Positive studies on the merits of vitamin D3 for preventing breast cancer, colon cancer, and prostate cancer had already been performed and published. So Dr. Nuria Malets and her team decided to focus on bladder cancer instead. Bladder cancer is an epidemic in Spain.

They divided slightly over 2,000 test subjects in half. One half hospitalized with bladder cancer and the other half without bladder cancer. Then they used the standard serum 25-hydroxycholecalciferol or 25(OH)D test, which measures the active form of vitamin D3 produced in the kidneys.

The Spanish research team recorded that the 1,000 bladder cancer patients had less serum D3 levels than the 1,000 without bladder cancer. They determined that a low vitamin D3 level doubles the chance of bladder cancer.

Separating patients with more aggressive bladder cancers revealed that risks are six times higher with low D3 blood levels. One aspect of vitamin D3’s ability to prevent cancer is a protein that D3 provides to curb cancer.

Vitamin D3 is more of a hormone than a vitamin, and it has regulatory adaptogenic properties. It boosts what’s needed and lessens what’s overabundant.

The LA Times article did not reveal the actual numeric 25(OH)D readings from the Spanish research team to indicate what they considered low.

What this means for you
Increasing bare skin exposure to direct sunlight is the optimum vitamin D3 booster. Tanning beds that use UVB (ultra-violet B) rays work also. UVB rays are what helps your skin’s fat cells start the vitamin D3 process.

Vitamin D3 (not D2) supplements from natural sources are also beneficial. Ignore the official RDA minimum requirement. Many safely and effectively supplement 5,000 to 10,000 iu (international units) daily of natural vitamin D3.

A California study determined that up to 40,000 IU supplemented daily for a short term was not toxic. Your body automatically stops D3 production when sunshine or other UVB rays have your D3 level maxed out.

Instead of relying on frequent mammograms or prostate checks that have proven to give false reads and actually increase cancer risks, boost your vitamin D3 intake with more sunlight exposure to bare skin and/or supplements.

You may wish to check with 25(OH)D testing and decide your dosage from there, or trust your intuition. Try to get the 25(OH)D test from a holistic doctor who understands vitamin D3’s implications.

So the vitamin D3 protection plan works for serious diseases as well as maintaining your immunity to help prevent colds and flues. Sunshine is free and vitamin D3 supplements are inexpensive. This is a very cost effective cancer protection plan.

To ensure the daily intake omega-3 was adhered to along with the restriction of no more than two alcoholic drinks daily, the subjects were often physically tested. After the six months, they all showed significant improvement with their working memories.

The lead researcher, neuro-scientist Bita Moghaddam commented: “Before seeing this data, I would have said it was impossible to move young healthy individuals above their cognitive best. We found that members of this population can enhance their working memory performance even further, despite their already being at the top of their cognitive game.”

But: They used Lovaza, a pharmaceutical omega-3 source primarily intended to reduce triglycerides. It’s better to use clean, high omega-3 fish oils that contain more antioxidants.

Omega-3 fatty acids for brain and overall health
Mainstream medical doctors are increasingly understanding the value of unadulterated essential omega-3 fatty acids for curbing chronic inflammation and boosting cardiovascular health. (http://www.naturalnews.com)

There have been two dramatic episodes of using high dose fish oil through feeding tubes of comatose, brain injured young men that resulted in amazing and rapid recoveries. (http://www.naturalnews.com)

Still, mainstream medicine waffles with this approach and avoids establishing it as a “standard of care” for brain trauma.

Healthy, unadulterated omega-6 is found abundantly in cold pressed virgin olive oil and other cold pressed nut and plant based oils. Avoid processed hydrogenated oils. They’re actually toxic. Most nuts will also supply some heart healthy omega-6.

The SAD (standard American diet) is saturating most Americans with too much omega-6 because of too many toxic, processed omega-6 oils in their processed and fast foods. Those oils lead to cardiovascular, liver, and other health problems.

So in addition to consuming only unadulterated omega-6 oils, the challenge is to take in sufficient omega-3 oils. These are essential fatty acids that need to be supplied from external sources. Omega-3 is more vital than most think.

Flax seeds need to be ground freshly each time they’re consumed, while chia seeds don’t require grinding. Flax oils need to be refrigerated. Hemp (non-THC) seeds or oils from Canada are legal and contain a perfect balance of omega-3 and 6. Walnuts or cold pressed walnut oil round up most of the vegan choices for omega-3.

