Healthy Living News & Tips

If modern civilized man had to kill the animals he eats, the number of vegetarians would rise astronomically.
- C. Morgenstern

If we - that is, society - switched to a vegetarian diet, atherosclerotic coronary artery disease, which accounts for most heart disease, would vanish.
- William Roberts, M.D. editor in chief of the American Journal of Cardiology

From both a moral and health aspect... the basic benefits of avoiding meat in your diet.

To your best health!

Mark

Your Health and Weight Release Coach
http://www.Everyday-Weight-Loss.com
http://www.HealthyLivingTalk.com

(quotes from the book 'Your Right to Be Beautiful' by Tonya Zavasta)

Every year around Halloween I cringe to think about all the candy, sugar and yes, junk that our children get when trick-or-treating. Several years ago I started giving out fun things like Halloween pencils, notepads, spiders, stampers and other creative things hoping that it may catch on. When children would stop by my house most had positive remarks like 'Cool!' and 'Wow!'. That was a good reaction!

Going out this year with my daughter I found that everyone in our neighborhood was still giving out candy. I know there had to be something that I could do to help not only our children, but our future as well. Teaching children healthy habits early pays off greatly.

In searching online today I found it. A mother from Washington state has started something big.... Green Halloween.

I was thrilled to learned about what she was doing and know it will make a difference. She has gathered the support of her community, both businesses (like Whole Foods) and families that want to make a difference and change the traditional 'candy-centric' Halloween into a healthier and environmentally friendly event that can be enjoyed by everyone.

You'll find lots of ways to encourage your neighborhood, school or families to enjoy a 'Green Halloween' and make a difference, both for younger as well as older children. The community and web site is new and still growing but you'll find some great resources.

You can read more about it at:

http://www.greenhalloween.org

By taking action together, we can make a difference.

To your best health!

Mark

P.S. Last year we also gave out 'Boo-key Balls', a healthy treat from the WholeFoodFarmacy that they make once a year as an alternative to traditional candy. It's one of several dozen healthy, natural and organic foods, snacks and personal care products they have available. It was a hit and the kids loved it!

GM: the Most Expensive Cheap Food You'll Ever Eat

GM (genetically modified) food is cheap. It is grown under conditions that turn lush complex ecosystems once known as "farms" into monoculture (single crop) deserts. The very concept of integrated farming, where one plant or animal uses the waste of another and sustains the first one (or yet another) is meaningless in monoculture. Vast industrial techniques and huge government subsidies make GM food inexpensive and chemical additives keep the prepared and fast foods so easily available cheap, cheap, cheap.
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Milk, it does a body good. Or does it?

The latter is true, according to accumulated research over dozens of years.

Dairy products, including milk, cheese and  foods made with dairy products are shown to increase heart disease, the top killer in the United States today with nearly a million deaths a year.

Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn from the Cleveland Clinic, one of the top rated heart clinics in the world, puts all his heart patients on a vegan diet specifically for this reason, making them 'heart attack proof'. He's also written a groundbreaking paper on the subject in the American Journal of Cardiology as well as being featured in the DVD 'Eating' citing animal foods as the main reason for heart disease. 

Study after study for over 20 years have linked high dairy consumption with heart disease. 

In a study published in the International Journal of Cardiology, researchers studied seven countries with a high consumption of dairy products and found that heart disease mortality rose as milk supply rose.

Researchers who studied dietary links to heart disease in 32 countries found that, of all dietary factors studied, milk carbohydrates played the biggest role in the development of heart disease in men over 35, and nonfat milk played the biggest role in the development of coronary heart disease in men over 45.

Researchers studying 19 Western countries concluded that heart disease mortality rises as consumption of milk protein rises. The researchers noted, "Multiple regression analysis confirmed the importance of the milk factor … as a determinant of variation in ischemic heart disease mortality rates."

"Milk consumption is related to arteriosclerosis," confirmed yet another group of researchers. " Recent landmark studies confirm a previously suspected close correlation between milk intake and arteriosclerotic heart disease." 

And more recently, according to a study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, the consumption of dairy products, especially milk, increases a man's risk of contracting Parkinson's disease.

Dairy consumption is also linked to prostate and breast cancer, primarily due to the higher fat and hormone levels.

