolve their discomfort. Unfortunately, since the dyspepsia is not recognized as a vaccine side effect, additional dosages of the hepatitis B vaccine are administered, often compounding the problem.
Vaccines are the bedrock of expanded illnesses, skyrocketing medical costs and exponential drug sales. But it is more than individual vaccines that are cause for concern. The sheer number of vaccines children now receive between birth and six years of age is staggering and include: Diphtheria (a rare throat infection), pertussis, and tetanus (the DTaP shot); Haemophilus influenza type b (the Hib vaccine); measles, mumps, and rubella (the MMR shot); pneumococcus (the Prevnar vaccine); polio (three strains); rotavirus (five strains); and individual vaccines for hepatitis A, hepatitis B, chickenpox, and meningitis. Flu shots (three strains) are now given annually, beginning at six months of age. That adds up to 113 vaccine antigens by kindergarten given in about 33 shots.
Parents are becoming wary of the many needles being jabbed into their precious babies at the tender age of two, four and six months. In response, the drug companies are combining several vaccines into a single injection. Comvax (hepatitis B and HiB), ProQuad (MMR and chickenpox), Pediarix (DTaP, polio and hepatitis B) and two newly approved vaccines, Kinrix (DTaP and polio) and Pentacel (DTaP, polio and HiB) have been developed. Parents are deceived into believing that the combination shots are fewer vaccines; they are not: The number of jabs is reduced, but the number of antigen doses remains the same.
A significant problem with the combo shots is that, in the event of an adverse reaction, there is no way to determine which component caused the problem. This eliminates the ability to refuse additional doses of a particular vaccine. The ability to make a claim with the Vaccine Injury Compensation program is likewise negated.
For adults who believe the days of deciding about vaccines are over because their children are now teenagers, think again: Teenagers are the new target market for the vaccine industry. Boosters are being recommended for vaccines given before five years of age and the new teen vaccines, Gardasil (for cervical cancer) and Menactra (for college-type meningitis), are being heavily marketed by doctors and the media. The additional vaccines add substantially to the total number of vaccine antigen. If little girls receive all doses of all recommended vaccines, they will have received 156 vaccine antigens and about 45 shots by middle school. Boys, not yet approved for Gardasil, receive slightly fewer: only 144 vaccine antigens and about 42 shots.
Many more vaccines in the pipeline will put teens and adults in the industry crosshairs. In 2007, adult-teen vaccine sales overtook pediatric sales, the first time ever, accounting for 50.6% of all revenues. This development has been attributed to robust sales of influenza vaccines and the success of Merck's advertising to promote Gardasil for the HPV virus. Gardasil alone posted $1.5 billion in sales in 2007.[6]
And yes, it's about the money. In addition to driving revenues as a loss leader, the newer vaccines are driving revenues through direct sales of expensive vaccines. According to Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News,[7]
In 2007, the world market for preventive vaccines totaled $16.3 billion, up more than 38%, from $11.7 billion, in 2006. The market is predicted to increase at a compound annual rate of 13.1% during 2008. This growth rate is unheard of in other drug categories, especially since this is expected to be a challenging year for the pharmaceutical industry. Few other drug categories will see as many new product introductions and such public-policy attention.
In 2007, global sales of pediatric vaccines exceeded $8.0 billion, an increase of 25.2% over 2006 sales of $6.3 billion. This high growth was due in part to continued heavy gains of Wyeth's pneumococcal vaccine, Prevnar, as well as the introduction of Merck's, RotaTeq..This will result in an overall market expansion of 14.2% per year from 2008 to 2013, with total sales reaching $18.8 billion at the end of the forecast period.
Vaccines are promoted as a way to boost the immune system. It only stands to reason that injecting multiple doses of pathogens and measureable amounts of chemicals taxes the immune system instead of enhancing it. I've observed in families who have more than one child and have chosen to vaccinate the first, but not subsequent children, the younger siblings seem to come down with fewer infections and are much healthier overall. I don't believe that's a coincidence.
Preventive measures aimed at enhancing health can be incorporated into simple, lifestyle changes. Here are a few helpful suggestions:
. Staying away from white (refined) sugar and opting for healthy foods and sugar-free snacks is the first step.
