Snack Your Way to Health and Weight Loss

(NaturalNews) What could be better than giving your sweet tooth what it craves while giving your body the nutrients it needs for vibrant health? Keeping a selection of dried fruits on hand makes it easy to treat the whole family to a delicious, chewy and nourishing snack. Recent studies have shown that dried fruit is a treasure chest of nutrients. It's also a way to eat favorite fruits when they are out of season. Eating natural snacks like dried fruit keeps people in harmony with the teachings of Ayurveda, the ancient Hindu science of health that believes all living beings are a composite of the five basic elements: fire, water, earth, air and sky. In order to keep life moving in a healthy direction, it is important to replenish these elements through the consumption of natural foods which are the sources of these elements. This requires that all the foods we eat, including snacks and particularly the foods given to children, be natural and unprocessed. Eating nutrient dense fruit helps with weight loss. The amazing health benefits of fruit are well known. Eating fruit has been shown to do everything from reducing the risk of cancer to helping with weight loss. Eating nutrient dense fruit sends a powerful signal to the body that it is being properly nourished. When the body is well nourished, the hormone leptin will turn off the urge to eat. Fruit provides a rapid increase in energy level for activity and exercise. It has been shown in studies to help reduce blood pressure due to its positive sodium to potassium ratio. Fruit reduces risk of cardiovascular disease, and keeps cancer away. It keeps cholesterol ratios looking good, helps prevent diabetes, and slows the aging process. Dried fruit provides a luscious burst of flavor and sweetness that will satisfy the sugar urge. The drying process removes most of the water, making everything about dried fruit more concentrated including its nutrients. For example, the antioxidant power of dried blueberries can be as much as four times higher than their fresh counterparts. Dried fruit is rich in essential nutrients in synergistic balance and with high bio-availability. It's loaded with vitamins, minerals and vital enzymes. Dried fruit contains high amounts of polyphenols, substances that give fruits its colors and high antioxidant ratings. The British Journal of Nutrition, February, 2009, reports a study finding that consuming dried plums slows the development of atherosclerosis, the buildup of waxy plaque inside blood vessels. This in turn slows the development of cardiovascular disease and may reverse the buildup of plaque in veins and arteries. Another study reported in the August, 2008 edition of Cancer Research showed that eating dried black raspberries prevents the development of cancer by restoring carcinogen altered and damaged genes to their normal state. The July, 2008 Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry reports a study finding that the infection fighting power of dried cranberries comes from its high antioxidant capacity. Antioxidants combat free radical production in the body, a function that many scientists believe gives fruits the ability to combat the aging process.The Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2008, reported a study finding dried berries decreased tumor number and tumor size, and decreased expression of genes implicated in colon cancer. Recent research, reported in Bioscience Biotechnology Biochemistry, June, 2008, has isolated a new antioxidant powerhouse in dried prune extract. This procyanidin oligomer is composed of epicatechin and catechin. Epicatechin improves blood flow and is a promoter of heart health. The link between epicatechin and killer disease is so strong that it is being considered for status as a vitamin. It may be that many diseases are the result of epicatechin deficiency. Which dried fruits make the best choices? Raisins are dried grapes and retain most of the benefits of the grape along with other benefits they develop as raisins. They are rich in boron, iron, potassium calcium and the B vitamins, and are a good source of fiber. They contain phytonutrients such as resveratrol and olenolic acid. The health benefits of raisins include protection from gum disease and cavities, osteoporosis, and macular degeneration. Raisins are as beneficial to eye sight as carrots. The resveratrol in raisins provides the body with many of the benefits of eating a calorie restricted diet. Use raisins on cereal, in salads, and in cooking and baking. Make trail mix that includes raisins along with other dries fruits, nuts and seeds.Apricots are another popular dried fruit with a high nutritional profile. They are rich in fiber, beta-carotene, Vitamins A and C, magnesium, iron, calcium, phosphorus, silicone, and potassium. Apricots are also rich in lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that protects against cancer, particularly of the prostate, larynx, esophagus, lungs and prostrate. Their ability to scavenge free radicals helps prevent cataract formation, while their high fiber content helps prevent constipation and digestive conditions such as diverticulosis. Three or more servings of fruit a day, including apricots, lowers the risk of age-related macular degeneration, the primary cause of vision loss in older adults, by 36 percent compared to persons who consume less than 1.5 servings of fruit a day. Dried apricots make a wonderful lunchtime addition or afternoon snack for the whole family. Cherries are related to plums, peaches, apricots, and almonds along with many others from the versatile Rose family. They are a good source of vitamins A and C and potassium. They contain pectin and antocyanins, which are flavonoids linked to the prevention of cancer and heart disease. One study found cherries to be potent antibacterial agents that help prevent tooth decay and plaque formation. They are also a time proven treatment for arthritis and gout. Cherries have one of the highest levels of anti-aging free radicals of any food, giving them superfood status. Cherries have been found to help regulate the body's natural sleep patterns, and help recovery from jet lag. They have been shown to aid people with memory loss. Dried cherries can be added to salads and desserts, but they are supreme right out of the bag.Cranberries are known to treat bladder and urinary tract infections with their high levels of antioxidants. The keep the urinary tract clean and may prevent tumors from developing. Cranberries have powerful effects on heart disease, yeast infections, cancer, stroke, and viral infections. Proanthocyanadin, a compound found in cherries, prevents plaque formation on teeth better than mouthwashes. Regular consumption of cranberries can kill the H. pylori bacteria, known for causing stomach cancer and ulcers. Extracts of chemicals found in cranberries prevent breast cancer cells from multiplying in test tube experiments. Dried cranberries make a great addition to all types of cooked meats, sweet potatoes, salads, and casseroles. They can be tossed with olive oil, parmesan and pasta. Apples supply a high level of the bone protective mineral boron, along with an osteoporosis fighting flavanoid found only in apples, called phloridzin. Studies have found that apples lower asthma symptoms in children, and women who eat lots of apples during pregnancy have lower rates of asthmatic children. The quercetin in apples may protect brain cells from the kind of free radical damage that leads to Alzheimer's disease. Pectin in apples lowers LDL cholesterol. Quercetin and naringin are responsible for the 50 percent lower rates of lung cancer in frequent apple eaters. A Cornell University study found that rats eating apples every day reduced their risk of breast cancer by up to 44 percent. Apple eating rats had a 43 percent lower rate of colon cancer primarily due to the pectin in apples, and they had a 57 percent lower risk of liver cancer. Pectin also supplies galaturonic acid which lowers the body's need for insulin. Apples make a great afternoon energy booster. They can be added to chicken or tuna salad. Mix apples with grapes, walnuts and a touch of organic mayonnaise for a Waldorf Salad. Don't let this list be confining. All dried fruits contain a wealth of nutrients and provide a host of health benefits. Conventional dried fruits may be treated with chemicals such as sulfur dioxide. This is to inactivate the enzyme polyphenoloxidase which darkens the fruit during the drying process. This compound sometimes causes allergic reactions in people. Some fried fruits have been subjected to bleaching or coloring. Sometimes a preservative called sulfite has been used.All these drawbacks can be avoided by buying organic dried fruits. Organic dried fruits are free of additives. In addition, organic dried fruit has been sun dried or dried at temperatures low enough so that vitamins and enzymes remain intact.Dried fruits should be stored in tightly closed glass containers in the refrigerator. Stored this way, or in their original unopened packaging, they can be kept for a year or more.Organic dried fruits are available in bulk and bag at health food stores. They can be ordered online from several sources. One of the best is Higher Power, where you can stock up with organic dried apples, apricots, large flake coconut, dates, figs, mangoes, peaches, pears, pineapples and raisins.

UPDATE: CHEMO FREE!

