Thursday, April 24, 2014

Have Faith


Have You Missed Me?

It's been awhile since I have posted here and I apologize for the neglect of this blog…Life happens and I am in the process of moving information to another site as I update my website and get everything in one place.  My hope is that by doing this, it will be easier to maintain everything!  This one person show has to become more manageable!  That's the goal and what I am working toward.  Yay!  I am ready to be there!
Until then, bear with me and I will notify you when the new site is ready!

Friday, February 21, 2014

Suicide By Sugar


1. Sugar suppresses the immune system.
2. Sugar upsets the mineral relationships in the body and causes magnesium deficiencies.
3. Sugar causes hyperactivity, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and crankiness in children.
4. Sugar produces a significant rise in triglycerides.
5. Sugar contributes to the reduction in defense against bacterial infection (infectious diseases).
6. Sugar causes a loss of tissue elasticity and function, the more sugar you eat the more elasticity and function you lose.
7. Sugar reduces high-density lipoproteins.
8. Sugar leads to chromium deficiency.
9. Sugar leads to cancer of the ovaries.
10. Sugar increases fasting levels of glucose.
11. Sugar causes copper deficiency.
12. Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.
13. Sugar makes eyes more vulnerable to age-related macular degeneration.
14. Sugar raises the level of a neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.
15. Sugar causes hypoglycemia.
16. Sugar produces an acidic digestive tract.
17. Sugar causes a rapid rise of adrenaline levels in children.
18. Sugar malabsorption is frequent in patients with functional bowel disease.
19. Sugar causes premature aging.
20. Sugar can lead to alcoholism as it causes fermentation in your body
21. Sugar causes tooth decay.
22. Sugar contributes to obesity
23. High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis.
24. Sugar can cause changes frequently found in person with gastric or duodenal ulcers.
25. Sugar causes arthritis.
26. Sugar can cause asthma.
27. Sugar greatly assists the uncontrolled growth of Candida Albicans (yeast infections).
28. Sugar can cause gallstones.
29. Sugar can cause heart disease.
30. Sugar can cause appendicitis.
31. Sugar can cause hemorrhoids.
32. Sugar can cause varicose veins.
33. Sugar elevates glucose and insulin responses in oral contraceptive users.
34. Sugar leads to periodontal disease.
35. Sugar contributes to osteoporosis.
36. Sugar contributes to saliva acidity.
37. Sugar causes a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
38. Sugar lowers the amount of Vitamin E (alpha-Tocopherol) in the blood.
39. Sugar decreases your natural growth hormone.
40. Sugar increases cholesterol.
41. Sugar increases the systolic blood pressure.
42. High sugar intake increases advanced glycation end products (AGEs)(Sugar bound non-enzymatically to protein)
43. Sugar interferes with the absorption of protein.
44. Sugar causes food allergies.
45. Sugar contributes to diabetes.
46. Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
47. Sugar contributes to eczema in children.
48. Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.
49. Sugar can impair the structure of DNA
50. Sugar changes the structure of protein.
51. Sugar makes our skin age by changing the structure of collagen.
52. Sugar can cause cataracts.
53. Sugar can cause emphysema.
54. Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.
55. Sugar can promote an elevation of low-density lipoproteins (LDL).
56. High sugar intake impairs the physiological homeostasis of many systems in the body.
57. Sugar lowers the enzymes ability to function.
58. Sugar intake is higher in people with Parkinson’s disease.
59. Sugar can increase the size of the liver by making the liver cells divide.
60. Sugar increases the amount of liver fat.
61. Sugar increasea kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
62. Sugar can damage the pancreas.
63. Sugar can increase the body’s fluid retention.
64. Sugar is enemy #1 of the bowel movement.
65. Sugar can cause myopia (nearsightedness).
66. Sugar compromises the lining of the capillaries.
67. Sugar can make the tendons more brittle.
68. Sugar can cause headaches, including migraine.
69. Sugar plays a role in pancreatic cancer in women.
70. Sugar can adversely affect school children’s grades and cause learning disorders.
71. Sugar contributes to depression.
72. Sugar increases the risk of gastric cancer.
73. Sugar causes dyspepsia (indigestion).
74. Sugar increases your risk of getting gout.
75. Sugar can increase the levels of glucose in an oral glucose tolerance test over the ingestion of complex carbohydrates.
76. Sugar can increase the insulin responses in humans consuming high-sugar diets compared to low-sugar diets.
