Wednesday, June 30, 2010

The Value of Health: The Value of Life

What is the value of health? Of your health? Of your life? Can you put a price on it? Why is it that we are not willing to invest in our health by preventative means, yet when faced with a crisis situation we are willing to shell out tens of thousands of dollars! Why is it that we never make time for our health?

Your value system dictates how you spend your time. The things you value the most are the things you make the most time for; the things you value the least are usually the things you never quite get around to. Although the majority of people say they value their health, those same people usually are the ones who say they don't have time to exercise or to eat right. Without your health NOTHING else matters. You can spend your life working hard to raise an amazing family, get that big promotion and build your dream home, but without your health none of that matters. If you are not able to enjoy the time with your family because your body is filled with disease, nor be around to watch your grandchildren grow, what did you work so hard for? Many parents tend to neglect their own health in order to give their children everything, but your children need you to take care of yourself. If you are unhealthy, how are you able to be there for your children or take care of them? If something were to happen to you, think of the burden they are left with.

It can sometimes be difficult to find examples of science and religion agreeing, but one very important issue that the two agree on is how long humans are supposed to live. Genesis 6:3 states, “My spirit will not remain in humans forever because they are flesh. They will live only 120 years.” In 2005, Harvard put out a special health report stating that the human body is designed to live 120 years in perfect health.

So what is “perfect health?” Perfect health is not having to take medications. Perfect health is when the body is functioning the way it is designed to. When we eliminate toxins, stay active, eat the right nutrients, and have the right frame of mind we allow our body to function the way it is designed to. Living the life you were created to live cannot be achieved following the average American lifestyle. How many people that you know in their 60's are healthy? (Meaning they are not on medication and are still physically active). According to way our body was designed, when we are 60 we are only supposed to be half way through our life.

Perfect health cannot be achieved by changing only one aspect of your life. It takes effort and dedication, but the rewards of feeling true health are certainly worth it. The people that achieve lasting health make lifestyle changes and do not look at their health as something that can be managed with a quick fix.

Monday, June 21, 2010

The Human Body- The Whole is Greater than the Sum of its Parts

Inductive Reasoning works by moving from specific observations to generalizations and theories, known as the bottom up approach. Beginning with observations and measurements, patterns are looked at to form hypotheses, which are then developed into conclusions or theories.

Deductive Reasoning works just the opposite, from the more general to the more specific, the above down approach. Beginning with a theory, deductive reasoning works to confirm that theory. Aristotle summarized the principle of holism with the saying, “The Whole is more than the sum of its parts.” This is true for the human body. If a person who is considered dead has all of the parts that make up a human being, why are they not alive? If you take someone who dies of heart failure and put a new heart in them, will they come back to life? Of course not, because the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. The complex system that makes up the human body cannot be explained by reducing it to it's fundamental parts. We cannot keep thinking that we are smarter than our own bodies. By taking medications which alter the chemistry of our bodies we are messing with a complicated system that after hundreds of years of studying we still haven't even begun to understand.

Although sickness and disease are common, they are not normal. Our body is meant to be in a state of health. Sickness and disease do not occur randomly, no one gets sick by accident. When imbalance is allowed to occur in your body, order turns to chaos and disease results.

Epidemiology, the science that studies outbreaks of disease, explains that the existence of disease depends on three factors: 1. the host (the person who is the target of the disease), 2. the agent (the cause of the disease), 3. the environment (where the host and agent come in contact). This explains why two people can come in contact with the same bacteria/virus and only one of them gets sick. The one who did not get sick had a stronger healing system, a stronger host resistance. Just because we come in contact with an agent of disease does not mean we will fall victim to it, and although we cannot always avoid exposure to a disease causing agent, we can build up our bodies' defense system so attacks will be less successful. If we shift the focus from studying bacteria/viruses, pharmaceuticals, and genetics, and instead focus on understanding how our bodies know how to defend and heal themselves, we will be much further along in learning how to prevent illness and heal disease.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Interval Training pt. 2


Hopefully after reading the first blog regarding interval training, some of you were inspired to try and incorporate HIIT into your workouts in some way, shape, or form. I know that without much information it can be difficult to implement new techniques into a workout, so here is a detailed explanation of the most common forms of HIIT workouts. 