I hope that your Thanksgiving was a joyful one filled with family and gratitudes as mine was. The list of what I am grateful for is growing daily, especially since my health has been steadily improving. My immune system is no longer compromised by poisonous chemotherapy, the last treatment was Oct. 16th. That one dose of the new regime of Adriomycin and Cytoxin made me almost totally bald, and I was exhausted for more than a week after. It did probably help in reducing the size of the neck lymph node swelling, but I also believe the determination of both my sons and husband to make me well served a bigger part. They made sure I was getting my greens in every form and application possible, as well as hydration, rest, and love. They are my heroes! I am finally able to sleep flat again, (had been using 4 pillows for elevation due to the swelling of my face and head). My face is back to normal, no more swelling, and the Bells Palsy is gone, ( I can move the right side of my face again, no longer looking like a stroke victim)! Both of my sons provided me with a better juicer and check on me and my "ph" daily. My husband takes care of our wheatgrass production and juicing. My strength and energy levels are back to normal, so much so that I did the prep housecleaning and meal for our "Veggie" Thanksgiving. I then accompanied my husband to visit his family for the holiday. It was a 3hr. car ride and we stayed over night at his mom's. Why I am telling you all this is to give you a background of the stress I put on myself along with a little cheating at his mom's holiday dinner, and how it took it's toll on me. I also did not totally comply with the health regime that I have been on---but we are talking about a 24 hr. period only! The lymph nodes in my neck started swelling some, and I experienced a lot of upper chest tissue burning again. This was Friday and Saturday, by Sunday morning I was better again. What did I do to help the situation? 3 glasses of 1tsp baking soda and 1 cup of water each day, back on the regular amount of green juices and wheatgrass, better rest, and back to exercising. I was amazed how sensitive my body is to varying even slightly from the health protocol I have been on. I suppose this is how it will be until I am completely healed. The body is an intricate system that can usually handle a great deal of abuse and stress, but when it's not already handling a major battle. So I will continue to do my part to take care of it so it will take care of me. I am grateful!

Dealing with Holiday Stress

I have discussed from time to time the importance of minimizing stress in our lives. When our minds are filled with thoughts and feelings that include the negative perceptions and experiences of fear, anger and sadness, we are vulnerable to the creation of excessive bodily acid. Toxic acids are actually secreted from various parts of the body directly into the bloodstream when we are in a negative emotional state. A healthy and peaceful lifestyle includes choosing an alkaline and nutritional diet, exercise, rest and relaxation, good company, doing work which we enjoy, body massage, meditation, sincere gratitude, a reverence for all life, and so on. Some will argue that these conditions are difficult to achieve in a world of economic disarray. Just viewing the problems of hunger and homelessness in the world is frightening. In America, we are told that more than a million people are now losing or have lost their homes due to mortgage default. And so, how can we ascend to levels of peace in such a world with so much apparent negativity? What else is it that we can do to ascend our own levels of consciousness and somehow feel a greater sense of love, the absence of fear, and more acceptance of so many people with whom we seem to have nothing in common, little understanding, a different set of values, and with whom we perceive ourselves to operate from a completely different belief system about the world? How do we come to a sense of peace and diminish our reflexive stress--the same stress that causes acidic reactions in our body--to the many seemingly unacceptable political, economic, unhappy human elements that surround us?I believe that science will soon confirm what some have known over the millennia. Virtually all Holy Scripture from all the major religions are in accordance with the idea that the highest devotion to God--man's greatest gift to the energy field of the world in which we are all encompassed--is SERVICE TO MANKIND. Research into higher consciousness tells us that the energy of loving service is recorded in the universe on into infinity. Thus, this Thanksgiving Day and as Christmas approaches in the problematic year of 2009, one of the greatest stress-releasing gifts we can give to ourselves is to give the gift of service to others. And nothing fosters charitable feelings like charitable actions. Nothing fosters more the acceptance of other people than lending a helping hand. Nothing will bring forth the peace and wisdom that we need to create within ourselves more than providing service to the poor, the needy, the uneducated, the downtrodden, and the afflicted. Look for service projects in your area and take your family into the world to help others. And over time, nothing will help you to diminish the stress inside your own body more than helping to diminish the stress in those around us. What goes round comes round, and to whatever degree your load of avocados means abundant energy, creativity, intelligence, leadership, money, or time for everyone in the world, I know that you can figure out how to deliver more than two.In love and inner light, Dr. Robert O. Young www.phmiracleliving.com

"I Ate Too Much"

I Ate Too Much
Holiday Season lifestyle and dietary conditions (called diseases by allopathic medicine) for which I have given new names:1) "Traveler's Acidic Consequence" is a result of the sum total consumption and behaviors of a traveler during their more unusual or somewhat different from normal lifestyle than when they were not traveling. A typical traveler's day will upset one's normal metabolism and digestive habits. They eat and drink different foods at different times and different volumes than usual, which creates an over-acidic state and a need for more alkaline buffers (bicarbonates like pHour salts) leading to indigestion, nausea, acid reflux,heartburn, belching, flatulence, vomiting, constipation,dehydration and further problems of acidity,depending on the degree of irregularity."Traveler's Acidic Consequence" is commonly blamed by allopathic medical science on a particular site on the traveler's path as if he/she caught something. This current medical ideology is based on Pasteur's germ theory and is a scientific myth/illusion. The true cause of this condition is the result of the traveler's acidic dietary choices and the lack of alkaline hydration, nutrition and hygiene that can result in this over-acidic condition. All the above symptoms is the body in preservation mode trying its best to re establish the alkaline pH of the internal environment at 7.365 to 7.4.2) Holiday Season - "I Ate and Drank Too Much "S!!!"Dis-Ease" is a result of the sum total consumption and behaviors of a person during the Holiday season eating and drinking everything in site from "swine to wine." This over indulgence may cause belching and flatulence and eventual heart burn, acid reflux,nausea, constipation and even brain, breast, lung,liver and bowel parasites for which medical science will often prescribe the purple pill. This Holiday Season condition may then lead to the third Holiday Season consequence -3) "Holiday Season Food Drunk" is a result of over-eating and over-drinking acidic foods and liquids and then falling into a drunken state on the sofa or bed for several hours or even days to sleep off all the acidity. Falling asleep after a heavy Holiday meal is a common occurrence for acid over-eaters and acid drinkers.4) "Holiday Season Influenza" (The Flu) is a result of the sum total consumption and behaviors of a person during a so-called Holiday acidic feasting. A person will consume acidic foods and drinks that they may not know or know that are not healthy or alkalizing, i.e., more sugar or sugar substitutes than normal, alcohol, meats (especially the tape and flu worm favorites such as pork, beef,turkey, chicken and fish (especially raw fish) and much of this at greater volumes than normal. This person becomes detrimentally influenced physically and emotionally by Holiday acidic foods and drinks. According to medical savants, "Holiday Season Influenza"is commonly blamed on a particular virus contracted from another person(s) and not from acidic life style and dietary choices of that person. Like the acidic traveler, a person chooses to consume on their own as many acidic foods and drinks during the Holiday Season and as a result are suffering from the consequences of their poor dietary acidic choices -- not from some phantom (does not exist) flu virus! The flu is nothing more than the body increasing body temperature to improve circulation to remove excess acidity through perspiration, respiration, defecation and urination. Also, please keep in mind it doesn't take either traveling or Holidays for someone to express the symptoms of "Traveler's Acidic Consequence,"and/or "I Ate and Drank Too Much S!!! Disease,"and/or "Holiday Season Food Drunk," and/or "Holiday Season Influenza." All you need to do is consume excessive amounts of acidic meats (especially pork,turkey and chicken), chocolate, ice cream, cake,alcohol or other acidic mind boggling thrillers. Any of these four non-contagious lifestyle and dietary conditions can happen anytime during the year. But, the Holiday Season seems to be the time when most people over-indulge in highly acidic lifestyles and diets!This coming Holiday Season may you resolve not to succumb to the acidic choices that lead to "Traveler's Acidic Consequence," or "I Ate and Drank Too Much S!!! Dis-ease," "Holiday Season Food Drunk" and/or"Holiday Season Influenza."In love and healing alkaline light; Dr. Robert Young http://www.phmiracleliving.com/

In Honor of Thanksgiving

Let Us All Be Thankful

Be Thankful that you don't already have everything you desire,
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?

Be Thankful when you don't know something,
For it gives you the opportunity to learn.

Be Thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.

Be Thankful for your limitations,
Because they give you opportunities for improvement.

Be Thankful for each new challenge,
Because it will build your strength and character.

