Month: April 2011

Daily Multi Vitamin Use Lowers Heart Attack Risk by 41%
The results of a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition provides evidence that taking a multi vitamin can have a critical impact on heart disease risk. Women who took a high potency multi vitamin over a 5 year period were found to lower their risk of a heart attack by 41% compared to women who didn`t supplement. These results demonstrate the importance of proper nutrition to our health.

Essential Nutrients Provided by Natural Diet
The results of this study highlight the importance of vitamins and minerals to our health. A potent multi vitamin is a good way to ensure you get the minimum requirements for the vitamins and minerals that are commonly available in a single tablet. Nature provides a bounty of additional nutrients in whole foods that simply aren`t available in a pill. Many of the nutrients that exist in natural foods have yet to be discovered and undoubtedly have a major impact on our health when eaten as part of a whole food diet.

Most People are in a `Phytonutrient Gap`
The vast majority of people are grossly deficient in nutrients from their diet. This places them at increased risk of immune related disease ranging from the common cold to many forms of cancer and other serious illness. Details from ` America's Phytonutrient Report: Immune Health by Color` demonstrates that 8 out of 10 people fall short in meeting the minimum daily requirements for vegetables and fruits and lack basic support for optimal immune function. Specifically the report finds that people are deficient in vitamins A, C, D, E, zinc and selenium that provide the structure for a healthy immune response.

To ensure you benefit from the full matrix of nutrients, eat a diet with plenty of fresh vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds. Cut the processed foods, sugar and hydrogenated fats that are known to promote disease. Find a multi vitamin that is made from organic food sources for maximum health benefit and stay away from synthetic varieties that are full of chemicals and toxins. Take control of your health with a natural diet of whole foods and supplement daily with a quality multi vitamin.

Though TSA insists the practice does not discriminate based on race or religion, its claim that such "high risk" behavior warrants specific targeting is wholly invalid. After all, are actual terrorists really going to make a spectacle in the security line and draw attention to themselves?

"I think the idea that they (terrorists) would try to draw attention to themselves by being arrogant at airport security, it fails the common sense test," said Peter Bergen, a CNN National Security Analyst. "And it also fails what we know about their behaviors in the past."

Since it makes absolutely no sense that a real terrorist would exhibit some of the "behavioral indicators" that the TSA has established as high risk, it is clear that TSA is merely targeting individuals that question its authority in an attempt to silence them. This becomes especially evident when considering the fact that such procedures have not only never been proven to actually increase airport security, but they also routinely identify many innocent travelers as terrorists.

"[W]e found that evidence of potential harm is not being taken seriously," said Professor Shah Ebrahim, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. "The adverse effects are not included in the trials."

Amy Thompson, a senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, added that "[i]t is still unclear whether statins provide any real benefits for people without heart and circulatory disease and who are at low risk." She and others are thus advising people without any history of heart disease to avoid statins altogether.

But do statin drugs actually provide any real benefit for anyone? According to a study published in the British Medical Journal in 2010, for every heart attack allegedly prevented by statins, two people suffer liver damage, kidney failure, cataracts or extreme muscle weakness from taking the drug. And statistically, less than three percent of people experience any benefit at all from taking statins.

Researchers monitored the ability of the participants` blood vessels to relax by inflating and removing a blood pressure cuff from their arms. Blood was then allowed to flow back into the arm and the degree of elasticity was measured by means of an ultrasound. They found that arterial elasticity was directly related to the blood level measured for vitamin D saturation. Those individuals with the lowest or deficient readings experienced a much higher degree of hardening.

Participants with the highest readings experienced significantly improved vascular elasticity and lower blood pressure readings. The study author Dr. Al Mheid noted, "There is already a lot known about how vitamin D could be acting here". Regarding mechanisms responsible for the cardiovascular health improvements Dr. Mheid concluded: "It could be strengthening endothelial cells and the muscles surrounding the blood vessels. It could also be reducing the level of angiotensin, a hormone that drives increased blood pressure, or regulating inflammation."

Research results published in the journal Atherosclerosis provide evidence that acai juice provides powerful anti-inflammatory benefits that protect the delicate coronary arteries from hardening. Researchers found that acai juice protects against the development of atherosclerosis by inhibiting pro-inflammatory compounds known as cytokines that promote arterial thickening and the beginning stage of heart disease.

