"Top foods That are Killing Us Slowly from the Inside Out"

Welcome to Nutrition Month

My favorite month of the year....well as far as "months" are concerned...get me to July and I am much happier with the calendar lol.

Let's start here.

What Foods Shouldn't We Eat

This could be a pretty comprehensive list.  But I am going to start with those things that WE REALLY should NEVER consume.

I know some of you are going to find some controversy in this list, but having done my research these are the things that we avoid as much as possible at our house.

#1 GMO's 

The food industry is constantly trying to make things grow faster and bigger.  But at a cost to our health. They are modifying the way these organisms were created by God, and thus altering the way our bodies assimilate them.  These crops are also made to be resistant to any and all natural enemies such as molds, insects etc.  The way in which they do this is to introduce chemicals into the genome of the plant, thus also introducing these chemicals into our bodies as well.

Top Genetically Modified Foods to Avoid

Soy

As of 2004, 85 percent of the soybeans grown on U.S. soil have been genetically modified.  Because soy is widely used in the production of other items (including cereal, baked products, chocolate and even ice cream), chances are everybody in the U.S. is eating GM soy. It might be worth noting, however, that tofu and soy sauce are usually made from non-GM soybeans, a variation from most other soy products, which likely are GM-based. The bulk of the soybean crop is not destined to human consumption but instead used for livestock feed. For those who aren't vegetarians, this becomes another source of GM foods, as the gene is passed on through the meat.

Corn

Bt-corn is a form of sweet corn that has been genetically modified to include an insect-killing gene. This means the farmer doesn't have to spray with pesticides because the insects die from eating the corn. No spraying means less harm to the environment. The move has caused debate, however. The same gene that attacks corn predators also appears to kill the Monarch butterfly.

Tomatoes

GM tomatoes don't rot as quickly as regular tomatoes, so they can tolerate longer periods of transportation. GM tomatoes also can be left to mature on the plants, rather than being picked green. This results in a more tasty tomato that doesn't need to be stored until ripening.

Oil

We don't normally think of oils as part of our food list, but the truth is that they're not only for cooking and flavoring, but show up as an ingredient in a large number of prepackaged foods we eat on a regular basis.

The U.S., India and China are the world's largest producers of GM cottonseed oil. As a result, it's hard to avoid this GM food, even if you don't buy it bottled. In the U.S., GM-modified oils are sold as cooking oils, but also commonly used for frying snacks such as potato chips and also used in the production of margarine. Canola or rapeseed oil became an important crop only after being genetically modified. Before that, the oil was too bitter to be used in foods. The modification did away with the bitterness and also increased rapeseed's resistance to herbicides. This allows crops to be sprayed with weed-control products without running the risk of affecting the actual crops.

Golden Rice

Golden rice was first created to fight vitamin A deficiency, which affects 250 million people around the world and can cause blindness and even death. Rice is one of the most common foods on Earth. In fact, almost half of the world's population survives on a single daily bowl of rice. Because getting vitamin supplements to every single person on the planet would be impossible, scientists believed that the answer was to create a grain of rice that already had vitamin A in it. And so golden rice was born.

Squash

Squash is more prone than some crops to viral diseases, which is why it was genetically modified to ensure crop survival. The original purpose was achieved, but the modification backfired in an unexpected way. It seems cucumber beetles that carry bacterial wilt disease like to feed on healthy plants, like the GM squash. After visiting unhealthy plants, they land on the nice, healthy GM squash plant and pig out, wounding the leaves and leaving open holes on them. When the beetles' feces fall on the leaves, they're absorbed into the stem and cause bacterial wilt disease.

Animals Fed with GMO Feed Products

A large part of the GM presence in animal feed does not come from foodstuff but instead from additives aimed at making food more nutritious. Animal feed is commonly enhanced with vitamins, amino acids, enzymes and even coloring. These additives are passed on to the animal's system and eventually make their way into your body when you consume meat, eggs or dairy products. Traces of GM cannot, however, be detected in animal by-products, so it's impossible to know if an animal was raised on GM-enhanced feed. Unless you buy organic meat and dairy products, it might be impossible to determine what you're eating.

Salmon

GM salmon is, as we speak, on its way to our dinner table. Wild salmon matures slowly, taking up to three years to reach its full size. GM salmon, on the other hand, not only will grow faster but also should reach about twice the size of its wild cousin. The creators of the GM salmon, a private company called AquaBounty, promises to harvest the salmon before it reaches its full size, thus preventing "giant" versions. The GM salmon, known as AquAdvantage, is meant to be grown in fish farms. According to proponents of the modification, this would reduce fishing of wild salmon, in turn protecting both the wild population of fish and the environment from human intrusion. 

#2 SUGAR

Sugar in history has been one of the most highly traded commodities.  Looking at history we can see how we are damaging our health with the over consumption of sugar.

Historical Consumption of Sugar

1700 4lbs of sugar a year

1800 18 lbs of sugar a year

1900 90 lbs of sugar a year

2010 180 lbs of sugar a year (equals ½ lb a day 453 grams)

Why is Sugar Bad for Us

• Sugar can suppress the immune system
• Sugar can upset the body's mineral balance.
• Sugar can contribute to hyperactivity, anxiety, depression, concentration difficulties, and crankiness in children.
• Sugar can produce a significant rise in tryglycerides.
• Sugar can cause drowsiness and decreased activity in children.
• Sugar can reduce helpful high density cholesterol (HDLs).
• Sugar can promote an elevation of harmful cholesterol (LDLs).
• Sugar can cause hypoglycemia.
• Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.
• Sugar can cause kidney damage.
• Sugar can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
• Sugar may lead to chromium deficiency.
• Sugar can cause copper deficiency.
• Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.
• Sugar can increase fasting levels of blood glucose.
• Sugar can promote tooth decay.
• Sugar can produce an acidic stomach.
• Sugar can raise adrenaline levels in children.
• Sugar can lead to periodontal disease.
• Sugar can speed the aging process, causing wrinkles and grey hair.
• Sugar can increase total cholesterol.
• Sugar can contribute to weight gain and obesity.
• High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
• Sugar can contribute to diabetes.
• Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.
• Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
• Sugar leads to decreased glucose tolerance.
• Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.
• Sugar can increase systolic blood pressure.
• Sugar causes food allergies
• Sugar can cause free radical formation in the bloodstream.
• Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
• Sugar can contribute to eczema in children.
• Sugar can overstress the pancreas, causing damage.
• Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.
• Sugar can compromise the lining of the capillaries.
• Sugar can cause liver cells to divide, increasing the size of the liver.
• Sugar can increase the amount of fat of the liver.
• Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
• Sugar can cause depression.
• Sugar can increase the body's fluid retention.
• Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance.
• Sugar can cause hypertension.
• Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.
• Sugar can cause an increase in delta, alpha and theta brain waves, which can alter the mind's ability to think clearly.
• Sugar can increase blood platelet adhesiveness which increases risk of blood clots and strokes.
• Sugar can increase insulin responses in those consuming high-sugar diets compared to low sugar diets.
• Sugar increases bacterial fermentation in the colon (candida growth).

How Much is Safe and How Much are We Eating

According to an American Heart Association Study done in 2009, an average adult male should consume no more then 38 grams of added sugar, adult female-25 grams, children under 13 no more then 12 grams, and teens no more then 18-37 depending on height and healthy weight.  **added sugar means sugar from sources other then fruit/vegetables that is "added" to foods**

The issue is not the sugar found in natural sources such as fruits and vegetables it is the processed sugars we consume in processed foods and add to our foods.

Avoiding these processed forms of sugar is the easiest way to lower the amount of sugar ingested.

#3 TABLE SALT

Our bodies need salt in order to keep our electrolytes properly balanced.  Iodized table salt which is found in every processed food on the planet as well as 95% of salt shakers is causing serious health issues.

Salt in it's pure form is completely healthy and needed by our body, however the process of creating table salt robs it of any of the health benefits.