Be Thankful for your mistakes,
They will teach you valuable lessons.

Be Thankful when you're tired and weary,
Because it means you've made a difference.

It is easy to be thankful for the good things.

A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who
are also thankful for the setbacks.

GRATITUDE can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a Way to be thankful for your troubles
and they can become your blessings.---Author Unknown

In great health,
Jonathan Landsman, Host
NaturalNews Talk Hour

Please share this true Thanksgiving story with your friends and loved ones. Have a happy turkey-free (and meat-free) feast! Robert Cohen http://www.notmilk.com/
The first year in America the Pilgrims had very little to be thankful. That first bitter winter they had limited food supplies, poor clothing and crudely built housing. During the months before spring, fifteen of the eighteen married women died as did twenty-two of thirty-eight men. Because of this great trauma of death from starvation, something had to be done to assure the future survival of the colony.In March of 1624, the first dairy animals came to Plymouth on the ship Charity, which delivered three cows and a bull to the grateful pilgrims.Within a generation every family in America had a dairy cow. Milk from these cows was churned into butter. Will and Ariel Durant who wrote "The Story of Civilization" revealed that a typical dairy cow in the 12th century yielded little milk. One can assume that cows in the 1600s yielded as much milk as cows in the 1300s. In "The Age of Faith, History of Life in the Middle Ages," the Durants wrote:"Dairy farming was unprogressive; the average cow in the thirteenth century gave little milk, and hardly a pound of butter per week."Making butter requires 21.2 pounds of milk for each "finished" pound of butter. One quart of milk weighs 2.15 pounds. A dairy cow in Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts might have yielded his Pilgrim family"hardly a pound of butter per week." That averaged out to three pounds of milk per day, about a quart and-a-half. People who believe that early Americans drank milk as a routine part of their diet do not consider how little milk cows gave. Nor do they consider the existence of butter churns. Butter churns weren't hood ornaments for Pilgrim's carriages. Pilgrims used them only for one purpose: to churn milk into butter. That three pounds of milk per day would yield only one-half stick of butter. Imagine fifteen of the eighteen Pilgrim wives dying during the first winter. Imagine the same proportion of the mothers in your community dying from starvation over the winter. You'd need emergency rations to survive. Fat from milk, stored underground, saved for the winter months. Gotmilk? No way! One-half stick of butter per day, one pound of butter per week, carefully and strenuously churned by a Pilgrim and stored for the cruel New England winter. Did the Pilgrims drink and store milk in the summer? Milk was loaded with bacteria that quickly spoiled, making it undrinkable. By churning the milk into butter and storing it underground, the fat was saved until it was needed. The Pilgrim experience made it necessary for every family to carefully store food through the bountiful months so that they might survive the hardships of winter. Butter became their insurance policy. It became necessary for every New England family to own a dairy cow. In a few years, that's just what happened. Imagine the depression of imminent death by starvation. You come to a new world without food and shelter, haven't bathed in three months and are wearing the same clothes in which you started your voyage. It's December of 1620 and it's snowing, you've sent a landing party ashore and stolen corn from some very angry Abenaki Indians who would like nothingbetter than to shoot their arrows at you. (Which they did!) Didn't the Pilgrims bear in mind the Eighth Commandment, "Thou shalt not steal?" Obviously not! They left England, seeking religious freedom, or so our school children are taught, and immediately broke one of God's commandments by stealing food from the Indians. How would you handle such fear? By spring,half of your fellows are dead. The Pilgrims had actually planned for the harsh winter of 1620. They sailed from Holland to London to Southampton, England, where they boarded the Mayflower, bringing along their provisions. There was one problem. At this point in their journey,they were broke and they could not pay their bills. Owing 100 English pounds, they couldn't sail until they paid this bill. So they sold some of their provisions, a calculated gamble which put them at the mercy of diminished resources and divine providence. Unfortunately, their resources were inadequate. The bet didn't work. Historian William Bradford relates:"So they were forced to sell off some of their provisions to stop this gap, which was some three or four-score firkins of butter, commodity they might best spare, having which provided too large a quantity of that kind."They sold their insurance policy, their food for the winter, their butter, and with it the lives of half of their number. A letter written on August 3, 1620, to the "beloved friends" of these Pilgrims explained: "We are in such a strait at present, as we are forced to sell away our provisions to clear the haven and withal to put ourselves upon great extremities,scarce having any butter...we are willing to expose ourselves to such eminent dangers as are like to ensue,and trust to the good providence of God..."They sold the concentrated fat that would have helped them to survive in New England. Had they not sold this treasure, they would have most certainly not starved and suffered the trauma of seeing half their number perish. Would a three-day Thanksgiving have been called for, the following year? All because they sold their butter. How much butter did they intend to bring to the New World? Some "three to four-score firkins." William Bradford, author of"Plymouth Plantation," said that the Pilgrims sold approximately 4,040 pounds of butter. That meant that every man woman and child was rationed 40 pounds of butter. By today's standards, in order to produce those 4,040 pounds of butter they would have required 85,648 quarts of milk. A herd of 100 cows, each producing one quart of milk per day would have taken nearly eight months to produce that much milk. Now, that's a lot of churning! The Pilgrim diaries reveal the favorite food of the native Americans at the first Thanksgiving. Their food of choice was "rancid butter." One can only imagined the salmonella, E. coli, bovine leukemia, clostridium and colonies of paratuberculosis thriving in that rancid butter. Indians fell in love with the creamy taste of the Pilgrim's butter. They traded furs and fish, meat and land for this much desired commodity. Were flu-stricken Pilgrims sneezing behind trees in the woods responsible for the deaths of one million Abenaki and Wampaunoag? Was it perhaps the Native American's love for the rancid butter, the gift of the bovines? Our day of giving thanks should be observed as a day of mourning by Native Americans. Robert Cohen http://www.notmilk.com/

The Benifits of a Vegetarian Thanksgiving

Brian Snyder/Reuters VegSource Newsletter

The moment my mom set that first Tofurky down on the table in front of me 6 years ago, I knew I made the right decision. Even though many people thought it defied logic, becoming a vegetarian right before Thanksgiving solidified my commitment to my new meat-free diet. It was my freshman year of college and to this day, I still consider it the best, and perhaps most life-changing decision, I ever made.
Growing up, we’re taught that Thanksgiving is about celebrating life and giving thanks for our families, friends, and fortunes. Going around the table, expressing to each other what we’re thankful for, I’d never thought about exactly what—or who—we were about to feast on. That is, until my 18th Thanksgiving celebration. That day, I was thankful to be carving into my first Tofurky dinner. And I was celebrating my decision to choose a meal that doesn’t involve killing animals.
The overwhelming majority of the turkeys on our tables spent their short lives—about 5 months—crammed inside poorly ventilated warehouses that typically house up to 25,000 birds in a single shed. Each bird is afforded as little as one square foot of living space.
Such intensive confinement denies birds the opportunity to perform many of their most natural behaviors and often leads stress and disease. To make matters worse, turkeys are bred to grow large so quickly that their skeletons often cannot keep up with their abnormal body weight; many suffer crippling leg disorders preventing them from reaching food or water.
About 20 weeks later, turkeys are transported to slaughter without food, water, or protection from extreme temperatures. At the slaughter plant, they’re dumped onto conveyors, shackled upside down by their legs, and their throats are slit.
Animal agribusiness is a cruel and inhumane industry responsible for slaughtering more than 225 million turkeys each year, more than 65 million of whom are killed for the winter holiday season alone. The day-to-day horrors of factory farming are kept hidden from public view because, let’s face it, if most people saw how their Thanksgiving turkey was raised and killed, they probably wouldn’t feel like celebrating anymore.
The abuses that turkeys and other farmed animals are forced to endure would lead to criminal prosecution if inflicted upon the cats or dogs with whom we share our homes.
To most people’s surprise, turkeys are inquisitive, affectionate, and social animals who enjoy life and have individual personalities much like dogs and cats. Throw an apple to a group of turkeys and they’ll play a game with each other. Should a fight start, some will play peacemaker by deliberately standing in the way of a charging turkey.
One of the kindest choices we can make this holiday season is to pardon a turkey from our table and carve into a vegetarian roast instead.
Losing the turkey doesn’t mean losing those traditional flavors and tastes that we all crave this time of year. At my first Thanksgiving as a vegetarian, my mom prepared a Tofurky roast. Since then, I’ve discovered many more delicious, easy to cook cruelty-free options. From Tofurky to Field Roast to Gardein, finding an animal-friendly Thanksgiving options is easier than ever. Every time we sit down to eat, we can each make compassionate choices —and that’s something we can all be thankful for, even turkeys.

