Natural Health Remedies

The information contained on this site is not presented by a medical practitioner and is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read.

Your Success Links.com, Inc. - 11424 - 115th Street N - Largo, FL 33778

5 Tips to Avoid Plateaus and Metabolic Slowdown

By Tom Venuto

BurnThe Fat.com

QUESTION: Tom, Is it possible to not lose body fat because you're eating too little?

-Linda

ANSWER: Yes and no. This gets a little complicated so let me explain both sides.

Part one of my answer: I say NO, because if you are in a calorie deficit you WILL lose weight.

Most people have heard anecdotes of the dieter who claims to be eating 800 calories a day or some starvation diet level of intake that is clearly in a deficit and yet is not losing fat. Like the mythical unicorn, such an animal does not exist.

Every time you take a person like that and put them in a hospital research center or metabolic ward where their food can be counted, weighed, measured and almost literally "spoon fed" to them, a calorie deficit always produces weight loss.

There are no exceptions, except possibly in rare diseases or mutations. Even then metabolic or hormonal defects or diseases merely lead to energy imbalance via increases in appetite, decreases in energy expenditure or changes in energy partitioning. So at the end of the day it's STILL calories in versus calories out.

In other words, NO - it's NOT your thyroid (unless you've got a confirmed diagnosis as such...and then guess what... it's STILL calories in vs calories out, you're just not burning as many as someone should at your height and weight).

One famous study that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine years ago proved this point rather dramatically. After studying obese people - selected specifically because they swore they were eating less than 1200 calories but could not lose weight - Steven Lichtman and his colleages at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital in New York came to the following conclusion:

"The failure of some obese subjects to lose weight while eating a diet they report as low in calories is due to an energy intake substantially higher than reported and an overestimation of physical activity, not to an abnormality in thermogenesis."

That's right - the so-called "diet-resistant" subjects were eating more than they thought and moving less than they thought. This was probably the single best study ever published that debunks the "I'm in a calorie deficit but I can't lose weight" myth:

Part two of my answer, YES, because:

1) Energy intake increases.

Eating too little causes major increases in appetite. With hunger raging out of control, you lose your deficit by overeating. This happens in many ways, such as giving in to cravings, binge eating, eating more on weekends or simply being inconsistent, so some days you're on your prescribed 1600 calories a day or whatever is your target amount, but on others you're taking in 2200, 2500, 3000 etc and you don't realize it or remember it. The overeating days wipe out the deficit days.

2) Metabolism decreases due to smaller body mass.

Any time at all when you're losing weight, your metabolism is slowly decreasing due to your reduced body mass. The smaller and lighter you get, especially if there's a large drop in skeletal muscle mass, the fewer calories you need. So your calorie deficit slowly shrinks over time as your diet progresses. As a result, your progress slows down even though you haven't changed how much you eat.

With starvation, you always lose weight, but eventually you lose so much weight/body mass that you can reach energy balance at the same caloric intake you used to lose weight on. You might translate that as "I went into starvation mode" which wouldn't be incorrect, but it would be more accurate to say that your calorie needs decreased.

3) Metabolism decreases due to adaptive thermogenesis.

Eating too little also causes a starvation response (adaptive thermogenesis) where metabolic rate can decrease above and beyond what can be accounted for from the change in body mass (#2 above). This is "starvation response" in the truest sense. It does exist and it is well documented. However, the latest research says that the vast majority of the decrease in metabolism comes from reduced body mass. The adaptive component of the reduced metabolic rate is fairly small, perhaps 10% (ie, 220 calories for an average female with a 2200 TDEE). The result is when you don't eat enough, your actual weight loss is less than predicted on paper, but weight loss doesn't stop completely.

There is a BIG myth about starvation mode (adaptive thermogenesis) that implies that if you don't eat enough, your metabolism will slow down so much that you stop losing weight. That can't happen, it only appears that way because weight loss stops for other reasons. What happens is the math equation changes!

Energy balance is dynamic, so your weight loss slows down and eventually stops over time if you fail to adjust your calories and activity levels in real time each week.

I teach a system for how to adjust calories and activity weekly using a feedback loop method in my Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle program (more info from BurnThe Fat.com)

So what can be done to stop this metabolic slowdown caused by low calorie dieting and the dreaded fat loss plateau that follows? I recommend the following 5 tips:

1) Lose the pounds slowly.

Slow and steady wins in long term fat loss and maintenance every time. Rapid weight loss correlates strongly with weight relapse and loss of lean body mass. Aim for one to two pounds per week, or no more than 1% of total body weight (ie, 3 lbs per week if you weigh 300 lbs).

2) Use a higher energy flux program.

If you are physically capable of exercise, then use weight training AND cardio to increase your calorie expenditure, so you can still have a calorie deficit, but at a higher food intake (also known as a "high energy flux" program, or as we like to say in Burn The Fat, "eat more, burn more.")

3) Use a conservative calorie deficit.

You must have a calorie deficit to lose fat, but your best bet is to keep the deficit small. This helps you avoid triggering the starvation response, which includes the increased appetite and potential to binge that comes along with starvation diets. I recommend a 20% deficit below your maintenance calories (TDEE), a 30% deficit at most for those with high body fat.

