Organic, Cage-Free, Free-Range, or Pasture-Raised?

Organic, Cage-Free, Free-Range, or Pasture-Raised?

When it comes to chicken, there are a number of designations floating around, such as “organic,” “free-range,” “pastured” and “cage-free.” But while you may think these are interchangeable, they’re actually not. In many ways these labels are little more than creative advertising.

The definitions of "free-range" are such that the commercial egg industry can run industrial farm egg laying facilities and still call them "free-range" eggs, despite the fact that the birds' foraging conditions are far from what you'd call natural. For example, regulations on the use of the term "free-range" do not specify the amount of time the hens must spend outdoors or the amount of outdoor space each hen must have access to. Nor do they indicate that the hen must have access to a pasture diet.

True free-range hens (and eggs), now increasingly referred to as “pasture-raised,” are from hens that roam freely outdoors on a pasture where they can forage for their natural diet, which includes seeds, green plants, insects, and worms.

Large commercial egg facilities typically house tens of thousands of hens and can even go up to hundreds of thousands of hens. Obviously they cannot allow all of them to forage freely. They can still be called “cage-free” or “free-range” though, if they’re not confined to an individual cage. But these labels say nothing about the conditions they ARE raised in, which are still deplorable. So, while flimsy definitions of "free range" and “cage-free” allow such facilities to sell their products as free range, please beware that a hen that is let outside into a barren lot for mere minutes a day, and is fed a diet of corn, soy, cottonseed meals and synthetic additives is NOT a free-range hen, and simply will not produce the same quality meat and/or eggs as its foraging counterpart.

Certified organic poultry is also the only poultry product that is 100 percent guaranteed to be antibiotic-free.¹⁴

So to summarize, what you’re really looking for is chicken and eggs that are both certified organic and true pasture-raised. Barring organic certification, which is cost-prohibitive for many small farmers, you could just make sure the farmer raises his chickens according to organic, free-range standards, allowing his flock to forage freely for their natural diet, and aren’t fed antibiotics, corn and soy.

 

Five Foods that Fight Cancer

Certain proteins within our immune system hold the precise instructions needed to destroy cancerous tumours. 

In a healthy body, this inherent ability is always present and always effective without the use of drugs. 

However, these proteins can be rendered ineffective if cells experience uncontrolled growth though damage or mutations to DNA or if toxins through food and chemical pollution override the immune system's natural function.

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University have finally helped identify and support previous evidence which demonstrated how foods suppresses tumour development during immune surveillance, the immune system's process of patrolling the body for cancer cells.

Those who subscribe to conventional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation have little understanding of how powerful the body is at healing itself if left to its own devices with the right nutrition.

Scientists have recently found that healthy cells damaged by chemotherapy secreted more of a protein which boosts cancer cell survival. Chemotherapy has been proven to cause cancer cells to interact with nearby tumour cells and cause them to grow, invade, and importantly, resist subsequent therapy.

In a study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, scientists identified a molecule, known as TIC10, which activates a protein that helps fight the disease. The protein, called TRAIL (tumour-necrosis-factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand) suppresses tumour development it can actually cross the blood-brain barrier, which separates the main circulatory system from the brain.

Through the body's infinite wisdom, its systems recognize foreign invaders and poisons such as chemotherapy which are not beneficial for the brain. Many cancer drugs are consequently blocked from passing the blood-brain barrier. However, TRAIL is permitted passage due to its beneficial effects on the immune system. 

Another positive is that TIC10 does not just activate the TRAIL gene in cancerous cells, but also in healthy ones. This is known as the 'bystander effect' - i.e. where cells near cancerous cells are also killed. Nearby healthy cells are also given a boost to increase the number of cancer-killing TRAIL receptors on their cell surface. 

FOODS THAT INHIBIT TUMORS

The key is to not succumb to selective cancer therapy or drug treatments based on clinical trials with artificially created versions of the protein. 

Food is the body's medicine, not drugs. All you need to do is seek those powerful foods which naturally inhibit tumor necrosis factor (TNF) of which there are several.

1. Turmeric

Curcumin, possibly the most powerful antioxidant known from the popular Indian spice Turmeric, has countless health benefits. A recent study led by a research team in Munich showed that it can also inhibit formation of metastases.

Curcumin exerts anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects by inhibiting tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), suggesting that its effect on endothelial function may be mediated by the suppression of inflammation and/or oxidative stress via down-regulation of TNF-alpha. 

One of the most comprehensive summaries of a review of 700 turmeric studies to date was published by the respected ethnobotanist James A. Duke, Phd. He showed that turmeric appears to outperform many pharmaceuticals in its effects against several chronic, debilitating diseases, and does so with virtually no adverse side effects. 

2. Grapes and Resveratrol

Resveratrol is a phenolic compound that contributes to the antioxidant potential of red grapes.

Resveratrol is not only an antioxidant and antimutagen, but also reduces oxidant-caused cell death. Resveratrol has been shown to inhibit production of nitric oxide and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-A) by lipopolysaccharide-stimulated Kuppfer cells. Kuppfer cells are macrophages fixed in place in the liver. Their chronic overproduction of nitric oxide and TNF-A due to chronic infection can cause severe liver damage. 

