Tuesday 25 September 2007

Acupuncture 'best for back pain'

Acupuncture is said to release the body's vital energy, but the most remarkable thing about this research was that putting needles in at random was nearly as effective as real acupuncture:

Acupuncture is more effective at treating back pain than conventional therapies, research suggests.

A German study found almost half the patients treated with acupuncture needles felt pain relief that lasted for months.

In contrast, only about a quarter who received drugs and other Western therapies felt better.

The Archives of Internal Medicine study also found fake acupuncture to work nearly as well as the real thing.


Acupuncture represents a highly promising and effective treatment option for chronic back pain
Dr Heinz Endres
Ruhr University Bochum

The researchers, from the Ruhr University Bochum, say their findings suggest that the body may react positively to any thin needle prick - or that acupuncture may simply trigger a placebo effect.

One theory is that pain messages to the brain can be blocked by competing stimuli.

Researcher Dr Heinz Endres said: "Acupuncture represents a highly promising and effective treatment option for chronic back pain.

"Patients experienced not only reduced pain intensity, but also reported improvements in the disability that often results from back pain and therefore in their quality of life."

Needles not manipulated

More than 1,100 patients took part in the study. They were given either conventional therapy, acupuncture or a sham version.

Although needles were used in the sham therapy, they were not inserted as deeply as in standard acupuncture. Neither were they inserted at points thought key to producing a therapeutic effect, or manipulated and rotated once in position.

After six months 47% of patients in the acupuncture group reported a significant improvement in pain symptoms, compared to 44% in the sham group, and just 27% in the group who received conventional therapy.

Dr James Young, of Chicago's Rush University, said: "We don't understand the mechanisms of these so-called alternative treatments, but that doesn't mean they don't work."

Acupuncture is based on the ancient Chinese theory that needles can be used to release the body's vital energy, or qi.

Conventional therapies tested in the study included painkillers, injections, heat therapy and massage.

It is estimated that as many as 85% of the population experiences back pain at some point, and the problem costs the NHS around £500m a year.

The study echoes the findings of two studies published last year in the British Medical Journal, which found a short course of acupuncture could benefit patients with low back pain.

Monday 24 September 2007

Exercise on par with drugs for aiding depression

feeling depressed? check this out - and the other articles on exercise on this blog!

by Amy Norton

Reuters
22 September 2007

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Regular exercise may work as well as
medication in improving symptoms of major depression, researchers
have found.

In a study of 202 depressed adults, investigators found that those
who went through group-based exercise therapy did as well as those
treated with an antidepressant drug. A third group that performed
home-based exercise also improved, though to a lesser degree.

Importantly, the researchers found, all three groups did better than
a fourth group given a placebo—an inactive pill identical to the
antidepressant.

While past studies have suggested that exercise can ease depression
symptoms, a criticism has been that the research failed to compare
exercise with a placebo. This leaves a question as to whether the
therapy, per se, was responsible for the benefit.

The new findings bolster evidence that exercise does have a real
effect on depression, according to the researchers.

Doctors may not start widely prescribing exercise as a depression
treatment just yet. But for patients who are motivated to try
exercise, it could be a reasonable option, the study authors say.

'If exercise were a drug, I'm not sure that it would receive FDA
approval at this time,' noted study author Dr. James A. Blumenthal, a
professor of medical psychology at Duke University Medical Center in
Durham, North Carolina.

'But,' he told Reuters Health, 'there is certainly growing evidence
that exercise may be a viable alternative to medication, at least
among those patients who are receptive to exercise as a potential
treatment for their depression.'

The study, published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, included
202 men and women age 40 and older who were diagnosed with major
depression. They were randomly assigned to one of four groups: one
that worked out in a supervised, group setting three times per week;
one that exercised at home; one that took the antidepressant
sertraline (Zoloft); and one that took placebo pills.

After 16 weeks, the patients completed standard measures of
depression symptoms.

By the end of the study, Blumenthal's team found, 47 percent of
patients on the antidepressant no longer met the criteria for major
depression. The same was true of 45 percent of those in the
supervised exercise group.

In the home-based exercise group, 40 percent had their symptoms go
into remission. That compared with 31 percent of the placebo group.

There are several theories on why exercise might improve depression.
For example, physical activity seems to affect some key nervous
system chemicals—norepinephrine and serotonin—that are targets of
antidepressant drugs, as well as brain neurotrophins, which help
protect nerve cells from injury and transmit signals in brain regions
related to mood.

Exercise may also boost people's feelings of self-efficacy and
promote positive thinking. Some experts speculate that group
exercise, with its social aspect, may have added benefits.

Though the home exercise group in this study did better than the
placebo group, it's not clear whether it's as good as supervised
classes, according to Blumenthal. 'Home exercise may be more
convenient,' he noted, 'but patients not push themselves as hard on
their own.'

He added that supervised exercise may also be safer for some people,
such as those with heart disease.

SOURCE: Psychosomatic Medicine, September 2007.

