Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is truly one of nature's gifts - widely used as a food product and skin moisturizer. Cocopura� Extra Virgin Coconut Oil is unique as it contains antiviral, antimicrobial, and antibacterial properties. Health-conscious chefs prize coconut oil for its extremely high flash point, zero trans-fatty acids, and extremely rich source of Medium-Chain Fatty Acids (MCT's) - which are broken down efficiently by the body, providing an immediate source of energy.

Cocopura's oil is hand-pressed by local coconut farmers in the South Pacific, producing a truly raw cold-pressed coconut oil with full flavor and heavenly aromas. Cocopura is certified organic and Rawfood.com are proud supporters of fair trade and sustainable living practices.

Olive Oils on Sale!

The time is here to stock up on Raw Olive Oils for your holiday recipes. Through the end of November save on Bariani and Olio Beato olive oils!
Here is what Eating for Beauty has to say of olive oil:
Olives are perhaps the greatest beautifying food of all. Olives and their oil are one of the highest natural sources of Vitamin E. They are an alkaline fat source that is also high in protein. Investigators at Harvard conducted a survey of Greek women to determine if their abundant consumption of olive oil could also increase cancer risk. Their findings indicated that olive oil had an opposite effect. They concluded that the breast cancer risk for women who consume olive oil more than once per day is reduced by 25 percent when compared to women who consume olive oil less frequently.

Turn Ordinary Water into 'Xtreme Body Fuel'!

In my last post I mentioned purified water. Purified water has the advantage of removing dangerous nitrates - often leaching into the water table from fertilizers from farming and our lawns,
organic solvents and chemicals that are usually carcinogenic - including MTBE found in gasoline that also often leaks into the water table, and heavy metals (lead, arsenic, mercury, and others that you definitely do not want in your body!).

The trouble is that all the healthy minerals are also removed in the process of purification. In time, drinking purified water without the minerals added,forces the minerals inside your cells to come out which then depletes all of the cells of their needed minerals. The bottom line is, you have no pollutants with purified water, but your cells are losing their minerals.

I recently came across an amazing product named Xooma X2O. By adding Xooma to purified water, you get the best of both worlds: highly absorbable essential minerals without the additional pollutants that the purification has removed. So what is X2O?

X20 is derived from pre-ionized Coral Calcium which when added to the water of your choice will lower the surface tension (make the water "wetter"), add needed essential minerals in a highly absorbable form that is often missing from our diets, and finally changes the pH of the water from about 7.0 to about 9.9.

X2O comes in the form of a sachet (tea bag) that is simply added to regular water or any non-carbonated beverage. I find it really amazing.

To find out more, simply take your free, no obligation tour here: X2O Tour

Drink Water!

A variety of symptoms can be traced to a lack of water intake. Most people showing these symptoms (constipation, dry and itchy skin, acne, nose bleeds, repeated urinary tract infections, dry and unproductive coughs, constant sneezing, sinus pressure and headaches .. just to name a few) are drinking plenty of fluids: coffee, soda, tea and juice. But none are drinking enough water.

Water is required by every cell in the body as nourishment and to remove wastes. When there is not enough water in the body, it tries to limit the amount it loses through breathing, mucous production, urination, perspiration and bowel movements.

Water is needed for breathing because the lungs require humid air to do their work. The body has to moisturize the air before it reaches the lungs and does so through the mucous membranes lining the nasal passages and the bronchi. If there is less fluid available, the mucous lining becomes drier. This in turn irritates the lungs, causing them to become more reactive to irritants, and less resistant to viruses and bacteria. Then comes dry cough and bronchitis.

It is estimated that 3-4 cups of water are lost through breathing every day, and you can add 2-3 more cups in the winter time when air is drier, and the heating systems decrease humidity even more.

Water is also required to remove various toxins from the body through urination. It is a common misunderstanding that the more water we drink, the harder it is on the kidneys. Lack of water also causes constipation. The increase in body toxin levels can cause headaches and fatigue. The attempt by the body to remove excess levels of unwanted chemicals through the skin can cause acne and will aggravate eczema.

The easiest solution is to drink more water. Herbal teas and diluted fruit juices (1/3 fruit juice to 2/3 water) can be substituted for some of the water, but you can't avoid plain water, so you'd better get used to it.