77. A diet high in refined sugar reduces learning capacity.
78. Sugar can cause less effective functioning of two blood proteins, albumin, and lipoproteins, which may reduce the body’s ability to handle fat and cholesterol.
79. Sugar contributes to Alzheimer’s disease.
80. Sugar can cause platelet adhesiveness.
81. Sugar causes hormonal imbalance; some hormones become under active and others become overactive.
82. Sugar can lead to the formation of kidney stones.
83. Diets high in sugar can cause free radicals and oxidative stress.
84. High sugar diet can lead to biliary tract cancer.
85. High sugar consumption of pregnant adolescents is associated with a twofold-increased risk for delivering a small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infant.
86. High sugar consumption can lead to substantial decrease in gestation duration among adolescents.
87. Sugar slows food’s travel time through the gastrointestinal tract.
88. Sugar increases the concentration of bile acids in stools and bacterial enzymes in the colon. This can modify bile to produce cancer-causing compounds and colon cancer.
89. Sugar increases estradiol (the most potent form of naturally occurring estrogen) in men.
90. Sugar combines with and destroys phosphatase, an enzyme, which makes the process of digestion more difficult.
91. Sugar can be a risk factor of gallbladder cancer.
92. Sugar is an addictive substance.
93. Sugar can be intoxicating, similar to alcohol.
94. Sugar exacerbates PMS.
95. Sugar given to premature babies can affect the amount of carbon dioxide they produce.
96. Decrease in sugar intake can increase emotional stability.
97. The rapid absorption of sugar promotes excessive food intake in obese subjects.
98. Sugar can worsen the symptoms of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
99. Sugar adversely affects urinary electrolyte composition.
100. Sugar can slow down the ability of the adrenal glands to function.
101. I.Vs (intravenous feedings) of sugar water can cut off oxygen to the brain.
102. High sucrose intake could be an important risk factor in lung cancer.
103. Sugar increases the risk of polio.
104. High sugar intake can cause epileptic seizures.
105. Sugar causes high blood pressure in obese people.
106. In Intensive Care Units, limiting sugar saves lives.
107. Sugar induces cell death.
108. Sugar increase the amount of food that you eat.
109. In juvenile rehabilitation camps, when children were put on a low sugar diet, there was a 44% drop in antisocial behavior.
110. Sugar leads to prostrate cancer.
111. Sugar dehydrates newborns.
112. Sugar can cause low birth weight babies.
113. Greater consumption of refined sugar is associated with a worse outcome of schizophrenia
114. Sugar can raise homocysteine levels in the blood stream.
115. Sweet food items increase the risk of breast cancer.
116. Sugar is a risk factor in cancer of the small intestine.
117. Sugar may cause laryngeal cancer.
118. Sugar induces salt and water retention.
119. Sugar contributes to memory loss.
120. Sugar in soda pop causes dehydration due to the fact that less water is consumed
121. Sugar can increase the total amount of food consumed.
122. Exposing a newborn to sugar results in a heightened preference for sucrose relative to water at 6 months and 2 years of age.
123. Sugar causes constipation.
124. Sugar causes varicose veins.
125. Sugar can cause brain decay in prediabetic and diabetic women.
126. Sugar can increase the risk of stomach cancer.
127. Sugar can cause metabolic syndrome.
128. Sugar ingestion by pregnant women increases neural tube defects in embryos.
129. Sugar can be a factor in asthma.
130. The higher the sugar consumption the more chances of getting irritable bowel syndrome.
131. Sugar affects the brain’s ability to deal with rewards and consequences.
132. Sugar can cause cancer of the rectum.
133. Sugar can cause endometrial cancer.
134. Sugar can cause renal (kidney) cell carcinoma.
135. Sugar can cause liver tumors.
136. Sugar can increase inflammatory markers in the blood stream of overweight people.
137. Sugar lowers Vitamin E levels in the blood stream.
138. Sugar can increase your appetite for all food.
139. Sugar plays a role in the etiology and the continuation of acne.
140. Too much sugar can kill your sex life.
141. Sugar saps school performance in children.
142. Sugar causes fatigue, moodiness, nervousness and depression.
143. Sugar is common choice of obese individuals.
144. A linear decrease in the intake of many essential nutrients is associated with increasing total sugar intake.
145. High fructose consumption has been linked to liver disease.
146. Sugar adds to the risk of bladder cancer.







adapted from


wakeup world

A Joyful Heart


Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Antibiotics

The Golden Age of Antibiotics is Over!     