Salt is dried at over 1200'F which alters the chemical composition of the salt turning it into sodium chloride.  It then has anti-caking agents such as calcium silicate and dextrose added to it

Common Side-effects of Table Salt Consumption:

1. Calcium absorption. Excessive sodium can inhibit the absorption of calcium by increasing its secretion in the urine. Proper absorption of calcium is essential for bone and joint health and proper muscular function. Interestingly, natural sea salts often contain calcium and magnesium, the latter a mineral which enhances calcium absorption.
2. Water retention. Too much table salt causes the body’s tissues to hold water in an attempt to maintain fluid balance in the body. Cells function best when the salt content of the fluid within them (intra-cellular fluid) and the salt content of the fluid surrounding them (extra-cellular fluid) is the same. When there is too much salt in the body, cells will release water from within to dilute the sodium-saturated water around them, and vice-versa. The water remains trapped in the tissues as the body attempts to maintain the salt to water ratio. Water retention is not just uncomfortable; it contributes to weight gain, high blood pressure, and other problems (see below).
3. Circulatory problems. Some people’s blood pressure is more profoundly affected by salt than others. Nonetheless, even the experts have trouble distinguishing who is most susceptible to sodium-induced high blood pressure (hypertension), so keeping your salt intake in check is a good idea. When sodium causes high blood pressure, the potential for lethal circulatory problems is significant. Those with hypertension are more at risk for heart attack, stroke, and overall blood vessel damage.
4. Kidneys. These vital organs are also affected by excessive sodium intake. If blood vessels in the kidneys are damaged by hypertension, the kidney becomes less efficient. Thus, excess fluid and toxins accumulate in the body because the kidneys are not able to filter them out efficiently. As noted above, retained fluid increases blood pressure and the cycle continues.
5. Pregnancy. Pregnant women need to be especially careful with their salt intake. They often need more salt to maintain correct electrolyte balance, but taking in more of the common table salt variety may do more harm than good. For example, reducing the absorption of calcium – which table salt intake can do – is definitely a bad idea during pregnancy.

#4 POP


Most of us know that pop really isn't healthy....but how many know why.


We've talked about sugar already, but want to put it into perspective for you just how much sugar is in a can of pop.

http://www.sugarstacks.com/img/colas.jpg

Each sugar cube is equal to 4grams of sugar each or 1 teaspoon of sugar.

Carbonation:

Beverages with bubbles contain phosphoric acid, which can severely deplete the blood calcium levels; calcium is a key component of the bone matrix. With less concentration of calcium over a long time, it can lower deposition rates so that bone mass and density suffer. This means that drinking sodas and carbonated water increases your risk of osteoporosis.

Caffeine:

Add in the caffeine usually present in soft drinks, and you are in for even more trouble. Caffeine can deplete the body’s calcium, in addition to stimulating your central nervous system and contributing to stress, a racing mind, and insomnia.  

Do you think only dark pop has caffeine....think again.  Mountain Dew has 40% more caffeine then coke or pepsi.

Here is a great graphic showing what pop does to your body.

Pop isn't just the only sugary drink that you should avoid.  Jump over the the sugarstacks.com website and see how much sugar is in some of your favorite beverages.

#5 ARTIFICIAL SUGARS  "Diet-Low Fat-Sugar Free"


Artificial sugars names include:


Sorbitol
Mannitol
Gycerol
Acesulfame potassium
Aspartame
Cyclamate
Isomalt
Saccharin
Sucralose
Alitame
Thaumatin
Neohesperidine dihydrochalcone
Acesulfame Salt
Maltitol
Lactitol
Xylitol
Erythritol
Neotame

Aspartame is by far the most commonly used in this list.  There are some 20,000+ products that contain aspartame.  Another 10-15,000 products contain the others listed either separately or in combination.


The sad thing about asparatame and the other artificial sweeteners is that they are used so extensively in the diabetic industry as well as the diet industry.  Our brains do not know how to recognize the chemical components of these substances.  Aspartame actually increases a persons cravings for carbohydrates, which in turn increases appetite.  People who consume aspartame once a day are prone to eating 500+ more calories.

Aspartame causes an endless list of negative side effects.  The main reason this happens is due to chemical methanol.  When methanol is metabolized it quickly converts to formaldehyde.  Long term use of aspartame can create a significant build up of methanol/formaldehyde and that is what has been seen to cause many of the problems associated with aspartame poisoning.

I could go on for hours about the dangers of aspartame-if you've ever talked to me you know this.  I am simply going to refer you to the best website on the subject

www.sweetpoison.com


#6 ARTIFICIAL OILS "Fried Foods,  Margarine, Pre-packaged Foods"


Growing up with a bakery in my kitchen, I learned quickly about the cost saving of using margarine instead of butter to help the profit line.  However my parents where just as blinded by the rest of the world as to the dangers of this artificially made substance.

As well the "smear" campaign against butter has been something I have heard for as long as I can remember.  I've always thought, natural substance, artificial substance-can't understand why the natural isn't healthier!  Well in fact it is.

Here is the short list of what the world of artificial oils can do to your body:

Directly promotes heart disease

Promotes cancers: breast cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer

Results in low birth weight infants

Raises LDL (bad) cholesterol and lower HDL (good) cholesterol

Raises blood sugar levels and promotes weight gain

Interferes with the absorption of essential fatty acids and DHA

Impairs brain function and damages brain cells

Accelerates tumor growth

Accelerates the progress of type-2 diabetes

Raises serum cholesterol

Impairs immune system function

Promotes attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Impairs development of the brains of fetuses

Causes gallbladder disease

Causes liver disease

Causes 30,000 deaths per year in the United States alone

Clogs blood, makes blood cells stick together

Blocks the body's creation of natural pain-reducing hormones (eicosanoids)

Causes the creation of free radicals that promote inflammation

Creates nutritional deficiencies of healthy oils and essential essential fatty acids(EFAs)

Promotes cystic fibrosis

Lowers essential fatty acids in the breast milk of nursing mothers

Clogs artery walls and promotes atherosclerosis

Cause gum disease and rotted teeth

Lowers tissue oxygen intake

Causes infertility

Directly damages blood vessels

Causes high blood pressure

Weaken cell walls and compromises cellular structure

Causes dandruff and acne

These oils are present in every processed food in some way or another.  But the most dangerous place they are used is in deep frying foods.

Deep Frying

Deep fried foods are not only high in fat and calories, but sometimes deep frying alters a food into a more carcinogenic food (cancer causing).  The most common carcinogenic deep fried food is potatoes. Deep fried potatoes, also known as french fries or potato chips (a huge weakness of mine, are actually carcinogenic because they contain a chemical in them called acrilamides.

Because the potato is starchy, and because of it’s chemical makeup, these acrilamides spawn from them when deep fried – so things like potato chips and french fries are actually carcinogenic.

Deep fried foods are also very acidic within the body. They can cause acid overload, and you can get an upset stomach and diarrhea pretty easily because they are so loaded in fat and other nasty ingredients.  You also may notice you have indigestion after eating deep fried foods – they aren’t the friendliest to you digestive system.

#7 DAIRY  Milk-Cheese


So here goes the controversy.  Most of us have grown up learning that "Milk makes Strong Bones".  This couldn't be further from the truth.  North Americans (both US and Canada) are amongst the highest consumers of dairy products in the world.  We also have the highest percentage of osteo bone health diseases (osteoporosis).  If Milk makes strong bones....what happened?

If you have ever thought of using the bible as a nutrition guide, we actually find the answer to how to consume milk in Exodus 23:19.  While most of us don't eat goat, this passage translates to  "don't mix milk and meat together" totally explains why a high consumption of milk leads to osteo health issues.

Here are some interesting facts about milk:

• Human infants take about 180 days to double their birth weight, human milk is 5 to 7 percent protein. Calves require only 45 days doubling their birth weight and cows milk is 15 percent protein. 
• The overall death rate for the babies raised on human milk was 1.5 deaths per 1,000 infants while the death rate in the babies fed cow milk was 84.7 per 1,000 during the first nine months of life. 
•  The primary type of protein in cow's milk is casein. Cow's milk has 20 times as much in human milk, which makes the protein from cows milk difficult or impossible for humans to digest or absorb.
• When a single food can be isolated as the cause of an allergy, 60 percent of the time, that food is cows milk. Symptoms of this allergic reaction to cow's milk in infants can include asthma, nasal congestion, skin rash, chest infections, irritability and fatigue.
• Milk doesn’t reduce fractures. Contrary to popular belief, eating dairy products has never been shown to reduce fracture risk. In fact, according to the Nurses’ Health Study dairy may increase risk of fractures by 50 percent!
• High exposure to estrogen has been shown to cause many health issues.  60-80% of the primary sources of estrogen ingestion in the US is through milk consumption.  The issue is that farmer's milk cows 300 days of the year, during which time they can be pregnant for as much as 285 days of the period.  During late pregnancy a cows estrogen production increases 33 times the normal amount, this estrogen is then passed into her milk and on to humans. 
• Most cow's milk (organic included) has measurable quantities of herbicides, pesticides, dioxins (up to 200 times the safe levels), up to 52 powerful antibiotics, blood, pus, feces, bacteria and viruses. Cow's milk can have traces of anything the cow ate, including such things as radioactive fallout from nuke testing.

