Truth about GMO

You probably already know that fish oil is good for us and that trans fats are bad, but do you know why? Do you know about omega-6 fats? Knowing how things work makes it easier to choose healthy foods. The role of fats is pretty interesting anyway.

First, we really do need fats. Every cell in your body has a membrane made of fat. In nature, oil and water don't mix, and that is why having fats in your cell membranes is so important. They provide a natural protective barrier between the outside of the cell and the inside. These membranes are seven millionths of a millimeter thick - so thin that they can only be seen with an electron microscope. We didn't even know about them until the 1950's.

Okay - so we have these ultra-thin membranes made of fat. They are heavily influenced by the type of fat you eat! Saturated fats like butter, lard, shortening and the fats marbled in meat are all solid at room temperature. Unsaturated fats like olive oil are liquid at room temperature. This is what happens in our body, too. Saturated fats give us rigid cell membranes, while unsaturated fats give us flexible cell membranes; a definite advantage for a cell membrane.

This has to do with the physical structure of the fats. Saturated fats have a straight shape and can be packed into the cell membrane more solidly. That does not give much room for messenger proteins to get important things like nutrients and enzymes into the cells. The two most active forms of omega-3 fats, EPA (eicosapentanoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), have a long structure and multiple double bonds. The double bonds give them a small bend. They can't be packed as tightly as straight fats, so they create extra space in the cell membrane, giving it flexibility and fluidity.

Imagine packing flexible straws into a box - you can pack straight straws tightly into the box, but once they are bent you can't get as many in. The reason that trans fats are so bad is that the chemical process to hydrogenate them changes their shape to a sharp right angle which actually damages the cell. Imagine trying to fit straws with an L-shaped bend into the box, it doesn't work! Interestingly, there are a few natural trans fats found in nature, but their shape is less rigid and less damaging than artificially produced trans fats. Keep in mind that any food listing hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fats has some trans fats, even if the label claims zero trans fats. This is because of a quirk in labeling laws.

Like us, animals are made of the kinds of fats that they eat. Fish need flexible membranes because they have to survive in cold water. They need a type of fat that stays fluid and allows them to move easily in cold conditions, which makes fish the best source of EPA and DHA for us. They are more efficient than mammals at synthesizing it from a more elemental form of omega-3 (ALA or alpha-linolenic acid). Animals that are fed greens (grass fed beef, free range chickens, lambs) have more omega-3 fats in their bodies than animals fed grains, but not as much as fish.

Omega-6 fats are another form of fats that show up in cell membranes. These are related to omega-3 fats but don't have the same level of elasticity. There is another important difference between the two: omega-3 fats reduce inflammation and omega-6 fats increase inflammation. Think of omega-6 fats like the heavy guns. If you have a health related emergency, having them could save your life as they clot damaged blood vessels and preserve life sustaining blood. But in peaceful times they can be too much, promoting clotting where it isn't needed and putting you at risk.

While we need some omega-6 fats in our diet, the Standard American Diet (SAD) contains too much of them. Our original diet provided a 2:1 ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats. The current American way of eating gives us a ratio closer to 15:1. While not all scientists agree, many think that this makes us more susceptible to inflammatory diseases like heart disease, diabetes, obesity, dementia and cancers.

Where do all these omega-6 fats come from? They are found in vegetable oils, processed and fried foods, and grain fed animal products. Vegetable oils contain both fats, but most have more omega-6's than omega-3's. Corn oil is especially high in omega-6, but sunflower and safflower rank up there too. Soy oil is more balanced, although it is frequently modified to make it more solid (and soy is one of the primary genetically modified crops). Canola oil has a good balance of omega-3 fats, but it too is often genetically modified. Olive oil is the best choice for low temperature cooking.

Omega-3 fats are impossible to use in processed foods. They don't have a shelf life: because of their chemical structure, they break down quickly. This gives me a whole new perspective on fresh foods. We buy shelf life at a cost! Processed foods are convenient but are made with unhealthy fats. While there are always exceptions, in general it is wise to choose more fresh foods and less processed ones.

A final thought about the primary omega-3 fats, EPA and DHA. EPA is critical for heart health and DHA is very important for brain functions. DPA impacts intelligence, the ability to learn and mental health. One of the reasons that breast milk is so good is that it is a great source of DHA! Because a significant amount of the mother's DHA goes into breast milk, if she doesn't replace it in her diet she is at higher risk for post-partum depression and may have less available for a second child.

The bottom line:
Eat more fresh foods and less processed foods.
Use olive oil as your primary oil. If you eat animal protein, buy products from animals fed greens instead of grains.
Get EPA and DHA regularly from oily fish and/or fish oil. If you are pregnant supplement with DHA.
If you use an infant formula, find one with DHA or speak with your physician about adding it yourself.

Kathy Nichols is the Healthy Habits Coach. As a registered dietitian and certified life coach, Kathy helps people who are tired of diets and feeling guilty find a way of eating that is sustainable, healthy and enjoyable. website: http://healthyhabitscoach.com blog: http://healthyhabitscoach.wordpress.com

A cornerstone of good pet health is proper nutrition and exercise. Good nutrition means feeding your pets nutritous food in the proper amount along with fresh, clean water.

Most of us pet owners think that by purchasing pet foods with a good "name" they have been tested and proven to be superior and "healthy" for our pets. This assumption is false! Many of the pet foods on the market are actually very harmful and can cause health problems, even pre-mature death.

For example, it is common knowledge that many dog foods contain grains such as corn or wheat. Further, here in America, both of these grains are genetically modified to enhance farm production and crop yield. Though the method appears to improve yields through greater pest and drought tolerance, genetically modified foods have proven to cause unexplained illnesses or premature death in a variety of animals.

Unfortunately, most larger pet food manufacturers are more interested in the bottom line than the health aspect. In addition to the problems associated with GMO's, most pet foods contain a variety of fillers and additives to reduce spoilage and increase bulk. Though this serves a profit motive, it does little, if anything, to enhance health or nutrition.

Though we do not have all the answers, we suggest you consider one of the following guides to proper nutrition for your dogs: Good nutrition also means feeding your pets the proper amount of food. Overeating causes as many problems in the pet population as it does in humans. It is very important to regulate your pet's intake as well as the quality of food they eat. If your pets eat food that is truly nutritious, you will discover they feel better and are healthier with less food. This is because the wrong kinds of food do not provide necessary nutrients and the pet feels hungry not matter how much they eat.

It is commonplace to find pets that are overweight yet they suffer from poor health because their bodies are "starved" for the nutrients their body needs for proper maintenance.

Protect your pet's health by insuring they have the proper nutrition.

Organic food production standards require that the integrity of organics is maintained through out the growing and processing stages. So, how many of these organic food diet mistakes do you make?

1. Using non-organic herbs and spices to season your food.

Organic food regulations do not permit food irradiation to be used. Non-organic spices and herbs can be irradiated to increase their shelf life.

When you add irradiated herbs to your pasta sauce it is no longer organic. This is true even if you grew those tomatoes yourself using great care in your methods.

2. Using non-organic sauces in meal preparations.

A couple of examples of this would be soy sauce or barbecue sauce. The problem here lies in the potential that genetically modified ingredients were used.

Genetically altered food cannot be labeled as organic. Soy beans are genetically engineered. In fact, the majority of the world's soybean crop uses modified seeds.

Avoid products made with soybeans or use only the organic versions of the product.

3. Using regular milk for your sauces and recipes.

Conventionally produced milk is sold with acceptable contaminants. These permitted contaminants include hormones, antibiotics, pesticides and even cleaning solvents.

4. Not washing your produce.

Organic food production does not allow the use of synthetic chemical pesticides and fertilizers. That is not to say that pesticides and fertilizers are not in use. They are used, so washing is important to remove these residues. You would also be removing contaminants that had settled on the food during transport.

5. Not washing your "pre-washed" lettuce.

Pre-washed lettuce is handy. The idea being you save a step in food preparation.

Well, when I get lettuce out of the garden, one washing just doesn't do it. I may have to change the water three times before all the dirt is gone.

And then there is another point. Are you willing to rely on the cleanliness standard of someone else for your food? Probably not, right?

6. Washing your produce with tap water.

Tap water is loaded with chlorine and other contaminants. If you are going to use tap water, do this first:

Fill a container with water. Then pour the water into another container. Do this back and forth 3 - 4 times. Then it is ready to use. By doing this, it will cause the chlorine to evaporate off faster than by just letting it sit.

7. Cooking with pans made of galvanized steel, copper, aluminium, t-fal or tin plated steel.

Your cooking ware can peel or release contaminants into your cooking. Choose porcelain or stainless steel cookware.

