A study involving women in Sweden linked high levels of homocysteine to twice the risk of developing Alzheimer’s dementia when compared to those women who had low homocysteine levels. The researchers also concluded that women with the highest levels of homocysteine had a 70% increased risk of developing any kind of dementia.

High homocysteine levels have now been implicated to increase the risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer, Alzheimer’s dementia, and even macular degeneration. This is sad when you consider that homocysteine can be lowered into a safe range by simply supplementing with vitamin B12, vitamin B6, and folic acid. For those individuals who have stubborn elevations of homocysteine that does not adequately respond to the B vitamins, just add 1 to 5 grams of Betaine or what is also known as Trimethylglycine (TMG).

from www.releasingfat.com

Dr. Philippa Darbre et al., at the University of Reading carried out tests on

samples of 20 different human breast tumors, found traces of 6 different Parabens in every sample.

"This is the first study to show their accumulation in human tissues," said Dr. Darbre.  "Their detection in human breast

tumors is of concern since parabens have been shown to be able to mimic the action of female hormone oestrogen,"

she said. (Source: Journal of Applied Toxicology, Volume 24, Number 1, 2004) (Dr. Darbre interview: BBC News Item 11/01/04)

"You cannot raise a man up by calling him down."

Read “Healthy for Life” by Dr. Strand. If you like internet support programs to help you for your first 3 months, or anytime when you want a bit more

motivation and education, go to my website: www.drkarenwolfe.com Click on “Join Now!” and then use my discount code to use the 3

month program for only $39.95. I can't recommend this program enough - you will learn so much for $39.95 over 12 weeks - where can you get anything for

that price these days?

Stevia is an all natural sweetener that you can get from health food

stores. It has 0 calories and doesn’t spike your blood sugar. I use “Stevia Plus” made

Lunches

1.      Tomato Stuffed with chicken salad
Yogurt (non-fat, sugar-free) - 4 oz.

2.      Turkey and Swiss sandwich made with a generous amount of turkey breast and low-fat Swiss cheese. Light Mayo, mustard, lettuce, and tomatoes can be added for personal taste. Again, the bread should be a coarse barley, oat bran, or rye bread. You can also use one of the sprouted breads like Silver Hills.
Whole fruit or a fruit bowl

3.      Oriental Chicken Bowl - Heat peanut oil in a skillet or wok and stir-fry chicken and broccoli. Season to taste. Serve with basmati rice and soy sauce.

4.      Greek Salad:

• Several romaine lettuce leaves, torn into bite sizes

   

• 1 chopped cucumber, (peeled)

   

• 1 chopped tomato

   

• ½ cup sliced red onion

   

• ½ cup of reduced-fat feta cheese

   

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

   

• 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice

   

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

   

• ½ tsp of salt

   

Directions - Combine the lettuce, cucumber, tomato, onion, and cheese in a large bowl. Mix the oil, lemon juice, oregano, and salt in a small bowl and pour over the lettuce mixture.

5.      Tuna salad or chicken salad made with real mayonnaise placed inside stone-ground pita bread. Side of whole fruit (apple, pear, orange)

6.      Chicken and Raspberry or Cranberry
Spinach Salad
Torn spinach with some torn mixed greens covered with boneless, skinless chicken breast. Add 1 cup of fresh raspberries or sweetened cranberries. You can also add a few walnuts and then use a healthy dressing.

7.      Turkey Roll-Ups
Place a slice of skinless turkey breast on a lettuce leaf. Add a strip of red and green peppers and roll up tightly in the lettuce leaf. Then dip into a low-fat bleu cheese dressing or mayonnaise. Ham or chicken breast may be substituted for the turkey.

8.      Apple-Walnut Chicken Salad - place a 3 to 4 ounces of boneless chicken breast (skinless) on a bed of lettuce or mixed greens with added chopped-celery. Then add a cup of chopped apple and 2 ounces of chopped walnuts. Use a healthy vinegar and oil dressing.

1. HIgh glycemic meals

2. Elevated Insulin levels

3. High Fatty meals

4. Central obesity

5. Hypertension

6. Type 2 Diabetes

Drinking can fill you up and prevent over eating..often when we "think" we are hungry we are actually thirsty

TRY THESE

1. Cranberry Water - buy unsweetened Cranberry Juice. Add 3/4 water and 1/4 cranberry juice and stevia to taste

2. Lemonade - 1/4 freshly squeezed lemons and 3/4 water water and stevia to taste

3. Skim milk Cappuccinos - sweeten with stevia or Agave Nectar

4. Pomegranate Juice and club soda

5. Sparkling water with lemon/lime in a special glass

 I find alcohol retains a lot of fluid and bloating!

"Do ordinary things with extraordinary love."

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with osteoporosis, bone fracture, muscle weakness, cancers (particularly breast and colon), autoimmune diseases, obesity, diabetes, schizophrenia, depression, asthma, lung dysfunction, influenza, kidney disease, and high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease. During pregnancy and infancy vitamin D insufficiency is also associated with preeclampsia (pregnancy-induced hypertension), low birth weight, neonatal hypocalcemia (low blood calcium), poor postnatal growth, bone fragility, and increased incidence of autoimmune diseases and childhood asthma.

There is no debate in the medical community that there is a vitamin D deficiency epidemic that is causing a myriad of problems, and that people need to be supplementing with much higher doses than the traditionally-recommended dose of 400 IU per day.  It's clear that we need to be supplementing with doses of at least 2000 IU/day, if not 4000 IU/day or more ....

Although further studies are needed to determine the full extent of the protective nature of vitamin D against heart disease, it is apparent that vitamin D deficiency increases the risk of both ischemic and non-ischemic heart disease. Vitamin D may influence how heart muscle functions, helps control blood pressure, influences parathyroid hormone levels, and plays a role in reducing inflammation and calcification of blood vessels, thus reducing plaque formation.

When 25-hydroxy-vitamin D levels are below 15 ng/ml the risk for heart disease is particularly elevated. With 25-OH vitamin D levels above 30 ng/ml cardiac benefits may be substantial, and possibly even greater at the optimal serum range of 50 - 80 ng/ml. ⁸

Greek yogurt cinnamon and dash of agave

or

Greek yogurt and blueberries

Ricotta herbs and cucumber

1 tbs chopped basil into 1/4 cup ricotta and spread on cucumber

A diagnosis of diabetes means losing an average of eight years from your expected life span, new research shows.

In addition, diabetics are more likely to develop heart disease sooner than non-diabetics, the study found.

"Having diabetes at age 50 years and over does not only represent a significant increase in the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and mortality but also a very important loss in life expectancy and life expectancy free from cardiovascular disease," said lead author Dr. Oscar H. Franco, of the University Medical Center Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and Unilever Corporate Research, Sharnbrook, England.

Most people with diabetes -- about 95 percent -- suffer from the obesity-linked type 2 form of the blood sugar illness. That means that "prevention of diabetes is a fundamental task facing today's society aiming to achieve populations living for longer and healthier," Franco said.

His team published its findings in the June 11 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

In the study, Franco's group collected data on more than 5,200 American men and women who participated in the ongoing Framingham Heart Study. These people were followed until they developed heart disease or died. In addition, the researchers noted whether they had diabetes.

According to the study, diabetic women had more than twice the risk of developing heart disease than non-diabetic women. In addition, women with diabetes who already had heart disease were more than twice as likely to die compared with non-diabetic women.

Among men, the researchers found that those with diabetes also had twice the risk of developing heart disease and faced a 1.7 times higher risk of dying after developing heart trouble, compared with non-diabetic men.

For those 50 and older, diabetic men lived an average of 7.5 years less than men without diabetes, and diabetic women lived an average of 8.2 years less. Moreover, life expectancy without heart disease still fell by 7.8 years in men and 8.4 years in women with diabetes compared with non-diabetics, Franco's group reported.

"Taking into consideration that treatment of diabetes and its complications accounts for at least 10 percent of health-care expenditure in many countries, effectively preventing diabetes will not only represent an increase in life expectancy and the number of years lived free from cardiovascular disease but may also represent important savings for health care, at least with respect to direct medical costs," Franco said.

One expert believes the study reflects the dangers posed by diabetes and the need for more efforts to prevent and control the disease.

"It's sobering to think about the number of years of life lost," said Dr. Larry Deeb, president for medicine and science at the American Diabetes Association. "We ought to be able to reduce the cardiovascular risk because we can manage diabetes better today, but we're not."

About 80% of your immune system lives in the pit of your gut.
But some probiotics don’t survive your stomach’s acidity and
others get damaged in the manufacturing process

1, Stay away from sugars and highly processed foods

2. Replace with vegeatables - good bacteria produce waste products

3. Fermented Foods - sauerkraut, and GOOD yogurt

4. Avoid commercial yogurt - often have sweeteners

The term probiotics comes from the Greek "for life" (which gives you an inkling of what the word "antibiotics" really means). When ingested, these living microorganisms replenish the microflora in your intestinal tract.* This results in the promotion of a number of health-enhancing functions, including enhanced digestive function.*

There's a paradigm shift going on in medicine as new research reveals a far greater role for vitamin D. Vitamin D is not just for kids -- or the prevention of rickets. Optimal levels of Vitamin D (40-80 ng/ml) enhance the creation and functioning of healthy cells throughout the body. In addition to protecting the bones and boosting the immune system, studies show that Vitamin D helps prevent certain cancers, including breast, ovarian, prostate, and colorectal.Exciting new research shows that in the U.S. alone, thousands of new cases of breast cancer could be prevented every year if more women had optimal levels of vitamin D.

A study conducted by Cedric Garland and other prominent vitamin D researchers determined that women with vitamin D levels above 52 ng/ml have half the risk of developing breast cancer as those with 13 ng/ml! Garland (et al) estimates that 58,000 new cases of breast cancer in the U.S. could be prevented per year by raising vitamin D levels to 52 ng/ml. Imagine what the global impact could be!

A simple blood test is all that's needed to find out your vitamin D level. Five years ago, a range of 20-100 ng/ml was considered normal. Just recently, this range was raised to 32-100 ng/ml. Make sure to ask your healthcare provider what your actual vitamin D level is.

We are all creatures of habit--some good and some bad.  Whenever we begin to challenge anything that has to with our eating habits or our lifestyles, it is a difficult challenge.  Many of us truly realize that we do not have the best health habits and have found it very difficult to change.  The Healthy for Life Program has been developed to take you by the hand and guide you every step of the way towards establishing these changes in your lifestyle.  You will not only learn about the science behind the program but also the practical tips that will allow you to be successful.  Looking back at how you have arrived at your present situation does very little good.  There is really nothing you can do about it at the present time.  You must realize that today is the first day of the rest of your life and that your best days are still ahead.

You will be receiving an encouraging, motivational email from me every day of the 5 days.  The emails will be filled with practical tips that make a difference in your life.  Remember, this is not another diet.  You are developing healthy lifestyles that will not only improve the quality of your life, but also have a side effect of fat loss.  These are meant to be permanent lifestyle changes that will merely become part of your everyday life.  Your Best Days Are Still Ahead!

The Healthy for Life Program is not a diet. Let me repeat this fact. The Healthy for Life Program is not a diet. As you begin to realize that the underlying problem of almost all the individuals who are overweight is either insulin abuse or insulin resistance, you will begin to understand why you are not involved in another diet. In order to correct and reverse this underlying problem of insulin abuse or insulin resistance, you need to develop healthy lifestyles. This involves eating a healthy diet that does not spike your blood sugar, modest exercise, and cellular nutrition. You leave out any one of these aspects of a healthy lifestyle and you will not have complete success. In order to reverse the deadly consequences of insulin abuse and insulin resistance, you need to be very aggressive and committed to the lifestyle changes presented in the Healthy for Life Program.

If individuals would just realize the fact that the lifestyle they have been living has major consequences on their health, we would make giant strides in solving our present health care crisis. People simply need to become more proactive and learn how to protect their health. This is the main reason this web page has been developed. It not only offers you the cutting-edge medical research but also a practical approach that allows you to be successful. These are healthy lifestyles that need to become an integral part of your life. You will learn that choices you make each and every day will greatly influence the most important gift you possess, your health.

.      Chicken Stir-Fry: Serves 4

• 3 tablespoons of olive or canola oil
• 2 tablespoons of water
• 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
• ½ pound of skinless chicken breast
• 1 package of fresh or frozen vegetables containing green beans, mushrooms, bell peppers, and broccoli
• 10 ounces of fresh spinach

Directions: Heat a large skillet or wok until water sizzles and then add 1 ½ tablespoons of oil and coat pan. Be sure to not heat this so much that your oil smokes. Then add chicken breasts and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the rest of the oil and then pour in the vegetable mix. Stir-fry for additional 4 to 5 minutes and then add the water and soy sauce. Continue to stir-fry for another 2 minutes and then add the spinach. Cover the skillet or wok and steam for 2 minutes over medium heat. Gently turn the spinach and steam for another 2 minutes and then serve.

The answer to most probelms or issues in our lives is.....LOVE

When we come from love we rise above the actual physical issue and find the solution for everyones best and higest good.

Michael Beckwith said something really wonderful once and I want to offer it for you today.

 
He said, ‘If you will begin each day as if it is a grand adventure, not just something to survive or work to get done, but instead as a grand adventure; then you become a candidate for insight and revelation. That happens when we are focused on this day being an adventure.’

It is known that dietary fiber may play a role in obesity prevention. The role that different individual fiber sources play in weight change is less certain. In a recent paper published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers investigated the association of total dietary fiber, cereal fiber, and fruit and vegetable fiber with changes in weight and waist circumference.

The prospective cohort study included 89,432 European participants, aged 20–78 years, who were initially free of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. Participants were followed for an average of 6.5 years. Adjustments were made for follow-up duration, dietary variables, and baseline anthropometric, demographic, and lifestyle factors.