Lactose Intolerance

Between the ages of 18 months and 7 years humans lose the enzyme lactase that is used to break down lactose found in breast milk.  This enzyme also is used by calves to break down the lactose (or milk sugars) in cows milk.  This reduction occurs in 75% of the population.  The other 25% show a reduction of lactase production up until about age 25.

In essence we are ALL lactose intolerant.

Because of the lack of lactase our body has to find other was to break down the milk enzyme.  This occurs in our lower intestines. The bacteria normally found in our lower intestines is responsible for this break down.  However, this isn't how these bacteria are meant to be used.  This puts an extra load on their normal function, which results in a higher output by them of their own waste-which in turns leads to blotting, and cramps.  Then our body produces mucous in an effort to rid ourselves of the excess of this waste.  This reaction results in severe health issues.

Health Issues Connected to Milk Consumption

• Allergies
• Anemia
• Acne
• Breast/Uterine Cancers
• Bowel Disorders (IBS, Chrons, Colitis)
• Diabetes
• Ear Infections
• Heart Disease
• Nasal Congestion
• Osteoporosis
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)
• Vitamin D Deficiency

#8 PLASTIC-BPA


I can hear you all saying..."but Amy we don't EAT plastic"

Wrong!

Here is a list of products that I can honestly say are in plastic in my home, or came to my house in plastic.

Spices, Vitamins, Meats, Veggies, Breads, Condiments....the list can go on forever.

I would say walking down the grocery aisle you would find hmmm 98% of all the products you find will be in direct contact with a plastic product.

This problem came to light a couple of years ago when baby bottles lined with BPA became headline news.  This prompted many companies to remove the BPA from their product lines.  However many still contain this chemical as well as many others that have been shown to cause illnesses including cancers.

But plastic itself with or without BPA is still a problem.  Especially when it comes to heating it. Plastics are made by combing organic and inorganic materials.  Many have chemical additives included to strengthen the plastic, or weaken it depending on the usage.

When plastic is heated the molecules of the chemical additives change structure and are released into the food touching it.

Two of the most commonly eaten foods are on a list of foods that even the experts won't eat are there because the come into direct contact with plastic during the manufacturing, storage, cooking process.


Canned Tomatoes

The expert: Fredrick vom Saal, PhD, an endocrinologist at the University of Missouri who studies bisphenol-A

The problem: The resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Unfortunately, acidity (a prominent characteristic of tomatoes) causes BPA to leach into your food. Studies show that the BPA in most people's body exceeds the amount that suppresses sperm production or causes chromosomal damage to the eggs of animals. "You can get 50 mcg of BPA per liter out of a tomato can, and that's a level that is going to impact people, particularly the young," says vom Saal. "I won't go near canned tomatoes."

The solution: Choose tomatoes in glass bottles (which do not need resin linings), such as the brands Bionaturae and Coluccio. You can also get several types in Tetra Pak boxes, like Trader Joe's and Pomi.

Microwave Popcorn

The expert: Olga Naidenko, PhD, a senior scientist for the Environmental Working Group,

The problem: Chemicals, including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in the lining of the bag, are part of a class of compounds that may be linked to infertility in humans, according to a recent study from UCLA. In animal testing, the chemicals cause liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancer. Studies show that microwaving causes the chemicals to vaporize-and migrate into your popcorn. "They stay in your body for years and accumulate there," says Naidenko, which is why researchers worry that levels in humans could approach the amounts causing cancers in laboratory animals. DuPont and other manufacturers have promised to phase out PFOA by 2015 under a voluntary EPA plan, but millions of bags of popcorn will be sold between now and then.

The solution: Pop natural kernels the old-fashioned way: in a skillet. For flavorings, you can add real butter or dried seasonings, such as dillweed, vegetable flakes, or soup mix.

#9-PROCESSED FOODS

There are 3 categories of processed foods

Real Food made to last longer:

Processed food that is made from real food that has been put through chemical processes and are infused with chemicals and preservatives.  Examples:  Canned fruits/vegetables, canned meats, cheeses etc.  Preservatives are used in these foods to keep them from spoiling.

Junk foods:

Junk foods contain very little REAL food.  They're made of devitalized processed foods that have been fried, baked or otherwise had high levels of fats, chemicals and preservatives added to them.  Examples, chips, pop, cookies, cereals, drive through foods.  Our bodies have a hard time finding any nutrients from these foods. 

Fake food

Fake foods are primarily made of chemicals and contain gum and sugar fillers.   Examples: instant coffee, bottled salad dressing, dehydrated soups.

What makes these foods harmful.  Processed foods have one thing in common....the nutrition they input is greatly out weighed by the energy it takes our body to process digest, absorb and eliminate them.\

Our ancestors preserved foods naturally, using salts, fermentation and sun drying.  Food processing has evolved away from these simple practices.  Nearly 6,000 additives and chemicals are used by food companies to process our food.  Many of them are shown to have devastating effects on our health.

Alot of manufacturers add in vitamins and minerals.  The sad thing is this is necessary because of the processing of the "real" food has stripped these nutrients out of the foods.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.....ready to find out what you can eat???? I sure am.  Next blog to come will include lists of foods TO EAT!

Hugs and health

Amy

I'm Sick What Do I Do.

I've heard this statement alot in the last month or so.  Everything from a stuffy nose, chest cough, bronchitis, pneumonia and a large number of cases of shingles.  It's "that" time of year as everyone says.  What if it doesn't have to be "that" time of year-ever?

If you have asked me this question you're likely well aware of the steps that my family has taken in the last 3-4 years to get on to a different health track!  A healthy one!!!!

Go back in time to 4-5 years ago, we could likely have bought shares in drug companies like Ibuprofen and Tylenol, as well as the fact that the favorite type of mold in our house came out of a prescription bottle in the form of several types of antibiotics a year per person.

It was about the time that I became a doula that I REALLY started to see that the "normal" way of doctors wasn't really that normal, and in fact alot of times caused much more harm then good.  I also remember thinking that my doula trainers where a tiny bit "hippieish" and wasn't sure if that was anything I wanted to be.

Fast forward 5 years...please feel free to call me a hippy, "witch" doctor (my son jokingly calls me this) health nut, alternative medication whacko....I will TOTALLY thank you for any of the above or others!

So...first off let me insert this little disclaimer :  I am NOT a medical doctor, the information I am going to share is NOT a replacement for medical advice if you are suffering from a serious illness or medical condition.  If you attempt any of the items in this blog, that is your choice.  All of the information found here can and has been accessed on the Internet and through various books that I have taken the time to read and follow over the last 5 years.  I have used each and every one of the things I am going to list, however they may not be effective for you as every body has a different reaction.

All that being said ready...set.....go!

If you look in my "medicine" cupboard this is what you will find:

Vitamins/Minerals:  B complex, C, D, Calcium,
Probiotic Complex
Activated Charcoal
Arnica
Oil of Oregano
Nin Jiom
Essential Oils:  Tea Tree, Lavender, Cedar, Clary Sage, Eucalyptus, Camphor,
Garlic Cloves
Organic Local Honey
Respiractin (it's in the fridge)

That's it! That's all!  The essential oil line up may fluctuate between several other scents depending on what is required and what I am in the mood for.

So this is what these items have, yep gonna use the word cured in the last 4 years in our house:

Ear Infections
Coughs both minor and major
Bronchitis
Strep Throat
Serious (as in covered) cases of Poison Ivy
Sinusitis (aka sinus infections)
Stomach Upsets-Vomiting and Diarrhea

Head Lice
Fleas
Round Worms human and animal variety

Hmmmmm think that's all.  We don't get sick that often so it's hard to remember back and think of what we've dealt with....but those are the things that really jump out at me for now.  Might think of others...

So how does this work?

First off-the one thing that isn't listed in my cupboard list (because no matter how I try he won't fit) is the amazing Dr John Rae.  Chiropractic care is a huge part of our families immune fighting system.  With proper spinal care your immune system is able to fight off infection much more quickly.  In fact one of the things that I and Cassidy had suffered from for pretty much our entire life times respectively was environmental allergies.  Both Cass and I were 24 hour allergy med poppers, about 2 months after starting a full care regiment with John, we were able to kick the Claritin to the curb and leave it there!

Even with John's magic touch illness has creeped through so here's how we deal with it.

#1-Having the proper nutrition going in is and can be the only cure you truly need to keep yourself healthy.  I am not going to go into the Isagenix details in this blog-you can go back and find that one and read if for yourself.  But with proper nutrition going in our bodies are able to ward off most infections and viruses.

#2-By not treating each "illness" as the plague and in fact embracing it and letting it run it's course we have built up our bodies immune systems so that when we do run across something that sneaks in, we are able to fight it off much faster.

