"What in the World are They Spraying?" – Official Trailer
Month: May 2010
by: Tony Isaacs
(NaturalNews) At the same time that our Surgeon General has declared we have an epidemic of obesity, our government is using our tax dollars to cater to special interests and to subsidize the very foods that are making us fat. Thanks to lobbying, Congress chooses to subsidize foods that we're supposed to eat less of.
Take a look at these numbers which tell how the percentage of federal food subsidies spending is allocated:
* Meat/Dairy – 73.8 percent
* Grains – 13.2 percent
* Sugar/Oil/Starch/Alcohol – 10.7 percent
* Nuts/Legumes – 1.9 percent
* Vegetables/Fruits – 0.4 percent
Just 2.3 percent of subsidies go to nuts, legumes, fruits and vegetables while 84.5% goes to meat, dairy, sugar, oil, starch and alcohol. Is it any wonder that a salad often costs you more than a Big Mac?
The average 18-year-old today is 15 pounds heavier than the average 18 year-old in the late 1970s. The average woman in her 60s is 20 pounds heavier than in the late 1970s and the average 60s man is 25 pounds heavier.
With the exceptions of cookies, unhealthful foods have gotten a lot cheaper relative to everything else in the economy. Sodas are 33 percent cheaper than they were in 1978. Butter is 29 percent cheaper and beer is 15 percent cheaper.
Fish, by contrast, is 2 percent more expensive. Vegetables are 41 percent more expensive. Fruits are 46 percent more expensive. The price of oranges has more than doubled. In 1978 a bag of oranges cost the same as one big bottle of soda. Today that bag costs the same as three big bottles of soda.
Of course, there are surely other reasons why unhealthful foods are cheaper than healthful ones, but whatever the causes, healthful foods have gotten much more expensive relative to unhealthful ones.
A University of Washington study determined that a dollar buys 1200 calories of cookies or chips but only 250 calories of carrots. For example, a package of Twinkies costs less than a bag of carrots. Compared to carrots Twinkies are highly complicated. Like most processed foods, they are basically an arrangement of carbohydrates and fats from corn, soybeans and wheat – three of the five crops the farm bill supports to the tune of $25 billion a year. (Rice and cotton are the others.)
For the last several decades, U.S. agricultural policy has been designed in such a way as to promote the overproduction of these five commodities, especially corn and soy. Soy, corn and wheat are also three of the most genetically modified crops in existence.
How is it that a pair of synthetic cream-filled pseudo-cakes cost less than a bag of carrots? Look no farther than the farm bill. Despite an early pledge to cut Big Ag subsidies, Obama caved to special interests and the bill as written provides billions of dollars in subsidies, much of which goes to huge agribusinesses producing feed crops, such as corn and soy, which are then fed to animals. By funding these crops, the government supports the production of meat and dairy products – the same products which contribute to our growing rates of obesity and chronic disease.
The farm bill also sets the rules for the American food system and governs what children are fed in schools, as well as what foods assistance programs can distribute. As currently written, the farm bill offers a lot more support to Twinkies than carrots.
Our tax dollars are also used to purchase surplus foods like cheese, milk, pork and beef for distribution to food assistance programs – including school lunches. The government is not required to purchase nutritious foods.
by: Danna Norek
(NaturalNews) In a somewhat surprising move, presidential advisers recently warned President Obama that there are threats in our environment which increase our risk of cancer. These threats include chemicals, radiation, and even radio frequencies. These threats, they surmise, add to the risk of DNA and cell damage, and increase the risk of different types of cancer in the US population.
The panel further expressed their belief that the federal government must step in to help protect its citizens from being exposed to these elements on a frequent basis. The unfortunate truth is that technology`s greatest advances have also become one of the biggest health threats we face today.
Technological advances have given us access to things like cellular phones, advanced health scanning and detection equipment, readily available and reliable electricity, and more. So essentially, the same thing that has propelled us forward into new frontiers has also essentially poisoned our bodies.
Even the factories that produce these modern day conveniences are responsible for the majority of our air pollution. Our air quality, water purity, and even the ground in which we grow our produce is affected by poisonous emissions from factories and vehicles.
In a nutshell, every day we are inundated with chemical and environmental toxins. Until now, it really has not been acknowledged by the medical or scientific community as a true contributing factor to cancer and other diseases.