. A high-quality, sugar-free, multi-vitamin/multi-mineral supplement is recommended for all ages, too, not just for picky eaters.
. The benefit adequate sleep has on health cannot be overstated. Without adequate sleep, the body is much more susceptible to illness. Toddlers need up to 14 hours a day of sleep, but they typically get only about 10½. Children between the ages of three and six need at least 10 to 12 hours per night; between seven and twelve years of age, 10 hours; and teens and adults need at least 8 hours. Most children get far less; and parents need to enforce bed times for their children, and for themselves.
. Provide your family with clean, filtered water.
. Encourage regular-but not obsessive-hand washing.
. Make sure to get away from the TV and the computer several hours a day to run and play outside. Exercise stimulates the immune system and has a whole cascade of positive effects.
Persons who investigate both sides of this issue rarely continue vaccinating. That speaks volumes. If you do decide to "Say No to Vaccines," you're not alone. Thousands of parents who have experienced first-hand the consequences of vaccination, including autism, are not looking for "something to blame." They are begging other parents to learn about the risks before they proceed. Learn to trust your intuitive sense and investigate the full spectrum of the vaccination issue. You'll be glad you did.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Sunlight Can Cut Your Risk of Death in Half
"Having low vitamin D levels has been linked with deaths from heart disease and other causes, adding to growing evidence about the "sunshine" vitamin's role in good health.
People with the lowest blood levels of vitamin D were about two times more likely to die from any cause during an eight-year period than those with the highest levels. The link with heart-related deaths was particularly strong in those with low vitamin D levels.
The study involved over 3,000 men and women in southwest Germany. Participants were aged 62 on average, and their vitamin D levels were checked in weekly blood tests.
It's estimated that at least 50 percent of older adults worldwide have low vitamin D levels, and a significant number of younger people may also be affected. Low vitamin D levels may result from spending less time outdoors, air pollution and a decline in your skin's ability to produce vitamin D from the sun as you age, the researchers said.
Sources:
a.. USA Today June 23, 2008
a.. Archives of Internal Medicine June 23, 2008;168(12):1340-1349
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
If you want to get in on one of the "hottest" trends for your health, take a break from your day and spend some time out in the sunshine. This simple action reduces your risk for so many diseases, I believe it is criminal for physicians not to recommend it.
To get the benefits of the sun, you need to expose a significant portion of your skin (shorts and no shirt for men, and shorts and a sports bra or short tank for women) to the sun for anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours a day. The length depends on your skin color (the darker your skin, the longer you need), how close you are to the equator, and the weather that day (if it's cloudy, for instance).
My new book, Dark Deception, is coming out shortly and contains all the details you need to keep your vitamin D levels in a healthy range. But in the meantime you can check out my Sunshine Special Report to get the basics down.
Did You Know That Sun Exposure Actually Prevents Cancer?
The study above is the second in a matter of weeks showing the importance of vitamin D for your heart. But vitamin D is also emerging as a potent cancer fighter.
Last year, a groundbreaking study found that 600,000 cases of cancer could be prevented every year just by increasing your levels of vitamin D. Even beyond cancer, the researchers pointed out that increasing levels of vitamin D3 could prevent diseases that claim nearly 1 million lives throughout the world each year!
Why did you not hear about this amazing discovery?
Because large corporations can't make any money from you getting out in the sun.
So now's your chance to listen up. Optimizing your vitamin D levels could help you to prevent as many as 16 different types of cancer including pancreatic, lung, breast, ovarian, prostate, and colon cancers.
Further, optimal vitamin D levels are also known to positively influence the following conditions:
a.. Heart disease
b.. Diabetes
c.. Inflammatory bowel disease
d.. Rheumatoid arthritis
e.. Multiple sclerosis and osteoporosis
This is One Blood Test I Recommend for Everyone
Because the benefits of optimizing your vitamin D levels are so profound, I urge everyone to get their levels tested. There is more than one vitamin D test, so be sure to ask for the 25(OH)D test, also called 25-hydroxyvitamin D.
When you get your results, ignore the "normal" guidelines the lab sends. Instead, the OPTIMAL value that you're looking for is 45-52 ng/ml (115-128 nmol/l).