Friday 21 September 2007

hip flexors and their role in back pain

This article has been adapted from "Dynamic Fitness' Blog:

"A client will come to me and complain of back pain. The pain is worst, they explain, when they lie on their stomachs, and virtually disappears when they lie on their sides and draw the knees towards the chest.

Your hip flexors are the muscles that attach the front of your thighs to your pelvis and spine (called the 'psoas' and the 'iliopsoas' muscles). They're a series of tough, stringy muscles responsible for swinging your legs forward and up. If you stand, balance on your right foot, draw your left knee up towards your chest, and dig your fingers into the crease formed between your left thigh and hipbone, you'll feel your left hip flexor muscles doing their thing.

On any given day, whether you're active or not, your hip flexors take a pretty good pounding. If you walk, run, play football, or do virtually anything athletic, your hip flexors are working pretty hard to pull your legs forward every time you take a step. If, on the other hand, you're sitting down all day, the hip flexors remain shortened the entire time you're sitting there driving or typing or watching TV. And chances are that unless you already know the kneeling hip flexor stretch, you're not getting much flexibility work in this area either.

Combine the overstimulation from athletic endeavors, the shortened resting position, and the lack of flexibility in the area and you get a recipe for short, tight hip flexors, and -- you guessed it -- back pain.

You see, the hip flexors, naturally, connect to the hips. When they get tight, they pull the front edge of your pelvis down and forward when you stand, resulting in a rodeo-rider like, butt-sticking-out posture. With the pelvis tipped forward like this, it becomes impossible to stand straight without straining the lower back -- which, over time, can lead to chronic LBP. This is another example of the Tall Ship image from a few weeks ago: do anything often enough and the body starts to conform to that shape -- healthy or not. So if you sit a lot, which all of us do, you get short hip flexors and, sooner or later, a greater or lesser degree of lower back pain.

So instead of spending all your time stretching the low back (most peoples' immediate impulse when the back gives them trouble), give the Kneeling Hip Flexor Stretch a try:
(1) Kneel down with your right foot behind you.
2) Step your left foot out in front of you.
3) Place your hands on your left knee.
4) Lunge forward onto your left foot so that your hips sink towards the floor.
5) Continue lunging forward until you feel a comfortable stretch in the front of your right hip. Press the top of your right foot into the floor. Hold for 10-20 seconds.
6) Stretch the right hand above your head and hold for another 20 seconds (optional).
7) Repeat stretch with your left foot back.

This is the most effective hip flexor stretch I know -- it's easy, quick, and a heck of a lot cheaper than surgery and six months of physical therapy. I'm not saying it'll cure every case of low back pain, but it's definitely worth a try before you go under the knife".

Wednesday 19 September 2007

get inspired today

Suddenly, from behind the rim of the moon, in long, slow-motion moments of immense majesty, there emerges a sparkling blue and white jewel, a light, delicate, sky-blue sphere laced with slowly swirling veils of white, rising gradually like a small pearl in a thick sea of black mystery. It takes more than a moment to fully realize this is Earth…home. My view of our planet was a glimpse of divinity.
- Edgar Mitchell, Apollo 14 astronaut and founder, Institute of Noetic Scie
-
- All speech, action, and behavior are fluctuations of consciousness. All life emerges from, and is sustained in, consciousness. The whole universe is the expression of consciousness. The reality of the universe is one unbounded ocean of consciousness in motion.
- Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
-
The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.
- Albert Einstein

The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.
- William James

To put the world in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must put the family in order; to put the family in order, we must cultivate our personal life; and to cultivate our personal life, we must first set our hearts right.
- Confucius

There is only one thing more powerful than all the armies of the world, that is an idea whose time has come.
- Victor Hugo


What we are looking for is what is looking.
- St. Francis of Assisi

Take this One-Minute Happiness Quiz

The One-Minute Happiness Quiz

by Ray Sahelian, M.D.

Circle a number in each category. The higher, the truer.

1. I have a healthy personality with high self-esteem, strong willpower, and a positive attitude. 1 2 3 4 5
2. I feel connected with and have loving relationships with family, pets, friends, spouse, or lover. 1 2 3 4 5
3. Old or new emotional wounds have healed. I harbor no grudges. 1 2 3 4 5
4. I have meaningful goals that I'm passionately pursuing. 1 2 3 4 5
5. Work (and/or school) is satisfying. 1 2 3 4 5
6. I am financially secure. 1 2 3 4 5
7. I have many interests and pleasures. 1 2 3 4 5
8. I am physically healthy, I exercise, sleep well, eat well, and have low stress. 1 2 3 4 5
9. I enjoy learning and acquiring knowledge. Furthermore, I use my creative talents. 1 2 3 4 5
10. I have a personal truth or belief system that provides a meaning to my life. 1 2 3 4 5

Score: Total _________

Quiz score interpretation:


10-15 Double your Prozac dose*
16-25 There's room for improvement
26-35 Very good. You can learn to be happier.
36-49 Congratulations. Consider writing your own book on happiness.
50 Incredible! Hold on to something. You may be levitating at any moment.

