Natural Cures Not Medicine: 11/01/13

Most Read This Week:

How to regrow ginger at home from scraps you bought at the grocery store


Used for thousands of years in the far east, ginger tastes amazing and heals throughout the body! Ginger has multiple natural healing properties including but not limited to:

Heartburn:  Tea infused with fresh ginger has been known to be an effective treatment for heartburn.

Ovarian cancer:  A study out of the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center found that the powder of ginger can trigger apoptosis, or programmed cell death, in ovarian cancer cells.

Women's health:  Again, ginger tea to the rescue!  If you are suffering from menstrual cramps, male some tea infused with ginger and add a bit of brown sugar to find natural relief.

Learn more about health benefits of ginger that we have written about here: Health benefits of ginger

Growing ginger at home has multiple upsides, including it being fresher and organic, not to mention saves you money. How to regrow ginger from scraps: 

Plant a small chunk off of your piece of ginger in potting soil with the newest buds facing up. Ginger enjoys non-direct sunlight in a warm moist environment. Before long, it will begin to regrow shoots and roots. Once the plant is established and you’re ready to harvest, pull up the whole plant, including the roots. Remove a piece of the ginger, and re-plant it to repeat the growing process.

Here is a good video on replanting ginger:

Top 10 Most Effective Detox Tips

Carly Fraser | Live Love Fruit

Image: healthybliss.net
Although our top detoxing organs like the liver, kidneys, and intestines help remove toxins, they sometimes need a little help. With the increase in toxic agents polluting the earth (be it in our food, air, water, household products or personal products), our organs become overwhelmed and eventually fail to function at their most optimal level. Living without toxic buildup is pretty much impossible, and this is why our bodies have been so brilliantly blessed with these amazing detox organs!

When our detox organs are compromised, we may start to feel overly tired, get sick more often or develop diseases and illnesses that can’t be explained otherwise. Free radicals from toxins build up in the body over time and can physically affect both the structure and function of cells, leading to a myriad of health problems. Fibromyalgia, autoimmune diseases, chronic fatigue, migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, premature aging, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, skin conditions, arthritis, cancer, food allergies/intolerances are all signs that your body is suffering from toxic buildup.

Here are some simple, easy ways to help your body with the detox process and prevent toxic buildup.

1. Drink 1 litre of lemon water upon waking
Lemon water in the morning is an incredibly efficient way to flush out toxins. Sleep is the time the body can undergo repair and detoxification. Upon waking, making sure you drink at least 1 litre of water (especially with added lemon) takes the buildup of these toxins and flushes them out. Why add lemon? The lemon acts as a natural diuretic, which means that is helps flush out unwanted materials by increasing the rate of urination in the body. It will also help boost your immune system, balance your pH, help with weight loss, aid in digestion and hydrate your lymphatic system.

2. Can’t read it? Don’t eat it!
Eating heavily processed foods with ingredients you can’t pronounce is a sure way to increase toxic build-up in the body. If you can’t read the ingredients on labels, then put it back on the shelf and don’t think about buying it! Staying away from anything packaged (bottled, canned, boxed) is an easy way to avoid this issue altogether.

3. Become a friend to mono-meals
Mono-meals (eating one food item at a time – for example, just eating watermelon in the morning, or just eating oranges for a meal) are a wonderful way to speed up digestion and prevent unnecessary processing of different food groups in our intestine. When we overload our digestive tract with a variety of different foods, we become slowed down and tired – this also puts more stress and work involved in our organs which could otherwise use a break every once in awhile by eating more simply.

4. Boost your health with herbs
Dandelion, black walnut, cilantro, worm wood, milk thistle – the list goes on! These helpful herbs have been used for centuries to cleanse the various detox organs and systems of the body. They are known across many cultures to help with various ailments and health issues. Dandelion, for example supports bile production. Bile helps transport toxins out of the body, and prevents toxic buildup.

5. Eliminate animal products
If you want to truly get deep down into the detox process, you should eliminate all animal-based food products from your diet (this includes meat (fish, red meat & white meat), eggs, and dairy). Animal products produce an acidic state in the body which leaves acid residues in the blood and tissues. Animal products also produce highly putrefactive protein waste in the bowels. Cancer cells thrive on animal products (due to their highly acidic state in the body), and can rapidly multiply in this pH level.

