Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Many nutritionists, doctors, researchers, and parents are now saying that this is a made-up and bogus disease…oopps…Disorder. It breaks my heart to hear about another child being put on these dangerous drugs. Besides the physical danger, the psychological impact on these children can also be devastating. I’ve read an article written by a Natural Health Editor who quotes a newly released study from the New York Medical College of Family Medicine. This is a very sad part of the article, to me. Here’s the quote…“When children are labeled as deviant and placed on Adderall or other drugs to treat ADHD, their self-confidence is undermined and they lose their ability to perform well and to study without them. Children who have lost faith in their own abilities are destined to lose their individuality and their ability to think and advocate for themselves. They are destined to grow into adults who are unable to participate in and defend their democracy.”
“Prescriptions for Adderall or any of the other ADHD drugs send children a clear message that something is wrong with them because they are unable to tolerate endless days of sitting in a seat doing irrelevant tasks and busy work. It teaches them that the problem is not with the school or the education system; the problem is with them.”
It is very easy for such a disenfranchised student to slip into being an unproductive and non-participating member of society. These students are open to self-destructive behaviors and have an inability to form meaningful relationships. Some estimates are that 15% of our students are on these drugs.
So then, what to do? Of course, my first suggestion is nutrition, which would include probiotics. That’s another blog! Discipline and exercise would also need to be incorporated into the child's regimen.
However, if a change in diet doesn’t help, a parent might want to look into bacteria, specifically bartonella and babesia. Yep! Our little friends that are transmitted by ticks, and in some cases by fleas or other biting critters. Probably, if you do not have a leading researcher of parasites and infections of the human body in your area, the best place to start would be a lab that does specialty blood work. Sometimes a compounding pharmacist might know of a clinic or Dr. in your area who is well versed in the field. A veteranarian might be able to help, also. If all this fails, get on the internet. Your child’s future is at stake!
As always...Healthy Days to You...Your Smiling Maven
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
Still more Vitamin D!!!
I’ve been reading for the last few months that VitD, lack of, has a lot to do with developing Multiple Sclerosis. That horse has left the barn!!! Well, finally today a report came floating across this computer screen, from the Vitamin D council, that says a number of epidemiological studies suggest VitD has a treatment effect in MS, not just a preventive effect. Yahoo!!! So, it is suggested that while we are waiting for more studies to be done, a person could take some initiative and have their VitD level checked and make sure it is in the “high normal” range. It is suggested that 10,000IU a day may be in order. Wow!!!
Guess I’ll up my intake again and have my level checked again this summer. Should be interesting to say the least!
Another article came through about a gene variant and lack of VitD as being linked to the development of MS. This research suggests that vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy and the early years may increase the risk of the offspring developing MS later in life. This area of research is apparently referred to as epigenetics. In other words, the heritable changes or gene expression may be caused by mechanisms other than the underlying DNA sequence. Vitamin D or insufficient amounts of VitD can cause a gene, with this particular variant, to “malfunction”. I think that I can promise you that my mother probably had low levels of VitD. We’ll never know. I’m just glad that my daughters and granddaughters are taking supplemental VitD. So much more research to be done on Vitamins, in general, and genetics. Optimal health for all!! What a good goal!
Healthy Days to You...Your Smiling Maven
Guess I’ll up my intake again and have my level checked again this summer. Should be interesting to say the least!
Another article came through about a gene variant and lack of VitD as being linked to the development of MS. This research suggests that vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy and the early years may increase the risk of the offspring developing MS later in life. This area of research is apparently referred to as epigenetics. In other words, the heritable changes or gene expression may be caused by mechanisms other than the underlying DNA sequence. Vitamin D or insufficient amounts of VitD can cause a gene, with this particular variant, to “malfunction”. I think that I can promise you that my mother probably had low levels of VitD. We’ll never know. I’m just glad that my daughters and granddaughters are taking supplemental VitD. So much more research to be done on Vitamins, in general, and genetics. Optimal health for all!! What a good goal!
Healthy Days to You...Your Smiling Maven
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Ready for Spring!!!
It’s nice to feel “well” again!! I’ve had 7 days of being attacked by a virus and it has not been fun! MDH and I came down with this last Tuesday afternoon. It’s been a slow slog for me. He was over it on Saturday. So, today I rewarded myself with a facial. I had the dry nose after having the red nose and the rest of my face felt like sandpaper. So I gave myself a microdermabrasion and some super hydrating moisturizer and my skin feels so much better. I could face the real world now. Sort of like spring cleaning!
