Pasteurized milk is not a good source of calcium to be absorbed by our bodies. When milk is pasteurized, it goes through a high heating process that kills both good & bad bacteria, healing enzymes, vitamins, good fats & proteins. Pasteurization destroys the natural Vitamin C that is found in raw milk and also converts it's sugar, lactose into beta-lactose, which is readily & easily absorbed into the body resulting in a child becoming hungry again, much sooner. Also destroyed in the pasteurization process is calcium, known to be in high concentrations in raw milk. Calcium is important for many bodily functions that include a healthy nervous system, heart, bone density, good teeth, controlling anxiety & depression to name a few.
Since most of the milk products available today in the stores are derived from pasteurized cow's milk, there are some researchers saying the cow is not the best source of milk for us to consume, whether it be pasteurized or not. Dr. T. Campbell http://hlifemedia.com/2010/03/hlife-interview-colin-campbell , Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Biochemistry at Cornell University, says, '“there is one diet to counteract all of these diseases: a whole foods, plant-based diet.” Studies from the Yale University School of Medicine show that women over 50 years have a 70% bone fracture rate, which is attributed to the consumption of animal protein. Since animal protein from cow's milk is acidic in nature, a diet high in pasteurized milk produces an acidity in the blood & tissues that requires the body to respond to balance the bloods pH levels. Since calcium is a very alkaline mineral the body pulls the calcium from our bones, which store about 99% of our bodies calcium, the other 1% is found in our blood, to balance the pH of our blood, moving from an acidic state to a more alkaline state. Hence the pasteurized cow's milk actually helps to remove calcium from our bodies in a response that occurs to balance our blood's calcium & pH levels.
Green leafy vegetables are great sources of calcium, which includes green-leafy sea-vegetables too. Since sea-vegetables contain 10-100 times the concentrations of vitamins & minerals as compared with land based vegetables; including a wider spectrum of other co-factors, polysaccharides, fats & enzymes included. Sea-vegetables are a rich & bio-available source of calcium, potassium, Vitamin C & magnesium which are all required for proper calcium absorption & the regulation of pH our bodies. Other sources of foods rich in calcium are: raw sesame seeds, raw sunflower seeds, raw almonds & brazil nuts, raw broccolli, alfalfa, sprouts, figs, whole soybeans, tofu & adzuki beans.
Thalassotherapy and Iodine - discussing conditions like: Thyroidism, Fibrocytic Breast Disease, Endometriosis, Ovarian Cysts, Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, Eczema, Psoriasis, Cancer and more! Thalassotherapy is defined as the layering of ocean components onto the body; utilizing whole seaweeds, seasalt & ocean water over the body; allowing the absorption of important vitamins and minerals in a bio-available chelated form, for the purpose of achieving mind, body balancing.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Ocean-therapy OR Thalassotherapy - an ancient healing experience
For thousands of years, the ocean has been recognized for it’s healing properties and utilized by cultures situated near the ocean. The father of modern medicine, Hippocrates, would send his patients to the ocean to soak and walk, absorbing it’s healing nutrients transdermally through our largest organ, our skin and breathing the healing iodine as it’s carried along in the air molecules into our lungs. What a thalassotherapy experience does, is to increase the wellbeing in a person, by allowing the body to be nourished in a cosmic womb of ocean ingredients that promotes healthy development of healthy cells; all the while calming our bodies and moving into a balanced state of homeostasis that is known as mind/body balancing. You experience as sense of calm as your nervous system, respiratory system and cardiovascular system flow with a primordial beat that is echoed by the sense of well being experienced in your mind.
In the mid 1860's in France, the word Thalassotherapy was coined & became a very popularized practice by 'Taking to the Waters', which was experienced by members of many royal families, along with the rich & famous of that era, as they would flock to the ocean to heal. The word thalasso, derived from the Greek, 'ocean-goddess', promotes a healthy balance of ocean healing.
Thalassotherapy has been and continues to be an effective natural therapy from the ocean that balances the chemistry of our 'internal oceans'. It has been over 150 years since Dr. Rene Quinton published his monumental work "Sea Water, organic medium", where he established scientifically the direct relationship and chemical resemblance between ocean water and our own blood plasma. Dr.Quinton opened many clinics in France during his life & treated cholera very successfully in over 25,000 infants & children in Egypt & N.Africa in the early part of the 20th century, all with his special ocean water.
In the mid 1860's in France, the word Thalassotherapy was coined & became a very popularized practice by 'Taking to the Waters', which was experienced by members of many royal families, along with the rich & famous of that era, as they would flock to the ocean to heal. The word thalasso, derived from the Greek, 'ocean-goddess', promotes a healthy balance of ocean healing.
Thalassotherapy has been and continues to be an effective natural therapy from the ocean that balances the chemistry of our 'internal oceans'. It has been over 150 years since Dr. Rene Quinton published his monumental work "Sea Water, organic medium", where he established scientifically the direct relationship and chemical resemblance between ocean water and our own blood plasma. Dr.Quinton opened many clinics in France during his life & treated cholera very successfully in over 25,000 infants & children in Egypt & N.Africa in the early part of the 20th century, all with his special ocean water.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Movember means 'mo money & mo disease'
With so many men diagnosed with prostate cancer these days, almost 25,000 this year, which is about 1 in 7 according to the Canadian Cancer society statistics. In Canada, an average of 80 men each week die from this disease, over 4,000 annually, which could actually be more, since after 5 years the Cancer society statistics don't count you if you die, they count you as a survivor. In the US the numbers are greater of course, 217,730 men will be diagnosed and 32,050 men will die this year. Much of what is known about prostate cancer, it's prevention & treatment, can be linked to a mineral deficiency in iodine, but for some reason most men don't know this. A basic understanding of this essential mineral is needed if men would like to live without this disease.