4) Refeed.

Increase your calories (re-feed) for a full day periodically (once a week or so if you are heavy, twice a week if you are already lean), to restimulate metabolism. On the higher calorie day, take your calories to maintenance or even 10, 15, 20% above maintenance and add the extra calories in the form of carbs (carb cycling). The leaner you get, and the longer you've been on reduced calories, the more important the re-feeds will be. (You can learn more about this method in chapter 12 of Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle at BurnThe Fat.com)

5) Take periodic diet breaks.

Take 1 week off your calorie restricted diet approximately every 12 weeks or so. During this period, take your calories back up to maintenance, but continue to eat healthy, "clean" foods. Alternately, go into a muscle building phase if increasing lean mass is one of your goals. This will bring metabolism and regulatory hormones back up to normal and keep lean body mass stable.

There is much confusion about how your metabolism, hormones and appetite mechanisms are affected when you're dieting, so this was really one of the most important questions anyone could have asked.

If this didn't REALLY click - then you may want to save this and read it again because misunderstanding this stuff leads more people to remain frustrated and stuck at plateaus than anything else I can think of.

If you'd like to learn exactly how you should be eating to lose 2 lbs of fat per week, then visit BurnThe Fat.com.

Train hard and expect success,

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder, certified strength and conditioning specialist (CSCS) and a certified personal trainer (CPT). Tom is the author of "Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle," which teaches you how to get lean without drugs or supplements using methods of the world's best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and increase your metabolism by visiting: BurnThe Fat.com

De-stress with Ease by Eating These Five Foods that Help Relieve Stress Symptoms

By Consumer Health Advocate, Frank Mangano

Are your palms sweaty? Has your blood pressure elevated? Head pounding? Muscles tense? Sounds like your stressed.

Stress presents itself in any number of ways, some of the signs more obvious than others. But all too often, our coping mechanisms for stress relief are counterproductive; they increase our stress levels rather than allay them. Mindless eating is one such example, as many people use food to cope.

While mindless eating is OK every once in a while, the problem with it is not just the fact that it encourages weight gain, but the foods people choose to eat are stress promoting, increasing stress levels by ratcheting up our blood pressure levels.

And you guessed it, they’re the foods that we usually associate with mindless eating: the fried foods, the alcoholic beverages, the sugary sweets and the salty snacks. These wreak havoc on our blood pressure levels, blood sugar levels, cholesterol levels and adrenaline levels.

But eating doesn’t have to be a stress-promoting activity. As I’ve written elsewhere, many foods promote stress reduction. Here are five more, as compiled by Marie Claire magazine:

Oranges

I haven’t done any articles on oranges specifically, but I’ve done a lot on what oranges are known for: vitamin C. As most of us know, oranges are chockfull of vitamin C and besides its ability to boost the immune system, vitamin C also helps to allay stress levels. A 1999 rat study conducted by researchers from the University of Alabama found that vitamin C helped reduce typical indicators of stress (e.g. reduced size of adrenal glands, thymus glands and lowered weight levels by reducing cortisol production).

Sweet Potatoes

I did a story on back in January on sweet potatoes, so I’m pleased to see it here. While it’s true, sweet potatoes are high in carbohydrates, they’re the slow burning kind, meaning they don’t cause blood sugar levels to spike. This makes them the ideal food to eat for blood pressure regulation.

Salmon

I don’t eat out often but when I do eat out, I can’t help but get the salmon. Salmon is among the best foods you’ll ever eat, never mind the best seafood. It’s one of the world’s richest sources for heart healthy omega-3s, which are also great for regulating stress hormones, according to the medical journal Diabetes & Metabolism.

Avocado

The avocado is something of an anomaly in the vegetable world (yes, I know that botanically it’s a fruit, but come on, who in the culinary world thinks of the avocado as a fruit?). Besides being one of the few vegetables with a pit, the avocado has something else that most vegetables don’t have: fat. One-fifth of an avocado has about five grams of fat, three grams of which are the monounsaturated kind. And thanks to the avocado’s monounsaturated fat - combined with its potassium - it’s a great blood pressure reducer (Interesting fact: Avocados have more potassium than bananas—700 mg vs. 467 mg).

Spinach

For energy, Popeye couldn’t have picked a better food to fuel his fury. Spinach has a lot of magnesium, which is essential for energy production. And nothing saps energy levels like stress. Just one cup contains more than 155 milligrams of magnesium.

There you have it; five foods to help you cope when life has you on the ropes. So the next time you’re feeling stressed and need something to decompress, give some of this grub a go.

Green Tea Expands its Health Promoting Repertoire

The study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition

German researchers find improved fat oxidation when men combine EGCG with caffeine.

From improving arthritis symptoms to preventing heart disease, heightening eye health to discouraging Alzheimer’s disease development, green tea is the libation of choice for health aficionados. Yet as multifaceted a drink green tea is, could encouraging weight loss be added to its repertoire? German researchers sure think so.

