The first time we read the term, we were researching this article.  On the site, Center for Science in the Public Interest, the publishers proclaim:  “Shopping was easy when most food came from farms. Now, factory-made foods have made chemical additives a significant part of our diet.”

In previous articles, we discussed the Balanced Diet:  what it is, how it affects your health, your heath care and the fact that the people are consuming a “Balanced Diet” is  an illusion.  The publishers at the Center for Science in the Public interest drive the point home on their site.

To start the analysis, and If you are interested, here is a listing, from the FDA, of all the additives (3,000 in all) the FDA knows are in the NEW Standard American Diet: Chemcuisine.

The following analysis is a synopsis of our research on the subject of what most people, and their children, are consuming each day.  

Processed, Junk, and Fake Foods

Processed food is made from real food that has been put through devitalizing chemical processes and is infused with chemicals and preservatives. Beef jerky, canned tea, jam, hot dogs, and low-fat yogurt with sugar or aspartame are a few examples of processed food.

Junk foods contain very little real food. They’re made of devitalized processed food, hydrogenated fats, chemicals, and preservatives, and include anything made with refined white flour. Canned breakfast drinks, cold/sugary cereals, doughnuts, drive-through foods, and soda are examples of junk foods.

Fake foods are made primarily of chemicals, and often contain gums and sugar fillers. Examples include bacon bits, bottled salad dressing, dehydrated soups, and instant coffee.

The Energy Output Exceeds Nutritional Input.  These non-foods have one thing in common; it costs your body a great deal more to digest, absorb, and eliminate them than they offer your body in nutritional value – an extremely poor return on your investment that leaves your body sluggish and depleted.

Toxins, Poisons, Processed Food – And The Body

Our ancestors preserved foods naturally, using salt, fermentation, and sun drying. Food processing has evolved away from these simple practices into more complicated and dubious methods.

Today, food companies use nearly three thousand known additives and chemicals to process our food. Many of them can have a devastating effect on our health.

It is important to note that additives and preservatives cannot always be painted with a negative brush. The addition of vitamins to bread and milk has helped to stamp out diseases such as pellagra and rickets.

Unfortunately, the good intentions that characterized the processed food industry during the early days have now de-evolved to finding ways to cheaply process food and manipulate buyers, regardless of the detrimental affects on the health of Americans.

Today, many additives and preservatives are harmful toxic chemicals that are as problematic as the decay they are used to prevent.

Preservatives

 Perservatives are a type of additive used to help stop food from spoiling.

Nitrates and nitrites are used to preserve meats such as ham and bacon, but are known to cause asthma, nausea, vomiting, and headaches in some people in addition to allergic reactions.

The same is true for sulfites (sulfur dioxide, metabisulfites, and others, which are commonly used to prevent fungal spoilage, as well as the browning of peeled fruits and vegetables.

Sodium nitrite in some foods is capable of being converted to nitrous acid when ingested by humans. While animal testing showed that nitrous acid caused high rates of cancer, it is still in use.

Sulfur dioxide is a toxin used in dried fruits and molasses as well as to prevent brown spots on peeled fresh foods such as potatoes and apples. Sulfur dioxide bleaches out rot, hiding inferior fruits and vegetables. In the process, it destroys the vitamin B contained in produce.

Antioxidants

While antioxidants such as alpha-carotene are recommended by health specialists to prevent premature aging, some of the antioxidants used as food preservatives may be unhealthy. Contained in nearly every processed food on the market, antioxidants prevent fatty foods from spoiling when exposed to oxygen.

For example, BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene) and BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole) are two of the most widely used, yet controversial of all antioxidants. So alarming were the results of BHT and BHA in animal testing, that a number of countries have severely restricted their use.

Some people have difficulty metabolizing these chemicals, which is thought to result in health and behavioral problems, and hyperactivity. They cause allergic reactions, may also contribute to the development of tumors and cancer, as well as be toxic to the nervous system and liver.

In spite of these findings, the use of BHT and BHA has increased, rather than decreased, in the U.S.A.

Coloring

Each year, the American food industry uses three thousand tons of food color. Many coloring agents are derived from coal tar, and nearly all coloring is synthetic. Norway has a total ban on all products containing coal tar.

Though some artificial food dyes have been banned because they are believed to cause cancer, most dyes used today are of the artificial variety. They are also linked to allergies, asthmas, and hyperactivity.

The long list of foods and beverages in which color is altered includes butter, margarine, the skins of oranges and potatoes, popcorn, maraschino cherries, hot dogs, jellies, jellybeans, carbonated beverages, and canned strawberries and peas.

Even the chicken feed on large-scale egg farms is colored so that chickens will lay golden-yolk eggs similar to those laid by free-range chickens.

Sweeteners

Most processed foods contain sweeteners, many of which are artificial sugar substitutes containing no natural sugars, such as saccharine and aspartame.