I no longer look at the kids illnesses as something that HAS TO BE eradicated and quickly.  They are allowed to be sick.  I came to this brilliant thought while sitting through a lecture by the amazing Dr. Lawrence Palevsky.  If you're child has been sick you likely have been sent this link:

http://drpalevsky.com/general_guidance.asp

Read it...what Dr. Larry says just makes sense!  It may sound very old wives taleish but it totally totally works!  This is the essence of how I as a mom of 5 kids has "treated" my family for the last 5 years.

#3-As Dr Larry says-when we do get "sick" it's our body saying we need to clean out the junk.  While our family does this on a daily basis with the use of Isagenix Cleanse for Life, I also use the following regiments to aid in helping the junk get out.

Oil Of Oregano-




If you've known me for a while you should know what this is by now.  If we're just newly acquainted OoO

In our house it is the be all end all it really is.  I remember finding out about OoO from a friend.  Once I started doing the research I was sort of convinced, but what totally convinced me was when Morgan woke up the day after a trek in the bush and was quite covered in Poison Ivy.  The summer before we had gone through this as well-it took almost 6 weeks for the infection to stop spreading and the scarring to heal.

I did a quick search to see if PI was one of the things OoO was good for, of course it was.  Morgan's episode of PI lasted 8 days!!!  I wish now that I had taken pictures of it, but it was completely covering one side of his face, his arm and a large portion of his stomach and leg.  From break out to scars healed EIGHT DAYS!!!  I was sold, and have not been without it since.

The next major curing episode for OoO was last winter (Feb 2011) when Kelsey came home with a sore throat.  She went on to tell me that her teacher had been off sick for a couple of days with strep throat.  I thought oh boy, this could get interesting.

If for some reason you've ever looked in Kelsey's throat you have seen that her tonsils on a normal no infection present day are HUGE!  It's just the way they are, have been like that since she was born.  But when she gets a throat infection they can swell to the point that she can barely swallow.  As  a munchkin she was on the "one more bout and out they come" list.  Having had my tonsil out as a 7 year old we were not good with that decision, and said no to having them removed.

So long story short....Kelsey's strep lasted 2 days of significant infection (you could actually see the pus pockets), including a low grade fever (101'F) and some fairly high pain, then it started to dissipate and was totally gone by day 5.  I've chatted with people in the last 2-3 months who are on their 2nd or 3rd round of antibiotics and are still suffering.  Once I have said OoO go get it, they have been done with the   infection within days.

How do you take OoO?

Well it can be taken in two ways, orally or topically.  Depending on what you are fighting I usually suggest both.

My kids can NOT deal with the flavour-it's very very very very strong to say the least!  So also depending on the person depends on how it gets used.

Ingestion:  1-2 drops daily will help keep things at bay.
If you are sick, then I suggest upping that to 5 drops, my crazy husband has been known to use the full droppers worth-he really doesn't get sick very often!

Topically:  3-4 drops mixed in with equal amount of olive oil, rub near the affected area-so if sore throat rub on throat, if couch rub on chest.

For something like poison ivy, chicken pox, shingles etc, use 3-4 drops mixed with Olive Oil 2-3 times a day.  This will help kill off the bacteria faster as well as help to stop the spreading.

All ages can use OoO, however, the caution goes out for little people under 5.  OoO is a very strong cleanser, so use only 1-2 drops with younger children.  Best way to use it for them is to put it on the soles of their feet.

Drink lots so that your liver and kidney's flush out the toxins!

Vitamin C 



We have always taken vitamin C at our house as a way to help ward of winter not so friendly colds etc.  We've always however just followed the bottle directions and taken the 1 or 2 tablets that the label recommends.


About a year ago I came across an article in regards to Vitamin C being the lost cure for diseases like cancer.  Boy did that spur on a fast search!  Turns out that in the 1930's vitamin c WAS being used to cure people who were literally at death's door.  Dr. F.R. Klenner used mega doses of IV infused vitamin c in the form of absorbic acid to cure polio patients, and went on to use it on other diseases like measles and chicken pox with 100% cure outcomes.


You can find a great article on his work here


http://www.doctoryourself.com/klennerbio.html

Sooo I went on to do some more research into the use of vitamin c at high doses to deal with illnesses.  Turns out it's all amazing!  Our bodies need the absorbic acid found 'in' vitamin c to help us keep all of our body systems in line.  The RDA "recommend daily amount" is set around 90 mg for adults.  This is JUST enough to keep our bodies from going into scurvy, however to keep our body in proper levels we need much more.

The best way to go about finding out how much you need is to do a Vitamin C flush.

Directions are here:

http://www.how-to-boost-your-immune-system.com/vitamin-c-flush.html

At our house, we all take at least 5000mgs of vitamin c a day.  Split into 3 or 4 doses.  If someone is showing signs of getting sick I up that dose following the directions for the flush and flush for at least 2 days.


Other Stuff:

OoO and Vitamin C are the two ways that we daily go about keeping bad stuff out of the body in our house.  BUT sometimes things sneak by.  Which like the article by Dr. Palevsky says is a sign that maybe something is a bit off in the immune system.

I can usually pinpoint what it is especially on an individual basis.  We've gone on a milk binge is usually the first place I look, and clear out the milk for a few days.  Two of my kids have very obvious issues with milk that once it's out of their systems for a couple of days clear up very quickly (eczema being the most obvious).  Too much "junk food" from being over at a friends house is usually the next culprit, so that just takes time to reboot the system and things get better.

In the last couple of weeks, I have had a bit of a cough.  That's where the Respiractin  http://www.respiractin.com/ comes in.  This is an amazing product whose recipe goes back a century.  It works on the lungs and helps to expel excess phlegm and mucous build up.  I have suggested this product to friends whose children have used asthma inhalers and they have found relief from needing the inhalers within 1-2 weeks.

Nin Jiom http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nin_Jiom_Pei_Pa_Koa is the next cold and only "cough medicine" product that you will find in my house.  This recipe just like Respiractin is quite old, and in fact dates back 100+ years as well.

Follow the directions for using the products as found on the label.

Garlic 



http://tlc.howstuffworks.com/family/medical-uses-for-garlic-ga.htm

This yummy herb is also classified as a medicine.  Only a few herbs can claim this.  Like OoO garlic can be used as an antibacterial, anti fungal, anti parasitic, topical pain reliever and an antibiotic to name a few of it's benefits.  It is also amazing for helping lower cholesterol and heart disease.

We use A LOT of garlic at our house, (Ask anyone who has had my homemade Caesar salad dressing and you'll know just how much)  I'd say we use 50/50 raw vs cooked.  The raw is much better for you, but cooked is just as good.

Sore throats-chew 1/2 clove of garlic and let the juice flow to the back of you throat.  Within about 5 minutes the pain will start to dissipate.

Cough/Colds-chew a clove of garlic.  Best to do this on a full stomach.  The intensity of the raw garlic can cause tummy upsets.

Over all health.  Just eat garlic it's good for you!!!!

Honey





http://www.honeyo.com/honeyhealing.shtml

Nature really does provide us with all we need to heal ourselves.  Honey is just another example of this.
The link above is a short list of the benefits of honey.

As a general rule honey is the sugar of choice for me for baking.  It is much healthier then processed sugar and has less effect on insulin levels.

The most common way we use honey at home is for sore throats.  A spoonful after eating the clove of garlic is a great way to get rid of the taste of the garlic as well as help boost the immune system into action.

A "hot toddy" of lemon, hot water, honey and alcohol such as rum is a great way to help relieve chest congestion.  Especially when combined with Respiractin and or Nin Jiom.

Activated Charcoal





http://healingtools.tripod.com/thn5.html

AC is an emergency type item in my cupboard.  It helps most especially with bad tummy aches.  I firmly believe that if the stomach wants to get rid of something, it's a good idea to let it do just that.  But one can only vomit or have diarrhea episodes so many times and this can actually become dangerous if liquids don't want to stay down.


For serious bouts of vomiting or diarrhea take 1-2 tablets.  If you have a tummy ache take 1.


Arnica





http://www.arnica.com/

Like I said at the beginning of the blog, we used to inhale Tylenol and ibuprofen like they were candy.  Not a good idea.  Our first line of defence for headaches and other muscle aches and pains is to head to Dr John and have our spines/necks adjusted.  Most times this relieves the pain issue.


However, I also have 3 very rambunctious sons, who have done stupid things like break bones, played punching games until bruises are left behind....you get the picture.


That's where the arnica comes in.  We have it both in tablet and cream form.


Essential Oils




Each essential oil has it's own properties.  It would take me pages of blog to go over them.  So I am going to just touch on the ones that we use and the things we use them for.

