What's in Your Shampoo?

Most of us use shampoo every day, or at least a few times a week. We grab for the bottle, squirt a dollop into our hands, lather, and voilà: Clean hair. But do you know what’s actually in it? Let’s take a look at the basic anatomy of a shampoo by breaking down the “recipe” of ingredients: surfactants, actives, preservatives, color, and fragrance. We'll look at what is used in conventional shampoos—aside from water, which makes up 50 percent of most of them—and what is used in cleaner alternatives.

Deciphering the key components of the shampoos we use on a regular basis helps makes the long names found on their ingredient lists less confusing—and may also give you something to think about when choosing your next one.

Surfactants

Also known as surface active agents, surfactants are necessary for the lathering, cleaning, and degreasing effects of a shampoo. Shampoos usually contain a cocktail of surfactants, artfully combined to strike the right balance.

Conventional: These have the potential for harshness, stripping away fatty acids and usually contain a higher percentage of petroleum-based ingredients and portions. These ingredients can include compounds with environmental concerns. Examples include: sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate, ammonium laureth sulfate, cocamide DEA, ammonium xylene sulfonate.

Natural: Your shampoo may not foam like a conventional product because it contains a higher percentage of natural materials, but your hair will still be just as clean, with added natural benefits. Examples include: decyl glucoside, sucrose cocoate, sodium methyl cocoyl taurate, sodium lauroamphoacetate.

Preservatives

The main function of preservatives is to prevent microbial growth and to ensure a long shelf life. When it comes to preservatives, none are truly benign. And while preservative systems are a necessary component of most personal care products—and in particular water-based ones such as shampoos—some are worse than others.

Conventional: These tend to be stronger, used to increase shelf life. With this comes allergenic and irritant potential, and there is concern about some preservatives' hormone-disrupting ability. Examples include: iodopropynyl butylcarbamate, methylisothiazolinone, and methylchloroisothiazonlinone (which are not allowed in personal care products at Whole Foods Market), as well as parabens.

Natural: These preservatives will be milder. They will be ones that have been shown to function properly, yet with a lower likelihood of causing cosmetic-related allergies and sensitivities. Examples include: potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate, and alcohol.

Active and other Ingredients

These are the ingredients that are intended to nourish and beautify, making your hair shinier, smoother, softer, thicker, and more manageable. Other ingredients, such as thickeners, humectants, pH-control agents or chelators, may be added to stabilize the formula.

Conventional: These products typically contain less natural actives, fewer botanical-based ingredients and more synthetic ones. Examples include: disodium EDTA, polyquaternium-10, and aminomethyl propanol.

Natural: These products will contain high percentages of natural actives such as aloe vera gel, antioxidants, herbal extracts, plant oils, vitamins, proteins, amino acids, and fatty acids.

Fragrance

Along with functionality, fragrance—often a melange of many artificial smells, combined in a proprietary formula—is one of the main reasons we consumers will pick one product over another.

Conventional: Typically, synthetic fragrances are used in conventional shampoos, due to cost, performance, and variety. These have the potential to be irritating and their safety has been questioned.

Natural: Ideally, these are phthalate-free and 100 percent natural. At Whole Foods, only 100 percent natural fragrances are allowed in our Premium shampoos, for philosophical and safety reasons.

Color

In basic shampoos, color is added for decorative purposes only, and is unnecessary for functionality.

Conventional: Synthetic colorants are often added for decorative purposes only. In Premium Body Care products at Whole Foods Market, no colors are allowed, neither natural nor synthetic, as they are not necessary for a shampoo to function at all.

Natural: Most natural brands skirt even "natural" dyes in their shampoo.

So how does your shampoo measure up? Shampoo is one of the most challenging products to make truly natural because functionality is so important for hair products, and so we applaud brands like Depth, Ikove, Alaffia, Mineral Fusion, and John Masters Organics, which prove it is possible to make many good improvements in the area of natural shampoos while keeping your hair clean and looking its best.

 

Read the original post here: http://www.good.is/post/what-s-in-your-shampoo/

Instructions: How to Green Your Bedroom

On the hunt for new bedding, one is presented with exhaustive (and exhausting) options. Sateen or jersey? Is there a difference between the 300- and 800-threadcount comforter? What is pima cotton? And how on earth can you choose a mattress after lying on it for five minutes at Sleepy's? Throw sustainability and organics in the mix and it's more confounding that ever.

And yet we spend a third of our lives sleeping, so there's a reason these can be hard decisions to make. It's also why we should all give a little more thought to chemicals involved in the production of our beds and linens. Cotton farming occupies only 3 percent of farm land, and yet accounts for about 25 percent of worldwide insecticides use and over 10 percent of pesticide use. To help break it down, it takes about a quarter pound of chemicals to produce one cotton T-shirt. So, think of all the chemicals going into a set of sheets and a blanket, and then consider these guidelines to make your bedroom shopping trip a little greener.

1. The next time you shop for sheets, go organic. Organic cotton farming leaves no chemical residue on the finished material, so they are safe for you to cuddle up in at night. This is good for the planet and for you.

2. Think outside the usual material. There are great natural fibers you can try like linen, silk, jersey, and flannel. Online shopping is great when it comes to bedding because of the great selection and with standard bed sizes, fit isn't a concern.

3. Be a little flexible with colors. Synthetic dyes offer a wide range of colors, but they are just that—synthetic. There is a range of colors offered in organic bedding, but they may not be as easy to find or as vast as the non-organic sheets you find in most stores. You can always get a little help from the internet. Or you can opt for a more neutral hue and spice up the room with paint or other colorful accessories.

4. If have a little Martha in you, make your own duvet cover or pillow cases. For the duvet cover, take two organic flat sheets or blankets and sew them together to create your own duvet for a fraction of the cost. All you need for the pillow cases is some great organic material from the fabric store and a simple pillow pattern.

5. When choosing a new mattress, do your research. Most conventional mattresses are chemical havens. They are often made with synthetic materials like polyester, a plastic that emits gasses, and then they are covered in formaldehyde-based finishes for stain resistant convenience. Many also contain a fire retardant, which is a whole other set of chemicals.  So, opt for natural fibers. They are sometimes more expensive, but arguably a worthwhile investment that will last you a decade or longer.

6. Get a good pillow. Fortunately, there are several options in the eco-friendly department when it comes to pillows. If you prefer firm, look at organic cotton. For a bit of spring, try wool. If you are concerned with proper alignment, look at natural latex foam pillows. There are several more options out there one of which should suit your particular needs.

7. Buy a pillow protector. This may just seem like an extra pillowcase, but a pillow protector will extend the life of your pillow and help to relieve dust mite allergies. Extending the life of our products creates less waste.

Do you have any great natural-bedroom tips to share?

Read the original post here: http://www.good.is/post/good-instructions-how-to-green-your-bedroom/

Cancer testing outstrips allopathic treatments

by: Dr. Carolyn Dean

Cancer diagnostic testing has finally outstripped allopathic cancer therapy. And the testing itself is not dangerous like the full body scans that use ionizing radiation.

Doctors now have blood tests that can find a single cancer cell in the body but their toxic treatments were never meant to target single cancer cells without wrecking havoc in the rest of the body. Allopathic medicine cuts out tumors with surgery or shrinks them with chemotherapy and radiation. Such treatments would simply not work on a handful of cancer cells.

Researchers want to use the tests AFTER surgery, chemo and radiation to see if the cancer is returning. There are no plans to use this testing to diagnose early cancer because they don't have any treatments for early cancer. Allopathic medicine only practices what it knows, which is surgery, chemo and radiation.