Artificial sweeteners are linked to behavioral problems, hyperactivity, and allergies. Because saccharin was shown to increase the incidence of bladder cancer in animal testing, all foods containing this sugar substitute are required to carry a warning label.

Emulsifiers, Stabilizers, and Thickeners

These additives alter the texture of foods. Emulsifiers, for example, prevent ingredients from separating into unappealing globs in food such as mayonnaise and ice cream.

A first cousin to anti-freeze, propylene glycol is a synthetic solvent used as an emulsifier in foods. Although it is recognized as toxic to the skin and other senses, and is considered a neurological toxicant, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has deemed it generally recognized as safe (GRAS).

Flavorings

The most common food additive, flavorings – of which there are over 2000 in use – may be natural or artificial, and are usually comprised of a large number of chemicals.

Artificial flavors are linked to allergic and behavioral reactions, yet these ingredients are not required to be listed in detail as they’re generally recognized as safe.

MSG (monosodium glutamate) is a common flavor enhancer. Found to cause damage in laboratory mice, it has been banned from use in baby foods, but is still used in numerous others. It causes common allergic and behavioral reactions including headaches, dizziness, chest pains, depression, and mood swings, and is also a possible neurotoxin.

Refining

Refined flour has had the brown husk of the grain stripped away, leaving the white, refined starch that is found in white bread, white rice, pasta, cookies, and numerous other junk foods.

Without the fibrous husk, refined starches are broken down quickly into sugar and absorbed immediately into the bloodstream causing glucose levels to rise, and increasing the risk of obesity, diabetes and a host of other “not so nice” health complaints.

In contrast, whole grains – such as whole grain bread and cereals, brown rice, and barley – retain the bran surrounding the starch, so they’re absorbed more slowly into the bloodstream than refined starches. This slows sugar absorption from the intestine, and reduces the risk of consuming refined food.

Refining Destroys and Devitalizes Most of Foods’ Goodness

Healthy unsaturated fatty acids – high in food value – are lost during the milling process. Half the vitamin E is destroyed when the wheat germ and bran are removed. Refining wheat into white flour removes between 50 and 93 percent of wheat’s magnesium, zinc, chromium, manganese, and cobalt.²

Additionally, approximately 50 percent of calcium, 70 percent of phosphorus, 80 percent of iron, 50 percent of potassium, 65 percent of copper, 80 percent of thiamin, 60 percent of riboflavin, 75 percent of niacin, 50 percent of pantothenic acid, and about 50 percent of pyridoxine is lost.³

Refining sugar cane into white sugar depletes it of 99 percent of its magnesium and 93 percent of its chromium. Polishing rice removes 75 percent of its zinc and chromium.  Refined table salt has had most of the trace minerals removed during processing. It contains no sodium chloride, sugar as filler, and may even contain aluminum.⁵

Bleaching

Part of the process wheat undergoes to become the white flour in popular baked goods involves bleaching. Various chemical bleaching agents are used including oxide of nitrogen, chlorine, chloride, nitrosyl, and benzoyl peroxide mixed with a variety of chemical salts.

Chloride oxide – which catalyzes a chemical reaction that destroys beta cells in the pancreas is now being linked to diabetes.  This toxic effect is common scientific knowledge in the research community. In spite of this, the FDA still allows companies to use chloride oxide in processed food.

A Healthier Lifestyle

Eradicating every guilty pleasure in life is not the end goal here, nor is it a particularly realistic approach to making changes because everyone enjoys the occasional cheeseburger, order of fries, or bag of chips.

But if you understand the consequences of making what ought to be an occasional treat into the mainstay of your diet, you can begin to make wise choices about how many of these things you are willing to eat.

When it comes to avoiding many of the questionable – and possibly deadly – additives contained in processed foods, you’re only human after all so, taking baby steps toward change is usually the best approach.

If you can accomplish just one of these 10 steps, you’re moving in the right direction.

Try implementing one change a month …

1. As a general rule, if you don’t recognize – or can’t pronounce – the words on a label, don’t buy it, or eat it. Instead choose the real thing!

2. Avoid products containing

• Nitrates and nitrites (including sodium nitrite)
• Sulfites (including metabisulfites)
• Sulfur dioxide
• Benzoic acid (aka sodium benzoate)
• BHT (butylated hydroxytoluene)
• BHA (butylated hydroxyanisole)
• Coloring
• Coal tar
• Propylene glycol
• MSG (monosodium glutamate)
• Refined or bleached flour (i.e. whitened using chloride oxide)

3. Don’t eat partially hydrogenated or hydrogenated trans fats

4. Don’t eat products containing sugar substitutes such as saccharine and aspartame.

5. Avoid products with a long shelf life – the better they do on the shelf, the worse they are for your body.

6. Avoid products that have been “enriched“. They have been completely devitalized during processing.

7. Avoid food that has been genetically modified or engineered. Nearly all processed food contains GMOs.

8. Avoid products made with ingredients euphemistically described as “natural flavoring” or “natural coloring.”

9. Avoid products with added sugar – watch for words with “-ose” endings, such as fructose.

10. Incorporate a high quality multi-vitamin into your health regimen.

If you’ve had a history of eating products high in sugar and are concerned about diabetes, incorporate disease-fighting foods such as garlic, onion and quality Aloe vera juice into your diet. Natural phytonutrient supplements can also protect your body from the harmful effects of eating refined products that have been bleached with chloride oxide.