Modern antibiotics are not just failing big time; they are DANGEROUS. Antibiotics can be lethal in their own right.

Did you know that antibiotics are the most common cause of death from acute liver failure? (acute means sudden and unforeseen; as opposed to "chronic", which everyone can see coming).

The truth, is statistics show that antibiotics are the single largest class of drugs that cause fatal liver damage.

Yes, antibiotics were the most common cause of death due to liver injury (45%). The next group, nervous system agents, were only 1/3rd as common (15%). That puts antibiotics way out on their own as deadly drugs.

Chief offenders are macrolides (erythromycin type), penicillins, clavulanic acid (Augmentin), tetracycline, and more.

I'm constantly amazed when I hear of colleagues prescribing erythromycin as a first line medicine for a sore throat. Don't they know how toxic this stuff is?

It had a bad reputation when I was in med school in the 1960s. Doesn't anybody pay attention? If it's to be used at all, it's in a life-threatening situation where penicillin’s and safer drugs have failed.

The bottom line is nobody should be thinking "antibiotics". We should be thinking of "alternatives". And here's the joke: there are 1,000s of viable alternatives. Hundreds of them work as well as antibiotics.

The Golden Age of Antibiotics is over. Bacteria have won the war, hands down, and that's the truth. We're all out of ammunition! The cupboard is bare.

Well, not quite. There are, as I said, hundreds of healthy, safe and EFFECTIVE alternative modalities of treatment. Herbs, herbal supplements and eating healthy foods are just a couple of starters!

Here's to the new era of safe alternatives!!
Call KISST Organics to set up an appointment.  (308) 254-5373 
 
 
source:
 
 
 
INH Health





  

Monday, February 3, 2014

Let Food Be Thy Medicine!


Your Immune System Is The Key To Fighting Cancer

Scientists Find That The Human Body Kills Spontaneous Cancers Daily
It takes no more than 100 seconds for the body's immune cells to identify and kill a cancer cell. Immune cells undergo ‘spontaneous’ changes on a daily basis that could lead to cancers if not for the diligent surveillance of our immune system, Melbourne scientists have found.





A research team from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute found that the immune system was responsible for eliminating potentially cancerous immune B cells in their early stages, before they developed into B-cell lymphomas (also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphomas). The results of the study were published today in the journal Nature Medicine.

The immune system's basic task is to recognize "self" (the body's own cells) and "nonself" (an antigen--a virus, fungus, bacterium, or any piece of foreign tissue, as well as some toxins). To deal with nonself or antigens, the system manufactures specialized cells--white blood cells--to recognize infiltrators and eliminate them. We all come into the world with some innate immunity. As we interact with our environment, the immune system becomes more adept at protecting us. This is called acquired immunity.

Many mature white blood cells are highly specialized. The so-called T lymphocytes (T stands for thymus-derived) have various functions, among them switching on various aspects of the immune response, and then (equally important) switching them off. Another lymphocyte, the B cell, manufactures antibodies. A larger kind of white cell, the scavenger called the phagocyte (most notably the macrophage), eats up all sorts of debris in tissue and the bloodstream, and alerts certain T cells to the presence of antigens.

''The T-cells basically detect the enemy and then throw grenades at the cancer cell until it blows up,'' said immunologist Misty Jenkins from the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. T-cells are a type of white blood cell that are key to the body's immune response. Normally when a T-cell kills the target, the only way you would know that the target has been hit or killed is when it physically starts to die.

However the B-cells bind to a specific antigen and antibodies against these antigens, thus performing the role of antigen-presenting cells (APCs), and to develop into memory B cells after activation by antigen interaction.

This immune surveillance accounts for what researchers at the institute call the 'surprising rarity' of B-cell lymphomas in the population, given how often these spontaneous changes occur. The discovery could lead to the development of an early-warning test that identifies patients at high risk of developing B-cell lymphomas, enabling proactive treatment to prevent tumours from growing.

All B-cells, whether healthy or cancerous, have on their surfaces a proteins. To treat patients with the disease, the researchers need to find ways to reprogram their T-cells to find the proteins and attack B-cells carrying it.

