There is a nostalgic trend for people to trace their family trees by going back several generations or as far as they are able. If there is not a lot of actual evidence in the family archives, many will use such web sites as myheritage.com to help them on their way. However, there is another important aspect to tracing your family history that you might not have thought of.

That is your family’s medical history because this could hold vital information about your own health and that of your children.

Many common conditions are passed down through families but there may also be less well known conditions that are genetic in nature that would be helpful to know about. The more common ones include heart disease, cancer, diabetes, mental illness, osteoporosis, birth defects and even memory loss.

Your first port of call when putting together such information is to chat to your parents and your grandparents as well as any uncles and aunts and get them to rack their brains for what they can recollect. Write it all down. It will form the basis of your family’s medical history. Once you have exhausted that source, then there other ways and means to find out more.

It is very important when collecting your family medical history to obtain accurate, complete records. A three generation set of records and information is the ideal goal to aim for. It is rather a tall order but you should set out information in the following format for each family member:

-  First and last names (including all married and maiden names for women where appropriate).

-  The current age, or age at death.

-  Exactly how people are related to each other, noting if any brothers and sisters have different parents or if anyone was adopted.

-  In the case of twins, you need to know if they are or were identical or fraternal.

-  Note if any family member married a blood relative eg. first cousins.

-  The country your ancestors came from eg. Jewish ancestors could be Ashkenazi Jews (from eastern Europe) or Sephardic Jews (from Spain or certain middle eastern countries). This information can be important because of the prevalence of some genetic conditions in certain ethnic groups.

-  Note the cause of death and if an autopsy was performed plus any history of miscarriages or babies who are deceased.

-  Include any illnesses, birth defects, or mental retardation in family members. A bonus would be the names of hospitals or medical centers where treatment took place plus the age at which illnesses occurred or any surgery was performed and why.

-  Also include any particular lifestyle habits that might be relevant such as a history of tobacco use, alcohol or drug use, obesity or an occupation that might be hazardous.

Aim to be as accurate as you can when compiling a family medical history as this can be a valuable tool for both your family members and your healthcare providers.

In addition, forewarned is forearmed. If you do your own research about a family condition and know what you might be up against, in many instances you can adjust your diet and more as a preventative measure.

You can add to your family medical history by applying for medical records and/or death certificates for different members. Death certificates are particularly useful as they usually contain all the relevant information about cause, place and age and may even give the name of the hospital that treated the deceased. Death certificates may or may not include information about other medical conditions that did not contribute to the cause of death. They can be obtained from the records office in the state where the family member died. A small fee is usually charged for a copy of a death certificate.

In the case of your own medical records, you can apply for these from the appropriate facility but if you wish to apply for a family member’s records, then you will need their permission or in the case of a deceased person, their next-of-kin’s permission.

Compiling such a family medical tree is quite an undertaking but you might find it a very worthwhile and interesting exercise with valuable benefits for both you and your family.

Have you ever suffered from a moth infestation eating your woollen clothes? Well, help is at hand because there are lots of ways to combat this problem. In general, you won’t even be aware of the presence of moths until it is too late. And the babies are the culprits as they eat their way through your sweaters, jackets and pants or wool rugs and needlework as they mature. Their mothers and fathers do no damage except to leave behind their eggs from which the hungry larvae hatch.

Mature insects deposit eggs in a variety of locations such as clothing, upholstery, rugs, carpets, toys, animal skins or trophies, and even natural-bristle brushes. As the eggs hatch, the larvae begin to feed on animal-based materials including silk, wool, feathers and leather. They also have been known to eat fabrics blended with wool and items soiled with food stains or body oils.

Eggs and larvae of moths and beetles can be carried into homes on articles containing wool or other animal fibers. Items such as secondhand furniture, upholstered furniture and other home furnishings can provide the perfect home for these pests. Clothes moth eggs or larvae can also hide in woolen fabrics or rugs.

Adult clothes moths prefer darkness and quickly hide when they are disturbed. Clothes moths are not the moths seen flitting about lights. Quite the opposite. Adult clothes moths are about 1/2 inch long and light tan in color.

Firstly, actual prevention:

1.  You can invest in an expensive chest with a cedar lining to protect your sweaters and other woollen items. It is not the cedar lining that actually prevents the moth infestation but the fact that cedar chests are tight fitting and therefore air tight so that nothing can survive.

2.  You can use natural repellents. Dried lavender, cloves and thyme all help to repel moths and smell lovely as well in your closet. Put the herbs in a small sachet and hang or store in the closet to keep bugs at bay .

3.  Keep your closet clean and have any holes or cracks (where moths might hide) filled or sealed. Don’t put away any clothes that need washing or dry cleaning as moths thrive by eating wool as well as any dirt that might be on an item such as a ring of dirt on the collar.

4.  Moths can be on items that you have been given or perhaps bought from a used source. Place any such items in your freezer to ensure you get rid of any moths (method set out later in the article) or if appropriate, have them dry cleaned.

5.  Moth balls are highly toxic and should only be used in and on items such as valuable antiques where nothing else is possible. Put in a sealed container with the moth balls for at least a month before removing and airing for another two months.

6.  Take a tip from owners of vintage clothing shops and use pheromone moth traps which are made of thin cardboard with the interior coated with the scent of the female moth so that male moths enter, become trapped and never leave. These traps cost approximately $20 each and need to replaced every 3 months but are worth it to avoid the hassle and expense of moth infestation.

Secondly, actual infestation:

7.  Moth damage is not really visible until items are cleaned. So once you are aware of an infestation, you need to go into action. Be aware that those toxic chemicals used in conventional dry cleaning like perchloroethylene are bad for your body, your clothes and the environment. In fact most items that say “dry clean only” can be carefully hand-washed and air-dried giving you a considerable cost saving. If you must dry-clean, go to a legitimate “green” cleaner that uses wet cleaning or carbon dioxide cleaning instead of harsh chemicals.