Total fiber was inversely associated with weight and waist circumference change during the study period. For a 10 gram/day higher total fiber intake, there was an estimated 39 g/year weight loss and waist circumference decreased by 0.08 cm/year. A 10 gram/day fiber intake from cereals results in 77 g/year weight reduction and 0.10 cm/year reduction in waist circumference. Fruit and vegetable fiber was not associated with weight change but had a similar effect on waist circumference as total and cereal fiber intake.

Over a period of 6.5 years, weight gain and increases in waist circumference would be expected in typical adults. The findings of this research may support a beneficial role of higher intake of dietary fiber, especially cereal fiber, in prevention of weight and waist circumference gain.

Am J Clin Nutr Vol. 91, No. 2, 329-336, February 2010

In our busy lifestyles, invariably we are going to be stopping by to eat at a fast-food restaurant.  Choose a fast-food restaurant chain that offers at least some sort of healthy choice, like Wendy's salads or chili.  You could also consider a McDonald's salad or grilled chicken sandwich (hold the Mayo and eat only one side of the bread).  Some of the Mexican fast food restaurants offer naked burritos (hold the rice) or taco salads (hold the cheese and avoid eating the shell).

I would prefer that you choose fast-food restaraunts like some Mexican restaraunts where you can have a naked burrito and substitute lettuce for the rice.  When you begin to apply the principles you have already learned in the Healhy for Life Program, you will find that there are still a lot of healthy choices.

The researchers concluded that this was probably due to the stimulating effect exercise has on appetite, i.e., the more calories you burn, the more you want to eat. Diet will always be your first line of defense when shedding pounds. But if you carefully monitor your food intake, exercise can help your weight-loss efforts. It burns calories, it naturally tones your body, and it can often put you in a positive dieting mind-set that reinforces smart food choices throughout the day.

Important new research has shown that commonly used food dyes, such as Yellow 5, Red 40, and six others, are linked to hyperactivity, impulsivity, learning difficulties, and Attention Deficity Hyperactivity Disorder in many children. The Center for Science in the Public Interest has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to ban the use of these dyes, many of which are already being phased out in Europe.

These dyes—petrochemicals, mostly—are often used to simulate the presence of healthy, colorful fruits and vegetables. But considering the adverse impact of these chemicals on children, and considering how easily they can be replaced with colorings derived from real food ingredients, it’s time to get rid of them altogether.

From Center for Science in the Public interest (www.cspinet.org)

Too much salt in the diet is a major contributor to hypertension, stroke, heart and kidney disease, and other ailments. Starting in 1978, CSPI has been urging the Food and Drug Administration to use its regulatory authority to treat salt, or sodium chloride, as a food additive, as opposed to classifying it as an ingredient that is "generally recognized as safe," or GRAS. CSPI filed lawsuits against the FDA in 1982 and in 2005 to try to compel it to take action, and later in 2005 filed a regulatory petition which asked the agency to set maximum levels of salt in various categories of food. The agency held a public hearing in 2007 but hasn’t taken any action since.

Seventy percent of the population—a group that includes the elderly, African Americans, and people with existing high blood pressure—should consume no more than 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day, according to the federal government. Everyone else should limit themselves to 2,300 mg per day. But according to CSPI, average sodium intake is actually north of 4,000 mg per day. In May CSPI identified a number of popular chain restaurant meals that provide 5,000, 6,000, or 7,000 mg of sodium.

Reducing sodium by 25 percent over the next 5 years could also save the federal government billions in direct medical expenditures, according to CSPI.

New York City similarly helped spur nationwide changes in the food industry when it became the first jurisdiction to require calories on chain restaurant menus, and to phase out the use of artificial trans fats in all restaurants.

Americans are fatter than ever and it's seriously harming our health. More than 72 million adults are obese, and that figure is expected to soar to 103 million by 2018. The problem is so bad that it could even cause life expectancy to start to decline, according to some demographers.

Dr. Michael L. Power, author of The Evolution of Obesity, says humans evolved with limited access to food and have a biological drive to gorge when easy calories are available. How we cope with this is the challenge of our times, Power says. "We need to understand our biological adaptations and change our social reactions."

Look at the list below and see how many things can make a day to day difference in the number on the scale. I hope this will give you a chance to use the scale as a useful tool on your journey to Create the Body Your Soul desires, but not a measure of success or the ultimate goal

1.     Water. Because the body is about 60% water, fluctuations in your hydration levels can change the number on a scale. If you’re dehydrated or have eaten too much salt, your body may actually retain water, which can cause scale weight to creep up. Similarly, many women retain water during menstrual cycles, which is another thing that can make that number change.

2.      Level of hydration - A quart of drinking water weighs about 2 pounds

3.     What we ate the meal before

4.    Some foods require more water to digest than others & that causes water retention. 

5.    Dehydration can cause water retention

6.     Constipation

7.     Not taking high quality cellular supplements to help body function efficiently

8.     Amount of sodium in our meals

9.     Hormonal fluctuations

10.  OTC Medications –  NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatories) will cause you to retain fluid and can even cause some weight gain

11.  Stress Level

12.  Amount of activity the day before

13.  Emotional state – if I am “holding in resentment, anger, sadness….the body holds on too”

14.  Sleep Deprivation

15.  Insulin resistance

16.  Not able to exercise consistently

17.  Gaining muscle and you would weight a pound or two more but measure less in inches.

18.  Underactive thyroid—hypothyroidism

19.  Prescription Medications such as

1.     SSRI’s - -depressants like Paxil, Zoloft, Lexapro, and Prozac.

2.     hormone replacement therapy

• Women absorb and metabolize alcohol differently than men.⁴
• Alcohol consumption is associated with a linear increase in breast cancer incidence in women over the range of consumption reported by most women. A pooled analysis of several studies found breast cancer risk was significantly elevated by 9% for each 10-grams per day increase in alcohol intake for intakes up to 60 grams per day.⁵
• Although the mean lifetime dose of alcohol in female alcoholics is only 60% of that in male alcoholics, one study noted that cardiomyopathy (a degenerative disease of the heart muscle) and myopathy (a degenerative disease of skeletal muscle) was as common in female alcoholics as in males. The study concluded that women are more susceptible than men to the toxic effects of alcohol on the heart muscle.⁶
• Brain shrinkage in men and women was found to be similar despite significantly shorter periods of alcohol exposure or drinking histories in women.⁷
• Women with chronic pancreatitis have shorter drinking histories than that of men. Women with alcoholic hepatitis and cirrhosis were found to have consumed less alcohol per body weight per day than men. These findings indicate that women are more vulnerable to alcoholic liver disease than men.⁸
• Although alcohol problems are more common in male trauma patients, women with alcohol problems are just as severely impaired, have at least as many adverse consequences of alcohol use, and have more evidence of alcohol-related physical and psychological harm.⁹

As the dangers of cell phones slowly trickle out to the mainstream media, there have been some reports of “safer” cell phones, and the Environmental Working Group (EWG) even released a new database for consumers ranking over 1,000 cell phones by the Specific Absorption Rate, known as the SAR value.

The SAR value is a measure of the power of the cell phone and its potential for heating tissues.

Within days of the EWG launching the new SAR value database, almost 500,000 people had accessed the database, indicating very encouraging new interest by consumers in cell phone safety.

But simply choosing a phone with a lower SAR value does not at all mean the phone is safe. Camilla Rees, founder of www.Electromagnetichealth.org and co-author with Magda Havas, PhD of “Public Health SOS: The Shadow Side of the Wireless Revolution,” explains:

Heart

“There is overwhelming evidence that stress creates an environment where heart attacks and even sudden death become more likely,” says Dr. Joel Dimsdale of UC, San Diego, in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology

Job stress has been found to increase cardiovascular risk by up to 50%. In addition, stress lowers estrogen production, which reduces protections against heart disease in women, explains Dr. Stephen Manuck, a professor of psychology at the University of Pittsburgh

Headaches

Stress appears to change the balance of chemicals in the brain in a way that may contribute to the narrowing of blood vessels—one theory for why we get migraines. Stress also is a factor in tension headaches. And physical reactions to stress—such as tensing the neck and shoulders, grinding teeth, or clenching the jaw—may make headaches worse.

Skin

Stress can exacerbate many common skin conditions, such as acne, psoriasis, hives, and rosacea. It may lead to hair loss, brittle nails, herpes outbreaks, and shingles.

Cancer

The evidence linking stress to cancer is limited, but we do know that chronic stress can weaken a person’s immune system, which may make him or her more susceptible to certain cancers associated with viruses.

Caffeine: How much is too much?

If you rely on caffeine to wake you up and keep you going, you aren't alone. Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system, alleviating fatigue and increasing wakefulness.

When to consider cutting back

For most people, moderate doses of caffeine — 200 to 300 milligrams (mg), or about two to four cups of brewed coffee a day — aren't harmful. But some circumstances may warrant limiting or even ending your caffeine routine. Read on to see if any of these apply to you.

'Grande' is your middle name

Though moderate caffeine intake isn't likely to cause harm, too much can noticeably affect your health. Heavy daily caffeine use — more than 500 to 600 mg a day, or about four to seven cups of coffee — can cause:

• Insomnia
• Nervousness
• Restlessness
• Irritability
• Nausea or other gastrointestinal problems
• Fast or irregular heartbeat
• Muscle tremors
• Headaches
• Anxiety

Even a little makes you jittery

Some people are more sensitive to caffeine than are others. If you're susceptible to the effects of caffeine, just small amounts — even one cup of coffee or tea — may prompt unwanted effects, such as anxiety, restlessness, irritability and sleep problems. How you react to caffeine may be determined in part by how much caffeine you're used to drinking. So, people who don't regularly consume caffeine tend to be more sensitive to its negative effects. Other factors may include body mass, age, smoking habits, drug or hormone use, stress and health conditions such as anxiety disorders. Sex may even play a role: Research suggests that men are more susceptible to caffeine than are women.

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 4^th, 2010

6 PM PACIFIC  - The Science of RESET with Dr. Karen Wolfe

Presenters:   Dr. Karen Wolfe, Australian Physician and creator of The Conscious Body Method (www.drkarenwolfe.com)

For details & Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/741887866

The Science of RESET Thursday, February 4 , 2010 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM EST

My personal opinion on caffeine is that it's the most widely used psychoactive drug in world," says Daniel Evatt, a research fellow in the department of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He notes that many people become tolerant to immediate perks such as alertness and increased energy, and then go through withdrawal, with headaches, low energy and other symptoms, when they try to quit.

In addition, Evatt suggests that some longtime coffee drinkers may actually be immune to benefits and not know it: The tiredness they feel in the morning is really withdrawal-related, he says, and that single or double shot just helps them get back to normal functioning, without providing a real boost. "All these things tell us that this is a substance that people can become dependent on, in the way they become dependent on other drugs."

From Harvard Research

(From Dr Mercola website

Keeping Your Thyroid Healthy in a Toxic World

Now that you have some understanding of the importance of your thyroid and how it works, let’s take a look at the factors that can readily cause problems with your thyroid gland.

Diet

Your lifestyle choices dictate, to a great degree, how well your thyroid will function.

Eliminate junk food, processed food, artificial sweeteners, trans fats, and anything with chemical ingredients. Eat whole, unprocessed foods, and choose as many organics as possible.

Gluten and Other Food Sensitivities

Gluten and food sensitivities are among the most common causes of thyroid dysfunction because they cause inflammation.

Gluten causes autoimmune responses in many people and can be responsible for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, a common autoimmune thyroid condition. Approximately 30 percent of the people with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis have an autoimmune reaction to gluten, and it usually goes unrecognized.

How this works is, gluten can cause your gastrointestinal system to malfunction, so foods you eat aren’t completely digested (aka Leaky Gut Syndrome[7]). These food particles can then be absorbed into your bloodstream where your body misidentifies them as antigens -- substances that shouldn’t be there -- our body then produces antibodies against them.

These antigens are similar to molecules in your thyroid gland. So your body accidentally attacks your thyroid. This is known as an autoimmune reaction or one in which your body actually attacks itself.

Testing can be done for gluten and other food sensitivities, which involves measuring your IgG and IgA antibodies[8].

Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is one of the best foods you can eat for your thyroid Coconut oil is a saturated fat comprised of medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), which are known to increase metabolism and promote weight loss.

Coconut oil is very stable (shelf life of 3 to 5 years at room temperature), so your body is much less burdened with oxidative stress than it is from many other vegetable oils. And coconut oil does not interfere with T4 to T3 conversion the way other oils can.

Iodine

Iodine is a key component of thyroid hormoneIn fact, the names of the different forms of thyroid hormone reflect the number of iodine molecules attached -- T4 has four attached iodine molecules, and T3 has three -- showing what an important part iodine plays in thyroid biochemistry.

If you aren’t getting enough iodine in your diet (and most Americans don’t, no matter how healthy your thyroid gland is, it won’t have the raw materials to make enough thyroid hormone.

Chlorine, fluorine and bromine are also culprits in thyroid function, and since they are halides like iodine, they compete for your iodine receptors.

If you are exposed to a lot of bromine, you will not hold on to the iodine you need. Bromine is present in many places in your everyday world -- plastics, pesticides, hot tub treatments, fire retardants, some flours and bakery goods, and even some soft drinks.

Stress and Adrenal Function

Stress is one of the worst thyroid offenders. Your thyroid function is intimately tied to your adrenal function, which is intimately affected by how you handle stress.

Many of us are under chronic stress, which results in increased adrenalin and cortisol levels, and elevated cortisol has a negative impact on thyroid function. Thyroid hormone levels drop during stress, while you actually need more thyroid hormones during stressful times.

When stress becomes chronic, the flood of stress chemicals (adrenalin and cortisol) produced by your adrenal glands interferes with thyroid hormones and can contribute to obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, unstable blood sugar, and more.

A prolonged stress response can lead to adrenal exhaustionalso known as adrenal fatigue), which is often found alongside thyroid disease.

Environmental toxins place additional stress on your body. Pollutants such as petrochemicals, organochlorines, pesticides and chemical food additives negatively affect thyroid function.

One of the best destressors is exercise, which is why it is so beneficial for your thyroid.