However, some bodies, especially as they age, lack the ability to efficiently convert plant based omega-3 ALA (alpha-linolenic acid) into the more powerful and comprehensive health boosting EPA (Eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid).

Omega-3 EPA and DHA fatty acids from animal sources are intact and ready to work. Animal sources include eggs and meats from free range sources, wild cold water fresh fish like tuna, sardines, and krill. Avoid farmed fish and be vigilant for contamination with sea life sources.

Fish and krill oils from clean, cold water seas that are checked for PCB and mercury contamination are convenient shortcuts, which also eliminate contamination anxiety. Fish or krill oils without preservatives need to be refrigerated.

Some do add a bit of lemon or orange flavoring to camouflage fish oil’s yucky taste.

Pains and sensations are felt in some positions but not others. Walking may be painless after getting through the painful positions to get up and walk.

If the condition is chronic, it’s advisable to visit a chiropractor. The nerve pinch or pressure could be coming from dislocated vertebrae or a contracted spinal canal. Surgery may be required for a severely herniated disk between vertebrae. But that’s rare.

It’s not unusual for sciatic pain to come and go with the right pain relief remedy and sufficient rest.

It is appropriately advised that pregnant women or lactating mothers not use Jamaican Dogwood, and anyone with a congestive heart condition should avoid it also. If taking any other medication, determine if there could be contraindications or complications.

(2) Turmeric or curcumin, turmeric’s active ingredient, is a natural anti-inflammatory that can be taken as a tonic to minimize chronic inflammation. It’s best to heat turmeric in milk or ghee and coconut oil with some pepper, which contains piperine to help absorb nutrients.

Taking turmeric often is okay for sciatica. If you need a short cut, curcumin enteric coated capsules with piperine is suggested for optimal absorption and faster relief.

(3) Kratom is an herb that is both fast and natural for pain relief and unknown to most of us. Natural News readers were only very recently introduced to it by Jonathan Benson’s article. (http://www.naturalnews.com/035480_kratom_pain_relief_herb.html)

Indonesians hooked on opium used kratom to help them endure opium withdrawal easily. According to legend, that’s why it was banned there. It was interfering with the opium trade. Maybe so, maybe not.

The fact that it also makes you feel good, helps overcome depression has caused a stir in the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration). The state of Indiana has banned kratom.

But it is available online in all other states and in most other countries. You can find out more about it here: http://www.kratomassociation.org/

(4) Arnica with DMSO combines a homeopathic topical cream with DMSO as an adjunct to give fast pain relief from sciatica. Adding DMSO speeds and deepens arnica’s topically applied efficacy while adding its own pain and inflammatory relief.

Water flooded subways and sewage systems while causing wide spread power outages. Water purity concerns were among some of the issues after the winds died down and attempts at restoring order had begun.

Let’s consider how to ensure you have the best drinking water during normal times and bad times or disasters, starting with normal times.

(1) During normal times, do your own reverse osmosis combined with activated charcoal filtering. Combined, these are effective at getting rid of almost all the sodium fluoride and chlorine compounds known as disinfection byproducts, or DBPs, considered more immediately toxic than chlorine alone.

If you own your own home or condo, there are reverse osmosis-carbon filter systems. The least expensive systems are installed under the kitchen sink for drinking and cooking water only, while complete reverse osmosis filtration systems for all the plumbing are quite pricey.

However, in addition to removing most of the sodium fluoride and chlorine DBPs, most of the mineral nutrients are also removed. They can be replaced with a little sea salt or trace mineral drops or a pinch of bicarbonate of soda, which also restores some alkalinity. (http://www.naturalnews.com/035994_water_purification_detox.html)

(2) If you can’t afford your own system, or rent and can’t mess with the plumbing, you can still get your own reverse osmosis-carbon filtered water by going to any health food store or supermarkets that have water filtration machines.

Information on the machines will disclose if they contain both reverse osmosis and charcoal filters. They usually charge 25 to 50 cents a gallon. Fill up with a few gallons at a time.

(3) You can prepare for a power outage scenario by buying a Berkey or ProPur water filter with its own tank for the purified water. They are portable and gravity fed, so there’s no need for electrical power. Their prices range from $200 to $400 with added fluoride filters.

Missionaries and archeologists used these types of filtration systems in jungle areas to purify heavily polluted water and store it.

(4) Preparing for disasters by storing masses of store bought bottled water may prove to be a disaster in itself. Compared to using your own reverse osmosis system or your neighborhood food store’s machine for pennies a gallon, bottled water is way overpriced.