A team of researchers from Berlin’s University Medicine recruited 10 middle-aged men who, besides being obese, were generally healthy. They broke the 10 men into groups of two and randomly assigned them to take an allotted amount of EGCG, some in high doses, others in low doses. EGCG is the antioxidant compound in green tea believed to make it such a nutritional powerhouse.

One of the cooler aspects of this study is that all the men got a turn in taking a specific amount of EGCG. In other words, instead of taking a specific amount of EGCG for the length of the study period, the men would take 300 mg of EGCG for three days, then go off for seven days, then pick up their EGCG regimen for another three days. But instead of taking the same amount as last time, they’d take 600 milligrams. Then go on to another group 10 days later. So by the end of the study, all 10 men had gone through the five regimens.

(To be honest, I wish more studies were set up like this. It makes the results of the study more reliable.)

By the end of the study, the researchers found increases in fat oxidation across the spectrum. Compared to the time in which they took a placebo for three days, fat oxidation increased 33 percent (300 mg of EGCG daily), 20 percent (600 mg of EGCG daily), 34.5 percent (200 mg of caffeine), and 49 percent (200 mg of caffeine combined with 300 mg of EGCG).

What’s interesting is that there was greater fat oxidation when the men took the lower EGCG combination as compared to the high EGCG combination. So apparently the Goldilocks rule applies to EGCG—not too much, not too little, but an amount that’s “just right” works for weight loss.

The question, of course, is how many drinks of green tea must one guzzle in order to see any significant weight loss?

Researchers say it may be as few as three drinks or as many as 10 drinks…per day! Now, as much as I like to drink tea, I don’t have the time, nor the inclination to drink that amount of green tea every day!

But that as it may, the very fact that I could lose weight by drinking that amount of green tea every day illustrates just how amazing a drink green tea is.

Bitter Orange Safety

This is the peel of the orange.

Whether it is tangerine, oranges or grapefruit bitters they all contain a certain amount of synephrine as an active alkaloid. Synephrine should not be confused with ephedra or ephedrine from the herb Mahuang. Ephedrine is very aggressive whereas synephrine is mild, beneficial and non-toxic when taken in moderation.

Prior to Mahuang being banned it was determined that ephedra had killed 150 people over a 10 year period of time. When you consider 3,000,000,000 doses a year was taken and the number of people that lost millions of pounds those deaths were acceptable especially when you consider Aspirin kills 27,000 people each year and Tylenol kills 28,000 each year. (Toxicology Research Counsel) The deaths from Prozac, lithium, paxel, Zoloft, effexer dwarf Aspirin and Tylenol, in fact 300,000 people die from pharmacy drugs and subsequent interactions each and every year (CDC) making it the third or fourth biggest killer in America. Why then, if an herb like mahuang that was so much safer than the drugs mentioned, why was it banned?

The answer is a simple and an obvious one. The drug companies caused the demise of ephedrine and mahuang because the herb took billions of dollars in revenue from the drug companies. In fact since Mahuang was taken off the market drug company sales of weight loss drugs have increased 218%. (USA Today)

19 years ago there was an article in USA Today that said carrots and vitamin A may cause cancer. 17 years ago there was an article in the New York Times that said Vitamin C might cause cancer. There have been articles over the years relating to bananas, almonds and walnuts causing cancer.

The truth of the matter is almost anything including cherries, grapes, kiwi, beets, onions, as well as herbs like Echinacea, golden seal, St. John's Wart, barley leaves and yes even Aloe Vera when taken in large doses may contribute to cell mutation. If taken in excessive amounts daily and for years.

14 years ago every newspaper reported that chromium picolinate caused cancer in Chinese gerbils. This was true! However what was not told to the public was that the study had nothing to do with any cancer test. It was a study about polyycythemia and the dose used was 40,000 times a normal human dosage. Two drug companies got this ancillary adverse information sent it to the New York Times. (NHF). It ended up on AP and then every paper in the land. Nutrition 21, a wonderful company found themselves on the verge of a bankruptcy.

The media wants controversy, they are starving for it, it sells papers and magazines.

It was a known fact that the drug companies want natural foods, vitamins, minerals and herbs off the market because they cut into their profits. They will do anything to get natural products off the market. They have been lobbying for years in congress to get all natural products to go through FDA protocol.

About 5 years ago there was an article in a Denver newspaper that reported that broccoli may cause cancer. They did not report that the dose was the equivalent to what a human being would eat in 4 lifetimes. The study was about histamine and the mast cells. The researchers would deliberately increase the dosage until they saw a change in mast cells. A drug company got a hold of this, gave it to the Boston Globe and Bingo there you have it, a great article to scare people with.

Citrus bitters of any kind have been around for thousands of years and have marvelous health benefits. One of the alkaloids of citrus bitters is synephrine, NOT EPHEDRA! For centuries synephrine has been proven.

The information, to the best of my knowledge, originated from a PR firm in New York representing pharmaceutical companies. This is where most adverse articles about botanicals and herbs originate. Drug companies are the most profitable businesses in America and PR firms are retained to promote and protect them. PR firms have to make a profit too and if the drug company's revenues are affected it affects them too.