Sunlight exposure (without getting burned) is always the best option to increase your vitamin D levels. For the winter months or other times when you simply can't get outside, a vitamin D3 supplement can be used. If you go this latter route, be sure to monitor your vitamin D levels to avoid overdosing.
One final note, when you go outside to get your vitamin D make sure you don't have sunscreen on. By its very nature, sunscreen blocks your body's production of vitamin D. If you're spending a long time outdoors, I recommend going for the first portion without any sunscreen, then covering up afterward with clothing, or applying a natural, non-toxic sunscreen, to avoid getting burned."
People with the lowest blood levels of vitamin D were about two times more likely to die from any cause during an eight-year period than those with the highest levels. The link with heart-related deaths was particularly strong in those with low vitamin D levels.
The study involved over 3,000 men and women in southwest Germany. Participants were aged 62 on average, and their vitamin D levels were checked in weekly blood tests.
It's estimated that at least 50 percent of older adults worldwide have low vitamin D levels, and a significant number of younger people may also be affected. Low vitamin D levels may result from spending less time outdoors, air pollution and a decline in your skin's ability to produce vitamin D from the sun as you age, the researchers said.
Sources:
a.. USA Today June 23, 2008
a.. Archives of Internal Medicine June 23, 2008;168(12):1340-1349
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
If you want to get in on one of the "hottest" trends for your health, take a break from your day and spend some time out in the sunshine. This simple action reduces your risk for so many diseases, I believe it is criminal for physicians not to recommend it.
To get the benefits of the sun, you need to expose a significant portion of your skin (shorts and no shirt for men, and shorts and a sports bra or short tank for women) to the sun for anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours a day. The length depends on your skin color (the darker your skin, the longer you need), how close you are to the equator, and the weather that day (if it's cloudy, for instance).
My new book, Dark Deception, is coming out shortly and contains all the details you need to keep your vitamin D levels in a healthy range. But in the meantime you can check out my Sunshine Special Report to get the basics down.
Did You Know That Sun Exposure Actually Prevents Cancer?
The study above is the second in a matter of weeks showing the importance of vitamin D for your heart. But vitamin D is also emerging as a potent cancer fighter.
Last year, a groundbreaking study found that 600,000 cases of cancer could be prevented every year just by increasing your levels of vitamin D. Even beyond cancer, the researchers pointed out that increasing levels of vitamin D3 could prevent diseases that claim nearly 1 million lives throughout the world each year!
Why did you not hear about this amazing discovery?
Because large corporations can't make any money from you getting out in the sun.
So now's your chance to listen up. Optimizing your vitamin D levels could help you to prevent as many as 16 different types of cancer including pancreatic, lung, breast, ovarian, prostate, and colon cancers.
Further, optimal vitamin D levels are also known to positively influence the following conditions:
a.. Heart disease
b.. Diabetes
c.. Inflammatory bowel disease
d.. Rheumatoid arthritis
e.. Multiple sclerosis and osteoporosis
This is One Blood Test I Recommend for Everyone
Because the benefits of optimizing your vitamin D levels are so profound, I urge everyone to get their levels tested. There is more than one vitamin D test, so be sure to ask for the 25(OH)D test, also called 25-hydroxyvitamin D.
When you get your results, ignore the "normal" guidelines the lab sends. Instead, the OPTIMAL value that you're looking for is 45-52 ng/ml (115-128 nmol/l).
Sunlight exposure (without getting burned) is always the best option to increase your vitamin D levels. For the winter months or other times when you simply can't get outside, a vitamin D3 supplement can be used. If you go this latter route, be sure to monitor your vitamin D levels to avoid overdosing.
One final note, when you go outside to get your vitamin D make sure you don't have sunscreen on. By its very nature, sunscreen blocks your body's production of vitamin D. If you're spending a long time outdoors, I recommend going for the first portion without any sunscreen, then covering up afterward with clothing, or applying a natural, non-toxic sunscreen, to avoid getting burned."
No One is Safe From Chemical Overload
"When Viviane Maraghi took blood tests to find out how many chemical pollutants were in her body, she expected the number to be low. An environmentalist, she carefully monitored what she ate and the household products and items she purchased.
Nevertheless, lead, arsenic, mercury, PCBs, flame retardants, and an array of other chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and neurological diseases were all well represented in her bloodstream. She tested positive for 36 of 68 potentially toxic chemicals, many of which never actually leave the body, but instead continue to accumulate over time in tissues such as fat or bone.