Iodine is stored for immune health, in men's prostate glands. Iodine or iodide in it's reduced mineral salt form, potassium-iodide, is actually utilized by every cell in the body with major storage areas in the brain, thyroid gland & prostate glands in men. Without iodine/iodide in our bodies, our immune system breaks down and disease creeps in, in one form or another; prostate cancer or BHP being a couple of forms disease that are precipitated by a deficiency of this essential mineral. When there is sufficiency of iodine/iodide in the body, abnormal cells or cancer cells are induced into apoptosis, natural cell death, which they don't do without iodine. It's a way for the body to clean out the garbage cells in our system and help to move it into a homoeostatic state, which is always where the body wants to be, in balance.
What happens to the iodine? Why is there a deficiency?
In our modern lifestyles, we are subjected to a number of toxins which can play havoc with our immune system. Toxins such as fluorine/fluoride, chlorine/chloride & bromine/bromide compete for absorption in the body with iodine. These chemicals are known as halogens and are very reactive with other chemicals and when presented in the body, flush the healing iodine from the body, block it's return in it's receptor cells and leave it susceptible to disease. There are many ways to be exposed to these harmful chemicals that include; chlorinated & fluoridated drinking water, fluoride toothpaste, a trip to the dentist, vaccines, chlorine disinfected swimming pools, bromine disinfected hot tubs, fire retardants used in carpets & new car upholstery also contains bromine to name just a few. We are bombarded in different areas in life where exposure to these chemicals is causing real damage to occur in the body. So exposure to these toxins must avoided or be kept to a minimum.
How do I get iodine/iodide?
Iodine/iodide supplementation is the easiest way to re-introduce healing iodine back into the body. The Japanese eat a lot of brown kelp, so they have one of the lowest rates of cancer in the world, this is a great way to get iodine/iodide. Since brown kelp, like Kombu, also contains high concentrations of over 60 other minerals, all in a bio-available form, they help the body to re-absorb this essential mineral back into the body. Lugol's solution, which has been used by doctors since 1829 to treat everything from staphylococcal infections to thyroidism, without harmful side effects is another way. In fact, doctors prior to the 1950's knew it as a panacea, a cure -all for those conditions that resisted conventional treatment, they learned about it in medical school. They even learned a little rhyme to help them remember to use it; 'if ye don't know what when or why, prescribe ye then K and I'. Which is of course potassium-iodide. Lugol's solution contains 5% elemental iodine and 10% potassium-iodide in a water solution, it can be purchased for under $20 from any compounding pharmacy in Canada and is known as a 5% solution. In the US, a 2% solution is available without prescription, though most don't know to ask for it from their pharmacist. With over 7.8 million dollars raised last year for prostate cancer research in Canada from it's Movember fund-raising, it's surprising that the researchers aren't claiming eureka, we've found the cure and it costs only $20 a bottle for a yearly supply and funny thing is it's been available to everyone since 1829.
Iodine is stored for immune health, in men's prostate glands. Iodine or iodide in it's reduced mineral salt form, potassium-iodide, is actually utilized by every cell in the body with major storage areas in the brain, thyroid gland & prostate glands in men. Without iodine/iodide in our bodies, our immune system breaks down and disease creeps in, in one form or another; prostate cancer or BHP being a couple of forms disease that are precipitated by a deficiency of this essential mineral. When there is sufficiency of iodine/iodide in the body, abnormal cells or cancer cells are induced into apoptosis, natural cell death, which they don't do without iodine. It's a way for the body to clean out the garbage cells in our system and help to move it into a homoeostatic state, which is always where the body wants to be, in balance.
What happens to the iodine? Why is there a deficiency?
In our modern lifestyles, we are subjected to a number of toxins which can play havoc with our immune system. Toxins such as fluorine/fluoride, chlorine/chloride & bromine/bromide compete for absorption in the body with iodine. These chemicals are known as halogens and are very reactive with other chemicals and when presented in the body, flush the healing iodine from the body, block it's return in it's receptor cells and leave it susceptible to disease. There are many ways to be exposed to these harmful chemicals that include; chlorinated & fluoridated drinking water, fluoride toothpaste, a trip to the dentist, vaccines, chlorine disinfected swimming pools, bromine disinfected hot tubs, fire retardants used in carpets & new car upholstery also contains bromine to name just a few. We are bombarded in different areas in life where exposure to these chemicals is causing real damage to occur in the body. So exposure to these toxins must avoided or be kept to a minimum.
How do I get iodine/iodide?