*only joking!

tiger woods

Tiger Woods:
"Being a chiropractic patient has really helped me a lot," Tiger asserted. "When I was in a growth spurt, my back became very sore and I was weak. My chiropractor really helped me. Not only did he adjust my spine, he also gave me strengthening exercises to do. If you are tall and gangly, like I am, or play sports, I would recommend chiropractic."

about this site

A few Health Principles to begin with:
Your body is a self-healing system.

You can achieve a high level of health and wellness without expensive drugs or surgery

Your body is designed to self regulate and be healthy. We just have to remove interferences to this natural healing ability...


"When you shine a bright light in a dark corner you remove the darkness. You simply can't have light and darkness simultaneously. Similarly when you focus on health, disease dramatically disappears. Disease and health can't co-exist.

When you focus on choosing natural unprocessed foods, healthy water, air, appropriate sun exposure, exercise, proper rest, emotional balancing and avoidance of toxic chemicals and pollutants, you will shine the light on disease and allow health to replace it".

MY RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS:
Orthopedic pillows - keep your neck bones in the correct position while you sleep.
Ultra Herbs - recommended herbal products - see link on top right
Wheat grass – organic superfood
‘Woodlock’– the traditional Chinese remedy for joint and muscle pain
Light boxes and daylight bulbs (SAD)
Himalayan rock salt
Dead sea mud
Colon cleansing herbs
Alexander Barrie device to correct pelvic tilt and back pain
Emotional freedom technique (see www.emofree.com )
AMAZING VIDEO ON EFT www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nRY3UtTHvo
Tapas acupressure technique
Chiropractic - see below

all these products will be available soon from this site - in the meantime just google the names for more info..


Current state of health:
(These statistics are for USA, but you can make an educated guess for your country based on how far your country has taken up a USA diet and lifestyle)

50 percent of Americans will have some form of cancer in their lifetime.

One in six Americans is either pre-diabetic or diabetic.

Sixty-six percent of Americans are overweight.

Over ten million Americans are taking anti-depressants.

50 percent of people over 85 will have Alzheimer's Disease.

Someone dies of heart disease every 34 seconds.

One in six Americans suffers from an Anxiety Disorder.


My practice
www.parsons-chiro.co.uk

Chiropractic at Parsons Chiropractic
Dr Parsons has many years of experience adjusting all ages for all types of spinal and structural problems. Dr Parsons utilizes the Koren Specific Technique, a low force directional adjusting protocol. In simpler terms it means there are no heavy manipulations, no ‘cracking sounds’ and no discomfort whatsoever. This new method is ideal to work with all ages, from newborns to the elderly, even people with Osteoporosis or other degenerative spinal conditions. The key to successful use of the KST method is the Arthrostim adjusting tool. This hand held device delivers precise low force adjustments with a frequency of 12-14 light taps per second. Dr Parsons has been getting fantastic results working with patients with all types of different conditions using a very light, very safe and most importantly a very effective technique.

Conditions that respond well;
• All types of back and neck pain respond well. There is no rotation or ‘cracking’ of the neck
• Shoulder pain and arm pain respond very well
• Sciatica (leg pain)
• Headache, dizziness, sinus congestion, brain ‘fog’ and any other conditions that are caused by misalignments or restrictions in the cranial bones (the bones of the skull)
• Hump patterns at the base of the neck.
The hump pattern is extremely unhealthy, it is a lump of restricted swollen muscles and vertebrae, it is not only unsightly but can lead to health problems ranging from heart problems to breathing conditions.
• Fatigue
• Sleeplessness
• ADHD and other learning disorders in children
• Colic in infants

It is also important to point out that getting regular chiropractic care does not just treat disorders and illnesses, regular chiropractic care ensures that the nervous system, the most important system in the body is working efficiently and to it’s highest potential. When the nervous system is healthy the body is healthy, natural immune system resistance is improved, digestion is more efficient and muscle is more toned and coordinated. In other words your body can be the best it can be with regular chiropractic care and chiropractic care has never been easier or more enjoyable. The Arthrostim adjusting instrument and Koren Specific Technique is truly a revolution in healing.
www.parsons-chiro.co.uk

Tuesday 18 September 2007

ASPARTAME –THE HIDDEN DANGER IN YOUR FIZZY DRINKS?

People use aspartame in general:

1) to lose/maintain weight
2) because they are diabetic
3) so the kids dont get too much sugar
4) the taste

however, the effects of aspartame:

1) causes weight gain
2) causes increased sugar level problems, and in some, diabetic comas/seizures
3) causes ADD/ADHD, tumors, reproductive problems, headaches, migraines, fibromyalgia, MS, polio symptoms.

See www.mercola.com/article/aspartame/fraud.htm

cancer research with a differance!

CANCER
This really blew me away – could there be some truth in it?!