Bitter Orange

A valuable medicinal herb, the orange originated in China, and by the Middle Ages was a favorite with Arabian physicians. In the 16th century, an Italian princess named Anna-Marie de Nerola reputedly discovered an oil extracted from the flowers, which she used to scent her gloves; today neroli oil, as it became known, is prohibitively expensive. The Chinese remain the greatest enthusiasts of medicinal oranges: the bitter Seville orange (C. aurantium) and sweeter tangerines and satsumas (C. reticulata) are mainly used.

The bitter orange has provided food and medicine for thousands of years. It yields neroli oil from its flowers, and the oil known as petit grain from its leaves and young shoots. Both distillates are used extensively in perfumery. Orange flower water is a byproduct of distillation and is used in perfumery and to flavor candy and baked goods, as well as being used for medicinal purposes.

The dried outer peel of the fruit of oranges, tangerines and grapefruits, with the white pulp layer removed, has been used safely, medicinally for centuries. The leaves are also commonly used as therapy for many illnesses. The bitter orange tree is indigenous to eastern Africa, Arabia, and Syria, and cultivated in Spain, Italy, and North America.

Bitter Orange safely helps increase calorie burning and suppress the appetite.

Bitter orange peel contains a volatile oil with limonene (about 90%), flavonoids, coumarins, triterpenes, vitamin C, carotene, and pectin. The flavonoids have several useful properties, being anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antifungal. The composition of the volatile oils in the leaves, flowers, and peel varies significantly. Linalyl acetate (50%) is the main constituent in oil from the leaves (petit grain), and linalool (35%) in oil from the flowers (neroli). The unripe fruit of the bitter orange contains cirantin, which reputedly is a contraceptive.

Bitter Orange is the whole, unripe fruit of the mandarin orange. The Chinese have used the herb safely for thousands of years. It contains synephrine, a mild stimulant, which has decongestant effects on the respiratory system and may also help with blood pressure, digestion, constipation, gastritis, fertility and abdominal distention. The Chinese used the herb to improve circulation as well as kidney and liver function, to stimulate gastrointestinal functions, and treat indigestion.

Bitter orange is used in the U.S. as a weight loss aid due to its ability to bind to B-3 receptors, a subgroup of B cell receptors. This binding causes an increase in the rate at which fat is released from body stores for energy production, and increases the resting metabolic rate. Bitter orange is much safer than Mahuang/Ephedra.

There have been very few reactions to Bitter Orange and NO RECORDED DEATHS. In January 2003 there were 1911 reported deaths from Aspirin and 1803 reported deaths from Tylenol. (ABC NEWS) (BBC)

It is important to note that bitter orange, like grapefruit, may interact with prescription and over-the counter drugs. As with any vitamin and supplement, you should always consult a physician before use if one is taking drugs.

Bitter orange (Citrus aurantium) contains several substances in balance known to gradually increase the metabolic rate, which promotes calorie burning. While no published research has tested it alone, it appears to be effective and generally safe.

Bitter Orange helps heal digestive tract when used with Aloe Vera. The minor amount of the naturally occurring Synephrine combined with other phyto-nutrients in Bitter Orange may respond for the decongestant effect. Studies have shown that Nobiletin in Bitter Orange presents chemoprevention against certain cancers, anti-leukemia, gastric muscle protection, anti-ulcer effects and modulates colonic secretion.

Although bitter orange has historically been used to stimulate the appetite, bitter orange is frequently found in modern weight-loss formulas because synephrine is well documented to promote weight loss. In one particular study of 23 overweight adult participants taking a daily intake of bitter orange (975 mg) for six weeks lost significantly more body weight and fat than the control group.1 No adverse effects on heart rate or blood pressure were found.

Referenced Quote on Bitter Orange

"Orange Bitters is loaded with vitamins and minerals. A member of the citrus family, it contains generous amounts of vitamin C; therefore, is good for the treatment of scurvy and vitamin C deficiency illnesses. It can be beneficial in cases of anemia when Vitamin C is needed to provide the acidic environment necessary for iron

Country and WORLDWIDE USES

China

Abdomen, Ache, Antidote, Anodyne, Antiseptic, Bactericide, Bubo, Cancer, Cancer(Breast), Cancer(Stomach), Carminative, Chest, Congestion, Deobstruent, Diarrhea, Dysmenorrhea, Dyspepsia, Dyspnea, Emmenagogue, Energy, Freckle, Fungicide, Gas, Prolapse, Nausea, Marasmus, Panacea, Pectoral, Pimplse, Rectocele, Refrigerant, Rib, Sedative, Sore, Spasm, Splenitis, Stomach, Stomachic, Thirst, Urogenital, Uterus, Vermifuge, Wine-Nose

Curacao

Energy, Gall-Bladder, Hypertension, Nerve, Shampoo, Tea, Tranquilizer

Elsewhere

Ache (Stomach), Antifertility, Carminative, Carminative, Chest , Expectorant, Emmenagogue, Energy, Gall-Bladder, Heart, Hemostat, Medicine, Nerve, Spasm, Stimulant, Stomach, Stomachic, Styptic, Sudorific, Tonic

Haiti

Antiseptic, Energy, Fever, Laxative, Purgative

India

Ache (Stomach), Hypertension, Liver, Megalospleny, Menorrhagia

Mexico

Ache, Antiseptic, Apertief, Nerve, Tonic, Tranquilizer, Energy Tea

Trinidad

Depurgative, Dyspepsia, Expectorant, Flatulence, Mouthwash, Oliguria, Purgative, Sedative, Sore, Thrush

Turkey

Antiseptic, Aperitif, Narcotic, Nervine, Sedative, Scurvy, Stomachic, Tonic

U.S.