Iodine/iodide supplementation is the easiest way to re-introduce healing iodine back into the body. The Japanese eat a lot of brown kelp, so they have one of the lowest rates of cancer in the world, this is a great way to get iodine/iodide. Since brown kelp, like Kombu, also contains high concentrations of over 60 other minerals, all in a bio-available form, they help the body to re-absorb this essential mineral back into the body. Lugol's solution, which has been used by doctors since 1829 to treat everything from staphylococcal infections to thyroidism, without harmful side effects is another way. In fact, doctors prior to the 1950's knew it as a panacea, a cure -all for those conditions that resisted conventional treatment, they learned about it in medical school. They even learned a little rhyme to help them remember to use it; 'if ye don't know what when or why, prescribe ye then K and I'. Which is of course potassium-iodide. Lugol's solution contains 5% elemental iodine and 10% potassium-iodide in a water solution, it can be purchased for under $20 from any compounding pharmacy in Canada and is known as a 5% solution. In the US, a 2% solution is available without prescription, though most don't know to ask for it from their pharmacist. With over 7.8 million dollars raised last year for prostate cancer research in Canada from it's Movember fund-raising, it's surprising that the researchers aren't claiming eureka, we've found the cure and it costs only $20 a bottle for a yearly supply and funny thing is it's been available to everyone since 1829.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Iodized Salt treated Goitre in the 1920's
Most people today understand to stay away from processed salt, table salt & processed foods that are high in processed sodium, this is good. The message that needs to be understood more clearly is that unrefined or unprocessed sea salt is good for us and we need it. There is a clear distinction between unprocessed salt and processed salt and hence a direct difference in their health benefits. Unprocessed or unrefined sea salts are healthy for us, they contain about 80 trace minerals from the ocean in a natural form, which helps the nutrients from our foods be better absorbed & utilized by our bodies. It's the trace minerals that bring our bodies electrolytes that are needed for the communication between our cells and help to balance our 'internal & external cellular fluids'. Unrefined salts, when used regularly, will actually lower blood pressure, not increase it and help to regulate the nervous system.
Sea salt is a term that usually refers to unrefined salt derived directly from a living ocean or sea, but sometimes companies will 'market' their salt as 'sea salt', but process out the minerals. It is usually harvested through channelling ocean water into shallow trays and allow the sun and wind to evaporate it naturally. Unprocessed sea salt still contains natural traces of other minerals, including iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, manganese, zinc and traces of iodine. Sea salt is available from all over the world & so has many different flavours colours & textures to experience.
For thousands of years, cultures around the world used and continue to use sea salt directly & unrefined from the ocean or from salt deposits like pink Himalayan salts. Roman soldiers were actually paid in salt, it is the origin of the word 'salary' and where the phrase 'worth your weight in salt' was derived. Many salts have different colours, depending on which part of the world they originate. Unrefined sea salts from France are typically grey in colour and have a very unique flavour. Salts from Hawaii such as Alaea sea salt has darker reddish colour due to the presence of alaea a reddish Hawaiian clay that enriches the salt with iron-oxide. When it comes to Kosher salt, that does not necessarily equate to sea salt & hence it's health benefits. Kosher salt can refer to two types of salt; one is a specific shaped flake salt that is so named for its use in the preparation of meat according to the requirements of Jewish dietary guidelines. The second type of Kosher salt is a salt that has been certified as Kosher by a prestigious organization or certifying body such as the Orthodox Union.
Commercially produced table salt & iodized salt has had the 'goodness' processed out and so the healing trace minerals are gone. Iodine was added to table salt in 1924 in the US and Canada followed suit in 1929, this was done to quell the increasing hyperthyroidism known as goitre that was occurring in alarming numbers in communities that surrounded the Great Lakes. This geographical area became known as the 'Goitre Belt' due to the large incidence of goitre occurring in the population and most specifically in women. Women are at least 6 times more likely to develop goitre because their need for iodine is higher than what men require. The Goitre Belt has increased both geographically & numerically in size to include states & provinces that don't border on the ocean. Almost a hundred years after iodine was added to salt to reduce thyroidism inside the 'Goitre Belt', most doctors today are unaware of the history & effectiveness of iodine's use in treating this disease. Since a lack of iodine in the body shows a direct relation to developing both hyperthyroidism & hypothyroidism, it was utilized since the 11th century around the world to combat this condition very successfully. What's interesting is that if you're wanting to increase your iodine, using iodized salt is not the best approach, since the chloride from the processed salt, NaCl, competes for absorption in the body with the iodine. To absorb what the body requires, a lot of iodized salt would be needed to get any measurable amounts of iodine into the body. Since we all now know about the health dangers of ingesting processed salt these days, look for other methods for iodine supplementation to get your iodine, like Lugol's solution, which has been around since 1829. So you can't use too much of the 'good unprocessed salt' in your diet, just use to taste and enjoy the healthy benefits you'll soon be receiving with every mouthful.
Sea salt is a term that usually refers to unrefined salt derived directly from a living ocean or sea, but sometimes companies will 'market' their salt as 'sea salt', but process out the minerals. It is usually harvested through channelling ocean water into shallow trays and allow the sun and wind to evaporate it naturally. Unprocessed sea salt still contains natural traces of other minerals, including iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, manganese, zinc and traces of iodine. Sea salt is available from all over the world & so has many different flavours colours & textures to experience.
For thousands of years, cultures around the world used and continue to use sea salt directly & unrefined from the ocean or from salt deposits like pink Himalayan salts. Roman soldiers were actually paid in salt, it is the origin of the word 'salary' and where the phrase 'worth your weight in salt' was derived. Many salts have different colours, depending on which part of the world they originate. Unrefined sea salts from France are typically grey in colour and have a very unique flavour. Salts from Hawaii such as Alaea sea salt has darker reddish colour due to the presence of alaea a reddish Hawaiian clay that enriches the salt with iron-oxide. When it comes to Kosher salt, that does not necessarily equate to sea salt & hence it's health benefits. Kosher salt can refer to two types of salt; one is a specific shaped flake salt that is so named for its use in the preparation of meat according to the requirements of Jewish dietary guidelines. The second type of Kosher salt is a salt that has been certified as Kosher by a prestigious organization or certifying body such as the Orthodox Union.