Perhaps Resveratrol's most important property is its ability to inhibit cyclooxygenase-2 (CoX-2). CoX-2 is related to cancers and abnormal growths in the intestinal tract. Natural CoX-2 inhibitors such as resveratrol have been shown to reduce the occurrence of cancers and pre-cancerous growths. So while pharmaceutical companies race to find complex agents that inhibit CoX-2, the ingredient is already present in red grapes which if consumed daily (or via organic grape juice) will protect against tumors naturally.

3. Green Tea

The health benefits of green tea are due to the presence of a group of plant flavonoids called catechins. Of particular interest to researchers is epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate (EGCG), the primary catechin in green tea. For example, South Korean researchers have found that EGCG blocks TNF naturally by interfering with the ability of certain pro-inflammatory chemicals to bind to cells of smooth muscle tissue of the vascular system. In a 2009 study conducted by the Chonbuk National University Medical School, it was noted that the specific mechanism of action of EGCG in terms of blocking TNF is the suppression of fractalkine, an inflammatory agent specifically involved in the development of arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.

4. Tomatoes 

Regular consumption of tomato and its products is being consistently associated with lower risk of several types of cancer and, to a lesser extent, coronary heart disease. Among the many tomato components credited with healthful properties, carotenoids and particularly lycopene are being actively investigated. 

Modest effects of the regular intake of a tomato juice provides small amounts of carotenoids which were found on the production of inflammatory mediators, such as TNF-alpha. TNF-alpha production by whole blood was found to be more than 30% lower after almost a month of consuming raw tomato juice.

5. Raw Fruits and Veggies

There is sufficient evidence to indicate that a diet consisting of foods high in natural antioxidants such as raw fruits and vegetables provide anti-inflammatory benefits. The higher the intake the more they are associated with significant reductions in levels of markers of inflammation, including C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha).
Any fruits or vegetables (preferably dark colored) which are a good source of indole-3-carbinol, a chemical that boosts DNA repair in cells, blocks the growth of cancer cells. A team of researchers at Ohio State University announced that anthocyanins, the compounds that give cabbage its purple color are capable of cutting the growth of colon cancer cells both in vitro and in rats by 50%-100%, with certain extracts even destroying up to 20% of the cancer cells while leaving healthy surrounding cells intact.

Sources for this article:
live.psu.edu
dailymail.co.uk
sciencemag.org 
ehow.com

- See more at: http://www.whydontyoutrythis.com/2013/02/5-foods-that-kill-cancer-and-help-body-destroy-tumours.html#sthash.Qc2PnqBT.dpuf

Fake Adulterated Foods

Olive Oil

Fake-Out: Olive oil is one of the most adulterated foods, says Lipp, particularly extra-virgin olive oil. According to the USP database, products being sold as olive oil have been shown to instead be soybean, corn, sunflower, safflower, canola, or palm oil, and in one case, even lard. Some products were olive oil thinned out with these ingredients; others were combinations of those oils with no olive oil present. Particularly dangerous for people with nut allergies, researchers have detected peanut and hazelnut oils marketed as olive oil, too.

Fix It: Tom Mueller, author of the book Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil (W.W. Norton & Company, 2011), recommends a few tricks that can reduce (but not eliminate) your chances of buying fake olive oil on his website, truthinoliveoil.com. Look for a harvest date, the name of the producer, and the country of origin on a bottle, all of which give you specific info on who made the oil and where. Also, look for a "DOP" (Protected Designation of Origin) seal on European oils or a state certification, such as the California Olive Oil Council, on oils made in the U.S. Finally, Mueller says that organic olive oils are less susceptible to fraud than conventional.

Sweeteners

Fake-Out: Honey, maple syrup, and other sugary sweeteners are easy to fake, says Lipp. "The most desirable feature of these is being sweet," he says, "so it's common for producers to add high-fructose corn syrup [HFCS] or normal household sugar to get that sweetness." Both honey and maple syrup have been thinned out with HFCS, without that ingredient being disclosed on labels. According to investigations byFood Safety News, 75 percent of the honey sold in the U.S. has been so heavily processed that any of the characteristics that define it as honey by federal law, such as the presence of pollen, have been removed. Translation: Some of those bears are filled with what is essentially liquid sugar.

Fix It: Buy your sweeteners close to the source. Farmer's markets allow you to buy maple syrup and honey directly from producers who can vouch for their products. And when that's not an option, buy organic.Food Safety News found that organic honeys tested all contained high pollen counts (the mark of a high-quality product).

Spices

Fake-Out: The spice world is fraught with fraud, says Lipp. His database has logged cases of lead being added to paprika, turmeric being bulked up with rice flour, and ground black pepper containing bits of twigs and buckwheat flour. But perhaps the most doctored spice of all is the über-expensive saffron. The prized threads are painstakingly hand-harvested from the stigmata of saffron crocus flowers, some 43,000 of which are required to produce a single pound of the spice. Sometimes, stigmata from other flowers are added to bunches of whole saffron, while powdered saffron is often adulterated with other flowers like marigolds or calendula, or even other spices like turmeric and onion powder. One independent test in the UK revealed that as much as 90 percent of some saffron samples weren't actually saffron.

Fix It: Stick with whole spices that you grind yourself, Lipp says, which allows you to ID any foreign material. As for saffron, you can try finding DOP-certified Spanish saffron, which is the most commonly available form sold in the U.S. It can sell for as much as $25 or more for 1/3-ounce, so if a price seems too good to be true, what's being sold probably isn't actual saffron.