Exercise directly stimulates your thyroid gland to secrete more thyroid hormone. Exercise also increases the sensitivity of all your tissues to thyroid hormone. It is even thought that many of the health benefits of exercise stem directly from improved thyroid function.

Even something as simple as a 30-minute walk is a great form of exercise, and all you need is a good pair of walking shoes. Don’t forget to add strength training to your exercise routine, because increasing your muscle mass helps raise your metabolic rate.

Also make sure you are getting enough sleep. Inadequate sleep contributes to stress and prevents your body from regenerating fully.

 

I recommend the following panel of laboratory tests if you want to get the best picture of what your thyroid is doing:

• TSH -- the high-sensitivity version. This is the BEST test. But beware most all of the “normal” ranges are simply dead wrong. The ideal level for TSH is between 1 and 1.5 mIU/L (milli-international units per liter)
• Free T4 and Free T3. The normal level of free T4 is between 0.9 and 1.8 ng/dl (nanograms per deciliter). T3 should be between 240 and 450 pg/dl (picograms per deciliter).
• Thyroid antibodies, including thyroid peroxidase antibodies and anti-thyroglobulin antibodies. This measure helps determine if your body is attacking your thyroid, overreacting to its own tissues (ie, autoimmune reactions). Physicians nearly always leave this test out.
• For more difficult cases TRH can be measured (thyroid releasing hormone) using the TRH stimulation test. TRH helps identify hypothyroidism that’s caused by inadequacy of the pituitary gland.

Other tests that might be indicated for more complex cases are a thyroid scan, fine-needle aspiration, and thyroid ultrasound. But these are specialized tests that your physician will use only in a small number of cases, in special situations.

Even if all your lab tests are “normal,” if you have multiple thyroid symptoms, you still could have subclinical hypothyroidis

But did you know that depression, heart disease, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, PMS (premenstrual syndrome), menopausal symptoms, muscle and joint pains, irritable bowel syndrome, or autoimmune disease could actually indicate a problem with your thyroid?

The classic signs of a sluggish thyroid gland include weight gain, lethargy, poor quality hair and nails, hair loss, dry skin, fatigue, cold hands and feet, and constipation -- and these symptoms are relatively well known.

However, some of the conditions you might not associate with your thyroid include:

• High cholesterol
• Irregular menstruation
• Low libido
• Infertility
• Gum disease
• Fluid retention
• Skin conditions such as acne and exzema
• Memory problems
• Poor stamina

And there are, in fact, many more conditions that can be associated with poor thyroid function. Your thyroid plays a part in nearly every physiological process. When it is out of balance, so are you. This is why it is so important to understand how your thyroid gland works and what can cause it to run amok.

The sad fact is, half of all people with hypothyroidism are never diagnosed. And of those who are diagnosed, many are inadequately treated, resulting in partial recovery at best.

1. Commit to Thirty Days – Three to four weeks is all the time you need to make a habit automatic. If you can make it through the initial conditioning phase, it becomes much easier to sustain. A month is a good block of time to commit to a change since it easily fits in your calendar.

2. Make it Daily – Consistency is critical if you want to make a habit stick. If you want to start exercising, go to the gym every day for your first thirty days. Going a couple times a week will make it harder to form the habit. Activities you do once every few days are trickier to lock in as habits.

3. Start Simple – Don’t try to completely change your life in one day. It is easy to get over-motivated and take on too much. If you wanted to study two hours a day, first make the habit to go for thirty minutes and build on that.

4. Remind Yourself – Around two weeks into your commitment it can be easy to forget. Place reminders to execute your habit each day or you might miss a few days. If you miss time it defeats the purpose of setting a habit to begin with.

6. Get a Buddy – Find someone who will go along with you and keep you motivated if you feel like quitting.

8. Replace Lost Needs - If you are giving up something in your habit, make sure you are adequately replacing any needs you’ve lost. If watching television gave you a way to relax, you could take up meditation or reading as a way to replace that same need.

9. Be Imperfect – Don’t expect all your attempts to change habits to be successful immediately. It took me four independent tries before I started exercising regularly. Now I love it. Try your best, but expect a few bumps along the way.

10. Remove Temptation - Restructure your environment so it won’t tempt you in the first thirty days. Remove junk food from your house, cancel your cable subscription, throw out the cigarettes so you won’t need to struggle with willpower later.

Sources:

  Lifehack.org August 14, 2007

Before you make your New Year’s resolution, take a minute to avoid these common resolution mistakes -- and make sure it’s one you can actually keep. Typically, New Year’s resolutions don’t work for 4 reasons.

1. They’re all about what you think you should do

Stop smoking? Start exercising? Eat healthily? These all sound good on the surface, but typically a resolution is based on what you think you should be doing, rather than what you really want to be doing. Forget about what you or other people think you ought to be doing and look at what you really want.

2. Resolutions are like goals

Some resolutions are like goals in that they’re about getting more of something. The trouble is that setting goals rarely works. The problem is that as soon as you set a goal for yourself, you’re saying to yourself that you want more in your life than you have right now. The very nature of goals make you look forward to what’s next, never at what you’ve got right now. Once you reach a goal, what’s next? Another goal. Then another, then another. When do you get to stop and just enjoy life right where you are?

3. There’s no motivation or commitment

Over a third of resolutions don’t make it past January and over three quarters are abandoned soon after. The reason? No commitment. The problem is that you’re taking something that doesn’t mean anything to you and trying to make it happen. Resolutions lack a foundation of meaning and personal relevance that makes sure they run out of steam.

4. The timing’s all wrong

Not only are you coming off the back of the holidays and getting back to the harsh realities of the world, but you see the whole of the year stretching ahead of you and summer’s a whole 6 months away. Why wait for one particular day to make a decision, when there are 364 other equally great decision-making days available to you?

Need a snack? A handful of nuts is a tasty treat that helps in lowering cholesterol. Nuts are high in monounsaturated fat, which lowers LDL "bad" cholesterol while leaving HDL "good" cholesterol intact. Several studies show that people who eat about an ounce of nuts a day have lower risk of heart disease. Nuts are high in fat and calories, so only eat a handful. And make sure they're not covered in sugar or chocolate.

If you're eating healthy food at home to keep cholesterol in check, don't blow it when you eat out. Restaurant food can be loaded with saturated fat, calories, and sodium. Even healthy choices may come in super-size portions. Try these tips to stay on track:

• Choose broiled, baked, steamed, and grilled foods – not fried.
• Get sauces on the side

Even 30 minutes of physical activity five days a week (20 minutes three times a week for vigorous exercise, such as jogging) can help lower LDL cholesterol and raise HDL cholesterol – although more exercise is even better. It also helps you maintain an ideal weight, reducing your chance of developing clogged arteries. You don't have to exercise for 30 minutes straight – you can break it up into 10-minute increments.

If exercise sounds like a dirty word to you, here's some good news: You can boost your heart health by incorporating physical activity into your day. Any kind of cardiovascular activity counts – gardening, dancing, or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Even housework can qualify as exercise – as long as you're doing serious cleaning that gets your heart rate up and not just light dusting.

The report, based on U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, says the top 10 riskiest foods regulated by the FDA are:

• Leafy greens: 363 outbreaks involving 13,568 reported cases of illness.
• Eggs: 352 outbreaks with 11,163 reported cases of illness.
• Tuna: 268 outbreaks with 2,341 reported cases of illness.
• Oysters: 132 outbreaks with 3,409 reported cases of illness.
• Potatoes: 108 outbreaks with 3,659 reported cases of illness.
• Cheese: 83 outbreaks with 2,761 reported cases of illness.
• Ice Cream: 74 outbreaks with 2,594 reported cases of illness.
• Tomatoes: 31 outbreaks with 3,292 reported cases of illness.
• Sprouts: 31 outbreaks with 2,022 reported cases of illness.
• Berries: 25 outbreaks with 3,397 reported cases of illness.

Who will be recommended to receive the 2009 H1N1 vaccine?

CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has recommended that certain groups of the population receive the 2009 H1N1 vaccine when it first becomes available. These target groups include pregnant women, people who live with or care for children younger than 6 months of age, healthcare and emergency medical services personnel, persons between the ages of 6 months and 24 years old, and people ages of 25 through 64 years of age who are at higher risk for 2009 H1N1 because of chronic health disorders or compromised immune systems.

At long last, the benefit of probiotics for your companion animals is receiving the attention it deserves in the traditional veterinary community.

Probiotic therapy has been scientifically studied and proved beneficial in the treatment of pets with diarrhea, inflammatory bowel disease, chronic renal disease, and pancreatitis.

Just as exciting are studies which indicate probiotics positively influence the development and health of your dog’s or cat’s immune system function.

According to Susan G. Wynn, DVM, of the Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, University of Tennessee:

“... it is increasingly clear that manipulation of the ecology of the gastrointestinal tract has powerful systemic effects. Use of probiotics clearly enhances immune function in a number of species, including dogs and cats, and appears to have a role in the treatment of animals with certain gastrointestinal conditions.”

Dr. Wynn goes on to say the use of probiotics in humans in the treatment of recurrent urinary tract infections, the prevention and management of allergies, and other conditions, suggests further potential benefits for our four-legged companions.

I recommend trying the following lifestyle changes and supplements, which can go a long way toward relieving PMS symptoms: 

• Avoid alcohol and caffeine (including chocolate). Caffeine can worsen PMS symptoms by contributing to breast tenderness, nervous tension and anxiety.

   

• Start eating an anti-inflammatory diet. Especially eliminate polyunsaturated and trans-fats. They promote inflammation that can worsen PMS symptoms.

   

• Get plenty of omega-3s (from wild Alaskan salmon, sardines and other cold water fish, freshly ground flaxseed, and walnuts). They help ease cramps.

   

• Limit your intake of salt, sugar, alcohol and fat throughout the month; they all contribute to the fluid retention and bloating that can occur with PMS.

   

• Get at least 30 minutes a day of aerobic exercise such as walking, bicycling or swimming to improve mood, relieve stress and ease PMS symptoms in general.

   

• Do my breathing exercises daily and practice a relaxation technique such as yoga or meditation. This can help reduce anxiety and improve your sleep.

   

• Take 1,200 mg of calcium daily (you should notice effects on your PMS symptoms after three months). Use calcium citrate and take it with half as much magnesium, starting slowly at 200 mg and leveling off at 600 mg. Magnesium can reduce cramping by relaxing smooth muscle tissue in the uterus.

   

• Take vitamin B6. The amount found in a good multivitamin or B-complex is sufficient.

   

• Try evening primrose oil or black currant oil. These are good sources of gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), a natural anti-inflammatory agent that can help reduce breast tenderness. Take 500 mg of either twice a day. It may take up to three months for effects to become noticeable.

   

• Drink raspberry leaf tea, an effective remedy for menstrual cramps.

   

Dr Mercola reports----

"So if hedging bets, I would bet that optimizing your vitamin D levels will offer far greater advantages and protection than getting a flu shot – whether it’s a seasonal flu vaccine or a swine flu vaccine."

vitamin D deficiency is implicated in most of the diseases of civilization. Vitamin D's final metabolic product targets more than 200 human genes in a wide variety of tissues. One of the most important genes vitamin D up-regulates is for cathelicidin, a naturally occurring broad-spectrum antibiotic.

Since vitamin D deficiency is both endemic and is associated with numerous diseases, it is one of the most important medical problems in modern society. Treatment of vitamin D deficiency in otherwise healthy patients must be individualized due to the numerous factors affecting vitamin D levels. Steps should be taken to keep patients with chronic diseases associated with vitamin D deficiency, especially internal cancers, in the higher normal range of vitamin D blood levels.

Are there other ways to prevent the spread of illness?

Take everyday actions to stay healthy.

• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
• Stay home if you get sick. CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
  

A Consortium of Scientists, Institutions and Individuals Committed to Solving the Worldwide Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic.
www.grassrootshealth.net/ -

A Consortium of Scientists, Institutions and Individuals Committed to Solving the Worldwide Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic.

www.grassrootshealth.net/ -

13 Ways Tumeric Can Help You
Spice Up Your Life (and Your Health*)

Dr Mercola summarizes a few of the ways this 100% certified organic-based Turmeric can spice up your whole person:

• Boosts your antioxidant protection against free radicals*

   

• Helps promote your healthy skin*

   

• Supports your overall eye health*

   

• Provides you immune system support*

   

• Aids your skeletal system and joint health*

   

• Encourages your healthy liver function*

   

• Helps you maintain healthy cells with support against free radicals*

   

• Balances the health of your digestive system*

   

• Aids you in support of healthy blood and your circulatory system*

   

• Helps you maintain normal cholesterol levels to support your cardiovascular system*

   

• Assists your neurological system's healthy response to stress*

   

• Promotes a healthy female reproductive system*

   

• Helps you maintain blood sugar levels already within the normal range*

   

And more...

Millions of people use turmeric on a daily basis in their lives today. In India alone, up to 500 million people use it in one form or another every day.

Isn't it time you gave your body what it deserves?

The number one cause of adult blindness is macular degeneration. Maintain healthy vision with new Visionex. This comprehensive formula is designed to maintain long-term eye health with two of the most powerful free-radical fighting antioxidants: lutein and zeaxanthin.* Because our eyes are constantly exposed to harsh environmental factors such as air pollution, dryness, and oxidative damage from sunlight, the extra health maintenance you'll get from Visionex will go a long way toward maintaining your healthy vision.*

• A unique and comprehensive formulation of ingredients to maintain good eye health*

   

• Guaranteed levels of lutein and zeaxanthin, important antioxidant components of the macula of the eye*

   

• Includes vitamin C, bilberry extract, and zinc for additional support of healthy eyes*

To order go to www.drkarenwolfe.com and click on Recommended Nutritional Supplements OR email me at email@drkarenwolfe.com and I can get a 20% disocunt for you

Important new research has shown that commonly used food dyes, such as Yellow 5, Red 40, and six others, are linked to hyperactivity, impulsivity, learning difficulties, and Attention Deficity Hyperactivity Disorder in many children. The Center for Science in the Public Interest has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to ban the use of these dyes, many of which are already being phased out in Europe.