In addition, animal products require an incredible amount of energy and enzyme power to digest and assimilate (much more than fruit and vegetables). When the body is focused on processing and digesting food, it cannot spare extra energy to go toward cleansing and repairing itself. Dumping animal products altogether will give your body more energy to focus on detoxing and repairing instead of digesting all the time.

6. Get your blood pumping
It is very beneficial to get sufficient exercise every day to help your body sweat out toxins and to keep your lymphatic system flowing. Exercising also helps burn fat (especially when you hit the higher intensity forms of exercise like high intensity interval training), and fat tends to hold onto toxins the firmest – allowing your body to shed fat is also helping it expel and clean out toxic waste.

7. Get in tune with nature
Spending time in nature is crucial! Even if you get to make it out to the park with trees and grass (or snow) a couple times a week will help ground yourself so you feel more alive! I personally try to go into a nearby forest a couple times a week and since I have been doing this I have felt an overall sense of calmness and serenity. I feel incredibly at home when I am surrounded by nature. What does going into nature have to do with detox? When we are stressed, free radicals are formed, and free radicals can be viewed as a form of toxin. Nature is simply a way to de-stress, connect with mother earth, and feel at one with the beauty of the natural world.

8. Drink more water
Why is water important to detox? If we are not properly hydrated, then our cells will draw water from the bloodstream and thus can put major pressure on the heart and vasculature in the body. Even mild dehydration prevents the kidneys from properly purifying the blood. When the kidneys aren’t functioning, then the workload on other detox organs like the liver and gallbladder become stronger, and can caused them to become severely stressed. Then health problems begin to develop (constipation, skin conditions, nosebleeds, UTIs, sinus problems, headaches) and symptoms may be wrongly attributed to something non-related.

Drinking at least 3-4L of water daily will dramatically improve your health and overall state of mind. You will digest your food better, your joints will ache less, you will lose weight and have better immunity. Water stimulates the kidneys, liver and digestive system and will in turn accelerate toxin and fat elimination.

9. Focus on raw fruit and vegetables
This point is a given – eating more raw fruit and vegetables will make you shine! The fibre in plant matter helps push out built-up waste matter in the colon (which is filled with toxins, and constantly gets re-absorbed back into the blood stream if not eliminated). Not only that, but the antioxidants in fruit and vegetables help combat free radicals in the body and helps the elimination organs with their job. Consuming fruit and vegetables in their raw state also makes the enzymes and nutrients more bio-available in your body, helping you become vitamin or mineral deficient-free. Vegetables and fruit are very easily digestible too, meaning that your body can put more energy toward expelling toxins, and repairing our cells and tissues.

10. Practice slowing down & breathing
Slowing down and appreciating the small things in life are crucial to attain a calm state of mind and reduce stress levels. Deep diaphragmatic breathing is especially important when cleansing/detoxing. It is also simple to attain this every day – take 10-15 minutes a day to sit with yourself and breathe. Focus on your breaths, and clear the mind. Free radicals are formed when we are stressed, so slowing down, breathing, practicing to be present and meditating are great practices to help calm and nourish your body.

Source: http://livelovefruit.com/2013/10/top-10-detox-tips/

7 Natural Alternatives that are Better than Drugs for Health and Healing

by Sayer Ji | GreenMedInfo

Image: commons.wikimedia.org
It is quite easy to get caught up in the allopathic model of treating surface symptoms, albeit naturally.  This
'natural allopathy,' if you will, entices people to look for 'natural cure' shortcuts and Band-Aids instead of address the deeper issues associated with avoiding, limiting and addressing environmental exposures, reducing stress, and improving diet and exercise, for instance. In a culture that pops hundreds of millions of doses of drugs and supplements on a daily basis, it is increasingly difficult to break free from the powerful psychological pull to ingest something -- be it a natural or synthetic "magic pill"; its effects real or imagined -- instead of address the underlying problems.

This is also why part of our project is to identify peer-reviewed published research from biomedical journals indicating that there are therapeutic actions, from walking to yoga, dietary changes to exercising, that are at least as effective and often superior to conventional drug-based treatments.