Head Lice:

To say I HATE head lice is a mild statement indeed! Anyone who has had to deal with these pesky little creatures knows my pain!  We used to treat our kids with the horrid chemical products found at the pharmacy, but I got to the point that I was wondering if I could actually poison my kids with too much of it.  So I went hunting for natural alternatives.  This recipe is the most amazing thing every made in my kitchen-head lice gone and have not returned for 2 years!!!

Combine equal drops of:

Tea Tree Oil, Lavender Oil, Geranium Oil, Eucalyptus Oil, Thyme Oil and Lemon Oil.

Have this mixture on hand.  If you are dealing with a lice outbreak, take 4-5 drops and add into enough olive oil to coat hair.  Leave on for at least 2 hours and comb out using lice comb.  Get the nits!

To use as a preventative, use a spritz bottle, add 4-5 drops of the oil mixture into 1 cup of water.  Spray on hair.  It actually has a fairly nice smell to it.

Fleas:

As a pet loving family and not wanting to add chemicals into my kids bodies, I also don't want to add them to my pets bodies.  Because animals, especially cats synthesize essential oils differently then humans you need to be careful as to how often you use these mixtures.

For dogs:

Combine equal drops of:

Cedar Oil, Lavender Oil, Citronella Oil, Eucaplytpus Oil and Peppermint Oil.

As a bath:  combine 3-4 drops of the oil mixture with 1/4 cup of Castille Soap.  (For large dogs use as much as 7 drops)  Shampoo dog and rinse gently.

As a flea collar:  Use a cloth collar, drop 3-4 drops of the oil mixture on to the collar.  Repeat weekly.

For Cats:

Cats can not synthesize the lavender and peppermint oil as well as dogs.  Make the above recipe but for every 5 drops of the other oils only add 1 drop of peppermint and lavender oil.  Bath your cat (have fun with that) and place 1-2 drops on to their fabric collar.  Repeat biweekly if you have an infestation, monthly as a preventative.



So that's about that.  You may think that in order to stay healthy we use alot of industrial cleaners and antibacterials around the house.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  See my previous blog on Detoxing your house to see what I use as cleaners at home.

http://amyeaustin.blogspot.com/2011/11/detoxing-your-house-simple-starts.html

Stay healthy!!!!


Hugs

Amy

We are Water Pigs!

So, I am sure a few of you saw my face book status the other day after getting my water bill and the shock wave it sent through me.

In 63 days our family went through 71 cubic meters of water.

Here's the math on that for you.

1 m3 = 1,000 litres.  

 71x1000= 71,000 litres.

71,000 / 63 = 1126 litres a day

1126 / 7 = 161 litres per person (to make me feel better if Meg and Kay are here that is 125)

ELEVEN HUNDRED & TWENTY SIX LITRES OF WATER  

A DAY

Here's a visual for you.  This picture shows what a 1,000 litres looks like.  There are 62 cooler sized bottles in this picture.  In order to get to our level we'd have to add 8 more!




I can honestly say I almost cried.  This is an insane amount of water...insane!  Let's put that into some more perspective.  The average say 150lb person needs approximately 2.3 litres of water a day to stay properly hydrated.  So our water consumption could hydrate 489 people!  Did you read that 489 people.

Here's some more perspective.  There are 2 Billion people in this world who do not have daily access to clean drinking water.....and our family uses 489 peoples worth a day.....wow time for a change.

I went looking for some statistics, just to see if we are in the "normal range".  Knowing that we have 7 people in our house, I kind of attributed the higher number to that fact.

Turns out we actually aren't that bad!

Here's a bar graph showing the average water use of people around the world.  Canada for some reason is missing but I found that in Canada the average is around 329 litres a day which would put us about 4th on this graph.




That number has actually come down, considering in reports from 1999 we were using 343.  So we as Canadians are getting a bit better.  In our house we are way below the national average...phew!

Remember that these #'s are only related to measurable amounts of water, they do not include water used from fresh water wells used by those of us lucky enough to live in the country, so that # could actually be higher.

So why do we use so much water.  Convenience, industry, we just plain take it for granted!  Not one is a good excuse.  Between 1972 and 1996 our water consumption jumped 90% from 25 million m3 to 45 million m3, but our population only grew by 33%.

So where does all this water get used.  According to Environment Canada we need 5 litres for survival, think that's a tad high since that would require us all to be 400lbs, but let's go with it.  For food prep, sanitation and bathing they say we need to average 60-80 litres.   That seems a tad high too.

So here are some more #'s...man there are alot of them in this blog, but it helps me put it into visual perspective.

Taking a bath uses 60 litres of water
Taking a shower uses 20 litres of water per minute.
Teeth brushing with water running 10 litres
Dishwasher 15-25 litres per load
Hand washing dishes 20 litres of water per minute tap runs
Laundry Front Load Washer- 56 litres Top Load Washer 152 litres

and the big one.....Flushing the Toilet can range anywhere from 0.9 litres to 30 litres depending on the age of your toilet.

No wonder we are way above the 60-80 litres "needed" to survive.

Sooooo how can we change this use age?  Let's go room by room.

Bathroom:

First area in our house that we have changed is the toilet flushing.  No one is allowed to flush if it's a yellow deposit.  As well knowing that we have older toilets I went on line and did some research on how to effect the amount of water used per flush.  It was actually pretty simple, it involved displacing some of the water in the toilet tank so that it doesn't fully empty/fill up each time.

Here's a great video to show you how

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgyinKf5SSM

Be sure to watch you toilet flush so that you 1) make sure it flushes hard enough to get rid of floating deposits and 2) the placement of the bottles doesn't effect any of the mechanisms.

We displaced 3 1/2 litres in total with the bottles/containers we placed in the tank.

Shower/Bath

Everyone has been given a 5 minute time limit in the shower.  So far they've done pretty good, I've threatened to put in a timer if I need to.  Mason is the biggest culprit in the shower as he seems to think standing there for 20 minutes is just a great way to wake up.....he's had a shorter shower every day to "ease" into it.  He has until Monday to get it down to 5 mins or I will be coming in to turn it off!  I've also asked them on the weekends when they aren't heading to school (and thus can be smelly lol) to not shower.  We'll see how that goes!

Kitchen:

This is where I think a significant portion of our water is going....and I am the problem....sigh!  I am the leave the water running kind of hand dish washing culprit.  Welllll that stopped as of the other day!  So what I did instead was this....The washing side only gets about an inch of water to start my washing going, as I rinse instead of letting that run down the drain I add it to the washing side.  This has worked out really well.  I start with the cleaner dishes and work up to the dirtier ones so that when I have the most water, it's all good.  So far I've used 3/4 of of water at the most (and that was a big dish washing moment).

This morning I also enacted another rule-had read it just last night.  Most of us insist on the dishes being rinsed off before we wash them.  Well that can use a significant amount of water.....so scrapping only has been enacted-Tristan doesn't wash the dishes very often-so he'll survive this change lol.

Laundry:

My kids are the worst....and I mean worst for wear a pair of pants/shirt once and they are completely contaminated and can't be worn again...Well the hammer came down on that one this week too.  If there's not a stain or smell...wear em again!  We'll see how that goes.

Also the girls especially are horrid at putting clean clothes away, so never fails I find clean clothes in the laundry to be washed.  To help eliminate this, on the weekend (shhh they don't know this yet) we are downsizing the clothing selection, as I know a few of the pieces aren't being worn because of sizing.

Hoping these changes will lessen the # of loads we do.


Sooooo have I been able to see these changes.  Yeppers I have indeed.  The City of Barrie has an application where you can see you daily water use age. It's about 2 days behind, but from when I got the bill on Wed, and got the toilet flushing changed and dish washing under control.....there has been a difference!  I can see Wed on the application and just that day alone we dropped 0.2 m3 compared to Tues.  Can't wait to be able to see Thurs and today.

So....what does your families water consumption look like??? How can you change it?

Here are some interesting water facts....enjoy

It takes _____ of water to......

2396 l to process a 1  hamburger
43 l to process 1 chicken
35 l to process a can of fruit
3780 l to make 3 1/2 l of milk
1,062,180 to process one tonne of cane sugar into white sugar
21 l to make one foot of lumber
91 l to make 1lb of plastic
7,833 l of water to make 4 new tires
147,760 l to make a new car

Water can dissolve more substances then any other liquid

Water is the only substance found on earth in all three forms (liquid, solid & gas)

A person can live 3-5 days without water depending on conditions

A birch tree gives off 265 l of water a day in evaporation.  An acre of corn gives off 151200 l

80% of the earth's surface is water, 97% of that is ocean or sea water, 2% of that is frozen

More then 25% of bottled water comes from city tap water

If all the water vapor in Earth's atmosphere fell at once, we could cover the entire earth in about 1 inch of water.