8.  If you are lucky you may be successful by freezing all items in a very cold freezer for at least 3 weeks. Remember to use a freezer as a holding place for any items that you buy when travelling or flea market finds before having them cleaned. To be effective, store items at 0°F for a minimum of 48 to 72 hours. This method works best for small items such as stuffed animals, feather accessories or items difficult to launder or dry-clean.  When freezing items, place them in polyethylene bags, squeeze out excess air, and seal tightly. After the prescribed amount of time in the freezer, remove the item to the refrigerator to thaw slowly. Items can be removed from the bag after coming to room temperature. Or store the items in the polyethylene bag. To guarantee a complete insect kill, it is recommended that you immediately repeat the process before removing contents from the bag.

9.  If you have an infestation in your closet, everything must be removed and dealt with and the closet repaired to ensure there are no cracks or holes. You may need to get an exterminator who knows how to handle moths to come in monthly for at least three months. Once you think you are free of moths, buy those pheromone traps to catch any strays. If no moths appear in the traps, you will know you are moth free.

10.  If you have a moth infestation, it is also important to clean bed linens, table linens, towels, pet beds, mattress covers, rugs, knitting or sewing baskets, soft toys and anything they might like to nest in. Just because they won’t eat it doesn’t mean they won’t live on or hide in it.

If you have damaged woollen items they are usually difficult or impossible to repair. But they can be re-purposed into lovely crafts made from sweaters such as felting.

Be vigilant and practice good housekeeping habits so the insects do not have a chance to lay eggs.

Women are well aware of mammogram but perhaps not so of thermograms. And yet, thermograms are safer, painless, more efficient and don’t radiate you. Sadly, mammograms expose your body to doses of radiation that can even be up to 1,000 times greater than that from a chest x-ray. And remember that this x-ray techonogy is cumulative so it builds up in your tissue. Thermography, using a different method, sees the “heat” generated by any developing growth long before it shows up as a palpable mass.

Here are some interesting differences between the two:

-  Mammograms have an increasing percentage of false positives even after beginning at 10% while thermography has a constant false positive possibility of only 5%.

-  Mamography detects cancer sites that can usually already be detected by touch while thermography detects possible cancer far before mamography – typically 12 months earlier.

-  Mammography detects anatomic or structural changes like tumors and cysts while thermography detects physiologic or actual functional changes. Physiological changes ALWAYS come before anatomic changes. Therefore, thermography offers an opportunity for early detection, intervention and prevention.

Check the pictures that show progressive cancer growth via thermography, and notice when there is a first detection via mamography: http://thermographyarizona.com/about_thermography.html

In his article on the dangers of mammograms which you can find at http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/01/05/mammograms-only-occasionally-save-lives.aspx?e_cid=20120105_DNL_art_3 Dr Mercola makes these points regarding mammograms:

 ”Only about 1 in 8 women whose breast cancer was identified during a routine mammogram actually had their lives “saved” by the screening, a recent analysis estimated – and this does not accurately account for how many women will fall victim to mammogram-induced breast cancer.

Many of these tumors would have grown very slowly, if at all, and never would have threatened or decreased the quality of the woman’s life.

Many invasive breast cancers “spontaneously regress” when left undiagnosed and untreated, according to new research published in The Lancet Oncology.

X-ray mammography uses a uniquely harmful type of ionizing radiation which has been linked to the development of invasive breast cancer.

The intense push for breast screenings has many women believing, falsely, that the technology actually “prevents” breast cancer, distracting them from other, truly preventive and effective strategies.

Medical Insurance – right now medical insurance does not pay for thermography in the US but if enough women stop using mammography and used only thermography, insurance companies would eventually come around to a new way of thinking.  It would save such insurance companies a lot of money in the end. At the moment the cost of a thermogram appears to vary between $150 and $200.

You can find your nearest thermography clinic in the US by checking out these sites - naturalhealthcenter.mercola.com/services/thermography-listing.aspx or www.ACAM.org

In the UK, where thermography is less well known and clinics few and far between, there is a another form of screening recently arrived on the scene. MARIA is the name of pain-free radio-wave 8 seconds breast scanner. This woman-friendly more reliable system might be the future of breast screening in the rest of Europe too. For more information, here is a site to check out  www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2068870/The-second-scan-detect-brea.

Unfortunately mammograms have become part of the pink ribbon campaign and very much a multi-billion dollar industry. In spite of the questions of safety, the pain suffered from women who undergo this degrading procedure and the lack of efficacy, mammograms continue to be touted as the screening method of choice by the medical community.

Thermography is an excellent alternative to a mammogram using infrared imaging to screen for breast cancer so that all exposure to radiation is eliminated.

Image via Wikipedia

Since their introduction in many parts of the USA in the past couple of years, smart meters using wireless technology have sparked much debate with the main concern being that continual exposure to the radiation generated by this technology could cause harm to our health in much the same way as the continued use of mobile phones. More than 8 million smart meters have already been installed by electric utilities in the USA with nearly 60 million expected to be in place by 2020.

According to the website for the Governor of California, the following are the benefits of smart meters: 

-  Allows for faster outage detection and restoration of service by a utility when an outage occurs and therefore, less disruption to a customer’s home or business.

-  Provides customers with greater control over their electricity use when coupled with time-based rates, increasing the range of different pricing plans available to customers and giving them more choice in managing their electricity consumption and bills.

-  Smart meters enable a utility to measure a customer’s electricity usage in hourly increments.

-  If a customer elects to participate in time-based rates offered by the utility, they have the opportunity to lower their electricity demand during “peak” periods (the peak period for most utilities are summer afternoons) and potentially save money on their monthly electric bill.

-  Allows customers to make informed decisions by providing highly detailed information about electricity usage and costs.  Armed with a better understanding of their energy use, consumers can make informed decisions on how to optimize their electricity consumption and reduce their bills.

-  Customers with smart meters today can access their prior day’s electricity usage through their utility’s website.

-  In the near future, by installing an in-home display device that communicates wirelessly with a Smart Meter, a customer could monitor their electricity usage and costs in real-time.  It may also be possible for a customer to receive automatic alerts (via emails or text messages) to notify them of when the electricity consumption exceeds a pre-determined threshold.

-  Helps the environment by reducing the need to build power plants, or avoiding the use of older, less efficient power plants as customers lower their electric demand.

-  When the utilities avoid the use of “peaker” plants to meet high demand, the environment benefits because peaker plants typically have higher greenhouse gas and other air emissions.