8. Using a microwave oven.

This is probably the most common and biggest mistake we make. The fact is that microwaving is not permitted in organic food production. To maintain the integrity of your food, avoid the microwave.

9. Not understanding organic food labeling.

To have an organic logo, the product must have at least 95 percent organic ingredients.

Products made with 70 percent organic ingredients may state this on the label. However, they may not have the organic label.

Products using an organic ingredient may have the organic ingredient identified. Now, here is where many people ere.

Let's say you grabbed a box of cereal off of the shelf that was made with organic blueberries. This is fine as long as you understand that it is the blueberries that are organic, not the product.

10. Assuming that all foods in a health food store are organic.

They are not. As an example, I found ketchup made with high fructose corn syrup in a local shop. The bottle was not labeled organic. Yet, the merchant said he wanted it available for those who could not tolerate cane sugar. HFCS is not healthy and should be avoided.

Doris Temple created http://www.mom-going-organic-sensibly.com to fill the need for unbiased information. The Website provides information about organic food, products and healthy nutrition. Sign up for a free monthly email newsletter (ezine) and receive a free Going Organic Special Report: http://www.mom-going-organic-sensibly.com/ezine-signup.html

(c) Copyright 2009 Doris Temple - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED WORLDWIDE

Because food is medicine, quality food is key. For reasons unbeknownst to me, "mainstream" nutrition gives little consideration to food quality. The nutrition principles generally touted in the media and through the nutrition community seem to focus on quantitative factors such as counting calories, grams of fat, levels of sodium, etc. They routinely fail to consider: the effects of artificial ingredients on the liver or brain, how MSG damages the hypothalamus, the effects of sugar on yeast, that certain foods are inflammatory to the gut, or how nutrient density influences brain function. These food factors affect the body's biochemistry and must be strongly considered when applying diet for autism spectrum disorders.

With "holistic nutrition" the quality of food matters. For healing, the amount of available nutrients, absence of artificial additives or refined sugar, and minimization of exposure to pesticides and antibiotics are important factors. Applying diet means to supply the body with the building blocks it needs for good health, and reduce the additives and toxins that can overburden the system. A holistic perspective embraces the whole body and considers the sustainability of the choices we make. And, by the laws of nature (not surprisingly), what's good for the individual is also good for all living things.

In holistic nutrition we consider the varying nutrients present in different quality and farming methods of vegetables and fruits. We promote the value of probiotics and good gut bacteria, which are necessary for good health (especially with the large use of antibiotics today). The artificial ingredients in processed foods that can trigger hyperactivity, headaches, asthma, and overburden the liver and detoxification systems are removed (don't eat them!). The fresh, living qualities of the foods and cooking/processing methods are emphasized. The level of nutrients present with organic, biodynamic, local, and pasture-raised farming is unsurpassed and vital.

These principles are paramount to children with autism spectrum disorders. Quality is an essential component to "autism diets;" boosting needed nutrients, probiotics, and promoting digestibility are factors that help their injured bodies heal.

This time and attention makes quality foods more expensive. Because commercial food producers (factory farmers and product manufacturers) compete on price, they look for ways to make food as cheap as possible. Americans have become accustomed to having some of the lowest food costs in the world. When people scoff at $5-7 for a dozen of pastured eggs, expecting $2/dozen, I always ask-not "why are pastured eggs so expensive?," but "why are conventional eggs so cheap?" Do you know what corners they cut to make them that cheap?

Without spending too much time on the "dirt" of the farming and food manufacturing industry, let's look at a few ways food quality matters.

The following are examples of how foods have been depleted and how to search out better sources.

SALT: Commercial salt is devoid of any nutrients except sodium and chloride, and often contain aluminum and dextrose for anti-caking.

A BETTER OPTION: Celtic sea salt, Himalayan crystal salt, and other unrefined salts have dozens of minerals and no added substances.

DAIRY: Commercial dairy commonly contains GM growth hormone (genetically modified rBGH), antibiotics, pesticides, and dead pathogenic bacteria. Commercial milk is devoid of good omega 3 fats, natural vitamins A & D, enzymes, and probiotics.

A BETTER OPTION: Grass-fed, dairy is rich in fatty acids such as omega-3 & CLA, vitamins A & D. Raw dairy products contain phosphatase, an enzyme essential for the absorption of calcium, as well as lactase and other enzymes for digestion.

VEGETABLES/FRUITS: Commercial, non-organic vegetables are grown in nutrient depleted soil from commercial fertilizers, sprayed with pesticides, picked before ripe and devoid of important vitamins and glyconutrients, gassed to ripen. Often, these vegetables are genetically modified, untested and unlabeled; these plants threaten native species and livelihood for millions of people.

A BETTER OPTION: Bio-diverse farms produce vegetables far superior in vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. They are free from GMOs, pesticides, and toxins. Local, picked ripe, and fresh. Good for the environment.

CHICKEN: Commercial chickens (I'll spare the gory details) contain pesticides, hormones, additives, and arsenic.

A BETTER OPTION: Pastured chickens are free of pesticides, arsenic and create a superior food - they are much higher in nutritional value.

OILS: Processed oils often contain trans-fats. Even when they don't, commercial oils are processed with many chemicals used to refine, bleach, and deodorize the processed oils. Stored in plastic, chemicals leach into the oil. They are mostly rancid oils, creating free radical damage.

A BETTER OPTION: Unrefined, virgin oils made in small batches, containing healthy fatty acids and nutrients. No chemicals are used in processing. Olive oil, walnut and pumpkin oil, and coconut oil are all great options. Be careful not to heat nut oils.

SOUPS/BROTHS/GRAVIES: Commercial soups, broths, and gravies contain MSG (and hidden sources such as hydrolyzed vegetable protein and autolyzed yeast), and are devoid of health promoting properties.

A BETTER OPTION: Homemade soups and broths contain large amounts of absorbable nutrients. Free of toxic additives.

CANNED FOODS: Tainted with plastic or aluminum from the aluminum cans or plastic coating they use inside. Deficient in nutrients.

A BETTER OPTION: Fresh food is significantly higher in nutrients with no additives or preservatives. And contain no plastics or heavy metals.

HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP: Used in "almost everything" commercial - soda, candy, condiments, and baked goods. Associated with increased risk of diabetes and obesity. Recently, many batches of high fructose corn syrup were identified to contain mercury from processing.

BETTER OPTION: Natural sweeteners such as honey, agave nectar, and maple syrup have many more nutrients to help the body's ability to process the sugar, and are not processed with chemicals.

Seek out the best quality you can find. Choose quality oils, salts, sweeteners, and other pantry items. Buy staples, nuts, and flours, in small batches and keep them refrigerated to retain freshness.

Read labels. Most importantly, read the ingredient lists - and avoid all artificial ingredients. Avoid products that contain ingredients you don't know, and products with long lists of ingredients containing things that you don't want going into your child's body.

Join a coop and group-buy straight from the farmer to save money. You may discover foods you otherwise couldn't' find in the store-pastured eggs, truly raw almonds, local honey, and grass-fed meats. Visit WestonAPrice.org for local chapter member recommendations on sources and farms. Join a CSA (community supported agriculture), a farm that supplies and delivers a fresh box of food directly to members cutting out the middleman for freshness and benefit to the farmer.

It's important to realize and remember the power we have to heal ourselves and our families through the choices we make about food. When following an autism diet, doing your best at maximizing nutritional intake will make a difference. Choose quality, because food matters.

Julie Matthews, a top US biomedical autism diet/nutrition specialist and Defeat Autism Now! (DAN!) Practitioner, helps parents recover children from autism. She is a parent/physician educator and creator of "Nourishing Hope for Autism: Nutrition Intervention for Healing Our Children" (Book) and "Cooking to Heal Autism Nutrition and Cooking Classes" (DVD). Visit http://www.NourishingHope.com to study autism diets and view video presentations.

Background Genetically modified foods or GM foods for short, also go under many different names, including transgenic food, genetically engineered food or biotech food.

So what are GM foods? Although different people and groups have different definitions, GM foods can broadly define as foods that "are produced from crops whose genetic makeup has been altered through a process called recombinant DNA, or gene splicing, to give the plant a desirable trait." The modification is usually done in the lab using molecular techniques or genetic engineering although there are others who would argue that crops produced through conventional breeding can also be considered as GM food.

