Monday, February 4, 2013

Top 15 Reminders from THE SECRET

1. We all work with ONE infinite power.

2. You attract what you think.

3. Your thoughts cause your feelings, and you get exactly what you are feeling.

4. Whatever it is you are feeling is a perfect reflection of what is in the process of becoming.

5. You can begin feeling whatever you want (even if it's not here yet) because...

6. Life should be phenomenal, so apply your consciousness to it now and the Universe will rearrange itself.

7. Pay attention to what is being set in front of you-the Universe likes SPEED! Act on that impulse!

8. You can start with nothing and out of nothing a way will be provided.

9. What we thank about we bring about.

10. Decide what you want .. believe you can have it, believe you deserve it, believe it's possible for you.

11. When you realize your potential to feel good, you will ask no one to be different in order for you to feel good.

12. Remove the stress from the body, and the body will heal itself.

13. We are the infinite field of unfolding possibilities.

14. Nothing matters but this moment and what you are focusing your attention on.

15. You are not here to try to get the world to be just as you want it. You are here to create the world that you choose.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Barley Grass Powder

Dehydrated barley grass powders, tablets and capsules are not multi-vitamin pills - they are a concentrated combination of nutrients. As we have seen, the nutrients found in these foods work together to benefit the body as a whole.

It is interesting, and rather amazing, to see how the variety of nutrients in barley grass work together to support the functions of each other. A closer look at this phenomenon makes a good case for relying on natural foods, rather than artificial vitamin pills, as sources of vitamins and minerals.
For example, vitamin C aids in the absorption of calcium and iron. Iron is required to convert beta-carotene to vitamin A. Calcium and pyridoxine help absorb vitamin B12, which, in turn, is essential for the activation of folic acid. All of these nutrients are found together in barley grass, along with others, which support complimentary functions.

Green foods have been an essential part of the human diet for thousands, perhaps millions, of years. Today, we are able to identify many of the specific nutrients found in green foods, and the reasons why we can't do without them. Even with all of this information, we may only be beginning to understand why green foods are so good for us.

How do you take barley grass?

It's best to sip it slowly on an empty stomach, either 20 minutes before a meal or 2 hours after, so that the nutrients can be assimilated easily without the presence of other foods. Take either cold or room temperature liquid, as hot liquid will break down the live enzymes.

http://superfoodsandsupershakes.com/2012/05/barley-grass-or-barley-grain-health-benefits/

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Niacinamide-the Unsung Hero

Recently I made an incredible personal discovery. Quite by fluke, or rather by waking at 4am with the world "niacinamide" dancing in my head, I reached sleepily for my iphone (I love my phone) and googled "niacinamide research" and began to read an astonishing amount of information that pertained to exactly the symptoms I was having.
I was scattered, irritable, itchy. I was depressed and unable to sleep. I was moody. I was constipated. I was not myself. I was so sad. So incredibly sad and dispassionate at the same time. "So this is depression" I would think.

I happened to have an unopened bottle of niacinamide, 500mg, having purchased the 'wrong' thing a few months earlier when I was wanting niacin. They are not the same compound. In fact, niacin, inositol, nicotinic acid and niacinamide are often used interchangeably as B3, but there are differences. 

I took 1000mg, and went to sleep. When I woke I was a different person. I took another 1000 mg. I began to laugh again. By the evening I was back to myself. I'm still taking 2000mg a day, and feel better and better. 

I've now been doing a lot of research and have suggested it to most of my family member's regimes with great success. Research points to it benefiting those who have osteoarthritis, any dermatitis conditions, muscle and body fatigue, sleep issues, depression and despondency, mania, schizophrenia, ADD, ADHD, and even autism. It's been known to be highly beneficial since 1945.

So what is niacinamide? It's an essential B vitamin-so essential that without it we die. 

But-the RDA is only 14mg with the assumption that we get all we need from our diets. But you know what? We aren't. I'm a careful, well balanced eater. What happened? We know that all the B viatimins are essential, and that stress increases their need. Our lives are more stressfilled than ever!

But  could it also be the almost constant use of electronics? Could it be the gluten free diets everyone is trying, since we get B3 from whole grains?