Almost everything the average citizen touches, uses on their body, inhales into their lungs, and consumes is tinged with some sort of pollutant or hazardous material. Of course, using only natural and chemical free products minimizes this exposure, but not everyone is able to do this.
Even our water is often touched by contaminants. Chlorine, various heavy metals, pesticides, solvents and other toxic chemicals are often found in tap water, which is why many people choose to filter their water.
Even drinking water from a plastic bottle has hazards you must be aware of. BPAs, or Bisphenol A, which is a chemical found in plastic bottles, has been linked to causing various types of cancers.
If you cook with plastic in the microwave, harmful BPAs may be leaching into your food as well, since they are more easily leached when heated. For this reason, it is recommended that you heat your food in the microwave only in glass. In fact, you may be better off to eliminate microwave cooking all together.
Why use a microwave at all? There is evidence that microwave cooking not only destroys healthful enzymes and nutrients in food, but also chemically alters your food`s composition. These alterations in composition can cause mutations into cancer causing agents, especially with certain foods like meats.
Even your cookware can infuse your foods with hazardous chemicals. Popular nonstick coatings that are often used in frying pans and other cookware have been suspected in causing foods to leach harmful contaminants from their surface when heated. Linked to bird deaths, these coatings cause activists to worry about what it could do to the human body in terms of physiological damage.
by: Susan Kay-Lavery
(NaturalNews) Gentle and soothing, the common herb lavender has strong analgesic effects useful for treatment of migraines and migraine-related depression. Migraine headaches are a neurological condition accompanied by debilitating and excruciating pain. Migraine sufferers often experience "missing time" for hours or days, are unable to function at full capacity and experience blinding pain from which there is little relief. Migraine headache symptoms such as fogginess, cognitive loss, confusion and visual symptoms often linger long after the headache has resolved. Strong, pain killers may be prescribed as migraine cures, including narcotics, which leave the person groggy and befuddled.
Although the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine asserts there has been no scientific evidence attesting to the efficacy of lavender for symptoms of migraine headaches, anecdotal evidence from alternative healthcare practitioners and patients points to its efficacy as a pain reliever, something herbalists have know for centuries. Lavender relieves the pain of migraine headaches and prevents the onset of a new headache.
Inflammation and Anti-spasmodic Effects of Lavender for Symptoms of Migraine Headaches
The scent of lavender is soothing and reduces migraine-related inflammation in the blood vessels according to the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC). Lavender flowers contain compounds that have medicinal properties, and their aroma gently sedates migraine headache symptoms. Additionally, they act as an anti-spasmodic on inflamed blood vessels and small muscles of the scalp, neck and around eyes helping them to relax according to Phyllis A. Balch in her book, "Prescription for Nutritional Healing."
Migraine Headache Relief for Depression, Anxiety and Stress
Conditions such as anxiety and stress are two of the many migraine causes reported by patients. Lavender's effects for relieving symptoms of depression and soothing anxiety are well known to herbalists, and its aroma is stimulating to the senses increasing cognitive powers, explains Balch. The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) discusses lavender's ability to help reduce stress, lower anxiety levels and improve the mood of headache patients on exposure to its scent. The soothing medicinal features of this aromatic blue herb are of great benefit in relieving migraine headache symptoms in sufferers for whom depression or anxiety is a concomitant during a headache.
Lavender Relieves Migraine Headache Symptoms of Insomnia and Exhaustion
Lavender helps induce relaxation and sleep in people who suffer from insomnia as well as for those suffering from migraine headache pain, explains UMMC. There is now scientific evidence that suggests that aromatherapy using lavender helps soothe the activity of the nervous system by promoting relaxation and helping people feel more positive. Aromatherapists use lavender as a tonic with inhalation therapy to stimulate the senses and reduce exhaustion, which may be what causes migraines in some patients. Exhaustion and weakness may accompany the migraine headache and lavender's effects work to rejuvenate patients who have to deal with chronic pain and little sleep for days at a time.
Nausea Relief in Migraine Cures from Lavender
Nausea is present in the majority of people who complain of migraine headaches due to inflammation of the Vegas nerve. Lavender flowers are approved for use as a medicinal tea in Germany to relieve migraine headache symptoms and nausea, reports UMMC. The tea can also be used for restlessness, insomnia and nervous stomach irritations accompanying migraine headaches. Steep a teaspoon of dried lavender flowers in a tea ball inserted into a cup of hot water and make a delicious tea. Add a touch of raw honey to sweeten.