These dyes—petrochemicals, mostly—are often used to simulate the presence of healthy, colorful fruits and vegetables. But considering the adverse impact of these chemicals on children, and considering how easily they can be replaced with colorings derived

If you’re a heartburn sufferer, the best way to overcome its effect is to learn more about it. You may think that it is just a simple case of indigestion manifested by a burning pain in the chest, often mistaken for a heart attack.

For one, you cannot just let this type of disease go on without proper treatment, because this is a reflux disorder that can lead to complications including cancer. Knowing how to stop heartburn or GERD is also about gathering information on what foods to avoid and what aspects of your lifestyle to correct.

If you know what induces the lower esophageal sphincter or LES, to become inefficient in sealing the entry points of the esophagus, you can prevent the disease from recurring. In fact, the linings of the esophagus can be damaged if this medical problem persists.

You should also have an awareness that heartburn may crop up if one has hiatal hernia, poor eating habits, incorrect sleeping habits, unhealthy lifestyle, is overweight, taking drugs for other medical conditions, or pregnant.

Below are the instances on how these diseases or conditions can lead to heartburn:

1. Hiatal hernia - or hiatus hernia arises when the upper portion of the stomach protrudes to the thorax caused by a tear in the diaphragm. In this case, it will be easier for the acid of the stomach to reflux into the esophagus.

2. Pregnant - GERD in pregnant women usually happens during the later part of pregnancy. Their digestive systems develop difficulty in digesting food intakes. Hence, large meals, citrus fruits, spicy and fatty foods; and any activity after each meal should be avoided while pregnant.

3. Overweight - Obesity can increase the pressure in the abdomen resulting to the upward push of stomach contents including acid into the esophagus.

4. Poor eating habits -  Regularly missing meals causes acid build up in the stomach that can disrupt the digestion processes.

5. Unhealthy lifestyle - Cigarette smoking weakens the LES and drinking alcohol beverages is akin to filling up your stomach with acid.

6. Drugs for other medical conditions - These include drugs for high blood pressure, abnormal menstrual bleeding, sea sickness, asthma, antidepressants, Parkinson's disease, insomnia or heart disease.

7. Incorrect sleeping habits and postures - If you lie down after eating, the tendency is for the stomach contents to press harder on the LES. You should wait for at least 2 hours to pass after eating and before lying down.

Arming yourself with adequate knowledge on how to stop heartburn can help you overcome this disease before it leads to a condition that can overcome you.

FROM

An Extensive New Literature Concerning Low-Dose Effects of Bisphenol A Shows the Need for a New Risk Assessment

Frederick S. vom Saal¹ and Claude Hughes^2,3

¹Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA; ²Department of Medical and Scientific Services, Quintiles, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA; ³Department of Biology, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA

Bisphenol A (BPA) is the monomer used to manufacture polycarbonate plastic, the resin lining of cans, and other products, with global capacity in excess of 6.4 billion lb/year. Because the ester bonds in these BPA-based polymers are subject to hydrolysis, leaching of BPA has led to widespread human exposure. A recent report prepared by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis and funded by the American Plastics Council concluded that evidence for low-dose effects of BPA is weak on the basis of a review of only 19 studies ; the report was issued after a delay of 2.5 years. A current comprehensive review of the literature reveals that the opposite is true. As of December 2004, there were 115 published in vivo studies concerning low-dose effects of BPA, and 94 of these report significant effects. In 31 publications with vertebrate and invertebrate animals, significant effects occurred below the predicted "safe" or reference dose of 50 µg/kg/day BPA. An estrogenic mode of action of BPA is confirmed by in vitro experiments, which describe disruption of cell function at 10^{- 12} M or 0.23 ppt. Nonetheless, chemical manufacturers continue to discount these published findings because no industry-funded studies have reported significant effects of low doses of BPA, although > 90% of government-funded studies have reported significant effects. Some industry-funded studies have ignored the results of positive controls, and many studies reporting no significant effects used a strain of rat that is inappropriate for the study of estrogenic responses. We propose that a new risk assessment for BPA is needed based on a) the extensive new literature reporting adverse effects in animals at doses below the current reference dose ; b) the high rate of leaching of BPA from food and beverage containers, leading to widespread human exposure ; c) reports that the median BPA level in human blood and tissues, including in human fetal blood, is higher than the level that causes adverse effects in mice ; and d) recent epidemiologic evidence that BPA is related to disease in women. Key words: bisphenol A, dose response, endocrine disruptors, low dose, nonmonotonic, risk assessment scientific integrity. Environ Health Perspect 113:926-933 (2005) . doi:10.1289/ehp.7713 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 13 April 2005]

What do you think?

Each battery caged hen used in the egg industry has cage space equivalent to:

A. Less than a sheet of letter-sized (copy) paper.
B. A single sheet of copy paper.
C. Two sheets of copy paper.
D. Four sheets of copy paper.

ANSWER

Answer: A

More than 90% of egg-laying hens in the United States are confined in barren "battery cages." Inside the wire enclosure, each hen has less space than the equivalent of a single sheet of letter-sized (copy) paper. An 8.5- by 11-inch piece of paper has an area of 93.5 square inches. On average, a caged laying hen in the United States has less than 70 square inches of cage space.

Research has shown that hens need an average of 72 square inches just to stand freely, 178 square inches to preen, 197 square inches to turn around, and 291 square inches to flap their wings. Inside these cages, the birds are unable to perform these important natural behaviors. Egg-laying hens are the most intensively confined animal in agribusiness.

FROM www.hsus.org (Humane Society of US)

High calorie, sugar laden processed foods coupled with our sedentary lifestyles is growing our waistlines and contributing to serious health issues like diabetes, heart ailments and cancers. One-third of children and adolescents are overweight or obese. Tell Congress that kids should be served healthy meals, not soda and junk food.

Did you know that the average food product travels about 1,500 miles to get to your grocery store? And that transporting food accounts for 30,800 tons of greenhouse gas emissions every year?

Sustainable foods can be found in your community by purchasing organic and/or locally grown produce and products. It's easy to find farmers markets, Community Supported Agriculture programs, restaurants and more with the user-friendly Eat Well Guide. Simply type in your zip code to find out what's in season near you.

See the eye-opening documentary FOOD, INC.

The genetic engineering of plants and animals is looming as one of the greatest and most intractable environmental challenges of the 21st Century. Already, this novel technology has invaded our grocery stores and our kitchen pantries by fundamentally altering some of our most important staple food crops.

By being able to take the genetic material from one organism and insert it into the permanent genetic code of another, biotechnologists have engineered numerous novel creations, such as potatoes with bacteria genes, "super" pigs with human growth genes, fish with cattle growth genes, tomatoes with flounder genes, and thousands of other plants, animals and insects. At an alarming rate, these creations are now being patented and released into the environment.

Currently, up to 45 percent of U.S. corn is genetically engineered as is 85 percent of soybeans. It has been estimated that 70-75 percent of processed foods on supermarket shelves--from soda to soup, crackers to condiments--contain genetically engineered ingredients.

A number of studies over the past decade have revealed that genetically engineered foods can pose serious risks to humans, domesticated animals, wildlife and the environment. Human health effects can include higher risks of toxicity, allergenicity, antibiotic resistance, immune-suppression and cancer. As for environmental impacts, the use of genetic engineering in agriculture could lead to uncontrolled biological pollution, threatening numerous microbial, plant and animal species with extinction, and the potential contamination of non-genetically engineered life forms with novel and possibly hazardous genetic material.

Despite these long-term and wide-ranging risks, Congress has yet to pass a single law intended to manage them responsibly. This despite the fact that our regulatory agencies have failed to adequately address the human health or environmental impacts of genetic engineering. On the federal level, eight agencies attempt to regulate biotechnology using 12 different statutes or laws that were written long before genetically engineered food, animals and insects became a reality. The result has been a regulatory tangle, where any regulation even exists, as existing laws are grossly manipulated to manage threats they were never intended to regulate. Among many bizarre examples of these regulatory anomalies is the current attempt by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate genetically engineered fish as "new animal drugs."

The haphazard and negligent agency regulation of biotechnology has had serious consequences for consumers and the environment. Unsuspecting consumers by the tens of millions are being allowed to purchase and consume unlabeled genetically engineered foods, despite a finding by FDA scientists that these foods could pose serious risks. And new genetically engineered crops are being approved by federal agencies despite admissions that they will contaminate native and conventional plants and pose other significant new environmental threats. In short, there has been a complete abdication of any responsible legislative or regulatory oversight of genetically engineered foods. Clearly, now is a critical time to challenge the government's negligence in managing the human health and environmental threats from biotechnology

Approximately 1 billion people worldwide do not have secure access to food, including 36 million in the US. National and international food and agricultural policies have helped to create the global food crisis but can also help to fix the system.

If everyone converted 10% of their diet to organic, we could capture an additional 6.5 billion pounds of carbon in soil - the equivalent of taking 2 million cars off the road each year!  Reducing global warming begins with the food we eat.

FROM www.coolfoodscampaign.org

The Cool Foods Campaign

- educates the public about how food choices can affect global warming and empowers them with the resources to reduce this impact. Join our “Cool Foods” Campaign and help take a bite out of global warming by changing the way you eat.

More than twenty states and localities are considering policies that would require fast-food and other chain restaurants to provide calories and other nutrition information on menus and menu boards—four have already passed policies.  

For help implementing a menu labeling policy in your area or for more information, contact us at: nutritionpolicy@cspinet.org.

According to a new survey of almost 3,000 adults by the Pew Research Center, the average age considered “old” by respondents was 68. There were real differences in perception driven by the respondents’ own age

More than half of those under 30 say the average person becomes old before 60

Middle-aged respondents say it is closer to 70

Those age 65 and older say “old” is not until 75

KAREN’s KITCHEN EPISODE – The Ten Conscious Body Eating Habits

One of the questions I get asked is WHAT DO YOU EAT??

Today we are going into my very own kitchen and learning how I apply The Ten Conscious Body Eating habits. So come on in and let’s get started

The Conscious Body Eating habits focus on what you CAN do rather than what you must AVOID OR ELIMINATE

1. Reach for COMPLEX CARBOHYDRATES..NOT CANDY - I LOVE to snack…These satisfy your hunger more quickly and are not highly caloric. Here are some of my favorite complex carbs – easy-to-eat vegetables

    

Ø  Jicama

Ø  Eggplant

Ø  Carrots

Ø  Plain air popped popcorn

Ø  Edamame

Ø  Bell Peppers

Ø  Fruit

2. Be Prepared with  healthful Snacks – SNACKS for trips, in handbag, drinks to avoid dehydration

    

3. Load up on fruits and vegetables – have your fridge STOCKED

    

4. Buy organic

    

5. SAVOR SALADS – lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, SALAD CONFETTI, Bean Sprouts, Bell Peppers, Coleslaw Mix, Cilantro, Banana Peppers, Grated Carrot, Edamame DRESSING – Balsamic V, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Freshly Crushed Garlic

    

6. Focus on Fiber – 25 grams  day

    

7. Drink WATER – brain is 75% water by weight

    

8. PAUSE before eating

    

9. Good elimination

    

10. Minimize Animal Products -

     

Karen's Kitchen Episode 

How fun it was to create a kitchen episode. I talked about The Conscious Body Eating Habits

1. Reach for complex Carbs

2. Stock your refrigerator

3. Buy organic

4. Load up on fiber

5. Drink water

6. Exercise

...and more!!

Tip #4  Keep Your Skin Beautiful

Exercise benefits every part of your body -- including your largest organ, the skin.  Working out improves circulation, flushing  toxins from your skin.  Better blood flow also brings more oxygen and nutrients and may help your skin produce collagen, which staves off wrinkles.  Don’t fret about sweat -- exercise may actually help unclog pores.  Wash your face right after a workout and avoid tight headbands, which can trap sweat and irritate skin.  You can blend a bit of Rice bran with your Gentle Daily Cleanser to feel clean and refreshed after working out.

Consider the book the 4 agreements as THE CODE OF CONDUCT for your work with your buddy in The Friendship Solution

1. Be impeccable with your word
2. Make no assumptions
3. Always do your best
4. Don’t take things personally

USANA Sensé Skin Care                                  

SENSE IS

How-to steps for maximum benefit

Step 1: Gentle Daily Cleanser

A mild, soap-free cleanser, with aloe and green-tea extract

Apply with a little water, massage into skin on face and neck, rinse clean

Step 2: Hydrating Toner

Removes lingering impurities, restores skin’s PH, and refines and brightens skin’s appearance

Apply to face and neck with fingers or cotton pad

Step 3: Perfecting Essence (daytime) or Serum Intensive (night)

Perfecting Essence

Ideal for sensitive skin; reduces uneven skin tone; contains Dermal Surface Renewal technology

Serum Intensive

Alpha and beta-hydroxy acids reduce fine lines and wrinkles; unclogs pores; contains Dermal Surface Renewal technology

Recommended for skin with acne; use over entire face, or spot treat acne

Step 4: Eye Nourisher

Contains Regenisomes; Dermal Surface Renewal technology; shea butter and Irish moss to moisturize

Apply very small amount with pads of ring fingers; lightly dot on skin under eyebrows and under eyes; avoid rubbing delicate eye skin

Step 5: Daytime Protective Emulsion or Night Renewal

Daytime Protective  Emulsion

Regenisomes are activated by sunlight to repair sun damage; aloe moistens the skin; plankton guards against drying effect of sun; contains SPF 15 sunscreen

Night Renewal

Dermal Surface Renewal technology; whole Grape and green-tea extracts undo daily stress; Vitamins A and E

Rice Bran Polisher

Use 2-3 times per week following cleanser

Exfoliates dead skin cells; papaya enzymes and beta-hydroxy acids break down dead cells; rice bran beadlets provide gentle scrub

      Recommended for skin with acne

Kukui nut oil moisturizes; aloe restores PH

Nutritious Creme Masque

Leaves skin feeling wonderfully soothed, softened, and restored

Rich in vitamins, minerals, and plant extracts to detoxify pores and intensely nourish the complexion

The Conscious Body Series is based on the fact that every part of your life affects your body, It is a practical guide to Create the Body Your Soul Desires and bring you back  to BALANCE by being in FULL RELATIONSHIP with your body, mind and spirit

KEY FEATURES

—  Blends  Science and nutrition and psychology

—  Explores ALL life areas form exercise to nutrition to relationships and SLEEP

—  Practical down-to-earth practices

—  How to team up with a friend

Exciting time this week as I had a film crew in to shoot 14 episodes of a WEBTV series.