Coffee

Fake-Out: During the Depression and even before, when times got tough, enterprising coffee drinkers would stretch their expensive java supplies by adding ground-up sweet potatoes, chicory root, or roasted beans. Nowadays, food companies are doing the same—and not telling you. Coffee adulteration is quite common, the USP has found, particularly in ground and instant forms.

Fix It: As with spices, buy your coffee in whole-bean form, or buy whole beans and have them ground at the store or café. It's harder to include adulterants when a kernel of corn or an acorn looks so drastically different from a coffee bean.

Fish

Fake-Out: Selling wild Alaskan salmon that's actually farmed Atlantic salmon or caviar that's actually catfish roe isn't uncommon. The USP database has about 60 cases in which fish are being passed off as something else. And it's not just the USP database that has zeroed in on seafood fraud. The nonprofit Oceana has DNA-tested grocery store, restaurant, and sushi bar seafood offerings in cities across the U.S., finding that 31 to 55 percent of the time you aren't getting what you ordered. Sometimes the swaps can be dangerous. In Oceana's most recent tests, "red snapper" was frequently tilefish, a high-mercury fish that pregnant women and children should avoid, and "white tuna" was escolar, a fish that can cause acute gastrointestinal problems.

Fix It: Stick with large national grocery chains for your seafood fix, since they have internal audits that make seafood fraud less likely, and when dining out, stay with land-based proteins. Oceana's seafood-fraud report found that 39 percent of seafood samples purchased at regular restaurants and a whopping 76 percent from sushi restaurants were mislabeled.

Basmati Rice

Fake-Out: While the USP has uncovered weird instances of rice adulteration—one case involved fake rice made from plastic resin and potato starch—it's basmati rice that's most prone to food fakery. The rice is low yielding, highly susceptible to temperature, and is harvested for only one month every year in the Himalayan foothills, and then it gets aged for nine months before it's sold. So it's not surprising that USP has documented numerous instances in which other varieties of long-grain rice are being mixed in with packages of basmati but advertised as the real thing. An Indian research firm conducted DNA tests on American basmati rice brands and found that only 15 percent of them contained 100-percent basmati rice. While that won't necessarily make you sick, it is a rip-off. The firm estimated that such fraud costs U.S. rice-lovers $15.7 million a year.

Fix It: One UK-based importer of basmati rice, Tilda, has been working with U.S. retailers to help them develop better testing methods, and you can look for Tilda-brand basmati at your grocery store. Or opt for U.S.-grown basmati or "Tex-mati," a variety of long-grain rice crossed with basmati, although neither will be as fragrant as the real thing.

Fruit Juice

Fake-Out: There's a difference between outright food fraud and deceptive marketing, says Lipp. Unfortunately, fruit juice succumbs to both. His database has logged instances of pomegranate juice being nothing more than water, dye, and sugary flavorings, even though "pomegranate juice" was listed as an ingredient on the label, and lemon juice that turned out to be nothing more than sugar water. But the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has repeatedly accused juice companies of deceiving consumers with juices that are sold as "Cherry Berry" that in fact contain 0 percent cherry or berry juice, are flavored with artificial flavors, and contain mostly apple or grape juice as cheap fillers. Although all those ingredients are listed on labels, CSPI says that they aren't what people expect when they buy juice, which is often assumed to be a healthier alternative to sodas.

Fix It: Eat your fruit whole, not in juice form. It's hard to pass off an orange as anything but an orange, and eating one provides you with healthy fiber and pulp, which are missing when you drink just the juice.

Greek Yogurt

Fake-Out: Another case of deceptive marketing, Greek yogurt has succumbed to fakery as its popularity has soared in recent years. Rather than making regular yogurt and straining out the whey, which is how real Greek yogurt is made, companies are pushing "Greek-Style" yogurt, which is just regular yogurt with milk solids, pectin, gelatin or other cheap thickening agents added to make it creamier than regular yogurt. The resulting product has less protein than Greek yogurt yet costs about the same.

Fix It: Always check the ingredients panel. Real Greek yogurt contains milk and cultures, nothing more.

Ten Facts about Fluoride

10 Facts About Fluoride

1. Most Developed Countries Do Not Fluoridate Their Water

More people drink fluoridated water in the US alone than in the rest of the world combined. In Western Europe, for instance, 97 percent of the population drinks non-fluoridated water.

2. Fluoridated Countries Do Not Have Less Tooth Decay Than Non-Fluoridated Countries

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there is no discernible difference in tooth decay between developed countries that fluoridate their water and those that do not. The decline in tooth decay the US has experienced over the last 60 years, which is often attributed to fluoridated water, has likewise occurred in all developed countries (most of which do notfluoridate their water).