As you begin to eliminate processed food from your diet, and start to enjoy eating real food that has not been processed to death, you will be on your way to optimizing your health, making an investment in your body’s future and, ultimately, feeling better.

Processing Food Facts

In addition to the more than three thousand chemicals and additives in our food, preserving processes have changed beyond recognition from the simple use of vinegar, salt, and sunshine. Many processed foods are stripped bare, rendering them of little or no nutritional value.

Worse, foods are deliberately tampered with to create the desire for more. And the health effects of certain processing methods – such as the very controversial irradiation – are not yet known.

Irradiation

Irradiation is the use of x-rays or gamma radiation on food to kill bacteria mold, viruses and parasites. Unfortunately, its effects are also harmful to test animals. Those fed a diet of irradiated wheat developed increased numbers of cells with chromosome abnormalities. As well, there were unexplained stillbirths in the offspring of test rats.

So unpleasant is the mere sound of the word “irradiation” that euphemisms such as “Cold Pasteurization” and “Picowaved For Your Protection” are being used on labels because food companies fear that using the term “irradiation” may hurt sales.

Junk Food

Junk food – high in fat and sugar – is one of the leading causes for the soaring number of cases of type 2 diabetes, obesity, heart disease, and tooth decay. It is also linked to hypoglycemia and yeast overgrowth.

Did you know that cravings for processed foods are initiated by eating processed food? It’s a vicious, addictive cycle.

Food scientists know that it is necessary for certain nutrients to be present in the blood stream in order to feel full. While it is not fully understood how this process works, food companies know enough to use this knowledge to manipulate consumers into eating more by subtracting various nutrients, and adding others such as fat, sugar, and salt.

This manipulation creates a desire for processed foods – one that can never be satisfied – no matter how much of it you consume.

Natural Flavoring

“Natural flavoring” can be just about anything, from the cells of yeast extract and nucleic acid from cell chromosomes, to waste bi-products from cattle. Some reports suggest that the ingredients in so-called “natural colors” have been known to contain products as unlikely as monkey intestines; others note that some “artificial flavors” are comprised of ingredients as unappealing as minced cat.

How is it possible to determine exactly what “flavorings” are comprised of when the list of items from which they are concocted often includes a long ramble of unrecognizable chemicals?

Here is an example from the ingredient list for the strawberry flavoring in one popular fast food outlet’s strawberry milk shake.

It contains:  Amyl acetate, Amyl butyrate, Amyl valerate, Anethol, Anisyl formate, Benzyl acetate, Benzyl isobutyrate, Butyric acid, Cinnamyl isobutyrate, Cinnamyl valerate, Cognac essential oil, Diacetyl, Dipropyl ketone, Ethyl butyrate, Ethyl cinnamate, Ethyl heptanoate, Ethyl lactate, Ethyl methylphenylglycidate, Ethyl Nitrate, Ethyl propionate, Ethyl valerbate, Heliotropin, Hydroxyphrenyl-2butanone (10% solution in alcohol), A-Ionone, Isobutyl anthranilate, Isobutyl butrate, Lemon essential oil, Maltol, 4-Methylacetophenone, Methyl anthranilate, Methyl benzoate, Methyl cinnamate, Methyl heptine carbonate, Methyl naphthyl ketone, Methyl salicylate, Mint essential oil, Neroli essential oil, Nerolin, Neryl isobutyrate, Orris butter, Phenethyl alcohol, Rose, Rum ether, G-Undecalactone, Vanillin, Solvent!

And this is just the stuff in the flavoring.

 Do you want to know what’s in the “milk” part of this so-called milk shake? 

It contains:  Milk fat and nonfat milk, Sugar, Sweet whey, High-fructose corn syrup, Guar gum, Monoglycerides and diglycerides, Cellulose gum, Sodium phosphate, Carrageenan, Citric acid, E129, Artificial strawberry flavor.

MMM, MMMM!  yummy and so good for you – NOT!

Packaging

There are also concerns regarding the materials used to coat and package foods.³ The protective wax on produce such as cucumbers, peppers, and apples may trigger allergies, and can contain pesticides, fungicide sprays, or animal byproducts. Further, the plastic (vinyl chloride) some food is wrapped in is considered carcinogenic, and has been linked to immune reactions and lung shock.