It's a water soluble vitamin-which means the body flushes what it doesn't use just like Vitamin C. Watch for a color change in the urine as an indicator of your optimum needs.

Look, It wasn't that long ago that Doctors were saying no one ever needed more than 100mg of vitamin C! We now know we need much more and that it's highly beneficial to our overall health. 

What I do know is adding niacinamide to my daily intake has completely changed my brain, my emotional state and my sleeping. That's good enough for me!

Try adding some niacinamide to your mix and see how you feel. 


Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Getting your B12

Some vegetarians believe that you can get B12 from seaweeds and soy, but it is pretty generally believed now that you can't and some of the algae can actually disrupt B12 metabolism. It's a hotly debated topic in vegan circles. Me, I shy away from the politics and we do what we do-we notice how our body feels.

We get B12 from animal proteins, eggs, and dairy. Hmmmm. And not yogurt apparently because of processing. You can look for B12 fortified foods, and if you notice they always talk about adding brewer's yeast to your smoothies-well that's because brewer's yeast has B12! Slick eh! It doesn't take much of it to make a difference by the way but it is vitally important.

B12 is for our red blood cells and our nervous system and cellular replication. All vital important things and we absolutely need B12. Now you could have been low for years but the raw experiment might be kicking in some symptoms or this totally may not be you. BUT if you aren't eating anything that will bring you in B12 read on.

SO if you have NOT been adding B12 specifically to your vitamins, you may want to do that. B12 helps your blood utilize iron, which then helps your body carry oxygen. So! If you are low in B12 here are the symptoms:

Symptoms of B12 deficiency are:
excessive tiredness
breathlessness
listlessness
pallor
poor resistance to infection
and:
a smooth, sore tongue or sore tender places on the roof of the mouth that come up suddenly without having hurt yourself
menstrual disorders
Anaemia

The body can store small amounts-in the liver, but if you have a stressed liver, it may be out of balance.
B12 is excreted in the bile, and then reabsorbed so you can recirculate the B12 for awhile if you aren't taking any in.
You can have a deficiency too because your gut isn't absorbing it the way it should because B12 and the good gut bacteria are parters in our health. If we aren't absorbing nutrients due to clogged intestines, then we aren't getting the B12 we need.

I like the drops from GNC. You squirt a dropperful in the back of your mouth in the morning and done! I also do drops for B complex. They are more readily absorbed into our system. You might try it and see if you notice a difference.

Monday, January 7, 2013

CARLSON'S FISH OIL-get your omega 3s

It's important to get the right fats in your diet. The brain needs those fats, especially if doing a raw or vegan change.

Your brain functions on good fats, so give yourself exactly what you need. I like the taste of Carlson's. Yep. That's exactly right-I LIKE the taste and drink it straight. Give it a try.

Omega 3 from flax seeds contain no DHA, which is essential for the brain. But! It does contain ALA, (alpha linolenic acid), which is what our body needs to create EPA, and then convert EPA to DHA. A lot of steps, and if the body isn't healthy, if it has a sluggish metabolism or has a health issue of some sort, or is low in vital nutrients, those steps might not get done in a speedy fashion, if at all. If it can't it won't.

What then happens, if the body can't use it, it's considered a toxin. It either has to flush it or shove it away, which both can be misinterpreted as allergic responses. GIVE your body the nutrition it needs to really do the job you want it to do.

If you are deficient in zinc, B6, B12, B3 or C you also might have trouble metabolizing the needed conversion.

If you are pyroluric, you have trouble retaining and properly using B6 and require more zince. If you ohave histapenia or histadelia you may have trouble metabolizing without higher B vitamins, specifically B3 (niacinamide), B6 (pyrodine) and B12 to offset imbalances in histamine due to high or low copper.

Get your omega 3 oils up, and get them in a fish oil form that has the necessary DHA already, and make it easier on your body. Once it gets the nutrients it needs, it will start operating better for you! It just makes good sense.

One more thing on fatty acids:

While Omega 6 fatty acids are considered essential fatty acids, and cannot be made in the body, our Western diet tends to put us too HIGH in omega 6 in ratio to omega 3. That imbalance can contribute to all sorts of diseases. According to the University of Maryland, their list includes: heart disease, cancer, asthma, arthritis, and depression. An interesting list! Click below to read the full article.