Cancer, Energy, Weight Reduction

Statins May Cause Nerve Damage

Chris Gupta

"Researchers showed that people taking statins were 4 to 14 times more likely to develop polyneuropathy than those who did not take statins. Statins include Lescol, Lipitor, Mevacor, and Pravachol.

Here is a perfect example how the cholesterol myth has taken a life of its own. The lack of proof to support a link between cholesterol and heart disease does not deter the brainwashed proponents even when contrary evidence is starring them in the face.

Gabe Mirkin, M.D.

A Danish study reports that a small percentage of people who took statin drugs for several years to lower cholesterol developed a type of nerve damage called polyneuropathy.

Polyneuropathy is characterized by tingling, numbness and burning pain as well as decreased sensitivity to temperature or pain. When a person suffers nerve damage, a doctor is supposed to look for a cause, such as diabetes, lack of vitamin B12, Lyme disease, kidney disease, thyroid disease or alcohol abuse. People who had taken statins and developed polyneuropathies were checked for known causes of nerve damage. Researchers showed that people taking statins were 4 to 14 times more likely to develop polyneuropathy than those who did not take statins. Statins include Lescol, Lipitor, Mevacor, and Pravachol. Check with your doctor about any side effects from your medications.

Statins and risk of polyneuropathy

A case-control study - D. Gaist, MD PhD, U. Jeppesen, MD PhD, M. Andersen, MD PhD, L. A. García Rodríguez, MD MSc, J. Hallas, MD PhD and S. H. Sindrup, MD PhD

From the Department of Neurology (Drs. Gaist, Jeppesen, and Sindrup), Odense University Hospital; Epidemiology (Dr. Gaist) and Clinical Pharmacology (Drs. Andersen, Hallas, and Sindrup), Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark; and Centro Español de Investigación Farmacoepidemiológica (Dr. García Rodríguez), Madrid, Spain.

Background: Several case reports and a single epidemiologic study indicate that use of statins occasionally may have a deleterious effect on the peripheral nervous system. The authors therefore performed a population-based study to estimate the relative risk of idiopathic polyneuropathy in users of statins.

Method: The authors used a population-based patient registry to identify first-time-ever cases of idiopathic polyneuropathy registered in the 5-year period 1994 to 1998. For each case, validated according to predefined criteria, 25 control subjects were randomly selected among subjects from the background population matched for age, sex, and calendar time. The authors used a prescription register to assess exposure to drugs and estimated the odds ratio of use of statins (ever and current use) in cases of idiopathic polyneuropathy compared with control subjects.

Results: The authors verified a diagnosis of idiopathic polyneuropathy in 166 cases. The cases were classified as definite (35), probable (54), or possible (77). The odds ratio linking idiopathic polyneuropathy with statin use was 3.7 (95% CI 1.8 to 7.6) for all cases and 14.2 (5.3 to 38.0) for definite cases. The corresponding odds ratios in current users were 4.6 (2.1 to 10.0) for all cases and 16.1 (5.7 to 45.4) for definite cases. For patients treated with statins for 2 or more years the odds ratio of definite idiopathic polyneuropathy was 26.4 (7.8 to 45.4).

Conclusions: Long-term exposure to statins may substantially increase the risk of polyneuropathy.

How to Get Vitamin D for Free

Get out in the sun for summer health.

Do you slather on sunscreen every time you head outdoors?

That may not be such a good idea. That's because sunscreen blocks out much of the ultraviolet "B" rays (UVB), which your body uses to produce Vitamin D.

Study after study is showing that getting adequate amounts of Vitamin D strengthens your immune system, which helps you ward off colds and flu.

More importantly, adequate Vitamin D levels greatly cut your risk of colorectal and breast cancer.

So why do so many people use sunscreen?

Because it prevents you from getting sunburn, which is a result of getting too much UVB rays.

Why not just make sure you don't stay out in the sun too long?

Of course, some people have to stay out in the sun for longer than they should due to the nature of their jobs. So in those cases, sunscreen is appropriate.

However, if that's your situation, make sure you get some sun exposure before putting on sunscreen.

HOW LONG SHOULD YOU STAY OUT IN THE SUN?

Even spending just 10 or 15 minutes a day in the sun can work wonders for your health.

If you're Caucasian, you should get between 20 minutes and 2 hours. If you have darker skin, you'll need to stay out considerably longer.