Dangerous chemicals are in the air you breathe, the water you drink, the food you eat and the products you use. Over the last 50 years, from 70,000 to 100,000 different chemicals have been introduced into the world's markets with about 1,500 new ones added each year. Only now are governments beginning to examine the dangers posed to human health and world ecosystems.
Many western governments are finally initiating new chemical controls as part of the 2006 Strategic Approach to International Chemical Management agreement. Leading the way is the European Union, with a new program called REACH (Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals) that requires industry to prove the safety of their chemicals and consumer products before they reach the market.
Sources:
a.. The Gazette June 20, 2008
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
The sheer number of toxic chemicals that you are exposed to on a daily basis is truly staggering. With some 100,000 different chemicals being used throughout the world, and 1,500 or so more being added each year - all without any major oversight or testing for safety until after the fact - is it any wonder that you're not as healthy as you should be?
The number of toxic chemicals is so large, addressing them all would be an impossible mission, but I believe being an informed and vigilant consumer CAN help you keep your toxic load as low as possible, even if it may be impossible to cut your exposure to zero.
After all, they're everywhere; in your air, water, soil, food supply, and in a vast majority of the personal care, household and yard products you use on a regular basis. Today, they're even in the circuitry boards of the electronics you surround yourself with. Some of the sources of toxins you have control over. Others, you don't.
Keep reading to find out tips on how to limit your exposure to some of the most common of these health hazards.
Environmental Toxins
Many of the toxins that you're exposed to are from your general environment, which also ends up including your food supply. A few of the most common environmental toxins are:
PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls): This industrial chemical has been banned in the United States for decades, yet is a persistent organic pollutant that's still present in your environment.
Risks: Cancer, impaired fetal brain development
Major Source: Most farm-raised salmon, which accounts for most of the supply in the United States, are fed meals of ground-up fish that have absorbed PCBs in the environment and for this reason should be avoided.
Pesticides: According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 60 percent of herbicides, 90 percent of fungicides and 30 percent of insecticides are known to be carcinogenic. Alarmingly, pesticide residues have been detected in 50 percent to 95 percent of U.S. foods.
Risks: Cancer, Parkinson's disease, miscarriage, nerve damage, birth defects, blocking the absorption of food nutrients
Major Sources: Food (fruits, vegetables and commercially raised meats), bug sprays
Dioxins: Chemical compounds formed as a result of combustion processes such as commercial or municipal waste incineration and from burning fuels (like wood, coal or oil).
Risks: Cancer, reproductive and developmental disorders, chloracne (a severe skin disease with acne-like lesions), skin rashes, skin discoloration, excessive body hair, mild liver damage
Major Sources: Animal fats: Over 95 percent of exposure comes from eating commercial animal fats.
Chloroform: This colorless liquid has a pleasant, nonirritating odor and a slightly sweet taste, and is used to make other chemicals. It's also formed when chlorine is added to water.
Risks: Cancer, potential reproductive damage, birth defects, dizziness, fatigue, headache, liver and kidney damage.
Major Sources: Air, drinking water and food can contain chloroform.
Heavy Metals: Metals like arsenic, mercury, lead, aluminum and cadmium, which are prevalent in many areas of your environment, can accumulate in soft tissues of your body.
Risks: Cancer, neurological disorders, Alzheimer's disease, foggy head, fatigue, nausea and vomiting, decreased production of red and white blood cells, abnormal heart rhythm, damage to blood vessels
Major Sources: Drinking water, fish, vaccines, pesticides, preserved wood, antiperspirant, building materials, dental amalgams, chlorine plants
The American Cancer Society has stated that environmental pollution causes:
a.. Cancer
b.. Alzheimer's
c.. Parkinson's
d.. Asthma
e.. Nervous disorders and hyperactivity
f.. Emphysema
g.. Nasal congestion and burning eyes
h.. Headaches and muscle aches
i.. Burning and tingling skin
j.. Irritability and mental confusion
k.. Lack of coordination, and other symptoms
So, just how high is your exposure to toxic compounds from your environment; the air you breathe; your city water supply?