Nothing can stop a person in their tracks faster than a migraine headache, and knowing how to treat migraines and depression before the symptoms become overbearing is very self-empowering. Grow a lavender plant in the kitchen window and dry the flowers for fresh, natural and effective migraine cures.
by: Anthony Gucciardi
(NaturalNews) Not only do blueberries have the highest antioxidant capacity of any fruit, but they have also been proven to help with a number of diseases and conditions. Highly purified proanthocyanidin found in blueberry leaves has been found to inhibit Hepatitis C, and blueberries have been used for centuries to improve liver-related conditions. Blueberries provide a natural alternative to expensive and ineffective pharmaceuticals that tend to only worsen the condition.
Blueberries contain Epicatechin, which is why they are so potent at improving liver function. While grapes, green tea, and other items also contain this ingredient, blueberries carry other beneficial ingredients that help to improve total body function. Pterostilbene, another major component of blueberries, has been found to protect against colon cancer. Colon cancer is currently a major killer, with an estimated 50,000 people per year dying from colorectal cancer.
An even larger killer than colon cancer, breast cancer is the number two killer of women. About 1.3 million women will be diagnosed with breast cancer worldwide this year, and 465,000 will end up dying from the disease. Blueberry extract inhibits the growth of breast cancer cells and was found to decrease enzymes associated with cancer spreading. Blueberries are truly an anti-cancer fruit.
If supplementing with blueberry extract, be sure to make sure that your supplement contains standardized pterostilbene, as all blueberries do not contain the same amount of pterostilbene. Of course supplementing with blueberry extract will not deliver the same results as eating fresh blueberries. Eating fresh berries will lead to better absorption by the body, and therefore better results. While supplements are a great means of getting vital nutrients that are hard to obtain through food alone, it is no supplement to real food. It is important to get most of your nutrients from whole foods.
Unfortunately, all blueberries are not prepared equally. Blueberries that are both fresh and organic will deliver a bountiful amount of antioxidants that non-organic blueberries will not. Blueberries that have been sprayed with harmful pesticides can do more harm than good. In fact, many chemical pesticides are neurotoxins and have been linked to conditions such as ADHD. The best way to avoid these pesticides is to buy local 100% organic produce. Growing your own food may also be a viable option, as long as you use seeds that are not genetically modified.
Preserving the blueberries is also very important. When juicing blueberries (and really just about anything), it is important that you try and drink the juice in a timely manner. Over time, the amount of living nutrients in the product begins to diminish. With different juicers and juicing techniques these conditions change, but the fact remains that blueberries should be consumed through whatever means necessary. Eating raw fruits and vegetables is an amazing way to change your life, and blueberries stand as a testament to this. Multiple studies have proven their ability to prevent and fight cancer, and such properties should be utilized to the fullest.
Categories
Kerrville Folk Festival 2010
by: Ben Taylor
It's time again for The 2010 Kerrville Folk Festival starting on May 27 running through June 13. You may not think this is an article on health, but make no mistake- it is. Time spent outdoors at events such as this will do as much to enhance your well being and relieve stress levels as anything. This music festival was founded by Rod Kennedy in 1972 and is held every year at the 50 acre Quiet Valley Ranch 9 miles south of Kerrville, Texas on Hwy. 16. It is the oldest continuously running (and in my opinion the best) music festival in North America. There will be a lineup of over 100 performers during its 18 day span.
More than 1500 singer songwriters have graced the stages of The Kerrville Folk Festival. It is more than just a folk festival, because the ear will hear many styles of music, such as traditional folk, bluegrass, acoustic rock, blues, country, jazz, and what you might generally call America. Many major label artists have played here, such as Willie Nelson, Michelle Shocked, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Cindy Williams, Nancy Griffith, and Gary P. Nunn. The Kerrville stage has also presented other nationally known artists like Peter, Paul, and Mary, Judy Collins, Janice Ian, and Arlo Guthrie.