-  Increases privacy because electricity usage information can be relayed automatically to the utility for billing purposes without on-site visits by a utility to check the meter. This also results in lower operational costs for the utility.

-  Smart Meters are the first step toward creating a Smart Grid in California.http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/PUC/energy/Demand+Response/benefits.htm

Here is another side to the story – the disadvantages of a smart meter:

-  There are security and privacy concerns: a top cybersecurity firm recently tested 5 different brands of smart meters for vulnerabilities, and found that they all could be EASILY hacked into, allowing someone to remotely shut down your power, inflate your bills, tell if you’re out-of-town, commit identity theft, or even bring down the whole electricity grid.

-  There also are safety issues: like known cases of a smart meter failing and starting a fire, or exploding. Also, in a recent official filing, the Pacific Gas and Electric Company confirmed that its smart meters can damage customers’ sensitive electronics. And the new meter is effectively a remote control device in charge of your house or business, allowing PG&E the option of unilaterally rationing or cutting power to a property when the corporation deems it useful for their purpose.

-  These wireless meters put our health at risk: this kind of microwave pulsing works differently than more-continuous cell phone radiation, and it’s much more dangerous. Many scientific studies have verified that this type particularly affects the brain, nervous system and hormones, disrupting the functioning of many body systems and causing very serious leakage of our blood-brain barrier, and that low-power broadcasts (such as from these meters) are even more damaging than higher-power ones. Typical acute symptoms include migraine headaches, insomnia, exhaustion, forgetfulness and confusion, tinnitus, tingling, nausea and vomiting, constant thirst, heart palpitations and increased blood pressure, limbic system disturbances such as severe depression – and a general reduction from prior levels of functionality. For some, the nervous and endocrine systems go into hyper-arousal (as with severe stress), ultimately leading to the collapse known as “burnout”. Careful scientific research has proven that cumulative exposure to this type of radiation also causes more and more DNA breaks, which—if experienced frequently enough—have the potential to be a factor in ultimately causing cancer. Our risk of developing serious symptoms (often referred to as “electrical sensitivity”) increases the longer our chronic exposure to this radiation continues—and, with the smart meter system fully in place, there will be no place to escape it night or day. Children, pregnant women, the elderly, and those with pre-existing health problems are particularly vulnerable.  http://www.teensturninggreen.org/get-involved/say-no-to-smart-meters.html

It would seem that Californians are not accepting smart meters as easily as the utility companies would like with nearly two dozen communities having placed moratoriums on them and more than 2,000 health-related complaints having been received by the California Public Utilities Commission.

Elizabeth Kelley, founder of the Electromagnetic Safety Alliance, says the wireless meters are invasive and involuntary, so people should be able to opt-out of the program. “Because we don’t know yet what the health risks are from these low-powered frequencies that are eventually going to be traveling through our home night and day emitting pulse radio frequency radiation, this is causing considerable concern.”

Elizabeth Kelley goes on to say that there is concern especially for people who suffer from electromagnetic hypersensitivity (EHS). PG&E contends its meters comply with federal safety standards and are well within what you would find with normal household appliances. Kelley says more research should have been done before the devices were put in people’s homes. “There are no specific studies on SmartMeters, but there are comparable studies on very low power non-ionizing radiation exposure conditions, namely cellular antennas, which show there can be harm under certain exposure conditions.”

 There are basically 3 types of EMR that could be endangering us daily.

• MICROWAVES which are electromagnetic waves of extremely high frequency passing through organic material, exiting their molecules and producing heat.  Microwaves are sensitive to electrical charge. When you look at the door of your microwave oven you will see a metal mesh (Faraday cage), this mesh is connected to earth so possesses a slight charge which deflects these waves and prevents their escape from within the caged device.

• RADIO WAVES which are electromagnetic waves of radio frequency (RF) produced by transmitters, televisions, computers and of course smart meters.  Radio waves are also sensitive to electrical charge.

• X RADIATION (Xrays) electromagnetic radiation of wavelength shorter than light able to penetrate solids and ionise gases.  As Xrays are able to penetrate dense solids so lead (a heavy metal of very high atomic weight) is used as a shield. Imagine a box of tennis balls, as the lead atoms are so large, Xrays cannot physically move around or through them compared to a box of golf balls which because of their smaller diameter will allow some Xrays to pass through.

  One way to protect yourself from a smart meter would be a shield of stainless steel fly mesh all around your smart meter which would prevent the overwhelming proportion of RF waves escaping (but also preventing the meters from being read accurately) which would have to be properly earthed to work.

But this may well sound too complicated and involved for the majority of us to utilize.

You might be interested in finding out how you can avoid the installation of a smart meter on your property or if you already have one, how to reverse the situation. The same website I mentioned early on http://www.teensturninggreen.org/get-involved/say-no-to-smart-meters.html will give you all the information and tips you need jto know.

Meanwhile, the jury is still out on whether smart meters are a help or a health hazard. Only time will tell.

Using bioresonance testing, the operator assesses which organs are under stress and tests through a wide range of remedies and nutritional supplements before recommending how to restore balance to reduce stress, anxiety and improve natural sleep patterns. The device is linked to a computer which is capable of measuring the skin’s resistance, voltage potential and amperage amongst other measurements. The machine tests for over 3600 substances including foods, additives, toxins, vitamins, minerals and much more.

The machine can also be used to test for arthritis.

According to the Living Systems Revolution at http://www.systemsrevolution.com/health/bioresonance/

“There are many types of Bioresonance Testing, but they all share the common characteristic of being based on utilizing the energetic and informational qualities of human physiology for the extraction of important clinical and/or diagnostic information. The great advantages of this approach include:

Non-invasive, therefore no side effects.

Ability to pinpoint exact information concerning the state of internal organs and pernicious factors lodged in them, including many organs and tissues normally inaccessible to diagnostic investigation except under conditions of autopsy (i.e. post-mortem examination).

Ability – in the case of the most evolved form of Bioresonance Testing, as utilized in Field Control Therapy (FCT) – to prioritize this information effectively from the perspective of Systems Science, incorporated into a sophisticated bioresonance test “algorithm” which is a series of test steps performed routinely in FCT practice.”