I also decided that I could actually get some work done on the new baby’s quilt. It’s such a pleasure to have the “umph” to do things. I’d think that I would be used to dragging this body around by now, but I’m not. “Dragging” is not my speed. I even felt so good that I told MDH that I felt well enough to run to the store. He gave me that “Look” and a very stern “NO, Don’t even think about it!" Pushing myself and being surprised that I’m out of energy is just the way it is! So, I went out to the greenhouse instead and messed around in there for a few minutes. That was fun and Yes, it proved him right. I was exhausted very quickly.
Working with the plants and seeing how they are recovering from the cold and dark winter is very encouraging. Kind of like the human body when we remove the undesirable things that are making us ill. Thriving is so much easier with proper temperature, fluid, and nourishment. The goal is to stay on this path. Spring really is just around the corner!!
Healthy Days to You...Your Smiling Maven
I also decided that I could actually get some work done on the new baby’s quilt. It’s such a pleasure to have the “umph” to do things. I’d think that I would be used to dragging this body around by now, but I’m not. “Dragging” is not my speed. I even felt so good that I told MDH that I felt well enough to run to the store. He gave me that “Look” and a very stern “NO, Don’t even think about it!" Pushing myself and being surprised that I’m out of energy is just the way it is! So, I went out to the greenhouse instead and messed around in there for a few minutes. That was fun and Yes, it proved him right. I was exhausted very quickly.
Working with the plants and seeing how they are recovering from the cold and dark winter is very encouraging. Kind of like the human body when we remove the undesirable things that are making us ill. Thriving is so much easier with proper temperature, fluid, and nourishment. The goal is to stay on this path. Spring really is just around the corner!!
Healthy Days to You...Your Smiling Maven
Friday, February 20, 2009
Health...In Nutshell
A few days ago someone asked me what I considered important things to do for a healthy body. This person had recently decided that something needed to change in her life or she might end up like some of her relatives and she didn’t like the picture of what she had to look forward to. So, could I tell her what I considered some of the best things that I had done? I said of course, but let me organize some of my thoughts and I’ll post something on my blog.
First, let’s break this into different areas of bodily needs. 1---Diet 2---Supplements 3---Physical Activity 4---Emotional or Spiritual Health
1---Diet…. Perhaps the most important change to a person’s diet, in my opinion, is to eliminate refined sugar. Yep…It’s very difficult, but I think it is the most crucial diet change to do. I’m still struggling but the less sugar I consume the better I feel. The fungus connection and the havoc sugar reeks on a body is incredible. It’s not called “White Death” for nothing. The other thing to add to one's diet would be some kind of probiotic or fermented food. Also, add as much fresh vegetables and fruit as budget allows. Thoses 5 to 7 servings per day on the food pyrimid are crucial.
2---Supplements…. Until recently, I would have suggested a good, all natural multi vitamin 1st. They are still important, but if you have to choose, I consider Vitamin D to be the most important supplement. Without adequate vitamin d, our bodies are at great risk for any number of diseases. I just received another newsletter about Vit. D. Very crucial to have adequate levels during pregnancy….. Another blog.
3---Physical Activity…. This is another area that is so easy to ignore. We say to ourselves that we are too tired or I’ll do it tomorrow, or I’ve been really busy today, so that must count. The experts tell us to get our heart rate up for 20 minutes at least 3 times per week. If you’re confined to a wheel chair, that is really difficult, but I’ve read that there are some yoga movements designed for just this situation. This is another area where I struggle. To my generation, exercise was for P.E. class in high school.
4---Emotional or Spiritual Health….This is an area of life that we tend to think has nothing to do with our physical health. However, research shows that those who struggle emotionally tend to be less well physically. A person has to make their own Spiritual Peace with their God or just figure out how to keep it all together. If you need help there are plenty of loving and qualified Pastors. Also, there are great self help books to guide you thru turbulant or trying times. Since I’ve been blessed with a deep and abiding faith from childhood, this is an area that is second nature to me. My faith is not always on my sleeve, but there none the less. Also, I have a very loving and supportive family. Yes, I’m very grateful for my blessings and very thankful.
This is just a thumb nail sketch of some basic things that I consider are important to one’s overall good health. Start here and read, read, and read some more. New things are being published every day that pertain to our health. Ask questions, ask for clarification, and ask some more.
Healthy Days to You…Your Smiling Maven
First, let’s break this into different areas of bodily needs. 1---Diet 2---Supplements 3---Physical Activity 4---Emotional or Spiritual Health
1---Diet…. Perhaps the most important change to a person’s diet, in my opinion, is to eliminate refined sugar. Yep…It’s very difficult, but I think it is the most crucial diet change to do. I’m still struggling but the less sugar I consume the better I feel. The fungus connection and the havoc sugar reeks on a body is incredible. It’s not called “White Death” for nothing. The other thing to add to one's diet would be some kind of probiotic or fermented food. Also, add as much fresh vegetables and fruit as budget allows. Thoses 5 to 7 servings per day on the food pyrimid are crucial.