There are some things to keep in mind, however:

Build up slowly to a longer duration of time in the sun and, if possible, begin your regular sun exposure in the spring. This will allow you to gradually build up your tolerance to the more potent sunlight that summer brings. Also, early morning is the best time to soak up some rays because you're less likely to burn (plus, obviously, it's cooler).

Never let yourself get sunburnt. As a matter of fact, as soon as you see your skin turning a bit pinkish, or feeling like it's tingling, it's time to get out of the sun.

It's best to get regular, short doses of sunshine than to overindulge in order to make up for having skipped too many days.

EXPOSE LARGE AREAS OF YOUR SKIN

If you're a man, you should wear shorts and take your shirt off when you're out in the sun.

If you're a woman, wear a bathing suit or tank top.

You see, the more skin surface area you expose, the more effective your body will be at producing Vitamin D from sunlight.

One last word about sunbathing - NEVER FALL ASLEEP IN THE SUN! This is a recipe for burning, and studies show that sunburn can definitely cause skin cancer.

Taking supplements is another way to make sure you get the proper amounts of Vitamin D. For my recommended source of Vitamin D - Click Here

Arthritis... There is a Way to Stop It!

"Instead of eating as much as possible, eat as little as possible." 18th Century - Lueges Carviri

Your desire to stay well must be continuous. You need to remind yourself, every time you plan to eat or do grocery shopping, about the reason why certain foods are not good for you.

Foods labeled "enriched" means they are first denatured, then partially restored. That attractive color in food is to make us eat it, but it and words like "quick and easy," "smooth," are really warnings to us that we should not eat it. I believe that people are changing and going back to basic foods. Natural foods are making sense to those who study and learn.

Read labels: If they have chemicals added, do not buy them.

Watch out for fatigue.

It is always present when we have arthritis. It is one of the earliest symptoms. There are two other signs that are fairly constant. A check should be made to see if you are in this condition. If so...why? Contact the best doctor for arthritis in your area and be sure and inform him that you have become knowledgeable in this field and that you will take an active part in your treatment. It is not fair to expect a doctor to heal you. He can guide you, but the journey is taken by you... not him.

One sign mentioned above is the lowering of the amount of hemoglobin or oxygen- carrying power of the blood... usually to around 70% when 100% is normal. The other sign is high blood sedimentation rate. These are signs only a doctor can check.

What is Arthritis?

The word arthritis comes from the Greek words "Arthron" and "It is," which literally means joint inflammatory disease. However, it is not only joints but connective tissue throughout the body. Also, muscles and soft tissue of several organs can be involved in the inflammatory process. Close to one hundred different conditions are classified under arthritis. All have common symptoms of aches and pains in the joints and connective tissue throughout the body.

Rheumatism is a word that is interchangeable with the word arthritis and is mostly used in European countries and by old school doctors. How arthritis inflammation starts is not well understood. Several causes have been ascribed, such as injury, infection, auto-immune diseases (body producing antibodies against itself), calcium and vitamin D deficiency.

Inflammation itself causes further damage in the joints and tissues, making them stiff and making normal movement difficult. The symptoms and some of the signs of arthritis can be classified under one of the five most common kinds. The most common form is called degenerative or Osteo-arthritis. The cause of the disease is associated with malabsorbtion of calcium and vitamin D.

Although it is more common in the elderly, young people are not immune to it and, most recently, statistics indicate that it is showing up even in babies of three and four months old. In its severest form, pain might cause disability, even committing the arthritic to a wheelchair. This form of arthritis, while labeled incurable by the conventional doctors, in reality, responds excellently to nutrition therapy. The erosion of the joint bones can be stopped or retarded by correcting calcium, manganese, vitamin D, metabolism of the body.

The most serious forms of arthritis are Rheumatoid arthritis and a disease closely related to Rheumatoid arthritis, but affecting the organs, is Systemic Lupus Erythe-matosus.

Gout, which is referred to in literature and books written hundreds of years ago as "The King's Disease" is purely a nutritional disease. Genetically predisposed individuals produce too much uric acid. Crystals of the sodium salt of this uric acid deposit themselves in the joints and the kidney tissue.

The inflammatory process can cause permanent damage. The simplest way to prevent gouty attacks is to limit eating food that contains purine, such as sardines, bouillon, meat extracts, organ meats, anchovies, mushrooms, asparagus, spinach, artichokes, peas and beans.

The Merck Manual says drugs are so effective in lowering the serum rate content rate that restriction of the purine content of the diet is unnecessary. Really!!! Do we want to continue eating bad foods and then take drugs and pay the price in money and misery or do we want to eat the right foods and not take drugs? Doctors lean towards drugs. I believe in proper foods and no drugs. What do you believe?

Mark Bricklin tells about using cherries to do the trick. Ludwig W. BIau, Ph.D., says he had so much torment in his big toe he was confined to a wheelchair. One day, by accident, he ate a whole bowl of cherries and the next morning the pain in his foot was almost gone. He continued to eat six cherries every day and was soon out of the wheelchair.