Probiotics to Prevent Colds and Flu's

NaturalNews) Probiotics and digestive enzymes prevent colds and flu; research has shown. Probiotics are the healthy bacteria that live in the intestines. Harmful bacteria include those like E. coli (Escherichia col), etc, but there are many bacteria that inhabit our gut that help with our digestion. Now, studies have shown that probiotics also help the immune response by both preventing colds and flu and speeding recovery time.Probiotics are included in many forms of yogurt, kefir, and other cultured milk products, such as sour cream. Most probiotics help the immune system prevent diseases such as irritable bowel, diarrhea, and allergies.A study published in the medical journal Pediatrics was conducted on 326 children in China. They were from the age of three to five years old. The children were given milk twice daily that contained the probiotics Lactobacillus acidophilus by itself, or combined with Bifidobacterium animalis. The children were followed for six months, from November 2005 to May 2006.The study results were impressive and showed that the one probiotic was helpful but the benefit was enhanced in the group who took the two probiotics together. The group who took the Lactobacillus contracted had half the number of fevers of the placebo group (53%). They also had 41% less coughs and 28% less runny noses. When they became sick, their illnesses were one third shorter than the placebo group (32%) and they used 68% less antibiotics. They missed 38% less school than the placebo group as well.The children who took both Lactobacillus acidophilus along with the Bifidobacterium animal is contracted over two thirds less fevers than the placebo group (72%). They had 62% less coughs, and 59% less runny noses. Their duration of illness was nearly HALF of that in the placebo group (48%). They missed slightly less school than the children taking only one probiotic (32% compared to the other group's 38%), but they used 84% less antibiotics compared to the placebo group, surpassing the other group's level of 68% less usage.The study was double blind and placebo controlled, and it was conducted during the winter cold and flu season. Though the study was funded by a Danish company that makes probiotics, Danisco, similar results have been sited elsewhere.With the benefits from probiotics proven in other areas of digestive health and improved immune function, there is reason to add probiotics to a healthy diet regime year-round.

A Few of my Favorites for Your Sunday

Whenever we feel lost, or insane, or afraid, all we have to do is ask for His help. The help might not come in the form we expected, or even thought we desired, but it will come, and we will recognize it by how we feel. In spite of everything, we will feel at peace.
—Excerpted from A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles

Being happy doesn't mean everything's perfect. It means you've decided to see beyond the imperfections! God didn't promise days without pain, laughter without sorrow, sun without rain, but HE did promise strength for the day, comfort for the tears & light for the way.

In asking God to heal you, you are committing to the choice to be healed. This means the choice to change.
—Excerpted from A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles


The important thing about our past is not what happened, but what we have done with what happened.
—Excerpted from A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles


Read the following and have a GREAT day! I was at the corner grocery storebuying some early potatoes. I noticed a small boy, delicate of bone and feature, ragged but clean, hungrily appraising a basket of freshly picked green peas. I paid for my potatoes but was also drawn to the display of fresh green peas. I am a pushover for creamed peas and new potatoes. Pondering the peas, I couldn't help overhearing the conversation between Mr. Miller (the store owner) and the ragged boy next to me. 'Hello Barry, how are you today? ''H'lo, Mr. Miller. Fine, thank ya. Jus' admirin' them peas. They sure look good.''They are good, Barry. How's your Ma? ''Fine. Gittin' stronger alla' time. ''Good. Anything I can help you with? ''No, Sir. Jus' admirin' them peas. ''Would you like to take some home? 'asked Mr. Miller. 'No, Sir. Got nuthin' to pay for 'em with. ''Well, what have you to trade me for some of those peas? ''All I got's my prize marble here. ''Is that right? Let me see it' said Miller. 'Here 'tis. She's a dandy. ''I can see that. Hmm mmm, only thing is this one is blue and I sort of go for red. Do you have a red one like this at home?' the store owner asked. 'Not zackley but almost. ''Tell you what. Take this sack of peas home with you and next trip this way let me look at that red marble'. Mr. Miller told the boy. 'Sure will. Thanks Mr. Miller.' Mrs. Miller, who had been standing nearby, came over to help me. With a smile she said, 'There are two other boys like him in our community, all three are in very poor circumstances. Jim just loves to bargain with them for peas, apples, tomatoes, or whatever. When they come back with their red marbles,and they always do, he decides he doesn't like red after all and he sends them home with a bag of produce for a green marble or an orange one, when they come on their next trip to the store.' I left the store smiling to myself, impressed with this man. A short time later I moved to Colorado , but I never forgot the story of this man, the boys, and their bartering for marbles. Several years went by, each more rapid than the previous one. Just recently I had occasion to visit some old friends in that Idaho community and while I was there learned that Mr. Miller had died. They were having his visitation that evening and knowing my friends wanted to go, I agreed to accompany them. Upon arrival at the mortuary we fell into line to meet the relatives of the deceased and to offer whatever words of comfort we could. Ahead of us in line were three young men. One was in an army uniform and the other two wore nice haircuts,dark suits and white shirts...all very professional looking. They approached Mrs. Miller, standing composed and smiling by her husband's casket. Each of the young men hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, spoke briefly with her and moved on to the casket. Her misty light blue eyes followed them as, one by one, each young man stopped briefly and placed his own warm hand over the cold pale hand in the casket. Each left the mortuary awkwardly, wiping his eyes. Our turn came to meet Mrs. Miller. I told her who I was and reminded her of the story from those many years ago and what she had told me about her husband's bartering for marbles. With her eyes glistening, she took my hand and led me to the casket. 'Those three young men who just left were the boys I told you about. They just told me how they appreciated the things Jim 'traded' them. Now, at last, when Jim could not change his mind about color or size....they came to pay their debt. 'We've never had a great deal of the wealth of this world,' she confided, 'but right now, Jim would consider himself the richest man in Idaho .'With loving gentleness she lifted the lifeless fingers of her deceased husband. Resting underneath were three exquisitely shined red marbles. The Moral : We will not be remembered by ourwords, but by our kind deeds. Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath. Today I wish you a day of ordinary miracles ~ A fresh pot of coffee you didn't make yourself...An unexpectedphone call from an old friend ....Green stoplights on your way to work...The fastest line at the grocery store...A good sing-along song on the radio...Your keys found right where you left them. IT'S NOT WHAT YOU GATHER,BUT WHAT YOU SCATTER THAT TELLS WHAT KIND OF LIFE YOU HAVE LIVED!

The 23rd Palsm for Work:
The Lord is my real boss, and I shall not want.He gives me peace, when chaos is all around me. He gently reminds me to pray and do all things without murmuring and complaining. He reminds me that He is my source and not my job. He restores my sanity everyday and guides my decisions that I might honor Him in all that I do. Even though I face absurd amounts of e-mails, system crashes,unrealistic deadlines, budget cutbacks, gossiping co-workers, discriminating supervisors and an aging body that doesn't cooperate every morning, I still will not stop--- for He is with me! His presence, His peace, and His power will see me through. He raises me up, even when they fail to promote me. He claims me as His own, even when the company threatens to let me go. His Faithfulness and love is better than any bonus check, His retirement plan beats any 401k there is! When it's all said and done, I'll be working for Him a whole lot longer!