2---Supplements…. Until recently, I would have suggested a good, all natural multi vitamin 1st. They are still important, but if you have to choose, I consider Vitamin D to be the most important supplement. Without adequate vitamin d, our bodies are at great risk for any number of diseases. I just received another newsletter about Vit. D. Very crucial to have adequate levels during pregnancy….. Another blog.
3---Physical Activity…. This is another area that is so easy to ignore. We say to ourselves that we are too tired or I’ll do it tomorrow, or I’ve been really busy today, so that must count. The experts tell us to get our heart rate up for 20 minutes at least 3 times per week. If you’re confined to a wheel chair, that is really difficult, but I’ve read that there are some yoga movements designed for just this situation. This is another area where I struggle. To my generation, exercise was for P.E. class in high school.
4---Emotional or Spiritual Health….This is an area of life that we tend to think has nothing to do with our physical health. However, research shows that those who struggle emotionally tend to be less well physically. A person has to make their own Spiritual Peace with their God or just figure out how to keep it all together. If you need help there are plenty of loving and qualified Pastors. Also, there are great self help books to guide you thru turbulant or trying times. Since I’ve been blessed with a deep and abiding faith from childhood, this is an area that is second nature to me. My faith is not always on my sleeve, but there none the less. Also, I have a very loving and supportive family. Yes, I’m very grateful for my blessings and very thankful.
This is just a thumb nail sketch of some basic things that I consider are important to one’s overall good health. Start here and read, read, and read some more. New things are being published every day that pertain to our health. Ask questions, ask for clarification, and ask some more.
Healthy Days to You…Your Smiling Maven
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Candida...Not Candy
Well…Hello! It’s been awhile. I’ve been busy with “busy work”. I’ve been making a quilt top for Granddaughter #5, who is soon to be with us, and tweaking my diet, and just “stuff” in general. Life…it can get out of control, sometime.
However, the “tweaking” is what I want to talk about tonight. I’ve been working on ridding my body of excess fungus for about 3 years. I’ve also sort of “fallen off the wagon” and hit a plateau. So, I’ve been reading and thinking and doing the “Hmmmm” thing, a lot. Why do we Americans have so many chronic illnesses and other countries do not?...until they start adopting the standard American diet. What is in our diet that is so different than theirs?
Possible areas to explore…More refined foods than theirs….More vaccines given at an earlier age…Different oils used for cooking and all areas of food preparation…Different grains…Different grain storage (commercial storage)…More cooked foods as opposed to raw foods? I could go on if I really wanted to think about the different areas that I’ve read about. But, tonight I’m looking at fungus.
One of the newsletters that I’ve been following since I’ve been ridding myself of candida, is “Know the Cause”, by Doug Kauffman. Yes, he’s very one sided. Basically, he insists candida overgrowth is the primary cause of all of our health challenges. He just might be right. I’ve read other articles that are similar to his. He has quite an informative web site. On there is a video that is an interview between Kauffman and an oncology doctor from Italy. It shows pictures of cancer and how it is being cured simply by flooding the cancer with sodium bicarbonate. Yes, alkalizing the body. This I’ve read about before. There are other videos on the site and I’m going to do some more research. Meanwhile, I’m being a bit more strict on dietary intake, especially in the area of sugar and grains. I’ll keep you posted.
I’m also going to a Nutralite seminar later in the month. I can hardly wait. The presentation is going to be mainly about inflammation. Of course, Kauffman insists that inflammation is caused by fungus. It will be an interesting evening and I’m sure I’ll have a lot more to think about!!! Until then…
Healthy Days to You....Your Smiling Maven
However, the “tweaking” is what I want to talk about tonight. I’ve been working on ridding my body of excess fungus for about 3 years. I’ve also sort of “fallen off the wagon” and hit a plateau. So, I’ve been reading and thinking and doing the “Hmmmm” thing, a lot. Why do we Americans have so many chronic illnesses and other countries do not?...until they start adopting the standard American diet. What is in our diet that is so different than theirs?
Possible areas to explore…More refined foods than theirs….More vaccines given at an earlier age…Different oils used for cooking and all areas of food preparation…Different grains…Different grain storage (commercial storage)…More cooked foods as opposed to raw foods? I could go on if I really wanted to think about the different areas that I’ve read about. But, tonight I’m looking at fungus.