Then there are the issues with plastic bottles, such as BPA. Confirm spring water bottles as containing actual spring water and not just purified tap water. Try to order spring water delivered in glass containers.

(5) If your city water supply gets polluted or you get stuck somewhere without water, boiling water at a high rolling boil for five minutes should get rid of most pathogenic bacteria and parasites.

The CDC recommends mixing an eighth of a teaspoon of unscented bleach in a gallon of water and letting it stand for a half hour. If the water is cloudy at first, use one-quarter of a teaspoon. Chlorine dioxide tablets for purifying water are recommended by camping experts.

When it comes to tap water, boiling won’t get rid of the fluoride. It will increase fluoride density by boiling off some water and leaving the sodium fluoride intact.

One reason that notion was dropped was they hadn’t figured out how to break through the green single cell algae chlorella’s cell walls making its nutrients accessible.

Now the technology for breaking open the cell walls by crushing is practiced by most chlorella providers, making all of chlorella’s nutrients and detox potential available. You can also choose tablets that are half chlorella and half spirulina, another green algae superfood that’s nutritionally dense. Both are superfoods, but chlorella seems to have more detox powers.

(2) Neither super food in section (1) will give you the satisfaction of having eaten much even as they offer a lot of nutrition. But your own put-together trail mix can help with that. Raw, organic cashews and other nuts mixed with some dried fruits will help you feel like you’re eating something of substance while you travel.

(3) Katie Bressack, in her mindbodygreen.com article claims she gets through TSA security checks with a packed lunch for her plane trips by packing it in her carry-on. Make it simple and easy to recognize as food, like a sandwich, and don’t include packets of sauces or salad dressings.

The more you can BYO (bring your own) food while traveling, the healthier you’ll remain on your trips. You may try looking into a survival food company to carry a few survival food bars with you also. They are used for camping and emergencies.

The only caveat is making sure you check for MSG, aspartame and corn syrup. Here’s how to spot the many MSG disguises. (http://www.truthinlabeling.org/hiddensources.html)

Also, make sure the bars are free from GMOs. To help with that, order a free downloadable GMO avoidance guide from Jeffrey Smith’s Institute for Responsible Technology. (http://www.responsibletechnology.org/resources/download-brochures)

(4) Try to get a motel or hotel room with a kitchenette. If a health food store is not in the vicinity, you can use this little guide to “The Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen…” for picking the least sprayed, non-organic produce possible. (http://www.healthkicker.com)

(5) Scout and plan ahead via the internet to determine where there might be health food stores or restaurants at your destination. Let your relatives know what type of foods you’re used to and help direct them to the right choices.

The hospital’s physicians commented that his brain injury was so bad, it was a wonder that he was alive enough to be in a coma. They told Bobby’s father and mother it was doubtful he’d be more than a vegetable if he came out of the coma. He’d be unable to speak or recognize his family.

Time for a drastic intervention
After 10 days, Bobby was still comatose but stable. His dad, Peter Ghassemi, felt more should be done than maintaining stability in a coma. So he started asking around to old Army buddies and was led to Army colonel Dr. Micheal Lewis.

Dr. Lewis recommended fish oil based on an early episode of a West Virginia coal miner who barely survived a mining accident with severe brain damage. His condition had resembled Bobby’s.

The 26-year-old miner, Randall McCloy, was “on death’s doorstep,” according to Randall’s hospital neurosurgeon, Dr. Julian Bailes. He and the other doctors then decided to forgo the normal wait and see after Randall was stabilized in intensive care.

They decided to take a radical course from normal AMA protocol and put Randall into hyperbaric therapy to increase oxygen to his brain while administering fish oil through Randall’s feeding tube. After a brain injury, even as some recovery is noticed, the brain cells continue dieing from progressive inflammation.

Dr. Bailes knew that the brain needs to feed on omega-3 fatty acids to heal inflammation as well as stimulate brain and nervous system cell growth. After discussing Randall’s condition with fish oil omega-3 experts, Dr. Bailes determined that 20 grams fed through Randall’s feeding tube daily might bring him around.

20 grams is 10 times more than what an uninjured person would supplement with fish oil. Dr. Lewis explained the Dr. Bailes intervention with Randall to Bobby’s dad, who thought the whole thing strange. But he realized that three months after the mining accident, Randall McCloy left the hospital walking and talking.

At first, the hospital staff resisted Peter’s urging to try the fish oil therapy on his son Bobby. Their viewpoint was that the McCloy incident was just one anecdotal episode and not worth pursuing, perhaps even risky. But Peter persisted strongly and they finally yielded.