Dioxin

A by-product of whitening, especially of food containers, Dioxin has become a health concern. It has been reported, for example, that certain ice creams contain high levels of dioxins, reportedly leaked into the product through the whitening used in its containers.

A known carcinogen, dioxin is associated with genetic and reproductive defects as well as learning disabilities.⁴ Dioxin exposure is a possible cause of endometriosis – a painful condition that can result in fertility problems and/or hysterectomy, as well as chronic pelvic pain and other conditions.

Conclusion

After reading this, one could conclude that the situation is hopeless.

Quite the opposite is true – because knowledge is power.  Simply use this knowledge to make different choices. 

 It makes good sense to pay attention to the food you are buying, especially if it has been processed. One thing is for certain – most of these added ingredients have nothing to do with nutrition and everything to do with increasing food sales by keeping addicted, depleted consumers coming back for more.

Besides adequate rest and moderate exercise, the fundamental nutritional thresholds must be consumed, if you have any expectation for staying healthy.  Your body needs copious amounts of: (in descending order) clean water, protein from vegetables with a limited quantity from animals, minerals, carbohydrates from whole grain, healthy fat from fish and a smattering of vitamins to stay healthy.  You can choose to consume them or take fundamental supplements to fill the gaps in your diet.

If you are experiences any of the likely complaints associated with failing to meet these thresholds, you may want to consider choosing supplements help you address your specific needs to expedite your restoration.

We’re all in this together – I’m pulling for you. (Sorry Red Green, I left out the attribution)

Notes:
1. Hanley, J.L., M.D. and Deville, N., Tired of Being Tired, Berkley Publishing Group, NY, 2001. (p. 66)
2. Wilson, Lawrence, M.D., F.I.C.B., Why Take Nutritional Supplements, article on www.drlwilson.com.
3. Hull, Janet, M.D., Bleaching agent in flour linked to diabetes, from The Idaho Observer, July 2005, cited on www.detoxprogram.net.
4. Wilson, Lawrence, M.D., F.I.C.B., Why Take Nutritional Supplements, article on www.drlwilson.com.
5. Hanley, J.L., M.D. and Deville, N., Tired of Being Tired, Berkley Publishing Group, NY, 2001. (p. 220)
6. Hull, Janet, M.D., Bleaching agent in flour linked to diabetes, from The Idaho Observer, July 2005, cited on www.detoxprogram.net.
7. Chek, Paul, excerpted from the CD/Workbook Program: You Are What You Eat! at www.chekinstitute.com.
8. The New York Nerd: Eat Fast, Die Young, April 24, 2006, at www.nynerd.com.
9. Hass, Elson M., M.D., Food Additives and Human Health, excerpted from Staying Healthy Shopper’s Guide: Feed Your Family Safely, cited on www.healthychild.com.
10. Hass, Elson M., M.D., Food Additives and Human Health, excerpted from Staying Healthy Shopper’s Guide: Feed Your Family Safely, cited on www.healthychild.com.

 

Those of you who are trying to realize your New Year resolution to lose weight are, in all likelihood, frustrated.  The fact is:  metabolism is turned down every fall; it is restored every spring.  Overwhelming this cycle is not very likely. 

Take heart!  Spring is just around the corner.

Children, all over the U.S., will soon be repeating a simple poem:
Spring has sprung, the grass has riz,
I wonder where the flowers is?

Plants will be budding, putting on leaves with blossoms springing toward the sun.  Animals will be awakening from their winter doldrums, or their hibernation, to welcome the return of the season of plenty.

It is the cycle of all living things on Earth; it is basic survival and, it is a testament to the adaptability of life on Earth.

Even though people live in modern homes, with central heat, abundant food and water, this natural cycle exerts the same, unavoidable impact on the human body.

There are a few steps you can take can assure you that your metabolism will come roaring back when it is time.

Are you 3 – 6’s, 2 – 9’s or 1 – 18?
It’s time for a spring-cleaning.  Your bowels should move at least once every day – preferably after each meal (3 –  six inch cigar-shaped.)  Even then, it is a good idea to clean up any residual wastes from the winter diet.  Supplements are especially effective in that regard so, choose an effective supplement to refresh your bowels.

Are you suffering a hangover from the holiday goodies and/or craving carbs, sugar and starches?
They, and most other winter foods, are notoriously short of trace minerals. Often referred to as “The Currency of Life”, trace minerals deficiencies have been known to contribute to a listless feeling, cravings and constant hunger.  Once again, the fastest way to address the issue is with a full-spectrum trace mineral supplement until fresh, mature vegetables are readily available.  By the way, if you are a vegetable-hater, you should consider trace mineral supplementation year-round.

Feed your Metabolism.
The 3 Day Diet, once attributed to the Cleveland Clinic, has been around for a long time.  None-the-less, it is still an effective way to feed your metabolism.  Follow the instructions, wait a week to repeat the diet. Two cycles is usually sufficient to jump start metabolism.