There is also the fact that there are no patents on diet, supplements and detox. I never learned about them in medical school. The only way doctors get involved with natural medicine is when they or their family suffers illnesses that medicine can't treat. It's the same for individuals - treatment with natural medicine is often the last resort instead of the first. None of us seem to take the necessary steps to take care of our health unless it's threatened.

Natural medicine, naturopathic medicine and alternative medicine hold the key to preventing and treating early cancer. Now with this early diagnostic cancer cell testing, we can give patients a simple before and after test to show how their diet and lifestyle program is working.

I've already seen it at work in someone with a history of cancer who had the cancer blood test done. When the cancer cell test levels came back high, while waiting for surgery, he did some alternative medicine therapies and saw that his test improved dramatically after only a few weeks. The treatments he used were ones outlined in my Future Health Now! online wellness program: clay and magnesium detox baths, castor oil packs, coconut oil pulling, inclined bed therapy and energy work (like Emotional Freedom Technique). The doctors were astounded.

This story will be repeated over and over when patients demand the cancer cell test and demand the right to use simple and safe therapies as their first choice instead of toxic chemotherapy and radiation.

Here's a brief overview of what you can do right now to turn your body into a cancer-free zone. Why wait until you develop a tumor that will be treated (usually ineffectively) by allopathic medicine? Create your own lifestyle program to prevent cancer from developing in the first place.

1. Diet: Choose organic foods and eat according to your metabolic type or you blood type.

2. Supplements: Start with magnesium to supply the cofactor for over 325 metabolic enzyme systems in the body. Add food-based supplements, highly absorbed minerals, and digestive enzymes.

3. Detoxification: Magnesium is a detoxifier and can be used as Epsom salts or magnesium chloride bath flakes. Use detox clay along with magnesium in your baths or footbaths several times per week. Clay absorbs toxins from your body through your skin. Clay can remove heavy metals, chemicals and drugs. And it's one of the few treatments for the effects of radiation.

4: Body Work: Massage, Yoga, and EFT will help to move energy through your nervous system or acupuncture meridian system and prevent blockage - either physical or emotional.

5: Spiritual/Vibrational: Prayer and Meditation.

I've been working for 40 years on Future Health Now! www.drcarolyndean.com/fhn which will allow you to create your own healthy lifestyle program which includes:

a. Vitalizing Foods
b. Personal Care
c. Energizing Exercise
d. Super Nutrients
e. Living Space
f. Rejuvenating Sleep
g. Mind over Matter

Reference: CellSearch Cancer Testing: http://www.veridex.com/cellsearch/C...

About the author:
Dr. Carolyn Dean is a medical doctor and naturopathic doctor. She has been in the forefront of the natural medicine revolution for over 30 years.

Dr. Dean is the author / coauthor of 22 health books (print and eBooks) including The Magnesium Miracle, IBS for Dummies, IBS Cookbook for Dummies, The Yeast Connection and Women's Health, Future Health Now Encyclopedia, Death by Modern Medicine, Everything Alzheimers, and Hormone Balance.

Dr. Dean is Medical Director of the Medical Anti-Aging Clinic and Pharmacy in Dubai Health Care City and Medical Director of the Nutritional Magnesium Association.

Dr. Dean has a free newsletter and a valuable online 2-year wellness program called Future Health Now! and a telephone consulting practice. Find out more at www.drcarolyndean.com

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032374_cancer_testing.html#ixzz1NUKePpbf

Proper potassium balance essential to healthy blood pressure and reduced heart attack risk

by: John Phillip

(NaturalNews) Increasing incidence of high blood pressure continues to be the most significant factor in death from a heart attack and advancing cardiovascular disease. Elevated blood pressure readings cause thickening of the coronary arteries as micro-cracks develop that the body attempts to correct with deposits of coronary plaque. Overweight and obesity, smoking, physical inactivity and stress are known contributing factors to the hypertension epidemic. Researchers publishing in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that the imbalance of potassium to sodium in the diet is a significant factor driving high blood pressure. Maintaining an optimized ratio of 2:1 (potassium to sodium) by cutting salty processed foods and increasing natural fruits and vegetables is shown to significantly lower out of control blood pressure readings.

Potassium from natural food sources has been rapidly depleted from the typical diet due to the dramatic rise in sodium-laden processed foods over the past half century. Combined with a reduction in raw vegetables and fruits that are excellent sources of potassium, the balance of potassium to sodium in the diet has shifted from an ideal ratio of 2:1 to a blood pressure raising rate of 2:3. Current potassium intake is fully one-third that of our generational ancestors and is attributed to the skyrocketing increase in high blood pressure incidence and associated cardiovascular risk.

Researchers examining the potassium intake across 21 countries including the US found that average daily consumption of the mineral ranged from 1.7 to 3.7 grams, well below the recommended daily allowance of 4.7 grams. Similarly, sodium consumption averaged 5 grams per day with many individuals taking in as much as 9 to 12 grams. The recommended sodium intake is 2,400 mg daily and 1,500 mg or less is suggested for those with established cardiovascular risk factors.

The study found that only 20% to 30 % of the adult population maintains normal blood pressure readings. The study authors found "An effective way of increasing potassium intake is to follow the guidelines for healthy nutrition more closely, including a higher consumption of vegetables and fruit. In addition, the use of mineral salts in processed foods - by which sodium is partly replaced by potassium - would contribute to an improved intake of both sodium and potassium."

The study concluded that increasing potassium in the diet has a significant effect on lowering blood pressure and is equal to the effect seen by lowering sodium consumption. Higher potassium intake from natural sources including avocados, spinach, carrots and tomatoes and elimination of sodium-infused processed foods (snacks, soup and fast food) can combine to lower systolic blood pressure readings by 5% to 7%. Improving this single risk factor could reduce hypertension rates enough to dramatically lower cardiovascular risk and heart attack deaths.

Article References:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...
http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinter...
http://www.sciencedaily.com/release...

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032429_potassium_blood_pressure.html#ixzz1NUEW0sPa

Thyroid drug increases risk of bone fractures in women

by: Reuben Claxton

(NaturalNews) Hypothyroidism is a fairly common disorder, caused by low levels of thyroid hormones. With the availability of either natural hormones taken from animals, or synthetic hormones (levothyroxine), doctors now treat the disorder by replacing the missing thyroid hormones. A recent study for the British Medical Journal found that elderly people with high levels of the artificial hormone may have an increased risk of bone fracture.

Hormones secreted by the thyroid gland are critically important to health because they affect the metabolism of every cell in the body. Thyroid hormones regulate the metabolism of glucose to release energy, as well as affecting protein synthesis and metabolism of fats.

Because the body creates thyroid hormones by using iodine, a healthy level of iodine in the diet is important (http://www.naturalnews.com/023107_i...). In addition to the importance of iodine for general metabolism, there is also evidence that iodine in the diet can help in avoiding cancer (http://www.naturalnews.com/023107_i...).

The British Medical Journal study was done at the Women's College Research Institute in Toronto, where researchers looked at 213,500 people aged 70 or over. Patients in the study received at least one prescription for levothyroxine (the synthetic hormone) between 2002 and 2007. Results showed a significantly increased risk of fracture in people who were either taking or had recently taken levothyroxine.

As people grow older, there is a greater likelihood of diminished levels of thyroid hormones, with possibly as many as 20% of older people receiving treatment for hypothyroidism. But as doctors treat the disease by administering hormones, one of the possible side effects is a decrease in bone density. In some cases, bone density may reach the point that broken bones become more likely.