What type of water is best to drink? My first choice would be pure filtered water. Then bottled mineral or spring water. Maybe distilled water once in a while, and I'd avoid tap water alltogether.

Take care of your body and drink water!

The Dangers of Artificial Sweeteners, Part 2

The other day I was talking to a bunch of women, and I told them about how bad refined sugar is for our health. I added that artificial sweeteners are not a real solution, either, naming aspartame, and giving them some info from my last post. One of them, relieved, said: "Oh, great, I only use Splenda". I told her not to be so happy about it, as I had read that it wasn't that good at all, but at that time I did not have any facts to support my statement. So I began to search, and I really wanted to find pros and cons alike. Well, Splenda's own website was about the only one with positive info.
They have a really nice website, somehow it reminded me of the house of the wicked witch from "Hansel and Gretel".
Let's see what they say about the safety of sucralose (its trade name is Splenda, but its included in a wide variety of food items):

McNeil Nutritionals, LLC is committed to developing innovative nutritional products, such as the SPLENDA® Sweetener Products, that provide important health and lifestyle benefits to consumers. The company is extremely proud of the strong clinical database that supports the safety of sucralose, the sweetening ingredient in all SPLENDA® Sweetener Products, and we recognize that this strong safety evidence is one of the many reasons why SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener has been the number-one low-calorie sweetener in the U.S. marketplace for more than three years.

Unfortunately, I found too many websites that contradict this statement. Unlike the manufacturers of Splenda, they don't have (well, most of them don't) any financial gain from telling that sucralose is in fact a chemical that can do you more harm than good.
Instead of providing explanations taken from other websites, let me paste here some of the sites I found and are worth reading:
http://www.splendasickness.blogspot.com/
http://www.womentowomen.com/nutritionandweightloss/splenda.asp
http://www.wnho.net/splenda.htm

I don't know for you, but I'll stick with raw honey and Stevia.

The Dangers of Artificial Sweeteners, Part 1

When people decide to lose weight, one of the first changes many make to their diet is to add artificial sweeteners in place of sugar. We have been told by the government that artificial sweeteners are safe, but are there hidden dangers to this additive? Let’s take a closer look at artificial sweeteners, specifically aspartame.

In an earlier post I have already published an article about the connection of Nutrasweet and brain tumors (Click here to read it).

Aspartame is made up of three components. Fifty percent is phenylalanine, forty percent is aspartic acid, and ten percent is methanol, or wood alcohol. Phenylalanine and aspartic acid are both amino acids. Amino acids are naturally found in the food we eat, specifically in the proteins. They are the building blocks for our bodies, and help us build tissue and muscles. But, in nature, amino acids are not ingested singularly. Many types of amino acids are joined together to form protein chains, and that is what we ingest when we sit down to eat. In aspartame, Phenylalanine and aspartic acid are the only amino acids being introduced to the body. There is no protein chain, just singular amino acids. It has been found that aspartic acid (when not bound into a protein chain) enters the central nervous system in high concentration and causes the neurons to begin firing rapidly. Many times, it excites the neurons so completely, that the cell dies. High levels of aspartic acid have been found to cause headaches, mental confusion, balance problems, and even seizures. And the rest of your body fares no better. Outside the central nervous system, isolated aspartic acid has been found to accelerate diseases such as cancer, coronary artery disease and arthritis. Fortunately, the effects are cumulative. So, if you stop ingesting isolated aspartic acid, then the continuing damage will also cease.

High levels of isolated phenylalanine can be quite dangerous as well. Research has found that excessive levels of this isolated amino acid cause a decrease in the amount of serotonin in our brains. Decreased serotonin often leads to depression and other emotional disorders. When phenylalanine is exposed to warm temperatures, or is stored for a long time, it breaks down into diketopiperazine (DKP), which is a known carcinogen. It is also important to note that in pregnant women, phenylalanine easily crosses the placental barrier, and in children under one, also crosses the blood-brain barrier. Infants exposed to high levels of phenylalanine during the pregnancy and later through their mother's milk, have an increased risk of birth defects and irreversible brain damage.