"A healthy diet should consist of roughly 2-4 time more omega 6 than omega 3. The typical American diet tends to contain 14-25 times more omega 6 than omega 3."

Many researchers are beginning to point to this for the rise in inflammatory disease in our country. Why? What we know is that inflammation is a sign of toxicity, and if the body can't use it, and it can't process it out, it has to do something with it and it starts to put it in the fat cells. That's their job, and that's set up to save those vital things like your heart and liver.

Too much omega 6 fatty acids in the blood can slow it down. Omega 6's come from vegetable oils and are unsaturated. While we do need some, we don't need as much as was earlier thought. Remember: it's only true until it's not true. AND unfortunately with our food industry freely adding hormones to our meats, we are all getting too much estrogen-I question the efficacy of adding omega 6 for this reason.

The best sources for omega 3 oil are cold water fish, and wild is better than aquaculture. True!

Alt. Med / Univ of Maryland Med Ctr
Pyroluria

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Cholesterol


This is sorta funny but do you all understand what HDL cholesterol actually does?

It helps the body break down and get rid of fat!

See, that's why they call it the GOOD cholesterol, and it's such an odd thing to have high body fat and great HDL-doesn't match unless it's something like AD36.

That's why they always think that active, exercising people are the ones that have great HDL. Oops. Bursting that bubble! :)

Here is a great article on thyroid/adrenal issues
Thyroid.about.com . They talk about the thyroid, adrenal, sex hormones connection.

Test your thyroid: put a thermometer by your bed, and in the morning, before you get up, take your temperature. Do it for 5 days, and then average it. If it is low, you are likely in the range of low functioning thyroid.

Interesting that coconut oil helps thyroid function (3 tbs a day), but what most stresses the thyroid is low adrenals.

Here's another article that talks about estrogen dominance and how it opposes thyroid function.
Hypothyroidism

Estrogen causes food calories to be stored as fat. Thyroid hormone causes fat to be turned into energy.
Natural Progesterone inhibits estrogen. Low progesterone can be assisted by eating organic soybeans.

But-can we find organic soybeans that have NOT been genetically modified? That may require some more research. Happy hunting!

Meantime, they are starting to rethink the 'bad' cholesterol thing...it was a marketing ploy to increase the use of pharmas that lower cholesterol. Create a need for the product that you have...


Monday, November 12, 2012

B-12 Benefits All of Us!

B-12 is a water soluble vitamin (vs a fat soluble vitamin).

Water soluble means that the body releases whatever it can't use and we pee out, so there are no adverse side effects. We need to replenish our B12 daily.

B-12 is needed to process iron. B-12 is highly valuable to the CNS and to the brain. It helps with general function.

They now have B12 patches.

B12 causes an increase in usable energy. It is recommended for diabetics. The experts say that the affects on blood sugar should be GOOD, and that they should notice increases in energy.

Methionine is an essential amino acid that we get from protein. Some is turned into homocysteine, and then into methionine with the help of B12. If we are low in B12, homocysteine levels are high because the body can't do the reaction it needs to. Homocysteine is a nerve toxin and vessel toxin-
levels are high in Alz, stroke, cardio disease, eye disorders.

So to prevent high homocysteine, we need B12. To lower blood pressure, try taking B12 shots.

Food sources of B12-a big one is MEAT!

Monday, September 10, 2012

The Benefits of OLIVES for blood pressure


According to Gaia Herbs, olives have been cultivated for at least 3,000 years, probably longer. They help us with...STRESS. Olive oil extract is said to lower blood pressure as it is anti-inflammatory.

Gaia Herbs / Olive Leaf Extract

Olive Leaf Tea


If I had the time, the next degree I would pursue would be in nutrition and herbology. Yep, returning to mother nature's medicine cabinet. Think about it. All of our medicines are from botanical chemistry.

Our botanists are studying in the Amazon now, looking for that cure for cancer, so they can replicate it in a lab, patent it, turn it into a product and we can pay $150. a pill. Ow. For the better good.