Ok, as if we didn't already know how bad regular soda was for us, and now they're showing us studies that diet soda makes us even fatter than the already bad stuff!

There's a lot of complicating factors as to why this occurs...

One reason is that the artificial sweeteners in diet sodas create a negative hormonal response in the body that increases fat storing hormone production and increases cravings for more sweets and refined carbohydrates in the time period after consuming the diet drink.

Another reason is that people may subconsciously think that because they are drinking a diet soda, that gives them more leeway to eat more of everything else, hence consuming more calories overall.

I've said this all along, but the bottom line is that if you're serious about your health and body, soda of any kind (and artificial sweeteners in anything for that matter!) should be avoided at all times, except for very rare occasions when you can't avoid them.

So what is a good alternative to diet sodas?

The best alternatives are good old water with lemon or unsweetened iced teas... you have plenty of options with teas - green, white, black, oolong, red... be creative in making your iced teas and you'll enjoy it more. Plus, you get a greater array of anti-aging antioxidants.

Caffeine can increase irritability a couple of ways.

• If the caffeine you consume later in the day disrupts your nighttime sleeping, you are likely to be cranky and exhausted until you get a good night’s rest.
• Caffeine can also bring on a burst or two of energy, often ending with a spiral into fatigue.

Some people are more sensitive than others to the troublesome effects of caffeine. If you are sensitive to caffeine, decrease the amount of coffee, tea, and sodas you drink to see if this helps uplift your mood and energy level, particularly in the latter part of the day.

Several recent studies have suggested that men and women have a lower risk of having symptoms of depression if they eat a lot of fish, particularly fatty fish like salmon, which is high in omega-3 fatty acids.

Omega-3s from fish seem to have positive effects on clinically defined mood swings such as postpartum depression, says Jay Whelan, PhD, head of the department of nutrition at the University of Tennessee.

Good sources of omega-3 fatty acids include:

• Herring
• Rainbow trout
• Salmon
• Sardines
• Tuna

Selenium is a mineral that acts like an antioxidant in the body. What do antioxidants have to do with feeling better and minimizing bad moods? Research suggests that the presence of oxidative stress in the brain is associated with some cases of mild to moderate depression in the elderly population. 

One study evaluated the depression scores of elderly people whose daily diet was either supplemented with 200 micrograms of selenium a day or a placebo. Although more research is needed to confirm the findings, the group taking selenium had higher amounts of selenium circulating in their blood and significant decreases in their depression symptoms.

Try to get at least the recommended daily allowance for selenium: 55 micrograms a day for men and women.

Whole grains are an excellent source of selenium. By eating several servings a day of whole grains such as oatmeal, whole-grain bread, and brown rice, you can easily get 70 micrograms of selenium. Other foods rich in selenium include:

• Beans and legumes
• Lean meat (lean pork or beef, skinless chicken or turkey)
• Low-fat dairy foods
• Nuts and seeds (especially Brazil nuts)
• Seafood (oysters, clams, crab, sardines, and fish)

Four recent studies showed an association between low serum levels of vitamin D and higher incidences of four mood disorders: PMS, seasonal affective disorder, nonspecified mood disorder, and major depressive disorder.

Researcher Pamela K. Murphy, PhD, at the Medical University of South Carolina says people can help manage their moods by getting at least 1,000 to 2,000 IU of vitamin D a day.

That’s significantly more than the RDA for vitamin D, which is 200 IU for adults under 50, 400 IU for ages 51 to 70, and 600 IU for people over 70.

Very few foods naturally contain vitamin D. So she recommends we get vitamin D from a variety of sources: short periods of sun exposure, vitamin D supplements, and foods.

Vitamin D can be found in:

• Fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel
• Beef liver
• Cheese
• Egg yolks

But our primary source of dietary vitamin D is fortified foods, such as breakfast cereals, breads, juices, and milk.

These Swiss investigators reviewed 97 randomized, controlled clinical trials, which involved over 275,000 subjects. They looked at comparing the reduction in cardiovascular deaths between individuals who were taking the lipid lowering drugs called statins, those who consumed higher doses of omega-3 fatty acids, and a controlled group or placebo group. The statin group reduced cardiovascular deaths by 22%, while the omega-3 fatty acid group decreased cardiovascular disease by 32%. Statin drugs reduced overall mortality by 13%; however, the omega-3 fatty acid group reduced overall mortality by 23%. These were significant findings and brought up the fact that supplementing your diet with high-quality omega-3 fatty acids from pharmaceutical-grade filtered fish oil was more effective than the expensive statin drugs when it came to cardiovascular death and overall mortality.

      Now statin drugs have been shown to decrease inflammation and part of their clinical effectiveness is due to this aspect of these drugs. So researchers are not sure if it is the lowering of cholesterol or the anti-inflammatory aspect of these drugs that provide their health benefits.  However, omega-3 fats are the building blocks of the body’s natural anti-inflammatories. In fact, supplemental intake of the omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA found in filtered fish oil has been shown to significantly decrease inflammation throughout the body, including our arteries. They also do not have the adverse side effects that the statin drugs have. 

Studer M, Briel M, et al. “Effect of different antilipidemic agents and diet on mortality: a systematic review.” Archives of Internal Medicine, 2005 April 11;165(7):725-30

Dr. Tsimikas and associates reported this study in the New England Journal of Medicine regarding the relationship of oxidation of phospholipids and LDL cholesterol to the development of coronary artery disease. When there are excessive free radicals, for whatever reason, they can easily oxidize or modify LDL cholesterol and phospholipids, primarily Lp(a) lipoprotein. These oxidized lipids have been found to significantly increase inflammation in our arteries and lead to accelerated atherosclerosis or hardening of our arteries. Individuals who had high levels of these oxidized lipids had a significantly greater risk of coronary artery disease. They concluded that the proinflamatory quality of the oxidized LDL cholesterol may be the unifying link between lipid accumulation and inflammation in the vessel wall. Therefore, LDL cholesterol is not the “bad” cholesterol, but instead the oxidized LDL cholesterol.

            This study again is pointing out that coronary artery disease is not a disease of cholesterol, but instead, is an inflammatory disease of the arteries. Native or unchanged LDL cholesterol and phospholipids are not the problem. The trouble begins when these highly sensitive lipids are exposed to excessive free radicals, which can easily and quickly oxidize them. These oxidized lipids now create a low-grade inflammatory response in the fine, single layer of our arteries. It is this inflammatory response that causes the damage to our arteries and leads to hardening of our arteries, which can eventual cause a heart attack.

Tsimikas, S., Brilakis, E. S. et al. “Oxidized Phopholipids, Lp (a) Lipoprotein, and Coronary Artery Disease” New England Journal of Medicine, 353:46-57

What’s special about chili made with kidney beans and lean beef? Or a light chicken Caesar salad made with skinless chicken breast and romaine lettuce? Or grilled salmon with a side of broccoli?

All these dishes feature one food that is rich in folic acid (folate) and another that is rich in vitamin B12. These two vitamins appear to help prevent disorders of the central nervous system, mood disorders, and dementias, says Edward Reynolds, MD, at the Institute of Epileptology, King’s College, London.

The link between higher food intakes of folate and a lower prevalence of depressive symptoms crosses cultures, too. A recent study confirmed this association in Japanese men. 

Folic acid is usually found in beans and greens. Vitamin B12 is found in meats, fish, poultry, and dairy.

Other dishes that feature B-12 and folic acid-rich foods include:

• A burrito or enchilada made with black beans plus beef, chicken, or pork
• A spinach salad topped with crab or salmon
• An egg white or egg substitute omelet filled with sauteed spinach and reduced-fat cheese

The medical literature has shown us that a homocysteine level below 6.5 micromols/L is a safe level. As the homocysteine level rises above this level the risk of cardiovascular disease will increase. The higher these levels the greater your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Most labs report a normal homocysteine should be in the range of 5 to 12 or even 15 micromols/L.   If your homocysteine level is above 12 micromols/L, you are in serious trouble. There are now even studies that show that individuals with elevated homocysteine levels are also at greater risk of developing several different kinds of cancers and even Alzheimer’s dementia.

So instead of swearing off fish, it’s important to know how to choose the best fish for your health:

1. Freshwater fish – freshwater fish comes from rivers and streams. These are the fish most likely to be contaminated by pharmaceuticals. Some examples of freshwater fish are: carp, talapia, whitefish, walleye pike, trout and catfish.

    

2. Farmed fish - Farmed fish can have a range of problems. Because they don't have much room to swim and are prone to disease, antibiotics are used, as well as commercial dyes for a healthy color. Even the feed they are given may have toxins that are passed on to the consumer.
3. Warm water fish - Warm-water fish (such as Orange Roughy) are more likely to be sprayed with preservatives than cold-water fish. Polyphosphates, sulfites, sodium benzoate and polytrisorbate control mold, yeast and bacteria, but we do not know the long-term effects of consuming them. So best to avoid preservatives all together!

    

4. Wild-caught coldwater fish – Best

Here are six examples of wild-caught, eco-friendly fish found in cold water

• Anchovies

   

• Wild Alaskan salmon

   

• Pacific sardines

   

• Pacific longline cod

   

• Pacific halibut

   

• U.S Atlantic yellowfin tuna (ahi tuna)

   

1. Know Your Numbers. Vitamin D is a hot topic of research right now. There is an ongoing debate about how much vitamin D is required to build those healthy bones in our children. Last fall, the American Academy of Pediatrics doubled its recommended daily dosage of vitamin D to 400 IU per day for children from infancy to adolescence.3
   
2. Optimize Sun Exposure. It’s not called the sunshine vitamin for nothing. Your body is designed to create vitamin D from sunlight. Exposing your face, legs or back to the sun for up to 30 minutes, two or three times a week, will usually allow your body to produce all the Vitamin D that you need.
   
   Some caveats: The further you are from the equator, the weaker the sunlight and the more exposure is required. Also, darker skinned family members will absorb sunlight at a slower rate and therefore need additional exposure time.
   
   
3. Be Smart in the Sun. Your body will not absorb the healing benefits of sunlight through a layer of sunscreen, so you need to go “au naturel.” Healthy sun exposure means that if you are planning to generate your daily dose of vitamin D on a family ski outing, you monitor your exposure time carefully. Apply sunscreen before the glare off the snow gives your beautiful child an unhealthy sunburn.
   
   
   
   
4. Have Fun in the Sun. If you live in a cold climate, getting healthy sun exposure can feel more like torture. That cold, bitter wind cuts right through my four layers of fleece and long underwear and freezes everything it finds.
   
   Why not create your own “après ski” space right in your own backyard? Find a spot that is protected from the wind, but exposed to the sun. Put out a couple Adirondack chairs and throw a log in the fire-pit. Blast some party music through your outdoor speakers. Circle the troops and turn your faces into the sun.  
   
   5. Supplement with Vitamin D from Healthy Fish Sources. Do your children eat fish? Introduce them to the delicious, healthy benefits of salmon. Vital Choice Wild Seafood & Organics  offers the real deal: Pure, sustainable, Wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon . Yum.
   

How to Feed Your Body to Nourish Your Brain

Since diet plays such an essential role in keeping your brain happy and healthy, here are some easy ways to boost your brain power, naturally!

• Eat cruciferous vegetables like cabbages, broccoli, kale and collard greens. In one study, two or more servings of these vegetables daily was linked to improved mental functioning. These veggies can be easily fermented into cultured veggies to make them even more digestible and nutritious. Learn the best way to eat these vegetables and read Why You Need to Cook These Vegetables for Maximum Nutrition.
• Try grain-like seeds (buckwheat, quinoa, amaranth and millet). These high protein seeds have all the benefits of grains yet are gluten-free and very high in protein. They help your body make serotonin, the neurotransmitter that helps you feel happy. Serotonin converts to melatonin at night helping you have a better night's sleep. This is one of the reasons we suggest you eat these grain-like seeds as part of your evening meal. You can get all of these grains conveniently online at the Gluten-Free Mall.
• Include organic, unrefined fats from fish, seeds and nuts. Wild Alaskan salmon & other healthy fish are top sources. Fish oil, cod liver oil and walnut oils are also good sources of omega- 3 fatty acids. Both raw and roasted pumpkin seed oil have zinc, vitamin E and niacin. These along with extra virgin olive oil, organic gluten-free extra virgin coconut oil, red palm oil, evening primrose, borage and flaxseed oil make up a wide variety of excellent oils that are a part of Health and Healing.
• Saturated fats like raw butter and ghee are a must as well. Of all the fats, raw butter most closely duplicates the saturated fat found in breast milk. Please remember that breast milk is rich in raw saturated fat because it is essential for the baby's developing brain. Pregnant women should eat raw butter and ghee before and during their pregnancy to ensure that their baby's brain is well developed before birth but also after birth as well. Woman who cannot nurse or who are concerned that their breast milk lacks adequate amounts of this vital fat should put tiny spoonfuls of raw butter and ghee into their baby's mouth several times a day. This has been a common practice in India for thousands of years and babies love the taste. Be sure to read, Baby Formula: The Key Health Risks to Baby that Every Mother & Someday-Mother-to-Be Needs to Know.
  
  Sadly, when America turned to margarine and processed fats and started to believe that butter was bad for us, we stopped feeding our brains the saturated fat it needs to help prevent Alzheimer's, ADD and even autism. Many of us will remember the margarine commercial on television where a woman dressed as an angry Mother Nature warned us: "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature." Decades later we can see that she was right. Today, we are paying a heavy penalty for trying to do so.
  