- 30 Second HIIT - “The 30 Second HIIT workout is the ideal place to start with Interval training. If you are aiming at training above your lactate threshold you need to go fast enough to feel that the last few seconds feel almost impossible to keep running. Everything in your body should be burning.” - Elite Fitness During the 30 Second HIIT, the work period is only thirty seconds. If you are having a hard time getting to the point where you feel like your muscles are burning, you need to pick up the intensity and try to make it through the remainder of your sets.

Beginners: 6-8 sets 30 second intervals with 90 seconds rest total workout 15 minutes
Intermediate: 8-10 sets 30 second intervals with 60 seconds rest total workout 15 minutes. (If you are going all out and still having a hard time feeling a burn with 90 seconds rest, it is probably best to move into the intermediate range.)
Advanced: 10-12 sets 30 second intervals with 30 seconds rest total workout 15 minutes. (When the intermediate intervals become easier, it is most likely best to move into the advanced range.)

- 60 Second HIIT - “The 60 second intervals completely exhaust your muscles of their stored energy, this energy will take 24hr to 48 hrs to replenish. This HIIT training is superb for immediate fat burning and weight loss.” - Elite Fitness The difference between the 30 second HIIT and the 60 second HIIT is the length of time you have to work at a high level. It is best to begin the 60 second HIIT after a few weeks of 30 second HIIT.

Beginners: 6-8 sets 60 second intervals with 120 seconds rest total workout 22 minutes
Intermediate: 8-10 sets 60 second intervals with 90 seconds rest total workout 22 minutes. (If you are going all out and still having a hard time feeling a burn with 120 seconds rest, it is probably best to move into the intermediate range.)
Advanced: 10-12 sets 60 second intervals with 60 seconds rest total workout 22 minutes. (When the intermediate intervals become easier, it is most likely best to move into the advanced range.)

- Tabata Training - “Tabata interval training is the single most effective type of high intensity interval training, its also the most intense by far, and surprisingly its the shortest in duration, it only last for four minutes, but those four minutes produce remarkable effects.” - Dr. Izumi Tabata

Dr. Tabata came up with this technique of HIIT at the National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Tokyo. What he discovered is that the interval training burns more fat than aerobic training and builds as much muscular endurance as 45 minutes of normal cardio. The most important thing to remember is that Tabata training is EXTREMELY intense despite only lasting 4 minutes. It is very important to warm up before training with this method. If you are going to use weights, it is best to go lighter and be able to finish than going too heavy and ending up on the floor.

Tabata intervals are 20 seconds hard and 10 seconds rest for 8 sets.

Tabata intervals can be difficult to track, so it is best to do them with a partner or use a timer that is specifically made for Tabata training. You also want to focus specifically on larger muscle groups, you will see little results if you are focusing on smaller muscle groups. Finally, this type of training is not to be done every day. “If you can do this every day, you’re doing it wrong.” 


- Body For Life HIIT - “The Body for life HIIT Training routine comes from a workout made famous by Bill Phillips. The Body for life HIIT training routine has four sets of increasing intervals. Each of these intervals is 1 minute long. Each set is four minutes long.” - Elite Fitness

I had never heard of this type of training referred to as Body For Life HIIT, but I have done it several times in the gym and gotten a great workout from it. It starts at a level 6 (fast jog), after one minute you increase to level 7, after a minute you increase to level 8, and finally after a minute you increase to level 9. After a minute at level 9 you return back to level 6. The final set starts the same as the first 3, but your last interval is at a level 10. If you are doing this on a treadmill you can you the speeds to set your levels. Just remember to adjust the speed according to your ability and wear the safety lanyard in case you cannot keep up with the belt.

Hopefully, with this information you will be able to make your workout shorter and much more effective. I know that I am noticing far greater results in the gym with both strength and endurance after implementing HIIT into my workouts. The biggest benefit is no longer being in the gym for over an hour. Remember, it is very important to warm up before any of these workouts. Also keep in mind the other suggestions from the previous interval training blog.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Fever, coughs, and sniffles are GOOD for you!