If he forgot to take the cherries, it only took a few days for the stabbing pain to return. After writing this up in the medical journal, he revealed that at least twelve others had had the same results. Twenty years later, he continues to eat his cherries or drink cherry juice and he remains in good health.

Ankylosing spondylitis. A rarer kind of arthritis, Ankylosing spondylitis affects men more than women. Muscle stiffness can occur, but when all the joints of the spine are involved, a humpback might result. Conventional treatment is only symptomatic, which means aspirin or cortisone is given to the patient to relieve pain.

At the University of California at Berkeley, Dr. Francis Pottinger fed one group of cats cooked meat and cooked milk. The cats developed arthritis on this diet and died of it. The more the meat and the milk was cooked, the quicker they developed arthritis. Another controlled group of cats was fed raw food and never developed arthritis. Then, when this controlled group was eventually fed the cooked meat and cooked milk, they, too, developed arthritis. When the heat, pain and swelling disappears within a few days after eating uncooked and unprocessed foods, you will not care why it happened; you will just be thankful that they disappeared.

There is no longer any excuse for this painful arthritis condition to exist. It can only be done by you and you alone. But you will have to study and learn. Your public library is filled with good books on the subject of nutrition therapy and arthritis.

I decided I would be devoted to the study and cure of my arthritis . I was completely exhausted from the pain and from the mental anguish that it caused. I felt there must be a way to stop it... There is... "I Cured My Arthritis You Can Too".

Right now, visualize yourself within two weeks bending, and stretching, and not hurting, and throwing away all those drugs. In some cases, it will take longer, but every day there will be improvement, and you will never be as bad off as when you started, unless you back slide. You will be able to take a trip on just the money you save from drugs alone. Isn't that a great picture?

Take Mrs. A. C., who, at 51, had severe arthritis in the left hip. She needed crutches to walk, but liked her sweets and coffee breaks. She hated salads, never ate raw fruit, just sweets. Her diet was cooked foods and canned fruits and plenty of donuts, coffee and sweets. She felt she could not break the habit, but the pain finally got too bad. After a few days trying the more healthy way of eating she began to feel much better. She is now healthy and pain-free.

Why Wasn't Diet Pushed Before? Where Was The Publicity?

It was published, but it did not get the publicity it should have gotten. I am dedicated to seeing this changed.

Dr. DeForest Jarvis pointed his finger at wheat foods, white flour, white sugar, pasteurized milk, muscle meats and citrus fruits as being the factors for some people in causing body deterioration.

Honey As an Antibiotic

New research in the FASEB Journal shows that defensin-1, a protein added to honey by bees, possesses potent antibacterial properties and could be used again drug-resistant bacteria

Sweet news for those looking for new antibiotics: A new research published in the July 2010 print edition of the FASEB Journal (http://www.fasebj.org) explains for the first time how honey kills bacteria. Specifically, the research shows that bees make a protein that they add to the honey, called defensin-1, which could one day be used to treat burns and skin infections and to develop new drugs that could combat antibiotic-resistant infections.

"We have completely elucidated the molecular basis of the antibacterial activity of a single medical-grade honey, which contributes to the applicability of honey in medicine," said Sebastian A.J. Zaat, Ph.D., a researcher involved in the work from the Department of Medical Microbiology at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam. "Honey or isolated honey-derived components might be of great value for prevention and treatment of infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria."

To make the discovery, Zaat and colleagues investigated the antibacterial activity of medical-grade honey in test tubes against a panel of antibiotic-resistant, disease-causing bacteria. They developed a method to selectively neutralize the known antibacterial factors in honey and determine their individual antibacterial contributions. Ultimately, researchers isolated the defensin-1 protein, which is part of the honey bee immune system and is added by bees to honey. After analysis, the scientists concluded that the vast majority of honey's antibacterial properties come from that protein. This information also sheds light on the inner workings of honey bee immune systems, which may one day help breeders create healthier and heartier honey bees.

"We've known for millennia that honey can be good for what ails us, but we haven't known how it works," said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of the FASEB Journal, "Now that we've extracted a potent antibacterial ingredient from honey, we can make it still more effective and take the sting out of bacterial infections."

**********

FASEB comprises 23 societies with more than 100,000 members, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. FASEB enhances the ability of scientists and engineers to improve, through their research, the health, well-being and productivity of all people. FASEB's mission is to advance health and welfare by promoting progress and education in biological and biomedical sciences through service to our member societies and collaborative advocacy.

Spend Time in Nature to Feel More Alive

Feeling sluggish?

The solution may require getting outside the box – that big brick-and-mortar box called a building.

Being outside in nature makes people feel more alive, finds a series of studies published in the June 2010 issue of the Journal of Environmental Psychology.

And that sense of increased vitality exists above and beyond the energizing effects of physical activity and social interaction that are often associated with our forays into the natural world, the studies show.

"Nature is fuel for the soul, " says Richard Ryan, lead author and a professor of psychology at the University of Rochester. "Often when we feel depleted we reach for a cup of coffee, but research suggests a better way to get energized is to connect with nature," he says.