Review of The German New Medicine of the Discoveries of
Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer

Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer, formerly of the Universities of Munich and Tubingen in Germany, founded the German New Medicine after extensive research and a therapeutic practice dating back to 1979. The German New Medicine is a set of findings and principles that solidly bases the nature of disease on universal biological principles and on the interaction between the three levels that make up the organism: the psyche, the brain and the organ. In German New Medicine, diseases have a biological meaning and are not mistakes of nature. In fact, we can now categorize most of the diseases known to medicine in pairs of events. These pairs are actually programs of nature relating psychological and biological events. The programs are designed by Nature to either help the individual to cope or as a selection mechanism to serve the group.

Dr. Hamer realized that his wife’s death and his own cancer had to be connected somehow with the tragic shooting and eventual death of their son, Dirk. As a medical doctor, scientific researcher and head internist of an oncology clinic in Munich, Dr. Hamer was in the position to be able to come to the conclusion that a physical event can create a biological conflict shock that manifests in a visible physical transformation in the brain, and leads to a measurable change in physical-nervous parameters and to the development of cancerous growths, ulcerations, necroses and functional disturbances in specific organs of the body.

After twenty years of research and therapy with over 31,000 patients, Dr. Hamer finally established firmly, logically and empirically how biological conflict-shock results in a cold cancerous or necrotic phase and how, if the conflict is resolved, the cancerous or necrotic process is reversed to repair the damage and return the individual to health.

Disease, or the meaningful biological program of nature (as Dr. Hamer likes to call it), is divided into five biological events, all of which can be identified, measured, observed and are part of a system that makes possible a definite (not just statistically probable) prediction of events and development.

A biological conflict-shock - called a DHS (Dirk Hamer Syndrome in honour of his son) - causes the appearance of a focus of activity in the brain - called an HH (Hamerschenherd). This set of concentric rings that can be seen in a computerized tomography scan (CT) is centred on a precise point of the brain. The location of the focus depends on the nature of the shock-conflict or conflict contents. As soon as the HH appears, the organ controlled by that specific brain centre registers a functional transformation. This transformation can manifest as a growth, as tissue loss or as a loss of function.

Dr. Hamer further discovered that the program that is initiated after a conflict-shock is dependent on the layer of the brain that is affected, something to be understood and explained from the point of view of evolution. The system makes sense both from a phylogenetic and an ontogenetic point of view. Dr. Hamer prefers to keep theory to a minimum and grounds all his observations and conclusions on hard, rock-solid empirical evidence, so we will be referring to ontogenesis in this summary.....

to read more see www.newmedicine.ca/

LIGHT THERAPY – COULD THIS CURE YOUR DEPRESSION?

Seasonal Affective Disorder and Light Therapy

What is seasonal affective disorder?
Seasonal affective disorder is a major (serious) form of depression that occurs at the same time each year. Researchers have identified two types of SAD. The most common type, known as "winter depression," usually begins in the late fall to early winter months and ends in spring. Seasonal affective disorder can also occur in the summer (known as "summer depression").

Surveys estimate that 4 to 6 percent of the general population experience SAD. Women with SAD outnumber men four to one. The disorder usually begins in person's early twenties and the risk for developing SAD decreases with age (Saeed and Bruce).

What are the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder?
People who suffer from SAD can have the common symptoms of depression such as sadness, anxiety, lost of interest in usual activities, withdrawal from social activities, and an inability to concentrate. Symptoms most common to winter depression include:
• Increased sleep
• Increased appetite
• Weight gain
• Irritability
• Interpersonal difficulties (especially feelings of rejection)
• A heavy leaden feeling in the arms and legs

How is seasonal affective disorder diagnosed?
Physicians can diagnose SAD based on criteria (a set of standards) developed by the American Psychiatric Association. Your physician can determine if you are suffering from depression and if this depression is a seasonal affective disorder. Tables 1 and 2 below list the criteria used for diagnosing a depressive episode and SAD.

What causes SAD?
The exact cause of SAD is unknown, but researchers suspect changes in the availability of sunlight plays an important role. Statistics show that winter depression becomes increasingly more common the farther people live north or south of the equator. Episodes of winter depression also tend to be longer and more severe at higher latitudes (Saeed and Bruce).

How is seasonal affective disorder different from the "holiday blues?"
Many people use the expression "holiday blues" to refer to a sadness or depression occurring during winter or the holiday season. This term should be differentiated from SAD. The holiday blues are related to psychosocial factors such as increased family obligations, isolation, decreased exercise, expectations that one "should" feel good, or association of the holidays with early memories and possible unresolved childhood conflicts.

In contrast, SAD is a subtype of a major depressive disorder (or bipolar disorder) with seasonal patterns and appears to be more biological in origin. (Rosenthal).

How is winter depression treated?
Research now shows that light therapy, or exposure to light, is an effective treatment for winter depression. Light therapy is administered by a 10,000-lux light box, which contains white fluorescent light tubes covered with a plastic screen that blocks ultraviolet rays. Full-spectrum light is not necessary (Saeed and Bruce).