A partial list of this year’s performers includes, Caroline Aiken, Albert & Gage, Ann Armstrong, Austin Lounge Lizards, Band of Heathens, Big Wide Grin, up Sisters, Slaid Cleaves, but Conductor Jack, Anthony daCosta, The Fire Ants, The Flying ‘A’s, Purly Gates, Jimmy Dreams, Terri Hendrix, the Indigo Girls, Jimmy LaFave, Gulf Morlix, Mickey and The Motor Cars, Kathy Moffat, Andrew Hardin, Randy Rogers, Shake Russell, Walt Wilkins and The Mystiqueros, Zane Williams, and the great folk singer/songwriter, Peter Yarrow.
This is not only a music festival, but also offers music related workshops conducted by professionals from the music world. The workshops available during this year's festival include songwriting, roots and blues guitar, harmonica, and using a capo. So if you’re a budding songwriter, guitarist, or harmonica player and want to learn how the professionals do it, this is the place for you.
The Kerrville Folk Festival website also lists other activities, such as a songwriting contest, numerous singers playing their tunes at The Ballad Tree, singing around campfires at night, canoe trips on the Guadalupe River, hill country bike rides, and a Texas and Tennessee song circle.
One of my favorite attractions is the numerous arts & crafts booths. There is everything from homemade soap to exquisite hand made guitars. In between you can find tie dyed tee shirts and clothes, sandals, jewelry, and even full body massages.
An added bonus in the Texas Hill country is an unusual abundance of wild flowers. After several years of below par rainfalls, we have had a more normal amount that has brought out flowers in numbers that we haven't seen in 20-30 years. Wildlife and wildflower expert Mitch Heindel tells me that this is a result of a number of years of drought conditions followed by exceptional rainfall at just the right time and in the right amounts. So whatever your enjoyment might be, the 2010 version of The Kerrville Folk Festival will be a great venue to which to bring the whole family for an outdoor adventure in music, camping, and sightseeing all rolled into one.
If roughing it isn't your style, don't be concerned. The hill country resort town of Kerrville has plenty of reasonably priced lodging in which to stay. There are accommodations in nearby Medina, Bandera, and even Utopia if you don't mind the extra drive. You can bring your own food and do your own cooking around the campfires or there is food and drink available in abundance at the food and drink booths. I personally recommend not lunging in any more than you can comfortably carry in one trip from your vehicle. The food is good and reasonably priced. For more information on tickets, call Kerrville Festival at (830) 257-3600 or e-mail: info@kerrville-music.com .
by: Tony Isaacs
(Silver Bulletin) Thanks to mass fluoridation of our municipal water supplies and inclusion of man-made fluoride in toothpastes and other dental and consumer products, most of us regularly consume dangerous amounts of a dangerous form of fluoride. Despite claims of dental health improvement, such fluoride actually leads to worse dental health as well as a host of other very serious health consequences. Though it may be next to impossible to avoid fluoride entirely, there are many steps one can take to avoid much of the fluoride we consume as well as to eliminate existing fluoride in our bodies.
Natural versus Man-made Fluoride:
Contrary to what we have been told for many decades, man-made fluoride actually leads to fluoridosis, a condition that is marked by stained and weakened hole-filled teeth. Notably, in Europe and US communities where there is no water fluoridation, cavities are less than in fluoridated US communities. Even worse, fluoride can result in hyperactivity and/or lethargy, arthritis, lowered thyroid function, lowered IQ, dementia, disrupted immune system, genetic damage, cell death, cancers, deactivated essential enzymes and lower life span.
Fluoride in its natural form is actually considered an essential trace element, but we only need very tiny amounts and the natural form of fluoride is a far cry from the man-made form added to our water and products. The natural form of mineral fluoride found in your teeth and in nature is called Apatite (calcium fluoro-chloro-hydroxyl phosphate). The unnatural form of fluoride added to our municipal water supplies is sodium fluoride – a chemical by-product of aluminum, steel, cement, phosphate, and nuclear weapons manufacturing. Such fluoride has no nutrient value or health benefits whatsoever.
The Nazis used fluoride to dumb down the population and make it more docile and subservient. Besides being one of the most potent rat poisons, fluoride is also one of the basic ingredients in both Prozac (FLUoxetene Hydrochloride) and Sarin nerve gas (Isopropyl-Methyl-Phosphoryl FLUORIDE).
Before the public was sold on the idea of added fluoride, the aluminum and nuclear industries were having an increasing problem disposing of all their highly toxic fluoride waste by-products. Now, thanks to the big lie sold to an unwitting public, we dispose of toxic fluoride waste, ingesting it and flushing it down the sewage system back into our environment. Besides solving their toxic waste disposal problem, the manufacturing industries also reap quite the tidy profit by selling their fluoride at a markup of over 20,000 times!