Of course there will always be sceptics who completely dismiss any alternative methods of health care but because everything about this process is completely natural and health-giving, there is really nothing to lose.

While allergy testing is a big part of this procedure, it is important to address any toxicity or parasite infestation first because they affect the function of the liver, often causing allergic type reactions. The machine tests for parasites in the digestive tract which can then be treated with remedies, diet and/or lifestyle changes along with nutritional supplements. If liver function can be fully restored, overall health and harmony improves and allergy testing may not even be necessary.

The test is ideal for:

-  Those with digestive problems such as irritable bowl syndrome (IBS), bloating, recurrent diarrhea or constipation.
-  Skin complaints like eczema, rashes and dryness.
-  Mucous problems such as sinus congestion.
-  Ear problems.
-  Children with digestive problems, hyperactivity, asthma, eczema, concentration difficulties.
-  Unexplained tiredness, feeling that something “is not quite right”.
-  Thyroid problems.
-  Those who want some help from complementary medicine but do not want to commit to a long series of treatments.

I do have a personal anecdote to tell.

My granddaughter had been suffering from a runny nose and a red rash on her chin and one cheek for about a year. The medical doctors she saw were unable to pinpoint its cause and suggested that she would grow out of it in time. Recently, she underwent the Bioresonance Testing and the outcome was that she was allergic to dairy products. In the past two weeks, her mother has eliminated all dairy from her diet. She is having organic coconut oil instead of butter, organic rice milk enriched with calcium instead of dairy milk and raw organic chocolate spread as an occasional treat. And the result…almost immediately (within a day or two)…no more runny nose and no more rash.

German doctors in particular have embraced this new science of biophysics. At the International Congress for BICOM (the trade name for a bioresonance device) Therapists in Germany in 2006, it was reported as follows:

“The BICOM bioresonance method continues to gain acceptance by German medical practitioners. The introductory lecture by Hans Bruegemann summarised a survey carried out in October 2005 among German-speaking BICOM users. The survey covered 241,664 patients who had exhausted all forms of treatment using conventional medicine in 396 practices. Of these, 46.7% no longer showed any symptoms, 34 % experienced a significant improvement,13.1% registered a slight improvement and only 6.25% showed no sign of improvement. To estimate the worldwide picture, even assuming that only 60% of therapists use the same protocols as those in the survey, then over 1,000,000 patients whom conventional medicine could not help can be expected to have made a complete recovery and a further 780,000 to have experienced significant improvements.”

You might well find it helpful to investigate this method yourself further.

pregnant, there is a comparatively new gadget out there that might be just right for you.

It is an electronic fertility monitor and if used correctly, has an accuracy rate of 99.3% and is completely drug and chemical-free. This monitor is as reliable as the hormone based birth control pill but without the risks.

One version that is available on Amazon and elsewhere is called the Lady-Comp Fertility Monitor and comes from Germany. The product is marketed as follows:

-  Easy to Use, 30/Seconds Per Day for Natural Family Planning

-  99.3% Accurate: Red light = fertile, Green light = infertile

-  Natural: No drugs, No side-effects, No test sticks, No effect on mothers milk

-  The ‘Intelligent’ Fertility Monitor for precision ovulation tracking

-  Easy analysis of the cycle with data capture and result print-out

 So how does it work?

Fertility monitors come with all of the necessary data pre-programmed in and they are easy to use. The only operation you are required to do is to set the daily alarm.

When you hear the alarm, this is to remind you to place the thermometer under the tongue. In less than a minute, you will have a response.

A red light means you are fertile

A yellow light means you are probably fertile

A green light means you are not fertile.

Armed with this knowledge, it is then your responsibility to protect yourself appropriately. Most monitors come with a 6 day fertility forecast so you can plan ahead.

The fertility monitors can be a good alternative for women who have complicated or irregular menstruation cycles as the computer will take the time to adjust to your cycle by recognizing any slight variances and function accordingly.

These intelligent monitors are a safe and trustworthy option for any women who are concerned about or sensitive to the use of hormonal birth control. It has been well documented in studies that birth control pills have the potential to increase women’s risk of breast cancer because of the high levels of synthetic estrogen that these pills contain. The monitors can also be the answer for those women who are affected severely by PMS.

Some fertility monitors are extra smart as they can automatically inform you if you are pregnant as well as the due date. Their added benefit is to assist those women who are trying to become pregnant by giving details of when is the best time to try to conceive.

Fertility monitors are expensive but the cost should be weighed against other expenses such as birth control pills and the value you place on your health, your well being and a way to empower yourself by taking control of your reproductive health with this completely natural, safe and reliable birth control method. The current cost on Amazon is $485 plus shipping.

Obviously, fertility monitors are for birth control only and will not be able to protect you from any sexually transmitted diseases. You would need to to use other forms of protection for this. For extra information, you can try reading the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler as this makes a good companion when using the fertility monitor. 

Although most of us will carry at least one scar (however small and often dating back to our childhood), scars on the face can be distressing. These may be from an accident or an injury but acne is a major cause of facial scarring. Other reasons for facial scars could be the removal of moles or skin tags by excising. Depending on their severity, it may be possible to remove or lessen the appearance of these facial scars. Even though they can affect our self esteem, and in extreme cases be emotional damaging, facial scars are normally treated as a cosmetic problem.

One way to remove them is through surgery. The surgeon will cut out the scar and close the wound with tiny stitches so that you are left with a considerably less noticeable scar. The dilemma is that in some cases of facial scarring, early treatment can stop poor scar formation on the face while other scars may improve dramatically in their own time.

If this is your situation and you decide to wait before going the cosmetic surgery route, there are non surgical steps you can take in the meantime including silicone sheeting therapy, steroid injects or laser treatments.

Laser surgery has become very popular and different lasers are used for different types of scars. A CO₂ laser beam is the laser of choice for acne scars while Pulse Dye laser can improve older and more severe types of scarring. The reason why lasers are effective in removing facial scars is because (a) they can lighten dark scars and (b) even out the skin’s surface. The method known as laser skin resurfacing will usually be successful on those indented acne type of scars in the skin but not everyone is considered suitable for laser scar removal. For example, those with skin conditions such as psoriasis, cystic acne or eczema.