Dr Axel Kallies, Associate Professor David Tarlinton, Dr Stephen Nutt and colleagues made the discovery while investigating the development of B-cell lymphomas.

Dr Kallies said the discovery provided an answer to why B-cell lymphomas occur in the population less frequently than expected. "Each and every one of us has spontaneous mutations in our immune B cells that occur as a result of their normal function," Dr Kallies said. "It is then somewhat of a paradox that B cell lymphoma is not more common in the population.

"Our finding that immune surveillance by T cells enables early detection and elimination of these cancerous and pre-cancerous cells provides an answer to this puzzle, and proves that immune surveillance is essential to preventing the development of this blood cancer."

B-cell lymphoma is the most common blood cancer in Australia, with approximately 2800 people diagnosed each year and patients with a weakened immune system are at a higher risk of developing the disease.

The research team made the discovery while investigating how B cells change when lymphoma develops. "As part of the research, we 'disabled' the T cells to suppress the immune system and, to our surprise, found that lymphoma developed in a matter of weeks, where it would normally take years," Dr Kallies said. "It seems that our immune system is better equipped than we imagined to identify and eliminate cancerous B cells, a process that is driven by the immune T cells in our body."

Associate Professor Tarlinton said the research would enable scientists to identify pre-cancerous cells in the initial stages of their development, enabling early intervention for patients at risk of developing B-cell lymphoma.

"In the majority of patients, the first sign that something is wrong is finding an established tumour, which in many cases is difficult to treat" Associate Professor Tarlinton said. "Now that we know B-cell lymphoma is suppressed by the immune system, we could use this information to develop a diagnostic test that identifies people in early stages of this disease, before tumours develop and they progress to cancer. There are already therapies that could remove these 'aberrant' B cells in at-risk patients, so once a test is developed it can be rapidly moved towards clinical use."

Now, I know this has been a long article with a lot of technical information but if you have read this far, know that there are alternative solutions to fighting these cancers and all disease! That is the best news that I so many people have never heard.  Here is the bottom line.  In order to prevent cancer, fight cancer or beat cancer you MUST do these things:
1. Your Ph MUST be at 7.3 to 7.8 (slightly alkaline)
2. You MUST feed your immune system with an alkaline diet and Pro-biotics.
3. You MUST stimulate your Thymus and Thyroid.  Your Thymus is your happy gland.  It and your thyroid control the majority of hormones within your body.  Excess hormonal input = excess retention and output by the body and ultimately digestive disturbances including malabsorption of proteins.  
It's really quite simple but natural remedies are all to often over looked or poo-pooed as not effective but these are our God given tools for fighting disease and the Standard American Diet (SAD) does not nourish our bodies or build our immune systems.

Adapted from:

Prevent disease

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Heal Cavities, Naturally


The world is slowly waking up to the fact that, when you give the body what it needs, it can heal things we previously thought were impossible. A fine example of what is often deemed as an incurable health problem is dental cavities, but extensive research is now becoming more public about the true nature of tooth decay and the fact that there are proven remedies that can remedy it.
The lies perpetrated about tooth decay
According to the American Dental Association, the reason we have tooth decay is as follows:
"[Tooth decay] occurs when foods containing carbohydrates (sugars and starches) such as milk, pop, raisins, cakes or candy are frequently left on the teeth. Bacteria that live in the mouth thrive on these foods, producing acids as a result. Over a period of time, these acids destroy tooth enamel, resulting in tooth decay."
There are a few problems with this theory, including:
  • Groups of indigenous people who had fermentable carbohydrates stuck on their teeth all the timethat did not brush or floss were mostly or completely free of tooth decay.
  • Bacteria do not consume processed sugar or flour because of the lack of nutrients in them.
  • Foods that bacteria like to eat, such as milk, vegetables, meat, fish and fruit, are not commonly implicated in causes of tooth decay.
So if the modern explanation of tooth decay is not accurate, what is actually the cause of tooth decay?
What actually causes tooth decay
Tooth decay, as researched by Dr. Weston Price and other dental pioneers, boiled down to three factors:
  • Not enough minerals in the diet.
  • Not enough fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K) in the diet.
  • Nutrients not being readily bioavailable, and your intestinal system not properly absorbing them.The presence of phytic acid largely influences this factor.
Over a period of time, if your diet lacks vitamins and minerals from a poor diet and/or contains high levels of phytates (from grains, seeds, nuts, and legumes), the blood chemistry and the ratio of calcium and phosphorous become out of balance, which results in minerals being pulled from bones, causing tooth and bone loss.
So, the long-standing belief that sugar causes tooth decay is true, but as a result of it depleting nutrients from the body, not because bacteria eat it and produce acid that ruins your teeth.
The food remedies that can heal cavities and tooth decay
In order to restore the ratio of calcium and phosphorus in our blood, and to enable minerals to bond to our teeth, it is not enough to just avoid eating too many sweet or processed foods. We must also eat health-building foods, containing copious amounts of minerals and vitamins that will build a glassy hard tooth structure.
Foods to focus on are:
  • Coconut oil, grass-fed meats, seafood and bone broths.
  • Organic raw and cooked vegetables (soups with bone broth are ideal).
  • Organ and gland meats, like liver.
Limit foods that are high in phytic acid, like grains, beans, nuts and seeds, as well as limiting processed food intake full of processed flours and sugars that upset blood sugar balance.
Supplements to consider are:
  • Fermented cod liver oil - very high in fat soluble vitamins A, D and K.
  • Magnesium - required to use calcium and phosphorous effectively.
  • Gelatin - if you don't have time to make bone broth, this is a good alternative and is great for gums and digestion.