The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares." - Henri Nouwen

Help For Your Veggie Thanksgiving Dinner

Family, friends, and of course, the veggie food—it’s no wonder Thanksgiving ranks high on our list of favorite holidays. Between freshly made cranberry sauce, succulent sweet potatoes, and the promise of pumpkin pie, it’s hard to wait until the big day to dig in. With more than 15,000 vegan recipes available on VegNews.com and VegWeb.com, we've compiled the perfect how-to guide for your own flawless feast. Whether you’re hosting a dinner for 12, visiting family, or celebrating with a veg potluck, you’ll find the tastiest recipes, stress-busting tips, and top products right here. Happy holidays!
In the end, good recipes equal good times and happy guests. That's why we've sifted through our library of 15,000+ vegan recipes to find the best Thanksgiving dishes to share. From the Festive Chickpea Tart and Cornbread Dressing (both award-winning in our opinion) to the all-time favorite dessert at the VNHQ—the insanely delicious Sweet Potato Cake with Vanilla Buttercream—read on for everything you need to create a show-stopping Thanksgiving.The feast:Festive Chickpea Tart Homemade Tofurky Candied Sweet Potatoes Sweet Potato Sauté with Pecans & Cranberries Garlic Mashed Potatoes Roasted Oyster Mushroom & Sausage Stuffing Cornbread Dressing Savory Gravy Stuffed Buttercup Squash Pioneer Corn Bread Biscuits Like Mom Never Made Cranberry Sauce
Hello, dessert!:Pumpkin Pie Famous Caramel Apple Pie Amazing Pecan Pie Pecan Pumpkin Cheesecake Apple Raisin Fruit Crisp Pumpkin Cake with Chocolate-Hazelnut Ganache Sweet Potato Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Mulled Cranberry-Apple Cider
After having hosted dozens of veg Thanksgiving dinners among us, we've rounded up some tips and tricks we know will make this holiday easy as pie (in this case, pumpkin pie dolloped with vegan whipped cream, of course). The most important rule to remember? Have fun! How to host a Thanksgiving with meat-eating guests click hereThanksgiving Hotline Chat 11/22 @ 6pm click hereThe vegan wine guide click hereWhat's on your Thanksgiving menu? click hereMyth-busting facts about the veg diet click hereProduct review: Field Roast Celebration Roast click hereThanksgiving events around the country click here

Thanksgiving, Sleepiness and Tryptophan

Thanksgiving approaches! Over the years, I've heard from many hundreds of people that, after eating cheese, they get sleepy. Each case in itself is remarkable, and would be considered to be an "anecdote" by doctors and scientists. Hundreds of cases would be called "anecdotal evidence." To my understanding, there has been no study linking cheese consumption to "sleepiness." Doctors are often rewarded by having techniques or diseases named after them. Dr. Heimlich has his maneuver. Dr. Alzheimer has his brain disease. Dr. Constipat had... well, enough of that. In the best interests of science, I am revealing why cheese eaters get tired. Since I am the first to report this, it is my option of naming this phenomenon after myself, so from here on, please refer to this as the "Notmilkman Effect." It has been well established that people get sleepy after eating Thanksgiving meals. Scientists place the blame upon an excess of that amino acid in turkey flesh called tryptophan. There was a time when tryptophan supplements were used by insomniacs. Pop a pill and go right to sleep. In 1990, the food and drug administration took tryptophan products off the market after a few dozen deaths were reported. More than 5,000 people got seriously ill after ingesting tryptophan. Some were diagnosed with eosinophilic-myalgia, a syndrome in which extreme muscle pain leads to serious swelling of arms and legs. I obtained data for the average tryptophan level in all cuts of turkey by accessing the United States Department of Agriculture Nutrient Database: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp A 100-gram portion of turkey contains 0.31 gram of tryptophan. For the sake of comparison, that number will act as our baseline for comparison of tryptophan levels in other foods. You might ask yourself if Gouda is good for sleep. Does Wisconsin's finest Cheddar cause more drowsiness than a group of cheeseheads talking about the Green Bay Packer football team? Will Parmesan cheese at dinner put you to sleep an hour later while watching a performance of Figaro? How about goat cheese? Here's what you need to know about tryptophan levels in 100 gram portions of food: Turkey (all cuts) = 0.31 gram of tryptophan Cheddar Cheese = 0.32 gram of tryptophan Hard Goat Cheese = 0.32 gram of tryptophan Parmesan Cheese = 0.48 gram of tryptophan Advice for car owners: Don't eat cheese and operate a motor vehicle. If you do so, have one member of your party assigned to be the designated non-cheese driver. If you know of any person falling asleep at the wheel and causing an accident, please call somebody from MACC (Mothers Against Cheese Consumption). Call: 1-877-BIG-MACC (877-244-6222)
Pleasant dreams! Robert "Notmilkman" Cohen http://www.notmilk.com

Cancer Update from John Hopkins

AFTER YEARS OF TELLING PEOPLE CHEMOTHERAPY IS THE ONLY WAY TO TRY ("TRY" IS THE KEY WORD) AND ELIMINATE CANCER, JOHN HOPKINS IS FINALLY STARTING TO TELL YOU THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE WAY . Cancer Update from John Hopkins
1. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.
2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person's lifetime
3. When the person's immune system is strong the cancer cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.
4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has multiple nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, environmental, food and lifestyle factors.
5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing diet and including supplements will strengthen the immune system.
6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastro-intestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.
7. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.
8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.
9 When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.
10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other sites.
11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply. CANCER CELLS FEED ON: a. Sugar is a cancer-feeder. By cutting off sugar it cuts off one important food supply to the cancer cells. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal,Spoonful, etc are made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in color. Better alternative is Bragg's aminos or sea salt. b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soya milk cancer cells are being starved. c. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer. d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains,seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment.About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts)and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C). e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine.Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer-fighting properties. Water-best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.
12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines become putrified and leads to more toxic buildup.
13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body's killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.
14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence,Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the body's own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body's normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.
15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, unforgiveness and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy life.
16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.

ACS Admits Mammograms and Cancer Screenings are Over-Hyped

(NaturalNews) Dr. Otis Brawley, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, recently participated in an interview with the New York Times concerning a Journal of the American Medical Association analysis of breast and prostate cancer screening. The study questioned the legitimacy of such screenings in saving lives, a notion confirmed by Dr. Brawley as legitimate. Adding that the supposed benefits of screening have been "exaggerated", Dr. Brawley's comments have fueled a firestorm of controversy since they fly in the face of what the organization has been saying and promoting for years. Cancer screenings essentially have no benefitProstate-specific antigen (PSA) cancer screenings are considered by many to be ineffective in identifying legitimate cancers and in reducing prostate cancer deaths. Eric Larson, a physician serving as executive director of the Group Health Center for Health Studies in Seattle, is one such person. Because there has been no demonstrated benefit to screenings (and they often lead to needless procedures and complications), Mr. Larson continually refuses to receive annual PSA cancer screenings until any alleged benefit can be proven scientifically. Since PSA screenings first began, the number of prostate cancer diagnoses have increased while advanced and late-stage cancers have remained roughly the same. Breast cancer screenings, primarily in the form of mammography, have a similar track record of failure. The journal report notes that since screenings began, there has been a 40 percent increase in diagnoses and a near doubling of early-stage cancers with only a 10 percent decrease in late-stage cancers that spread throughout the body.Screenings reveal far more incidences of both breast and prostate cancers but do virtually nothing to curb their promulgation and the outcome that ensues. Researchers note that, if screenings lived up to the promises made about them, late-stage cancers that were formerly incurable because they were found too late would now be discovered earlier when they could be cured. Unfortunately, this has not been the case.
Screenings fail to properly identify cancers resulting in unnecessary treatment, While some still see screening as essential and beneficial, despite evidence to the contrary, others recognize the potential dangers of screening. Dr. Laura Esserman of the University of California, San Francisco, and Dr. Ian Thompson of the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, both believe that prostate and breast cancer screenings pose inherent problems that people must be aware of before getting them. Cancer screenings often identify cancers that should not be identified due to the fact that, if left alone, they would never spread or cause harm. Dormant cancers that will never spread in the body are often pinpointed by screenings and treated as though they are harmful. Detection of these innocuous cancers can be attributed to the tremendous increase in diagnoses over the years. Screenings are wholly unable to differentiate between innocuous and deadly cancers. Harmless cancers are often identified and aggressively treated. Malignant cancers are often missed or discovered too late, proving the point that screenings are largely useless.
Cancer industry generally refuses to admit a problem exists. What astounds concerned doctors and researchers is the fact that analysis into how to properly differentiate between malignant and benign cancers when screening has never been performed and does not seem to be a priority for the cancer industry. Screenings are pushed despite their inability to properly diagnose with no effort being made to develop useful screening methods.Objection to "over diagnosis" using flawed screening methods is considered a major faux pas in mainstream cancer circles. Regardless of documented evidence citing flawed methodology, many in the industry refuse to accept that the existing screening procedure is both flawed and dangerous.
Mammography can actually cause cancer. Aside from unneeded treatments that may result from improper diagnoses, women screened for breast cancer using mammography undergo tremendous exposure to ionizing radiation every time they are screened. Exposure to this radiation is often implicated in causing the very malignant cancers that are meant to be detected. Continual exposure to excessive levels of radiation due to receiving annual mammograms greatly increases a woman's risk of developing breast cancer. Mammograms have about a 70 percent failure rate, routinely detecting non-existent tumors. Consequently, many women undergo invasive biopsies needlessly.
Thermography preferable to mammography, Women with a continued interest in breast cancer screening would do well to choose thermography rather than mammography. Thermography utilizes digital infrared imaging, a safe detection method that analyzes body heat levels in and around the breasts. By analyzing blood vessel circulation and metabolic changes that typically accompany the onset of tumorous growths, thermography is arguably the most effective, accurate, and safest breast cancer detection method. A healthy, cancer-preventative diet is the best way to prevent the onset of malignant cancers. Keeping the body in an alkaline state by feeding it a diet rich in natural foods will safeguard the body from becoming an environment in which cancer can thrive and replicate.Vitamin D, curcumin, chaparral, garlic, and aloe vera are a few of the many beneficial nutrients that will serve the body well in preventing cancer. Raw brazil nuts, rich in selenium, and saw palmetto are two superb nutrients for maintaining a healthy prostate.