3. Fluoride Affects Many Tissues in Your Body Besides Your Teeth

Many assume that consuming fluoride is only an issue that involves your dental health. But according to a 500-page scientific review, fluoride is an endocrine disruptor that can affect your bones, brain, thyroid gland, pineal gland and even your blood sugar levels.²

There have been over 23 human studies and 100 animal studies linking fluoride to brain damage,³ including lower IQ in children, and studies have shown that fluoride toxicity can lead to a wide variety of health problems, including:

Increased lead absorption	Disrupts synthesis of collagen	Hyperactivity and/or lethargy	Muscle disorders
Thyroid disease	Arthritis	Dementia	Bone fractures
Lowered thyroid function	Bone cancer (osteosarcoma)	Inactivates 62 enzymes and inhibits more than 100	Inhibited formation of antibodies
Genetic damage and cell death	Increased tumor and cancer rate	Disrupted immune system	Damaged sperm and increased infertility

4. Fluoridation is Not a “Natural” Process

Fluoride is naturally occurring in some areas, leading to high levels in certain water supplies “naturally.” Fluoridation advocates often use this to support its safety, however naturally occurring substances are not automatically safe (think of arsenic, for instance).

Further, the fluoride added to most water supplies is not the naturally occurring variety but rather fluorosilicic acid, which is captured in air pollution control devices of the phosphate fertilizer industry. As FAN reported:

“This captured fluoride acid is the most contaminated chemical added to public water supplies, and may impose additional risks to those presented by natural fluorides. These risks include a possible cancer hazard from the acid’s elevated arsenic content, and a possible neurotoxic hazard from the acid’s ability--under some conditions--to increase the erosion of lead from old pipes.”

5. 40% of American Teenagers Show Visible Signs of Fluoride Overexposure

About 40 percent of American teens have dental fluorosis,⁴ a condition that refers to changes in the appearance of tooth enamel that are caused by long-term ingestion of fluoride during the time teeth are forming. In some areas, fluorosis rates are as high as 70-80 percent, with some children suffering from advanced forms.

It’s likely this is a sign that children are receiving large amounts of fluoride from multiple sources, including not only drinking water but also fluoride toothpaste, processed beverages/foods, fluoride pesticides, tea, non-stick pans and some fluorinated drugs. So not only do we need to address the issue of water fluoridation, but how this exposure is magnified by other sources of fluoride that are now common.

It's also important to realize that dental fluorosis is NOT "just cosmetic." It can also be an indication that the rest of your body, such as your bones and internal organs, including your brain, have been overexposed to fluoride as well. In other words, if fluoride is having a visually detrimental effect on the surface of your teeth, you can be virtually guaranteed that it's also damaging other parts of your body, such as your bones.

6. For Infants, Fluoridated Water Provides No Benefits, Only Risks

Infants who consume formula made with fluoridated tap water may consume up to 1,200 micrograms of fluoride, or about 100 times more than the recommended amounts. Such “spikes” of fluoride exposure during infancy provide no known advantage to teeth, but they do have plenty of known harmful effects.

Babies given fluoridated water in their formula are not only more likely to develop dental fluorosis, but may also have reduced IQ scores. In fact, a Harvard University meta-analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) concluded that children who live in areas with highly fluoridated water have "significantly lower" IQ scores than those who live in low fluoride areas.⁵ A number of prominent dental researchers now advise that parents should not add fluoridated water to baby formula.

7. Fluoride Supplements Have Never Been Approved by the FDA

The fluoride supplements sometimes prescribed to those who are not drinking fluoridated water have not been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the prevention of tooth decay. In fact, the fluoride supplements that the FDA has reviewed have been rejected.

“So with fluoridation, we are adding to the water a prescription-strength dose of a drug that has never been approved by the FDA,” FAN noted.

8. Fluoride is the Only Medicine Added to Public Water

Fluoride is added to drinking water to prevent a disease (tooth decay), and as such becomes a medicine by FDA definition. While proponents claim this is no different than adding vitamin D to milk, fluoride is not an essential nutrient. Many European nations have rejected fluoride for the very reason that delivering medication via the water supply would be inappropriate. Water fluoridation is a form of mass medication that denies you the right to informed consent.

9. Swallowing Fluoride Provides Little Benefit to Teeth

It is now widely recognized that fluoride’s only justifiable benefit comes from topical contact with teeth, which even the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has acknowledged. Adding it to water and pills, which are swallowed,offers little, if any, benefit to your teeth.

10. Disadvantaged Communities are the Most Disadvantaged by Fluoride

Fluoride toxicity is exacerbated by conditions that occur much more frequently in low-income areas. This includes:

• Nutrient deficiencies
• Infant formula consumption
• Kidney disease
• Diabetes

African American and Mexican American children have significantly higher rates of dental fluorosis, and many low-income urban communities also have severe oral health crises, despite decades of water fluoridation. FAN continues:

“The simple fact is that poor populations need dental care, not fluoridation chemicals in their water. The millions of dollars spent each year promoting fluoridation would be better spent advocating for policies that provide real dental care: like allowing dental therapists to provide affordable care to populations with little access to dentists. In short, fluoridation provides good PR for dental trade associations, but bad medicine for those it’s supposedly meant to serve.”

How do cows only live on grass?

They have evolved, over hundreds of thousands of years, to have a digestive tract that is capable of digesting roughage and only roughage. A four-chambered stomach (or rather, several forestomachs) is this key to a ruminant's ability to break down fibre, cellulose, hemi-cellulose and lignin that is commonly found in plant material to get to the "good stuff," i.e., the energy, protein, minerals and vitamins that are in the leaves of the grass they eat. 