source



healthy holistic living

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

A Fever Is A Good Thing, Don’t Suppress It

A low fever can actually benefit a person who becomes sick.  Researchers have attributed parental tendencies to over-treat by “fever phobia”–a fear that fever is harmful–which they say originated after the introduction of anti-fever drugs like Tylenol. In addressing this important concern of parents, it’s vital to understand that a fever serves to protect your body against infection and trauma in three major ways.

1. A fever stimulates your immune system into producing more white blood cells, antibodies, and a protein called interferon, all of which work to protect your body against harmful microorganisms.

2. By raising your body’s temperature a few degrees, a fever makes it harder for invading bacteria and viruses to survive and flourish. The higher your core body temperature is, the harder it is for harmful microorganisms to survive in your body.

3. A fever helps to shuttle iron to your liver so that it is not readily available to fuel the growth of invading bacteria.

Longstanding belief, and even parental instinct, may compel you to fight your child’s fever to ease the persistent crying and discomfort. But most experts say not to worry so much about treating your child’s fever. In fact, they say, for children older than six months old, having a fever may be a good thing.

“Fever is often a good sign of a robust immune system,” said Dr. Kathi Kemper, professor of pediatrics at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. “A fever in and of itself is not dangerous.”

fever child23 A Fever Is A Good Thing, Dont Suppress It

Instead, many experts said comforting a child through a fever is an effective way to help a child get over a fever faster.

“We always recommend supportive care,” said Dr. Estevan Garcia, vice chair for emergency medicine at Maimonedes Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY. “Make sure they’re hydrated, make sure they’re eating and drinking.”

Simply rocking your child in your arms or trying to keep him or her quietly distracted helps.

The most common cause of a fever is a bacterial or viral infection, the vast majority of which your body’s self-healing mechanisms can conquer with proper rest and nutritional support. Heat stroke and poisoning can also cause fevers, more often in children than in adults.

A fever can actually help anyone who is sick . When you get a fever, the body is basically doing it's part in eliminating  bacteria, bugs and  viruses.  And contrary to what parents may believe, the body can function very efficiently at temperatures as high as 100.5 degrees.

A fever cannot cause brain damage unless it reaches 107.6 degrees Farenheit (42 degrees Celsius) and stays there for an extended period of time. Since your brain has a built-in thermostat that does not allow your core temperature to rise above 106 degrees Farenheit (41.1 C) during an infectious process, it’s virtually impossible to experience brain damage from a fever caused by a bacterial or viral infection. The majority of fevers don’t reach 105 (40.5 C) degrees. The highest temperature that I have encountered thus far has been 104.5 degrees Farenheit (40 C) in a 6-year old boy who had suffered a heat stroke.

A small percentage of children can sometimes experience short-lived seizures when they have a fever, called a febrile seizure. These seizures are caused by a rapid increase in body temperature, not by a specific temperature. There’s no need to worry if your child experiences a febrile seizure, as they end quickly and do not leave after-effects.