The first GM food crop, a tomato developed by Montsanto was submitted for approval to the US FDA in August 1994 and came into market in the same year. As of September 9, 2008, a total of 111 bioengineered food products have completed the US FDA "consultation procedures" on bioengineered foods. In addition to the tomato, the range of products includes soybean, corn, cotton, potato, flax, canola, squash, papaya, radicchio, sugar beet, rice, cantaloupe, and wheat. According to estimates by the Grocery Manufacturers of America, "between 70 percent and 75 percent of all processed foods available in U.S. grocery stores may contain ingredients from genetically engineered plants. Breads, cereal, frozen pizzas, hot dogs and soda are just a few of them."

The benefits of GM foods. Support for GM foods come from different sectors: scientists, economists, and understandably from the agricultural and food industries.

GM foods can fight world hunger. The world population has reached an all-time high of over 6 and a half billion. Over 20% of these are suffering from poverty and hunger. That GM foods can stop hunger is one of the noblest motivations behind the development of GM foods. GM foods supposedly are easier to grow and bring higher yields. In poverty-stricken parts of the world, higher yields can save millions of lives and bring much-needed economic benefits. In a review, Terri Raney of the United Nations says "...the economic results so far suggest that farmers in developing countries can benefit from transgenic crops..."

GM crops are better. GM crops are designed to be sturdier and more robust than their non-modified cousins. They are meant to be resistant to drought, diseases, and pests. The Hawaiian papaya industry, for example, only managed to survive a virus epidemic after the introduction of more resistant transgenic varieties.

GM foods have been with us for hundreds of years. The wide variety of many plants that we see today came about through natural as well as traditional man-made plant cross-breeding that took thousands of years. That is peppers come in different shapes, colors, and taste, from the very spicy hot to the sweet types. That is why we have more than 1000 different types of tomatoes.

GM foods can fight malnutrition. In a world suffering from malnutrition, GM foods can answer the need for more nutritious food. To cite an example, Swiss research strove to create rice strains that contain large amounts of beta-carotene and iron to counteract vitamin A and iron deficiency. Malnutrition can refer to both undernutrition and wrong nutrition. People in rich and developed countries may have more than enough food but not the proper nutrition necessary to keep them healthy. For this reason, researchers at the European-funded FLORA project have developed strains of fruits and vegetables with enhanced content of antioxidants. Through genetic engineering, FLORA oranges have higher than normal flavonoids and phenolics. The FLORA purple tomatoes have three times the amount of the antioxidant anthocyanins compared to normal tomatoes.

GM foods are good for the environment. The damage to the environment that insecticides such as DDT bring about is well-known. The use of synthetic fertilizers in the farmlands led to the eutrophication of rivers and lakes all over the world. GM foods translate into less use of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers, and therefore less pollution.

GM foods can help medicine. GM foods can be used in producing pharmacological products in the so-called "medical molecular farming: production of antibodies, biopharmaceuticals and edible vaccines in plants." FLORA stands for "flavonoids and related phenolics for healthy living using orally recommended antioxidants" and it sees it self as "a player in the future of medicine." As early as 2005, Indian researchers reported the potential use of transgenic bananas in carrying vaccines against hepatitis B. In the same year, the biotech company GTC Biotherapeutics based in Framingham, Massachusetts has developed a herd of genetically modified goats that produce milk which contains a human anticoagulant called anti-thrombin.

GM foods are safe. The creators of GM crops are quick to assure that GM foods are safe and pose no threat to human health. GM crops are regulated by three agencies: the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the US FDA. "The FDA ensures that foods made from these plants are safe for humans and animals to eat, the USDA makes sure the plants are safe to grow, and the EPA ensures that pesticides introduced into the plants are safe for human and animal consumption and for the environment. While these agencies act independently."

According to the US FDA, "bioengineered foods do not pose any risks for consumers that are different from conventional foods ... We make sure there are no hazards, such as an unexpected allergen or poisonous substance in the food, or that the food is not changed in some way that would affect its nutritional value."

The issues against GM foods.

The opponents of GM foods may be scientists, environmentalists, and of course consumer groups. In addition, many celebrities are openly anti-GM, thus setting role models for the public. Among the most well-known and outspoken GM sceptic is Charles, England's Prince of Wales.

GM foods are for profit. According to its opponents, GM foods were created for profit and nothing else. They cite the multinational giant Monsanto, a pioneer in GM research and owns the infamous Roundup crops. Companies like Monsanto are unlikely in the GM business for purely noble reasons.

GM foods are unregulated. The use of GM foods in the world is almost an unregulated free-for-all activity. Going through the US FDA consultation procedures is mainly voluntary. Anti-GM advocacy groups and concerned scientists are asking for more controls and regulations.

There are also reports of GM plants escaping field trials and finding their way to the natural environment, thousands of miles away. In 2006, rice which contained genes from the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis (the notorious Bt) found its way to European supermarkets, causing a big outcry. The bacterial gene rendered the rice resistant to insects and the transgenic rice was a test plant that has not yet been approved for human consumption.

GM foods can harm the environment. GM foods are affecting their environment and some of these effects might actually be harmful. The effects are especially evident in other living organisms within the vicinity.

There are concerns, for examples, how cross-pollination with pollens from GM plants can affect non-GM plants.

Resistance development is another major issue. In China, for example, researchers used antibiotic-resistance marker genes to derive resistant transgenic rice strains. There are concerns that the marker genes will be taken up by naturally occurring gut bacteria and lead to resistant, more pathogenic strains.

Other studies also point to possible effects on animal life such as insects which are closely interact with the GM plants. One of the most well-known incidences was the claims that pollens from transgenic corn plants with Bt insecticidal gene markers are adversely affecting monarch butterflies in North America. Although experts say that the butterflies were safe from Bt, environmentalists were not satisfied.

GM foods can be detrimental to human health. The main concerns about adverse effects of GM foods on health are the transfer of antibiotic resistance, toxicity and allergenicity. With genetic modifications come new compounds in the crops which we virtually know nothing about. These compounds may be in the form of allergens and little-known proteins whose effects to human health are difficult to predict. In the food chain, this can even affects animals fed by GM crops and slaughtered for human use.

GM foods are not better. Western Europe is a stronghold of anti-GM movement. A European study last year declared that organic foods - which are exclusively non-GM-, are definitely better and more nutritious than their non-organic counterparts.

Which way do we go? The risks versus benefits of GM food are not an easy issue to settle. There is an urgent need for increasing food production and GM foods seem to be in the best position to address this need. In the short-term, GM foods are probably the solution to food shortage.

Currently, there is not enough scientific evidence to support the possible risks of GM foods. However, like in most things new and innovative, the long-term benefits and adverse effects can only be speculated upon.

Responsibility should be on the scientists, the health authorities, and the industries to act responsibly and to be as transparent as possible.

The article providing the Pros and Cons on Genetically Modified Foods may be found in it's entirely with references and links on http://HealthWorldNet.com .

1. Chai is the Indian word for "tea."

In India "chai" simply means tea. But in the West it refers specifically to spiced Indian-style tea -- that is, tea with traditional Indian spices and milk. This is also referred to as Masala Chai, which is more popular in India than coffee. The popularity of chai tea is spreading rapidly to the rest of the world, and has taken on some changes. In America, a sweeter, creamier variation known as a "chai latte" is often served as chai.

2. Tea is good for you!

There is also a growing body of evidence showing that the tea in chai has numerous health benefits. Tea polyphenols have been linked in research to increased attention and focus (Theanine), cardiovascular health, protection against Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and even may have the potential to alter cancer genetics. Additionally, the spices in Chai Tea have various health benefits, and have been used for thousands of years.

3. How much caffeine is in chai, and does it affect one differently than coffee?

A typical cup of chai tea prepared as directed contains approximately 40mg of caffeine (4 oz of black tea) compared to roughly 120mg in an average cup of coffee. However, the caffeine in tea seems to work differently due to the interaction with a component of tea known as tannin, which has a calming effect on the nervous system. This causes the caffeine to be absorbed much more slowly, avoiding the caffeine "shock" and inducing a calm, relaxed yet focused state characteristic of alpha brain wave patterns. Because chai doesn't have the caffeine "shock" of coffee, you can enjoy a few extra cups. Many people find they can even have it in the evening without disturbing sleep. (If you are highly sensitive to caffeine, however, try Rooibos Chai as it is naturally caffeine free.)

4. Many people actually prefer the taste of chai over coffee.

Here at www.Chai-Direct.com we agree! Chai is mentally clarifying and energizing yet calming at the same time. So chai gives you a subtle "pick me up" without nervousness, jitters. And unlike standard tea, chai tea has substantially more body and flavor so it is an ideal coffee substitute. Also, unlike standard teas, chai tea tends to be stronger and bolder, enhanced by the spices. So it is a natural coffee substitute. Try chai for a week. We think you will like it!