Commercially produced table salt & iodized salt has had the 'goodness' processed out and so the healing trace minerals are gone. Iodine was added to table salt in 1924 in the US and Canada followed suit in 1929, this was done to quell the increasing hyperthyroidism known as goitre that was occurring in alarming numbers in communities that surrounded the Great Lakes. This geographical area became known as the 'Goitre Belt' due to the large incidence of goitre occurring in the population and most specifically in women. Women are at least 6 times more likely to develop goitre because their need for iodine is higher than what men require. The Goitre Belt has increased both geographically & numerically in size to include states & provinces that don't border on the ocean. Almost a hundred years after iodine was added to salt to reduce thyroidism inside the 'Goitre Belt', most doctors today are unaware of the history & effectiveness of iodine's use in treating this disease. Since a lack of iodine in the body shows a direct relation to developing both hyperthyroidism & hypothyroidism, it was utilized since the 11th century around the world to combat this condition very successfully. What's interesting is that if you're wanting to increase your iodine, using iodized salt is not the best approach, since the chloride from the processed salt, NaCl, competes for absorption in the body with the iodine. To absorb what the body requires, a lot of iodized salt would be needed to get any measurable amounts of iodine into the body. Since we all now know about the health dangers of ingesting processed salt these days, look for other methods for iodine supplementation to get your iodine, like Lugol's solution, which has been around since 1829. So you can't use too much of the 'good unprocessed salt' in your diet, just use to taste and enjoy the healthy benefits you'll soon be receiving with every mouthful.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Re-absorbing Iodine
The re-absorption of iodine/iodide into the body can take up to a year to facilitate in some people, which is dependent upon the toxicity of the individual and the nutritional program that is followed or adopted during that time. Detoxification is a natural process that occurs in our lymphatic system and iodine helps to facilitate this detoxification very well in the body, killing pathogens and mutated cells along the way. Some of the more popular toxins that iodine/iodide help to release from the body include; lead, cadmium, arsenic, aluminum and mercury as well as the halogens, chlorine, bromine & fluorine. The halogens fluorine, chlorine & bromine compete for storage with iodine and win the competition by displacing it from the body, this is known as Halogen Displacement. The body then becomes iodine deficient and that's when disease of one kind or another creeps into the body. Iodine is stored, for our immune health & proper functionality, in the brain, thyroid gland, women's breasts, ovaries and men's prostate gland, it is also utilized by every organ and every cell in the body. Since the body's receptor cells block it's return, after it has been displaced, higher levels of vitamins B2, B3, C along with the mineral selenium are required to overcome these blockages and thus allowing iodine/iodide to be reabsorbed.
'Make your food Your Medicine' - Hippocrates
Since the high majority of vitamins & minerals that are available to be purchased in health food stores contain vitamins & minerals from a synthetic source. Which means they are chemically equivalent in structure, but only in structure, not in content. Being an empty structure missing the naturally occurring co-factors & enzymes that are necessary for their absorption & use in the body. Since our bodies do not produce minerals we obtain them from our food. The issue then becomes where do I get mineral-rich food since our soils are so de-mineralized due to modern farming practices with the use of herbicides & pesticides. That is why organic food choices are so important these days, but even with organic choices, there is a mineral gap, again dependent upon soil concentrations. Luckily enough here in Canada & the US, we have some of the worlds best seaweeds growing in our 'own backyard', so to speak. With a wide spectrum of over 60 trace minerals & a host of vitamins that are in concentrations 10x to 100X that of vegetables & plants that are grown on land. We can survive on eating seaweed and nothing else and be the healthiest people on the planet. We just need to look to Eastern cultures of Japan, Korea & China to see how this played out in the health of their nations. Japanese people eat approximately 4-6g of seaweed daily and have one of the lowest rates of breast cancer in the world. Japanese people, who eat a traditional diet high in seaweed, also show very little 'keloid' scarring due to surgery incision or accident.
'Go to the ocean to heal' - Hippocrates
Since seaweeds, also known as sea-vegetables, contain 10x-100x the vitamin & mineral concentrations of their land counterparts in their proper balance, they are a wonderfully complete food source. They contain many healing polysaccharides, vitamins, enzymes, all of the omega's 3,6,7 & 9, all essential amino acids plus a host of many others all in a bio-available or chelated form in properly balanced ratio's that are absorbed by the body. Sea-vegetables contain over 60 minerals, a wide spectrum in a balanced ratio that allows for the absorption of major and trace minerals. Since minerals are the driving force behind all cellular mechanisms and are as such co-dependant on each other, they are utilized in a synergistic manner in the body. Major minerals that are required in our bodies include calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium & potassium. Since 99% of our calcium is stored in our bones and 1% is available in our bloodstream, which is regulated by magnesium from which phosphorus cannot be dissociated, it's very important to have a good bio-available source for intake. Calcium, magnesium & phosphorus we know as important minerals in building & maintaining strong bones & teeth, they are also required for maintaining cellular membranes, connective tissues and aid in blood clotting for the body. Since it is the homeostasis or balance of the internal and external cellular fluids that is vital for a healthy life, sodium in the form of sodium chloride balances our external cellular fluid (ECF) and the potassium that balances the internal cellular fluid. This tightrope walk of balance is critical for normal muscle contractions, a strong nervous system, proper heart functionality and the maintenance of healthy blood pressure. So getting proper absorption of these important major minerals is obtained easily from sea-veggies either through food consumption or taking transdermally in a thalassotherapy treatment. Trace minerals which are also essential for our bodies include; iron, zinc, copper, chromium, iodine, selenium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, silicon, vanadium and molybdenum to name a few. They play an important role in the absorption and utilization of many nutrients, enzymes and hormone productions that are vital to our life.