A researcher from the British Medical Journal study said that the condition needs more study, as not enough is known about the link between thyroid hormone and bone density in the elderly. A study published in 2010 on the link in elderly men did not find a decrease in bone density, but a study the same year in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism did find such a link in postmenopausal women. A 2010 review article looking at drug-induced osteoporosis also noted high doses of thyroxine as a possible cause of low bone density in postmenopausal women.

Patients who are receiving hormone therapy should have hormone levels checked regularly, to see that levels do not grow too high, or for that matter too low. Some patients may not wish to take hormones acquired from animals, but the synthetic form of the hormone, levothyroxine, like any artificial drug, has the potential for side effects.

One of the researchers, Dr Lorraine Lipscombe, said the study showed a need to more closely monitor medical levels "in this vulnerable population".

Sources for this article:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13...

http://www.drugs.com/levothyroxine.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032459_bone_fractures_thyroid_drugs.html#ixzz1NUDWXom9

North America's water fluoridation debate: Battleground Austin

by: Neev M. Arnell

(NaturalNews) As a result of a year-long public outcry against water fluoridation in Austin, TX, the City Council held its second public meeting on the issue May 18, which attracted a standing-room only crowd.

Water fluoridation is a policy endorsed by numerous global health organizations, most notably the American Dental Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Controversy surrounding the practice has grown in recent years, however, as an increasing number of scientists and health professionals argue that fluoride in drinking water causes many negative health effects, especially when looked at beyond dental health to the impact on the whole body. (http://impactnews.com/southwest-aus...)

Areas in the U.S. and Canada, most recently Calgary with 1.1 million people, have already stopped fluoridation and U.S. cities such as Austin, Denver, CO and Boulder, CO, which are considering the fluoridation issue currently, may follow suit. This could cause a domino effect across North America and bring water fluoridation to a halt permanently, according to Fluoride Action Network Executive Director Dr. Paul Connett, who attended Austin's meeting.

Austin's Battle

"For a year, members of the community would keep coming to [the regular City Council meetings] to talk about it," said councilmember Randi Shade. "And we would just sit there because there was no format, no opportunity for us to do anything in that situation, so my point was to take it out of that and into a place we can actually deliberate, actually get the facts, start really getting education on what the implications would be for the larger community."

The Austin City Council Health and Human Services Subcommittee invited speakers both in favor of and against fluoridation of drinking water to address specific questions from the City Council, and enable subcommittee members to determine if Austin needs to remove fluoride from the city's drinking water.

The fluoride debate

Dr. Delton Yarbrough, chair of the Council on Dental Economics, and Dr. Cecil George from the Texas Dental Association, who attended the meeting as the pro-fluoridation experts, were unable to respond to the onslaught of science from the opposing side with science that supported their pro-fluoridation views.

"[Dr. Connett] is clearly very articulate and excellent at presenting his case," Shade said. "But the issue that Dr. Connett raised is really, the United States government, who is responsible for setting health care policy for the nation, should be looking at this."

Connett, professor emeritus of chemistry at St. Lawrence University in New York and author of the book "The Case Against Fluoride: How Hazardous Waste Ended Up in Our Drinking Water and the Bad Science and Powerful Politics That Keep it There," flew into Austin for the day to argue against fluoridation. Arguably the leading authority on water fluoridation, Connett responded to every point made by his opponents by quoting peer-reviewed studies, as did his associate, dentist Griffin Cole, who runs a fluoride-free practice in Austin.

"My two opponents today didn't cite one primary study indicating safety -- not one study showing that fluoridation works," Connett said. "They really were not satisfactory answers. I think independent observers would find their case wanton."

Yarbrough and George instead relied heavily on endorsements of fluoride from public health organizations and anecdotal evidence.

"More than 100 national and international health, science, service, and professional organizations recognize and endorse the public health benefits of community water fluoridation," Yarbrough said. "Outside of that, as a practicing dentist in an area where the fluoride content of the water on the low end is .9 parts per million, I don't really need the benefit of science to know how effective fluoride in the water is. I see it every day at work when patients open their mouths."

Yarbrough later was dismissive of Connett's studies without backing up his claims and eschewed science in general in favor of an appeal to faith.

"They say these studies aren't validated. We say their studies aren't validated," Yarbrough said. "The studies they're quoting out of China, Dr. Connett paid to have those studies translated and brought out of China and the modalities of those studies have been questioned, so it comes down to, who do you believe? Do you believe us? Do you believe them? Do you believe the gigglers in the audience?"

Laughter at the statement "Who do you believe?" was followed by a murmur of disapproval running through the audience of the mostly anti-fluoride Austin residents.

"It's not about who you believe. It's about the science," said one spectator.

Going against the recommendations of the public health organizations puts the burden of proof on the opposing side, according to Shade.

"The question that Yarbrough provided was "Who do you believe?" Shade said. "I think the majority of the community would say, if you're not going to take the recommendations of the CDC whose job it is to provide health care policy for municipalities across the country then you really have to be sure that we are going to do this."

The delicate fluoridation decision

Whether or not Austin will reverse fluoridation remains to be seen. There is no set date for future action. A change in Austin's fluoridation policy will require two councilmembers to put it on the agenda and four to vote it out.

"I'm just very nervous about making a change that goes against what the recommendations are for good public health policies from the people who are supposed to responsible for that in our nation," Shade said. "I mean it's risky."

But Lago Vista, a city less than 20 miles outside of Austin, reversed its decision to fluoridate in April 2011 without much fanfare, according to City Manager Bill Angelo.

"There were some concerns that it may not be as healthy as people once thought, and that people have other methods to get fluoride if they want it," Angelo said. "We also just realized that we didn't have the expertise to refute whether it was bad or good, so we felt the safest thing to do was remove it."

In the past few years, a handful of cities surrounding Austin that started fluoridating in the 1980's have ceased fluoridating their water supplies, including Lago Vista, Alamo Heights, Elgin and Marble Falls.

Elgin's city council voted 5-3 to take fluoride out of the water, citing reasons, including opposing putting a lead containing material in the water (http://www2.fluoridealert.org/Alert...), opposing forced medication on the public, an inadequate margin of safety and issues with the "additives" in the commercially produced product that is used for fluoridation (http://macsaferwater.wordpress.com/...).

"There was an ominous sign at the end [of the Austin meeting] about how risky it was bucking officialdom," Connett said. "We have these big agencies like the CDC telling them this is the best thing since sliced bread. But I think that all people that are in positions of power, have responsibility, and good leadership does require occasionally standing up against powerful forces when you have been convinced that those powerful forces are wrong."

And with the news that civil rights leaders speaking out against fluoride this past month have also been joined by Martin Luther King's daughter, Bernice, who went public with a denunciation of water fluoridation this week on Georgia's Praise 102.5 FM, Connett is hopeful about winning the fluoridation battle.

"What is happening in Atlanta is huge" Connett said. "We have known for a long time that blacks and Hispanics are more susceptible to dental fluorosis [which is the staining and pitting of teeth caused by ingesting fluoride]. But now that Andrew Young and Beatrice and other black leaders in Atlanta, right under the nose of the CDC, are coming out against this, I think the writing is on the wall."

Yarborough did not comment on the future of fluoridation from the pro-fluoride side and refused an interview with NaturalNews.

Sources for this article include:
http://austintx.swagit.com/player.p...
http://macsaferwater.wordpress.com/...
http://www2.fluoridealert.org/Alert...
http://impactnews.com/southwest-aus...
http://conversations.blackvoices.co...