5. Chai tea is better for the environment.

Water is perhaps our most precious resource, and becoming moreso each day. It is estimated that over 1100 cups of water are required to produce a single cup of coffee. On the other hand, only about 1/10th of that amount of water is needed to produce a cup of tea. Read more about tea's positive environmental impact.

6. Chai is typically made with black tea, but also available with green tea, Rooibos (or red tea) and yerba mate.

Green tea has less caffeine than black tea, and larger amounts of EGCg, a powerful anti-oxidant. It was first assumed that green tea had higher health benefits, but new research is finding that the theaflavins and thearubigens of black tea actually carry similar health benefits. Rooibos is a caffeine-free variety of tea sought for its additional health benefits. It is widely believed that it is the synergistic combination of tea and spices that make chai such a beneficial and healthy drink. Yerba mate is another tea variation sought for it's additional health benefits, but it also carries a stronger, slightly bitter taste.

7. Commercial chai is available as a concentrate, powder mix, or in bulk loose leaf tea form.

Which is best? That depends on you. Concentrates are brewed under ideal conditions and pressures, so they often tend to taste a bit stronger, bolder and/or spicier. Dry mixes can be even more convenient, however. Bulk tea and bags must be brewed and sweetener added, so the process takes more time, but many still prefer this.

8. Many of the chai products available from Chai-Direct.com are Fair Trade Certified.

This means the products are grown, harvested and purchased according to the rules of the Fair Trade organizations. We want you to help you make an informed decision about all aspects of the products you buy.

9. Many of the chai products available from Chai-Direct.com are USDA Organic.

This means it is grown without chemical pesticides, fertilizers or sludge, and it is not genetically modified.

10. Chai Direct offers the complete line of Yogic Tea medicinals.

These are specially-blended chai formulas include specific medicinal herbs which support various body systems. If you are interested in herbal nutrition, this is a great-tasting way to get it!

So pay us a visit at Chai Direct and give chai tea a try!

Troy Hollins - "Troy the Chai-Tasting Guy at Chai Direct"
http://www.chai-direct.com

There are many bonsai myths doing rounds. The other day I was browsing some forums and I came across a thread with a heated argument.

Any guesses about the topic of argument?

May be you are right. There were fifteen odd bonsai lovers trying to help two persons against the art form.

Before going ahead with the article let me tell you that in this case my vote is with the majority. Because I have experienced the benefits of bonsai is my life first hand.

Now I will take up a few questions that are often noting but over highlighted myths. For your convenience I will mention the myth followed by my take on it.

Myth1: Bonsai restricts plant growth forcibly.
My take: That is any thing but true. The full glory of bonsai is revealed only when the plant attains full growth. You just do not find a great bonsai tree that is 2 years old, but you will better appreciate a bonsai tree of twenty years that has matured over time.

Myth2: Bonsai is genetically engineered.
My take: One more blatant lie if you ask me. Assuming things is relatively easy from a distance. Any body that has been remotely associated with the art of bonsai will negate this thought. The fact is that growing bonsai is a natural process and it is very similar to the growth of plants growing in wilderness. None of the bonsai artists that I have known promote the idea of genetically modifying the plant to convert it into a good looking bonsai. Neither the natural chemical composition of the plant is not altered nor is the hormonal balance tampered while training it as a bonsai.

Myth 3: Bonsai plants are starved.
My Take: Not so. Bonsai plants are never starved. In fact the bonsai trees receive great attention and care as compared to their counterparts growing in nature. Food on time, water just as needed, adequate exposure to sunlight, protection from harsh weather and pests are something that bonsai growers give a lot of importance. So logically speaking, bonsai trees get a lot of love, care and attention from their trainers.

I have conveyed my thoughts on three of the biggest myths on bonsai. Hopefully now you get a clear picture of the entire story, and are able to take a stand for or against the art of bonsai.

For more information on bonsai please visit TheBonsaiHub

Narasingh is a bonsai enthusiast and writes for the popular bonsai website http://www.thebonsaihub.com His artilces provide indepth knowledge on various aspects of bonsai, which is equally admired by both beginners as well as experts in the bonsai world.

There have been multiple generations of bio-fuels just in the last couple decades. However, fourth generation bio-fuels are still a bit of a mystery in terms of what they encompass. First, let's go over the previous three generations and discuss what they're defined as.

The first generation of bio-fuels is produced from crops. These are things like bio-diesel and anything that uses a food crop as part of the creation. Second generation bio-fuels are produced from non-food crops which means they don't interfere with the food markets the way that first generation bio-fuels do. This is an important aspect of bio power as studies have shown first generation bio-fuels can create increases in the costs of grains and other foods. Third generation bio-fuels are carbon neutral when consumed meaning that the crops consume the same amount of carbon from the atmosphere as they will release when combusted. This is done through genetically modified crops and is not commercially available yet.

Now we get to fourth generation bio-fuels. So, what is a fourth generation bio-fuel? Perhaps not surprisingly it is a carbon negative crop which means that the amount of carbon consumed during the crops growth is less than the amount released when combusted in an engine. This is made possible through genetic engineering of the crops.

When you take into account all of the issues lately with global warming fourth generation bio-fuels become a very attractive option as a renewable energy source. A carbon negative fuel will reduce carbon levels in the atmosphere allowing us to combat global warming as we also shift to a renewable fuel.

If you're interested in learning more check out my page on fourth generation biofuels . If you'd like to learn more about renewable energy in general you should read my renewable energy blog which has up to date news, renewable energy lessons, and more. I hope you've enjoyed this article and found it informative.

In recent times, the world (including third world countries) is becoming cognizant about the hazardous effects of plastic bags on the environment. To counter this, researchers have come up with Bio Plastics. Though bio plastics are not regarded as competition for the traditional packaging, they definitely are a complement. Bioplastics can be defined as plastics that are partly or fully derived from renewable resources and are convertible as well as biodegradable.

Some of the main advantages of bioplastic include potential to generate less greenhouse gases and it also requires less energy to produce when compared to conventional plastics. The manufacturers as well as suppliers of these material handling and bioplastics industry also claim that as these contemporary plastics are made from renewable sources, hence have they the advantage of being compost and when burnt, it produces greener energy since the renewable carbon content of the raw materials is recycled back into carbon dioxide. An example of bio plastic is polylactic acid which is manufactured from renewable sources and is known to have been chemically recycled through hydrolysis into PLA feedstock lactic acid. Polyethylene, which is being manufactured from sugarcane waste in Brazil is also a successful example of bio degradable plastics.

Besides, bio plastics made from petrochemical sources too are becoming a favourite among the people. Although they appear like traditional plastics in appearance, but the characteristics of both are poles apart. Some other resources from which these bio plastics can be produces are starch based plastics, Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate, Polyamide 11 and genetically modified bio plastics.

The application of these plastics materials are wide as they are gaining immense popularity among the environment conscious people. New, durable as well as disposable bio plastics are being developed, thanks to the range of bio plastics available today. Since the production of them is regarded as a more sustainable activity thus the use of bioplastics is especially popular for disposable items, such as packaging and catering items.

Their attribute of being reusable, also makes it an indispensable choice for shopping bags. Trays and containers for a wide variety of perishable goods is also produced from bioplastics. Non-disposable applications include mobile phone casings, carpet fibres, and car interiors, fuel line and plastic pipe applications. The recent trend in non disposable implication include electro active bioplastics that are being developed to carry electrical current.

Some of the basic shortcomings that are confronted by the manufacturers involved in the packaging of bio plastics are - dependence on petroleum as an energy and materials source and the recycling process, which can be unreliable and expensive.

In this context the Australian Institute of Packaging (AIP) is planning to hold its highly successful National Technical Forums alongside AUSPACK, on the 17 and 18 of June, 2009. The theme of the event is aimed to be Packaging MEGA Trends that will emphasize on the key trends in the packaging and material handling industry all over the world. For the successful implementation of this event, Packaging Magazine has collaborated with the Australian Institute of Packaging to identify the Packaging Mega Trends of 2009 and the expected participation is more than 300 people.

Having an experience of 9 years in the engineering and scientific industry, i have been working in this industry as an analyst and researcher. Besides, various other undertaking in the scientific and engineering markets to my credit, I have been associated with some of the most renowned marts of scientific and engineering products. => For more info log on to Industrymart.com
=> Bio Plastic

Healthy food is the result of sustainable agriculture systems that are farming methods and processes geared to the growth, harvesting, and delivery of healthy food to the consumer while taking environmentally safe agriculture measures.