It would take our family 6 years and 4 months to use the amount of water it takes to fill an Olympic sized swimming pool.

It would take our family 7 years to use the amount of water that flows over Niagara Falls in one second.

The New York Water supply system leaks 136,080,000l of water a day!

At 1 drip per second a leaky faucet/toilet etc can use 11,340 l of water a year.



and in the TMI realm....being a cleanse day, I have now peed 5 times since waking up this am....haven't flushed once....so I've saved our house about 30 l of flushed down the toilet water.....just thought you'd like to know :o)

Hugs!


Sources of facts used.

http://ec.gc.ca/eau-water/default.asp?lang=En&n=F25C70EC-1
http://ec.gc.ca/eau-water/default.asp?lang=En&n=F25C70EC-1
http://www.janegoodall.ca/project-blue/WaterinCanada.html
http://water.epa.gov/learn/kids/drinkingwater/water_trivia_facts.cfm

Detoxing your house-Simple Starts

The first minute of this video says it all, take a look then come back and read on....

http://www.isagenix.com/ca/en/areyoutoxic.dhtml

It's 9:30 am.  Let's look at what has happened in my house so far today that could lead to toxicity:

Showering, washing dishes, using plastic containers to put food or drink in, sitting on the couch, sitting on stained hardwood chairs, walking across the floor in bare feet, drove Steph to work, drinking unfiltered tap water, sending prepackaged foods (granola bars and yogurt tubes) in kids lunches......wow I think I just scared myself to be honest!

How are these normal daily activities toxic.  Well the driving Steph to work one is easy, the emissions that are put into the air on a daily basis from the use of vehicles is enough to lead to toxicity, that makes sense to all of us.  What a huge part of our population doesn't realize those is that the products we buy and use on a daily basis for basic life are the leading causes of toxicity in our home.

Basically the rule of thumb needs to be....if you wouldn't eat it, don't put it on your skin.  By putting it on your skin I mean: directly via soaps, cosmetics, skin care products, hair care products, cleaning products etc.  Anything that touches our skin can and will be absorbed directly into our blood stream.  Our skin is a our largest organ.  Yes it's the first line of defense, but it is also the most highly abused organ.

Remember these stats from a previous blog....

*Women who use make-up on a daily basis absorb upwards of 5lbs of toxic chemicals a year 

*Men, women and children can absorb up to 3lbs of toxic chemicals a year from using commercial shampoos, bath soaps etc that they use in the shower every day.   

Think about when you're in the shower.  The hot water is opening your pores-which people say is great, helps clean them out.  Fantastic thought, until you coat them with liquid chemicals in the form of the soap you use.  Our skin is like a sponge, it sucks in everything that touches it.

 Hot shower=open pores+shampoo etc=maximum absorption of chemicals in products.

Let's break down the body wash, shampoo and conditioner that was used in my house this am.

**side note so you know how I know these things lol, if you go to the Environmental Working Groups website www.ewg.org they have a tonne of great information on pretty much every popular brand of soap, shampoo, conditioner, cleaning product etc that you can find on your grocery store, drug store shelf***

Brand of body wash:  Irish Spring.

here's the link to the product
http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/product/223531/Irish_Spring_Body_Wash%2C_Icy_Blast/

As you can see the words.....  persistence and bioaccumulation, neurotoxicity, organ system toxicity (non-reproductive) : enhanced skin absorption....those are alllll bad!

Brand of Shampoo and Conditioner (let's hope I fare better on this one cuz it's labelled "With 100% pure olive oil", I am not holding out much hope though after reading the ingredients....

Hmmm the brand isn't  listed in the database, so I'll break it down by ingredients:

Cetyl Alcohol:  scores a 1 out 10 (10 being the worst in their database), with organ system toxicity for enhanced skin absorption
Cetrimonium Chloride scores 3 out of 10 for allergies and immunotoxity effects
Olive Oil-no need that's the good part of the ingredients, sad it's so far down the list though.
Phenoxyethanol: 3-4 depending on frequency of usage for: skin, eye and lung irritation, workplace hazard (if you work with it directly they have it on the restricted to low doses only) ang organ system toxicity.
Isopropylparaben: 3/10 for allergies and immunotoxcity, and endocrine (hormone balance) disruption
Isobutylparaben:  3/10 for allergies and immunotoxcity, and endocrine (hormone balance) disruption
Butylparaben: 5/10 for developmental and reproductive toxicity, allergies and immunotoxicity, endocrine disruption, biochemical or cellular level changes (effects cells right from their growth up to their death)
D&C Red 33: no data
Green 5: 0/10
FD & C Yellow 6: 1-3 depending on usage for cancer causing, Use restrictions-not approved for products that can come into contact with the eye.
FD & C Yellow 5:  1/10 for organ toxicity


SIGH ......GUESS I AM GOING SHAMPOO AND BODY WASH SHOPPING TODAY, BECAUSE I JUST CHUCKED IT ALL!!!!!!

Next....lets look at my dish soap-ok this should fare better it's labelled organic (I say with pleading hope)

Hmmm no ingredients list....heading over the the manufacturer website...be back....

Hot damn IT'S ALL GOOOD NEWS!!!  It's all natural plant based, phosphate, chemical free!!!!
I'm not going to eat it simply because I would blow bubbles for the day, but I could!!!!!

So.....just for some fun let's take a look at a couple of the well marketed brands of dish soap and see what we come up with.

Dawn: water, sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium laureth sulfate, lauramine oxide, alcohol denat., sodium chloride, PPG-26, PEI-14 PEG-10/PPG-7 copolymer, phenoxyethanol, magnesium chloride, methylisothiazolinone, fragrance, blue1.


Palmolive: water, ammonium C12-15, pareth sulfate, magnesium isododecylhenzenesulfonate, lauramidopropylamine oxide, sd alcholho #-A, sodium xylenesulfonate, sodium chloride, fragrances, pentasodium pentetate, tricolsan.


So the average score on this ingredients was a 4/10.  Both soaps contain ingredients that are listed as carcinogenic, cause endocrine disruption, allergies, are classified as bio hazards on WHIMS, ......all of the things listed above in the shampoos!


Ok....next.....Laundry Soap.


We generally use whatever is on sale.  I don't have a "favorite" I won't use anything else kind of brand.  I have 7 peoples worth of laundry to wash on a daily basis....if it's on sale, I am buying it!


Currently we have Arm and Hammer and Gain in the laundry room.  Glad to say both are not falsely advertising when they say that they are biodegradable and free of chemicals.  Both do however have fragrance which can cause issues. 


However when I check out other popular brands that I have bought when on sale like: Cheer, Kirkland Signature (Costco Brand), Seventh Generation (supposedly a perfect clean product) and Sunlight.  A different tale is told.  All contain ingredients that range from 3-7/10 in the database.


Guess I have a new, don't care if it's on sale "favorite".


I no longer use bleach in my laundry.  About 3 years ago I discovered the amazing Green Bleach that Presidents Choice sells.  This stuff is AMAZING.  It's a high grade hydrogen peroxide that can literally be poured directly onto any fabric and it will removed the stain and leave the fabric colour just the way it was.  I use this all the time at home births when I need to remove blood and other stains from clients towels, sheets etc.  It has yet to fail me!






So next on the list.  Household cleaners.  SOOOOOO happy to say that this is the easy list in our house. Hot water, vinegar, the green bleach I talked about above and a steamer!!!! I long ago got rid of the Mr. Cleans, Pinesols etc because the fragrances used in them triggered my allergies, so it just wasn't worth it.  When I wash the floor, I will add my favorite essential oil at the time to put a good smell in the house, but that's it.


I am quite surprised to say that when looking up these cleaners that they have fairly low ratings in the data base-based on what the company says are the ingredients.  What scares me though, is that all of them come with strict hazard signs, poison control information and their hazardous material workplace sheets all say HAZARDOUS MATERIAL on them.....so I am sticking to my vinegar, green bleach and hot water!


Soooooooooo what does all this mean.


The easiest way to detoxify your home is to start from the cleaners on up.  If you won't eat it don't put it on your hands.  Apparently a rule I need to change myself when it comes to body wash and hair care products.  


So let's do it by room for easier explanation:


Bathrooms:


It never ceases to surprise me that the place you go to get clean....gets so unclean!  Now imagine if you will having 7-9 people a day using said cleaning room!!! Enough said!


Soap Scum is the enemy, as is lime/calcium scale especially in the city of Barrie.  (our water is so hard I am surprised it's not rocky coming out of the tap)  On a weekly basis I use my steamer and vinegar to help fight the build up that accumulates so quickly with so many showers.  About every 6 weeks or so I use a descaler that I found at Superior Cleaning Products (in the South end power centre off Bryne Dr)  It is a Green product, yes it's still a chemical, but by lowering the use of it to every 6 weeks or more I lower the effect on our house.  