So, here is a good smattering of data that edifies the notion that sometimes, we do not need to "take anything" to stimulate our body's innate self-healing abilities, as non-invasive therapies – including doing nothing (i.e. watchful waiting) -- can accomplish favorable results:

Colored light versus Benzyl peroxide for Acne: A combination of blue and red light irradiation therapy was found superior to 5% benzoyl peroxide in treating acne vulgaris without side effects. [i] Another study found blue light irradiation therapy alone as effective as 5% benzyl peroxide in the treatment of acne, but with fewer side effects.[ii]

Dietary changes versus Drug Treatment for Hypertension: A high fiber, low sodium, low fat diet is superior to the beta-blocker drug metoprolol in hypertensive type 2 diabetic subjects. [iii]

Acupuncture and moxibustion versus pharmaceutical treatment for Sudden Deafness: Acupuncture and moxibustion therapy was found to be superior in treating sudden deafness as compared with the routine drug-based therapy.[iv]

Acupuncture versus Drug Treatment for treating Migraines: Acupuncture treatment exhibited greater effectiveness than drug therapy with flunarizine in the first months of therapy for migraine and with superior tolerability.[v]

Dietary changes versus high-dose steroid for Crohn's disease: An elemental diet is as effective as high dose steroid treatment in improving Crohn's disease activity in children, while superior in supporting the growth of the children.[vi] Two additional studies found similar results in adults with mild-to-moderately active Crohn's disease.[vii] [viii]

Aromatherapy massage versus Tylenol for Menstrual Pain: Aromatherapy massage on the abdomen was found superior to Tylenol for alleviating menstrual pain in high school girls.[ix]

Hypnosis versus Valium for Anxiety: Hypnosis during embryo transfer is as effective as diazepam in terms of pregnancy ratio and anxiolytic effects, but with fewer side effects.[x]

Yoga technique versus Antidepressant Drug for Depression: Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (a rhythmic breathing technique) was found superior to the drug imipramine in the treatment of depression.[xi]
Yogic intervention versus Drug treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Yogic intervention consisting of poses and breathing exercises was found superior to conventional treatment in diarrhea-predominant IBS.[xii]

Foot Reflexology versus Drug treatment for Insomnia: Foot reflexology (Wooden needle technique) was found superior to the drug Alprazolam in the treatment of insomnia.[xiii]

Watchful waiting versus Drug treatment for childhood Ear Infection: Watchful waiting compares favorably to immediate antibiotic treatment for some children with non-severe acute otitis media.[xiv]

This sampling reflects only a minor subset of data within our Therapeutic Actions index, one of six databases on the GreenMedInfo.com open access site.  Presently, we have 216 distinct actions indexed, which can be viewed on our Therapeutic Actions Display Page. You may be surprised how simple conscious acts such as chewing your food thoroughly, laughing or a walk in the forest can produce healing responses within the human body.

Article source: greenmedinfo.com

Citations: 

[i] P Papageorgiou, A Katsambas, A Chu. Phototherapy with blue (415 nm) and red (660 nm) light in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Br J Dermatol. 2000 May;142(5):973-8. PMID: 10809858
[ii] Lúcia H F de Arruda, Vanessa Kodani, Antonio Bastos Filho, Carla Bassanezi Mazzaro. [A prospective, randomized, open and comparative study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of blue light treatment versus a topical benzoyl peroxide 5% formulation in patients with acne grade II and III]. An Bras Dermatol. 2009 Oct;84(5):463-8. PMID: 20098847

[iii] P J Pacy, P M Dodson, A J Kubicki, R F Fletcher, K G Taylor. Comparison of the hypotensive and metabolic effects of metoprolol therapy with a high fibre, low sodium, low fat diet in hypertensive type 2 diabetic subjects. Diabetes Res. 1984 Nov;1(4):201-7. PMID: 6099231

[iv] Xin-hua Fan, Ya-nan Ding, Xiang-hui Chang, Yu-lu Ouyang, Qiang Xie. [Comparative observation on acupuncture-moxibustion and western medication for treatment of sudden deafness]. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2003 Jan;180(1):263-9. PMID: 20942277