What most, who frequent fast food restaurants, fail to realize is how will their body recover from this processed food supply and how their body is going to fulfil it’s nutritional levels required to sustain life. We, as a society are indeed feeling the ill-effects of our ‘fast food diet’ that readily shows in the everyday health and well-being or lack of well being for a majority of our population. Those dealing with auto-immune conditions, such as; arthritis, psoriasis, eczema, anemia, fibromyalgia & thyroidism to name a few, that can be directly linked to the lack of minerals & vitamins currently available in our modern fast food diets. With high concentrations of healing polysaccharides & polygalactosides, along with high concentrations of chelated vitamins & minerals, seaweed has the variety to supply the body with ALL that is needed nutritionally to survive & thrive at optimal levels. Seaweeds, in general, supply us with all of our essential amino acids including; Alanine, Arginine, Asparagine, Glutamine, Glutathione, Glycine, Histidine, Lycine and Proline plus a host of others, 10 to 40% protein (dependant on the type of seaweed) We can survive by eating seaweed and nothing else and be the healthiest people on the planet, just look at the Korean & Japanese cultures today.
'Make your food Your Medicine' - Hippocrates
Since the high majority of vitamins & minerals that are available to be purchased in health food stores contain vitamins & minerals from a synthetic source. Which means they are chemically equivalent in structure, but only in structure, not in content. Being an empty structure missing the naturally occurring co-factors & enzymes that are necessary for their absorption & use in the body. Since our bodies do not produce minerals we obtain them from our food. The issue then becomes where do I get mineral-rich food since our soils are so de-mineralized due to modern farming practices with the use of herbicides & pesticides. That is why organic food choices are so important these days, but even with organic choices, there is a mineral gap, again dependent upon soil concentrations. Luckily enough here in Canada & the US, we have some of the worlds best seaweeds growing in our 'own backyard', so to speak. With a wide spectrum of over 60 trace minerals & a host of vitamins that are in concentrations 10x to 100X that of vegetables & plants that are grown on land. We can survive on eating seaweed and nothing else and be the healthiest people on the planet. We just need to look to Eastern cultures of Japan, Korea & China to see how this played out in the health of their nations. Japanese people eat approximately 4-6g of seaweed daily and have one of the lowest rates of breast cancer in the world. Japanese people, who eat a traditional diet high in seaweed, also show very little 'keloid' scarring due to surgery incision or accident.
'Go to the ocean to heal' - Hippocrates
Since seaweeds, also known as sea-vegetables, contain 10x-100x the vitamin & mineral concentrations of their land counterparts in their proper balance, they are a wonderfully complete food source. They contain many healing polysaccharides, vitamins, enzymes, all of the omega's 3,6,7 & 9, all essential amino acids plus a host of many others all in a bio-available or chelated form in properly balanced ratio's that are absorbed by the body. Sea-vegetables contain over 60 minerals, a wide spectrum in a balanced ratio that allows for the absorption of major and trace minerals. Since minerals are the driving force behind all cellular mechanisms and are as such co-dependant on each other, they are utilized in a synergistic manner in the body. Major minerals that are required in our bodies include calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium & potassium. Since 99% of our calcium is stored in our bones and 1% is available in our bloodstream, which is regulated by magnesium from which phosphorus cannot be dissociated, it's very important to have a good bio-available source for intake. Calcium, magnesium & phosphorus we know as important minerals in building & maintaining strong bones & teeth, they are also required for maintaining cellular membranes, connective tissues and aid in blood clotting for the body. Since it is the homeostasis or balance of the internal and external cellular fluids that is vital for a healthy life, sodium in the form of sodium chloride balances our external cellular fluid (ECF) and the potassium that balances the internal cellular fluid. This tightrope walk of balance is critical for normal muscle contractions, a strong nervous system, proper heart functionality and the maintenance of healthy blood pressure. So getting proper absorption of these important major minerals is obtained easily from sea-veggies either through food consumption or taking transdermally in a thalassotherapy treatment. Trace minerals which are also essential for our bodies include; iron, zinc, copper, chromium, iodine, selenium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, silicon, vanadium and molybdenum to name a few. They play an important role in the absorption and utilization of many nutrients, enzymes and hormone productions that are vital to our life.
What most, who frequent fast food restaurants, fail to realize is how will their body recover from this processed food supply and how their body is going to fulfil it’s nutritional levels required to sustain life. We, as a society are indeed feeling the ill-effects of our ‘fast food diet’ that readily shows in the everyday health and well-being or lack of well being for a majority of our population. Those dealing with auto-immune conditions, such as; arthritis, psoriasis, eczema, anemia, fibromyalgia & thyroidism to name a few, that can be directly linked to the lack of minerals & vitamins currently available in our modern fast food diets. With high concentrations of healing polysaccharides & polygalactosides, along with high concentrations of chelated vitamins & minerals, seaweed has the variety to supply the body with ALL that is needed nutritionally to survive & thrive at optimal levels. Seaweeds, in general, supply us with all of our essential amino acids including; Alanine, Arginine, Asparagine, Glutamine, Glutathione, Glycine, Histidine, Lycine and Proline plus a host of others, 10 to 40% protein (dependant on the type of seaweed) We can survive by eating seaweed and nothing else and be the healthiest people on the planet, just look at the Korean & Japanese cultures today.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
The Ocean Provides
Our connection to our outside world is sometimes lost today, in our modern fast paced lifestyles, since much of our time is spent inside. I think, almost without exception though, people enjoy fresh air, warm sunshine and being outside experiencing nature. It's this connection with nature that we sometimes take for granted and don't always realize the many benefits we gain in experiencing nature. Living so far away from the ocean in the middle of the Goitre Belt in south Eastern Ontario, it's not surprising to find people who don't know of the healing benefits that are experienced by those who live closer. Though a close proximity to the ocean will provide health benefits by association, breathing ocean air contains several minerals including iodine molecules, it doesn't equate with understanding it's healing benefits. And so to understand nature, it's best to experience it firsthand, with an ocean therapy experience.