The third component of aspartame is methanol. Methanol is commonly known as wood alcohol. It is a colorless liquid and is both poisonous and flammable. Long-term exposure to methanol causes blindness and death. Early symptoms of methanol poisoning include headaches, ear buzzing, dizziness, nausea, gastrointestinal problems, chills, memory lapses, and numbness in the extremities. One particularly scary aspect of methanol is that at cold temperatures it creates formaldehyde. The EPA considers methanol a "cumulative poison", and recommends a limit of no more than 7.8mg per day. To put this in perspective, one liter of diet soda contains 56mg of methanol; over seven times the EPA stated limit. By combining several diet sodas, a couple of packages of aspartame in morning coffee, and consuming "diet" food during the day, most consumers are exposed to considerably more methanol than the 7.8mg per day limit.

With what we know so far, you may be wondering why the FDA would approve it if it wasn't safe. Instead of giving you a straight answer, I'm going to outline just a few of the events that occurred during the FDA approval process of aspartame. In 1965, James Schlatter, a chemist at the G.D. Searle Company, stumbled across aspartame while attempting to create a new ulcer drug. It was initially approved for use in dry goods on July 26, 1974. But researchers questioned the practices of the G.D. Searle Company, and the FDA put the approval on hold pending further investigation. A task force was created to examine aspartame. The ultimate report from that task force found that there were serious deficiencies in the research done by the Searle Company. The task force recommended that G.D. Searle face a Grand Jury for further inquiry in their testing procedures. In 1976, a second task force was created, this time finding the G.D. Searle Company guilty of faulty and fraudulent product testing, and knowingly misrepresenting product testing and findings. Officials at the Searle Company turned to Donald Rumsfeld, who had worked with both the Nixon and Ford administrations, and elected him as chairman, hoping to smooth the way and avoid criminal prosecution. In 1977, the FDA appointed U.S. Attorney Samuel Skinner to investigate Searle's testing procedures. After a meeting with the Searle attorneys, Samuel Skinner left the FDA and accepted a position with Searle's law firm. The FDA then appointed U.S. Attorney William Conlon to take Skinner's place. Mr. Conlon sat on the case and did nothing, until he left the FDA in 1979 and also joined Searle's law firm. In 1981, FDA Commissioner Arthur Hayes, Jr., approved aspartame for use in dry foods and as a tabletop sweetener. At that time, three FDA scientists came forward to oppose the approval, based on their in-house studies of the additive. Hayes ignored these reports and aspartame was approved. Arthur Hayes then left the FDA and took a position as a senior medical consultant for the public relations firm for the G.D. Searle Company. Ultimately, the statue of limitations ran out on prosecuting the G.D. Searle Company for wrongdoing.

So, are there hidden dangers associated with the use of aspartame? I'll let you decide. Next time we´ll learn more about Splenda and sucralose.

Exercise - Interval Training

When it comes to exercise, the word “intervals” puts fear in many people’s minds. Intervals are sometimes misunderstood but adding them to your exercise program can help you burn fat and get in shape quicker.

Intervals are not for everyone. To begin performing intervals, you should be in good condition and a physical from your doctor is highly recommended.

What are intervals?

The easiest definition would be periods of high intensity exercise followed by recovery periods of low intensity exercise.

Here's an example. You are following a walking program and have been walking briskly for thirty minutes a day, four days a week. You feel pretty good but would like to lose weight a little quicker.

Intervals might be perfect for you. Begin your regular walking program and, after five minutes, jog for ten, twenty, thirty seconds or more. Your heart rate will begin to increase and your breathing will pick up after this period, return to walking briskly until you have completely recovered. You then begin to jog again.

In the beginning you may only want to perform two or three of these short jogs. That's fine. Do what's comfortable for you. Later, as you become more accustomed to this routine, you can add more jogs or increase the length of time you jog or both.

During each period of jogging, your heart rate has increased. When you stop jogging and continue walking, your heart rate will be at an increased rate for a minute or so. This is an added benefit. During aerobic exercise you want your heart rate to increase, which makes it stronger and makes you healthier.

Intervals work great on a treadmill. You can increase the speed for however long you want, or you can increase the height, so you are walking at the same pace only going uphill.