  If a goal in your life is to become healthy and happy, now more than ever it is essential to avoid processed fats like canola oil and vegetable oil. They have been bleached, deodorized and refined. Basically they are a poison and are especially damaging for your liver. For more information,read Why The Processing of Consumable Oils Has Devastated America's Health.
• Eat lightly cooked egg yolks. Egg yolks contain choline, a member of the vitamin B family that can "supercharge" brain cells in developing babies, and is part of a key memory neurotransmitter.
• Add ocean vegetables to your diet. Sea vegetables not only have omega-3 fatty acids but also contain all 52 minerals your body needs to function. Even better, they have a higher concentration of vitamins than any other food! Experiment with adding ocean vegetables like nori, kelp, hijiki and wakame to your diet
• Cleanse your liver. Your liver makes the amino acids necessary for your brain to function. Nourish your liver with foods and supplements that support its function. The liver likes green foods .

Insulin doesn‘t just store carbohydrates. It is also an anabolic hormone.. Body builders are injecting themselves with insulin because it builds muscle and stores protein.

Stores Magnesium

A less known fact is that insulin also stores magnesium. But if your cells become resistant to insulin, you can‘t store magnesium so you lose it through urination.

Intracellular magnesium relaxes muscles. What happens when you can‘t store magnesium because the cell is resistant? You lose magnesium and your blood vessels constrict.

This causes an increase in blood pressure and a reduction in energy since intracellular magnesium is required for all energy producing reactions that take place in the cell.

But most importantly, magnesium is also necessary for the action of insulin and the manufacture of insulin. When you raise your insulin, you lose magnesium, and the cells become even more insulin resistant. Blood vessels constrict and glucose and insulin can‘t get to the tissues, which makes them more insulin resistant, so the insulin levels go up and you lose more magnesium. This is the vicious cycle that begins even before you were born.

Insulin sensitivity starts to be determined the moment the sperm combines with the egg. If a pregnant woman eats a high-carbohydrate diet, which turns into sugar, animal studies have shown that the fetus will become more insulin resistant.

Sodium Retention: Congestive Heart Failure

We mentioned high blood pressure; if your magnesium levels go down or your blood vessels constrict you get high blood pressure. Insulin also causes the retention of sodium, which causes the retention of fluid, which causes high blood pressure and fluid retention: congestive heart failure.

One of the strongest stimulants of the sympathetic nervous system is a high level of insulin. What does all of this do to the heart? Not very good things.

There was a solid study done a couple of years ago that showed that heart attacks are two to three times more likely to happen after a high-carbohydrate meal and are specifically NOT likely after a high-fat meal.

Why is that?

Because the immediate effects of raising your blood sugar from a high-carbohydrate meal is a raise in insulin. This immediately triggers the sympathetic nervous system, which will cause arterial spasm, or constriction of the arteries. If you anyone is prone to a heart attack, this is when they are going to get it.

Blood Lipids

 Insulin mediates blood lipids.  

Most people think that psychological problems like depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia are "all in our heads" and that diet and lifestyle have nothing to do with it.

With conditions like autism, dyslexia, ADD, ADHD and dyspraxia on the rise, mainstream medicine is expecting to find the origin of these disorders in our genes

Gut and Psychology Syndrome provides information that is easily understood by the beginner and thorough enough for the advanced. It shines the light on why all diseases begin in the gut, how to rebuild your gut flora (beneficial bacteria that helps boost your immunity) and establishes a roadmap for recovery.

Suggestions for diet, detoxification and supplementation are provided, along with recipes so you can begin nourishing yourself and your family to health.

A recent study conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) found that “ a ban on fast food ads during children's programming would reduce the number of overweight children aged three-to-11 by 18 percent, and lower the number of overweight adolescents aged 12-18 by 14 percent.”

The researchers suggest that a ban be placed on the tax deductibility of fast food advertising.

Global food manufacturers are trying to solve the obesity problem with specific ingredients aimed at reducing appetite and parents are raising questions about vending machines in school. Still other measures are being taken to get kids away from TV sets and computer games so that they can add more exercise into their daily routine.

What’s interesting is that we keep looking for modern solutions, when perhaps it’s our modern times that got us here in the first place.

If we looked at life before and after processed foods, we’d see a very different picture of health. Is it possible that since the 1950’s, what we have really been experiencing is an epidemic of malnutrition?

Constipation, digestive distress, and mucous in your stools are just a few signs that your colon might not be completely healthy, and a healthy colon is absolutely necessary for a healthy body.

After all, good health begins in your gut.

But more than 70 million Americans struggle with digestive problems, and many people are not even aware that their colons could be the culprit.¹

If you want to confirm that your colon is indeed truly healthy, read through our checklist below.

Some indicators of a healthy colon:

• Clear skin without blemishes

   

• Daily elimination

   

• Mild-smelling breath

   

• No mucous, partially digested food, or blood in your stools

   

• Elimination time between 18 and 24 hours

   

• A big bowel movement in the morning

   

• A smaller bowel movement later in the day

   

• Stools expelled effortlessly

   

• Soft, well formed stools, often in a long tube shape

   

The Elimination Test

Besides checking for the physical signs of a healthy colon every time you eliminate, you can monitor your elimination time (how long it takes food to be digested and excreted) to evaluate your colon health.

The easiest way to test your elimination time is to prepare beets. Their red pigment is so strong that it colors your stools, and you will know how long your body took to process them.

1. Prepare fresh beets (I prefer fermenting them, since unfermented beets are too sweet and can feed candida) to eat. Make sure you eat the whole vegetable and not just the juice because it travels through your system very quickly.

    

2. When you eat the beets, make note of the time and day.

    

3. Look at your stools until you notice the red pigment from the beets. Ideally this will be 18 to 24 hours after you first ate them.

    

Here are some of th\e symptoms of sugar hangover¹:

• Fuzzy thinking or foggy mind

   

• Fatigue or sleepiness after meals

   

• Gas, bloating or extended stomach after meals

   

• Headache

   

• Joint pain

   

• Constipation

   

• Diarrhea

   

• Skin problems

   

• Allergy symptoms

   

• Emotional - Mood swings like emotional highs and then lows (anger, sadness, lack of will power, depression, etc.)

   

Many of them are actually similar to how you might feel after too much alcohol. And there’s a reason for that...

Too much alcohol, just like too much sugar, affects your kidneys, liver, stomach and small intestines, which explains some of what is happening in your body. Dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, gastrointestinal disturbances and disruption of sleep are some of the results.

And if you are aware of the symptoms of candida, they too carry a similarity.

Candida floods your body with a toxic by-product called acetaldehyde. Acetaldehyde produces similar symptoms to an alcohol hangover.

This serious toxin is poisonous to your tissues, is not easily eliminated and accumulates in your brain, spinal cord and muscles. Keeping in mind that your heart and intestines are muscles, you may now understand why you have symptoms of brain fog, muscle weakness and even pain.

Unfortunately, the typical foods and drinks (processed foods) on the market have so much hidden sugar, that the average American is (often unknowingly) consuming approximately ½ cup of sugar per day.

And that’s simply too much for the human body to digest effectively.

Here’s what happens in your body after you eat too much sugar or processed foods²:

• Refined sugars enter your bloodstream.

   

• Blood sugar levels rise.

   

• Your pancreas is pressured to release insulin (a hormone that helps sugars get into your cells).

   

• The insulin helps to use up the sugar rapidly, so blood sugar crashes.

   

• Your body goes into a sugar low or hypoglycemia.

   

• More hormones are released to deal with the sugar low and return your body to a balanced state. This actually causes a stress response in your body.

   

• These hormones squeeze sugar from your liver, sending blood sugar back up.

   

Too much sugar causes your body to go on a roller coaster ride of ups and downs…and your moods often follow.

So what happens if you’re an occasional sugar eater? Even a little refined sugar and processed foods can send you on a roller coaster ride. Also, sugar is often combined with grains or protein in processed foods and desserts. This creates a slimy substance that coats your intestinal walls. Remember this if you are tempted to eat these so-called “protein” bars!

Sugar doesn’t really combine well with anything...not even vegetables. However, the food combining rules do say sugar can be eaten alone on an empty stomach. An example of this would be honey in hot tea in the morning when your stomach is empty.

Here are some solutions from BODY ECOLOGY  that allow you to indulge in your sweet tooth and still create good health:

1. Give up the so-called “natural” sweeteners too. While you may think natural sugars like honey, agave, brown rice syrup, barley malt and molasses are better than sugar, we recommend you avoid these too. They are still too sweet and contribute to onging acidosis of your body and they feed candida.

2.  Don’t Discount Your Emotions (Will Power?). Your cells have a memory for what you last ate, which means you crave more because it’s what your body remembers. If you stop eating sugar for 4 – 5 days, your body stops asking for it.

But how do we make it through the 4 – 5 days? Often it feels like we don’t have the willpower. You may feel pulled toward sweet foods...like you have no willpower. This also sets up a roller coaster of guilt and bad feelings.

Processed foods are linked to obesity. Additives in processed foods, like high fructose corn syrup, sugar and MSG have been linked to weight gain and obesity.2 Dr. Mercola recently reported about a new study that showed childhood obesity could be reduced by 18 percent, simply by cutting out fast food advertisements during children’s programming.3 The Australian government is clearly more concerned about their children’s health as television advertisements to children were banned several years ago.

Processed foods often contain ingredients that do not follow the principle of food combining, which can lead to low energy, poor digestion, illness, acidic blood and weight gain. An example would be a frozen meat and cheese pizza. Cheese (a dairy product), meat (an animal protein) and pizza crust (a grain product) make a terrible food combination that can wreak havoc on your digestive health.

Processed foods contribute to an imbalanced inner ecosystem, which can lead to digestive problems, cravings, illness and disease. Beneficial microflora cannot survive in your digestive tract when you are poisoning them. Like us they thrive on foods that are made by nature not by man.

Processed foods often go hand in hand with “eating on the run” or multitasking. Most people will choose convenience if they are on the run and in today’s busy lives, who of us isn’t? Unfortunately, multitasking while eating causes people to lose touch with their natural appetite, often leading to weight gain. Additionally, multitasking sends the wrong signals to your digestive system, which needs to be in a restful mode to digest properly.

Diets high in processed meats (like hot dogs and deli meats) have been linked to various forms of cancer, such as pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer and stomach cancer.

Certain foods set you up physically for an increase in appetite and cravings. Examples are:

• Sugar

   

• High fructose corn syrup

   

• MSG (monosodium glutamate)

   

• Aspartame

   

• Refined mineral-depleted salt

   

• Milk (particularly pasteurized, unfermented milk)

   

• Processed foods (like bread, chips, candy, cookies anddonuts)

   

• Wheat or gluten

   

If you're concerned about reducing the amount of dangerous chemicals and toxins you expose your body to, you need to know about typical body soaps.

Eliminating processed foods, choosing organically grown, pesticide-free produce, and seeking out hormone-free meats from pasture fed animals is a wonderful start - but it's not enough!

TIP # 1

Eat whole, healing foods that boost your immunity and detoxify your body. In this way, diet alone can go a long way to keeping you protected from toxins you encounter in the environment.

Choose your produce wisely! Locally grown, organic and fruits and vegetables in season are the best way to ensure you're not consuming dangerous pesticides and chemicals.

Choose the right meats, poultry and fish! Look for organic, pasture-fed antibiotic and hormone free organic sources of meat and poultry. Fish should be wild, not farm raised.

Eliminate processed foods. Foods that are processed and packaged in boxes, bags or cans often contain preservatives and artificial flavorings that encourage you to eat more AND have toxic effects in your body.

If you choose prepared foods, read the ingredients or nutrition labels to be sure you are getting the highest quality foods.

While it's impossible to avoid all of the toxins that come with modern life, you have the power to create balanced health!

First, let's take a brief look at where many of these toxins are coming from:

• Air

   

• Water

   

• Food

   

• Drugs and tobacco

   

• Household and personal care products

   

• Stress and negative emotions

   

1. Choose low glycemic foods when planning meals and eating snacks.

    

2. Get plenty of fiber with your meals to help keep blood sugar stable

    

3. Drink plenty of water, and avoid sodas and sugary juice drinks

    

4. Make sure you get plenty of protein with every meal

    

5. Take a good quality vitamin and mineral supplement

    

6. Get at least 15-20 minutes of vigorous exercise every day

    

7. Check out "The Sugar Addict's Total Recovery Program," by Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D

    

"While we think of sugar as a food, it is actually a drug.- an external substance acting through the brain and body. If sugar were to be put on the market for the first time today, it would probably be difficult to get it past the FDA."

Candace B. Pert, Ph.D.

Author if The Molecules of Emotion

Research Professor

Over consumption of sugar is unhealthy, especially in the long term. Carbohydrate addiction poses the same risks. Here are some of the problems associated with it.

• Obesity

   

• Diabetes

   

• Metabolic syndrome

   

• Candida - (yeast infection)

   

• Weakening of the immune system

   

• Can block absorption of certain vitamins and minerals

   

• Can promote tooth decay and periodontal disease

   

• Can increase inflammation

   

• Can increase triglycerides and cholesterol levels

   

• May predispose individuals to other more serious addictions
• Can accelerate the aging process

Methanol (aka wood alcohol/poison) (10 percent of aspartame)

Methanol/wood alcohol is a poison. Some people may remember methanol as the poison that has caused some "skid row" alcoholics to end up blind or dead. Methanol is gradually released in the small intestine when the methyl group of aspartame encounter the enzyme chymotrypsin.

The absorption of methanol into the body is sped up considerably when free methanol is ingested. Free methanol is created from aspartame when it is heated to above 86 Fahrenheit (30 Centigrade). This would occur when aspartame-containing product is improperly stored or when it is heated (e.g., as part of a "food" product such as Jello).