Actually it's only part of the key.  The real "heroes" in this situation is the enormous army of bacteria, protozoa and fungi that live in the anearobic environment of the cow's rumen.  They are the ones that break down the roughage material so that the cow can get all her necessary nutrients in order to live and function normally.  They are the reason that fermentation takes place in the rumen, because their ability to soften coarse plant material enough that volatile fatty acids, non-protein nitrogen, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals can be released, used by them to keep reproducing and replicating, then used by the cow.  VFA's and carbohydrates provide energy, NPN's provide protein, and vitamins and minerals provide, well, vitamins and minerals. These protozoa only have a 15 minute lifespan, so the turn-over rate in the rumen is huge, large enough that the spent bacteria, protozoa and fungi can be moved through to the abomasum and small intestine where they are used as sources of energy, protein, and other nutrients.  Thus it should be remembered that a producer is actually feeding the microflora of the cow when providing feed, pasture, water and mineral sources; the microflora then feed the cow.

Since grass is usually swallowed whole, the cow needs to regurgitate the feed/grass that she ate and rechew it again, further aiding in the break-down process. The teeth grind the cud (of partly digested plant material), and the saliva adds more moisture to the cud. Once it's broken down enough she then reswallows it and it returns to the reticulorumen to complete the fermentation/break-down/digestion process by the microflora. Once the digesta in the rumen is digested as much as possible, it is moved into the omasum, which acts as a filter that absorbs all the "water" or liquid out of the digesta. That dried up digesta moves into the abomasum, the true stomach, to undergo further digestion in terms of digesting proteins and amino acids. The reticulum's main responsibility is to acts as a stomach where foreign materials are stored and broken down by the acid in the stomach of the cow. However, it too is an aid in the fermentation/digestion process of the GI tract of the cow.

One thing that you should know is that unlike one user stated previously (answer was deleted by the way), grass isn't all cellulose. Grass, especially that which is between the 4-leaf vegetative stage and when it is about to reach maturity, is comprised of water, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals. It's only the cell walls of plants that have the cellulose, lignin, hemi-cellulose and fibrous material that makes it harder to break down for other animals like humans (which are monogastrics, not ruminants, by the way). Grass in the vegetative stage is highly nutritious for cows--especially if the pasture is getting proper nutrients from other nitrogen-capturing plants (legumes) like sainfoin, alfalfa, clover, etc., and being fertilized by not only the producer, but also from the feces and urine that are excreted by the cows themselves. Cows that have come out of winter on just hay actually gain weight on grass that is in the vegetative stage; it's that nutritious. Calves that are weaned from their mothers, if weaning time is timed right, also gain remarkably on only grass, with no supplementation from feeds like grain.

As the grass reaches maturity, however, nutrient level decreases. When cows are stockpiled grazed on pastures that have 99% of the grasses in a dormant state are getting some nutrition, but not enough to make them gain weight on it. Stockpiled pastures are best grazed by dry pregnant cows, not for lactating cows, growing animals (heifers, steers and bulls), nor for bulls that need to gain weight until the next breeding season.

Another thing to note is that cows cannot live on ONLY grass. They need a fresh source of water and loose minerals too, as often the soil that the grasses grow in is often depleted of different microminerals like Iron, Copper, Iodine, Manganese, Molybdenum, etc. Most fields/pastures have a good source of macrominerals (phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, potassium etc.) but often need to be supplemented if there is a mineral lacking or missing.

Brain damaging habits

BRAIN DAMAGING HABITS

1. No Breakfast

People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level.

This leads to an insufficient

supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.

2 . Overeating=2 0

It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.

3. Smoking

It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.

4. High Sugar consumption

Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing

malnutrition and may interfere with brain development.

5. Air Pollution

The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our 20 body. Inhaling polluted air

decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain

efficiency.

6 . Sleep Deprivation

Sleep allows our brain to rest.. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate

the death of brain cells..

7. Head covered while sleeping

Sleeping with the head covered increases the concentration of carbon dioxide

and decrease concentration of

oxygen that may lead to brain damaging effects.

8. Working your brain during illness

Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness

of

the brain as well as damage the brain.

9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts

Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts

may cause brain shrinkage.

10. Talking Rarely

Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain

Onions!!

Beauty remedies with Lemons

Corn associated with colitis and IBS??

Monsanto’s GM Corn

The United States is, by far, the largest producer of corn in the world. Corn is grown on over 400,000 U.S. farms. In 2000, the U.S. produced about 45% of the world’s total bushel crop. According to the National Corn Growers Association, about 80% of of all corn grown in the U.S. is consumed by domestic and overseas livestock, poultry and fish production. About 12% ends up in food that is either consumed directly (e.g. corn chips) or indirectly.(ii)

Corn seems to have conquered the world. Multinationals have come up with various uses for all this corn and in a world where our food is engineered; where we take different traits from different foods and create new foods that don’t stale in the fridge, we must ask ourselves what are the consequences of all this manipulation with nature.

The big kernel of starch that corn provides is commonly broken down and reassembled to create products such as: high fructose corn syrup, maltodextrin, di-glycercides, xanthum gum, ascorbic acid, calcium sterate, sorbital, saccharin, sucrose, citrus cloud emulsion, ethel acetate, fructose, vanilla extract, starch, cellulose, xyitol, ethyl lactate, gluten, baking powder, alpha tocopherol, white vinegar, ethylene, fibersol-2, fumaric acid, inosital, zein, semolina, polydextrose and margarine.