This is interval training at a low level but you still get benefits from it. You can follow a similar routine in your other aerobic exercise as well.

For instance, if you are riding a bike for exercise, every so often pedal faster until you begin breathing heavier, and then return to riding as before.

You can see that interval training is not only for athletes. It's one of the fastest and most effective means of reaching a top level of fitness and decreasing body fat.

Do these three or four days a week and watch your fitness level go up while your pounds begin to disappear.

Skin Cancer Awareness

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers. Approximately one in six people will develop skin cancer. Medical experts unanimously agree that overexposure to sunlight is the main culprit. Other factors include sunburn with blistering especially during childhood, skin creams that contain tar if used over a prolonged period, repeated X-rays, exposure to coal and arsenic, radiation, chemotherapy and family history. Freckles with fair skin that doesn't tan very easily can also put one at risk.

Most skin cancers grow slowly. It is imperative you inspect your body on a regular basis for anything unusual. Stand in front of a full length mirror and with a hand held mirror check out every inch of your skin. Have someone check the top of your head as well. You should know your body in detail, so that when something different rears its ugly head, you notice it immediately!

Watch for any unusual spots. Look for lesions, moles or spots that are asymmetrical in shape. Observe for any colored spot that grows bigger or develops an uneven color or irregular, ragged edge. Look for any nodules or patches that are red and scaly, as this can be a squamous cell carcinoma which can metastasize (spread). Other symptoms to look for are changes in the surface of a mole. If you notice the mole is raised above the skin and has a rough surface, is scaly, oozing, bleeding or there is development of bumps on any mole, seek medical attention. In other words anything that develops that wasn't on your body before should be investigated by your physician.

Skin cancer has a high cure rate if caught early. Excision of the lesion is the most common treatment. Self examination is the key to early detection with a regular visit to your doctor for check ups.

The best methods to avoid skin cancer are to avoid the sun, especially during the hottest part of the day from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Wear a sunscreen if you are out doors with an SPF of at least 15 or more, applied thirty minutes before going into the sun. Put the sunscreen everywhere the suns rays will hit you. Don't forget your ears and men don't forget any bald areas on top of your head. If you have to be out in the sun, use a wide brimmed hat or cap. Wear sunglasses to protect your eyes from the sun. Choose sunglasses that protect against both UVA and UVB rays. Sunglasses can help prevent cataracts as well. Wear long sleeve shirts and pants if it is not sweltering hot, to better protect your body. Don't use tanning salons as they can damage your skin just like the sun.

Of course there is the controversy that you need some sun in order NOT to be vitamin D deficient. I know it is hard at times to completely avoid the sun. A few minutes of sun occasionally with a good sun screen, should not be too harmful, as long as you watch the time of day and check your body on a regular basis. Also too much sun can contribute to wrinkles. Avoidance is best, but not always possible. Hence, just be very careful and check, check, check your body regularly (monthly if possible). Go to your doctor immediately when you notice any irregularities. Keep healthy!

Tonic Herbs: Ginseng

Ginseng root is probably the most familiar tonic herb. There are several types of Ginseng, all of which share many characteristics.

Panax Ginseng is the most famous of the Ginsengs. It is most often available as "Red" or "White" Ginseng. (The difference between Red Ginseng and White Ginseng is how the roots are treated after harvesting.)

Panax Ginseng has a very long history as a tonic herb, going back thousands of years. The word "Panax" comes from the same root as panacea, (cure-all), and was used to describe the many, many uses of ginseng.

There is also a Siberian Ginseng. Eleutherococcus Senticosus (often called Eletheuro) may be the most researched herb on the planet. This was the first herb described as an adaptogen. (Acanthopanax Gracilistylus is also sold under the name Siberian Ginseng, and shares many properties with Eleuthero.)

A few effects of Siberian Ginseng are: increases endurance; helps insomnia; lowers blood pressure; improves blood circulation; improves blood flow to the brain. (A full listing would take several pages.)

Some herbalists say Siberian Ginseng is the safest of the Ginsengs. It is often used with elderly or infirm individuals, to improve their energy levels.

There is also an American Ginseng, Panax Quinquefolium, which once grew wild in great abundance. Over-harvesting has made wild American Ginseng scarce. Botanically, this is the closest to Panax Ginseng.