So, you're not feeling well. You wake up with a stuffy nose, cough and fever. Not a great start to the day, but you take some medicine to clear your sinuses, suppress your cough and reduce your fever. Now you're feeling great. End of story... Wait, does that mean that your body was finished fighting the infection? Of course not. The symptoms meant that your body was fighting off the infection the way it is supposed to. Mucous is produced as a way to get rid of the dead bacteria/virus.. Coughing is your body's way of moving the infection out of your lungs. Fever is your body's way of heating itself up to kill off the infection (the same way we heat up food or water to kill off bacteria). So if you stopped these things from occurring before the infection was completely gone, how is your body supposed to fight off the infection? You removed your body's defense mechanisms and left it with no way to fight back.

Our culture has been taught to believe there is a "magic pill for every ill." Unfortunately with this type of thinking, people learn to seek chemical solutions to every problem in their life. Mother Nature is the best doctor around because the best doctor is the one who resists the compulsion to interfere with the body's efforts and ability to heal itself. You need to allow time for Mother Nature to work before exposing yourself to the side effects of the medication you take.

“Coughs, sniffles, sneezes, and fever are good for you. Coughing and sneezing clear the airways of harmful irritants and allergy-causing substances while fevers actually fight virus and bacteria. Our body raises its temperature on purpose. Robert Mendelson, M.D. stated, 'Unless there are additional symptoms such as extreme listlessness, abnormal behavior, and other indicators of serious disease such as meningitis, your doctor should tell you there is nothing to worry about and send you and your child home.' Diseases are shortened by letting a safe fever run its course. Taking fever-reducing drugs or cough suppressants can lead to pneumonia or more serious respiratory infections.” -Dr. William B. Greenough, Professor of medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Treating symptoms ends up making a cold, the flu or any other sickness or disease worse. Symptoms are your body's attempt to heal itself. High blood pressure and high cholesterol are not diseases themselves, they are symptoms, your body's attempt to heal itself from another problem. You need to get to the root cause of the disease, not just treat the symptom. If you keep pulling a dandelion out by it's stem, it will continue to grow back until you remove the roots.

So what do you do? Remember, you are in charge of keeping your body well. You should feel empowered by how strong your body is and embrace symptoms as a way of knowing your body is doing what it's supposed to. By providing the proper nutrition to your body, minimizing your exposure to toxins, keeping your body moving, managing stress appropriately and making sure the nervous system is functioning properly will allow your body to respond the way it needs to.


Additional Information
Mechanism of a Fever:
When you contract an infection, your body responds by manufacturing more white blood cells (WBC) to destroy the bacteria and viruses and remove damaged tissue and unwanted materials from the body. When the activity of the WBC's is increased, they move more rapidly to the site of infection by the release of pyogens in the body, which are responsible for the rise in body temperature (fever). A rise in body temperature means the process of healing is speeding up and is something to be happy about. While reducing a fever may be more comfortable, you interrupt the body's natural healing process.
When Fevers are Truly Emergencies
If you are experiencing difficulty breathing, repetitive vomiting, loss of consciousness, twitching movements or you have a reason to believe the fever is the result of a cause other than infection (such as heatstroke or poisoning) you should be taken to the ER.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Maintaining Relationships

It’s really easy to start relationships with different people in different situations. However, as the individuals change, the real challenge is maintaining the relationship. Communication is really the foundation of any relationship, whether it is between husband and wife, mother and daughter, or two friends. As soon as communication begins to stop, the relationship is strained.

During a community talk, Erin asked, “Is it more important to win the argument or keep the relationship?” I think that is a very good question to ask when we find ourselves in an argument with somebody we have a relationship with. I know that I personally lose sight of the purpose of an argument sometimes, and forget that it is about understanding the other person’s perspective and not about being “right.”

Communicating with our family and friends is something that is very easy to take for granted. How many times have you been with family and not really said anything? Even worse, how many times have you let your bad day ruin time that is supposed to be spent enjoying your family or friends? What would you give to have five more minutes with a person you lost? I know that when I look at the time I have with family and friends as something I have to make the most of, it really puts everything into perspective.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Born Toxic?