The findings, adds Ryan, are important for both mental and physical health. "Research has shown that people with a greater sense of vitality don't just have more energy for things they want to do, they are also more resilient to physical illnesses. One of the pathways to health may be to spend more time in natural settings," says Ryan.

In recent years, numerous experimental psychology studies have linked exposure to nature with increased energy and heightened sense of well-being. For example, research has shown that people on wilderness excursions report feeling more alive and that just recalling outdoor experiences increases feelings of happiness and health.

Other studies suggest that the very presence of nature helps to ward off feelings of exhaustion and that 90 percent of people report increased energy when placed in outdoor activities.

What is novel about this research, write the authors, is that it carefully tests whether this increased vitality associated with the outdoors is simply the feel-good spillover from physical activity and people-mixing often present in these situations.

To tease out the effects of nature alone, the authors conducted five separate experiments, involving 537 college students in actual and imagined contexts:

In one experiment, participants were led on a 15-minute walk through indoor hallways or along a tree-lined river path.

In another, the undergraduates viewed photographic scenes of buildings or landscapes.

A third experiment required students to imagine themselves in a variety of situations both active and sedentary, inside and out, and with and without others.

Two final experiments tracked participants' moods and energy levels throughout the day using diary entries. Over either four days or two weeks, students recorded their exercise, social interactions, time spent outside, and exposure to natural environments, including plants and windows.

Across all methodologies, individuals consistently felt more energetic when they spent time in natural settings or imagined themselves in such situations. The findings were particularly robust, notes Ryan; being outside in nature for just 20 minutes in a day was enough to significantly boost vitality levels.

Interestingly, in the last study, the presence of nature had an independent energizing effect above that of being outdoors. In other words, conclude the authors, being outdoors was vitalizing in large part because of the presence of nature.

The paper builds on earlier research by Ryan, Netta Weinstein, a psychologist at the University of Hamburg, Germany, and others showing that people are more caring and generous when exposed to nature. "We have a natural connection with living things," says Ryan. "Nature is something within which we flourish, so having it be more a part of our lives is critical, especially when we live and work in built environments."

These studies, concludes Ryan, underscore the importance of having access to parks and natural surroundings and of incorporating natural elements into our buildings through windows and indoor plants.

The paper was coauthored by Weinstein; Jessey Bernstein, McGill University; Kirk Warren Brown, Virginia Commonwealth University; Louis Mastella, University of Rochester; and Marylène Gagné, Concordia University.

Request your Free Back Pain Relief guide

Click Here

Request your Free Sciatica Gone in Just Days guide

Click Here

Request your Free Herniated Disc Healing Miracles guide

Click Here

Designed to optimize the health of digestive & intestinal environments.

Learn More

"After 43-Years of Suffering with Arthritis I Shocked My Doctors (Who Predicted I'd Soon Need A Wheelchair) When I Naturally Cured My Arthritis... Without Expensive Medication Or Surgery!" And I Know You Can Do The Same!

- Margie Garrison

Learn More

VIBE is a blend of essential nutrients, powerful antioxidants, concentrated minerals and vitamins, and green tea extracts, ideal for combating free radicals that ravage our bodies every day.

Learn More

The 7-Day Back Pain Cure

Free Book Reveals...

How You Can Get LASTING Relief...

And Finally Get Your Life Back!

Get your FREE copy now

Great Taste No Pain! reveals the 95 year old secret of some of the world's healthiest people. The author promises, what you read will begin to transform your health in less than 24 hrs!

Learn More

The One Minute Cure

Take a look at the Video the Pharmaceutical Industry

Doesn't Want You to See"

Click Here Now

Watch this life-changing video now before it's banned forever.

Rub On Relief

Contains 18 different botanical and organic ingredients combined synergistically to battle pain and inflammation…

Doesn’t cause “icy-hot” sensations or make you smell like a locker room…

Is 100% safe with none of the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal side effects common to prescription meds and NSAID’s…

And best of all… It’s clinically PROVEN to give you rapid, safe and effective pain relief… without side effects!

Learn More

The Every Other Day Diet™

Jon Benson, Holly Rigsby, CPT and Daniel Topkis, M.S.

"The Every Other Day Diet combines the science and the do-ability to deliver outstanding results for everyone"

- Dr. Holly Lucille, author of Creating and Maintaining Balance

Learn More

Lower Cholesterol Naturally and Eliminate Harmful Prescription Drugs.

By Consumer Health Advocate, Frank Mangano

Click Here

Super Omega 9® Premium Cooking Oil is the gourmet "Queen of Cooking Oils" exquisitely blended for taste and health. It is loaded with stable omega fatty acids that contribute to good health, similar to olive oil, so prominent in the healthy Mediterranean diet, without the taste of olive oil. The fatty acids in this product promote heart health, support healthy cholesterol, and aid in improving lipid profiles, brain function, and hormonal balance.

Learn More

Cure Your Restless Leg Syndrome Naturally, Anywhere Anytime With A 100% Success Rate--guaranteed.

Learn about Restless Leg Cure, the author and read the many testimonials of people that have used this method with great success.