If you're a U.S. resident, one way of assessing your level of exposure in the area where you live, is by checking out the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) TRI Explorer database.
This site summarizes the basic Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for each county and state, starting from 2002, and contains information about the releases of toxic chemicals by industrial facilities.
The TRI was established by the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986, for the purpose of providing you with information about the presence and release of toxic chemicals in your community.
For example, within the state of Illinois (where I live) the grand total emissions of toxic chemicals from industry were almost 87,670,000 pounds in 2006 alone. That's toxins released into the air, water, landfills, underground injection wells and other waste management locations, just within my state.
Your Home - Healthy Haven, or Toxic Nightmare?
Many people do not realize that their home - the building itself as well as your furnishings and decorations - is a major source of toxic contamination.
According to EPA studies, indoor air pollutants are anywhere from three to 70 times higher than outdoors! This is why I often recommend using a high quality air purification system in your home, and hopefully in your place of business as well.
Personally, I've gone to great lengths to remedy most of these common indoor problems. Not only are the building materials, paints, and furniture in my new office building all non-toxic recycled materials (or materials that can be easily recycled), but our air filtration system is beyond state of the art, circulating completely PURE air.
Other common hazards in your home that add to your toxic load include:
Mold and other Fungal Toxins: One in three people have had an allergic reaction to mold. Mycotoxins (fungal toxins) can cause a range of health problems with exposure to only a small amount.
Risks: Cancer, heart disease, asthma, multiple sclerosis, diabetes
Major Sources: Contaminated buildings, food like peanuts, wheat, corn and alcoholic beverages
VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds): VOCs are a major contributing factor to ozone, an air pollutant. According to the EPA, VOCs tend to be even higher (two to five times) in indoor air than outdoor air, likely because they are present in so many household products.
Risks: Cancer, eye and respiratory tract irritation, headaches, dizziness, visual disorders, and memory impairment
Major Sources: Drinking water, carpet, paints, deodorants, cleaning fluids, varnishes, cosmetics, dry cleaned clothing, moth repellants, air fresheners.
Asbestos: This insulating material was widely used from the 1950s to 1970s. Problems arise when the material becomes old and crumbly, releasing fibers into the air.
Risks: Cancer, scarring of the lung tissue, mesothelioma (a rare form of cancer)
Major Sources: Insulation on floors, ceilings, water pipes and healing ducts from the 1950s to 1970s.
The Unsuspected Price Tag of Convenience and Beauty
Next, there are all those products you use in daily life. From your personal care products, to household cleaning agents, to plastic food containers and baby bottles. Many of them contain ingredients that are known to be toxic or cancer-causing.
For more information about which ones you'll definitely want to avoid, please review the articles listed under Related Articles below, as I've written quite extensively on these issues before.
Something you may not have seen or heard before, however, is this list of the Top Cancer-Causing Products in the average home, as compiled by the National Cancer Prevention Coalition, which includes:
a.. Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder with talc
b.. Crest Tartar Control toothpaste
c.. VO5 Hair Conditioner
d.. Clairol Nice-n-Easy Hair Color
e.. Cover Girl Replenishing Natural Finish Make Up
f.. Ajax cleanser
g.. Lysol disinfectant
h.. Zud Heavy Duty Cleanser
I believe that putting something on your skin can be even more dangerous to your health than ingesting it directly, which is why I decided to create my own personal care line of products that are 100% USDA Organic Certified. My team has been researching this topic extensively and I am proud to report that we are getting very close to launching one of the best, most pure skin care product lines out there. It is truly effective and has absolutely no synthetic ingredients.
Is There Hope?
I realize this can get quite overwhelming, but as I stated earlier, I believe you CAN limit your exposure, and hence your risk of suffering any debilitating effects.
So, instead of feeling overtaken by the enormity and the pervasiveness of the problem, please focus on the things that you can control right now. That would include switching to non-toxic and natural alternatives for things that you use on your body, in your home and around your yard, to start.
Like Viviane Maraghi stated in this article, if her and her son's test results revealed toxins in their bloodstream despite the fact that they eat mostly organic and are careful about the household products they buy, just imagine what your toxic load might be if you pay no attention at all!"