Cryosurgery is another procedure used for facial scar removal. Super cooled liquid nitrogen is applied to scarred tissue to wear it away without damaging the skin underneath. This method is useful for those more prominent, raised scars. The procedure can be rather uncomfortable.

Another treatment used for scars on the face is microdermabrasion. This process uses a small device that buffs out the top layer of the skin. After some days of treatment, you will have a smoother face with less damage.

You can also go a more cost effective and natural route when treating facial scars. H-Scar is an all natural product with pure essential oils. It is 100% gentle, safe and painless and will reduce the look of scars while at the same time smoothing and texturing the skin. The appearance of scars will fade and the skin will be restored to a more natural colour but without any discomfort at all.

Remember that using cosmetics correctly can help cover up facial scars while the healing process takes place – particularly for females. For long term use, it will be worth while going to a professional make-up artist so that they can teach you the best way to conceal any facial scar with cosmetics.  As far as the cosmetics themselves, find a concealer that matches your skin tone and you can make sure it stays on all day by covering with a translucent powder. A product with green or yellow undertones will take some of the red out if this is a problem with your skin. Concealer products generally come in stick liquid or cream form. The secret of concealing a facial scar is to blend and keep on blending while keeping everything spotlessly clean to avoid any bacteria.

The massaging of facial scars can help to break up scar tissues while improving the circulation of blood to the face area. This works because the lymlph nodes are prompted to drain excess fluid that commonly surrounds scar tissue during the healing process. There are 4 steps to follow for this massage:

1. Rub the scar in a circular motion to promote fluid drainage.
2. Stretch the surrounding skin outwards while gently rubbing the scar with thumbs using a circular motion.
3. Apply pressure to the scar with finger or thumb and rub in one direction. The palm can be used for larger scar areas.
4. Apply massage oil to the scar while massaging to prevent drying out of the skin.

Remember to up your Vitamin D levels by getting plenty of sunlight but this should be on the rest of your body and not your face which is more vulnerable to sun exposure when there is scarring. Apply a natural sun screen to any scarred areas but enjoy the benefits of the sunlight itself which can be part of the healing process. Fifteen to thirty minutes of sunlight exposure (depending on your skin tone) around midday several times a week will help to boost your vitamin D levels and the many health benefits that come with this. When sunlight is not available, supplementation with vitamin D3 is highly recommended.

Of all the five senses, our hearing is probably the most precious after our sight. Deprived of hearing, people lose contact with those near and dear to them, as well as with the world at large. All the sounds around us every day make our lives richer and more fulfilled. But perhaps even more important is that a good sense of hearing keeps us safe by warning us of danger.

It is easy to forget about having our hearing tested regularly even though we do so for our eyes and our teeth. And of course the sooner a hearing loss is detected, the better.

Interestingly, the smallest bones of the human body are found inside the ear – the hammer, the anvil and stirrup.

The ear itself is made up of three different parts:

1. The outer ear of which the shape helps to collect sound waves and direct them through the auditory canal to the ear drum.

2. The middle ear which contains the ear drum and those 3 tiny bones which amplify the sound waves.

3. The inner ear where sound waves are changed into electrical impulses by the cochlea which has tiny sensory cells along its entire length. The cochlea, which is filled with fluid, transmits messages via the nerve fibers to that area of the brain in charge of processing and interpreting what we hear.

Some 500 million people worldwide experience some degree of hearing loss and half of them are not elderly but still of working age. So although hearing loss is often associated with growing old, this does not have to be so. The condition does often appear in people after the age of 65 but it can strike those at any age because it can be caused by infections, injury or even birth defects. There can be a genetic factor in hearing loss too. So the problem can run in families.

Another cause of early onset hearing loss is noise-induced damage. This is often because of over-exposure to excessive noise. Particularly at risk are members of the military or police service, construction workers, farmers, dentists and even kindergarten teachers. If you are constantly exposed to everyday noise over 83 decibles in your workplace, you should be protected by ear protectors at all times to avoid permanent damage to your hearing.

There are three types of hearing loss:

1. Conductive hearing loss which is caused by problems in the outer and middle ear. Such problems can prevent sounds getting through to the inner ear. This could be because of a build up of wax in the ear canal, a perforated eardrum, fluid in the middle ear or damaged or defective middle ear bones.

2. Sensorineural hearing loss happens when the delicate sensory cells or nerve fibers in the inner ear get damaged, preventing them transmitting sounds properly. The most common causes are ageing or excessive exposure to noise and unfortunately this condition is usually permanent.

3. Mixed hearing loss is the combination of both the first and second types above. The ear has a very delicate mechanism and sometimes it breaks down while at other times, it just wears out.

When we start to suffer from hearing loss, it is the softer, higher pitched consonants that can be drowned out by the louder amd lower pitched vowel sounds. We can usually divide sounds into loud or soft, high pitched or low pitched. With hearing loss, it can become harder to hear the voices of women and children rather than men. And along with the hearing loss, can come feelings of isolation and even depression.

The good news is that once you have had your hearing tested and the hearing specialist has got to the bottom of the problem and treated it, people with hearing loss can start to improve their physical and emotional well being immediately.

Currently, there is a lot of concern about the use of wi-fi technology and its health effects on us, including young children.

Electro-smog is the name given to the electromagnetic radiation that is created, and persists in the area, where electronic gadgets like TVs, microwaves, cordless phones, mobile phones, digital baby monitors and more are operating. Studies conducted over the years have shown that continuous exposure to electro-smog over a period of time affects the body’s nervous system resulting in symptoms like chronic fatigue, disruptive sleep patterns, headaches and abnormal patterns of behavior in young children. Therefore it is important for parents to learn about the effects of a digital baby monitor on their babies.

Baby monitors that are popular with parents are those with DECT technology (that is digitally enhanced cordless telecommunications) and this ensures that the audio signals between both receiver and transmitter are secure. But such wireless baby monitors emit microwave radiation. The base station of the baby monitor is kept near the crib or cot while the parent takes the receiver and either wears it on his or herself or places it nearby in order to be able to respond to the baby’s crying.