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032488_water_fluoridation_Austin.html#ixzz1NUC34FM9

Is it Time to Boycott This 'Anti' Cancer Charity?

Posted By Dr. Mercola |

The 130-page document linked below explains in detail why the American Cancer Society may be far more interested in accumulating cash than curing any disease. The ACS has close ties to the mammography industry, the cancer drug industry, and the pesticide industry.

It is riddled with conflict of interest.

And in fact, according to the report, the ACS has a reckless, if not criminal record on cancer prevention. Over and over again, they have promoted drugs and screening while ignoring environmental causes.

The report states, in part:

"The ACS ... [has] long continued to devote virtually exclusive priority to research on diagnosis and treatment of cancer, with indifference to prevention, other than faulty personal lifestyle, commonly known as 'blame the victim,' ... Not surprisingly, the incidence of cancer over past decades has escalated".

Sources:

  Prevent Cancer (pdf)

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

The American Cancer Society (ACS) is:

"[A] nationwide community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer through research, education, advocacy, and service."

That sounds all well and good, and a lot of people put their faith in this organization and dutifully participate in its highly publicized National Breast Cancer Awareness Month campaign each year, which includes the widespread promotion of mammography screening.

Little do they realize that the ACS is doing precious little to combat cancer, at best, and may actually hinder real progress, at worst…

Rampant Conflicts of Interest

In the report titled AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY—More Interested In Accumulating Wealth Than Saving Lives, Dr. Samuel S. Epstein, chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition, plainly lays to bare the many conflicts of interest that hamper the effectiveness of this organization.

For example, the ACS has close financial ties to both makers of mammography equipment and cancer drugs. But that's just for starters. Other conflicts of interest include ties to, and financial support from, the pesticide-, petrochemical-, biotech-, cosmetics-, and junk food industries—the very industries whose products are the primary contributors to cancer!

Once you realize that these conflicts of interest are there, it becomes quite easy to understand why the ACS never addresses the environmental components of cancer, and why information about avoidable toxic exposures are so conspicuously absent from their National Breast Cancer Awareness campaigns.

"This is no accident," Dr. Epstein writes. "Zeneca Pharmaceuticals--a spin-off of Imperial Chemical Industries is one of the world's largest manufacturers of chlorinated and other industrial chemicals, including those incriminated as causes of breast cancer.

Zeneca has also been the sole multimillion-dollar funder of the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month since its inception in 1984, besides the sole manufacturer of Tamoxifen, the world's top-selling anticancer and breast cancer "prevention" drug, with $400 million in annual sales.

Furthermore, Zeneca recently assumed direct management of 11 cancer centers in U.S. hospitals. Zeneca owns a 50 percent stake in these centers known collectively as Salick Health Care."

It's no small irony that Tamoxifen has been found to cause cancer and increase risk of death, while several top-notch preventive strategies and many safe and effective cancer treatments are ignored.

The ACS, along with the National Cancer Institute, virtually exclusively focus on cancer research and the diagnosis and the chemical treatment of cancer. Preventive strategies, such as avoiding chemical exposures, receive virtually no consideration at all.

"Giant corporations, which profited handsomely while they polluted air, water, the workplace, and food with a wide range of carcinogens, remain greatly comforted by the silence of the ACS. This silence reflected a complex of mindsets fixated on diagnosis, treatment, and basic genetic research, together with ignorance, indifference, and even hostility to prevention."

"Not surprisingly, the incidence of cancer over past decades has escalated, approximately parallel to its increased funding," Dr. Epstein writes.

Many also do not realize that when they donate money to the American Cancer Society, the majority of it may never go further than the bank accounts of its numerous well-paid executives.

Cancer Recommendations Based on Profit, Not Superior Science and Results

The two major cancer "prevention" strategies that the ACS continuously pushes, regardless of what the science says, are:

• Mammography


• Sun avoidance

Unfortunately, they're DEAD wrong on both accounts. Mammography has been shown to be an avoidable potential cause of breast cancer itself, and sun exposure has in recent years been proven to be essential for the prevention of cancer, including skin cancer. Why would they advocate what could be cancer-promoting behavior?

Follow the money!

 "Indeed, despite promises to the public to do everything to "wipe out cancer in your lifetime," the ACS has failed to make its voice heard in Congress and the regulatory arena," Dr. Epstein writes.

"Instead, the ACS has consistently rejected or ignored opportunities and requests from Congress, regulatory agencies, unions, environmental and consumer organizations to provide scientific evidence critical to efforts to legislate and occupational, environmental, and personal product carcinogens."

The Two Myths of Cancer

Dr. Epstein also points out two glaring myths perpetuated by the American Cancer Society:

1. Dramatic progress has been made in the war against cancer, and


2. Rising cancer mortality statistics are primarily due to smoking and an aging population

Meanwhile, global cancer rates have doubled in the last three decades, and their "war on cancer" strategy completely ignores, and oftentimes denies the obvious links between cancer and toxic exposures through pesticide-laden foods, toxic personal care products, cancer-causing medical treatments and drugs, and industrial pollution.

This despite the fact that we know far more about these influences today than ever before in history—in fact, there is evidence suggesting that cancer is a recent man-made disease caused primarily by toxic overload.

Cancer is on the Rise, and Toxic Chemicals are MAJOR Factors

According to the latest statistics compiled by the American Heart Association, cancer surpasses heart disease as the top killer among Americans between the ages of 45 to 74. The odds are very high that you or someone you know has cancer or has died from it.

Environmental/lifestyle factors are increasingly being pinpointed as the culprits, such as:

Pesticide- and other chemical exposures	Pharmaceutical drugs	Processed and artificial foods (plus the chemicals in the packaging)	Wireless technologies, dirty electricity, and medical diagnostic radiation exposure
Obesity	Stress	Poor sleeping habits	Lack of sunshine exposure and use of sunscreens

Genetics have more or less been ruled out as a primary factor, although diet, lifestyle and toxic exposures have been found to turn genes on or off that contribute to the development and malignancy of cancer.

Still, focusing on research into the genetic underpinnings of cancer along with screening methods that can also cause harm cleverly avoids the obvious, which is finding the underlying contributing factors so that people can avoid them!

The "problem" with that solution is that it would put tremendous financial strain on all the industries that support the ACS…

American Cancer Society has Financial Interests in Mammography

The health risks of mammography have been discussed since the early 1990's when Dr. Epstein began speaking out about them. As for how these misguided mammography guidelines came about,

Epstein has previously said:

"They were conscious, chosen, politically expedient acts by a small group of people for the sake of their own power, prestige and financial gain, resulting in suffering and death for millions of women. They fit the classification of "crimes against humanity.""

As Dr. Epstein points out in his report, ACS' role in the promotion of mammography is far from altruistic as the Society has numerous ties to the mammography industry, which includes but is not limited to:

• Five radiologists have served as presidents of ACS


• ACS commonly promotes the interests of mammogram machine and film manufacturers, including Siemens, DuPont, General Electric, Eastman Kodak and Piker


• The mammography industry not only conducts research for the ACS and its grantees, its representatives also serve on ACS advisory boards, and donates considerable funds.


• DuPont, who makes mammogram film, is also a substantial backer of the ACS Breast Health Awareness Program; produces educational films; and aggressively lobbies Congress for legislation promoting the nationwide availability of mammography services.

Unfortunately, what the American Cancer Society is not making clear in their heavy mammography marketing materials are the risks involved, some of which may actually raise your risk of breast cancer, particularly if you follow the ACS' recommended regimen of yearly mammograms starting at the age of 40.

In 2009, revised mammogram guidelines were issued by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF); a group of health experts that makes preventive health care recommendations based on their review of published research.