If you have packed on more than a few pounds, weight management supplements are in order.
However, caution in order, too.  Some weight loss supplements rely on stimulants to “spike” wake-time metabolism.  Advertisements for these types of supplements often emphasize energy as their most notable characteristic.  The tendency to consume more than enough sweets, bread and pasta, starchy vegetables, and caffeinated beverages (coffee, tea, soda and energy drinks) may already be taxing metabolic functions.  Adding another source of stimulants may not be the best idea.

A better choice may be weight management supplements formulated to support metabolic function while managing appetite, cravings and alertness.  While you won’t get the “buzz”, you won’t be anxious and/or jittery either.

Feed your body.
While it seems counter-intuitive, you must eat to lose weight.  Starvation and low-calorie dieting send a signal to your body that food is in short supply so it goes into survival mode – protecting fat and reducing metabolism. 

What you are consuming is the issue.
Before you put something in your mouth, ask yourself one simple question:  “Is this going to feed my body something it needs?”  If the answer is no, don’t eat it.  You already know the answer when you consume junk, packaged, comfort and fast food, so don’t eat them. 

Eat, eat, eat.
Eat breakfast, eat vegetables for lunch, eat a healthy supper early.  You should eat a baseball sized apple or pear for mid-morning and afternoon snacks. (Add a sprinkle of cinnamon and/or a dash of lime juice for variety.)   Here are 10 healthy, easy to fix recipes.

Drink water to help flush away the byproducts of burning fat – at least 8 – 8 ounces glasses each day.

Lose it and keep it off!
Besides appearance, losing weight is a healthy choice.  Researchers have shown, time and time again, that maintaining a healthy weight will reduce your chances of enduring many of the health issues that are confronting others.

Would you care to know how healthy you are?  Take the test.

Editor’s Note:  Rather than the prevalent “miracle in a bottle” paradigm, we believe maintaining health is a life-style. We have developed a strategy that promotes and maintains health.  You can review our work at the Natural Health Consulting Center at NURPO.

 

People believe that intestinal parasites are are limited to Third World countries and that they are uncommon in the U.S.

Nothing could be further from the truth ! Recent studies it has been estimate that 85% of the North American adult population has at least one form of intestinal parasite or organ parasite living in their bodies. Some authorities feel this figure may be as high as 95%.

How can we possibly get infected in the United States?

Here are just a few of the ways:

• increased international business and tourist travel,
• armed forces returning home,
• immigration,
• contaminated water supplies,
• swimming in contaminated lakes and streams,
• your pets or other peoples pets,
• food supplies, such as pork, processed meats, uncooked meats, chicken, lamb, and even fish may contain human intestinal parasites and organ parasites – to name a few.

The lack of treatment for intestinal and organ parasites is the #1 contributing factor in the prevalence of colon parasites, intestinal parasites and organ parasites in people -  and it is solely responsible for infesting other people with the same unwelcome guests.

Like it or not, everyone is affected by parasites.

Parasites are organisms that derive nutrition and shelter by living in or on another organism – living and dying in the host (your body), reproducing, along the way, to assure that there are future generations to live and die in their host – producing others to be passed on to another unsuspecting host.  Just about any part of your body is vulnerable to infestation: the lungs, liver, esophagus, brain, blood, muscles, joints, skin…and even your eyes!

Parasites may do any or all of six things:

1. Intestinal parasites and organ parasites cause physical damage to the body by perforating the intestines, circulatory system, lungs, liver, other organs and tissue essentially making Swiss cheese of them. Food allergies, for example, may be one of the indications of a parasitic condition of the intestine which allows food to leak into the lymph system, causing an immune response to the leaked material.
2. Weaken, damage or block certain organs just with their presence.
3. Lump together into a mass. Parasites may exist in the brain, heart, lungs, other organs, structures and tissue of your body.
4. Weaken the host by robbing the host of essential nutrients, taking a portion of the nutrients on which the host depends.
5. Poison the host with their wastes. In the best case, the host does double duty disposing of its waste and that of the parasites. Worse, when the host has difficulty disposing of the parasite’s wastes, a poisoning occurs called verminous intoxication.
6. Fool the host’s immune system into believing the parasite is part of its body.  The parasitic population is allowed grow unaffected by any of the body’s normal defense mechanisms.

Symptoms of intestinal parasites, colon parasites and organ parasites may include:

Constipation: due to worms actually blocking the intestine.

Diarrhea: certain parasites release a hormone like substances that can lead to a watery stool.

Gas and Bloating: Some human parasites that live in the small intestine causing inflammation that produces gas and bloating.

Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Human parasites can irritate, inflame and coat the lining of the intestines causing symptoms of this disease.

Joint and Muscle Aches and Pains: Parasites can migrate and become enclosed in a sac in joint fluids, worms can do this in muscles as well.

Anemia: Some intestinal worms attach themselves to the lining of the intestines;  feeding on the vital nutrients of the host.