Need Your Help With the Food Safety Bill

24 HOURS URGENT CALL TO ACTION! STOP YOUR HUMAN FREEDOM FROM BEING TAKEN OVER! GO TO POPCAMPAIGN.ORG
Greetings Everyone! Here we go!

Tuesday Nov. 17th is the day to take action! Please call and fax Members of the Senate HELP Committee, (Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions), and circulate this alert to your networks, facebook pages, twitter, etc today!! Phone and fax numbers and instructions are listed below and at www.popcampaign.org.
S 510 (the Food Safety Bill) is scheduled for mark-up, final discussion and vote in the subcommittee on Wednesday, November 18th at 10:00 AM – (watch it live http://www.swiftpage1.com/SpeClicks.aspx?X=2T0OA59KHR2J7EE000Y3WK).
This Food Safety Modernization Act seeks to decrease food-borne illnesses by strengthening the FDA’s food safety oversight and enforcement, including provisions that would extend authority to on-farm production and processing. Unfortunately, the bill as it stands, poses a serious threat to family farm value, local food systems, and sustainable organic agriculture. In short, it threatens our inherent right to grow, sell, buy, and eat the pure quality of organic food we are used to within the US.

Bad News: In the Chairman’s mark-up version received this Monday afternoon, this bill still has CODEX harmonization language in it with an added section at the end stating: “Nothing in this Act… shall be construed in a manner inconsistent with the agreement establishing the World Trade Organization or any other treaty or international agreement to which the United States is a party.” This also means the World Health Organization. We all must be aware that such language allows the WTO to trump this bill, and other US laws, if there is a determined need – seeing beyond any amendments for organic. We seek to keep the toxins, irradiation, pasteurization, and any other post harvest sterilization away from our organic food under any circumstance!

Good News: There has been some updated general language inserted in the Chairman’s mark-up copy that instructs the FDA to “take into consideration” organics in its policies and instructs it to report back in two years of the impact of guidelines on organic farming. Also, vitamins clearly are exempt in this bill. (See our website for the full text of changes). We’ll take the small victories, these are important; however, we stand on guard and need to act fast on the CODEX issue!
Thank you for acting now,
Rudi Leonardi and Mikaële Holzer, Green Your SPIRIT
Brian Clement, Hippocrates Health Institute


PLEASE CALL OR FAX SENATORS NOW EVEN IF YOU ARE NOT IN THEIR DISTRICT. HERE’S HOW TO DO IT (#'s Listed Below):

(Instructions are also at http://www.swiftpage1.com/SpeClicks.aspx?X=2T0OA59KHR2J7EE001Y3WK. Click the “Act Now” tab for examples of what to say, what we said, and the Senate Committee Members information).
Say, for example: “Hello, I am___________ and a constituent of Senator________ and I am calling to ask him/her to support the proposals for amendments to S 510 offered by The POP Campaign. (Emphasize that organic food grown and consumer in the US should be exempt from harmonization with CODEX – our last recommendation).

This is what we sent to Senators - The POP Campaign Position:

We suggested the following language:
· That the FDA develop in its guidelines clear language that protects and preserves consumer rights to grow, sell, buy and eat organic produce, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes and herbs within the boundaries of the United States without compromising pure organic quality.
· That the FDA, in its guidelines, insert clear language that exempts organic foods grown and consumed in the United States (produce, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes and herbs) from the use of toxins, pesticides, preservatives, fertilization, irradiation, artificial ingredients, GMO’s or any other post harvest method that compromises organic quality. Minimally, consistency with the Organic Food Act is a must. (Note: that this exemption implies that special attention be directed to organics that cross state lines also not being subject to these methods.)
· (To go the extra mile.) That the FDA is instructed to exempt from their guidelines personal gardens, small farms, farmers markets, health institutes, fruit stands, and Indigenous Nations, for growing, selling, buying, and consuming organics within the United States.
· Pertaining to Section 306: (b) and (c) (5) Building Capacity of Foreign Governments with Respect to Food: “ Recommendations to harmonize requirements under the CODEX Alementarius.”
· That clear language be inserted that instructs ALL “consultation” agencies involved in “developing the plan”, (Secretary of State, Treasury, Commerce, Agriculture, etc.) including the FDA to exempt from harmonization in any manner with CODEX all organic produce, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, and herbs grown or processed in the United States for purposes of consumption within the United States.

SENATE COMMITTEE MEMBERS CONTACTS AND INFO
DEMOCRATS
Senator Phone ----Fax
Tom Harkin (IA) 202-224-3254 202-224-5128 OR

SEND FAX TO HELP COMMITTEE STAFF FAX : 202-224-3533
Committee
Chris Dodd (CT) 202-224-2823---- 202-224-1083
Barbara Mikulski (MD) 202-224-4654 ----202-224-8858
Jeff Bingaman (NM) 202-224-5521---- No fax
Patty Murray (WA) 202-224-2621---- 202-224-0238
Jack Reed (RI) 202-224-4642---- 202-224-4680
Bernie Sanders (VT) 202-224-5141 ----202-228-0776
Sherrod Brown (OH) 202-224-2315---- 202-228-6321
Bob Casey (PA) 202-224-6324---- 202-228-0604
Kay Hagan (NC) 202-224-6342 ----202-228-2563
Jeff Merkley (OR) 202-224-3753---- 202-228-3997
Al Franken (MN) 202-224-5641---- No fax
Michael Bennet (CO) 202-224-5852---- 202-228-5036
REPUBLICANS
Senator Phone---- Fax
Mike Enzi (WY) 202-224-3424 ----202-228-0359 (F)
Ranking Republican
Judd Gregg (NH) 202-224-3324---- No fax
Lamar Alexander (TN) 202-224-4944---- 202-228-3398
Richard Burr (NC) 202-224-3154---- 202-228-2981`
Johnny Isakson (GA) 202-224-3643---- 202-228-0724
Orrin Hatch (UT) 202-224-5251---- 202-224-6331
Pat Roberts (KS) 202-224-4774---- 202-224-3514
Tom Coburn (OK) 202-224-5754---- 202-224-6008
Lisa Murkowski (AK) 202-224-6665---- 202-224-5301