A growing number of studies are finding hundreds of toxic chemicals in mothers' that end up in their babies' bodies when they are born. Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group (EWG), said, "We've measured hundreds and hundreds of toxic chemicals in the blood of babies that are still in the womb. Flame retardants, the chemicals in consumer products like personal care products, makeup, shampoos. It's a very long list." The EWG found an average of 232 chemicals in the cord blood of 10 babies born late last year. These are chemicals found in common household products such as shampoos, conditioners, cosmetics, plastics, shower curtains, mattresses and electronics. "For 80 percent of the common chemicals in everyday use in this country we know almost nothing about whether or not they can damage the brains of children, the immune system, the reproductive system, and the other developing organs," said Phil Landrigan, a pediatrician and director of the Children's Environmental Health Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. A study recently published in the journal Pediatrics demonstrates an association between the chemicals in babies' cord blood, and later problems on IQ tests and development. "Fifteen percent of children [in our study] have at least one developmental problem," said Perera, one of the authors on the study. The amount of chemicals measured in the cord blood of the babies seems to matter. The higher the concentration, the more the IQ among children seems to dip. The study is being conducted among pregnant women in Poland and China, and finding similar results.

Tests of cord blood show newborns have already been exposed to more than 200 potentially hazardous chemicals in the womb. Here is a list of those types of chemicals.
  • Bisphenol A- An ingredient in plastic bottles and epoxy resins and can be found in thousands of products including water bottles, baby bottles, food can linings, dental sealants. Causes problems with reproductive development, behavioral problems, obesity, diabetes and cancer.
  • Perfluorochemicals- Found in the non-stick coatings of cookware. Also used for grease and stain protection for carpets and furniture. Exposure is linked to low birth weight, and possibly cancer.
  • PBDEs (Polybrominated diphenyl ethers)- Used as flame retardants in televisions and electronics, as well as in older furniture foams and mattresses. May affect cognitive abilities and behavior when it contaminates house dust.
  • PCBs (Polychlorinated biphenyls)- Although they have been banned since 1976, the chemical can leach out of landfills and eventually get into the food supply. Exposure is liked to cancer, behavioral problems, damage to the nervous system, immune system and chemical signaling system.
  • Dioxins (chlorinated dioxins and ethylmercury)- Originate from emission from power plants and other industries. Dioxins can cause cancer and mercury can damage the nervous system development and stunt intellect.
  • Methymercury- Found in contaminated fish and seafood. It is linked to cancer and lower motor function, attention and verbal skills in children.
Although exposure to toxins is unavoidable, the best thing you can do is limit your exposure.
  • Use natural cleaning products and skin care products to limit the amount of toxins in your home.
  • Use water filters for your drinking water and shower.
  • Use glass cookware and stainless steel instead of non-stick. Do not reheat your food in plastic containers.
  • Make sure the seafood you buy is wild and not farm-raised.
  • If you cannot buy all organic products, the most important is to buy your meats and dairy products organic.
  • Avoid processed food as much possible. Remember, processed food is just that, PROCESSED. Chemicals are used to preserve the food and give it a longer shelf-life.
Here are some helpful links to get you started:

Info from: http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/06/01/backpack.cord.blood/index.html

Monday, June 7, 2010

Interval Training pt.1

Working in different gyms as a personal trainer has exposed me to many different approaches to working out. In terms of increasing strength and burning fat, high Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is vastly superior to other forms of exercise. It is extremely effective at burning calories because the heart rate is increased to a level optimal for fat utilization (burning fat!). Also, when you are in a resting period during the workout, the heart is given a chance to decrease its beats per minute (BPM). Increasing and decreasing your BPM makes the heart much more effective at pumping more oxygen per beat (VO2 max). One of the greatest benefits of interval training is that it makes your body burn calories for hours after your workout. HIIT is sometimes referred to as Surge or Burst Training and involves both cardio exercises as well as exercises with weights. Although HIIT is an approach to working out that has been around for a while, has not really caught on. Spending an hour walking on a treadmill is certainly better than doing nothing at all, but in terms of exercise, it definitely wastes a lot of valuable time. The most important distinction between HIIT and other forms of interval training is the amount of time needed for a workout. Excluding warmups and cool downs, HIIT lasts no longer than 20 minutes.