The new generation of Americans are more aware of the harmful chemical additives and environmental threats of traditional or commercial methods of factory farming and food production. Along with the need to feed themselves and their kids healthy food, this knowledge is bringing about change in the food buying habits and diet of Americans.

Much of the food we find at today's supermarkets are grown, processed and sold with harmful chemical food additives. These additives change the way food tastes, looks, and increases the food's shelf life.

To maximize profitability and production, large commercial farms feed animals low doses of antibiotics for faster growth. This contributes to a national health issue of the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in humans.

Large factory farms without sustainable systems often have harmful pesticides, fertilizers, and anti-biotic by products that finds it way into ground water, rivers, and streams. These harmful residues lead to the contamination of aquatic ecosystems and drinking water.

While there is an increasing awareness and corresponding increase in sustainable farming, there is also the need for large factory farms to maximize food production and profitability. In response to this demand by the large commercial factory farms, many of the world's largest chemical corporations are shifting out of commodity petrochemicals into Agricultural Biotechnology. Since 1996, Monsanto and Hoechst (Germany) have changed their business plans by spinning off its industrial chemicals business and has since made huge investments in acquiring seed and agricultural biotechnology companies.

Sustainable Agriculture Systems are geared to the production of healthy and environmentally safe farming and food products.

It includes a number of requirements: The fertility of the soil being continuously maintained and improved; The availability and quality of water being protected and enhanced; The protection of bio diversity for farms, farm workers, and all other factors in food production chain; and programs to minimize the impact on the environment concerning the discharge of waste and greenhouse gas emissions.

While there is no widely recognized body for certification of Sustainable Food and Agriculture systems, the other components, Organic and Bio Dynamic Food and Agriculture systems have certification standards.

Certified Organic Food is the result farming without the application of harmful pesticides, artificial fertilizers, contamination by human or industrial waste, ionizing radiation, food additives, and not be genetically modified. Where livestock is grown, they must be free of antibiotics and without the use of growth hormones.

Bio Dynamic Food production is a more stringent level of food production than organic farming. It is both a philosophy and art form of agriculture.

The Demeter Association, with branches around the world, is the certification body for bio dynamic farming. Its certification standards are the highest level of sustainable farming achieving one of the smallest carbon footprints of any agricultural method.

Bio dynamics takes a systems approach to agriculture farming where each farm component or action is viewed in total as it affects the others. The systems approach includes the use of bio dynamic sprays, retention of nutrients, crop rotation designs, weed control, plant pests, and the recycling of organic wastes and composting. For livestock production, it includes animal nutrition, the disposition of animal wastes; the mix and rotation of animal species on pastures to maximize grazing patterns and minimize pasture borne parasites.

Frank Dalotto is a freelance writer and travel consultant. His specialty is writing articles about New Jersey leisure activities and soft adventure travel. Frank is the publisher of New Jersey Leisure Guide http://www.new-jersey-leisure-guide.com and Soft Adventure Tourism http://www.soft-adventure-tourism.com

His academic credentials are:
MBA, Pace University
BSEE, University of Missouri

Here are a few ideas about a holistic approach to developing a sustainable global economy.

The first step to developing a sustainable global economy is to provide universal education that includes both modern financial and economics education, as well as ecological consciousness education. People just need a basic education about the consequences of their actions, and encouragement to live in harmony with the earth's biosphere.

We can build houses that generate more energy than they use. Some of the excess energy can be used to recharge our electric drive, zero emission automobiles. Any excess energy can be sold to the utility companies to be used for industrial activity.

Tidal generators can generate energy by harnessing the oceanic tides. Wind turbines, geothermal and hydro-electric are other sustainable methods of generating energy for human consumption. Conservation is another important component of a comprehensive sustainable energy industry.

We'll still use oil, but at a tiny percentage of the rate we use it now. We'll use oil in our chemical industry, not our energy industry. We'll need to recycle the island of plastic the size of Texas, floating around the Pacific Ocean.

We encourage family farming, not industrial scale monoculture. We need to grow a rich diversity of crops to ensure a resilient and sustainable agriculture, not the single genetically modified monoculture crops. We can not afford to allow a few rich and powerful people subject us to this insane policy, that has already resulted in many famines during human history.

Continue to clean and beautify our cities and roads and bridges and other habitat for humanity. Architecture is art. Parks and recreational activities are being expanded. Greenways and urban forests are being developed in our cities. Natural parks are being improved, protected and increasingly well managed.

The whole world economy is booming. We are transforming our economy to be sustainable and in harmony with the natural environment. Human nature is the impulse driving this episode of rapid transformation in the evolution of earth's biosphere. We are transforming the earth, from a jungle into a garden. It is our opportunity and responsibility to insure that this intelligent influence human civilization is having on earth's biosphere is healthy and productive, not selfish and destructive.

Each of us is responsible for this, individually and collectively. How we act in our personal lives has a tremendous influence on the larger process. Tiny little acts of sustainability, can have a cascading effect that radiates throughout human civilization. For example, not littering, not only does not contribute to the mountains of litter, it also sets a good and healthy example, teaching other people to not litter. Its the same with any human activity.

If we all consciously and intelligently act to live in harmony with the natural environment, the earth will slowly heal itself, just like our bodies naturally heal themselves when we supply them with the proper resources and refrain from harmful activity. I realize a lot of people already do this. A lot of people don't do it. Right now is a really good time for us to execute a major global environmental ethics initiative.

The United Nations Agenda 21 and the Millennium Development Goals are the present collective plan of action we are all working on. Studying these plans and adapting our personal business plans to be in harmony with this global agenda is another way we can contribute to the development of a sustainable global economy.

The global consultation and the global agenda are essential attributes of a sustainable global economy. In the first place, it helps to have the national economies working in harmony with each other, instead of working at odds with each other. "We need to practice harmony in our international relations." (Chinese President, Hu Jintao )

International standards for weights and measures, contract enforcement, intellectual property rights, health, safety and environmental protection and stuff like that must be set at the global scale in order for the global economy to function smoothly and effectively.

The way we treat each other is another incredibly important aspect of creating a safe, clean and decent society. Be kind, friendly and polite. Be fair and trustworthy in all of our associations, including our business associations, personally and globally.

Make the world a better place by improving ourselves and helping others.

I am Bob Mccoy

earthling09 http://sites.google.com/site/earthling09/Home is a website about healing human nature and improving human civilization.

http://9earthling19.blogspot.com/ is a blog with a holistic approach to developing a universal and divine civilization.

Ya Baha'u'l Abha

There are many things in our society today that are causing disease, illnesses, and ailments. The main reason for so many conditions in our world is the food we eat. Foods loaded with pesticides and other toxins are slowly killing our bodies rendering our immune system too weak to handle the onslaught of disease that enters through various avenues.

One of the best defenses for the body is whole organic foods. Organic fruits and vegetables are not genetically modified. Organic plants are grown with no pesticides, artificial fertilizers, human waste or sewage sludge and they have been processed without ionizing radiation or food additives. Organic meat has been raised without antibiotics or the use of growth hormones. In other words, organic foods are produced naturally without any man-made chemicals.

Knowing this, there are so many reasons why eating organic foods is beneficial.

1. Your body can fight disease, bacteria and viruses when it is fed organic food. There are no chemicals in the food and you are adding a more wholesome option when you eat organic. Many of the chemicals found in non-organic foods have been linked to many types of cancer. By eating more organic foods, your body will be healthy and in turn you have more strength and energy.

2. Organic foods contain at least 50% more nutrients, vitamins, and minerals than their non-organic counterparts. Food that has been chemically altered in any way has far less nutritional value and therefore is not as healthy for your body.

3. The same growth hormones and antibiotics that are added to many foods that we eat, like chicken, enter the human body. These hormones and antibiotics may be cause early maturation in children, especially young girls. Eating a diet rich in organic foods help to assure that your child will mature as nature intends.

4. Because organic foods are lower in fat it helps to fight and prevent obesity. Health experts warn that a diet high in fatty food lead to heart disease, stroke, and other life threatening diseases. A diet filled with organic foods helps to prevent these conditions and keep weight down.

5. Antibiotics found in non-organic foods are a direct cause of allergies. Many of the allergies people suffer can be avoided by eating organic foods.

6. Organic fruits and vegetables are not only grown using nature but they taste better as well. When you eat organic you get the full flavor of the food you are eating without added toxins that tend to ruin the true taste.