They found that the benefits of mammogram screening do not outweigh the risks for women under the age of 50. Therefore, they recommend that women wait to get regular screenings until the age of 50, and only get one every other year thereafter. The ACS did not modify their recommendations however, and still recommend yearly mammograms starting at 40.

There ARE Safer Screening Options

Many still believe that mammography is the only breast cancer screening method out there. This is highly unfortunate, and I urge you to educate yourself and your female friends and family members on this matter.

The reason you may not have heard about this option is because it's not financially tied to the ACS or any other public health agency. It's called thermographic breast screening, and works by measuring the radiation of infrared heat from your body and translating this information into anatomical images.

Thermography uses no mechanical pressure or ionizing radiation—the two factors that can contribute to the creation of breast cancer.

It detects the potential for cancer by imaging the early stages of angiogenesis -- the formation of a direct supply of blood to cancer cells, which is a necessary step before they can grow into tumors of size. This early diagnostic power is yet another major benefit of thermography.

Breast Cancer Prevention Tips

"The verdict is unassailable. The ACS bears a major decades' long responsibility for losing the winnable war against cancer," Dr. Epstein writes.

 Reforming the ACS is, in principle, relatively easy and directly achievable. Boycott the ACS. Instead, give your charitable contributions to public interest and environmental groups involved in cancer prevention. Such a boycott is well overdue and will send the only message this "charity" can no longer ignore."

I agree. It's profoundly sad that one of the so-called leaders against cancer simply will not spread the word about the many ways women can help prevent breast cancer in the first place, and ignores research into safer alternative screening methods and treatment of cancer, choosing instead to protect the financial interests of the biggest contributors to the toxic overload that's at the root of this growing problem.

Cancer Advancements that Need to Become Mainstream Knowledge

In the last 30 years the global cancer burden has doubled, and is estimated to nearly triple by 2030. We must begin to take cancer prevention seriously. Three cancer advancements in particular merit special mention. These advancements have not yet been accepted by conventional medicine, and they must be.

Number 1: Radically Reduce Your Sugar Intake—Normalizing your insulin levels is one of the most powerful physical actions you can take to lower your risk of cancer. Unfortunately, very few oncologists appreciate or apply this knowledge today. The Cancer Centers of America is one of the few exceptions, where strict dietary measures are included in their cancer treatment program.

Chronic insulin resistance will cause major damage in your body. The most recognized of these is diabetes, but that is far from the only one. As Ron Rosedale, M.D. said in one of my most popular articles, Insulin and Its Metabolic Effects:

"It doesn't matter what disease you are talking about, whether you are talking about a common cold or cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis or cancer, the root is always going to be at the molecular and cellular level, and I will tell you that insulin is going to have its hand in it, if not totally control it."

The good news is that controlling your insulin levels is relatively straightforward. First, limit your intake of processed foods, grains and sugars/fructose as much as possible to prevent your insulin levels from becoming elevated in the first place.

Number 2: Vitamin D—There's overwhelming evidence pointing to the fact that vitamin D deficiency plays a crucial role in cancer development. Researchers within this field have estimated that about 30 percent of cancer deaths could be prevented each year simply by optimizing the vitamin D levels in the general population. Countless people around the world have an increased risk of cancer because their vitamin D levels are too low due to utter lack of sun exposure...

On a personal level, you can decrease your risk of cancer by MORE THAN HALF simply by optimizing your vitamin D levels with sun exposure. And if you are being treated for cancer it is likely that higher blood levels—probably around 80-90 ng/ml—would be beneficial.

The health benefits of optimizing your levels, either by safe sun exposure (ideally), a safe tanning bed, or oral supplementation as a last resort, simply cannot be overstated. In terms of protecting against cancer, vitamin D has been found to offer protection in a number of ways, including:

• Regulating genetic expression


• Increasing the self-destruction of mutated cells (which, if allowed to replicate, could lead to cancer)


• Reducing the spread and reproduction of cancer cells


• Causing cells to become differentiated (cancer cells often lack differentiation)


• Reducing the growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones, which is a step in the transition of dormant tumors turning cancerous

To learn the details on how to use vitamin D therapeutically, please review my previous article, Test Values and Treatment for Vitamin D Deficiency.

Number 3: Exercise—If you are like most people, when you think of reducing your risk of cancer, exercise doesn't immediately come to mind. However, there is some fairly compelling evidence that exercise can slash your risk of cancer.

One of the primary ways exercise lowers your risk for cancer is by reducing elevated insulin levels, which creates a low sugar environment that discourages the growth and spread of cancer cells.

Controlling your insulin levels and optimizing your vitamin D level are two of the most powerful steps you can take to reduce your cancer risk. For example, physically active adults experience about half the incidence of colon cancer as their sedentary counterparts, and women who exercise regularly can reduce their breast cancer risk by 20 to 30 percent compared to those who are inactive.

Additionally, exercise improves the circulation of immune cells in your blood. Your immune system is your first line of defense against everything from minor illnesses like a cold right up to devastating, life-threatening diseases like cancer.

The trick about exercise, though, is understanding how to use it as a precise tool. This ensures you are getting enough to achieve the benefit, not too much to cause injury, and the right variety to balance your entire physical structure and maintain strength and flexibility, and aerobic and anaerobic fitness levels. This is why it is helpful to view exercise like a drug that needs to be carefully prescribed to achieve its maximum benefit.

It's important to include a large variety of techniques in your exercise routine, such as strength training, aerobics, core-building activities, and stretching. Most important of all, however, is to make sure you include high-intensity, burst-type exercise, such as Peak 8. Peak 8 are exercises performed once or twice a week, in which you raise your heart rate up to your anaerobic threshold for 20 to 30 seconds, and then you recover for 90 seconds.

These exercises activate your super-fast twitch muscle fibers, which can increase your body's natural production of human growth hormone. For detailed instructions, please see this previous article.

Additionally it is likely that integrating exercise with intermittent fasting will greatly catalyze the potential of exercise to reduce your risk of cancer and stimulate widespread healing and rejuvenation.

Additional Anti-Cancer Strategies

Additional lifestyle guidelines that will help protect you against cancer include:

1. Get appropriate amounts of animal-based omega-3 fats.


2. Eat according to your nutritional type. The potent anti-cancer effects of this principle are very much underappreciated. When we treat cancer patients in our clinic this is one of the most powerful anti-cancer strategies we have.


3. Eat as many vegetables as you are comfortable with. Ideally, they should be fresh and organic. Cruciferous vegetables in particular have been identified as having potent anti-cancer properties. Remember that carb nutritional types may need up to 300 percent more vegetables than protein nutritional types.


4. Have a tool to permanently erase the neurological short-circuiting that can activate cancer genes. Even the CDC states that 85 percent of disease is caused by emotions. It is likely that this factor may be more important than all the other physical ones listed here, so make sure this is addressed. My particular favorite tool for this purpose, as you may know, is the Emotional Freedom Technique.


5. Maintain an ideal body weight.


6. Get enough high-quality sleep.


7. Reduce your exposure to environmental toxins like pesticides, household chemical cleaners, synthetic air fresheners and air pollution.


8. Reduce your use of cell phones and other wireless technologies, and implement as many safety strategies as possible if/when you cannot avoid their use.


9. Boil, poach or steam your foods, rather than frying or charbroiling them.

Are american children to be used in medical experiments to test anthrax vaccine?

by: Tara Green

(NaturalNews) The highly controversial and potentially lethal anthrax vaccine may be tested on US children if the federal government gets its way. Although adverse event reports related to the vaccine among adult test subjects have included hospitalization, disability and even death, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) is exploring the possibility of testing the vaccine on children.