The juice was shown to lower levels of lipid peroxidation, a process that causes normal LDL cholesterol to combine with oxygen and incorporate with other materials to become arterial plaque. This study found that drinking acai juice altered the expression of 17 genes that contribute to LDL cholesterol oxidation. Health-minded individuals will want maintain proper vitamin D blood levels and drink 4 to 8-ounces of unsweetened acai juice each day (or an equivalent standardized extract) to dramatically lower the health risks associated with arterial hardening.

In addition, healthy cells in the body are aerobic, meaning they require adequate levels of oxygen for cellular respiration and growth. When cells are deprived of oxygen for any reason, decay sets in and cells can mutate or die.

The Oxygen Cancer Connection

Dr. Otto Warburg, 1931 Nobel prize winner, discovered a close connection between oxygen and cancer. His studies showed that the primary cause of cancer is directly related to oxygen-deprived cells. In fact, he found that cancer cells are anaerobic and actually thrive in an oxygen-deficient environment.

Warburg also discovered that a slightly alkaline pH in the body meant higher levels of oxygen uptake. These days, having a low blood oxygen level is a normal clinical finding for people with chronic diseases.

How Oxygen Is Utilized in the Body

Oxygen utilization is a highly complex process in the body, but the simpler version goes something like this: When we inhale, oxygen from the air we breathe is diffused through membranes and into red blood cells. The oxygen-rich blood then circulates throughout the body and finds tissues in need of oxygen.

Enzymes in the body combine with the oxygen molecules and initiate many metabolic (i.e., oxidative) processes in the body. One of the waste products of oxidation is carbon dioxide, which is then released from the cells into the blood. It combines with hemoglobin and bicarbonates and is transported back to the lungs — where the process starts all over again.

How Oxygen Supports Body Detoxification

Health in the human body depends to a large degree on how efficiently nutrients can be absorbed and utilized at the cellular level, as well as how effectively the toxins and wastes can be removed.

Cellular waste is removed from the body in several ways. Part of the waste is dissolved in water and transported to the kidneys and liver for filtration. It is then eliminated through the urine and bowels. Toxins are also excreted from the body through perspiration.

However, some of the most toxic poisons in the body can only be "burnt up" and neutralized through oxidation. This is the job of oxygen-rich red blood cells that circulate from the lungs and into the deeper organs and glands of the body.

Minimizing your exposure to environmental toxins (e.g., using air and water filters, eating organic foods, using toxic-free personal care products) while restoring oxygen balance in the body is a commonsense plan for cellular rejuvenation and disease prevention. The following are just a few simple ways to improve oxygenation in your body.

How to Restore Oxygen Balance in the Body

Alkaline diet. Even though there are many conflicting charts and articles online about how to increase body alkalinity through diet, it's really quite simple. Increase the amount of plant-based foods in your diet and reduce the amount of processed foods and animal-based foods, which are acidifying. If nothing else, increase the amount of dark, leafy green vegetables, such as kale, spinach, Swiss chard, parsley, sprouts, collard greens, and mustard greens, just to name a few. Organic super green supplements that contain chlorella, spirulina, barley grass, and alfalfa grass, in particular, also help to alkalize the body.

Adequate Hydration. Drinking enough water daily is essential not only for the utilization of oxygen in the body but also for transporting the blood and other bodily fluids. Without adequate water, all bodily functions are diminished, including cellular respiration and the removal of toxins and metabolic wastes. Drinking filtered water is necessary to get the full benefits of oxygenation. Restructured or ionized water is micro-clustered (creating smaller groupings of water molecules) and will thus provide higher levels of hydration and oxygenation at the cellular level.

Proper Breathing. Dr. K.P. Buteyko is a physiologist and clinical physician who devoted 50 years of his life to the study of respiration. According to Buteyko, sick people breathe using the upper chest and inhale more air, which causes reduced oxygen levels in body cells. Chest breathing causes us to take in too much air per inhalation and constricts blood vessels. Healthy breathing is slow (about 12 breaths per minute), from the diaphragm (rather than the chest), through the nose (rather than mouth) and is quiet and light. Contrary to popular belief, deep or rapid breathing techniques do not increase oxygenation! See resource below for Dr. Buteyko's do-it-yourself Body Oxygen Test.