[v] Gianni Allais, Cristina De Lorenzo, Piero E Quirico, Gisella Airola, Giampiero Tolardo, Ornella Mana, Chiara Benedetto. Acupuncture in the prophylactic treatment of migraine without aura: a comparison with flunarizine. Bone. 2009 Nov 26. PMID: 12390610

[vi] I R Sanderson, S Udeen, P S Davies, M O Savage, J A Walker-Smith. Remission induced by an elemental diet in small bowel Crohn's disease. Arch Dis Child. 1987 Feb;62(2):123-7. PMID: 3548602

[vii] M Okada, T Yao, T Yamamoto, K Takenaka, K Imamura, K Maeda, K Fujita. Controlled trial comparing an elemental diet with prednisolone in the treatment of active Crohn's disease. Hepatogastroenterology. 1990 Feb;37(1):72-80. PMID: 2179093

[viii] G Zoli, M Carè, M Parazza, C Spanò, P L Biagi, M Bernardi, G Gasbarrini. A randomized controlled study comparing elemental diet and steroid treatment in Crohn's disease. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 1997 Aug;11(4):735-40. PMID: 9305483

[ix] Myung-Haeng Hur, Myeong Soo Lee, Ka-Yeon Seong, Mi-Kyoung Lee. Aromatherapy massage on the abdomen for alleviating menstrual pain in high school girls: a preliminary controlled clinical study. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012 ;2012:187163. Epub 2011 Sep 22. PMID: 21949670

[x] Patrick Catoire, Laurent Delaunay, Thomas Dannappel, Dominique Baracchini, Sabine Marcadet-Fredet, Olivier Moreau, Luc Pacaud, Daniel Przyrowski, Emmanuel Marret. Hypnosis versus diazepam for embryo transfer: a randomized controlled study. Am J Clin Hypn. 2013 Apr ;55(4):378-86. PMID: 23724572

[xi] N Janakiramaiah, B N Gangadhar, P J Naga Venkatesha Murthy, M G Harish, D K Subbakrishna, A Vedamurthachar. Antidepressant efficacy of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) in melancholia: a randomized comparison with electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and imipramine. J Affect Disord. 2000 Jan-Mar;57(1-3):255-9. PMID: 10708840

[xii] Indu Taneja, K K Deepak, G Poojary, I N Acharya, R M Pandey, M P Sharma. Yogic versus conventional treatment in diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome: a randomized control study. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback. 2004 Mar;29(1):19-33. PMID: 15077462

[xiii] Yu-ling Gong, Yan-bo Zhang, Chang Han, Ying-yong Jiang, Yuan Li, Shi-chang Chen, Zeng-yu Liu. [Clinical observation on therapeutic effect of the pressing plantar reflex area with wooden needle for treatment of patients with insomnia]. Zhongguo Zhen Jiu. 2009 Nov;29(11):935-7. PMID: 19994698

[xiv] David P McCormick, Tasnee Chonmaitree, Carmen Pittman, Kokab Saeed, Norman R Friedman, Tatsuo Uchida, Constance D Baldwin. Nonsevere acute otitis media: a clinical trial comparing outcomes of watchful waiting versus immediate antibiotic treatment. Pediatrics. 2005 Jun;115(6):1455-65. PMID: 15930204

How to build an underground greenhouse that you can grow in all year

DIY Underground Greenhouse - #OccupyTesla

Image: www.treehugger.com
In Ground Greenhouses have many benefits; the surrounding Earth provides excellent insulation, it's not an eyesore on the surface and most of all protecting plants from frost. Links to learning below.

The underground greenhouse method allows for natural insulation, while optimizing solar absorbance. These partially subterranean greenhouses appear to be the best for growing winter horticultural crops, and have been adopted in numerous countries, such as Japan, Russia, Korea, and now even the United States. These underground greenhouses can be something built very small for an individual or family, or it can be much larger to accommodate for more commercial needs. But it has proven to be more beneficial for growers than conventional methods which are at the mercy of varying weather conditions. Cheaper than aquaponics, but more effort than urban homesteading, an underground greenhouse is almost universally viable, more than affordable, and ecologically smart.
http://www.exposingthetruth.co/underground-greenhouse/

Underground greenhouse diagram via #OccupyTesla

Oehlers method utilizes a coldsink to help keep warmer while Greigers plan utilizes insulation between bags and earth. All 3 plans utilize a form of thermal mass to retain warmth.
http://naturalbuildingblog.com/earthbag-pit-greenhouse-plans/