7. Organic foods safeguard against toxic metals like cadmium, lead and mercury. Heavy metals damage nerve functions and block hemoglobin production which leads to anemia. The same metals are also linked to a lower IQ and disease such as multiple sclerosis.

In addition to the above reasons, by eating organic foods you are helping to save the environment and supporting small scale local farmers. Keep in mind also that contrary to popular belief, purchasing organic foods is not always expensive and there are many ways to purchase it at a lower cost.

Take the time to learn about the benefits of organic food and apply it to your daily eating habits. It will change your body and your life.

Are cravings for sugar, salt, junk food, sodas, and coffee running your life? Are you tired and foggy-brained? Need more energy, more mental clarity, less cravings for sugar? Diana Walker, Sunrider Leader, Cravings Coach and CEO of Diana's Healthy Lifestyles http://www.diana2.com provides natural, safe options for creating vibrant health. Free education at http://www.thecravingscoach.com

Evening primrose oil comes from the drought-tolerant, biennial Oenothera biennis plant. It flowers with brightly colored, cup-shaped flowers all summer long, and produces seeds in the fall. You can find evening primrose oil available in small and large bottles, as well as evening primrose capsules. These are some of the medicinal herbs that you will find available online from quality herb suppliers.

While the whole Oenothera biennis plant has many different uses, the seeds are used to produce evening primrose oil. The seeds are extremely tiny, and only a third of the seed contains any evening primrose oil. This factor contributes to the high cost of purchasing evening primrose oil. The oil can be eaten or applied topically, and contains gamma-linolenic acid, which is one of the essential unsaturated fatty acids.

There are many common uses for evening primrose capsules and the evening primrose oil they contain. The oil is used in the preparation of cosmetics and skin products. The oil of Oenothera biennis may help with multiple sclerosis, nervous energy, and tension brought about before the menstrual cycle begins. Evening primrose capsules are commonly used for eczema, liver damage caused by alcohol consumption, brittle nails, rheumatoid arthritis, and acne. Evening primrose capsules may also help to reduce cholesterol and blood pressure.

Evening primrose capsules are available with organic certification. This means that the Oenothera biennis plants that provide the seeds that make the oil must be grown from non-genetically modified organisms without the use of synthetic chemical pesticides, fertilizers, or food additives. The land that produces the Oenothera biennis crop must not have had synthetic chemicals used on it for three years or more prior to receiving organic certification. The United States Department of Agriculture is responsible for on-site farm inspections to ensure that organic standards are being met. As well, the producer must keep accurate and detailed records from seed stage to harvest stage, which are audited. Oenothera biennis is just one of several different types of herbs that are available for purchase online from premium herbal merchants. In addition to medicinal herbs, you will find herbs perfect for cooking also available. These herbs can be purchased in large quantities, which is helpful if you are supplying a restaurant or health food store, in order to keep adequate supplies on hand for use. Dried herbs are also available, and can be used as ingredients in cosmetics, perfumes, personal care products, and household products such as laundry fresheners. Herbs can also be used for making sachets, potpourri, and are lovely for use in a variety of craft projects.

In this article Anne Harvester writes about medicinal herbs.

Lenette: How do you see this book impacting the planet, the countries that it's going to be first available to?

David: I think it's going to have a huge impact for Elements of Life, personally. Everybody is on the same page, in my opinion, especially in the western world, North America, Canada, the U.S. about where the future of nutrition is. What everyone is arriving at is that people want more of their nutrition from food, meaning their vitamins and minerals and protein, antioxidants, etc. They want it easier. They want it to be as easy as possible. Superfoods answer that question. It solves that completely. As soon as people get clicked on to it, they realize, "Whoa. This solves a bunch of problems," then it's like an avalanche. That's what I've been working on with Random House, who's going to be helping me distribute this book; developing a strategy where we can kind of go out there and inform people like, "Hey, this is solving a big problem for everybody." If you don't have to depend on vitamin and mineral supplements and be worried about getting enough in our food, you eat superfoods and that's covered completely. You don't have to worry about it anymore. And it really is. That's really the truth.

Lenette: Back to the superfoods, how do you suggest people new to superfoods get started?

David: I think it's best to use a form of food that we've all been aware of, which is the superfoods smoothie, or the super protein shake or the Slim-Fast 'throw it in a blender' kind of idea. That's the easiest way I've found for most people to tap into this. We've all had some experience with that. All we did is we just took the junk protein, the whey protein, egg white protein, whatever that was, just get rid of that and throw superfoods in instead. We have a blender, we have some spring water, we have our favorite fruits, let's say right now it's berries, frozen blueberries or whatever kind of fruit you like. You throw in your superfoods in there. I'm a beekeeper so I have honey at my house, and we throw in honey. You blend that up and you go running out the door and it's like it's a whole new reality. Actually what that does to people, doing a superfoods smoothie every morning instead of their traditional protein shake, it changes their whole reality around. Suddenly all their neurotransmitters start firing properly. They're actually getting real protein for the first time in their life. They're getting tryptophan for the first time in their life. They're actually getting a good quality and spectrum of real minerals that are 100% bioavailable. That's never happened in our lives. We grew up on like Froot Loops so when we actually get real nutrition, especially when it's liquified like that, it has the fastest effect on people's health of anything I've ever seen. That's why I'm such a fan of superfoods. That's why I'm putting my whole thing behind that. I've seen that it works in sorting out people's neurochemistry better than anything else.

Lenette: Some people say, "How do I know what's going to work for me if I start taking a bunch of these things at once?" But you're saying, "Just go for the gold. Just try it all out." [David laughing] Put it in a smoothie and you'll feel better.

David: I remember one time I was hanging around with Shazzy. She's very popular in the U.K. as a superfoodist; she and I wrote "Naked Chocolate" together. I remember we were having this hilarious moment together where we made up this superfood smoothie, and this was like six years ago. That was a long time ago, before it was like...I was kind of in my own reality with it, but I didn't realize that people weren't using this stuff. I made up this superfood smoothie; it must have had 50 ingredients in it. [both laughing] I'm tapping my foot, I'm drinking this drink, and I said, "Could you imagine if we just fed this to somebody on the street? It would probably knock them right out." And BOOM, there was Shazzy knocked right out on her back.

Lenette: No way.

David: She literally drank half a cup of it and had to lay down. It just laid her right down. The reason why, it was just too much. I just kind of threw her right into the middle of the Super Bowl and it was too much. You've got to start out simple. Take Spirulina. Try that.

Lenette: Was that like a detox reaction she was having? Or just overstimulation from all these minerals and things?

David: It was probably both because when you put that level of nutrition...it was like herbs...I remember putting Cat's Claw powder in there and Camu Camu berry. I'm not kidding, there were probably 50 ingredients in there. When you get to that level of concentration, you have to work up to it, just like anything else. You don't just suddenly switch from Cheetos and Burger King over to 50 different things in a superfood smoothie. Even as a raw foodist, you go slowly. Everything's very slow. It's better that way. You try an experiment. You try bee pollen. You try Goji berries. You just eat it or you throw one ingredient in your drink and gradually you complexify it as you build that muscle. Basically what we're doing is we're building up a different muscle, a new digestive muscle. Most of our lives we spend a huge amount of digestive energy digesting nothing. There's nothing in there. Now we can flip the equation around where we spend hardly any amount of digestive energy and we get a huge amount of nutrients. We've got to adapt to that. It doesn't just happen overnight. You readapt your body to new, higher quality, higher octave types of foods and your body will take its little time. Over a few months it will gradually come along for the ride and that's more reasonable. This step-by-step approach is much healthier.

Lenette: Can any of the superfoods in the upcoming book cause a detox reaction when you first start using them? And how important are superfoods in a detox program?

David: That's a very good question. Generally the way I answer that question is to say, "What is a detoxification?" A detoxification occurs when the energy content of what's coming into the body is at a higher level than where the body's natural homeostasis is, or residual homeostasis. When you start taking superfoods that are high energy into a body that was eating, say, Burger King, there's an energetic and vibrational discrepancy. Eventually what happens is one of those higher frequencies is going to entrain the lower frequency vibrations. It's going to bring the lower energy up and drive it out. And that is going to occur in a lot of people just from eating any of the superfoods because the power of these foods is so high. If you're a little bit more sophisticated with your approach and you've done cleansing and juice fasting and done herbal cleansing and that kind of thing, then you start targeting specific superfoods, like Chlorella, that get heavy metals out. Then you can start looking at Camu Camu berry for its medicinal content and medicinal capability of breaking down neurological blockages. For example, cataracts in the eye, glaucoma, foggy thinking, that kind of stuff. Then you could start to dial in a little bit deeper. Bee pollen, for example is a tremendous...it drives out all the gunk in our nervous system due to the acetylcholine that's present in bee pollen and in royal jelly. What does that do? We've all had genetically modified soy lecithin that somehow snuck itself into our body and that just gums up our brain. You need acetylcholine from bee pollen and royal jelly to help drive that out. It's called chelation replacement. Kelp is another one. Kelp can detoxify the thyroid. That's another great superfood, one of the superfoods of the sea.