Although it is usually best to allow a fever to run its course and to rely on your own self-healing mechanisms to get you well, it is recommended by most health pracitioners that you seek medical attention for fevers that are accompanied by:

  • Difficulty breathing
  • Vomiting
  • A stiff neck
  • A persistent cough that lasts more than a week
  • Unexplained heaviness or weakness in your legs or arms
  • Unexplained irritability, confusion, listlessness, and any other behaviour that is out of character for you or your child

If none of the above symptoms are present, a fever is best treated by getting plenty of rest, drinking plenty of healthy liquids and eating lightly.  Many holistic practitioners even reccommned increasing your core temperature by taking a hot bath in baking soda and epsom salt to help detoxify the body and get sweat glands cleaned out and working properly.  Once you reach the point where you are sweating profusely, rinse off in tepid to warm water and go straight to bed.  By increasing the body's core body temperature it helps fight off the illness and increase antibodies.  The epsom salt and baking soda bath will help relax so that you can sleep and thefever will usually break within 8 -12 hours.  
Please be aware that though the risk is very slight, there are potential negative effects to taking anti-fever medications, especially in little ones, so heed all warnings on labels and stay vigilant with symptoms.
 


source:


Prevent Disease

Friday, January 24, 2014

Diabetic Neuropathy: Cause, Risk Factors, Types and Symptoms


neuropathy.jpg
Having elevated blood sugar can damage our body’s nerves over time.
Diabetic neuropathy is the generic term for all diabetes-related nerve damage disorders. These disorders can affect our peripheral and autonomic nervous systems.
Peripheral nerves lie outside our brain and spinal cord. They extend through the limbs and to many sensory organs. Autonomic nerves control body movements that take place automatically such as heart beats, gland activity, and the workings of our intestines.
The most important thing to remember about diabetic neuropathy is that the best prevention, and primary means of slowing nerve damage progression, is good blood glucose control. However, about half of those who have diabetes develop neuropathy, and disciplined blood sugar monitoring does not guarantee immunity.

Cause and Risk Factors

There is constant interaction between our blood vessels and our nerves – the health of one affects the health of the other – and glucose levels affect the functioning of both. We know that blood carries oxygen and nutrients to our nerves, and high blood sugar weakens blood vessel walls, impairing blood circulation. Elevated glucose also diminishes our nerves’ capacity to transmit signals.
Some other factors influence the development of diabetic neuropathy:
  • Genetics. Thanks to our genetic inheritance some of us are more susceptible to nerve damage than others.
  • Inflammation. Our immune system can mistake parts of our body for foreign organisms and attack them. This is called an autoimmune response, and it can cause our nerves to become inflamed. Chronic inflammation leads to nerve damage.
  • Years having diabetes. Symptoms of neuropathy are most common in individuals who have had diabetes 25 years or more.
  • Kidney problems. One complication of diabetes is kidney damage. Less effective kidneys may mean more toxins in the bloodstream, and toxins contribute to nerve injury.
  • Alcohol abuse and smoking. Alcohol can wreak havoc on blood sugar levels, increasing the risk of neuropathy. Smoking is known to reduce blood flow in our extremities by narrowing and hardening the arteries.

Four Types of Neuropathy and Symptoms

Not everyone with diabetic neuropathy experiences symptoms, and damage that occurs over time may not trigger symptoms until the injury is significant.
1. Peripheral neuropathy is the most common type of diabetic nerve damage. It may cause numbness or pain in the toes, feet, legs, hands, or arms. Other names for peripheral neuropathy are sensorimotor neuropathy and distal symmetric neuropathy. Symptoms include:
  • Numbness, or lack of sensitivity to pain/temperature
  • Burning, tingling, or prickling sensations
  • Cramps and sharp pain
  • High sensitivity to touch
  • Reduced coordination and balance
2. Autonomic neuropathy damages nerves that regulate blood sugar, blood pressure, and heart rate, and may cause problems in several organs. Symptoms include:
  • Hypoglycemia unawareness (not realizing your blood sugar levels are low)
  • Drop in blood pressure after sitting or standing; increased heart rate
  • Constipation; gastroparesis (stomach empties too slowly); trouble swallowing
  • Bladder infections (bladder does not empty fully), incontinence, and sexual performance issues
  • Sweat gland malfunction (no sweating, or profuse sweating)
  • The eyes' pupils become less responsive to light changes; poor night vision
3. Proximal neuropathy, or diabetic amyotrophy, involves sudden pain in the hips, thighs, legs, or buttocks—typically felt on one side of the body. Proximal nerve damage is more common in diabetic seniors and those with type 2 diabetes. It is also called Radiculoplexus neuropathy. Symptoms may improve over time and include:
  • Severe hip, leg, thigh, and buttock pain
  • Weakened or atrophied thigh muscles
  • Trouble standing from a seated position
  • Possible abdominal swelling; weight loss
4. Focal or mononeuropathy affects certain nerves, usually in the head, leg, or torso. It is more common in older adults with diabetes, tends to appear suddenly, and is quite painful. However, focal neuropathy typically improves on its own—although improvement is slow—and seldom results in long-term damage. Symptoms include:
  • Double vision, problems focusing, an ache behind one eye
  • Bell’s palsy (paralysis on one side of the face)
  • Severe pelvic or lower back pain
  • Front thigh pain; pain at the inside of a foot or the outside of a shin
  • Chest, stomach, or side pain
  • Intense abdominal or chest pain (can be mistaken for appendicitis/heart attack)
If you believe you are having problems with diabetic neuropathy, there is help!  While diet and exercise play important roles, there are also herbal blends that are proven to help repair nerve damage.  Call KISST Organics at 308-254-5373 to schedule an appointment to access your symptoms.