The patient sits in front of the box with his or her eyes open, but should not look directly into the light. The therapy begins with daily sessions of 10 to 15 minutes, which are gradually increased to 30 to 45 minute sessions. Ninety minutes of exposure per day is often prescribed. The therapy typically continues until spring.

www.clevelandclinic.org

Chiropractic Management of a Child with ADD/ADHD

Case Study
Chiropractic Management of a Child with ADD/ADHD
Antoinette Young, DC Bio
[September 6, 2007, pp 1-4 ]
Objective: To present features of a case of a 4-year-old boy who had been diagnosed as suffering from ADHD, displayed other symptoms of developmental delay and presented for chiropractic treatment.

Clinical Features: The child suffered from speech delay, frequent temper tantrums, was easily distracted, had poor short-term memory, was aggressive, suffered from dyspraxia, and had a tendency to be obsessive.

Intervention and Outcome: Treatment consisted of a combination of chiropractic adjustments, proprioceptive exercises, dietary changes and supplementation. Over the course of chiropractic care, all aspects of the child’s condition improved, most particularly his language skills, as reported by the mother, his teachers and his speech therapist.

Conclusion: This case study suggests that chiropractic care may have a positive effect on ADD/ADHD symptomatology. Further investigation on the long term effects of treatment is needed.

Key Words: ADD/ADHD; chiropractic; co-morbidity; developmental delay syndrome, subluxation

56% of children in Bangladesh are so underfed and underweight, that their

health is diminished.

55% of adults in the U.S. are so overfed and overweight , that their
health is diminished.

Wednesday 12 September 2007

“Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.” - Mark Twain

Polyphasic Sleep - whats this?

very tempted to try this - think how much time you could save!

Polyphasic sleep involves taking multiple short sleep periods throughout the day instead of getting all your sleep in one long chunk. A popular form of polyphasic sleep, the Uberman sleep schedule, suggests that you sleep 20-30 minutes six times per day, with equally spaced naps every 4 hours around the clock. This means you’re only sleeping 2-3 hours per day. I’d previously heard of polyphasic sleep, but until now I hadn’t come across practical schedules that people seem to be reporting interesting results with.

Under this sleep schedule, your sleep times might be at 2am, 6am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm, and 10pm. And each time you’d sleep for only 20-30 minutes. This is nice because the times are the same whether AM or PM, and they’re consistent from day to day as well, so you can still maintain a regular daily schedule, albeit a very different one.

People who’ve tried this sleep cycle have reported higher alertness and energy, more vivid dreams and more lucid dreams, and of course lots of extra free time.

However, this sleep schedule is a potentially dangerous way of increasing your waking hours. Although some people found success with it, there may be physical and psychological dangers for some..

Monday 10 September 2007

athletes and asthma

This research confirms the findings of PACE author Dr Al Sears:

More than a third of college athletes assessed for breathing problems had test results suggesting exercise-induced asthma, even in those athletes who had no previous history of asthma, a new study shows

The findings, published in the September issue of the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, paralleled earlier findings of a high prevalence of exercise-induced asthma among Olympic athletes. The work also underscores the need to develop more routine diagnosis and management tools in athletes to detect the potentially serious condition among athletes.

Researchers at Ohio State University Medical Center screened 107 Ohio State varsity athletes for exercise-induced asthma. Forty-two (39 percent) of the athletes tested positive, and 36 of those 42 athletes had no prior history of asthma.

The results suggest there are a significant number of athletes with unrecognized exercise-induced asthma. There were also many presentations of exercise-induced asthma, many of which were not classic cases, making diagnosis challenging.

Exercise-induced asthma occurs when airflow to the lungs is reduced due to narrowing and closing of the airways in association with exercise. This airway obstruction usually occurs just after exercise.

moral of the story:
stop straining and start the PACE exercise program instead!

coconut oil benefits

There are so many benefits of virgin coconut oil. It is unusually rich in Medium-Chain Triglycerides (MCT), which are easily digested by the body for quick energy and also known for being antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal.

According to a study published in The Journal of Nutrition in March 2002, MCT oils used in place of other dietary fats significantly reduces body fat. In other words, virgin coconut oil supports weight loss.

The vast majority of fats in our diet are composed of molecules known as long-chain triglycerides (LCT). As the name implies, LCT are larger in size than MCT. The size of the fat molecule is very important because our bodies process and metabolize fats differently depending on their size. Most all the vegetable oils used in cooking and food preparation are composed entirely of LCT. This includes corn, safflower, soybean, canola, and other typical cooking and salad oils. The only significant natural source of MCT are found in coconut and palm kernel oils. Coconut oil is composed predominately of MCT and its effects on the body are characterized by these fats.

In the Journal of Nutrition study researchers reviewed all the published studies to date on MCT and weight management. These studies demonstrated that diets containing MCT result in an increase in energy, a rise in metabolism, increase burning of calories, decrease in food consumption, lower body fat mass, and reduce body weight. Because of these effects, the authors of this study recommend using oils containing MCT, such as coconut oil, as a means to lose excess body fat, control weight, and even treat obesity.

One of the reasons why coconut oil is effective in reducing body fat and lowering weight is because it contains fewer calories than any other fat. For this reason, it has gained the distinction of being the world's only natural, low-calorie fat. When you use coconut oil in your food preparation, you can eat the same types of foods as you normally do yet consume fewer calories.