Although, ideally a baby monitor base station should be voice-activated, meaning that it transmits “sound only” when it senses a sound from the baby as this would go some way to reduce the microwave exposure of both infant and parent, , not all voice-activated baby monitors are alike. Some cut the radiation while others just cut the unwanted noise and those monitors sold in the US and Canada constantly emit microwave radiation, exposing the baby or young child to constant microwave radiation.

According to Dr. Martin Blank, PhD, who is one of the most experienced researchers of the cellular and molecular effects of electromagnetic fields in the US, the impact of electromagnetic fields on cells and DNA is both considerable and indisputable. He says that your DNA, due to its inherent ‘coil of coils’ structure, is particularly vulnerable to electromagnetic fields of all kinds.

Therefore, if you are using such a baby monitor, you should reduce your child’s exposure to emissions as far as possible by:

• Placing the baby monitor at least a metre away from the cot.

• Avoiding a system that transmits continuously – some experts are calling for those that emit microwave radiation continuously to be banned. See the web site http://www.magdahavas.com/2010/11/07/dect-baby-monitors-dangerous/

• Setting the unit to voice activation mode only.

• If the baby monitor is mains operated, ensuring that the adaptor is plugged in at least 50 cm away from the cot.
Avoiding placing all other appliances such as computers, television sets, cordless phones etc in your baby’s room. At the very least, any should be completely switched off when the baby is in the room sleeping.

It is difficult to completely avoid digital baby monitors as they have proven to be more efficient and have better reception than their older analogue versions but proper precautions are necessary and essential.

The cell phone is a comparatively recent innovation so the long term studies differ as to the extent of the danger to you from these items of convenience but do you want to hang around long enough for the damage to become irreversible?

In an article on the Mercola health site, there is a list of common-sense guidelines to protect your health and that of your family from using cell phones, which I feel is important to repeat. The site points out that children are the most vulnerable to long-term damage with children today using cell phones from a very early age. They find this extremely troublesome, and the primary reason to avoid using cell phones around children, and to not let your children play with or talk on a cell phone. They believe that children should never use cell phones, except in emergencies.

Although ideally, returning to using landlines would be best case scenario, we all know that that is not going to happen so they give a list of advice on how you can minimize your exposure:

1. Reduce your cell phone use: Turn your cell phone off more often. Reserve it for emergencies or important matters. As long as your cell phone is on, it emits radiation intermittently, even when you are not actually making a call.

2. Use a land line at home and at work: Although more and more people are switching to using cell phones as their exclusive phone contact, it is a dangerous trend and you can choose to opt out of the madness.

3. Reduce or eliminate your use of other wireless devices: You would be wise to cut down your use of these devices. Just as with cell phones, it is important to ask yourself whether or not you really need to use them every single time.

4. Use your cell phone only where reception is good: The weaker the reception, the more power your phone must use to transmit, and the more power it uses, the more radiation it emits, and the deeper the dangerous radio waves penetrate into your body. Ideally, you should only use your phone with full bars and good reception.

5. Keep your cell phone away from your body when it is on: The most dangerous place to be, in terms of radiation exposure, is within about six inches of the emitting antenna. You do not want any part of your body within that area. Therefore, avoid carrying your phone on your body as that maximizes your exposure, even when you’re not actually talking on the phone. Ideally put it in your purse or carrying bag. Placing a cell phone in a shirt pocket over the heart is asking for trouble, as is placing it in a man’s pocket if he seeks to preserve his fertility.

6. Respect others who are more sensitive: Some people who have become sensitive can feel the effects of others’ cell phones in the same room, even when it is on but not being used. People are increasingly becoming electrosensitive throughout the developed world today making it extremely difficult for some people to cope in modern life. It is important that people hold others in these circumstances with compassion and be conscious of potential ’2nd hand radiation’ effects on other people. If you are in a meeting, on public transportation, in a courtroom or other public places, such as a doctor’s office, keep your cell phone turned off out of consideration for the ‘second hand radiation’ effects.

7. Children are also more vulnerable, so please avoid using your cell phone near children.

8. Use safer headset technology: Wired headsets will certainly allow you to keep the cell phone farther away from your body. However, if a wired headset is not well-shielded – and most of them are not – the wire itself acts as an antenna attracting ambient information carrying radio waves and transmitting radiation directly to your brain. Make sure that the wire used to transmit the signal to your ear is shielded. The best kind of headset to use is a combination shielded wire and air-tube headset. These operate like a stethoscope, transmitting the information to your head as an actual sound wave; although there are wires that still must be shielded, there is no wire that goes all the way up to your head.

I hope this has given you some food for thought but for more information on the studies that have been carried out on using cell phones and that are now reported on the Mercola site, go to: http://emf.mercola.com/sites/emf/archive/2011/07/28/how-you-can-tell-if-they-are-lying-to-you-in-studies.aspx?e_cid=20110728_DNL_ar

Image via Wikipedia

Many people today dread having to go to a hospital. This is not because of the treatment or the operation but because they fear they will pick up a Superbug.

This problem with runaway bacteria has been going on for some years now but it seems to be getting worse and not better. It has got so bad that doctors in the media are suggesting to patients that they actually question a doctor or other medical staff before they even touch you or a loved one. They say you should ask: “When was the last time you washed your hands” or “Please will you wash your hands first”.

It is your life at risk after all so even though it may be difficult to say, your safely should be paramount. It could save your life or that of a loved one.

And there is a new superbug in the news this week and that is the antibiotic -resistant CRKP. At risk are the elderly and those who have to spend long periods in hospital.

According to the CDC these are the statistics confirming the seriousness of hospital infections in the United States. For every 100 patient admissions, there are 4.5 hospital infections and a total of 100 000 deaths from hospital infection. Interestingly, the majority of hospital infections occur outside the ICU – so if you are really, really ill, you could be safer than if you are not. But even if you survive a hospital infection, you could have to endure treatment and surgery for years to come and even permanent disability.

Amongst the hundreds of studies carried out to find why superbugs and other bacteria spread in hospitals, the results have come up with the rampant over use and abuse of antibiotocs by medical doctors, as well as the wearing of neckties by the doctors, the cellphones they carry and the laziness of hospital staff about washing their hands. Now added to the list are computer keyboards and remotes especially when used by the medical staff in the hospital.