adapted from:


8 Foods For Healthy Digestion


Friday, January 10, 2014

Raw Vegan Creamy “Pistachio Ice Cream” Kale Smoothie

 

  • 1 cup curly green kale leaves (about 3 large leaves)
  • 2 ripe bananas - fresh or frozen
  • 2 cups ice (a little less ice if using frozen bananas)
  • 1/2 cup filtered water
  • 1/2 cup raw cashews
  • 1/3 cup chopped pitted dates or 3 Tbsp raw agave nectar or maple syrup
  • 1 tsp pure alcohol-free vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp finely minced ginger
  • pinch of Celtic sea salt
Throw all of the ingredients in your high speed blender and puree until smooth and creamy. YUMMO!

 

source:


Healthy blender recipes

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Is Sitting Killing You? Nine Things You Can Do To Change It


"Sitting," says Dr. James Levine, an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic who has researched the dangers of a sedentary life for the last 15 years, "is the new smoking." Levine's studies have shown that sitting around—as many of us do for both work and pleasure—is bad for your health. Spending more than just 6 hours a day on your backside drives up blood pressure and places you at a greater risk for diabetes, obesity, depression, and some types of cancer. People who already have chronic illnesses see an increase in their symptoms. And that's just for starters.

Think you're out of danger if you go to the gym regularly? Think again: The usual guidelines for regular exercise simply aren't enough to counteract the dangers of all the sitting we do. And we do a lot of it: Americans average 9.5 hours on our collective butts per day. That's a lot of smoking.

So maybe it's possible to limit our time on the couch. But when you make your living sitting at a desk, what's to be done?

The answer is NEAT—nonexercise activity thermogenesis. In other words, getting up and moving around, at an easy pace, as often as possible, for as long as possible. NEAT used to be far more interwoven into our lives: Walk to the post office. Walk down the hall to confer with a coworker. Walk to the market and walk back with the groceries. These days? Not so much: Technology allows us to do almost everything from the comfort of a chair.

 
 
 
This may help to explain why we're getting so much heavier than the Americans just a few generations back, even as we have become more and more obsessed with fitness. Our grandparents certainly didn't have a big-box gym on every corner. As a group, in fact, people probably got less formal exercise than we get today.

Without the conveniences of e-mail and other labor-saving technologies, day-to-day lives simply required more movement 50 or 100 years ago. And since even slow walking can more than double your metabolic rate compared with sitting, you can see how being just a little more active during your day can make a huge difference to your weight and health.

Still don't think walking "counts" as exercise? A 2004 study of the Amish—a modern agrarian culture that shuns post-industrial revolution technology—indicates that as a group, they're remarkably healthy: Cancer rates are far lower than those of the country at large, and obesity is almost nonexistent, despite a conspicuous lack of treadmills and weights in their communities, and a diet rich in meat, pie, refined sugar, and other fattening foods. Their apparent secret? High amounts of NEAT: Amish women take about 14,000 steps a day, and Amish men are up around 18,000—something on the order of 8 miles a day.

I'm not suggesting we dispense with all technology and live like the Amish. But I am saying we need to figure out ways to make our own NEAT. You've may have heard this fitness tidbit before and dismissed it as impractical. Who has time for all that walking?