Lenette: Where are you telling people is the best place to get these superfoods? There are low quality superfoods out there and there are the best ever superfoods out there. How did you address that in the book?

David: What I did was, I went through, and there was a whole section on each superfood about what to look for. It's really good. It's designed for anybody to suddenly have the skill to say, "Here's what I'm looking for. I've got to make sure I have cacao nibs that don't have little white splotches on them. If I buy cacao with the skin on, it shouldn't have any black mold on the outside." Just little things like that. With each superfood, you become an expert on what to buy and how to determine what's high quality and what's low quality.

Lenette: That's great, I'm really glad you put that in there. I'm curious to read that myself.

Lenette Nakauchi is a raw foodist living in Chicago who loves teaching, coaching and demonstrating to others how to go and stay raw a fun, healthy, sustainable way. To listen to the entire audio interview and learn more about the superfoods, please visit Go Raw, Have Fun! and http://www.eatsuperfoods.com.

What are vitamin supplements?

Supplements are a way of giving the body what it needs - vitamins, minerals, or antioxidants to name a few - so that the body has what it needs to repair, regenerate, and build. Most of us realize we don't always eat as healthy as we should and the foods we do eat today do not have the nutrients they did in years past. Why is that?

- Nutrients in the soil are depleted because of today's farming practices

- Fruits and vegetables are picked green before essential nutrients have formed in the plant

- Genetically modified foods are deficient in nutrients

- Irradiation of foods causes a small loss in nutrients

- Processing of foods causes loss of nutrients

Supplementing with all natural vitamins/minerals that is standardized and absorbed by the body is a common sense approach to keeping our body's healthy. Vitamins and minerals give the body what it needs to repair and regenerate itself.

There are three options for buying a vitamin. They are:

1) Synthetic, man-made in the laboratory

2) Whole foods from fruit or vegetable extracts or single fruit product like Aloe Vera or Gogi

3) All natural vitamins that are plant-sourced vitamin/mineral

Let's talk about how these three are different.

Synthetic Vitamins

- Most vitamins sold today are synthetic

- They are the least expensive

- Are made in a laboratory through chemical processes

- No co-factors are present to aid in absorption

- They contain standardized and consistent amounts of vitamins and minerals with labeled sources

- The body requires a higher dose because they are not absorbed as well

However, providing a vitamin or mineral in isolation removes the co-factors that are often needed for the nutrient(s)to be absorbed and utilized by the body.

Whole Food Vitamins from Single Fruit or Plant

Getting your vitamins from a single fruit or plant, like the goji berry or aloe vera plant offer some benefits over a synthetic vitamin. They are:

1) Comes from a single plant or natural food source which offers better absorption and bio-availability over synthetic sources

2) Contains co-factors that are part of the plant and make the nutrients more bio-available - which means the body is able to absorb and use the nutrients

3) Should not contain any artificial colors, sweeteners, preservatives or chemicals

The disadvantages are:

1) They cannot contain all the vitamins and minerals that the body needs

2) Not standardized - each capsule or bottle of juice will have varying amounts of nutrients depending on the plant, the growing conditions, and the processing.

3) No single fruit/vegetable can meet all RDA requirements.

Plants can have substantial levels of vitamins, but are usually low in minerals. No one whole food contains all the vitamins and minerals that we need.

4) Are more costly

All Natural Vitamins

How it is possible to have a plant source vitamin/mineral with standardized components? Let me explain. The Indian mustard plant is grown hydroponically in a solution rich with minerals that are then absorbed by the plant. The plant, which is rich in minerals, is then made into a whole food supplement. The benefits are:

- Plant source vitamin is readily absorbed and utilized by the body

- Has standardized concentrations of minerals because of the hydroponic process

- Contains no synthetic compounds

- Contains no artificial colors, sweeteners or preservatives

If you are interested in am all natural food vitamin that is plant sourced with standardized minerals and meets Good Manufacturing Standards go to :

http://www.WebRN-MacularDegeneration.com/all-natural-vitamins.html

Leslie Degner, RN,BSN

Better Health For Better Vision

http://www.WebRN-MacularDegeneration.com

Colon cleansing is great resort to reduce waist size & weight and add to the health quotient. The internet and pharmacies are flooded with various colon cleansers & detox agents. One of the most known one out of these is Ultimate Colon Cleanse.

Does Ultimate Colon Cleanse and Detox worth the money? Here is a review of this product:

The users who have been consuming this product regularly have reported several positive comments on their blogs, comments & reviews. The common benefits they have mentioned here are that it does not make you sit in the toilet all day like the other colon cleansers. It is very gentle for your internal system.

They say the product does not have any side effects.

It reduces the waist size significantly.

It also reduces the weight.

It does not require you to take any specific diet or avoid any particular food items.

It does not vent out any stink in your breath like the other colon cleansers.

Ultimate Colon Cleanse is formulated by Dr. Carol A. Spencer. It is natural and vegetarian made up of all non genetically modified ingredients. Its key ingredients are Flax Seed, Psyllium Husk, Licorice, Guar Gum, Rhubarb Root, Peppermint, Garlic Bulb, Extracts of Grapefruit, Turmeric, Pumpkin Seeds, Fenugreek Seeds, etc.

It is also gluten free & caffeine free.

Ideally it must be taken for 21 days.

It adds to the energy quotient of the consumer.

This product is available for a 30 day free trial.

It is a 3 step process. All of these harm free, effective and show up their benefits quite soon.

Though it is not necessary, the impact of Ultimate Colon Cleanse increases with a high fiber diet and some daily exercises.

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My main focus in chiropractic is to detect and remove vertebral subluxations. I do not diagnose diseases so that I can treat diseases. That is for the allopathic world. I truly believe vertebral subluxations can have a devastating effect on the human body as a whole if not corrected. It could take days, months, or years, but at some point a subluxated atlas or axis bone can and will ruin someone's life.

But here's the catch. Once a subluxation has been corrected, how do we keep it corrected? If subluxations are caused by physical, chemical, and emotional stressors, how can we minimize these external influences so that they do not impact us negatively i.e. subluxations, dis-ease, disease, etc.? A specific chiropractic adjustment can address the physical stressor. That's a given. But what about the other two?

This is where eating raw foods come in. Eating whole, uncooked fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds is one of the quickest ways for a body to heal itself from chemical and emotional stressors.

So much of our food today is genetically modified, processed in a plant, or sprayed with such heavy amounts of pesticides that our bodies cannot chemically handle it. Why do you think the amount of people suffering from heart disease is so high in the United States? Cancer? Diabetes? These diseases are the body's way of preserving itself in any way possible. When someone goes into a diabetic shock, it's their body's way of telling them "Stop feeding me sugar! I can't make enough insulin to balance it out! Help!" Unless that person gives his- or herself a quick insulin injection, they are in serious trouble.

I once heard James Chestnut say that "Pathology is just physiology gone wrong." If your physiology can go wrong based on what you eat, then it would seem logical that it can go right, also based on what you eat.

Why Raw Foods?

Raw foods are either uncooked or not cooked beyond 106-117 degrees, based on which book you read. The reason being is that living raw foods contain numerous enzymes and nutrients that our bodies' need. These nutrients are delivered to the digestive system in their true, unaltered form, available for distribution wherever the body sees fit. When we heat foods beyond 117 degrees, the enzymes and nutrients are lost through the process of cooking, and we're left with, in essence, dead food. Sure, cooked foods taste great, but the human body has to work double time to digest it, simply because the food itself has lost the majority, if not all, of its nutrients and enzymes. Because of this, the burden of digesting the cooked food falls solely on the body. The body must provide more of its own enzymes to break the food down. This will then fatigue the body, leading to the tired feeling we get most of the time after eating a cooked meal.