Daily Exercise. Increase aerobic exercise such as walking, hiking or bicycling. Aerobic exercise will help your body utilize oxygen and remove waste through the lymphatic system. Whereas the circulatory system has the heart to pump blood throughout the body, the lymphatic system has no pump. Lymph gets circulated and flushed primarily through movement. Thus, from the standpoint of health and body oxygenation, you would be better off walking for 15 minutes a day rather than spending an hour or more in the gym 2 to 3 times a week. The most effective exercise I have found for flushing lymph is the mini-trampoline (rebounder). Two minutes of rebounding can flush the entire lymph and triple the production of white blood cells – a super immunity booster.

Adequate oxygenation and a healthy body pH are essential to health and vitality. Just a few of the potential benefits of maintaining body oxygenation at a balanced level include: enhanced brain function, stress reduction, increased energy, and a longer and healthier life.

Calcium Bentonite Clay has a uniquely strong negative ionic charge. When activated with water it works like a strong magnet, adsorbing and absorbing anything with a positive ionic charge (i.e., toxins, pesticides, radiation). The clay captures these substances and removes them as the clay is eliminated or washed off.

To remove radiation from your produce, Perry A~ Arledge, author of Living Clay, Nature's Own Miracle Cure, recommends starting with liquid clay. This is Calcium Bentonite Clay mixed with water at a ratio of 1 part clay to 8 parts water. In a large non-metallic bowl, mix 1/4 cup of liquid clay with 1 quart of water. Toss your fruits or vegetables in this clay water making sure they're completely covered and let them sit for about 10 minutes. Rinse and dry them, and store them as you normally would.

You can add Calcium Bentonite Clay to your milk and drinking water if you're concerned about the possibility of contamination there as well. Add approximately 1 ounce of liquid Calcium Bentonite Clay to a gallon of organic raw milk or water. Some people prefer to let the clay settle to the bottom of the liquid and discard that portion, while others prefer to shake it up and drink them together. Either is fine. Once a contaminant is 'caught' by the clay it will not be released, and the clay cannot be digested by your body. All contaminants adsorbed by the clay will be removed upon elimination. And it's always a good practice to take one to two ounces of liquid Calcium Bentonite Clay twice a day, to keep your body detoxed.

Will any clay work?

No. When choosing a healing or detoxing clay, there are several criteria that should be followed. You want to choose an all natural, non-processed clay that is very pure and uncontaminated, with a pH of 8.5 or above. And you want to buy from a reputable company that provides quality control testing and professional packaging and has people available to answer any questions you might have. While Calcium Bentonite Clay will not interfere with the vast majority of medications, if you're taking medication, check with your pharmacist to make certain it contains nothing that the clay would adsorb.

What is perhaps even more concerning than the sharp rise in diabetes cases is the even larger increase in pre-diabetes cases. According to data, the pre-diabetes rate jumped by nearly 40 percent since 2008. So if the entire pre-diabetic population eventually becomes diabetic, nearly one third of the entire U.S. population will eventually have diabetes.

Currently, 8.3 percent of all Americans, and 11.3 percent of people over the age of 20, now have diabetes. Twenty-seven percent of those that have it, or roughly seven million people, are not even aware of their condition. Based on trends, diabetes rates are only expected to continue to rise in the years to come.

In addition to physical lifestyle changes, there are many medicinal superfoods like almonds, green leafy vegetables, and camu camu, that can help to prevent and treat diabetes when incorporated as part of a healthy diet. Avoiding processed foods like soda that are rich in highly-refined sweeteners will also help to keep blood sugar levels low and prevent the destruction of the pancreas, the organ that produces insulin.

The toxicity of fluoride is so great that in 2007, the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) withdrew its endorsement for fluoride as a beneficial water additive. The group has stated that "individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) should be notified of the potential risk of fluoride exposure."

In 2006, the National Research Council issued a now-famous report that explains how the initial studies used to promote water fluoridation in the first place did not properly assess how fluoride would affect renal (kidney) function. According to that report, those with impaired renal function, or those on hemodialysis, "tend to accumulate fluoride much more quickly than normal." Further investigation into the matter was urged, but was never completed.

"We know almost half of US kids are fluoride-overdosed as evidenced by their fluoride-discolored teeth, or dental fluorosis," said attorney Paul Beeber, President of the NYS Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation, Inc. "What has fluoride done to their bones, glands and organs known to collect fluoride? Are they fluoride-hypersensitive? Without such critical studies, claims that fluoridation is safe for everyone are unproven and groundless."

Legislation currently before the NY City Council would amend the administrative code of NYC to remove fluoride from water. The legislation currently has seven cosponsors, and if passed could spark a much-needed nationwide backlash against water fluoridation