The surprising answer: You do. Even if you don't want to spring for a treadmill-desk (they do exist!), there are lots of ways to sneak more easy, focus-building, nonsweaty NEAT into your life. Here are a few:

1. Walk and talk.

As a culture, we conduct most of our business and social affairs from a seated position: in restaurants, boardrooms, and coffee shops. Whenever possible, find ways to turn these into walking meetings—especially when you're meeting one-on-one: Offer to stroll in the park or around the block rather than sitting down and eating something you probably don't need. You'll eat less, move more, and probably even think better: Walking can help your ideas flow.

2. Go mobile.

Many of us who grew up with desktops and wall phones are still stuck to the idea that we have to be stuck while using mobile devices like cell phones and laptops. So we sit at a desk while chatting on our cell phone or working away on a laptop. Whenever you're on the phone, take it as an opportunity to walk—or at least stand. Most people feel—and sound—more engaged when they're on their feet, so you'll make a better impression on the phone if you're up and about anyway. And change locations with your laptop whenever possible: Take it to a park, a cafe, another room in your house.

3. Take a microbreak.

One of the reasons it's so tough to maintain good posture at a desk is that your ligaments and other soft tissues start to deform after about 20 minutes in the same position, gradually giving your body a permanently chair-shaped appearance. Fight this tendency with 1- to 5-minute breaks for every 20 minutes you're at work: Stretch, breathe, focus your eyes on a distant object. You'll come back to work refreshed and recommitted.

4. Steal a workout.

This falls under the no-brainer category: Grab the first parking spot you see in the lot (the farther away from the door, the better) rather than circling for 10 minutes looking for the perfect one. Take the stairs, not the elevator. And stay off the human conveyor belt at the airport, too: You're going to be stuck on a plane for 6 hours anyway—do you really need less activity? Whenever there's a choice—walk. This may seem like novice advice, but it can make a huge difference in the number of calories you burn in a given day.

5. Miss your stop ... on purpose.

If you use public transportation, try getting off a stop before or a stop after the one most convenient to your destination. You'll be able to squeeze in 10 or 15 minutes of pleasant walking—and maybe get to know your neighborhood a little better at the same time.

6. Go for Face Time (not the app).

I'm lucky that my profession requires me to see people face-to-face: It's hard to diagnose a torn meniscus or a separated shoulder over e-mail. But many people can go through their workday without ever actually interacting with their closest coworkers. They text the guy down the hall, they e-mail blast to their most valuable clients. Nothing wrong with convenience. But if you've got a question for Linda, and she's right down the hall, take the 3-minute break and go see her. Chances are you'll communicate better anyway.

7. Get less efficient.

In the movie Wall-E, the people of the future live on Barc-o-lounger-shaped scooter-chairs that zip them from place to place, dispensing a never-ending stream of soft drinks into their big-gulp-size cups. It's not too far off from where we appear to be headed right now. Efficiency, it seems, is killing us. One novel solution is to get a little inefficient on purpose: Set up your work station so you have to reach for things rather than keeping them within an arm's reach. Put the file cabinet and wastebasket a ways away so you have to walk over to them (or at least practice your free throw). Reaching, stretching, extending, and of course, walking feel great, especially when you've been stuck in the chair all morning.

8. Leverage your TV time.

I personally don't know anyone who admits to watching more than an hour of television a day—but with the national average up around 5 hours, I know they're out there. TV time can be invaluable for stretching, floor Pilates, and yoga postures. No need to make it super intense: Restorative postures are great, especially if you're winding down before bed. You'll sleep better, burn a few calories, and shave some time off your sitting hours for the day. And you'll relieve a little of the guilt from your favorite guilty pleasure.

9. Include the family.

This applies to any fitness venture: a better diet, a more stringent workout program, a more active lifestyle. Don't go it alone. Make sure everyone near you—especially your family—knows that you're trying to get more activity into your day, and include them as much as you can in the effort. Take a walk around the block instead of a trip to get fast food; play mini-golf instead of going to the movies; choose Twister instead of video games.

It's OK if you're not a superathletic family—you don't have to shoot hoops and shag fly balls every night. But the more incidentally active your family activities can be, the better. And you'll be instilling the importance of regular movement into your kids' lives—and that's a pretty important gift.
 
 
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