Here is a video of a tour of the Walipini underground greenhouse:


Directory pertaining to the Wallipini underground greenhouse method.
http://peswiki.com/index.php/Directory:Walipini_Underground_Greenhouses

Mike Oehler book to purchase
http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Sheltered-Solar-Greenhouse-Book/dp/0960446400/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357419115&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=earth+integrated+greenhouse

"Earth Sheltered Solar Greenhouse" - pit construction
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hV8Teiskfo


GMO Farming Is Poisoning The World's Drinking Water

Image: Raw For Beauty
Monsanto’s Herbicide Linked To Groundwater Contamination

In a groundbreaking study published in the journal Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry last year, evidence surfaced that glyphosate, the active ingredient in the Monsanto’s patented herbicide Roundup, is flowing freely into the groundwater in areas where it is being applied.1 The researchers found that 41% of the 140 groundwater samples taken from Catalonia Spain, had levels beyond the limit of quantification – indicating that, despite the manufacturer’s claims, glyphosate herbicide does not break down rapidly in the environment, and is accumulating there in concerning quantities.

Why Is Groundwater Contamination An Important Finding?

Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface, that supplies aquifers, wells and springs.  If a chemical like glyphosate is mobile enough to get into the groundwater and is intrinsically resistant to being biodegraded (after all, it is being used to kill/degrade living things – not the other way around), significant environmental exposures to humans using the water are inevitable. After all, according to the USGS, 88,000 tons were used in the US in 2007 alone.

Keep in mind that glyphosate is considered by the EPA as a Class III toxic substance, fatal to an adult at 30 grams, and has been linked to over 20 adverse health effects in the peer-reviewed, biomedical literature.
This groundwater contamination study adds to another highly concerning finding from March, 2011, published in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, where researchers found the chemical in 60-100% of all air and rain samples tested, indicating that glyphosate pollution and exposure is now omnipresent in the US. When simply breathing makes you susceptible to glyphosate exposure, we know we are dealing with a problem of unprecedented scale.

In fact, glyphosate’s broad spectrum toxicity has been identified to be one potential cause for the disturbing loss of indispensable food-starter bacteria from soils and cultured foods within certain regions of the world, indicating that GMO farming may be depleting the microbial biodiversity of the soil, and ultimately its ability to remain fertile.

Who Is Responsible For The Groundwater Contamination? 

Monsanto is a multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation, presently dominating the global genetically engineered seed market, with 90% market share in the US alone. It is also the world’s largest producer of the herbicide glyphosate, marketed as “Roundup,” among other brand names.  If you are eating corn and soy, or any of their ten thousand plus byproducts – and it does not have a USDA organic logo – you are getting the Monsanto “double whammy”: the genetic modification (GM) of your health (and gene expression) that follows the consumption of GM food (because we are – literally – what we eat), and ceaseless chemical exposure to glyphosate, as all Monsanto-engineered foods have been designed to be glyphosate-resistant, and therefore are saturated with it.

Is Monsanto’s Herbicide A New Agent Orange?

Roundup is not Monsanto’s first entry into the systemic herbicide market. Monsanto admits it manufactured the herbicide/defoliant Agent Orange from 1965 to 1969, which Vietnam estimated killed and maimed 400,000 people and resulted in the 500,000 children being born with birth defects.

The true devastation caused by Agent Orange was covered up for many years. We may find that Monsanto’s Roundup, and its primary active ingredient glyphosate, may be causing a similar degree of devastation to both environmental and human health under the lidless, though not very watchful eye (as far as business interests are concerned), of our regulatory agencies.

Indeed, glyphosate is a powerful endocrine disrupter. Exceedingly small amounts are capable of mimicking and/or disrupting hormonal pathways, cell receptor sites and signaling. Research culled from The National Library of Medicine links it to 17 adverse pharmacological actions, including carcinogenicity, genotoxicity, neurotoxicty, hepatoxicity, and nephrotoxicity.

Source: Raw For Beauty via Green Med Info

Disclaimer:

Before trying anything you find on the internet you should fully investigate your options and get further advice from professionals.

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