Allergies: Parasites can penetrate the intestinal lining allowing large undigested food particles into the body which can create the immune system response that is often assumed to be an allergy.

Skin Conditions: Intestinal worms can cause hives, rashes, weeping eczema and a whole host of other skin conditions.

Nervousness: Human parasites create wastes and toxic substances that can be severe irritants to the central nervous system. Restlessness or anxiety are often the symptoms associated with these parasitic wastes.

Sleep Disturbances: Multiple awakenings at night between the hours of 2 and 3 AM are possibly caused by the liver attempts to flush toxic wastes, produced by parasitic infestations, out of the body.

Tooth Grinding and Clenching: This has been observed in patients with known cases of human parasitic infestations.

Chronic  Tiredness: fatigue, flu like complaints, apathy, impaired concentration, depression, and memory problems. The human parasites are simply stealing your food and nutrients and overwhelming your body with their wastes.

Immune System Dysfunctions: Human parasites depress the immune system by the continued stimulation of the immune system which over time exhausts your defense system.

Excess Weight, Acne and Others: These can be telltale signs of parasitic invasion including, excessive hunger, asthma, bad taste in the mouth and bad breath, epilepsy, migraines and even heart disease and other degenerative disease.

Everyone can be affected by intestinal parasites, colon parasites and even organ parasites; robbing you of essential nutrition, living, reproducing, dying, weakening and damaging your body, creating wastes that burden or even poison your body, repeating the cycle over and over with each new generation, in increasingly larger numbers.

Nothing New

Humans have been using natural means to treat parasites since the beginning of recorded history.

• They dealt with parasites in the spring, after a long winter of close contact with other humans,
• in the fall, after a summer of contamination from the environment, water, food and soil or
• anytime they felt their energy and vitality slipping away.

Classic herbal methods for managing intestinal parasites, colon parasites and organ parasites include: Wormwood, Clove and Black Walnut.  More modern Nutraceutical formulations have given rise to even more efficient natural means for dealing with parasites.

Why wait? The benefits of dealing with parasites, interrupting their life cycles and protecting yourself from further invasion are obvious.   Learn how you can deal with parasites.

 

The processes involved in the conversion of food to nutrition are fully dependent on the interplay of enzymes (both from your food and digestive enzymes produced by the body), stomach acids and microbes.

Enzymes Are the Currency of Life.

Dr. Edward Howell, (Enzyme Nutrition, Avery Publishing, WaWe NJ., 1985) identifies three types of enzymes:

1. metabolic enzymes,
2. digestive enzymes and
3. food enzymes which exist in raw, unprocessed, uncooked food.

Dr. Howell writes: “Enzymes are protein molecules that catalyze chemical reactions. All living things depend on the swift completion of thousands of biochemical, enzyme reactions every hour.”  We are completely dependent on these metabolic enzymes for virtually every body function:

• energy,
• alertness,
• memory,
• thought and
• hundreds of other activities are totally dependent on enzymes.

“Organs, in the body, secrete digestive enzymes to break down the food we eat, but many of these enzymes are damaged or excreted during the process of digestion, absorption and elimination and are not recycled.”

We depend on food enzymes to replace these damaged and lost enzymes. Enzymes, while very powerful, are fragile. Cooking and processing foods destroys the raw food enzymes.

Dr. Howell writes “ … a diet composed of cooked and processed food, in which the natural enzymes are destroyed, leads to enzymes insufficiency and stresses the organs which secrete enzymes. A lifetime of eating “dead foods” is a contributing factor …” in the decline from radiant health.
Digestion is more complex than it may seem since more than 80 million Americans are paying the price for failures along the digestive tract.

Most people would rather not think or talk about matters of digestion:  the pain, gas, bloating, indigestion, constipation, diarrhea.   They choose to suffer the consequences of neglecting this aspect of their health – quietly.  Too bad – doing nothing only compounds the situation.

The short version is: if your diet consists of cooked, packaged, processed and preserved foods, Dr. Howell advocates supplementing your diet with enzymes.

 

There’s always someone who is willing to tell you why you’re too heavy, isn’t there! Can’t you hear ‘em right now! You eat too much! Just stop eating so much, start exercising and the pounds will melt away.

Everyone knows someone who lost a lot of weight eating less and exercising more – don’t they. What can you do when that doesn’t work ?

Don’t stop eating ! It may be the worst thing you can do to yourself.

There are four reasons why otherwise healthy people are overweight:

• metabolism
• digestion
• prescription drugs
• dietary choices

Metabolism

Metabolism is the body’s engine.  During the day, catabolic metabolism provides the energy for all of the components of alert, waking hours activity. The function, use and overuse of the various components of body during waking hours stresses and damages tissue.

During sleep, anabolic metabolism provides the energy to replace the 300 billion cells that have worn out as well as any tissue that has been damaged and stressed during the day.