These corn products are then used in things like: ketchup, cheese, batteries, peanut butter, salad dressing, cake, jelly, syrup, juice, charcoal, diapers, meat and fast food.

Monsanto’s GM Corn produces Bt-Toxin. It is true that farmers have used Bt-toxin from soil bacteria as a natural pesticide for years. They spray it on plants, where it washes off and biodegrades in sunlight. However, “the GM(Genetically engineered) version is built-in; every plant cell has its own spray bottle. The toxin doesn’t wash off, it cannot be washed off as it is throughout every cell of the plant. Furthermore, the plant-produced version of the poison is thousands of times more concentrated than the spray; is designed to be even more toxic; and has properties of known allergens…”(iii)(xv)

In fact the plant-produced toxin actually failed the World Health Organisation’s allergen screening tests. Biotech companies also skim over the fact that there is a huge difference between the GM toxin and the natural bacteria version and claim that because the spray has had a history of safe use in agriculture, it’s completely okay to consume. But even the claim of safe use of Bt spray is incorrect.

When the natural Bt-toxin was fed to mice, they had tissue damage, immune responses and even reacted to foods that were previously harmless. Farm workers that were exposed to the toxin showed immune responses. The EPA’s Scientific Advisory Panel concluded that the mouse and farm worker studies “suggest that Bt proteins could act as antigenic and allergenic sources”.(iv) pg. 76

In Italian government-sponsored research, (v) mice that were fed Monsanto’s GM corn, showed a wide range of immune responses. The mice had an increase in cytokines (substances that are secreted by specific cells of the immune system which carry signals locally between cells, and thus have an effect on other cells). The specific cytokines (interleukins) that were elevated are also higher in humans who suffer from a wide range of disorders. See the table below:

Elevated interleukins	Associations
IL-6	Rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, various types of cancer (multiple myeloma and prostate cancer)
IL-13	Allergy, allergic rhinitis, ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease)
MIP-1b	Autoimmune disease and colitis
IL-12p70	Inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis

As you can see, two of the elevated interleukins are associated with inflammatory bowel diseases and one is specifically associated with colitis.

Why take the time and effort to juice??

Why Juice?

We believe there are three main reasons why you should consider
incorporating fresh juice, especially vegetable juice, into your lifestyle.

1

Fresh juice is the 15 minute nutrient express to health.

Many of us have impaired digestion which reduces our body's ability to absorb nutrients from vegetables. Fresh juices go directly into your bloodstream and are therefore considered a 15 minute nutrient express to health. Unfortunately store bought juices contain virtually no nutrients due to the pasteurization process.

2

Juicing lets you add a wide variety of fruit and vegetables to your diet.

Many of us eat the same vegetables and fruits every day or worse, don't even eat any on a regular basis! With juicing, you can enjoy a wide variety of vegetables that you don't enjoy eating whole. Juicing is also the perfect way to consume the recommended daily serving of vegetables.

3

Fresh juice offers incredible health benefits.

After regularly consuming freshly pressed vegetable juices, which are highly alkalizing, you will experience improved energy levels, digestion and mental clarity, clearer skin, and an overall sense of wellbeing.

GMO food for thought

Some causes of cancer-things you can change

Six Healing Benefits of ProBiotics

For most people, the mention of probiotics conjures up images of yogurt. But don’t dismiss the microbes as a marketing gimmick or food fad. The latest probiotic research suggests that live-active cultures of these friendly bacteria can help to prevent and treat a wide variety of ailments.

"There is an increasing interest in probiotic interventions," wrote the authors of one of the most recent studies, a meta-analysis of previous research in a recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Those researchers found that probiotics were particularly useful against a common gastrointestinal problem: antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). But studies show that probiotics can help with a great deal more -- warding off infection and boosting immune systems, as well as helping to improve women’s health and perhaps even fighting obesity.

The word "probiotic" is a compound of two Greek words: "pro," to signify promotion of and "biotic," which means life. Their very definition is something that affirms life and health. That's true even by modern standards: the World Health Organization defines a probiotic as any living microorganism that has a health benefit when ingested. Similarly, the USDA defines a probiotic as "any viable microbial dietary supplement that beneficially affects the host."

That doesn't mean that all probiotics, or probiotic-containing foods are created equal. So what should you look for? "There is a lot of 'noise' in this space as more and more 'food products' are coming out with Probiotics," Dr. Shekhar K. Challa, a gastroenterologist and the author of Probiotics For Dummies tells The Huffington Post. "Unfortunately it is impossible to quantitate the CFU's of probiotics in most food products."

CFUs -- or colony-forming units -- is a microbiological term that describes the density of viable bacteria in a product. In other words, the CFU tells you how rich in probiotics a food actually is -- and how much will be available to your body. 

Dr. Challa recommends the following unpasteurized probiotic rich foods:

• Plain unflavored yogurt
• Kefir
• Sauerkraut
• Miso
• Pickles
• Tempeh
• Kimchi and
• Kombucha tea.

So what can probiotics help you with?

Digestive Health

Each of us has more than 1,000 different types of bacteria that live in our digestive tracts, helping us to break down food and absorb nutrients. But when we take antibiotics -- medicine that is designed to kill destructive, illness-causing bacteria -- the drugs can also kill the healthy intestinal flora that helps us digest. About 30 percent of the patients who take antibiotics report suffering from diarrhea or some other form of gastrointestinal distress, according to the recent JAMA study on probiotics and antibiotic-associated diarrhea. As a result, doctors commonly prescribe taking probiotics to "repopulate" the digestive tract with healthful bacteria. The study found that it was a viable solution for many.