Avoiding and Minimizing Fluoride:
Avoiding products with added fluoride, such as most commercial toothpastes and dental products, fluoridated bottled water, soft drinks and commercial milk helps reduce fluoride consumption. Of course, living in an area whose water supply is not fluoridated is the best way to avoid most fluoride. However, since 65% of our water supplies are fluoridated, other steps may be needed to reduce fluoride intake.
Water filters for the kitchen which contain activated alumina reduce most of the fluoride from drinking water, but that still leaves the water used in showers and baths, swimming pools and hot tubs, and the water for vegetables. The best solution would be to purchase a whole-house fluoride filtration system, however those range upwards of $2500 in price, plus installation.
When it is not feasible to filter your entire water supply, limiting time in the shower or bath and reducing the temperature helps minimize the amount of fluoride absorbed. Another possibility is to purchase a self-contained shower system such as the ones used in camping and rustic cabins and to use filtered tap water. Some of the better ones include gas or electric heating elements and, as a bonus, their use decreases overall water use.
In the second part of this article, we will look at natural ways to remove fluoride from your body.
Press Release
The National Health Federation did not just attend the recent Codex Committee on Food Labelling meeting held earlier this month in Quebec City, Canada, it also attended the Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP) meeting held in mid-April in Paris, France as well as the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF) meeting held in late April in Izmir, Turkey. On the issues of concern to NHF, we were quite vocal at both meetings and definitely drove our points home.
CCGP Meeting – Paris
This Committee is concerned with drafting changes to the Codex Manual of Procedure that governs all of the Codex Committees. And since the Codex Committees do not actually vote on issues but rather reach agreement through “consensus,” CCGP’s discussion of the definition of consensus was important to the Federation.
Here, NHF was able to make a technically small but important change to the wording that described consensus so that consensus was not always presumed to be reached. To our mind, of course, Codex advancement towards adopting a particular guideline or standard is not universally desirable. Anything that could slow that consensus down is to be sought.
“What happened,” Scott Tips, NHF’s Codex delegate explained, “was that the delegate from Uruguay had made a quite sensible suggestion of a word change to the definition such that consensus would not be automatically presumed. This suggestion was lost in the general discussion and forgotten until it came to NHF’s turn to speak and I pointed out to the Committee the sensibility of what Uruguay had proposed. This started the ball rolling again, with Uruguay actually thanking us for having revived the idea, which it had considered dead, then Australia jumping in with its support for the idea, and the Committee finally adopting the word change. This shows that INGOs can make a difference at these meetings.”
Bottom-line, consensus at Codex meetings will be better defined and not automatically presumed.
CCCF Meeting – Izmir
The following week, and dodging hypothetical volcanic-ash clouds and actual airport closings to leave Paris and fly to Turkey, NHF Codex delegate Scott Tips then attended the CCCF meeting held in the Aegean seacoast City of Izmir. This Committee meeting deals with, among other things, melamine contamination in food.
The hosts for the meeting were the Dutch government nominally and the Turkish government actually, with the Turkish host outdoing all other Committees in the quality of the surroundings, receptions, and events planned for the Codex delegates. This was far and away the best-arranged Codex meeting, thanks to Turkey.
The main issue at this meeting was the Committee’s general desire to adopt acceptable levels for melamine in foods when melamine is not even a contaminant naturally found in soil, water, or air. It is completely man-made and man-introduced. So, its acceptable level should be set at zero. Unfortunately, the Committee members had other ideas. (See Codex document “Proposed Draft Maximum Levels for Melamine in Food and Feed (N13-2009)” at www.thenhf.com/codex/codexmelamine2010mtgdoc.pdf.) The CCCF party line, espoused most vocally by the European Union (EU), was to establish an acceptable contamination level for melamine at 1.0 part per million (ppm, equal to 1 milligram per kilogram of food) for infant formulas and 2.5 ppm for adults.
At the meeting, NHF’s delegate Scott Tips argued, unfortunately alone, that “Melamine is a synthetic chemical, deliberately added to foods. It is cumulative, deadly to humans and animals, and, as such, has no place in the food chain. Its acceptable limit for human consumption should be set at zero. Unlike naturally-occurring toxins, such as arsenic and lead, melamine is an intentional contaminant, whether directly or indirectly added to foods.” (See also the NHF’s written comments, submitted to the Committee as CRD 10, at www.thenhf.com/codex/MELAMINEPAPER4-10.pdf.)