Today, at age 20, Bobby smiles as he recalls his high school graduation where he took off his cap and waved it to the cheering students. His dramatic recovery has left him with some weakness on the left side of his body and difficulty walking, but he’s back.

Yet, even after two successful applications of omega-3 fish oil for extremely brain damaged victims who recovered rapidly after both were written off from any significant recovery, the medical establishment only equivocates and considers the possibility of someday exploring omega-3 fish oil “scientifically” for brain traumas.

Top indoor superfoods
Effortless to grow, these four superfoods are perfect for an indoor garden. Simply utilize the French intensive technique of ultra-rich composted soil, compact planting and consistent harvesting and you are good to go.

Arugula

Sometimes referred to as rocket, arugula is a mildly spicy, fast growing superfood. An exceptional source of vitamins A, C and K, this green helps to protect against skin, lung and oral cancer along with Alzheimer’s disease. High in B vitamins, arugula will boost energy and calm the nervous system. Additionally, arugula contains diindolylmethane (DIM), a compound that discourages the human papillomavirus (HPV) and cervical dysplasia. Arugula is teeming with copper, iron, phytonutrients, chlorophyll and fiber too.

Cilantro

Cilantro is an exceptional herb that controls blood sugar, detoxifies heavy metals and possesses strong antibacterial properties. Research has shown that diabetics can benefit from cilantro consumption since it helps to increase the secretion of insulin and lowers blood sugar levels. As a mighty detoxifier, cilantro removes heavy metals like mercury by binding to the toxin and escorting it safely from the body. Cilantro is a prime source of dodecenal, a potent antibacterial agent. Scientists discovered that dodecenal was more effective in combating salmonella food poisoning than the commonly used antibiotic gentamicin. This tasty herb also eases hormonal mood swings, urinary tract infections, arthritis, liver complaints and digestive upset.

Oregano

The great Greek philosopher Hippocrates used oregano for its germicidal qualities and as an tonic for digestive upset. Science has proven what Hippocrates intuitively sensed — oregano contains powerful bioactive compounds that ward off infections, parasites and inflammation. Mexican researchers found that consuming oregano is effective against the parasitic infection giardia. Topically, it relieves cold sores and acne. Oregano is antioxidant rich — ounce for ounce, it contains 42 times the antioxidants of apples, 12 times more than oranges and four times more than blueberries. Also loaded with vitamin K, iron, manganese and fiber, oregano is one of the healthiest foods you can eat.

Watercress

Ancient Persians and Romans recognized the exceptional benefits of watercress and harnessed its healing properties to enhance brain function, soothe the nervous system and even boost libido. Considered an anti-aging superfood, watercress is full of eye protecting lutein and antioxidants. Watercress is an outstanding source of iodine — important for protection against radiation and maintaining a healthy thyroid gland. Moreover, watercress is rich in vitamins A, B, C, D, E and K along with calcium, phosphorus, potassium, iron, copper, silica and zinc.

Forget ornamental houseplants — cultivate an indoor mini-garden instead. With these four top-notch superfoods, keeping healthy and within budget is a nutritious delight this winter.

Sources for this article include:

“Arugula nutrition facts” Nutrition and You. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.nutrition-and-you.com/arugula.html

“Arugula: Health Benefits, Tips and Recipes” Jennifer Valentine, One Green Planet, May 3, 2012. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.onegreenplanet.org

“Health Benefits of Cilantro” James A. Duke, PhD, Global Healing Center. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/benefits-of/cilantro

“Oregano: 10 Natural Health Benefits & Healing Uses” Mark’s Daily Apple. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/oregano/#axzz29SZN17YC

“Health Benefits of Oregano” Gardening Channel. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.gardeningchannel.com/health-benefits-of-oregano/

“Watercress: A garnishing green that provides bountiful health benefits” Paul Fassa, Natural News, September 11, 2011. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.naturalnews.com

“Potential Health Benefits of Watercress” Watercress.com. Retrieved on October 16, 2012 from: http://www.watercress.com/pdf/pot_health_benefits_of_WC_09.pdf

About the author:
Carolanne enthusiastically believes if we want to see change in the world, we need to be the change. As a nutritionist, natural foods chef and wellness coach, Carolanne has encouraged others to embrace a healthy lifestyle of organic living, gratefulness and joyful orientation for over 13 years. Through her website www.Thrive-Living.net she looks forward to connecting with other like-minded people from around the world who share a similar vision.