On the toilet/sink/counter tops and the bathtub I use my steamer and vinegar.  The steamer claims to kill all germs because of the high temperature of the water, and given the clean shine left behind it also wipes out alot of dirt and grime too.


Having lived in older houses that were mould growers, if I see any suspect black spots they get hit with an essential oil mixture of tea tree oil, grapefruit seed oil and vinegar.  The tea tree oil is an anti fungal, as is the grapefruit oil.  I put about 10 drops of each into a spray bottle with about 1/2 cup of vinegar and spray away.  Repeat a couple times during the day to really effectively kill the fungus.


Kitchen:


I use the green brand of dish soaps, just like the laundry, no tried and true favorite, but I do really like the new Life Brand, Bio-Life, especially the price points.  Some green dish soaps I have bought have been really pricey and really crappy at cleaning dishes.  So finding one that is under $5 a bottle and actually does the job is fantastic.


Just like in the bathroom, I use vinegar and steam to clean the counters and sinks.  When I clean out the fridge...the green bleach works awesome.  It has NO smell to it, and if it comes into contact with food it's not harmful.


Floors:


Haven't bought a floor steamer yet.  I have used swiffer wet mops in the past and found that I was changing the pads every 10 seconds and I am afraid the steamer might be the same....so one day I will try it and see what happens.  


I use the vinegar and or green bleach here too.  Hot water, mop, vinegar and a couple splashes of my favorite smelling essential oil at the time and some elbow grease.  I honestly wash my floors 3-4 times a week....lots of foot traffic including two footed and four footed varieties leaves dirty floors.  I usually add cedar essential oil to the water at least once a month.  Cedar is a known flea deterrent and with the four footed creatures this is an essential tool to my cleaning.  


Walls:


I remember when I was about 16-17 I went to a friends house to pick her up.  She was mortified when I walked in to find her parents washing their walls.  Apparently this happened on a frequent basis in her house.  I can say I thought they were a tad loopy, never saw my mom wash walls...but after asking her apparently she did!  Guess what so do I!!!!  It drives me a tad crazy to see little marks all over my walls.  This house has flat paint....but not for long!!! In fact I am surprised it has lasted this long!!!


So...cleaning off finger prints.  Never use on of those Mr. Clean magic erasers.  Talk about a chemical cocktail of poison (formaldehyde, melamine, sodium bisulfite copolymer)  Those things are horrid, and leave a residue behind that if little hands touch then put hand to mouth...well ingestion of toxins 101.  


To get the best clean even on horrible flat paints that don't wash well at all, guess what...vinegar!  Yes I keep the vinegar companies in business.  I also use some dish soap to help cut the grease.  Spray bottle, 1/2 cup vinegar, 1/2 cup hot water, 2-3 drops of dish soap, and elbow grease!


Carpets/Upholstery.


I normally do not have carpet in my house.  This one came with brand new carpet on two levels, and it's almost time to get rid of it.  Spills of many varieties happen in my house, along with the joys of house training a grand-puppy, and potty training some toddlers can equal out the bye bye carpet-one can only steam clean so often before one goes a tad insane-as well every time I steam clean I am drawing the chemical used to make the carpet out into the open....so New Year's gift will be new flooring!


In the mean time to clean up spills of all kinds, the green bleach comes in very handy.  It "bleaches" out all kinds of biological stains while leaving the colour of the material being treated.  Amazing thing that!!!  


Laundry:


Like I talked about before I use products that are labelled free of phosphates etc, and now having gone through the list of the popular brands thanks to this post, I know which ones to avoid no matter the "sale".


What I didn't mention though is that we don't use dryer sheets or fabric softener.  Both of these products contain high levels of fragrance.  The dryer  sheets are a chemical soup of known carcinogens.  I attempt to buy the laundry soaps that are free of scents, but that can leave laundry not so "clean" smelling.   Again this is where the vinegar and essential oils come in handy.  A splash of vinegar in the wash makes things smell sweetish.  The essential oils add an even better scent.  DON"T pour the oil directly on anything though or you will leave a fantastic oil stain that may never come out.    I have a face cloth aka dryer sheet, that I reuse.  Just apply a couple drops of oil and the whole load is nicely scented. 




Soooooo that's the household main stuff.  It's about using products that if my or my family's skin is in contact with leaves as little damage behind.  No we don't all smell like pickles....oh that reminds me....


Deodorant:


We don't use deodorant or antiperspirants in our house anymore!!!!  No we don't smell (well I can only speak for myself lol).  We have these amazing mineral stone "deodorant" sticks.  They are fantastic.  Check the label of your favorite under arm gear.....then head on over to the Skin Deep database that I listed above.....you will change your mind too.  The worst offenders in the database have a  8/10 score.


The worst part of them is the fact that many contain aluminium.  Aluminium is a heavy metal that once it gets into your blood stream its very hard to get out.  Close to your armpits lay the heaviest density of lymph nodes...once the aluminium gets into these it can wreak havoc in your endocrine system.  It has been said that deodorant and antiperspirant usage is on the leading causes for breast cancer.  




Ok all done for now.  Take a look around you, what things are you putting on your body that you wouldn't put in your mouth.  If there are alot....change it-like we have and are doing!  Your health will thank you!

What do I believe in?

An old friend from high school facebooked me the other day with these questions...

What religion are you?
Did you let  your kids go out for Hallowe'en
What about 2012?
Do you believe there is actually a "hell", Satan?  Reincarnation?

It was a very interesting exercise to answer these questions.  Really got me to thinking about what I truly believe in in this life.  So here goes, would love to hear your answers.....broke it down into some categories, sometimes the lines are crossed between them, but makes it a bit easier...

Religion:

I believe in God
I believe the only way to get into Heaven is through an ongoing relationship with Jesus Christ
I believe that if we live a life guided by Christ-it's a better life-I have lived both ways with Christ is far far better trust me
I believe that yes our path has been laid out before we are born, but that there are forks in the road that we have to make choices about-God already knows which ones we'll chose
I believe that the bible is the most important book you can ever read
I believe that the bible can and does explain dinosaurs

I believe in Satan
I believe that yes there is a hell and it's not here on earth like other religions teach
I believe that each and every day we walk this earth there is a spiritual battle being fought to win our souls from the good side to the dark side-I am currently losing that battle
I believe in spiritual possession and have seen evidence that it exists
I believe in exorcism and have been present for one (scarier then an horror movie I have ever seen)

I did send my kids out on Halloween, because I believe that if they are taught to recognize it for it's meaning, they will understand it's totally just about the candy for them (and I get to share that candy :oD)

I celebrate Easter because I believe in it's truest roots, but am well aware that there are many pagan connections to it's timing

I celebrate Christmas knowing full well that it is NOT even close to the time that Christ was actually born-however, it is an amazing magical time in the lives of christians to be able to come together as a whole and celebrate the "birthday" of the most important man in history!

I did lie to my children about the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy and Santa Clause-I have since apologized and talked to them about whether or not they should incorporate these "traditions" into their lives with their own children-it is their choice.

Not Really Religion-but I know many friends who put these things under this category...

We watch movies in our house that many other christians will not:  Harry Potter being on the top of that list.  I believe that if children are taught that fictional movies are FICTIONAL that they will not take them on as anything else but fiction.

I do however believe that the media industry has crossed ALOT of lines as far as what is allowed in movies in the PG rating system and that this has lead to a huge down fall in our world.

I believe that swearing is a sin.
I believe that people who swear make themselves look out to be lower class and dirty.  I have sworn in my life-"like a trucker" at times-and have felt that dirtiness and have vowed to not make it a part of my life. (stubbing my toe always makes that a challenge)

Health....lol here goes!

I believe that western doctors know NOTHING about what healthy really means-and I have met one that admits his years in medical school taught him how to prescribe medications NOT how to treat illness
I believe that the more medications you put into your body the higher the chance you will die earlier
I believe that natural alternatives like Oil of Oregano can and do cure diseases

I believe that childhood vaccines lead to life long health crises
I believe that the makers of vaccines are well aware of their dangers but are in love with the money
I believe that everyone should learn THE TRUTH about vaccines and no child should ever be given one EVER!

I believe that cancer is a man made disease
I believe that cancer can be cured without chemo or radiation!

I believe that chiropractors should be everyone's primary care physician
I believe that every newborn's first check up should include a chiropractic adjustment within minutes of their birth
I believe that a properly maintained spine (via regular on going chiropractic care) can and does cure illnesses, diseases etc.