Nevertheless, lead, arsenic, mercury, PCBs, flame retardants, and an array of other chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and neurological diseases were all well represented in her bloodstream. She tested positive for 36 of 68 potentially toxic chemicals, many of which never actually leave the body, but instead continue to accumulate over time in tissues such as fat or bone.
Dangerous chemicals are in the air you breathe, the water you drink, the food you eat and the products you use. Over the last 50 years, from 70,000 to 100,000 different chemicals have been introduced into the world's markets with about 1,500 new ones added each year. Only now are governments beginning to examine the dangers posed to human health and world ecosystems.
Many western governments are finally initiating new chemical controls as part of the 2006 Strategic Approach to International Chemical Management agreement. Leading the way is the European Union, with a new program called REACH (Regulation on Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals) that requires industry to prove the safety of their chemicals and consumer products before they reach the market.
Sources:
a.. The Gazette June 20, 2008
Dr. Mercola's Comments:
The sheer number of toxic chemicals that you are exposed to on a daily basis is truly staggering. With some 100,000 different chemicals being used throughout the world, and 1,500 or so more being added each year - all without any major oversight or testing for safety until after the fact - is it any wonder that you're not as healthy as you should be?
The number of toxic chemicals is so large, addressing them all would be an impossible mission, but I believe being an informed and vigilant consumer CAN help you keep your toxic load as low as possible, even if it may be impossible to cut your exposure to zero.
After all, they're everywhere; in your air, water, soil, food supply, and in a vast majority of the personal care, household and yard products you use on a regular basis. Today, they're even in the circuitry boards of the electronics you surround yourself with. Some of the sources of toxins you have control over. Others, you don't.
Keep reading to find out tips on how to limit your exposure to some of the most common of these health hazards.
Environmental Toxins
Many of the toxins that you're exposed to are from your general environment, which also ends up including your food supply. A few of the most common environmental toxins are:
PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls): This industrial chemical has been banned in the United States for decades, yet is a persistent organic pollutant that's still present in your environment.
Risks: Cancer, impaired fetal brain development
Major Source: Most farm-raised salmon, which accounts for most of the supply in the United States, are fed meals of ground-up fish that have absorbed PCBs in the environment and for this reason should be avoided.
Pesticides: According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 60 percent of herbicides, 90 percent of fungicides and 30 percent of insecticides are known to be carcinogenic. Alarmingly, pesticide residues have been detected in 50 percent to 95 percent of U.S. foods.
Risks: Cancer, Parkinson's disease, miscarriage, nerve damage, birth defects, blocking the absorption of food nutrients
Major Sources: Food (fruits, vegetables and commercially raised meats), bug sprays
Dioxins: Chemical compounds formed as a result of combustion processes such as commercial or municipal waste incineration and from burning fuels (like wood, coal or oil).
Risks: Cancer, reproductive and developmental disorders, chloracne (a severe skin disease with acne-like lesions), skin rashes, skin discoloration, excessive body hair, mild liver damage
Major Sources: Animal fats: Over 95 percent of exposure comes from eating commercial animal fats.
Chloroform: This colorless liquid has a pleasant, nonirritating odor and a slightly sweet taste, and is used to make other chemicals. It's also formed when chlorine is added to water.
Risks: Cancer, potential reproductive damage, birth defects, dizziness, fatigue, headache, liver and kidney damage.
Major Sources: Air, drinking water and food can contain chloroform.
Heavy Metals: Metals like arsenic, mercury, lead, aluminum and cadmium, which are prevalent in many areas of your environment, can accumulate in soft tissues of your body.
Risks: Cancer, neurological disorders, Alzheimer's disease, foggy head, fatigue, nausea and vomiting, decreased production of red and white blood cells, abnormal heart rhythm, damage to blood vessels
Major Sources: Drinking water, fish, vaccines, pesticides, preserved wood, antiperspirant, building materials, dental amalgams, chlorine plants
The American Cancer Society has stated that environmental pollution causes:
a.. Cancer
b.. Alzheimer's
c.. Parkinson's
d.. Asthma
e.. Nervous disorders and hyperactivity
f.. Emphysema
g.. Nasal congestion and burning eyes
h.. Headaches and muscle aches
i.. Burning and tingling skin
j.. Irritability and mental confusion
k.. Lack of coordination, and other symptoms
So, just how high is your exposure to toxic compounds from your environment; the air you breathe; your city water supply?