Nicole Lurie, the assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the DHHS, recently requested that the National Biodefense Science Board submit an evaluation of safety issues related to testing the anthrax vaccine on children. The DHHS frames the possible testing as an issue of biodefense preparedness. However, the possibility of pediatric testing of the vaccine both ignores the vaccine's dangers, and raises the specter of class- and/or race-based selection of medical test subjects which has haunted US health agencies for over a century.

Even in the months in 2001 when letters containing anthrax were mailed to several congressional leaders, heightening national fears during the post-9/11 period, Bill First, a physician and then-Senate Majority Leader, urged caution in use of the anthrax vaccine. He told CNN: "There are very real and potentially serious side effects from the vaccine and anyone who elects to receive the vaccine needs to be made aware of that. I do not recommend widespread inoculation. There are too many side effects and if there is limited chance of exposure- the side effects would far outweigh any potential advantage."

A 2007 report by the CDC, along with the Vaccine Healthcare Centers of the Department of Defense and the watchdog group Government Accountability estimated that "between 1 and 2 percent" of vaccinated military personnel, experienced "severe adverse events, which could result in disability or death."

If a vaccine with this kind of reputation is to be tested on children, one has to wonder which children. It is fairly certain those young test subjects won't be the offspring of high-ranking government officials or corporate vice presidents and CEOs.

The history of medical testing carries a taint of racism, classism and opportunism, as health officials select those with less education and fewer choices to be unwitting guinea pigs in medical experiments supposedly in the name of scientific advancement.

You don't have to be a conspiracy theorist or history professor to have heard of the notorious 40-year long Tuskegee experiments in which the US Public Health Service withheld syphilis treatment from infected black men to measure the effects of the disease.

In October of 2010, President Obama apologized to Guatemala for tests during the 1940s when the US Public Health Service used prostitutes deliberately infect 700 prisoners, soldiers and patients with emotional and mental problems with syphilis both through visits with prostitutes and pouring bacteria for the disease onto skin abrasions on the subjects' bodies.

Vaccine testing has its own special place in the annals of this kind of integrity-free medical research. In the early 1960s, mentally disabled children at a residential state school in New York were deliberately infected with viral hepatitis so that they could be test subjects for the disease.

A 1978 CDC test for a hepatitis B vaccine which sought "promiscuous homosexual male" volunteers has some interesting connections to both HIV and the previously rare opportunistic diseases associated with the AIDS virus. As recently as 1990, the CDC and Kaiser Pharmaceuticals gave 1,500 black and Hispanic 6-month old infants an unlicensed measles vaccine without the approval and consent of their parents. (For more detail of these stories and other true-life medical experimentation horror stories, see http://www.naturalnews.com/022383.html).

Sources for this article include:
http://www.ahrp.org/cms/content/vie...
http://bioprepwatch.com/news/243663...
http://anthraxvaccine.blogspot.com/...
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalp...
http://www.cdc.gov/tuskegee/timelin...

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032500_anthrax_vaccine_medical_experiments.html#i#ixzz1NU9COfbE

Mood boosting essentials treat mild depression, anxiety and sleeplessness

by: Fleur Hupston
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(NaturalNews) The brain is dependent on mood-boosting nutrients. When food lacks these essential nutrients, depression and anxiety can quickly set in. Typically, anti-depressants are prescribed to treat these problems, which in many cases can so easily be remedied by taking the correct nutrients.

This article is for information purposes only. Anyone suffering with severe depression should see a qualified naturopath or homeopath to correctly identify the causes. Self-treating even mild cases of "the blues" with the supplements mentioned here is best undertaken with the help of a medical professional.

Mood boosting minerals

Chromium: This mineral helps to stabilize blood sugar. Individuals experiencing mood swings, who perhaps over-react when it comes to minor issues or feel very tired during the day, may be lacking in this essential mineral. According to Psychology Today, "Duke University scientists found that consuming chromium picolinate, a trace mineral naturally found in whole grains, mushrooms, liver and many other foods, has significant effects on individuals suffering from atypical depression".

Magnesium: Low levels of magnesium in the human body can result in anxiety, sleeplessness and depression. Simply put, magnesium is the mineral needed to make serotonin, the brain's "happy chemical".

Amino acids

Most anti-depressant drugs supposedly work by boosting serotonin levels. Raising serotonin levels naturally can apparently be achieved by supplementing with the amino acid 5-hydroxytryptophan, or 5-HTP. This is sold over the counter in the UK, USA and Canada as a dietary supplement for use as an antidepressant, and it is marketed in many European countries for cases of major depression.

Other amino acids that can make a difference to mood swings include phenylalanine and tyrosine, from which the body makes the neurotransmitter noradrenalin - vital for motivation and drive.

Essential fats and mood

Much has been said on Natural News on the subject of omega 3 fats and the importance of eating oily fish such as wild salmon. Cod liver oil is another rich source of omega 3. Studies have shown that severely depressed individuals consuming a diet high in these fats generally show significant improvement, greater than that reported for antidepressant drugs.

Vitamins B & D

In older people, vitamin B is often missing because this vitamin is not absorbed so well the older one gets. Vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid are often recommended for individuals over 50 years of age, particularly with depression or "brain-fog".

There is a definite correlation between individuals with a vitamin D deficiency and depression. In cold Northern climes, many people feel low, irritable and angry during winter because of the lack of sunshine. Depression levels can be substantially lowered by taking vitamin D supplements or by getting direct sunlight on the skin each day.

Sources:

http://www.moodfoods.com/magnesium-...
http://www.naturalnews.com/030713_o...
http://www.psychologytoday.com/arti...

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032339_mood_food.html#ixzz1NU89Lkd9

Hurt So Good

From the desk of Crystal Andrus:



We teach what we need to learn. Or maybe better said, we teach what we’ve just learned. So passionate about our new-found excitement, we want everyone to feel what we’ve just experienced. The feeling of healing, joy, love, and sense of personal power is too good to hoard and hold onto just for ourselves. We blow the trumpets, send out the word, and beg to share our message with anyone who’ll listen.

This is really the case with me and the work that I now do…

I spent far too many years struggling; far too many years desperate for personal peace, acceptance, love, and happiness. Each time I would get a taste of it, I would hunger for it all the more. My appetite never satisfied. My thirst never quenched.

My first real memorable knockout of joy came just after my first daughter, Madelaine, was born. The overwhelming feeling I had for her, literally, bowled me over. I truly wasn’t prepared for it. Love temporarily replaced every bit of anger and fear inside of me. I felt renewed. Alive. Ready and willing.

My heart began to heal. Although my relationship with my mother had become so dysfunctional over the years—so hurt and tattered—I wondered if maybe she too had once felt this same unconditional love for me that I now held for my new child. Deep down, I believed it. I wanted to. I chose to. And even though things had been so strained, I was able to begin seeing my mother through different lenses.

The next punch of power arrived in a very different package. While focused on loving my children (yes, I had another daughter soon after, who filled me with an equally-overwhelming amount of love), I had somehow gained an exorbitant amount of weight through the process. Yet how could that happen? How could loving my children cause me to pack on the pounds? What was going on?

Then, late one night when Julia (my second daughter) was only four months old, I had my next breakthrough. Unsuccessfully fighting back tears, I sobbed as I cuddled my sleeping daughter late into the night. I had never cried so desperately or so honestly.

Really … what was happening to me? Was I having a breakdown? Had the enormity of my past pain finally caught up with me? Or maybe, it was a breakthrough?