But hearing delegation after delegation after delegation support the EU position (even one, Ghana, which had promised earlier to support the NHF), the NHF argued its fallback position, which was that the 1.0 level for infants should then be set across the board for all foods and feeds. “Why,” Mr. Tips challenged the delegates, “if the issue is – as the EU and other delegations say – that we cannot keep melamine out of our foods as a practical matter, we are able to establish a level of 1.0 contamination for infants but find it impossible to set the same for adults? Why not 1.0 for all, at the very least?”
Not one single delegation answered that question, so NHF raised it yet again, challenging the delegates to answer it and braving the disdain of the CCCF chairman Mr. Martijn Weijtens, who insulted the NHF. Still, no one could or would answer the question.
Instead, the EU delegate proceeded to push through exemptions to even these unacceptable levels of melamine contamination! So, in three cases (from the application of cyromazine as a pesticide/herbicide, from migration through food contact with melamine dinnerware and other foodware, and from certain food additives and ingredients) even the insane 2.5 ppm level will and can be exceeded, as the CCCF agreed with the EU suggestion! They could not have cared less.
“I was stunned when I heard that the EU wanted exemptions so large that you could drive a truck through them,” Mr. Tips explained. “I was just waiting for someone to suggest that all of the Codex delegates place their heads in nooses too, for I was certain they all would have happily murmured their assent to that suggestion as well.”
The CCCF meeting ended on the last day of April, having mindlessly adopted standards of melamine contamination that will needlessly harm humans and animals all over the World all for the convenience of a few industries. It was absolutely inconceivable and disgusting that only the National Health Federation spoke out against melamine contamination.
As Mr. Tips said, “It is truly bizarre that Codex delegates will trip all over themselves in their rush to establish low maximum acceptable levels for healthy vitamins and minerals, but when it comes to a true industrial contaminant, extremely harmful to health, they look the other way.”
Categories
You Don’t Have To DIE-abetes
by: Christohper C. Barr
This is the 2nd anniversary of the Crusador interview on the subject of the essential mineral Chromium. So very many now know for themselves the magnificent macropower of this mighty micro nutrient. The numbers of people experiencing the benefits continue to increase as their high blood sugars and high cholesterols decrease and HDL levels increase.
This year is a GOLDEN opportunity as this summer is the 50th anniversary of the initial discovery by National Institute of Health researchers of this key element now well proven due to its application by ever growing numbers of individuals. This information about chromium originally was tossed into the back seat of our health care delivery system, shortly thereafter into the trunk, and then discarded by the side of the road to health. This is a good time to revisit this subject matter with a little more detail that may have been too much at the time of the original interview.
“The proof is in the eating” is an old expression and people are now proving to themselves the benefits of the right form and right amount of chromium. The right form is that which is grown and the right amount is 100 micrograms taken three times daily. Results from this well-established protocol are easily documentable medically and scientifically in days for some, in weeks for many, and in three months for others by way of A1C and cholesterol testing..
Still, a very small number do not receive the results that most others do. This brings us back to the proof of the matter being in the eating. The original interview noted that a gross deficiency of chromium is the primary cause of diabetes. Note that is the ‘primary’ cause which means there are other aspects and those other aspects are of greater bearing to some than to others – the sum of those some being not very many.
The same dietary of refined, bleached white flour (that recent government figures reveal makes up 20 per cent of the average American dietary) from which chromium is more than 90 per cent removed also has other nutrients removed that play assorted roles for the diabetic. Magnesium and the vitamin called B6 work together to assist insulin in sugar metabolism. This was addressed very well by Dr. John M. Ellis, M.D. almost 40 years ago. This role is a different one than that chromium plays as a co-factor with insulin and admittedly a lesser role though still important. Magnesium is removed more than 75 per cent from refined, bleached white flour and B6 more than 50 per cent.
Zinc is also an essential mineral element with regard to the synthesis and operation of insulin though again in a different and lesser role than that of chromium. About 50 per cent of zinc is removed during the refining of bleached, white flour.