If you're a U.S. resident, one way of assessing your level of exposure in the area where you live, is by checking out the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) TRI Explorer database.
This site summarizes the basic Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for each county and state, starting from 2002, and contains information about the releases of toxic chemicals by industrial facilities.
The TRI was established by the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986, for the purpose of providing you with information about the presence and release of toxic chemicals in your community.
For example, within the state of Illinois (where I live) the grand total emissions of toxic chemicals from industry were almost 87,670,000 pounds in 2006 alone. That's toxins released into the air, water, landfills, underground injection wells and other waste management locations, just within my state.
Your Home - Healthy Haven, or Toxic Nightmare?
Many people do not realize that their home - the building itself as well as your furnishings and decorations - is a major source of toxic contamination.
According to EPA studies, indoor air pollutants are anywhere from three to 70 times higher than outdoors! This is why I often recommend using a high quality air purification system in your home, and hopefully in your place of business as well.
Personally, I've gone to great lengths to remedy most of these common indoor problems. Not only are the building materials, paints, and furniture in my new office building all non-toxic recycled materials (or materials that can be easily recycled), but our air filtration system is beyond state of the art, circulating completely PURE air.
Other common hazards in your home that add to your toxic load include:
Mold and other Fungal Toxins: One in three people have had an allergic reaction to mold. Mycotoxins (fungal toxins) can cause a range of health problems with exposure to only a small amount.
Risks: Cancer, heart disease, asthma, multiple sclerosis, diabetes
Major Sources: Contaminated buildings, food like peanuts, wheat, corn and alcoholic beverages
VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds): VOCs are a major contributing factor to ozone, an air pollutant. According to the EPA, VOCs tend to be even higher (two to five times) in indoor air than outdoor air, likely because they are present in so many household products.
Risks: Cancer, eye and respiratory tract irritation, headaches, dizziness, visual disorders, and memory impairment
Major Sources: Drinking water, carpet, paints, deodorants, cleaning fluids, varnishes, cosmetics, dry cleaned clothing, moth repellants, air fresheners.
Asbestos: This insulating material was widely used from the 1950s to 1970s. Problems arise when the material becomes old and crumbly, releasing fibers into the air.
Risks: Cancer, scarring of the lung tissue, mesothelioma (a rare form of cancer)
Major Sources: Insulation on floors, ceilings, water pipes and healing ducts from the 1950s to 1970s.
The Unsuspected Price Tag of Convenience and Beauty
Next, there are all those products you use in daily life. From your personal care products, to household cleaning agents, to plastic food containers and baby bottles. Many of them contain ingredients that are known to be toxic or cancer-causing.
For more information about which ones you'll definitely want to avoid, please review the articles listed under Related Articles below, as I've written quite extensively on these issues before.
Something you may not have seen or heard before, however, is this list of the Top Cancer-Causing Products in the average home, as compiled by the National Cancer Prevention Coalition, which includes:
a.. Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder with talc
b.. Crest Tartar Control toothpaste
c.. VO5 Hair Conditioner
d.. Clairol Nice-n-Easy Hair Color
e.. Cover Girl Replenishing Natural Finish Make Up
f.. Ajax cleanser
g.. Lysol disinfectant
h.. Zud Heavy Duty Cleanser
I believe that putting something on your skin can be even more dangerous to your health than ingesting it directly, which is why I decided to create my own personal care line of products that are 100% USDA Organic Certified. My team has been researching this topic extensively and I am proud to report that we are getting very close to launching one of the best, most pure skin care product lines out there. It is truly effective and has absolutely no synthetic ingredients.
Is There Hope?
I realize this can get quite overwhelming, but as I stated earlier, I believe you CAN limit your exposure, and hence your risk of suffering any debilitating effects.
So, instead of feeling overtaken by the enormity and the pervasiveness of the problem, please focus on the things that you can control right now. That would include switching to non-toxic and natural alternatives for things that you use on your body, in your home and around your yard, to start.
Like Viviane Maraghi stated in this article, if her and her son's test results revealed toxins in their bloodstream despite the fact that they eat mostly organic and are careful about the household products they buy, just imagine what your toxic load might be if you pay no attention at all!"
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