But probiotics can also help with other types of digestive issues. Research has shown that probiotics can be helpful for people with irritable bowel syndrome, or IBS -- a hard-to-treat condition that can have a range of intestinal symptoms, such as abdominal pain, cramps, bloating, diarrhea and constipation. In one study, female IBS patients experienced some alleviation of symptoms like abdominal pain and irregularity when they were given a supplement of the bacterial strain, Bifidobacterium infantis. 

Even for those without an urgent problem, probiotics can help with overall digestive management. Challa argues in his book, Probiotics For Dummies, that good bacteria help "crowd out" bad bacteria. That's because the intestine is lined with adherence sites where bacteria latches on. If the sites are populated with good-for-you microbes, there's no place for a harmful bacterium to latch on.

Urinary Health

Probiotics make a nice compliment to antibiotics among people who suffer from urinary tract infections, according to the research.

What's more, there's emerging evidence that regular probiotics can help prevent bad bacteria from invading the urinary tract by maintaining a population of healthy bacteria on the tract's adherence sites. 

Infections of the urinary tract are extremely common, especially in women. Most infections disappear with antibiotics, but about 30 to 40 percent might return, according to literature from the University of Maryland Medical Center.

Allergies

Allergy research is still preliminary, but at least one large, high quality study found a relationship between women taking probiotics during pregnancy and a 30 percent reduction in the instance of childhood eczema (an early sign of allergies) in their infants.
Researchers selected women who had a history of seasonal allergies -- or whose partners had histories of allergies. The infants who received probiotics in-vitro also had 50 percent higher levels of tissue inflammation, which is thought to trigger the immune system and reduce allergy incidence.

Women's Health

Just like the digestive tract, the vagina relies on a precarious balance of good and bad bacteria. When that balance is off, it can result in one of two very common, though thoroughly uncomfortable infections: bacterial vaginosis and yeast infections. In fact, bacterial vaginosis can actually lead to a yeast infection.

Some small studies have found that L. acidophilius can help prevent infection, manage an already active one or support antibiotics as a treatment, though it's worth noting that the probiotics were taken as vaginal suppositories, rather than orally in food. 

Probiotics may also have a special role in maternal health, as pregnant women are particularly susceptible to vaginal infections. And bacterial vaginosis has been indicated as a contributing factor to pre-term labor, making probiotics a potential boon for fetal health.

Immunity

Surprisingly, one of the main functions of healthful bacteria is to stimulate immune response.

By eating probiotic-rich foods and maintaining good intestinal flora, a person can also help to maintain a healthy immune system. And that has real world effects: for example, in one small study of students, those who were given a fermented dairy drink (instead of milk) displayed increased production from lymphocytes -- a marker of immune response.

Obesity

In 2006, Stanford University researchers found that obese people had different gut bacteria than normal-weighted people -- a first indication that gut flora plays a role in overall weight. 

Some preliminary research shows that probiotics can help obese people who have received weight loss surgery to maintain weight loss. And in a study of post-partum women who were trying to lose abdomnial fat, the addition of lactobacillusand bifidobacterium capsules helped reduce waist circumference. 

It's still unclear how probiotics play a role in weight loss -- and there is some controversy about how significant the probiotics-associated weight loss is. 

But as long as the probiotics source is low-calorie and healthful, itself, it is an innocuous method to attempt.

Source: www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/...

5 superfoods to consume daily

Nine reasons never to eat processed foods again

The Basics of Detoxification

 Print

April 18, 2013

Proper nutrition supports the body’s detoxification systems.

Whether out for a run, grilling your favorite meats on a hot summer day, or spring cleaning the house, our bodies are exposed to millions of chemicals considered “toxins”. These toxins in our environment (exotoxins) and that our bodies produce (endotoxins) have the ability to disrupt the essential biological structures needed for the body to function such as DNA, cellular membranes, and protein. Repeated exposure to various toxins can contribute to adverse health effects in the short-term such as headaches, nausea, and fatigue; and in the long-term can contribute to weight gain and chronic health outcomes.

Detoxification is essential for ridding the body of toxins and preventing their “health robbing” effects. Although all cells have the ability to detoxify toxins, the most important organ for detoxification is the liver–known as the body’s filter and purification system.

Fat Cells House Toxins

Toxins enter the liver as either water- or fat-soluble molecules.  Water-soluble toxins are rather easily metabolized and excreted into the urine. In contrast, fat-soluble toxins can be stored in fat cells where they are protected from the body’s detoxification systems.

Excess fat stores, especially organ-bathing visceral fat, are linked to several diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic dysfunction. The addition of toxin exposure to an overweight or obese individual may only serve to increase these risks (1).

Three Phases of Detoxification

There are three phases of detoxification (2). In the first step, the toxin is metabolized by phase I detoxifying enzymes resulting in an intermediary metabolite. Although there are several phase I enzymes, the most abundant and important are the cytochrome P-450s (P-450s).