So take a spoonful 30 minutes before a meal. It will reduce your appetite. Take before bedtime to assist with constipation

Here's an experience of using coconut oil:
"I’m a nurse assistant in a hospital and looking at most of the elderly they are dehydrated from lack of oil I can tell it from their toenails (dry looking and fungal, cracked) also their bowel movements are not regular - after usually 3 days of no movement they’ll pile in the hospital. The solution I find that is inexpensive and actually good for you is drinking coconut oil.
I know it goes against what your told, but coconut oil is good for cardiovascular. I use two large tablespoons in my coffee with carnation french vanilla cream to taste- take the day off it will clean you out - and I do about 3 cups a day like this. I repeat whenever I don’t void in under 1 minute. That’s how well it works!"

Sunday 9 September 2007

oil pulling, coconut oil

I am still interested in oil pulling. Here is an experience from a nursing assistant. It is also interesting what she says about coconut oil..
arazonie Says:
July 19th, 2007 at 3:10 am

I feel I have a pretty good ear for truth. So when I heard of oil pulling I tried it, seemed logical. The first time I gagged tried again, same response. The third time, same day did it for 10 minutes, teeth were lighter the whites of my eyes lighter, dark circles under eyes lighter. By the third time I did it , on average I now do it every 3 days, my nails stronger no breakage, cuticles have no dry skin around them, no bad breath, skin less dry not using lotion exceptalso interested face prior to make-up, no plaque on teeth, no build up after eating, bump on top of head seems a little I see more results the next day. I use eye whitener and crest stripes for my teeth afterwards and they do 3x the job they did before. I give it the thumbs up.

I’m a nurse assistant in a hospital and looking at most of the elderly they are dehydrated from lack of oil I can tell it from their toenails (dry looking and fungal, cracked) also their bowel movements are not regular - after usually 3 days of no movement they’ll pile in the hospital. The solution I find that is inexpensive and actually good for you is drinking coconut oil.
I know it goes against what your told, but coconut oil is good for cardiovascular. I use two large tablespoons in my coffee with carnation french vanilla cream to taste- take the day off it will clean you out - and I do about 3 cups a day like this. I repeat whenever I don’t void in under 1 minute. That’s how well it works!

Saturday 8 September 2007

saving water

The best thing anyone can do to conserve water is simply to forgo eating meat. Cut just one pound of beef from your diet, and you save 2,500 gallons of water. That's as much water as you'd save by skipping your next 250 showers (assuming you shower for 5 minutes, 2 gals/min), and you'll surely smell a lot better. If you go vegan or vegetarian, even for just a few days, you will literally save tons and tons of water.

Thursday 6 September 2007

breast cancer and deodorants

.....from the Daily Express, Monday September 3,2007
Victoria Fletcher

British scientists have uncovered a fresh connection between deodorants and breast cancer. A study has found that women who had surgery for the disease had high levels of aluminium in their breast tissue.

Researchers fear the metal could have been emitted from spray-on and roll-on deodorants.

A study to be published in the November issue of the Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry examined the breast tissue of 17 patients who underwent mastectomies at Wythenshaw hospital, Manchester.


The team saw traces of aluminium in the samples despite the fact that it is not normally found in the body. Levels of the metal increased significantly near to the armpit.


Keele university’s Dr Chris Exley, who led the study, said it was possible aluminium salts used in deodorant could be to blame.


He said: “We found a wide variation in concentrations of aluminium. Some patients had low concentrations while others had quite high concentrations. We don’t know that aluminium originated from anti-perspirants but one can put two and two together and make a guess on that. The next work will be to see if the aluminium is coming from anti-perspirants or elsewhere.”


Dr Exley has already raised concern about the aluminium content of sun creams, fearing it could put users at increased risk of developing skin cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.


Aluminium is added to deodorants to prevent sweating. The metal has been shown to trigger cancer in animals but it is not known whether or not this could cause the same problems in humans.


Dr Exley, who received funding from breast cancer charity Genesis, said: “There are some non-aluminium-based anti-perspirants but they don’t work as well. Myth and legend tells us that aluminium is safe but reality shows us not that it isn’t safe but that we don’t know. Not knowing is not a reason for assuming safety.”

Wednesday 5 September 2007

Sweet but Poison: Aspartame

from Betty Martini :

In October of 2001, my sister started getting very sick. She had stomach spasms and she was having a hard time getting around. Walking was a major chore. It took everything she had just to get out of bed; she was in so much pain.

By March 2002, she had undergone several tissue and muscle biopsies and was on 24 various prescription medications. The doctors could not determine what was wrong with her. She was in so much pain, and so sick...she just knew she was dying.

She put her house, bank accounts, life insurance, etc., in her oldest daughters name, and made sure that her younger children were to be taken care of. She also wanted her last hooray, so she planned a trip to FL (basically in a wheelchair) for March 22nd.