In the documentary Simply Raw, ten diabetic patients volunteered to spend 30 days at a raw food retreat in Arizona. Nine of them were Type II, meaning their bodies used to make insulin, but do not anymore based on bad diet and lifestyle choices. The other subject was Type I, meaning he has never been able to produce insulin. Within five days of eating nothing but living raw foods, all nine Type II patients went completely off their insulin. The single Type I patient was taking 50% less. One man was taking 14 medications when he started. By the end of the 30 days, he was taking zero. Another woman was on 6 medications herself, and was taking nothing by the end as well. Even more miraculous, one of the Type II patients went in for a check-up 60 days later and actually discovered he had always been Type I. His body was not supposed to make insulin, yet it was, all because he ate nothing but live, uncooked foods.

If eating raw foods can literally change someone's physiology in just 30 days, think about what it could do over a longer period of time like six months, a year, two years, etc. The human body is a miraculous creation that knows exactly what it needs, when it needs it, and how much it needs. We see pharmacies on every street corner, but no one ever thinks to look at the pharmacy within themselves. Our society is bombarded by medications for every condition you can think of. As if that wasn't enough, then more medication is prescribed for side effects caused by the original medication, and on and on the vicious cycle goes.

If we make it a point to quit looking for pills, potions, and lotions to solve our health problems and, instead, start making better lifestyle choices, we will once again thrive as a nation.

And it all starts with what you put in your mouth.

You can read more on topics related to this and Upper Cervical Chiropractic at TheAtlasofLife.com.

The organic rave has hit the market within the last few years. Finally, people are starting to realize the harm that pesticides and chemicals can do to the body. The move to go organic has spun off from the innate need to stay healthy. And this is a good thing because organic products don't only bring forth goodness to the body - it also helps save the environment as well. With that said, it is best that people go for organic foods. And right now, there are organic lotions, creams, shampoos, and soaps available in the market as well. Organic fashion like bags, clothes, and shoes are being manufactured too.

When the label says organic, it means that the product is created with 100% natural ingredients. There are no chemicals included in the formulation. Furthermore, all the herbs and natural ingredients used in it are grown and processed using full organic methods.

Organic lotions are best for the skin and that's a fact. Think of it as a product that contains no harsh ingredients at all. Therefore it is the one most perfect product for your sensitive skin. Being organic means everything included in the bottle is safe, effective, and pure. There's nothing in there that can cause allergies. It doesn't contain harmful elements that can be absorbed by the skin and do damage to the internal organs at all.

To know if a lotion is an organic product, check the ingredients list on the label. If there's anything listed in there that sound like a chemical, then it isn't organic. Do you know that non-organic lotions today even contain toxic ingredients? Most manufacturers add petroleum-based products into their lotions to achieve a certain smell and consistency. Not all consumers know about it. And not a lot of people understand the effect those ingredients either. The only thing clear is that it may bring harm to the skin if used improperly. You wouldn't drink petroleum, right? So you shouldn't let your skin drink it either

If you want healthier and smoother skin, organic is the only way to go. There are lots of synthetic ingredients and chemical in almost all of the commercial brands today. You do not want any harsh ingredients applied onto your skin. So you have to make sure that you check the label of the lotion, or any product for that matter, that you would be purchasing. Buy organic lotions and you will be assured that you there will be no harmful ingredients penetrating your skin and your body.

Organic lotions conform to all the government mandated health standards. It doesn't use genetically modified ingredients or preservatives. You can be sure that your skin would enjoy only pure goodness from these types of products.

The most common ingredients of organic lotions are jojoba oil, coconut oil, grain alcohol, and other essential oils for fragrance. Grain alcohol is ethanol, a natural preservative that won't harm your skin as much as its alternatives can. Jojoba oil is known to effectively moisturize the skin. This is because this natural oil is very similar to what the skin produces. Coconut oil is used for optimum absorption. Other ingredients may include avocado oil; which makes the skin supple; lavender oil to add natural fragrance; and aloe vera extract for a smoother complexion.

Organic lotions are not that expensive. You can get a bottle for less than $10. But whatever the price difference is, you're actually paying for the peace of mind that these natural products bring. With the idea that your skin won't be harmed at all, you should be able to use these products as luxuriously as you can.

While in terms of effectiveness commercial lotions may be comparable to organics, the main difference lies in the side effects. The harsh chemicals found inside commercial lotions won't show any side effects outright. But slowly and without you noticing it, it is doing some damage inside your system. Over time, your skin, and probably your whole body, would show the effects of the chemicals found inside your favorite non-organic lotion.

So make the switch. Go for organic lotions today. You might just be saving yourself of the byproducts being absorbed onto your skin. It's not that commercial lotions are totally bad. But if you have a better alternative, why shouldn't you go for it instead?

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When was the last time you had a look at the ingredients on your skin care, cosmetics, shampoo even tooth paste? Could you pronounce the names of the ingredients? More importantly would you eat them?

I have been a keen consumer of natural and organic products for some time like most of us, however, I can get a bit slack sometimes. Recently I gained some real insight into what is in the standard shampoo, skincare and cosmetic lines and how those ingredients impact on our health and the health of our environment. At the bottom of this article I have included a list of ingredients you will not want to be putting in or on your body. It has certainly helped me re-focus on what's in the things I buy for my family and I to eat and put on our skin.

Have you ever bought a product because it said 'Natural' or 'Organic' on the label? You could reasonably expect that Natural meant safe, edible, food grade - is this, however, the definition used by skin care and cosmetic companies? I was fascinated to find that the beauty industry definition of 'natural' means that the ingredient may have started out as a natural ingredient, like coconut oil, for example. After being processed, heated, chemically treated, it no longer resembles the natural product is started out as - it's also no longer healthy, safe or food grade and it is definitely not edible. Yet the product is labeled as natural. How horrifying to think we buy these products and think we're doing ourselves a favor.

There are also products that claim to be organic, but do they have the organic symbol on the packaging confirming that they are in fact certified as organic? Most times I have found they do not which means they are not certified organic and have not been quality controlled at all. Certified organic means that there is a minimum of 95% certified organic ingredients excluding water. Pesticides are not used in farming the ingredients and there are no genetically modified or synthetic ingredients present either. Certainly, nothing on our list below of things to be avoided - so unless a product has been certified organic you cannot be sure it is in fact safe to consume or put on your body or in your environment

The following preservatives release formaldehyde, yes that's right the stuff they use to preserve dead flesh: Sodium hydroxymethylglycinate (Suttocide)‏, Imidazolidinyl urea (Germall 115), Diazolidinyl urea (Germall II)‏, Quaternium-15, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol (Bronopol)‏, DMDM Hydantoin (Glydant)‏ 1,4-dioxane and ethylene oxide contamination, You will also want to avoid these ingredients: 'PEG', 'polyethylene', 'polyethylene glycol', olyoxyethylene', anything that ends in '-eth-' (such as sodium laureth sulfate), 'oxynol', 'ceteareth' or 'oleth'.

These ingredients, nitrosamines, have been identified as one of the most potent classes of carcinogens, having caused cancer in more than 40 different animal species as well as in humans. NDELA is the specific nitrosamine "to which human exposure is the greatest," since it occurs "in cosmetics" and is "absorbed readily through the skin."

- Carcinogenesis 1985, National Cancer Institute

So ensure you avoid these ingredients: MEA (Monoethanolamine), DEA (Diethanolamine), TEA (Triethanolamine)‏e.g. Cocamide MEA, Cocamide DEA, DEA-Cetyl Phosphate, DEA Oleth-3 Phosphate, Lauramide DEA, Linoleamide MEA, Myristamide DEA, Oleamide DEA, Stearamide MEA, and TEA Lauryl sulphate.

These lists are not, in any way extensive, however, it's a place to start, if you are interested in more information look out for a book called 'Dangerous Beauty - Cosmetics and Personal Care' written by Peter Dingle and Toni Brown. It's a good start and not too complex to get your head around. My rule is if I don't think I can eat or and I can't pronounce it, it doesn't come home with me!

If you want to live a truly energetic and outrageously healthy, happy lives, then I suggest you ensure you are taking care of your body, fuel it effectively and minimize the amount of toxic chemicals you come into contact with both externally and internally. Your body will thank you for it.

Lenore Miller is the Creator and Founder of http://www.outrageouslyhealthy.com She brings together both tools of the conscious and unconscious mind to help you create the Outrageously Healthy Life you deserve. You can listen to Lenore's expert interviews by becoming a FREE member of outrageouslyhealthy.com, where you will hear authorities speak on everything from fuelling your body and exercising efficiently, to motivation and having a wardrobe that has you feeling fabulous. She also offers you the opportunity to work at an unconscious level by participating in group and individual coaching calls.

Lenore is a Keynote Speaker, Result Coach and NLP Practitioner and she holds a Bachelor of Social Science and a Diploma in Relationship counselling.