Silicon (or silica) is essential for heart and blood vessels and to some degree for immune system which both are areas of weakness for the diabetic. Silicon is removed at an enormous 95 per cent rate during the refining of bleached, white flour.
Finally, selenium is also essential for heart health and to an ever greater degree for immune strength that again are both areas of weakness for the diabetic. The removal of selenium from refined, bleached white flour is at a rate greater than 90 per cent.
In truth, all diabetics suffer from these other nutrient deficiencies though the strength of the right kind of chromium in the right amount almost always makes a significant difference without addressing these items. Yet, diabetics would be well served to also address these nutrient issues but too often these issues are not addressed. In the very few individuals that I have known or worked with through four decades that did not have significant results with only 100 per cent whole food chromium they were able to achieve success when they addressed the other real and actual nutritional needs noted above — to which all diabetics should attend anyway.
Each of those few without significant results from only 100 per cent whole food chromium of which I have personal knowledge were always special circumstance diabetics such as very large or obese, very long term diabetics (10 years or more) and those with long term, uncontrolled blood sugars. When all the nutritional deficiencies are addressed that have resulted from long term consumption of refined, processed foods then all the cylinders work better together.
Another for instance is with regard to diabetic neuropathy. A deficiency of the vitamin B6 is fairly specifically related to neuropathy yet often I learn from diabetics after they have been on 100 per cent whole food chromium alone for a sustained period of time that they have relief from their neuropathy.
An educated guess would be that the chromium addresses the primary insulin co-factor requirement and therefore B6 is no longer overcompensating for an absence of chromium with regard to insulin function so that neuropathy subsides due to a subsequently greater availability of B6. Of course, better to address the B6 shortfall and the chromium deficiency together – as well as the magnesium, zinc, silica and selenium deficiencies also at the same time. Sometimes I tell people that there is good news and bad news about 100 per cent whole food chromium. The good news is that it will work even if you don't change lifestyle habits. The bad news is also, however, that it will work even if you don't change lifestyle habits — at least for the vast majority.
Because chromium works so very well for so very many so very often it is sometimes difficult to get people to do other things that they really should do as well. Of course, this is a better problem to have than most problems to have.
“The proof is in the eating” is an old expression and people are now proving to themselves the benefits of the right form and right amount of chromium. The right form is that which is grown and the right amount is 100 micrograms taken three times daily. Results from this well-established protocol are easily documentable medically and scientifically in days for some, in weeks for many, and in three months for others by way of A1C and cholesterol testing..
Still, a very small number do not receive the results that most others do. This brings us back to the proof of the matter being in the eating. The original interview noted that a gross deficiency of chromium is the primary cause of diabetes. Note that is the ‘primary’ cause which means there are other aspects and those other aspects are of greater bearing to some than to others – the sum of those some being not very many.
The same dietary of refined, bleached white flour (that recent government figures reveal makes up 20 per cent of the average American dietary) from which chromium is more than 90 per cent removed also has other nutrients removed that play assorted roles for the diabetic. Magnesium and the vitamin called B6 work together to assist insulin in sugar metabolism. This was addressed very well by Dr. John M. Ellis, M.D. almost 40 years ago. This role is a different one than that chromium plays as a co-factor with insulin and admittedly a lesser role though still important. Magnesium is removed more than 75 per cent from refined, bleached white flour and B6 more than 50 per cent.
Zinc is also an essential mineral element with regard to the synthesis and operation of insulin though again in a different and lesser role than that of chromium. About 50 per cent of zinc is removed during the refining of bleached, white flour.
Silicon (or silica) is essential for heart and blood vessels and to some degree for immune system which both are areas of weakness for the diabetic. Silicon is removed at an enormous 95 per cent rate during the refining of bleached, white flour.
Finally, selenium is also essential for heart health and to an ever greater degree for immune strength that again are both areas of weakness for the diabetic. The removal of selenium from refined, bleached white flour is at a rate greater than 90 per cent.
In truth, all diabetics suffer from these other nutrient deficiencies though the strength of the right kind of chromium in the right amount almost always makes a significant difference without addressing these items. Yet, diabetics would be well served to also address these nutrient issues but too often these issues are not addressed. In the very few individuals that I have known or worked with through four decades that did not have significant results with only 100 per cent whole food chromium they were able to achieve success when they addressed the other real and actual nutritional needs noted above — to which all diabetics should attend anyway.