Methanol breaks down into formic acid and formaldehyde in the body. Formaldehyde is a deadly neurotoxin. An EPA assessment of methanol states that methanol "is considered a cumulative poison due to the low rate of excretion once it is absorbed. In the body, methanol is oxidized to formaldehyde and formic acid; both of these metabolites are toxic." They recommend a limit of consumption of 7.8 mg/day. A one-liter (approx. 1 quart) aspartame-sweetened beverage contains about 56 mg of methanol. Heavy users of aspartame-containing products consume as much as 250 mg of methanol daily or 32 times the EPA limit.(9)

Symptoms from methanol poisoning include headaches, ear buzzing, dizziness, nausea, gastrointestinal disturbances, weakness, vertigo, chills, memory lapses, numbness and shooting pains in the extremities, behavioral disturbances, and neuritis. The most well known problems from methanol poisoning are vision problems including misty vision, progressive contraction of visual fields, blurring of vision, obscuration of vision, retinal damage, and blindness. Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen, causes retinal damage, interferes with DNA replication and causes birth defects.(10)

Due to the lack of a couple of key enzymes, humans are many times more sensitive to the toxic effects of methanol than animals. Therefore, tests of aspartame or methanol on animals do not accurately reflect the danger for humans. As pointed out by Dr. Woodrow C. Monte, director of the food science and nutrition laboratory at Arizona State University, "There are no human or mammalian studies to evaluate the possible mutagenic, teratogenic or carcinogenic effects of chronic administration of methyl alcohol."(11)

He was so concerned about the unresolved safety issues that he filed suit with the FDA requesting a hearing to address these issues. He asked the FDA to "slow down on this soft drink issue long enough to answer some of the important questions. It's not fair that you are leaving the full burden of proof on the few of us who are concerned and have such limited resources. You must remember that you are the American public's last defense. Once you allow usage (of aspartame) there is literally nothing I or my colleagues can do to reverse the course. Aspartame will then join saccharin, the sulfiting agents, and God knows how many other questionable compounds enjoined to insult the human constitution with governmental approval."(10) Shortly thereafter, the Commissioner of the FDA, Arthur Hull Hayes, Jr., approved the use of aspartame in carbonated beverages, he then left for a position with G.D. Searle's public relations firm.(11)

It has been pointed out that some fruit juices and alcoholic beverages contain small amounts of methanol. It is important to remember, however, that methanol never appears alone. In every case, ethanol is present, usually in much higher amounts. Ethanol is an antidote for methanol toxicity in humans.(9) The troops of Desert Storm were "treated" to large amounts of aspartame-sweetened beverages, which had been heated to over 86 degrees F in the Saudi Arabian sun. Many of them returned home with numerous disorders similar to what has been seen in persons who have been chemically poisoned by formaldehyde. The free methanol in the beverages may have been a contributing factor in these illnesses. Other breakdown products of aspartame such as DKP (discussed below) may also have been a factor.

In a 1993 act ,the FDA approved aspartame as an ingredient in numerous food items that would always be heated to above 86 degree F (30 degree C).

Aspartame is the technical name for the brand names NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure. It was discovered by accident in 1965 when James Schlatter, a chemist of G.D. Searle Company, was testing an anti-ulcer drug.

Aspartame was approved for dry goods in 1981 and for carbonated beverages in 1983. It was originally approved for dry goods on July 26, 1974, but objections filed by neuroscience researcher Dr John W. Olney and Consumer attorney James Turner in August 1974 as well as investigations of G.D. Searle's research practices caused the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to put approval of aspartame on hold (December 5, 1974). In 1985, Monsanto purchased G.D. Searle and made Searle Pharmaceuticals and The NutraSweet Company separate subsidiaries.

Aspartame is made up of three chemicals: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol

(from www.drmercola.com)

Aspartame accounts for over 75 percent of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. Many of these reactions are very serious including seizures and death.(1) A few of the 90 different documented symptoms listed in the report as being caused by aspartame include: Headaches/migraines, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, tachycardia, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss, and joint pain.

According to researchers and physicians studying the adverse effects of aspartame, the following chronic illnesses can be triggered or worsened by ingesting of aspartame:(2) Brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, parkinson's disease, alzheimer's, mental retardation, lymphoma, birth defects, fibromyalgia, and diabetes.

Acupuncture
The Chinese practice of acupuncture is intended to unblock the flow of life energy known as qi. Needles are not inserted randomly, but target specific meridians (or qi channels) throughout the body. While some see this as a mystical concept, the hair-thin needles inserted during acupuncture do stimulate important nerves. This stimulation increases the brain's release of norepinephrine, serotonin and endorphins, thereby boosting mood.

Once inserted, acupuncture needles are typically left in for about 20 to 40 minutes. They can be twisted, heated, or used to transmit small amounts of electricity into the skin to enhance nerve reactivity. This process is not usually painful, but will be felt to a greater or lesser extent depending on your sensitivity and the quality of your practitioner. Some insurance plans now cover acupuncture treatments, which can cost up to $100 per session.

Dietary changes can alter the brain both chemically and structurally. If you're feeling blue, take a step toward recovery by ensuring that your diet includes the following:

• Fish oil contains high levels of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA (docosahexaenoic acid); a deficiency in DHA has been linked to depression. When DHA is plentiful, your mood isn't the only thing that gets a boost—memory and learning are enhanced as well. Not a fish fan? Essential fatty acids are also found in a variety of seeds, nuts, oils and leafy vegetables.

   

• Antioxidant-rich foods can also serve to bolster mental health. Try to include apricots, broccoli, carrots, pumpkin, spinach, sweet potato, blueberries, kiwi and oranges, among others, in your diet.

   

• Daily multivitamins are the final step in keeping your brain and body properly regulated. When selecting supplements, look for B vitamins, magnesium, folic acid, selenium, and the amino acids tyrosine and tryptophan. These brain boosters are important for curbing depression and anxiety due to their effects on the mood-regulating neurotransmitters serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine.

   

Regular physical activity is important for maintaining both mental and physical health. Adopting a yoga regimen may be particularly beneficial for those suffering from depression, as the practice is considered by some to be a form of cognitive behavioral therapy. In mastering yoga postures, greater body awareness and self-efficacy is achieved. Concentration and self-control also improve. These tools translate to greater emotional control, which can help yoga practitioners maintain a stable mood despite negative external factors.

A 2007 review of the research on yoga, conducted by Kimberlee Bonura of Florida State University, reported that both short- and long-term practice can positively affect mental health. There is evidence that anxiety and depressed mood improve after just one yoga session, with benefits increasing the longer one continues to practice. Finally, yoga can serve to reduce stress hormone levels and relieve physical pains.

There's a definitive connection between living well and healthfully and having a cheerful outlook on life. Thought for the day: You can't be unhappy when you're smiling or singing. 

Table sugar is composed of sucrose which is broken down into half fructose and half glucose and AGAVE can contain up tp 90% fructose.  That increase in fructose can mean that agave nectar does not result in the same dangerous spikes in blood glucose that other sweeteners do

Such high fructose content is not typical of all agave products, "Depending on how the syrup is processed, it may or may not contain fructose

Agave is a sweetener made from the juice of a Mexican cactus and is an increasingly common ingredient in bottled teas, energy drinks, nutrition bars and desserts. The syrup is 3 times as sweet as table sugar, so it takes less of it to sweeten

Agave offers no advantage in terms of calorie content: about 16 calories per tablespoon (the same as table sugar). BUT, the syrup's chemical makeup can differ significanly form other sweeteners. It does not spike the blood sugar that other sweeteners can cause.

Read the nesx BLOG for more information about AGAVE

More than 1 in 4 (27%) of Americans say anxieties about finances, thee conomy or job loss kept them awake last month according to a new poll by the National Sleep Foundation. Sleep medications are not without risk...so some sleep experts say it is time we learned to fall asleep on our own.

Of particluar concern to some sleep experts is the age at which people are turning to sleeping pills. Adults under the age of 45 are fast replacing the elderly as  the prime market for sleeping pills. The most dramtic growth was seen in colege-age students

MYTH 6: BOOST YOUR ENERGY WITH A SUGAR-TREAT IN THE LATE AFTERNOON

FACT: Many of us, even with a healthy lunch feel the need for a "pick me up" in the late afternoon. When that fatigue hits, many people reach for a sugary treat, for the "quick energy".

While most of us can benefit from a modest snack between lunch and dinner - think of a mixed snack with all 3 macronutrients - carbohydrate, fat, and protein. A low-fat cheese stick with a 100 calorie pack of crackers is great, or a yogurt, or even a protein bar under 200 calories. Think 150-200 calories here, to support your overall calorie plan....that's enough calories to keep you satisfied until dinner. Plus, with a late afternoon snack, you'll be less likely to overeat at dinner, as you will avoided getting overhungry from a mini-fast since lunch.

MYTH 7: EATING 6 SMALL MEALS A DAY IS BETTER FOR WEIGHT LOSS THAN 3 MEALS A DAY

FACT: Know yourself.

Many people do just fine with 3 meals a day, and meet their calorie needs without mid-meal snacking. Your blood sugar can regulate just fine this way (check with your doctor if you suspect hypoglycemia, or have other needs to eat more often). This can actually harm a weight reduction plan, if you're a "grazer", since eating more often goes along with eating more frequently. Again, for weight loss, it's the number of calories in and out that counts. Whether 3 or 6 meals a day - keep your calories balanced, with a balanced mix of carbohydrates, protein, and fats.

My dog, Champ knows the power of pet therapy and does it so well!!

Here is the surgery I had on Tuesday January 20 (inauguration day) and I was weight bearing the next day!!!

Knee Arthroscopy including Lateral Release, Chondral shaving, and partial meniscectomy

After many years of compromising my exercise with a sore knee I had a lateral release and meniscus repair via arthroscopy yesterday. It went very smoothly and now I have a flexion machine and ice machine 24/7. Even so I manage to juggle my lap top on  my equipment

• 125 pounds lost
• down 12" belt size
• from 58-46 waist in pant size
• blood sugar stabilized at 105-110
• Pain in knees gone and can now walk and exercise
• A1C normal for past 6 months
• Reduced medications by half
• Blood pressure stabilized
• less knee pain, much less ankle swelling, more energy and stamina.
  

When you look at all the causes of inflammation of your arteries. they all can be significantly decreased, if not eliminated, by firmly establishing healthy lifestyles. When you combine a healthy diet, modest exercise, and nutritional supplementation, you can see the following health benefits:

1. Improve Insulin Sensititivity

    

2. Decrease Oxidized LDL Cholesterol

    

3. Lower High Blood Pressure

    

4. Improve Cholesterol Levels

    

5. Decrease Risk of Diabetes

    

6. Lower Homocysteine Levels

    

7. Establish a Healthy Weight

    

Healthy lifestyles and becoming proactive in protecting your health is your best option to decrease your risk of heart disease or even reverse hardening of your arteries.

The medical literature has shown us that a homocysteine level below 6.5 micromols/L is a safe level. As the homocysteine level rises above this level the risk of cardiovascular disease will increase. The higher these levels the greater your risk of having a heart attack or stroke. Most labs report a normal homocysteine should be in the range of 5 to 12 or even 15 micromols/L.   If your homocysteine level is above 12 micromols/L, you are in serious trouble. There are now even studies that show that individuals with elevated homocysteine levels are also at greater risk of developing several different kinds of cancers and even Alzheimer’s dementia.

The main point you must remember that the lower your homocysteine level the better. You certainly would want to see your homocysteine level below 6.5. The lower the better is the key when it comes to homocysteine levels.  

• achieve and maintain a weight loss of 7 percent with healthy eating and increased physical activity, and
• maintain physical activity at least 150 minutes a week with moderate exercise, such as walking or biking.

The FDA looks at nutritional supplements the same way it looks at foods. This entire industry is really not regulated, and a nutritional company can pretty much put any amount of nutrients in their tablets. In other words, the amount stated on the label is not necessarily what is in the tablet. Unless a nutritional company voluntarily produces its nutritional supplements in a pharmaceutical-grade method, the consumer has no assurance that what is on the label is in the tablet. Why sell your health to the lowest bidder? Taking high-quality, complete and balanced nutritional are the least expensive health insurance policy you will ever purchase.

The cholesterol pill reduced the risk of cardiovascular death and heart attacks by 44 percent compared with patients on a placebo. The 17,802 participants were men over 50 years old and women over 60 years old - ripe ages for heart attacks, but who were healthy. They did not display signs of heart disease and had cholesterol levels not requiring meds under current guidelines. The study is available in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Other findings: the combined risk of heart attack, stroke or CV death was reduced by 47 percent; the risk of heart attack was cut by 54 percent; the risk of stroke was cut by 48 percent, and total mortality was reduced by 20 percent. In its statement, the drugmaker says 25 patients would need to be treated to prevent one major CV event, if the results are projected over a period of 5 years.

The results prompted some docs to say Jupiter ushers in a new era of care. “This takes prevention to a new level,” Doug Weaver, head of cardiology at Detroit’s Henry Ford Hospital, who wasn’t involved with the study, tells The Wall Street Journal. “It defines a new population” of patients at risk.

But there are caveats. For one, there is disagreement about the utility and reliability of the CRP test. And the study yielded a higher rate of diabetes, which Sanford Bernstein analyst Tim Anderson wrote in an investor note may “temper enthusiasm, at least slightly, for more widespread adoption of cholesterol reduction therapy in patients with normal LDL (cholesterol) levels, but high CRP levels.”

And in an editorial in The New England Journal of Medicine, Mark Hlatky of Stanford University’s School of Medicine writes that “the results…raise two important questions about the primary prevention of coronary disease. Should indications for statin treatment be expanded? And how should measurements of (CRP) be used?”

Insulin and aging
Centenarians, people who have lived over 100 years, don't have much in common. For example, some are smokers  others not. They come from all over the world without a favoring any geographic location in particular.

However, there are 3 consistent metabolic blood indicators common to all centenarians; low blood sugar, low insulin, and low triglycerides. All 3 are relatively low vs. chronological age. Among these 3 indicators/factors insulin is the common denominator.