Some key points to make HIIT as effective as possible:
  • Keep it under 20 minutes - 20 minutes may not seem like a long enough time to get an effective workout in, but keep in mind that “the goal of HIIT is to keep an anaerobic state (without oxygen) for a long cumulative time.” During a 20 minute workout an average person would spend maybe 10 to 12 minutes at a hard pace, beginners would start at about 6 to 9 minutes and work their way up.
  • Know how hard you need to be working - During your sprint stages you should be working at a level 10 out of 10, beginners would want to start at about an 8 and work their way up to 10. During your rest stages you will want to drop down to around a 3. To get an idea of what each number would be think of it as 1 is pretty much standing still, 5 is a light jog and 10’s running as if a lion was chasing you for dinner.
  • Use major muscle groups - When doing HIIT, it is best to use larger muscle groups because the workout aims "to tap the energy sources found inside the muscle. The larger the muscle group being exercised, the more the benefit.” Muscle groups from largest to smallest are legs, back, core, chest, and arms.
  • Do HIIT every second day - It is important to allow your muscles to recover after a HIIT workout. Remember, your are working your muscles as hard as they can go for an extended amount of time. If your muscles are not given the opportunity to replenish all of the energy they lost, your next workout will be ineffective.
  • Remember to eat right - For a long time, it was thought that the most effective way to burn fat was to do HIIT on an empty stomach, but research has shown that those assumptions are totally incorrect. It is best to eat something light and easily digestible 30 minutes before training. I like a protein shake or a piece of grilled chicken.
  • Warm up - Warming up is extremely important when training. I cannot stress this enough. Imagine grabbing a rubber band that has been sitting in the freezer for a few hours. What would happen if you stretched the rubber band to its limits. SNAP! Now imagine what would happen if you stretched the rubber band lightly for a few minutes before going to its limits. Your muscles are the just like that rubber band. If you do not give them enough time to warm up they too can snap. Also, save stretching for when your workout is finished. Stretching when you’re cold will only lead to pulling a muscle.
  • Cool down - When I was younger, I never really understood the importance of a good cool down. It wasn’t until after a track practice my junior year of high school that I realized how valuable it was. We were doing 800 meter interval sprints with 400 meter rests. After we finished I just sat down without stretching. When I got up, my legs were like bags of cement and because my heart rate dropped too fast, I got sick. A cool down only takes 5 minutes and it will really help decrease soreness.
  • Alternate interval routines - Like all types of workouts, the routine needs to be changed after 6 to 8 weeks. There are several types of HIIT programs and changing them up will keep the muscles guessing and achieve greater results. The routines include 30 second intervals, 60 second intervals, tabata training, and Body for Life HIIT. These routines will be discussed in depth in future blogs.
References:
  1. http://www.intervaltraining.net/Interval_training_for_beginners.html
  2. http://www.intervaltraining.net/highintensityintervaltraining.html