Calories are the measurement of the energy potential of food. Fats and carbohydrates have an energy potential of nine calories per gram; protein has four. Researchers estimate that 60% to 70% of all calories are used for metabolism.

The body’s metabolic furnace has a thermostat that regulates the use of the calories. It moves the “temperature” up and down depending on the need for energy and the availability of calories. Also, it establishes a set point for stored energy (fat) by considering the frequency and quality of the food we eat it controls the storage of fat – putting away energy (calories) in case of famine (periods of low calorie intake).

People with a low metabolic set point, besides being overweight, experience low energy levels and reduced alertness. Often, they are just as tired in the morning as they were the night before.

Missing meals or eating low quality food triggers two responses: reducing basic metabolism (both daytime and nighttime) and increasing fat storage.

Trying to lose weight by skipping meals and/or dieting is like creating a personal famine. It is effective because the calories are taken away faster than the body can reestablish a new set point. However, the body will ultimately establish a new lower metabolic set point that matches the lower available calories.

When you stop starving yourself, the body perceives that the “famine” has ended and begins to establish a new set-point. However, because you have started eating again, you are adding calories faster than the thermostat can adjust, you will gain weight. Worse yet, sometimes the body fails to increase the set point which results in significant fat storage from a modest increase of calories.

Nutraceuticals are helpful to establish or reestablish a higher day time metabolic set point. The benefits are controlling appetite, craving, increasing energy, alertness and, because these herbs increase day time metabolism, caloric demand increases and the user experiences weight change.

Night time metabolism is important too!  A nighttime Nutraceutical combines amino acids, the building blocks for new tissue, with herbs to establish a higher night time metabolic set point.

Lose Weight While You Sleep
Nighttime nutraceutical supplements address night time metabolism creating an increase caloric demand to support the repair and replacement of cells and tissue which leads to a more toned body,which,  in turn, burns more calories and the user experiences weight change.

Plus, there is a sculpting effect” that tones and reshapes the body – your cloths will fit better and as an added benefit is the user will arise refreshed and energized in the morning  Learn more about a Nighttime Weight Management Nutraceutical supplement.

Digestion

Digestion, often overlooked, may cause people to be overweight. Digestion is not magic – it is a process for turning food into substances that people need to live – sugars and fats for energy, proteins to sustain the body. The very substances that sustain and benefit the body that, when poorly digested, become toxins that can poison your body.

People with inefficient digestion, besides being overweight, describe themselves as pear shaped, with a distended abdomen.

They experience a bloated feeling after they eat, usually accompanied with gas. Poor digestion may contribute to periodic bouts of constipation and diarrhea. Food sensitivity and heartburn are other aspects of inefficient digestion.

Digestion is an intricate dance between substances called enzymes, stomach acids and intestinal microbes. One partner preparing food for the next with one goal … optimal health. It is an orderly process:

1. Digestion begins when you chew the food. Chewing shreds the food in smaller and smaller pieces then mixing it with saliva, which is actually an enzyme called amylase, begins a process which liquefies the mixture of food.
2. After a resting period to allow the food to fully liquify, the liquified food is treated with stomach acid.
3. The prepared liquid is neutralized and delivered to an army of friendly microbes to be converted into nutritional substances which are passed through the intestinal wall to support the body.

Essential ingredients for the liquification process are food enzymes which are contained in all of the raw, uncooked food. Processing and cooking neutralizes these essential enzymes which sets off a chain reaction in the digestive system.

1. Shredded food is partially liquified, more stomach acid is produced to compensate, the higher than normal acid mixture is partially neutralized.
2. Microbial action, that converts the food you eat to the nutrition to support your body and your health, is diminished because the microbes are especially sensitive to acidity (some strains of intestinal microbes may be completely destroyed).
3. The mass of undigesting food moves slowly along the intestinal tract and begins to spoil. Sugars and starches ferment, fats become rancid and proteins decay.
4. The person puffs up because fermentation fills the body with carbon dioxide. The abdomen distends when important organs swell because they are being bathed in the poisons spilling out of the rotting material in the intestines.

There are two distinct requirements to restore digestion:

1. introduce essential enzymes that are lost when food is processed or cooked
2. restore friendly microbial balance.

Nutraceutical enzyme supplements, when taken at mealtime, provide the food enzymes essential for the liquification of the food.  Learn more about an enzymes Nutraceutical supplement.

An exciting breakthrough in the industry is the ability grow and prepare friendly intestinal microbes than can be reintroduced into the body to help restore microbe populations lost because of agricultural residues, antibiotics and dietary choice.  Learn more about a probiotic Nutraceutical supplement.