But it doesn't stop there, according the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, cow's milk is the number one cause of food allergies in children. And according to Dr. Frank Oski, former director of pediatrics at John Hopkins University notes that there is evidence that up to 50% of the children in the US have some allergic reaction to milk.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg, dairy is linked to many more adverse health issues.

Dairy products are mucus forming and clog your system. Internationally renowed wellness physician Dr. Christiane Northrup states: "Dairy is a tremendous mucus producer and a burden on the respiratory, digestive, and immune systems." Dr. Northrup says that patients who "eliminate dairy products for an extended period and eat a balanced diet … suffer less from colds and sinus infections."

Additionally, the mucus created by milk may cause other health problems as well. Dr. William Ellis, who's studied the effects of dairy foods for more than four decades, says that milk is "simply no good for humans." Dr. Ellis believes that the excess mucus caused by milk can harden to form a coating on the inner wall of the intestines, hindering the absorption of nutrients and possibly leading to chronic fatigue. 

One of the best ways to improve your health would be to eliminate dairy products and focusing on a mainly plant based diet. Find more research, links and articles regarding the dangers of milk and dairy products here:

http://notmilk.com

> The Protein Myth

> Do you know how many calories you eat daily?

> Natural, Organic, Healthy & Convenient Foods

> How Many Meals To Good (or Bad) Health?

> 37 Free (Natural) Weight Loss Tips

The largest collection of data available on long term weight loss reports that "diet and exercise" are the key factors to both losing, and maintaining weight. Interesting that almost half of those in the study over 5 years noted that maintaining their weight was easier than losing it in the first place. Something to look forward to after getting to your ideal weight! This is also more evidence that there's no "magic pill" or diet that works for the long term. Sticking to the basics, concentrating on small lifestyle changes that include watching what you eat (and don't eat), regular activity or exercise, drinking lots of water and lowering/managing your stress works every time.

National Weight Control Registry

"Individuals were enrolled in the registry if they had lost at least 30 pounds and had maintained a weight loss of at least 30 pounds for 1 year or longer. Despite extensive histories of overweight and failed dieting attempts, registry members have lost an average of 66 lb and maintained the required minimum weight loss of 30 pounds for an average of 5 years. Nearly every participant used diet and exercise to initially lose weight, and nearly every subject is currently using diet and exercise to maintain his/her weight loss. Registry members report that weight loss has led to significant improvements in self-confidence, mood and physical health. Surprisingly, 42% of participants report that maintaining their weight loss is less difficult than initially losing the weight."

Did you know that showering 'naked' without a filter is allowing chlorine (along with other toxins and impurities found in tap water), a dangerous chemical, to be absorbed into your bloodstream and wreak havoc in your system?

Here is a description of what chlorine can do from Dr. Z Rona MD MSc, a best selling Canadian Author and holistic doctor:

"Chlorinated water contains chemical compounds called trihalomethanes which are carcinogens resulting from the combination of chlorine with compounds in water. These chemicals, also known as organochlorides, do not degrade very well and are generally stored in the fatty tissues of the body (breast, other fatty areas, mother's milk, blood and semen). Organochlorides can cause mutations by altering DNA, suppress immune system function and interfere with the natural controls of cell growth.

Chlorine has been documented to aggravate asthma, especially in those children who make use of chlorinated swimming pools. Several studies also link chlorine and chlorinated by-products to a greater incidence of bladder, breast and bowel cancer as well as malignant melanoma. One study even links the use of chlorinated tap water to congenital cardiac anomalies.

Anything you can do to filter tap and shower water that eliminates or even minimizes chlorine would certainly be helpful and possibly curative for some immune system problems. The use of at source water filtration devices is increasingly popular and affordable. Discuss their use with your health care practitioner".

Watch this video from Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, to see the dangers of these chemicals and impurities and how you can minimize the effects.

Learn more about how to filter your water and your water filter, shower filter and whole house filter options at Aquasana.com.

To your best health!

Mark

Prime Minister Gordon Brown took a step in the right direction Monday when he announced a new initiative where schools would increase the number of physical fitness programs weekly. This comes on the heels of a report that a full 50% of Britons will be obese in 25 years if current trends continue. I agree with the schools comments that this is a good idea, although more importantly is what parents do at home. Studies have confirmed that parents are the primary influence in children's lives and the best thing to do is to be a good example and teach them proper eating and activity habits including eating a diet of primarily fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and natural grains.