How To Make Sure You're Getting Enough Calcium

Getting enough calcium for strong bones and teeth isn't as simple as ingesting a certain number of milligrams of calcium per day. This post outlines why calcium is important to your health, as well as steps that you can take to ensure that you get enough calcium to experience your best health.
Calcium is the most abundant mineral found in your body. Approximately 99 percent of the calcium in your body is found in your bones and teeth while the remaining 1 percent is found in your blood and remaining tissues.
What Does Calcium Do in Your Body?
Helps to form strong teeth and bones
Allows muscle tissue to lengthen and contract properly
Helps regulate blood pH, which is essential to your body's ability to properly transport oxygen and carbon dioxide
Allows for proper blood coagulation
Allows for proper functioning of your heart and nerves
Due to its importance to a number of critical metabolic activities, the amount of calcium that is available to your blood and tissues must be carefully regulated at all times. Your bones and teeth serve as reservoirs of calcium that your blood taps into for its ongoing need for calcium. Ultimately, the amount of calcium that your blood saps from your bones and teeth is determined by the amount of calcium that your blood receives from your diet. So the health of your bones and teeth is closely linked to the quantity and quality of calcium-rich foods that you eat and how well you digest and assimilate these foods.
Here are some healthy food sources of calcium that are well tolerated by the masses:
Whole Food Sources Serving Calcium (mg)
Sardines
3 ounces- 372 mg
Chinese cabbage, cooked
1/2 cup -239 mg
Spinach, cooked
1/2 cup- 230 mg
Rhubarb, cooked
1/2 cup -174 mg
Wild salmon, canned with bones
3 ounces -167 mg
Kale, cooked
1 cup -122 mg
White beans, cooked
1/2 cup -113 mg
Bok choy, cooked
1/2 cup -79 mg
Broccoli, cooked
1 cup -70 mg
Pinto beans,cooked
1/2 cup -45 mg
Red beans, cooked
1/2 cup -41 mg
Additional healthy food sources of calcium include: Broths made with vegetables and/or organic bones. Organic, unpasteurized dairy from healthfully raised goats, cows, or sheep (if you can ingest dairy without experiencing discomfort anywhere in your body)
Green food powders that contain a variety of organic green vegetables Sesame leaves and sesame seedsEating plenty of healthy, calcium-rich foods does not guarantee healthy bones and teeth. The following factors influence your calcium and overall health status:
Your body needs an adequate amount of vitamin D to properly absorb calcium through your intestinal wall. Vitamin D deficiency is one of the most common nutritional deficiencies in industrialized countries.
Taking synthetic iron and zinc supplements can inhibit calcium absorption.
If you regularly eat whole grains without soaking, fermenting, or sprouting them, the phytic acid found in the bran of whole grains can bind onto calcium and prevent its absorption into your bloodstream. Soaking whole grains overnight before preparing them to eat can neutralize phytic acid and prevent problems with calcium absorption.
Stress is capable of leeching calcium out of your bones.
Eating too many acid-forming foods like flesh meats, dairy products, flour products, salt, sugar, and caffeine can pull calcium out of your bones.
Because there are many variables that can affect how well you absorb calcium into your blood and maintain the strength of your bones and teeth, it's difficult to provide recommended daily allowances for different age groups.
There are, however, a few concrete steps that you can take to help ensure adequate calcium intake and optimal bone and dental infrastructure:
Strive to eat some of the calcium-rich foods listed above on a regular basis. Don't forget to apply principles of how to eat for optimal digestion and assimilation of nutrients.
Do some weight-bearing exercise every day. Simply walking outdoors is an excellent choice for most people.
Ensure that you have a healthy amount of vitamin D in your system by getting some exposure to sunlight and eating foods rich in vitamin D.
Choose to eat iron-rich and zinc-rich foods rather than synthetic supplement forms of iron and zinc.
Soak whole grains overnight before preparing them to eat.
Find ways to effectively manage emotional stressors in your life.
Don't eat large amounts of flesh meats, flour products, salt, and caffeine. Sugar is best avoided completely.

The Environmental Impact of Eating Meat

by: James E. McWilliams/Vegsource Newsletter:
I've been writing about food and agriculture for more than a decade. Until that evening, however, I'd never actively thought about this most basic culinary question: Is eating personal?
We know more than we've ever known about the innards of the global food system. We understand that food can both nourish and kill. We know that its production can both destroy and enhance our environment. We know that farming touches every aspect of our lives -- the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the soil we need.
So it's hard to avoid concluding that eating cannot be personal. What I eat influences you. What you eat influences me. Our diets are deeply, intimately and necessarily political.
This realization changes everything for those who avoid meat. As a vegetarian I've always felt the perverse need to apologize for my dietary choice. It inconveniences people. It smacks of self-righteousness. It makes us pariahs at dinner parties. But the more I learn about the negative impact of meat production, the more I feel that it's the consumers of meat who should be making apologies.
Here's why: The livestock industry as a result of its reliance on corn and soy-based feed accounts for over half the synthetic fertilizer used in the United States, contributing more than any other sector to marine dead zones. It consumes 70 percent of the water in the American West -- water so heavily subsidized that if irrigation supports were removed, ground beef would cost $35 a pound. Livestock accounts for at least 21 percent of greenhouse-gas emissions globally -- more than all forms of transportation combined. Domestic animals -- most of them healthy -- consume about 70 percent of all the antibiotics produced. Undigested antibiotics leach from manure into freshwater systems and impair the sex organs of fish.
It takes a gallon of gasoline to produce a pound of conventional beef. If all the grain fed to animals went to people, you could feed China and India. That's just a start.
Meat that's raised according to "alternative" standards (about 1 percent of meat in the United States) might be a better choice but not nearly as much so as its privileged consumers would have us believe. "Free-range chickens" theoretically have access to the outdoors. But many "free-range" chickens never see the light of day because they cannot make it through the crowded shed to the aperture leading to a patch of cement.
"Grass-fed" beef produces four times the methane -- a greenhouse gas 21 times as powerful as carbon dioxide -- of grain-fed cows, and many grass-fed cows are raised on heavily fertilized and irrigated grass. Pastured pigs are still typically mutilated, fed commercial feed and prevented from rooting -- their most basic instinct besides sex.
Issues of animal welfare are equally implicated in all forms of meat production. Domestic animals suffer immensely, feel pain and may even be cognizant of the fate that awaits them. In an egg factory, male chicks (economically worthless) are summarily run through a grinder. Pigs are castrated without anesthesia, crated, tail-docked and nose-ringed. Milk cows are repeatedly impregnated through artificial insemination, confined to milking stalls and milked to yield 15 times the amount of milk they would produce under normal conditions. When calves are removed from their mothers at birth, the mothers mourn their loss with heart-rending moans.
Then comes the slaughterhouse, an operation that's left with millions of pounds of carcasses -- deadstock -- that are incinerated or dumped in landfills. (Rendering plants have taken a nose dive since mad cow disease.)
Now, if someone told you that a particular corporation was trashing the air, water and soil; causing more global warming than the transportation industry; consuming massive amounts of fossil fuel; unleashing the cruelest sort of suffering on innocent and sentient beings; failing to recycle its waste; and clogging our arteries in the process, how would you react? Would you say, "Hey, that's personal?" Probably not. It's more likely that you'd frame the matter as a dire political issue in need of a dire political response.
Vegetarianism is not only the most powerful political response we can make to industrialized food. It's a necessary prerequisite to reforming it. To quit eating meat is to dismantle the global food apparatus at its foundation.
Agribusiness has been vilified of late by muckraking journalists, activist filmmakers and sustainable-food advocates. We know that something has to be done to save our food from corporate interests. But I wonder -- are we ready to do what must be done? Sure, we've been inundated with ideas: eat local, vote with your fork, buy organic, support fair trade, etc. But these proposals all lack something that every successful environmental movement has always placed at its core: genuine sacrifice.
Until we make that leap, until we create a culinary culture in which the meat-eaters must do the apologizing, the current proposals will be nothing more than gestures that turn the fork into an empty symbol rather than a real tool for environmental change.
James E. McWilliams, an associate professor of history at Texas State University at San Marcos and a recent fellow in the agrarian studies program at Yale University, is most recently the author of "Just Food."