I was truly overwhelmed, but in a different way than I had been only two short years before (almost to the day), when my first daughter was born.

The feeling, although quite different than the overpowering sense of love I had experienced with Madelaine, was still nevertheless as overwhelming. It was in that authentic moment of pain that I was able to see things through different lenses.

I loved my daughters so much that I realized I had to heal my own broken pieces—not just for my sake so that I could be a happy, successful, woman but for their sake—so that I could be an empowered role model. It was time to give my daughters the greatest gift I could ever give to them as a mother—self love. It was time to show myself love. Treat myself with love; to be here—fully awake to feel love, receive love, and allow it to blossom in my life.

If you’ve read my “Simply…Woman” journey, you’ll know that I got up the next morning and went for a walk. Those walks soon turned into runs. The runs turned into strength. The strength turned into power, and within a few short months, I became a walking billboard of health, happiness, and vitality, wanting to share my new-found confidence and excitement with everyone I met. I wanted every woman to feel alive, strong, and confident—loving the skin she was in.

Now don’t kid yourself: The 16 years since that journey began hasn’t always been easy. I won’t lie and tell you it’s been all rosy. What I will tell you is that in order to be happy, successful, empowered, authentic, and fully awake in your own life you have to break the bonds that hold you captive … in your own mind. You have to heal the “could’ve beens” and “should’ve beens”. You have to find positive and empowered ways of coping, with not only the past pains but with the new ones, arriving in the here and now. (Yes! Even when your life is happy, successful, and empowered, painful things still happen.)

The secret lies in healing the feeling.

When my daughters were born, I felt the overwhelming feeling of love. When I sat crying in my rocking chair with my daughter cuddled on my lap, I felt the overwhelming feelings of despair and confusion. In order to get where I am (and I’m not just talking about in my career!), I’ve had to actually feel and deal with……

(To read more, Click here )

Could grief be causing your chronic illness?

by: Larry Malerba, DO

(NaturalNews) Aside from the many self-inflicted and medically induced causes of illness such as smoking, poor nutrition, alcohol and drug abuse, pharmaceutical side effects, allopathic suppression, and surgeries gone awry, perhaps the most common "natural" cause of chronic illness is unresolved grief.

Grief is natural in the sense that everyone is faced with the issue at some point in his or her life. It is a normal human response, which when handled effectively should lead to psycho-spiritual growth and greater awareness.

The problem is that handling grief is easier said than done. The successful processing of grief is a function of numerous factors, including one's psychological maturity and understanding of the nature and purpose of grief and loss. Other factors include the degree of emotional support from friends and family, one's own personal state of physical/emotional/spiritual health and well-being, and our prevailing cultural attitudes toward grief.

When the grieving process is short-circuited and grief is not allowed to have its way it can lead to health issues as varied as the individuals that it afflicts. Unprocessed grief is commonly a source of anxiety, irritability, depression, other emotional disturbances, and even mania and psychosis. Conversely, it is quite common for grief to become somaticized. The classic symptom of difficulty swallowing with sensation of a lump ("globus hystericus") is literally a somaticization of emotion that has become stuck in the throat -- an obvious body metaphor for unexpressed feelings and unshed tears.

Likewise, grief can become lodged in the neck and back as muscle tension, in the chest as a cough or bronchitis, in the gut as nausea or intestinal cramps, or in the head as tension headaches or migraines. When grief is particularly traumatic as in the death of a child, or when a person's health is already compromised, it is not unusual to see somatic manifestations on a deeper level. Thus, grief can lead to rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, Crohn's disease, high blood pressure, and even heart disease. Again, each manifestation can be as unique as the vital force of the person struggling with grief.

The sources of grief are varied and each situation is unique in the sense that grief is always in the eye of the beholder. The loss of one person's pet can be just as devastating as the loss of another person's parent. We tend to equate grief with the death of a friend or loved one, but it can just as easily result from broken relationships, divorce, job loss, or a personal perception of failure. There are no rules; each instance of grief is a subjective experience that must be taken at face value if it is to be respected and handled compassionately by those attempting to comfort and assist the grieving individual.

I recently saw a woman in her 50s who sought help for her depression and chronic intestinal problems. Upon inquiring as to the source of her depression, she said that it was from not having fulfilled her dream of being the mother of a large number of children. When I suggested to her that the so-called depression could more accurately be characterized as unresolved grief, I could see her mind light up as a look of realization came across her face. The healing process had begun the moment she came to a new understanding of her condition. In the course of working with her over the next few months, years of depression and digestive disturbances began to fade into the distance as she gave herself permission to grieve the family that she knew she would never have.

Although individual responses to grief are unique and diverse, my own medical experience has taught me that there are a number of common response patterns or stereotypes, if you will, that can be identified. One such pattern is that of the distraught person who repeatedly cries and sobs for prolonged periods of time, for days, weeks, or even months on end, with no relief in sight. This type of "hysterical" grief can be devastating and exhausting. The polar opposite pattern is represented by the individual who vows to stay strong, shows no "weakness," and sheds not a tear for months or even years after the original painful loss that caused the grief. These individuals seek to quickly put their grief "behind them," not realizing that there is no free lunch and that they will someday be forced to deal with it, whether it be in the form of an emotional or physical crisis.

Grieving children commonly exhibit headaches or stomachaches that lead to calls home from the school nurse. Some individuals become worn down by their grief and their emotional state begins to resemble that of a person suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome, with its attendant malaise, emotional indifference, and lack of motivation. Some people become stuck in anger, blaming themselves and/or others for their loss. For such individuals, anger is usually a defensive form of denial that protects them from the more painful underlying feelings of grief. Other unfortunate individuals can be thrown into an existential crisis, questioning their very existence, losing their faith in something greater than themselves, and even losing their will to live.

While antidepressants, anxiolytics, and/or sleep aids may temporarily dull symptoms, they will not help to resolve the underlying issues of grief. In fact, pharmaceuticals will tend to enable the person to avoid emotions that must sooner or later be faced. The longer grief is postponed, the more likely it will contribute to chronic disease. The American obsession with productivity is not conducive to the successful processing of grief since the demands of the workplace often take precedence over issues of mental health. There is no set timetable for grief to run its course, and there is no statute of limitations. Fortunately, there are a variety of non-pharmaceutical approaches that can enhance the healing process.

First and foremost, patience, kindness, love, and understanding are prerequisites for a successful outcome. Most people simply need someone to listen to them. Secondly, the person affected by grief must come to understand that grief is a normal and necessary function of the human psyche, and the needs of the psyche will not be denied. Grief must be felt and experienced to the extent necessary to bring about a resolution, and this differs from one person to the next depending upon who that person is and the nature of the loss involved. For somaticized grief, it can be as simple as asking patients to trust their instincts and to name what it is that they believe is the real source of their ostensibly physical illness. Most people intuitively know the answer. It can be surprising how a person will respond when questioned and, frequently, the simple act of verbalizing one's personal truth will be enough to initiate the healing process.

Good old fashioned counseling or psychotherapy can be invaluable in situations of grief, but for more stubborn cases that persist or that have become somaticized, there are additional methods that can be employed to great benefit. Various forms of bodywork can be particularly helpful in cases that manifest as chronic headaches, neck or back pain. Most massage therapists can relate stories of clients who finally relaxed, "let go," and had a therapeutic emotional meltdown right there on the massage table. Such "healing crises" are cathartic events that can help break the logjam of unexpressed grief.