Except for the sterile environment of surgery theatres, the superbugs can be found riding on dust particles of the heating and air-conditioning systems, in bathrooms and toilets and even in the food. They account for most of the deaths in hospitals today. The superbugs choose their patients whose immune systems have already been impaired through sickness, injury, surgery and/or previous encounters with antibiotics. In healthy people with a strong immune system, these bugs can live on their skin or in their noses without infecting them.

This is according to Andreas Moritz in his work Timeless Secrets of Health & Rejuvenation: Unleash the Natural Power That Lies Dormant within you.

If you or a loved one have to spend time in hospital, do your research and make sure you do everything you can to boost your immune system before and while you are in hospital. You cannot be in the sun there, so take plenty of vitamin D3 as a supplement. Large doses of vitamin C are also invaluable. Avoid any processed food, sugar, artificial sweeteners and sodas that may be part of the hospital diet and drink plenty of pure water.

Of course whenever there is a big enough problem, somebody will come up with a solution so there is hope for the future. And there are already many innovative solutions to make hospitals and hospital rooms themselves safer for patients. They just need to come into practise.

There are now washable keyboards, computer mice and even remotes that can literally be dumped in the dishwasher to be thoroughly cleaned.

There is the new smart room currently undergoing testing which includes a soap and sanitzier dispenser for medical personnel to use both before and after seeing a patient AND which will make it perfectly clear with its special sensors if that person does not use it.
The futuristic hospital room ensures that each patient has a touch screen (oh dear another source of super bugs) on which is listed the information on foods the patient can eat and whatever special instructions the doctor has for the patient such as exercise etc. The nurse at her station also has a touch screen listing the patients under her charge with their medications, dosages and when they should be given. When it is time for a medication, she touches another button for a drawer in the medicine cabinet to unlock and a light shows her which bin to open indicating that this is the medication to be given at this time. To reduce any mistakes, computers link up with all the equipment including IV pumps and, in the patient’s room, a bedside scanner is matched to bar codes on the nurse’s badge and the patient’s wrist to provide a fail safe net.

The big question will be: Will all this high technology keep all patients safe or is there still the possibility for human error? Time will tell.

Image via Wikipedia

VOC stands for volatile organic compounds. These are organic chemical compounds that have high enough vapor pressures under normal conditions to significantly vaporize and enter the earth’s atmosphere. That means you and me get to breathe them in.

Volatile organic compounds can occur both naturally and from synthetic materials.

VOCs are solvents used in paint, adhesives, paint strippers, cleaning supplies, pesticides, building materials, home furnishings, office equipment such as copiers and printers, correction fluids and even the ubiquitous craft materials such as glues and adhesives, permanent markers and photographic solutions. These VOCs get released into the air as the product dries, sometimes causing acute symptoms such as headaches and dizziness. Other health effects are eye, nose and throat irritation, loss of coordination, nausea, and even damage to the liver, kidney and central nervous systems.

While the long term effects are still not known for sure, it is suspected that some VOCs are carcinogens.

As you would expect, the concentration of many VOCs is up to 10 times higher indoors that it is outdoors. The extent of the health effect also depends on level of exposure and length of time exposed.

Breathing low levels of VOCs for long periods of time may increase some people’s risk of health problems. People with respiratory problems (such as asthma), young children, the elderly and those with heightened sensitivity to chemicals may be more susceptible to irritation and illness from VOCs. This is born out by several studies which point to symptoms worsening in people with asthma or with a particular sensitivity to chemcicals.

Of course household exposure can be very different to occupational exposures to VOCs. Imagine what health damage could be be done to the people who work with VOCs all day long for year after year.

While most people can smell high levels of some VOCs, other VOCs have no odor. So don’t think that just because you cannot smell a product when you are using it that it is perfectly safe to use. Odor does not indicate the level of risk from inhalation of this group of chemicals.

Of the thousands of different VOCs produced and used in our daily lives, here are some common examples:

- Acetone
- Benzene
- Ethylene glycol
- Formaldehyde
- Methylene chloride
- Perchloroethylene
- Toluene
- Xylene
- 1,3-Butadiene

Fortunately with public awareness and government legislation, the situation is improving slowly.

Many countries have established VOC regulations to deal with issues such as emissions and disposal but of course these regulations tend to vary greatly from one country to another. In the United States, a paint product can be referred to as Zero VOC if it has amounts of volatile organic compounds at or below 5 grams per liter of paint. Regional and local governments may have additional and varying VOC limits. For example, California has developed its own standards. In the US, states have the authority to implement their own compliance testing plans. If the federal government, however, wishes to conduct tests within a state, it is not bound to that state’s testing methods. The federal government caps the VOC content in paint at 250 grams per liter for flat finishes and 380 g/l for other finishes (such as low-luster or semigloss).

The good news is that some manufacturers have opted to comply with more stringent limits—50 g/l for all finishes— as set by California’s South Coast Air Quality Management Disgtrict. Low VOC paints include Benjamin Moore Aura, True Value Easy Care and Glidden Evermore. Even better, there are paints with zero VOCs including MythicIn, Freshaire Choice (a Home Depot exclusive) and Safecoat.

VOCs have negative effects on human health and cause damage to the environment. Freshaire has the slogan “It’s good for your family, and better for our world’.

Image via Wikipedia

While there are no bar codes on individual fruit and vegetables sold at your local supermarket, there are little stickers. The number on this sticker is a PLU – price look up – for the benefit of the guy or girl at the check out. But the sticker is also useful for you the consumer.

The PLU gives you a clue about the fruit or vegetable you’re purchasing. Most PLUs are only four digits long but some are five. When the PLU is 4 digits it means that the fruit or vegetable has been commercially grown. If the PLU is 5 digits, it’s the first digit that you should be interested to see.

A “9″ means that the item is organically grown, free from harmful pesticides and fertilizers.

An “8″ indicates that the item is a genetically modified plant and that may be something you do not want to eat if you have strong feelings about GM plants and crops.

We all know that often organic produce may cost more. But there are certain organic fruit and vegetables that you should buy rather than the commercially produced version. This is because these need extra pesticides in order to reach the store.