Prescription Drugs

Prescription drugs may cause people to be overweight. Birth control, hormone replacement, blood pressure, heart, diabetes, and anti-depressant medications often contribute to weight gain. It is important to read all of the materials and follow all of the instructions that accompany the prescription. The pharmacist provides you with a document that you must read. It describes the drug and the negative side effects that other people have experienced when taking the drug. The paper instructs you to notify your doctor immediately if you experience one of the side effects. Your doctor has options that may be more appropriate for your needs. If you need a prescription drug, take it as instructed by you doctor.

There are drugs that are elective, notably birth control and hormone replacement therapies. Most of the prescribed drugs in these categories warn users that other people have experienced weight gain when using the drugs. Do not be surprised if you gain weight. Because these drugs are elective, you must decide if you want to be heavy, or not. Investigate other options.

A case in point is hormone replacement therapy. A long term study of a frequently prescribed drug sponsored by the Institute of Health (a part of the Federal Drug Administration) to verify the effectiveness of this drug was discontinued because of safety concerns in mid 2002. For years, menopausal women have been taking this pill prescribed by their Gynecologists. The warning about the side effects were there all along, few people paid attention. This impact of this study has women clamoring for alternatives.

Alternatives have existed for quite some time. Supplement formulators have developed herbal supplements that smooth normal hormone fluctuations for women of child bearing years and help ease hormone transition during and after menopause. Learn more about a Nutraceutical supplement formulated for the special needs of women. Dietary Choices

Dietary choices are huge factors to consider for controlling weight.

What you eat is as important, if not more important, than how much you eat. For example, researchers devised an experiment that caused laboratory subjects to become overweight eating a calorie-controlled diet. Each group maintained the same exercise level and ate the same number of calories. One group of subjects was fed a “super market” diet of refined and processed food; the second group received a low fat, high fiber diet. The results of the 60 week study were: 30 % fat for the high fiber, low fat group; 51% fat for the super market group’s weight.

Most people have a taste for refined carbohydrates – table sugar, milk and dairy products, white flour and starches like white rice and potatoes -  and, manufacturers know it!  If you cut your portions of these foods by 1/2 you will lose weight – and you will feel healthier, avoid energy crashes and much more.

Read the labels of packaged products at the supermarket diet. The first or second ingredient in many of the things we buy is sugar. White flour is almost as bad. While is may be disguised as enriched or fortified flour, it is a refined carbohydrate just the same. The trouble is refined carbohydrates require minimum action by the digestive tract to be converted into glucose (energy for the body). When these spikes in blood sugar occur without need for the energy, the body turns much of it into fat. The drop in glucose level triggers a hunger sensation. This sugar crash is why you eat so often.

Natural sugars, such as those in fruit, honey, molasses etc. and whole grains require more digestive action that slows the release of the glucose. The slower,time release aspects of complex carbohydrates provides a steady, time released source of energy for the body. Complex carbohydrates, eaten like they are grown, help keep you less fat.

There are other issues to consider. Water for instance. People need water – period. Not coffee, not soda, not tea – WATER! At least 8 – 8 ounce glass every day. People confuse thirsty with hungry all of the time. If people knew the symptoms of dehydration, one of which being bloating, they could avoid many of the complaints that nag them everyday.

Fat is another issue. Low fat this and that. What people need to know is animal fat is the enemy. Oils from vegetables, olive oil for instance, contain essential fatty acids that are just what they say – essential. Nuts oils have similar characteristics.

A common observation is that Americans are obese and, at the same time, they lack the essential nutrients to keep them healthy. More times than not, people mistake obesity with overeating when in fact, they aren’t eating enough . . . of the right food. Often time, when people provide the nutrition missing from their diet, is the best weight management program. willpower. Filling the gap between what you are eating and what you should be consuming, with a quality Nutraceutical supplement, helps the body lose weight and gain willpower.

 

Estimates are that more than 80 million Americans are paying the price for bad digestion - heartburn, indigestion, IBS, diarrhea, constipation, food intolerance, frequent illness, gas, bloating and more.

Most people do not think or talk about bad digestion. They choose to deal with the consequences of neglecting this aspect of their health instead of choosing to manage digestion.

Managing digestion is easier than you might think. It requires 3 things:

1. A basic understanding of healthy digestion.
2. A few minor changes in your diet.
3. Supplements to restore digestive function (including digestive enzymes and a probiotic of friendly intestinal microbes) and then, maintain healthy digestion afterwards.

Healthy Digestion
Digestion is an intricate dance between enzymes, stomach acids and microbes. One partner preparing the food for the next with one goal – a strong, healthy body.

It is the process that keeps you alive, breaking down the food you eat, converting it into different nutrition components that are absorbed carrying the nutrition in the blood stream to nourish and sustain your body.

In truth, everyone benefits from a healthy digestive system. But, they pay a terrible price when it goes astray -   they learn how much pain these powerful, caustic substances can create.

The Process of Healthy Digestion
There are three parts of digestion: Enzymatic, Gastric and Microbial. The process is an elegant interplay of these functions which occur along a tube called the digestive tract.

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