Sunday, June 6, 2010

The Most Unhealthy Foods in Your Supermarket

  1. Margarine- The process to make margarine yellow and spreadable makes this food incredibly unhealthy. Margarine is the ultimate source of trans fat, which is known to elevate cholesterol and damage blood vessel walls. By using loopholes, companies are able to claim margarine is ‘virtually’ trans fat free. To read more about the process of making margarine and the truth about trans fats, click the following links: How is margarine made? and The truth about trans fats
  2. Breakfast Cereals- Although your kids love the sugary goodness, “McDonalds actually makes a more nutritious breakfast than cornflakes,” according to Peter Dingle, a Western Australian Toxicologist. Peter is also the author of My Dog Eats Better than Your Kids and The DEAL for Happier, Healthier, and Smarter Kids. Choice Magazine looked at the top 10 selling children’s breakfast cereals and concluded that they were so high in sugar and lacking nutrients that you may as well have a candy bar for breakfast, and I’m sure your kids would love that! The process to make the highly processed grains in cereal is called extrusion. This process damages the nutrients and proteins in the grain leaving it devoid of nutrients, highly toxic and not much more than empty calories. To read more about the dangers of the extrusion process follow this link: Dirty Secrets of the Food Processing Industry
  3. Refined Vegetable Oils- These oils are rich in omega-6 fatty acids. Diets high in omega-6 polyunsaturated vegetable oils have been linked to an increased risk of cancer, melanoma, learning disorders, allergies, immune suppression, heart disease, atherosclerosis (plaque in your arteries), and reproductive problems. Instead use oils high in omega 3 fatty acids, such as coconut oil, olive oil and good old fashioned butter.
  4. Doughnuts- Yes they taste amazing, but is it worth the heart disease, obesity and diabetes they cause? According to Carla Wolper, Nutritionist at the New York Obesity Research Centre, “When it comes to health, the only thing good about them is the hole.”
  5. Soda- The easiest way to stop yourself and your family from drinking it, stop buying it. The average can of soda contains about 10 teaspoons of sugar as well as artificial food coloring and sulphites, well known triggers of asthma and allergies. Diet sodas, which use artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, are excitotoxins to the brain and nervous system and are linked to an increased risk of obesity. Soda impairs calcification of growing bones. Soda shouldn't even be given to children as a treat, would you let your child eat 10 teaspoons of sugar as a treat?
  6. Aspartame (NutraSweet or Equal)- Aspartame is broken down in the body into a well known toxin, methanol (wood alcohol). Methanol is then converted into formaldehyde, which is a neurotoxin that causes damage to the nervous system. Methanol has been shown to cause visual problems and problems with DNA replication (which can cause cancer and birth defects). Some of the toxic reactions caused by Aspartame and acknowledged by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) include: ADHD, anxiety attacks, asthma, birth defects, blood sugar problems, chronic cough, depression, headaches and migraines, heart palpitations, hearing loss, insomnia, numbness or tingling of arms and legs, seizures, vertigo, vision loss, weight gain. It can also mimic or worsen the following diseases: fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis, lupus, diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome, chemical sensitivity, and epilepsy. To read more on the toxic effects of aspartame click the following link: http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/
  7. Soy Protein- If you want to include soy in your diet, use the whole bean or foods made from the whole bean. According to an article from Savvy Vegetarian, if you’re currently using textured vegetable proteins (TVP), found in most vegetarian products, you may want to find an alternative. The world’s biggest manufacturer of TVP is the world’s second largest chemical company, DuPont. Most of the soy in our country comes from genetically modified soy beans (genetically modified to make them resistant to the pesticides sprayed on them). Please read the research on Why You Should Avoid Soy
  8. Potato Chips- The oil that chips are cooked in is heated to extremely high temperatures, forming all sorts of toxic compounds. To make matters worse, the oil is filtered and reused again and again. Some of the toxic compounds produced include carcinogens (cancer producing chemicals) such as acrylamide and toxic fat molecules far worse than trans fats. Some brands of potato chips tested had levels of cancer causing acrylamide 500x more than the safe limit set by the World Health Organization for acrylamide in drinking water. After the chips are cooked, they are loaded with flavor enhancers such as MSG, stabilizers, preservatives and colorings.
  9. Fructose and sucrose- Every has heard of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). According to Dr. Robert Lustig, Professor of Pediatric Endocrinology at the University of California, research over the last 10 years has shown that fructose is NOT a healthy alternative to glucose. Dr. Lustig stated, “We’re being poisoned to death by fructose.” He describes fructose as behaving more like an alcohol and fat rather than sugar, “just like alcohol without the buzz.” A high fructose diet can cause liver damage, weight gain, elevated uric acid (gout), high blood pressure, and unhealthy cholesterol levels. Our consumption of fructose has increased from 250g/year in 1970 to 250kg/year in 2003. Wonder why obesity is on the rise? Choose a piece of fruit over a glass of fruit juice and check the labels of food you buy. You’ll be surprised how many items have HFCS in them.
  10. Fat Free and Diet Foods- A diet too low in fat leaves you feeling depressed and battling food cravings, which both do not aid in weigh loss. Fat makes food taste good, so when they remove fat from foods, they have to load them up with sugar, salt, MSG and other artificial sweeteners to make them taste better. Avoid processed, boxed foods more than fat. You’ll be surprised how much easier weight loss is when cravings are reduced.

Remember, you don’t have to completely deprive yourself of everything on the list. Just cut them out as much as possible. You can enjoy a few “vacation meals” each week when the majority of your meals are healthy.