Will Eating and Drinking Soy Do a Body Good

Cancer is a group of acidic dis-eases characterized by the uncontrolled fermentation and degeneration of body cells. Over 10 million Americans today are cancer survivors, and about 1.4 million Americans are expected to be diagnosed each year. "Diet plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of ALL cancerous conditions, and soy protein is one of the leading anti-acid or alkalizing and therefore anti-carcinogenic foods being studied," stated Dr. Robert O. Young, Director of Research at the pH Miracle Living Center. Soy Foods & Cancer: There has been much focus during the past 15 years on the anticancer effects of soy foods. There are several presumed chemo-preventive agents in the soy bean, but the isoflavones have received the most attention. A particular interest lies in the role of soy foods and isoflavones in reducing the risk of breast and prostate cancer. Soy & Breast Cancer Data modestly supports the hypothesis that soy food intake may reduce the incidence of breast cancer. A recently published analysis found the relative risk for breast cancer was 95 percent when comparing high- vs. low-soy consumers. However, many of the case-control and prospective studies included in this analysis were of poor quality. Rodent studies have generally shown that isoflavones, or soy protein, inhibit chemically induced mammary tumors when given prior to tumor initiation, although there are a number of exceptions. Interestingly, the chemo-preventive effects of isoflavones appear to be affected by the background dietary choices. When the isoflavone genistein was added to the semi-purified diet, chemically induced rodent mammary tumors were not inhibited, but when added to the regular chow diet, tumor development was suppressed by approximately 50 percent. This suggests that animal research, which most commonly uses semi-purified diets, may actually underestimate the potential anti-carcinogenic effects of soy and other foods. Soy & Markers of Breast Cancer: In contrast to the animal and epidemiological data, there is little clinical evidence that soy or isoflavones favorably affect markers of breast cancer risk including breast tissue density, serum estrogen levels, and breast cell proliferation. There is limited evidence that estrogen metabolism is favorably affected and that menstrual cycle length is increased (which decreases cancer risk). Nevertheless, there remains considerable enthusiasm for the possibility that soy food intake contributes to the low breast cancer rate in Japan. Early Intake of Soy May Reduce Breast Risk: There is both epidemiologic and animal data in support of the hypothesis that early soy intake reduces later risk of developing breast cancer. This hypothesis is consistent with mounting evidence that early life influences — parity, lactation, age at menses, birth weight, etc. — impact risk of developing breast cancer. Studies of migrants suggest that the first 20 years of life have an especially profound impact on risk. The epidemiologic data suggest just one to two servings of soy foods is protective. Breaking News - Soy Breast Cancer Study: Soy Breast Cancer Study Holds Promise, but Calls for Further Research. For more than 15 years, soy foods have been actively investigated for their possible role in reducing breast cancer risk. Initial enthusiasm about this hypothesis was based on several observations. These include the low breast cancer rates in Japan, early animal research indicating that soy beans in rodent diets reduced mammary tumor development and evidence suggesting that the isoflavones (phytoestrogens) in soy foods may exert anti-estrogenic effects. However, establishing a relationship between cancer risk and diet – especially specific foods – is much more difficult than establishing such links in the case of other chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease. This is because there are few well-established non-invasive indicators of cancer risk, and studies are very rarely conducted for long enough to measure actual differences in tumor incidence. Consequently, it is difficult to claim with confidence whether a particular intervention increases or decreases the chances of developing cancer. Epidemiological research is a useful mode of investigation for exploring a relationship between diet and cancer. Epidemiology is the study of the patterns, causes, and control of disease in groups of people. There are two primary types of epidemiological studies, case-control and prospective studies. In case-control studies, scientists compare people with cancer to those without in hopes of identifying characteristics such as lifestyle or diet that are more common to one group than the other. In prospective studies, scientists first evaluate the characteristics of a large group of healthy people, then follow those subjects for many years in hopes of identifying whether certain factors are more common to those who develop cancer than to those who don't. Generally, prospective studies are considered more credible than case-control studies. It is important to recognize, however, that epidemiological studies cannot establish cause and effect relationships. Only clinical trials can do that. But epidemiological studies are often used as a basis for clinical research.To evaluate the relationship between soy intake and breast cancer risk, Bruce Trock and colleagues from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Georgetown University conducted a meta-analysis of epidemiological studies. A meta-analysis is the statistical analysis of a large collection of results from individual studies for the purpose of integrating the findings. This particular analysis included 12 case-control studies and 6 prospective studies. The major finding of this analysis was that when all women (Asian and non-Asian, pre- and postmenopausal) were considered, soy intake was associated with a 14% reduction in breast cancer risk. That is, women consuming higher quantities of soy were 14% less likely to develop breast cancer than women who consumed relatively little soy. However, subgroup analysis revealed that soy was more protective against pre- compared to postmenopausal breast cancer, and was protective in studies involving non-Asian women but not Asian women.The analysis by Trock and colleagues provides modest support for the notion that soy may protect against breast cancer. A 14% reduction is certainly noteworthy, but for several reasons the study results should be interpreted with caution. First, in many studies, soy intake was not actually quantified. Rather, it was estimated based on the urinary excretion of isoflavones. Because urinary isoflavone excretion varies so much from person to person, it provides only a rough approximation of soy intake. Furthermore, although soy was found to be protective in studies involving non-Asian women, the intake of soy by the women in these studies was quite low. There is some doubt as to whether such low intakes are sufficient to exert biological effects. Since soy foods are still consumed by only a minority of people in non-Asian countries – and are often favored by especially health-conscious individuals – we must consider the possibility that the perceived cancer-protective effects of soy may result from an overall healthy lifestyle, rather than soy consumption per se. Although the researchers employed statistical techniques to try to separate the effects of soy from other factors common to people who eat soy, this is very difficult to do.While some evidence, including the new analysis by Trock and colleagues, suggests soy foods may reduce breast cancer risk, no conclusions can be made at this time. Nevertheless, because soy foods provide excellent nutrition, they can play an important role in an overall healthy diet, regardless of their possible relationship to breast cancer protection.Soy & Prostate CancerThe soy bean isoflavone genistein inhibits the growth of both androgen-dependent and androgen-independent prostate cancerous cells, depending on the level of soy doses administered. In addition, genistein inhibits the invasive capacity of prostate cancerous cells and enhances the ability of radiation to kill these cells. However, the concentration of genistein required to exert these effects is higher than the serum isoflavone levels of people who eat soy foods. Nevertheless, several observations suggest these effects are biologically relevant. Regional Diets Can Impact Prostate Cancer: In Japan, although many men have prostate cancer, few die of this dis-ease. This is because the small tumors often referred to as latent prostate cancer, not uncommon to Japanese men, rarely progress to the more advanced form of this disease. Isoflavones in combination with tea extracts were shown to reduce tumor growth in mice more effectively than either agent alone. In Asia, and especially in Japan, where prostate cancer mortality rates are low, both soy foods and tea are important components of their diet. There are likely several factors that contribute to this clinical situation in Japanese men and according to the International Prostate Health Council, and isoflavone intake from soy foods may be one. There has been limited epidemiological investigation of the relationship between soy intake and prostate cancer. These studies have produced mixed results but can be said to be consistent with the hypothesis that soy intake reduces prostate cancer risk. A recent analysis of 10 epidemiological studies found that soy intake was associated with a one-third reduction in prostate cancer risk. However, many of the epidemiological studies involved a small number of cases and/or did not comprehensively evaluate soy food intake. However, a recent comprehensive Japanese case-control study found that when comparing the highest with the lowest soy food intake cases, risk was reduced by nearly 50 percent. Soy May Help Treat Existing Prostate CancerData suggests that soy foods may be useful in the treatment of existing prostate cancer, but this remains speculative. A study of 11 trials, three involving healthy subjects and eight involving prostate cancer patients, examined the effects of isoflavones on PSA levels. No benefits were noted in healthy subjects, but among the cancer patients one-half noted favorable effects. Recent intervention data demonstrate that reducing prostate cancer risk is not dependent upon reductions in PSA levels.