For thousands of years of recorded human history, from the ancient Egyptians in 5000 BCE to ancient Greece, from the Roman baths to the first seaside Thalassotherapy clinic set up in England in 1791, the ocean has been known for it's healing benefits. Around the world today, the healthiest people on the planet with the lowest rates of cancer, heart disease, auto-immune disease are the Japanese, Korean & certain Chinese populations. This is no accident, this is their connection to the ocean that is taught from birth. Young girls in Korea are taught that the amniotic fluid surrounding the baby in mothers tummy is the same as the ocean. During pregnancy and post natal, Korean women utilize seaweed to relieving pain & discomfort just with application to their bellies. It is also a regular part of their diet, eating seaweed is as common as macaroni is here. After the birth of the baby, it is tradition for the mother-in-law to make seaweed soup known as Miyuk gook for the new mother who eats this 3x day for about 100 days. This allows the nutrients from the seaweed to replenish the nutrients that were lost during childbirth. We've met many older Korean women here in Ontario, who always ask us, why don't Canadian women know to use seaweed. With some of the best sources of seaweed in the world, I'm sure it won't be long before Canadian women are learning about the healthiest food & treatments 'growing in their own backyard'. Most of the seaweed Canada produces is exported to Japan & Asia for food consumption & our seaweed fertilizer is sold around the world, but in Canada cannot be sold as fertilizer, go figure.
Many of the auto-immune conditions people face these days are caused by diet. Living a North American lifestyle with fast-food, good restaurants and processed food delights it's no wonder we see so much unease or disease in people. On top of that we're living in a very chemical world, where toxins are used directly on our foods to control pests & weeds. So our soils become minerally deficient and then our vegetables become minerally deficient and then our bodies become minerally deficient and that's when disease creeps into our experience. We are not getting the vitamins & minerals from our foods as we once did. Since the ocean is a plethora of nutrients that are concentrated in seaweed to contain 10x to 100x the vitamin & mineral content of land vegetables plus a host of other polysaccharide immune boosters like fucoidan, laminarian & alginate, we are what we eat takes on a wonderfully healthy experience.
For thousands of years of recorded human history, from the ancient Egyptians in 5000 BCE to ancient Greece, from the Roman baths to the first seaside Thalassotherapy clinic set up in England in 1791, the ocean has been known for it's healing benefits. Around the world today, the healthiest people on the planet with the lowest rates of cancer, heart disease, auto-immune disease are the Japanese, Korean & certain Chinese populations. This is no accident, this is their connection to the ocean that is taught from birth. Young girls in Korea are taught that the amniotic fluid surrounding the baby in mothers tummy is the same as the ocean. During pregnancy and post natal, Korean women utilize seaweed to relieving pain & discomfort just with application to their bellies. It is also a regular part of their diet, eating seaweed is as common as macaroni is here. After the birth of the baby, it is tradition for the mother-in-law to make seaweed soup known as Miyuk gook for the new mother who eats this 3x day for about 100 days. This allows the nutrients from the seaweed to replenish the nutrients that were lost during childbirth. We've met many older Korean women here in Ontario, who always ask us, why don't Canadian women know to use seaweed. With some of the best sources of seaweed in the world, I'm sure it won't be long before Canadian women are learning about the healthiest food & treatments 'growing in their own backyard'. Most of the seaweed Canada produces is exported to Japan & Asia for food consumption & our seaweed fertilizer is sold around the world, but in Canada cannot be sold as fertilizer, go figure.
Many of the auto-immune conditions people face these days are caused by diet. Living a North American lifestyle with fast-food, good restaurants and processed food delights it's no wonder we see so much unease or disease in people. On top of that we're living in a very chemical world, where toxins are used directly on our foods to control pests & weeds. So our soils become minerally deficient and then our vegetables become minerally deficient and then our bodies become minerally deficient and that's when disease creeps into our experience. We are not getting the vitamins & minerals from our foods as we once did. Since the ocean is a plethora of nutrients that are concentrated in seaweed to contain 10x to 100x the vitamin & mineral content of land vegetables plus a host of other polysaccharide immune boosters like fucoidan, laminarian & alginate, we are what we eat takes on a wonderfully healthy experience.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Cystic conditions of the Breast
Seems that most women these days are experiencing cystic conditions of breast and or ovaries. A painful monthly or everyday condition that occurs known as Fibrocystic Breast Disease. In today's blog I will speak of cystic breasts, but please understand there is a direct relation to cystic conditions of ovaries as well as it relates to iodine deficiencies, to be discussed another day.