The level of insulin sensitivity of the cell is one of
the most important markers of lifespan.

I did the 5 day Sugar Cleanse before Xmas last year and it helped me stay in balance despite all the tempting foods!!!

RESET is a scientific way to lose weight, increase energy, and get off the sugar roller coaster
 
RESET begins with a 5-day program that immediately retrains your body to eliminate carbohydrate cravings.
 
RESET is a fabulous way to safely reach your weight loss goals and to maintain them permanently.
 
Dr. Christiane Northrup, recent guest on Oprah, recommends RESET in her best-selling books, Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom  and The Wisdom of Menopause.
 
Start seeing results NOW  

EAT THIS NOT THAT FOR KIDS

This guide offers a detailed analysis and nutritional tips on thousands of the most popular food choices for kids. Covering the best and worst options available at the most popular restaurants in the country as well as the healthiest-and most harmful-foods in the supermarket aisles, if kids are eating it, this book is probably analyzing it. 

I was reading Dr Weil's Healthy Aging book this week and noted that he recommends taking a daily multi-vitamin and multimineral product that meets the following specifications: 

1. It should not contain any preformed vitamin A (retinol)

2. Have a mixture of carotenoids, not just beta-carotene.

3. Vitamin E needs to be mixed, natural tocopherols

4. Provide at least 400IU of vitamin D, but note that you will need additional vitamin D to get the recommended 1,000IU daily

5. No iron.

6. No more than 200 micrograms of selenium.

The product I recommend meets these specifications and I can share that with you if you email me at email@drkarenwolfe.com

1. Don't go to the Thanksgiving dinner hungry

2. Thanksgiving dinner is not an all-you-can-eat buffet: Fill your plate half with vegetables, one quarter with a lean meat and the rest with a starch of your choice. Eat slowly and stop when you are full.

3. Turkey - go skinless

4. Side Dishes - watch your portion size: go for smaller portions. This way you can sample all the different foods. Moderation is always the key.

5. Drink plenty of water: alcohol and coffee can dehydrate your body

6. Experiment with new recipes:  do an Internet search to find delicious yet healthy low-fat contemporary Thanksgiving recipes. 

Well today I did what I tell everyone else to do -- had a colonoscopy for my 50th birthday! Yes indeed, I have been saying it for years and today was the day for me to walk my talk! The worst part was the bowel preparation.

I love to eat, so clear fluids is not appealing to me. I kept busy yesterday. Went to yoga, hairdresser and had a pedicure and then it was time for my first dose of that awful stuff. My system is a little slow to work so when I got to my appointment today everything had not worked the way it needed to..so off I went to drink more of the nasty stuff untill it kicked in...and boy did it kick in...here is where I avoid TMI on my BLOG!!

Well I watched the whole thing on the TV screen in my drug indiced sleepiness and it was over in no time. In case you are wondering what the heck it is, the pricture here shows that flexible tube that goes all the way from your rectum to the cecum and has a light and a camera and an opening so it can take samples of any polyps, burn the polys and take photos along the way. I came away with full color photos!!

Thanks to the staff for the patience with me and my slow system and to my husband for spending the day driving me and waiting for me. Love calls us in so many ways!!

So don't forget to have your colonoscopy experience in your 50th year (or before if indicated)

Karen

Hiking is a wonderful way to be in nature and get a great aerobic workout as well! I love being in nature and the trails at the spa last week were quite a challenge. At 6:30am we started walking in the dark and the sunrise came up on the hike

After 4 miles each morning I was ready for a healthy, substantial breakfast!!

Sleep Deprivation

 

Get at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night. Sleep deprivation is another stress and any stress promotes oxidative stress, promoting weight gain.

Sleep deprivation is also a  major source of stress. Americans, on average, sleep two hours less now than they did forty years ago. Sleep deprivation links to weight gain by

 

1.     Increases gehlin, the hunger hormone

 

2.      Decreases leptin, the satiety hormone

 

3. Increases stress hormone

Decreases insulin sensitivity which  increases hunger and craving for calorie-dense, high carbohydrate food and increases risk of Type 2 diabetes.

Oxidative Stress and Chronic Degenerative Disease

 

The process of oxidative stress in now believed to be a major component in the development of more than 50 chronic degenerative diseases.  (Steinberg, D., Beyond Cholesterol: Modifications of low-density lipoprotein that increase its atherogenicity, NEJM 337, No 6(August 1997): 408-416.  I call these Syndromes of Oxidative Stress (SOS).  An understanding of the process of oxidative stress will teach us how to protect ourselves from chronic diseases.

You can be prevented from having vibrant energy if your body is forced to handle more than it can contend with and its defences are overwhelmed.  When there is an interruption to the natural flow of the process of cellular oxidation, disease happens which all are syndromes of oxidative stress (SOS).  The following is a list of some syndromes of oxidative stress in specific areas of the body:

Pancreas          Diabetes      

Joints              Arthritis    

Eye    Macular Degeneration

Brain               Alzheimer’s Disease              

Cells                Cancer

One of the principles that I have learned is the fact that using mere “will power” to change bad, unhealthy habits just does not work.  It may give short-term results but is almost always accompanied by significant stress and anxiety.  The main reason this occurs is because real change needs to come from within.   Merely trying to change some outward behavior by applying will power does nothing for the inner man or woman's beliefs.  When you change from the inside out, you only need to allow your behavior to match up with who you really are. 

I have worked with people on the Healthy for Life Program (see my web site for details), who have made a change in their belief system that basically stated that, “I am going to replace healthy lifestyles for my poor, unhealthy habits I possess.”  Their inner desires, goals, and yes, theri belief systems  began to change.  Next, healthier lifestyles matched up with their new inner beliefs.  It is no longer a matter of will power, but instead, a matter of behaving in the way you truly have become—health conscious.

The Healthy for Life Program provides you with an avenue to make these changes successfully.  However, it is critical that the changes you make are effective.  It is important to me that you are learning the lifestyle habits that truly make a difference and allow you to accomplish the goals you have set for yourself.  Many of you are already beginning to experience the health benefits of this program.  Increased energy, concentration and an overall sense of well-being along with beginning to release some unwanted fat are just some of the benefits you are witnessing.  But the comment that I hear most often from participants, which surprises most of them, is the fact that they “aren't even trying.”  The reason is because they not only have overcome their physical carbohydrate addictions and cravings—but also because they have changed from the inside out.  Your new belief system, too, now desires and wants to live a healthy life.

This week, Dr Northrup held a tel-gathering for Team Northrup and Guest on The Dynamic Laws of Prosperity. IT was a wonderfully inspiring call, especiall yin loght of what is happening in the finanial markets this week. Her eare soem key idea I tooka way

Catherine Ponder affirmation from her book The Millionaires of Genesis:

Divine substance is the one and only reality in my financial affairs now

Divine substance heals me

Divine substance prospers me

Divine substance establishes order in my life and financial affairs now

Napolean Hill: “Thoughts have the peculiar quality of becoming their physical equivalents

• Adopt a new way to think, and an action plan
• Affirm prosperity everywhere you see it
• Our culture makes this difficult
• Being jealous, back-biting, will keep prosperity from coming to you
• It’s easy to create a community from lack (the common belief “money doesn’t grow on trees”)
• Look at your prosperity consciousness
• Seek out people who have done what you desire to do
• Your income does not need to be affected adversely at all by what is happening in the world

MINDLESS EATING by BRian Wansink

Brian Wansink is a Stanford PhD who has studied what we don't notice: the hidden cues that determine how much and why people eat.

Eating scripts are the icebergs of our diet. Most lurk beneath the surface of our daily activities.

 For me, working at my desk and driving in my car had eating scripts that were dangerous to my waistline. So I have re -engineered my environment to take back control. I call these my desktop and dashboard dining tips. Here they are;

1. Stock the refrigerator with yogurt, pop-top cans of tuna (protein can take the edge off a snack attack), fruit, vegetables. frozen edamame that is always ready to go!

 2. Always have protein and complex carbs with meals

3. Stop to have meals and take time to create a pleasurable eating experience.

 4. Always take a small cooler in the car with water, fruit, yogurt and low glycemic protein bars, when I am away from home for a few hours

Just like Pavlov's dogs, we salivate when we hear, see or smell something we associate with food.

Even though we have not touched the food, our pancreas secretes insulin which lowers our blood sugar level, which makes us feel hungry.

Here are some tips to avoid the "See-Food" Trap

 1. Move visible food

2. De-convenience tempting food

3. Clean out your cupboards and remove your mindless eating cues

RESET is a scientific way to mindfully RESET your mindless eating margin, lose weight, increase energy, and look great inside and out!
 
RESET begins with a 5-day program that immediately retrains your body to eliminate carbohydrate cravings.
 
RESET is a fabulous way to safely reach your weight loss goals and to maintain them permanently.
 
Dr. Christiane Northrup, recent guest on Oprah, recommends RESET in her best-selling books, Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom  and The Wisdom of Menopause.
 
Start seeing results NOW - Join our RESET team today! 
 
Join the call on Tuesday, July 22 at
 
11 am Pacific,   Noon Mountain,   1 pm Central,   2 pm Eastern

Conference Dial-in Number: (616) 347-8200
 
Participant Access Code: EMAIL ME FOR ACCESS CODE
 
 
If you are not able to attend the RESET Call on Tuesday, July 22 at 1 pm Central Time, I can send you the playback number so you can listen to a recording on the phone

How can this help you control your weight?
Research has identified the “mindless margin” of eating. Going on a diet and cutting out 1,000 calories a day triggers feelings of hunger and deprivation. But a typical person can cut out 200 to 400 calories a day without noticing the difference. That may not seem like a lot, but if you make three 100-calorie cuts a day, at the end of a year you’ll weigh 30 pounds less. Move your candy dish. Get rid of your short, wide glasses. Use smaller dishes. Make some rules for yourself. Only allow yourself to eat a midmorning doughnut if you’ve already eaten a piece of fruit, which means you probably won’t be hungry for the doughnut. Serve the vegetables family style but not the mac and cheese.

At a restaurant, use the “pick two” strategy. Order a main course and only two of the following: bread, appetizer, dessert, and alcoholic drink. At a reception buffet, follow the “rule of two.” You can have whatever you want, but you have to use the smallest plate and can put only two things on it at one time. Always have something to drink in your hand, because that’s one less hand to eat with. —Reference - Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink,Ph.D.

So what’s mindless eating?
MIndless eatingi is when external cues influence how much we eat.You pour more liquid into a short, wide glass than a tall, skinny glass. You eat 92 percent of anything you serve yourself. You eat 20 percent more food served family style rather than left on a side counter. People eating with one other person eat 30 to 35 percent more than they otherwise would. Having a snack within arm’s reach doubles how much of it you eat.

According to a study conducted by the University of Northumbria, chewing gum has a positive effect on thinking, memory and other cognitive functions. Andrew Scholey, PhD, of the university's Human Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, attributes this effect to a mild increase in heart rate, which results in increased delivery of oxygen and glucose to the brain and thereby improves cognition.  Who knew??

In a recent study, subjects who spent just 20 minutes mixing sprints with jogging lost three times the fat off their legs and seat in 15 weeks, compared to those who jogged steadily for 40 minutes. Intervals may trigger fat-mobilizing hormones and they amp your cardio capacity so your future runs will actually be easier. If you can't run, you can accomplish the same goal on a stationary bike, stair stepper or water aerobics.

Saturday May 10th was a great Womens' Health by the Susan Samueli Center for Integrative Medicine at University of California, Irvine

Martin Rossman, MD, Dipl Ac gave a wonderful tip sheet on how to h andle stress...here it is.... TREAT YOURSELF LIKE A DOG PLAN

1. Fresh Water every day

2. Food in the right amounts

3. Walk one or 2 times a day

4. Stretch when you get up

5. Sleep when tired

6. Play - increase your serum "FUN" level

7. Love and appreciate

Red Mountain Spa in St George, Utah offers an adventure of a lifetime. I presented a Women's Wellness Weekend of seminars and was able to enjoy wonderful hiking and lots of spa services. I loved the red rock and the quietness of the desert. I can't wait to return next year!!

Visit their site at www.redmountainspa.com

1. The Benefits of Cleansing - Dr Oz mentioned the benefits of "cleansing" on Oprah yesterday. He mentioned the need to have a  jump start program every now and then.
   
2. The foods we should avoid are sodas and trans fats
3. The gut has more neurotransmitters than the brain and the gut is considered your second brain. The gut has food/mood issues programed that will always win over any intellectual understanding of food
4. High quality supplementation is important for the expression of genes at their highest level
5. The consciousness of the preparer of the food we eat affects the electromagnetic energy of the food
6. Part of the effectiveness of the 5 day sugar cleanse is to reduce the amount of allergens taken into the body through food and this decreases inflammation in the body
7. If you are worried that people will see what you are eating, then you are in an addictive phase with food
8. Most of us need fewer carbs, more fiber and real food
9. A good supplementation program day after day and year after year helps the body maintain its youthfulness
10. Your mind creates your metabolism

Once you have decided WHY you are here, the next step is to decide WHAT YOU WANT TO BE, TO DO and TO HAVE. What do you want to accomplish? What do you want to experience? In other words, what does success look like to you?

 Here is what  success  means to me ---

 I want

• Time freedom to decide what I do , with whom and how I spend my days.
• Financial freedom to support the causes that are most meaningful to me
• Partner and connect with like-minded people so we share the journey together
• Be a great role model for my daughter.
• Be a good friend
• Support the cause of improving the quality and quantity of my life and  the life of those I love
• Have a positive impact on the global health care crisis
• To make a difference

….and I want to support others to realize their innate potential and live their dreams

Jack Canfield tells us one of the easiest ways to begin clarifying what you truly want is to make a list of 30 things you want to do, 30 things you want to have and 30 things you want to be before you die. This is a great way to get the ball rolling

Success Principle # 2 – Be Clear WHY You are here

Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself and know that everything in life has a purpose.