Dreams can be very important, especially for those who are grieving the death of loved ones. It is quite common for the deceased to pay a visit to surviving friends and family in their dreams. Sometimes the deceased brings a crucial piece of information that can help the living to understand the circumstances surrounding his or her death. And sometimes departed loved ones seek to reassure survivors that they are doing fine on the other side. To dismiss such an event as just a dream is a serious mistake and a lost opportunity to communicate with the departed. The ingrained materialistic outlook of American culture is a strong deterrent to recognizing that such dreams can assist in the resolution of grief and may also lead to spiritual growth.

When all else fails, a difficult and unresponsive case of grief will often respond quite nicely to a well-chosen homeopathic medicine. Some of the patterns of grief described above correspond to homeopathic medicines that are capable of releasing one from the grips of grief and its effects. It is best to consult a qualified homeopathic practitioner when dealing with long-standing grief.

Many of the lessons that I have learned regarding grief are by virtue of the patients that I have had the privilege to assist in the grieving process over the years. Our own friends, family, and patients can teach us a great deal about grief, an issue that often lies at the center of health, illness, life, and death.

Additional Information for the Homeopathic Management of Grief:
Dr. Ajit Singh, Grief and Its Homeopathic Approach, Homeopathic Journal, Vol 2, Issue 7, May 2009, Homeorizon.com

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032362_grief_illness.html#ixzz1NU6BLldY

Tips to Help You Lose Weight and Stay Fit!

From the desk of DREAM TEAM Coach, Adele Fridman:



We all dream to eat healthy, exercise regularly, reduce stress, take vitamins, give up smoking, and/or drop other bad habits. With this very thought, fitness centers are filled with new members, excited about their weight loss dreams. Unfortunately, most of these same people have very little knowledge of how to effectively achieve their goals. And many who start will end up frustrated and will quit within the month. Sadly, with (most likely) another failed attempt under their belts, they do more psychological damage than good to themselves.

Setting goals and seeing results will keep us motivated in the year ahead! Striving for and reaching a goal means leaving your comfort zone. Frustration and failure can be avoided when you have a feasible and effective map for success.

The fact is, ‘attaining any goal takes preparation and planning’. One of the biggest mistakes we make is setting goals that are unattainable. For example, we claim that we want to lose 50 pounds; then we feel frustrated when the weight doesn’t magically disappear. Instead, we should set small, attainable goals.

Here are 10 tips to help you lose weight healthily:

1. Create your plan of action! A weight loss plan of action should consist of a chain of planned events that leads to a healthy and fit body. It is a series of milestones designed to push the body beyond its daily tasks. The plan would include a starting and ending date and would answer the questions—who, what, when, where and why.


2. Plan your meals and snacks in advance - You will eat healthier meals and be less tempted to eat on the run.


3. Clean out your refrigerator! If it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind! Throw out those treats and stock up on foods that will nourish you at the cellular level. Remember, you are what you eat!


4. Eat early to keep weight off - The human body follows a circadian rhythm; this means that the same foods eaten at breakfast and lunch are processed differently when eaten at dinner. Studies show that when you eat your daily protein and fat at breakfast, you tend to lose weight and have more energy; however, eating the same things at dinner increases the tendency to gain weight. I suggest that you do not eat after 7 p.m.


5. Eat smaller meals more frequently -Remember that your stomach is the size of a fist! Be sure to follow an eating schedule that includes 4-6 small meals every day. Eating steadily throughout the day keeps you from overeating at your next meal. Consider having a low-fat protein shakes, trail mix with raw almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries, and apples. Have this snack available at all times to avoid the temptation of high-calorie snacks.


6. Drink water – No matter where you are, water should always be your first choice when you’re thirsty. Water truly is essential. Water is the key to losing weight. If you haven’t been drinking enough water, your body has developed a pattern of storing water. This water retention equals extra unwanted weight. By drinking more water, you are flushing out toxins. You are teaching your body that it no longer needs to store water. Drink at least 60 ounces of water (about 8 glasses) a day. Boil water with sliced lemons, and drink this throughout the day to help with fluid retention. Did you know that water is a natural appetite suppressant?


7. Don’t eat foods with a lot of sugar – Decreasing sugar increases your energy by minimizing the highs and lows triggered by sweet foods. Sugar provides empty calories, displaces more nutritious foods and makes is easier for yeast and bacteria to thrive.


8. Sleep 8 hours a night – Recent studies have confirmed that you really do need to sleep at least 8 hours at night.  Adequate sleep makes you feel better, decreases your risk for cardiovascular disease and boosts your memory.


9. Reduce stress – Think happy, positive thoughts, do something you like everyday (take a long hot bath, listen to music, read a book, meditate … etc.)


10. Create time to exercise – Regular exercise helps produce feel-good hormones and promotes greater weight loss. Walking, jogging, hiking and aerobics classes are great aerobic choices. Include a strength-training routine involving both the upper and lower body.  Resistance exercises that prevent muscle and bone loss are crucial for women as they age. Lift weights for at least 20 minutes, 2-3 times per week.

Warmly,

Adele Fridman
DREAM TEAM Coach
Crystal Andrus Productions

Lifestyle movement is more important than exercising

by: Elizabeth Walling
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(NaturalNews) The idea that exercise is good for us is constantly pummeled into our brains by the medical community, by health coaches and by the mass media. And while certain types of exercise can certainly be beneficial in context, placing too much emphasis on formal exercise may be highlighting the wrong issue and contributing to long term health problems--because it`s movement rather than exercise that has the most dramatic impact on our health.

What Makes Us Sedentary?

Who is more sedentary: the person who exercises for one hour several times per week or the one who never exercises at all? Conventional wisdom says the second person is sedentary and will probably experience negative side effects from it. This, however, is an incomplete picture and may in fact be completely wrong if other factors are considered.

More important than how often you exercise is how much you move during your everyday life. Why? Because how much time you spend sitting adversely affects your health far more than how much time you spend doing formal exercise. If you spend several hours a day sitting (at a desk, while commuting, at restaurants, etc.), it can negatively impact your health--even if you exercise regularly. Basically, regular exercise is not enough to counteract an otherwise sedentary lifestyle.

How to Add Movement to Your Lifestyle

There was a time when we didn`t have to consciously think about moving more during our daily lives, but that is no longer the case. During the last several decades, we have unconsciously shifted from a lifestyle that included plenty of movement to one that is mostly spent sitting down. Desk work is far more common than it used to be; commuting for at least an hour every day is not uncommon; and activities that used to require movement now require much less of it (washing dishes, doing laundry, etc.).

The best solution is to pepper our everyday lives with activity. This can be done in a variety of ways:

1. Take phone calls standing up or walking.
2. Use a standing desk if possible, or sit on an exercise ball at your desk.
3. Take frequent breaks during your day to use the restroom or to get a drink of water.
4. Try to get up and walk around for about five minutes during each hour.
5. Get up during commercial breaks while you`re watching television.
6. Use the stairs instead of the elevator whenever you have the choice.
7. Park on the far side of the parking lot when you can.
8. Get up and go window shopping rather than browsing online.
9. When you meet with friends, clients or colleagues, try to do something that includes more movement (such as walking through a local museum or park, etc.).

How you incorporate more movement into your life will largely depend on your lifestyle and preferences, but it can certainly be done if you make small changes over time. The little things really do add up in this case. Pretty soon you`ll be unconsciously moving more instead of unconsciously sitting more--and your health will thank you for it.

For more information:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/m...

http://www.livingthenourishedlife.c...

http://drpeggymalone.com/sitting-kill

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/032482_movement_exercise.html#ixzz1NU4MpVyG