Medical doctors seem to concur that these excessive amounts of cell reproduction that cause these lumpy painful tissues to occur are from hormone stimulation during the monthly cycle. Since there is an excess of cells produced each month during the menstruation cycle, some of these cells need to be removed to restore cellular balance in the breast and that's what iodine does. Iodine produces the trigger mechanism to remove the excess cells in a normal process of cell death called apoptosis. Without sufficient levels of iodine in the body to kill of these excess cells naturally, what happens is a build up of abnormal cells that cause the lumps & soreness and hence, Fibrocystic Breast Disease is born. With enough iodine in the body, the excess cells that are generated each month are able to be cleared away naturally. That is probably why nature has designed the breast to store iodine for it's health, along with the brain, thyroid, ovaries, for use in 'taking out the garbage' or excessive cells generated during high hormonal generation each month. The recommended daily allowance or RDA of iodine is 150micrograms, which has been shown clinically to be about 100 to 1000 times less than what is actually required. Dr. Brownstein (www.drbrownstein.com) and associates regularly use 50mg day of Iodoral or Lugol's solution to obtain these required amounts. When starting with iodine supplementation it is recommended that you start small with a few milligrams/day & seek professional advise as other vitamin and mineral requirements such as higher doses of Vitamin C (3000mg), B2(100mg), B3(500mg) and selenium are required for re-absorption. Since Lugol's solution is caustic when applied on the skin be sure to dissipate by rubbing it around and not letting it pool in one place. Lugol's solution can be purchased at any compounding pharmacy in Canada without prescription, in the US, you do require a doctors prescription to obtain. Costs for a 100ml bottle are usually under $10.
Medical doctors seem to concur that these excessive amounts of cell reproduction that cause these lumpy painful tissues to occur are from hormone stimulation during the monthly cycle. Since there is an excess of cells produced each month during the menstruation cycle, some of these cells need to be removed to restore cellular balance in the breast and that's what iodine does. Iodine produces the trigger mechanism to remove the excess cells in a normal process of cell death called apoptosis. Without sufficient levels of iodine in the body to kill of these excess cells naturally, what happens is a build up of abnormal cells that cause the lumps & soreness and hence, Fibrocystic Breast Disease is born. With enough iodine in the body, the excess cells that are generated each month are able to be cleared away naturally. That is probably why nature has designed the breast to store iodine for it's health, along with the brain, thyroid, ovaries, for use in 'taking out the garbage' or excessive cells generated during high hormonal generation each month. The recommended daily allowance or RDA of iodine is 150micrograms, which has been shown clinically to be about 100 to 1000 times less than what is actually required. Dr. Brownstein (www.drbrownstein.com) and associates regularly use 50mg day of Iodoral or Lugol's solution to obtain these required amounts. When starting with iodine supplementation it is recommended that you start small with a few milligrams/day & seek professional advise as other vitamin and mineral requirements such as higher doses of Vitamin C (3000mg), B2(100mg), B3(500mg) and selenium are required for re-absorption. Since Lugol's solution is caustic when applied on the skin be sure to dissipate by rubbing it around and not letting it pool in one place. Lugol's solution can be purchased at any compounding pharmacy in Canada without prescription, in the US, you do require a doctors prescription to obtain. Costs for a 100ml bottle are usually under $10.
Friday, September 24, 2010
What is Halogen Displacement & why should I care?
Halogen Displacement sounds like it could be the name of a new pop band. In my best radio voice, ‘Introducing the hottest sensation at the top of the charts it’s 'Halogen Displacement' with their new single ‘Feeling crappy again’. Sounds like it could be a hit as auto-immune diseases are skyrocketing across the continent. Anyone wondering why? The high risk categories would include those who drink chlorinated & fluoridated tap water, those who swim in pools disinfected with chlorine and those who soak in hot tubs that use bromine/bromide for water purification.
So what is halogen displacement? Halogen displacement refers to the competition between the halogens of fluorine and it’s water soluble form fluoride, chlorine/chloride and bromine/bromide their effect of displacing iodine/iodide from the body and blocking it's return. Any of the four halides can displace the element with a higher atomic weight. So when looking at the periodic table of elements, fluorine sits on top in the 7th column, followed by chlorine, bromine & iodine. That means fluorine displaces chlorine, bromine and iodine from the body; chlorine displaces bromine & iodine and bromine displaces iodine.
So why should we care?
Since Iodine was discovered in the early 1800's it has been used extensively in medicine to treat a myriad of conditions including thyroidism, both hyper & hypo. Before penicillin, it was the doctors choice for an anti-biotic, disinfectant, bacteriacide or germicide, being the first choice for medics on the battlefield until WWII. It was discovered long ago that our bodies store iodine and it's water soluble form iodide in our cells & organs to maintain health & keep a strong immune system. Storage sites in the body that contain higher levels of iodine to keep us healthy include; our brains, thyroid gland, women’s breasts & ovaries and men’s prostate glands. So what happens is that with heavy exposure in the body to the halides like fluorine, chlorine & bromine, they flush the healing iodine out of our body and allows our immune system to be comprimised & then allowing disease to enter readily. Back in 1924 when the US iodized it’s salt, Canada followed suit in ’29, this was accomplished to stop the increases in thyroidism, especially goitre, known as hyperthyroidism in the Great Lakes Region. Goiter was so popular at that time, the area became known as the ‘Goiter Belt’ and today the Goitre Belt has geographically expanded beyond the Great Lakes region to include most states & provinces that are away from the ocean. Much like a little bit of vitamin C prevents scurvy, a little iodine prevents & corrects thyroidism.
Health conditions that are common occurrences due to iodine deficiencies include cystic conditions like fibrocystic breast disease, fibroids of the ovaries, endometriosis, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, brain cancer, thyroid cancer and auto-immune conditions like eczema, psoriasis, fibromyalgia, arthritis, thyroidism and more.