One of the newsletters that I’ve been following since I’ve been ridding myself of candida, is “Know the Cause”, by Doug Kauffman. Yes, he’s very one sided. Basically, he insists candida overgrowth is the primary cause of all of our health challenges. He just might be right. I’ve read other articles that are similar to his. He has quite an informative web site. On there is a video that is an interview between Kauffman and an oncology doctor from Italy. It shows pictures of cancer and how it is being cured simply by flooding the cancer with sodium bicarbonate. Yes, alkalizing the body. This I’ve read about before. There are other videos on the site and I’m going to do some more research. Meanwhile, I’m being a bit more strict on dietary intake, especially in the area of sugar and grains. I’ll keep you posted.
I’m also going to a Nutralite seminar later in the month. I can hardly wait. The presentation is going to be mainly about inflammation. Of course, Kauffman insists that inflammation is caused by fungus. It will be an interesting evening and I’m sure I’ll have a lot more to think about!!! Until then…
Healthy Days to You....Your Smiling Maven
Thursday, February 5, 2009
No More Statins!!!
Good News!!! No Great News!!! My friend called and with the information that I gave her, she was able to have an intelligent, informed discussion with her Dr. and she is now off all statins. She is so relieved and happy...and I am happy for her. She has had all available tests for heart disease known to man and they could not find anything wrong with her. But because she had high cholesterol, and was uninformed or under-informed about her health options, she was put on statins. She has been worried and frightened for 20 years about an eminent heart attack, even though all of her tests came back negative for heart disease, but because she had high cholesterol, she was told that she could have a heart attack at any minute. Her Dr. has agreed, now, to help her manage her condition, naturally! I'm thrilled for her.
The last time she talked to her Dr. about getting off of these drugs and about all of the side effects that she was experiencing, she was told "You can either die from high cholesterol or you can die from kidney failure. It's your choice." What a difference a little knowledge makes!
If you are confronted with this kind of a situation, do a little research before blindly following the pharmaceutical industries plan for your life!!
Healthy Days to You..Your Smiling Maven
Note... This blog is in regard to my post on Jan 26th.
The last time she talked to her Dr. about getting off of these drugs and about all of the side effects that she was experiencing, she was told "You can either die from high cholesterol or you can die from kidney failure. It's your choice." What a difference a little knowledge makes!
If you are confronted with this kind of a situation, do a little research before blindly following the pharmaceutical industries plan for your life!!
Healthy Days to You..Your Smiling Maven
Note... This blog is in regard to my post on Jan 26th.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Stop the Insanity!
That’s what the writer of the article says and I have to agree with him! Why do we have a “war on drugs” and then we pump our children full of drugs? Legal drugs are almost as dangerous in some cases as illegal drugs. New research has been published in the journal of Pediatrics that reveals that ADHD drugs prescribed to children are causing them to have hallucinations. Some of these children are experiencing bizarre psychotic effects with these mind altering drugs that are molecularly identical to street drugs. I find myself internally weeping for these children. Our country has decided that a spirited, busy, happy child is a sick child and needs to be turned into a zombie for an adult’s convenience. IMHO The article is at NaturalNews.com—ADHD Drugs Cause Hallucinations in Children. Very enlightening, since I just learned that some young people who spent their childhood on these drugs are now having mental problems as adults. Of course, these young people have spent a little time experimenting with street drugs also. They have spent the majority of their lives on some kind of mind numbing drug. I remember their mother telling me that she loved shopping at Costco because she could get all sorts of pre-prepared food and then throw it in the microwave and dinner was done. I remember wincing at the time and saying “No, no, don’t do that.” All those children needed was a good diet and a little discipline and a mommy and daddy on the “same page”. I fear that this numbing of our children is happening way too often.
I just read another article, as I was researching something else, that spoke of an overgrowth of Candida being responsible for children’s behavior and allergy problems. A change of diet can make a big difference in a child’s life. A parent might want to look into no sugar and adding probiotics. You might be pleasantly surprised!
I seem a little down, but I‘m not really. We’ve had a good weekend and even had a little sunshine! And I’m working on a quilt for Granddaughter No5. She’ll be here before we know it! All of the girls are so different. It will be fun to get to know her, too! As always...
Healthy Days to You, Your're smiling Maven
I just read another article, as I was researching something else, that spoke of an overgrowth of Candida being responsible for children’s behavior and allergy problems. A change of diet can make a big difference in a child’s life. A parent might want to look into no sugar and adding probiotics. You might be pleasantly surprised!
I seem a little down, but I‘m not really. We’ve had a good weekend and even had a little sunshine! And I’m working on a quilt for Granddaughter No5. She’ll be here before we know it! All of the girls are so different. It will be fun to get to know her, too! As always...
Healthy Days to You, Your're smiling Maven
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