References:
1. http://goodhealthnaturally.nourished.com.au/the-most-unhealthy-foods-in-your-supermarket-part-1/
2. http://goodhealthnaturally.nourished.com.au/the-most-unhealthy-foods-in-your-supermarket-part-2/
3. Escrich E, et al. 2006. Are the olive oil and other dietary lipids related to cancer? Experimental evidence. Clinical and Translational Oncology.
4. Peskin BS, Carter MJ. 2008. Chronic cellular hypoxia as the prime cause of cancer: what is the de-oxygenating role of adulterated and improper ratios of polyunsaturated fatty acids when incorporated into cell membranes? Medical Hypothises.
5. Vinceti M et al. 2005. A population-based case-control study of diet and melanoma risk in northern Italy. Public Health and Nutrition.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

'Dirty dozen' and 'Clean 15'

If you're eating non-organic lettuce, you may be ingesting 67 pesticides, according to a new report from theEnvironmental Work Group (EWG). The fruit and vegetables termed the "Dirty Dozen," contain 47 to 67 pesticides per serving. Amy Rosenthal from EWG said, "The list is based on pesticide tests conducted after the produce was washed with USDA high-power pressure water system. The numbers reflect the closest thing to what consumers are buying at the store." Although the President's Cancer Panel recently recommended that consumers eat produce without pesticides to reduce their risk of getting cancer and other diseases, the low levels of pesticides found on even the Dirty Dozen are government-approved amounts. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) condones the use of pesticides with 'reasonable certainty of no harm,' but studies show associations between pesticides and health problems such as caner, attention-deficit disorder (ADD), nervous system disorders and a weakened immune system. Children's growing brains are the most vulnerable to pesticides in food. "A kid's brain goes through extraordinary development, and if pesticides get into the brain, it can cause damage," said Dr. Philip Landrigan, department of preventive medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. "We've found that washing doesn't do much. Peeling can help, although you have to take into account that the pesticides are in the water, so they can be inside the fruit because of the soil," said Rosenthal. If you are on a budget and cannot afford to buy everything organic, just focus on buying the "dirty dozen" organic and the rest of your produce non-organic. "You can reduce your exposure to pesticides by up to 80 percent by buying the organic version of the Dirty Dozen," Rosenthal said.

The Dirty Dozen (High pesticide levels, should buy organic)
Celery
Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Domestic blueberries
Nectarines
Sweet bell peppers
Spinach, kale and collard greens
Cherries
Potatoes
Imported grapes
Lettuce

The Clean 15 (Low pesticide levels, ok to buy non-organic)
Onions
Avocados
Sweet corn
Pineapples
Mango
Sweet peas
Asparagus
Kiwi fruit
Cabbage
Eggplant
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Grapefruit
Sweet potatoes
Sweet onions

http://www.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/06/01/dirty.dozen.produce.pesticide/index.html

Friday, June 4, 2010

The remaking of an unhealthy life

Being constantly sick, feeling completely vulnerable and helpless in your own body is no way to live life. It is awful to be one of those people who is always sick, to be in a room with one person who has a cold and knowing you will end up with that cold. Struggling with recurrent colds, strep infections, bronchitis, sinus infections, the flu, asthma, allergies, thinking you are just destined for a life of sickness. But what if you could take control of your health? What if you were responsible for the unhealthy state of your body? Would you do something about it? Could you open up your eyes to a completely new concept, that health comes from within? Your body has the amazing ability to heal itself, we are meant to be healthy, not sick and diseased. Unfortunately, most of the time we are doing everything against what our body is trying to accomplish. But if we learn how to eat right, exercise, manage stress, minimize exposure to toxins, and remove interference to the nervous system, we allow our bodies to function the way they are designed to. We shift to living a lifestyle of health, being proactive instead of reactive when sickness develops. Wouldn't it be nice to not have to take any medication, to know that your immune system is strong and you are in control of your health. It is empowering and makes life more enjoyable to not have to worry about state of your body. It allows you to be more focused, more energetic, and more alive than ever before. My passion is to help others begin their transformation to achieve a life of abundant health, because I was that person who was always sick. I was that person constantly on medication, helpless, feeling destined for a life of sickness and disease. That is until I took control of my health, I took responsibility for the unhealthy state of my body and now am on the road to health instead of the one leading to sickness and disease. I hope you will choose the road to health, and I hope to help you along your journey.