I believe that the food we put into our mouths can and does poison us
I believe that soy products are the leading cause of many health issues such as breast cancer
I believe that asparatame and other artificial sweeteners are the biggest hoax in the world-they make you gain weight not lose it, and are a leading cause of diabetes

I believe that nothing in the world is truly organic, but we can at least try to make it as organic as possible by not adding things to it

Birth...

I believe that our health care system lies to new parents on a daily basis
I believe that every baby should be born without medical intervention unless life threatening
I believe that breech babies can and should be born vaginally
I believe that every child should be born with a midwife and a doula in the room
I believe that our local hospital has one of the worst labour and delivery units I have ever been in, because the majority of the nurses are more interested in giving you an epidural then helping you have a natural birth.
I believe our local midwives are amazing
I believe that Ontario should open birthing centres

.......that's just a start, wowsers what a way to really put it out there.....Jean send me more ?s :o)

What's this Isagenix Stuff I keep talking about.

I've heard a few times in the last month-"isa what-what is it and why do you love it so much".

Here's the story....in the spring of last year (2010) a doula client whom I had kept in contact with had been talking up these products that had helped her lose her post baby weight.  Tara chatted with me NUMEROUS times about them and I kept saying, yeah protein shakes been there done that.  THEN the sneaky little person to whom I had sent a wedding invitation to said 'Amy I have a wedding present for you, could you come and pick it up'....the present was a 9 Day cleanse.  Well not to waste a present or the effort/money that Tara put into giving it to me I started my 9 day cleanse and well on day 2 FELL IN LOVE with these products.

When I stepped on the scales last April 8, I weighed 291lbs, by May 16 I was down to 272.  These products are amazing.  (I am not going to go into why I haven't lost more in this blog-that's for another blog entry-but I have to say it's MY fault NOT the products fault just for clarity here)

So what is Isagenix and why am I so thrilled to be part of such an amazing group of people.

At it's simplest Isagenix is a cellular nutritional cleansing system that supplies ALL of the nutrients our body needs for healthy living.   Each and every day we ingest toxins galore just from the air we breath, but also from the products we put on our skin, the food we eat, everything we do on a daily basis loads our body full of toxic products.  These toxins are hopefully filtered out of our system by our filtering organs-the liver and kidneys are the top two.  However, depending on how many of these toxins we put in, and our bodies ability to filter them depends on how strongly our body reacts to these toxins.

So why use Isagenix....well let's talk Toxins and Nutrition and see where that gets us.....

In order to save ourselves from ourselves...our body builds fat cells, these cells envelope the toxins and hold them and protect our body from their harmful effects.  The more toxins in, the more fat cells created, the more overweight we become.  Now wait....that doesn't mean that "skinny" people aren't toxic, in fact if they aren't living healthy lifestyles they are more unhealthy then someone with love handles. But why don't they have the protective layer of fat cells-metabolism overdrive.  Their bodies eat through the fat cells faster, which unless they are cleansing the toxins out, actually results in a very unhealthy body.  A thin person who doesn't cleanse daily has toxic overload that can directly affect their internal organs.


This is a great article that lists some of the toxins we unknowingly ingest on a daily basis and what they do to our body;

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/02/11/earlyshow/health/main6197493.shtml


Every person needs to cleanse their bodies on a frequent basis. Here are some statistics that show how daily living results in toxic overload:

*Women who use make-up on a daily basis absorb upwards of 5lbs of toxic chemicals a year 

*Men, women and children can absorb up to 3lbs of toxic chemicals a year from using commercial shampoos, bathsoaps etc that they use in the shower every day.  Hot shower=open pores+shampoo etc=maximum absorption of chemicals in products. 

*Tests have shown that infants are born with over 287 chemicals and other toxins in their blood stream.  76 of these chemicals cause direct cell damage, 94 are toxic to the nervous system and brain and a startling 79 are directly toxic to the development of the fetus. 

*In the US 1.2 BILLION lbs of pesticides are used a year.  These pesticides are sprayed on the foods we eat, but also released into the air we breath. 

 *Eating non organic fruits and vegetables will result in ingesting 1 Gallon or 16 cups of pesticides a year.

*Today, the administration of drugs and medicines is often through transdermal skin patches.  This has been shown to be 95% more effective then oral administration. Cosmetic companies do not have to claim that their products are absorbed through the skin, if they did, their products would all be labelled as drugs. 

*In 1901 Cancer was considered a RARE disease touching only 1 in 8000 people.  Today in 2011, 1 in 3 people have cancer according to the American Cancer Society.  Smoking only accounts for about 25% of that increase.

Ok enough about toxic build up for now. Isagenix is also about full out nutrition.  The other part of Isagenix that I love is the fact that it is 100% nutritionally sound food.  Yep food, by putting Isagenix into my families bodies I am feeding them.  I've heard the "but if you eat all your fruits and veggies, and have a healthy source of protein you don't need to worry about putting extra nutrition in your body".  WRONG!!!!!

On a daily basis our bodies require us to ingest at least 59 nutrients, including 13 from vitamins and 22 from minerals.  Ok so again you say just eat your fruits and veggies.  But our fruits and veggies are being grown in nutritionally bankrupt soil.  When World War 2 ended, the farming culture changed drastically, but not for the better.  Fertilizer companies inherited the huge quantities of nitrates and phosphates left over from making munitions during the war.  Studies at that time showed that these chemical helped to ensure a lush crop growth, what they didn't show was that by adding too much of these chemicals actually ruined the soil.  Add in pesticides designed to kill weeds (and everything else in their paths) and our soil has gone from providing the minerals and nutrients to the foods we eat, to barely being able to sustain their growth.

In 1992 the Earth Summit research indicated that entire earths soil was becoming minerally bankrupt, with North American soil leading the way.



Spinach is a great example, in 1948 a cup of spinach contained 150mg of iron, in 2011 that same cup of spinach only contains 2mg of iron-so basically you would have to eat 75 cups of spinach to get the same amount of iron.

Here are a few more examples that have happened since as recently as 1975:

• Apples: Vitamin A is down 41%
• Sweet peppers: Vitamin C is down 31%
• Watercress: Iron is down 88%
• Broccoli: Calcium and vitamin A are down 50%
• Cauliflower: Vitamin C is down 45%; vitamin B1 is down 48%; and vitamin B2 is down 47%
• Collards greens: Magnesium is down 85%

So the ultimate question that everyone asks me is this...How does Isagenix help ensure that we are receiving the proper nutrition our body needs?

Let's start with fruits and veggies.  Health professionals have signified certain supergreens and superfruits that infuse the body with nutrients. Spirulina, chlorella and wheat grass, to name a few, are supergreens. Mangosteen, Star Fruit and Acai Berry are superfruits. These health professionals have indicated like above in order to ingest the proper nutrition we need to find ways of ingesting high quantities of super veggies and fruits, but how do we do that without ingesting 75lbs of spinach a day....the answer is easy when you use Isafruits and Isagreens products.

Take a look at them yourself:

http://www.amyeaustin.isagenix.com/ca/en/greens.dhtml
http://www.amyeaustin.isagenix.com/ca/en/isafruits.dhtml

Now.....what about protein.

Ready for some more scary statistics....

*80% of cattle raised for meat are injected with hormones, including HGH (human growth hormone) 

*In 1950 the average dairy cow produced 5300 lbs of milk a year, in 2010 with the injections of HGH the average dairy cow was able to produce 18,000 lbs.

 *In 2009-29 MILLION pounds of antibiotics were sold to farmers in the US, the majority of these antibiotics were not used to treat disesase, but the increase the growth of the animals injected.

All of these hormones and antibiotics find their way directly into the meat we eat daily.  The only way to avoid this is to purchase meat from grass fed, organic local farmers.

Isagenix uses only the higest quality whey protein on the planet.  They have chosen to go to a country that won't allow farmers to use the hormones and antibiotics that American farmers use, New Zealand.  To my knowledge they are the only company that has this "Happy Cow Certified Protein" in their protein based products.  You can actually taste the difference, and believe me I have tried many protein shakes over the years, I will never go back to those ones!


So....those are the beginning reasons why I chose to put Isagenix products into my body and into my families bodies on a daily basis.  I could literally go on about the WHY you need to use them for hours and hours and hours...but I have learned that if a person can't see it just with the few facts I have posted above, then they won't ever see it.

For those who believe, no proof is necessary. 

For those who don't believe, no proof is possible!

What do you believe today????





http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=newborn-babies-chemicals-exposure-bpa
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1555173/Body-absorbs-5lb-of-make-up-chemicals-a-year.html
http://www.healthy-communications.com/5cancercausingchemicals.html