During detoxification, P-450s perform two functions: 1) they make toxins more water-soluble, and 2) they convert the toxin into a molecule usually less toxic and, therefore, less reactive towards our DNA, proteins, etc. (Interestingly, sometimes this reaction converts a less toxic molecule into a more toxic molecule, which is where phase II detoxification steps in.) The result is a more water-soluble, less toxic molecule easily transported into the blood, through our kidneys, and out into the urine for elimination.

After undergoing phase I detoxification many toxins are then subject to phase II detoxification. At its most basic level, phase II enzymes place a water-soluble small molecule onto the toxin.

One of the most important phase II detoxifying enzymes is known as glutathione (GSH) transferase. As the name implies, the GSH transferases transfer a GSH molecule onto the toxin. Like phase I detoxification, this step also serves to make the toxin water-soluble and less toxic to the body.

Besides GSH, the body uses several other molecules to bind to the toxin and increase its solubility including sulfates, amino acids, and glucuronic acid. The use of these water-soluble small molecules makes sense considering that our cells have a surplus of these molecules inside or outside the cell. However, if we’re exposed to excessive amounts of toxins they could rapidly deplete our GSH levels resulting in too little GSH to do what it does best, which is to protect against free radicals and detoxify toxins.

Finally, phase III of detoxification involves the elimination of toxins from cells. In this step, the products of phase I and II reactions are transported out of cells and into the bloodstream for elimination.

Proper Nutrition Essential for Detoxification

To ensure optimal functioning of our detoxification systems it is essential to have an adequate dietary intake of vitamins (B vitamins, vitamins C, and E), minerals (selenium, zinc, copper), and other bioactive nutrients such as coenzyme Q10 and polyphenols. These nutrients bolster our detoxification defenses either through their roles in phases I, II or III of detoxification or by providing antioxidant support (3). Nutritional support is essential in the detoxification process because some toxins are produced as the result of free radicals. Additionally, nutritional support is needed to counteract the oxidative damage caused by toxins.

Plant botanicals including ashwagandha, aloe vera, and turmeric (Cleanse for Life), milk thistle (Product B), resveratrol, and other antioxidant vitamins and botanicals (Ageless Essential Daily Pak) have all been shown to improve detoxification. Beyond these micronutrients, the detoxification system also needs an adequate source of the amino acid cysteine, the sulfur-containing amino acid essential for GSH production. Luckily, cysteine is abundant in whey protein found in IsaLean Shakes,Bars, and Soups.

Calorie Restriction and Intermittent Fasting Stimulate Detoxification

Although not yet extensively examined in humans, subjecting animals to calorie restriction (CR) or intermittent fasting (IF) has also been shown to increase efficiency of detoxification pathways. The precise mechanisms responsible for the benefits of CR or IF on detoxification are unclear, but it’s thought that these two cleansing protocols “turn on” genes that increase synthesis of our detoxification enzymes within the phase I, II or III pathways.

Additionally, the reduction of fat mass—the primary target for toxin storage—stimulates the release of toxins into the circulation. Once in the bloodstream toxins are more easily metabolized and excreted from the body. When the body has the additional nutritional support of amino acids, vitamins, polyphenols, and other bioactive ingredients, the detoxification enzymes can perform at peak function.

The Isagenix system ingeniously incorporates both intermittent fasting on Cleanse Days and calorie restriction on Shake Days to help you burn fat and stimulate the release of fat-stored toxins. The polyphenol-rich nutrients and plant extracts found in Cleanse For Life provide plant-based antioxidants (4-7) that support the detoxification enzymes responsible for toxin elimination. Also, the whey protein in IsaLean Shake supplies essential amino acids such as cysteine that can boost GSH production (8,9) and facilitate toxin removal.

References:

1.    Holtcamp W. Obesogens: an environmental link to obesity. Environ Health Perspect 2012;120:a62-a68.

2.    Liska DJ. The detoxification enzyme systems. Altern Med Rev 1998;3:187-98.

3.    Yang YM, Noh K, Han CY, Kim SG. Transactivation of genes encoding for phase II enzymes and phase III transporters by phytochemical antioxidants. Molecules 2010;15:6332-48.

4.    Vinson JA, Al KH, Andreoli L. Effect of Aloe vera preparations on the human bioavailability of vitamins C and E. Phytomedicine 2005;12:760-5.

5.    Kim BH, Hong SS, Kwon SW et al. Diarctigenin, a lignan constituent from Arctium lappa, down-regulated zymosan-induced transcription of inflammatory genes through suppression of DNA binding ability of nuclear factor-kappaB in macrophages. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 2008;327:393-401.

6.    Ahmad MK, Mahdi AA, Shukla KK et al. Withania somnifera improves semen quality by regulating reproductive hormone levels and oxidative stress in seminal plasma of infertile males. Fertil Steril 2010;94:989-96.

7.    Krikorian R, Shidler MD, Nash TA et al. Blueberry supplementation improves memory in older adults. J Agric Food Chem 2010;58:3996-4000.

8.    Bounous G, Gold P. The biological activity of undenatured dietary whey proteins: role of glutathione. Clin Invest Med 1991;14:296-309.

9.    Sekhar RV, Patel SG, Guthikonda AP et al. Deficient synthesis of glutathione underlies oxidative stress in aging and can be corrected by dietary cysteine and glycine supplementation. Am J Clin Nutr 2011;94:847-53.

 www.fatbgone.org