Each municipality in Canada or a state controlled water board determines whether fluorine is added to the drinking water. In Canada, Brampton was the first city in Canada to fluoridate, this happened in 1945 and there is currently a push by local citizens to remove fluorine from their water supply. Cambridge, Kitchener & Barrie have now removed fluoride from the municipal water supply with more cities perched to follow their lead.
So what is halogen displacement? Halogen displacement refers to the competition between the halogens of fluorine and it’s water soluble form fluoride, chlorine/chloride and bromine/bromide their effect of displacing iodine/iodide from the body and blocking it's return. Any of the four halides can displace the element with a higher atomic weight. So when looking at the periodic table of elements, fluorine sits on top in the 7th column, followed by chlorine, bromine & iodine. That means fluorine displaces chlorine, bromine and iodine from the body; chlorine displaces bromine & iodine and bromine displaces iodine.
So why should we care?
Since Iodine was discovered in the early 1800's it has been used extensively in medicine to treat a myriad of conditions including thyroidism, both hyper & hypo. Before penicillin, it was the doctors choice for an anti-biotic, disinfectant, bacteriacide or germicide, being the first choice for medics on the battlefield until WWII. It was discovered long ago that our bodies store iodine and it's water soluble form iodide in our cells & organs to maintain health & keep a strong immune system. Storage sites in the body that contain higher levels of iodine to keep us healthy include; our brains, thyroid gland, women’s breasts & ovaries and men’s prostate glands. So what happens is that with heavy exposure in the body to the halides like fluorine, chlorine & bromine, they flush the healing iodine out of our body and allows our immune system to be comprimised & then allowing disease to enter readily. Back in 1924 when the US iodized it’s salt, Canada followed suit in ’29, this was accomplished to stop the increases in thyroidism, especially goitre, known as hyperthyroidism in the Great Lakes Region. Goiter was so popular at that time, the area became known as the ‘Goiter Belt’ and today the Goitre Belt has geographically expanded beyond the Great Lakes region to include most states & provinces that are away from the ocean. Much like a little bit of vitamin C prevents scurvy, a little iodine prevents & corrects thyroidism.
Health conditions that are common occurrences due to iodine deficiencies include cystic conditions like fibrocystic breast disease, fibroids of the ovaries, endometriosis, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, brain cancer, thyroid cancer and auto-immune conditions like eczema, psoriasis, fibromyalgia, arthritis, thyroidism and more.
Each municipality in Canada or a state controlled water board determines whether fluorine is added to the drinking water. In Canada, Brampton was the first city in Canada to fluoridate, this happened in 1945 and there is currently a push by local citizens to remove fluorine from their water supply. Cambridge, Kitchener & Barrie have now removed fluoride from the municipal water supply with more cities perched to follow their lead.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Inflammatory Issues
Thalassotherapy is so good at dealing with chronic or acute inflammation that if you put seaweed on an inflamed area of the body, the first response observed is how redness, heat and swelling, local to the area, is reduced. Calm, calm, calm is what seaweeds & thalassotherapy does to inflammation, first and foremost, whether chronic or acute. Whether inflammation is caused by an acute condition like a burn from the stove or from a chronic condition like heart disease, arthritis, rosacea or psoriasis, the body responds very quickly and rapidly to thalassotherapy treatment. Remember, no one in the world is allergic to the ocean and the ocean only brings healing nutrients to our bodies that have been experienced by cultures for the last 4000 years. Something old is something new again.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
What can Iodine & thalassotherapy do to prevent & reverse cancer?
With 1 in 8 women at risk for breast cancer it's a great time to be more informed about iodine therapy in the treatment & prevention of breast cancer.
Here is a link on youtube to Dr. Jorge D. Flechas MD, speaking to his colleagues about iodine and cancer of the breast, ovary, prostate, lungs and many more. He mentions how hypothyroid or hyperthyroid patients are at much higher risk in developing cancer because of the lack on iodine in their bodies. For those women over 40 dealing with PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome, there is such a high risk for developing ovarian cancer that doctors are routinely recommending removal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoMfg76gAUo
It's the absorption of iodine & iodide into the cells & organs of the body like our brain, thyroid gland, breasts, ovaries and prostate glands that keep our immune health strong against cancer and other pathogens. So to reabsorb iodine back into the body once it has been flushed out by Chlorine, Fluorine & Bromine requires higher levels of B2, B3, vit C & selenium all of which and more can be found in raw seaweed in a bio-available form.
There is much information available online for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer with iodine therapy. You can visit www.breastcancerchoices.org to learn more about using Lugol's solution to successfully treat & prevent breast cancer & fibrocystic breast disease.
Here is a link on youtube to Dr. Jorge D. Flechas MD, speaking to his colleagues about iodine and cancer of the breast, ovary, prostate, lungs and many more. He mentions how hypothyroid or hyperthyroid patients are at much higher risk in developing cancer because of the lack on iodine in their bodies. For those women over 40 dealing with PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome, there is such a high risk for developing ovarian cancer that doctors are routinely recommending removal.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoMfg76gAUo
It's the absorption of iodine & iodide into the cells & organs of the body like our brain, thyroid gland, breasts, ovaries and prostate glands that keep our immune health strong against cancer and other pathogens. So to reabsorb iodine back into the body once it has been flushed out by Chlorine, Fluorine & Bromine requires higher levels of B2, B3, vit C & selenium all of which and more can be found in raw seaweed in a bio-available form.
There is much information available online for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer with iodine therapy. You can visit www.breastcancerchoices.org to learn more about using Lugol's solution to successfully treat & prevent breast cancer & fibrocystic breast disease.
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