All these varieties function as adaptogens, and tonify a range of body systems. They are all safe to use, and are suitable for long term use.

Some people find that Panax Ginseng over-stimulates them, and find Siberian Ginseng to be a better choice.

All of the Ginsengs are available as raw herbs, in capsules and freeze dried powders. Capsules and powders are the easiest to use, simply follow the manufacturer's directions. Some herbalists say that using standardized extracts gives you less benefit than using the whole root.

Trying one or more of the Ginsengs is a good way to introduce yourself to the benefits of herbal tonics.

Vitamin C – The Secret Nutrient

How could vitamin C be a secret? Everybody knows we need it to stay alive and healthy. For example, most people are aware of its role in preventing scurvy. Sailors on long, ocean-going voyages commonly got scurvy, so in 1795 the British Navy began issuing limes, which are full of vitamin C, to its sailors for this very reason. (Brits are called “Limeys,” right?)

However, here is the secret that drug companies hope the general populace never finds out. Vitamin C can do far more than merely keeping humans from bruising easily and having bleeding gums, loose teeth, poor immune systems, difficulty healing and mild anemia.

It turns out that vitamin C is not just one of the least toxic substances that exist, but in fact it should actually be its very own food group, right up there with proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. It’s water soluble and is essential for life. Vitamin C is far less dangerous than common table salt and is about as necessary for true health as water.

It’s all a matter of dosage. Some researchers have criticized dosages recommended by government agencies because they don’t take weight and age differences into account and because they only represent the amount needed to prevent acute forms of vitamin deficiency disease instead of either lower levels of the disease or the amounts needed to prevent other diseases. Nor do they address amounts needed for optimal health, as they are solely based on levels that are slightly above malnourishment. Because most people are content with the guidelines of the governmental agencies, the benefits of much higher doses are rarely considered.

Most animals make as much vitamin C right in their own bodies as they need in order to have immune systems and self-healing abilities people can only envy. Why can’t humans do the same thing? Millions of years ago, the ancestors of modern homo-sapiens had an evolutionary hiccup. They lost the ability to manufacture vitamin C in their own bodies, so they started needing to get it from the food they eat.

This was fine until the ice age made it difficult to get vitamin C all year round. Evolution compensated by allowing humans to patch up fragile blood vessels (remember that vitamin C prevents bruising) with cholesterol. When summer came along, and vitamin C was plentiful, the cholesterol patches on the blood vessels dissolved. The hardening arteries softened right up again.

Alas, the “modern” diet of humankind today makes the caveman’s diet look like the heights of good nutrition. Usually people don’t get nearly enough vitamin C to dissolve arterial plaque, also called arteriosclerosis. Nor do they get enough vitamin C for their bodies and immune systems to really engage in rebuilding themselves from the inside out. As a result, people get degenerative diseases and age before they really need to.

Why hasn’t this been in the news? It’s simple. Vitamin C is incredibly inexpensive. Put another way, promoting it is not lucrative. For example, a heart attack is worth tens of thousands of dollars to the health care system, but heart attacks can often be avoided by a daily intake of vitamin C that adds up to mere tens of dollars. There’s just no money to be made by selling preventive over the counter vitamin C compared to selling expensive prescription heart medications.

This example focuses on heart disease, but vitamin C has far broader “healing” powers. It is a safe way to treat viral diseases and works very effectively against poisoning. There is certainly evidence that it is useful in preventing lead poisoning. There is a high probability that it prevents the formation of cataracts. Most people are aware that it helps with colds and flu. And there is a growing body of evidence of its toxicity to cancer cells in high, intravenous doses.

It is almost impossible to get enough vitamin C for optimum health from diet alone. Many more details can be found by using an internet search engine and searching for “Linus Pauling” and “Vitamin C.”

How much vitamin C should be taken daily? Authorities vary widely in their recommendations, but a good benchmark is something called “Bowel Tolerance.” This simply means taking as much vitamin C as possible before starting to experience stool looseness. For most people, this is about 6,000 to 12,000 mg per day. It’s helpful to take vitamin C several times throughout the day instead of all at once because the body flushes it out very quickly.