As our healthcare system grinds deeper and deeper into people's pockets, and into their minds with ever increasing fear-based marketing campaigns we have to wonder...medical is considered one of the safest job markets today. Ouch.

IS all this fear marketing...um...making us sick? Could it be? And what do we do about it?

I think it's about honoring our grandmothers and our great grandmothers. It's about coming back to simple and back to the earth. When a single pill can be invoiced at $250. you have to wonder what we are doing? What have we come to honor, and what do we fear?

I thought about my ancestors, and my little greek uncle Mike had olive trees, fig trees, date trees in his yard. We would go to visit, and he would take us into the back yard and pick from his trees and feed us. Olives. Figs. Dates. Staples to the Greek. Are they healthy for us? You bet!

And you know, an olive tree's leaves treat infections and are an anti-oxidant. (I wonder if someone has a recipe for olive leaf soup or something?) Olives are anti bacterial, anti-fungal, and immune boosting. They are anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory. Go Uncle Mike. BTW-He died in his sleep at 96. His brother was 97, and their father died at...ready...108.


Saturday, August 18, 2012

MUCOID PLAQUE

Keeping it simple, dairy, cheese, anything fermented which means vinegars, malts, and alcohol as well as soy, are all mucus forming. Wheat, and corn are irritants for many if not most people. Pastas, sugars,flours, meat, also appearing in the foods to not eat list.

If you stick with the rawish, you are definitely going to start moving mucus. That means that you may feel MORE congested for awhile. Why? Because you have to move the mucus out! We're back to where we started. Gotta get it out. So, cleanse, exercise, sweat in the sauna.

Olive oil, quinoa, seaweeds, all your fresh-hey ok bananas are on the acid side, you know what? I figure fresh is best, and I leave it at that as to their acid alkaline lists. Man-we could make ourselves crazy. Oh wait. We DID!

Top of the list are all the things we have been eating- and raving about on our raw-ish quest...

Parsley, kiwi, mango, dates, figs, cantaloupe, cayenne, papaya, asparagus, raisins, pineapple, apples, garlic, avocados, celery, lettuce, raspberries, almonds, jerusalem artichokes, fresh coconut, miso, leafy herbs, leeks, mushrooms, tomatoes, olives, sesame seeds, lemons, cabbage, oranges, peas. We've had ALL these in our recipes.

Slightly acid are: blueberries, pistacheos, brazil nuts, kidney beans, pecans, plums and prunes, sunflower seeds, cashews, cranberries. SLIGHTLY acid.

Dr YOUNG ph miracle program if you want a reference.
 FREEDOM YOU Personally, my suggestion is to stick with what your body is telling you because so far...YOU ARE RIGHT ON!

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Italian/Pizza Flax Crackers Recipe

Italian/pizza Flax Crackers:
3dozen

3/4 cup sun dried tomato powder (you can make this using dry sun dried tomatos put in high powered blender or cuisinart -- the drier they are the better)
1/2 cup purified water (additional water to thin too)
1 1/2 cups chopped red bell pepper
1/4 cup chopped onion
1-1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp italian seasoning
1 tsp crushed garlic
1/4 cup mixed fresh herbs
2 cups flaxseeds soaked 8-12 hours in 4 cups purified water (do not rinse or drain)
(you can mix golden flax and regular flax too...)

-combine sun dried tomato powder and water stir into paste
-combine sun dried tomato paste red bell pepper onion salt lemon juice italian seasoning and garlic in high powered blender or cuisinart
-blend or process mixture adding more water to thin if necessary
-transfer mixture to large mixing bowl add flazseeds and stir well to combine
-spread batter evenly on dehydrator tray lined with teflex sheets or other non-stick sheet (parchment paper works - but best with teflex) score the crackers into size shape you want
-dehydrate 105 degrees for 12 hours or until completely dry and crisp
-flip onto mesh dehydrator screens peel off teflex and continue to dehydrate for 24 hrs or until completely dry
-allow to cool store in sealed glass container for upto 3 months at room temp - refrigerator or freezer for up to 6 months.

(to flip trays you can put one tray on top of the other making a sandwich and flip around onto new tray---then you can easily peel of teflex backing)