On March 19th I called her to ask how her most recent tests went, and she said they didn't find anything on the test, but they believe she had MS.

I recalled an article a friend of mine E-mailed to me and I asked my sister if she drank diet soda? She told me that she did. As a matter of fact, she was getting ready to crack one open that moment... I told her not to open it, and to stop drinking the diet soda !!! I E-mailed her the article my friend, a lawyer, had sent.

My sister called me within 32 hours after our phone conversation and told me she had stopped drinking the diet soda AND she could walk!!!! The muscle spasms went away. She said she didn't feel 100% but she sure felt a lot better. She told me she was going to her doctor with this article and would call me when she got home.

Well, she called me, and said her doctor was amazed! He is going to call all of his MS patients to find out if they consumed artificial sweeteners of any kind...

In a nutshell, she was being poisoned by the Aspartame in the diet soda... and literally dying a slow and miserable death.

When she got to FL March 22nd, all she had to take was one pill, and that was a pill for the Aspartame poisoning! She is well on her way to a complete recovery . and she is walking!!! No wheelchair!!!

This article saved her life If it says "SUGAR FREE" on the label, DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!!!

I have spent several days lecturing at the WORLD ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCE on "ASPARTAME," marketed as 'NutraSweet,' 'Equal,' and 'Spoonful.'

In the keynote address by the EPA, it was announced that in the United States in 2001 there is an epidemic of multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus. It was difficult to determine exactly what toxin was causing this to be rampant.

I stood up and said that I was there to lecture on exactly that subject. I will explain why Aspartame is so dangerous: When the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in ASPARTAME converts to formaldehyde and then to formic acid, which in turn causes metabolic acidosis. Formic acid is the poison found in the sting of fire ants. The methanol toxicity mimics, among other conditions, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus.

Many people were being diagnosed in error. Although multiple sclerosis is not a death sentence.. methanol toxicity is!

Systemic lupus has become almost as rampant as multiple sclerosis, especially with Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi drinkers. The victim usually does not know that the Aspartame is the culprit. He or she continues its use; irritating the lupus to such a degree that it may become a life-threatening condition. We have seen patients with systemic lupus become asymptotic, once taken off diet sodas.

In cases of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, (when in reality, the disease is methanol toxicity), most of the symptoms disappear. We've seen many cases where vision loss returned and hearing loss improved markedly.

This also applies to cases of tinnitus and fibromyalgia.

During a lecture, I said, "If you are using ASPARTAME (NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc.) and you suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms, spasms, shooting, pains, numbness in your legs, cramps, vertigo, dizziness,headaches, tinnitus, joint pain, unexplainable depression, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision, or memory loss...you probably have ASPARTAME poisoning!"

People were jumping up during the lecture saying, "I have some of these symptoms."

Is it reversible?" Yes! Yes! Yes! STOP drinking diet sodas and be alert for Aspartame on food labels!

Many products are fortified with it!!!

This is a serious problem. Dr. Espart (one of my speakers) remarked that so many people seem to be symptomatic for MS and during his recent visit to a hospice; a nurse stated that six of her friends, who were heavy Diet Coke addicts, had all been diagnosed with MS. This is beyond coincidence!

Diet soda is NOT a diet product! It is a chemically altered, multiple SODIUM (salt) and ASPARTAME containing product that actually makes you crave carbohydrates. It is far more likely to make you GAIN weight!

These products also contain formaldehyde, which stores in the fat cells, particularly in the hips and thighs. Formaldehyde is an absolute toxin and is used primarily to preserve "tissue specimens."

Many products we use every day! contain this chemical but we SHOULD NOT store it IN our body!!!

Dr. H. J. Roberts stated in his lectures that once free of the "diet products" and with no significant increase in exercise; his patients lost an average of 19 pounds over a trial period.

Aspartame is especially dangerous for diabetics. We found that some physicians, who believed that they had a patient with retinopathy, in fact, had symptoms caused by Aspartame. The Aspartame drives the blood sugar out of control. Thus diabetics may suffer acute memory loss due to the fact that aspartic acid and phenylalanine are NEUROTOXIC when taken without the other amino acids necessary for a good balance. Treating diabetes is all about BALANCE. Especially with diabetics, the Aspartame passes the blood/brain barrier and it then deteriorates the neurons of the brain; causing various levels of brain damage, seizures, depression, manic depression, panic attacks, uncontrollable anger and rage.

Consumption of Aspartame causes these same symptoms in non-diabetics, as well.

Documentation and observation also reveal that thousands of children diagnosed with ADD and AHD have had complete turnarounds in their behavior when these chemicals have been removed from their diet. So called "behavior modification prescription drugs" (Ritalin and others) are no longer needed. Truth be told, they were never NEEDED in the first place!

Most of these children were being "poisoned" on a daily basis with the very foods that were "better for them than sugar."

It is also suspected that the Aspartame in thousands of pallets of diet Coke and diet Pepsi consumed by men and women fighting in the Gulf War, may be partially to blame for the well-known Gulf War Syndrome.