Each of those few without significant results from only 100 per cent whole food chromium of which I have personal knowledge were always special circumstance diabetics such as very large or obese, very long term diabetics (10 years or more) and those with long term, uncontrolled blood sugars. When all the nutritional deficiencies are addressed that have resulted from long term consumption of refined, processed foods then all the cylinders work better together.
Another for instance is with regard to diabetic neuropathy. A deficiency of the vitamin B6 is fairly specifically related to neuropathy yet often I learn from diabetics after they have been on 100 per cent whole food chromium alone for a sustained period of time that they have relief from their neuropathy.
An educated guess would be that the chromium addresses the primary insulin co-factor requirement and therefore B6 is no longer overcompensating for an absence of chromium with regard to insulin function so that neuropathy subsides due to a subsequently greater availability of B6. Of course, better to address the B6 shortfall and the chromium deficiency together – as well as the magnesium, zinc, silica and selenium deficiencies also at the same time. Sometimes I tell people that there is good news and bad news about 100 per cent whole food chromium. The good news is that it will work even if you don't change lifestyle habits. The bad news is also, however, that it will work even if you don't change lifestyle habits — at least for the vast majority.
Because chromium works so very well for so very many so very often it is sometimes difficult to get people to do other things that they really should do as well. Of course, this is a better problem to have than most problems to have.
by: Heidi Fagley
(NaturalNews) Avocados have a creamy texture and add a delicate, rich flavor to many dishes. This fruit was once cast aside because of its high fat content, yet recently it has made a comeback as one of the most nutrient-dense fruits available. Nicknamed the "butter pear," avocados are extremely versatile: they can be mashed, sliced, diced, scooped, or eaten right out of the skin.
There are literally hundreds of varieties of avocados, with Hass being the most popular in America. Derived from the Aztec word "ahuacati," avocados contain a multitude of vitamins, active enzymes, pure minerals, and soluble fiber. Plus, they rank as the most easily digestible source of fats and proteins in whole food form.
Although avocados contain a high amount of fat, not all fats are created equal! This nourishing macronutrient is full of the beneficial kind – raw, plant-based, and unprocessed. The body needs health-supportive fats for optimal brain and cell function and, contrary to popular belief, eating a balanced portion of healthy fat will not make you fat. Since avocados are full of the health-promoting monounsaturated fats that provide slow-burning digestible fuel, they can help keep one satiated and even aid in keeping weight at an optimum level by boosting the metabolism. Healthy fats actually help metabolize carbohydrates, can assist in supporting the reduction of unhealthy high cholesterol, and control insulin levels for both low and high blood sugar.
Many don't realize that this easily digestible food actually contains the highest amount of protein of any fruit by providing all of the18 essential amino acids. Portion to edible portion, this yellow-green fleshed fruit contains more protein than cow's milk.
Avocados are brimming with a multitude of necessary vitamins including vitamins A, B6, niacin, C, K, and folate, and they have a full range of minerals and other trace elements including magnesium, iron, copper, and calcium – all of which boost brainpower and support the immune system. Avocados contain a higher percentage of potassium than a medium-sized banana and are rich in lutein, which supports eye health. Recent research from the University of Ohio shows that eating avocados with other fruits and vegetables increases the absorption of phytochemicals by a considerable amount.
This wholesome fruit, sometimes referred to as an "alligator pear," packs a powerful punch with a whopping 5 grams of fiber per 3-ounce serving. Many have claimed that if there was only one thing you could do to improve your overall health, it would be to eat an avocado every day.
Substitute mashed avocados for butter or mayo, or add slices and chunks to a salad. As well as being the perfect baby food, athletes have sworn by substituting a few bites of this wholesome food instead of having a protein bar.
The avocado's sugar content decreases as it matures, as opposed to other fruits that manifest an increase as they mature. Eating even a small amount of an avocado throughout the day will provide stabilizing effects, aiding in the balance of blood sugar levels.
Tree-ripened fruit contains a higher concentration of nutrients, so when you find a ripe avocado, don't pass it by! Since we may not always have that choice, a firm avocado can ripen in a paper bag within a few days. Refrigerate only after it has softened.
If you decide to plant your own avocado tree, be aware you'll have to wait two to three years for it to bear fruit. On the plus side, after the wait you'll have avocados for the entire neighborhood, with each tree producing between 150 – 500 avocados per year!