Dr. Roberts warns that it can cause birth defects, i.e., mental retardation, if taken at the time of conception and during early pregnancy. Children are especially at risk for neurological disorders and should NEVER be given artificial sweeteners. There are many different case histories to relate of children suffering grand mal seizures and other neurological disturbances due to the use of NutraSweet.

Unfortunately, it is not always easy to convince people that Aspartame is to blame for their child's illness. Stevia, which, which is a sweet herb, NOT A MANUFACTURED ADDITIVE, helps in the metabolism of sugar, which would be ideal for diabetics. It has now been approved as a dietary supplement by the FDA. It is known that for many years the FDA outlawed this true sweet food," due to their loyalty to MONSANTO Chemical Company."

Books on this subject are available:

EXCITOTOXINS: THE TASTE THAT KILLS written by Dr. Russell Blayblock (Health Press 1-800-643-2665) AND: DEFENSE AGAINST ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE-written by DR H. J. Roberts, also a diabetic specialist.

These two doctors will soon be posting a position paper with case histories on the deadly effects of Aspartame on the Internet. According to the Conference of the American College of Physicians, "We are talking about a plague of neurological diseases directly caused by the use of this deadly poison."

Monday 3 September 2007

Fluoridation does more harm then good, say 500 Dentists

>
> Dear Friends,
>
> Unfortunately dentist today still are brainwashed during their studies that
> fluoridation is preventing tooth decay. Give a print out of this to your
> dentist. Avoid any tooth-paste that contains fluoride like Colgate! I
> surprised that USA still has fluoridated water, they have stopped that in
> Switzerland for example long ago. This facts are known since over 15 years!
> Similar it is known that Chlorination is bad for health and creates more
> harm than good. There are alternate ways to purify public water, but it is
> more expensive. For that reasons in almost all places the authorities keep
> their eyes closed and continue chlorination of drinking water. DON'T DRINK
> IT. DON'T DRINK FOR EXAMPLE WATER OF DELHI, IT IS HIGHLY CHLORINATED! (I'm
> not sure whether they add fluoride as well in Delhi water.) You can get rid
> of it by cooking it long enough and/or most filter are removing the
> chloride. Even to swim in chlorinated swimming-pools is not advisable. (The
> skin is anything else then a closed shell, it takes more in then we commonly
> assume!) Also there are alternate systems with peroxide for pool water, but
> it is more costly then per-chlorides.
> Now read on, I pasted also the health risks at the end.

End Fluoridation, Say 500 Physicians, Dentists, Scientists And
> Environmentalists
>
> 10 Aug 2007
>
> In a statement released recently, over 600 professionals are urging
> Congress to stop water fluoridation until Congressional hearings are
> conducted. They cite new scientific evidence that fluoridation, long
> promoted to fight tooth decay, is ineffective and has serious health risks.
> (http://www.fluorideaction.org/statement.august.2007.html)
>
> Signers include a Nobel Prize winner, three members of the prestigious 2006
> National Research Council (NRC) panel that reported on fluoride's
> toxicology, two officers in the Union representing professionals at EPA
> headquarters, the President of the International Society of Doctors for the
> Environment, and hundreds of medical, dental, academic, scientific and
> environmental professionals, worldwide.
>
> Signer Dr. Arvid Carlsson, winner of the 2000 Nobel Prize for Medicine,
> says, "Fluoridation is against all principles of modern pharmacology. It's
> really obsolete."
>
> Paul Connett, PhD, Executive Director of the Fluoride Action Network (FAN),
> announced that an Online Action Petition to Congress in support of the
> Professionals' Statement will soon be available at FAN's web site,
> http://www.fluorideaction.org.
>
> "The NRC report dramatically changed scientific understanding of fluoride's
> health risks," says Connett. "Government officials who continue to promote
> fluoridation must testify under oath as to why they are ignoring the
> powerful evidence of harm in the NRC report," he added.
>
> An Assistant NY State Attorney General calls the report "the most
> up-to-date expert authority on the health effects of fluoride exposure."
>
> The Professionals' Statement also references:
>
> -- The new American Dental Association policy recommending infant formula
> NOT be prepared with fluoridated water.
>
> -- The CDC's concession that the predominant benefit of fluoride is topical
> not systemic.
>
> -- CDC data showing that dental fluorosis, caused by fluoride
> over-exposure, now impacts one third of American children.
>
> -- Major research indicating little difference in decay rates between
> fluoridated and non-fluoridated communities.
>
> -- A Harvard study indicating a possible link between fluoridation and bone
> cancer.
>
> -- The silicofluoride chemicals used for fluoridation are contaminated
> industrial waste and have never been FDA- approved for human ingestion.
>
> The Environmental Working Group (EWG), a DC watchdog, revealed that a
> Harvard professor concealed the fluoridation/bone cancer connection for
> three years. EWG President Ken Cook states, "It is time for the US to
> recognize that fluoridation has serious risks that far outweigh any minor
> benefits, and unlike many other environmental issues, it's as easy to end as
> turning off a valve at the water plant."
>
>
> Fluoride Action Network
>