Often called the dirty dozen, they are:

1.  Nectarines – 97.3% of those sampled were found to contain pesticides.
2.  Celery – the figure was 94.5%
3.  Pears – 94.4% of pears samples were found to contain pesticides
4.  Peaches – with this fruit the figure was 93.7%
5.  Apples – one of the most popular of all fruits stood at 91%
6.  Cherries – 91% of cherries sampled were found to contain pesticides
7.  Strawberries – the figure for strawberries was 90%
8.  Imported grapes – 86% of imported grapes were found to contain pesticides. One of the countries of origin was Chile.
9.  Spinach – this popular green vegetable had a percentage of 83.4% so should definitely be bought organic or even better grow your own.
10. Potatoes – 79.3% of potatoes sampled were found to contain pesticides.
11. Bell Potatoes – 68% of these sampled were found to contain pesticides.
12. Red Raspberries – the last of the dirty dozen stood at 59%.

But on the plus side, there is another list of fruit and vegetables that you can safely buy even when they are non organic. This is mainly because many have thick, inedible skins which protect the fruit from any pesticides. They are:

Asparagus
Avocados
Bananas
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Corn (but remember that almost all corn is genetically modified)
Kiwi
Mangoes
Onions
Papaya
Pineapples
Sweet Peas

But back to those sticky labels. Very soon it might be “goodbye sticky labels, hello tattoed fruit”.

This is because the FDA have been asked to approve the laser-etching of fruit and vegetables with the necessary product information instead of using sticky labels.

According to Jan Narciso a research microbiologist with the US Department of Agriculture’s Citrus and Subtropical Lab in in Winter Haven, Florida: “The laser beam penetrates the outer layer of the fruit or vegetable’s cells, exposing a bit of the pith. What this does is just penetrate the few cells of that colored layer and exposes the underlying layer.”

To make sure the technology was safe, the lab tested it on foods painted with pathogens and disease organisms to see if they would infect fruit that had been labelled with lasers. Apparently the fruit and vegetables remained unaffected. Jan Narciso went on to say: “The laser zaps the tissue, and it makes kind of like a callus, so that nothing gets through there. It’s really very, very clean, and you can eat it.”

She also said that their tests of the technology showed that it can print on just about any fruit and vegetable.

You can expect to see this new technology in labelling in your local store soon. I do not know what information the label will give us though or what the reaction of the customers is likely to be.

With a further piece of technological news, PlantLab has succeeded in growing plants without the sun shining on them.

http://www.greendiary.com/entry/plantlab-succeeds-in-growing-world-s-first-fruit-vegetables-using-red-and-blue-leds/#ixzz1DKdWhC1c

Their laboratory in Den Bosch has apparantly produced healthy plants such cucumbers, beans, corn, peppers, zucchini, tomatoes and even strawberries using red and blue LED lights with a saving of 95% water and without the need for pesticides.

We wait to see how this progresses and what the implications are for you and me.

Image via Wikipedia

This cousin of the marijuana plant – hemp –  is an eco friendly, environmentally sustainable, crop. Being naturally resistant, it requires no fungicides or pesticides; it needs less water than other plants; it grows quickly (taking just 3 to 4 months to mature); and it even revitalises the soil at the same time.

Hemp sounds to me like a wonder crop.

And yet it is illegal to grow hemp in the United States.

Hemp can be used to manufacture a wide variety of industrial and consumer products with every part of the plant being utilized. Bio-fuel, paper, injection molded plastics, food, construction materials, bio-composites, textiles – all can be made utilizing the hemp plant.

Hemp fiber (from the stalks) has 250% more fiber than cotton as well as being stronger. Hemp fiber is used to make textiles, clothing, shoes, paper, canvas, carpeting, rope, bags, luggage, home furnishings, construction materials, biodegradable plastics and even auto parts (as in BMW and Mercedes Benz vehicles).  Hemp fiber or hurds are an amazing source for renewable materials including composite fibers to replace heavier toxic fibers as well as builidng materials made with recycled plastic and fiber. In the future, you could see a house that is completely constructed with hemp!

Hemp oil (from the seeds) is used in cosmetics and body care products, nutritional supplements, food products and even in industry. High in essential fatty acids as well as gamma linolecic acid, hemp oil can be added to salads or in dressings.

Hemp seed itself is actually not a seed but a fruit and extremely nutritious for humans and animals alike. The hemp seed is made up from 25% protein, 30% carbohydrates and 15% insoluble fiber and also contains calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and vitamin A. Hemp seed is the best vegetable source of the essential fatty acids, containing omega 3 linoleic acid (55%) and mega 6 linolenic acid (25%) in a close to perfect ratio as well as containing the rare nutrient gama linolenic acid. Hemp seeds are good to eat and good for you. They can be eaten raw or used in cooking and baking for cookies, burgers, porridge, cakes, casseroles or even roasted and eaten whole (sometimes with garlic or tahini seasoning).

Paper products from hemp – hemp is 77% cellulose and can produce 4 times per acre compared to trees and without the need for chemicals, making hemp much more sustainable with no risk to the environment.

Hemp as a fuel – hemp oil has a further eco friendly use in paints, oils and inks instead of petroleum while hemp has a great future as a bio-fuel (ethanol, methan, co-firing with coal and more). These fuels burn cleaner and are more efficient that other fuels not made with hemp.

In a letter to President Obama, Josh Davis as senior editor at hemp.com included the following points:

So why is it illegal to grow hemp?

Because it is considered marijuana by the DEA.

First let me address this issue:

Hemp is not marijuana. It is in the same family, but it is not Marijuana.

The THC content (the active drug in Marijuana) of hemp is less than 3% while marijuana plants typically have 15-30% THC. The content in hemp makes it useless as a drug.

You cannot hide marijuana plants in a hemp field as the DEA and law enforcement officials would have you believe. The hemp will pollinate the marijuana and lower the THC content, rendering it useless as a drug.

The Federal Government must understand and concur that hemp is NOT a drug and cannot be used as a drug.

We do not need to live blindly behind ignorance any longer.

You can read many more valid points in the rest of the letter to the president if you go to
http://www.hemp.com/2011/01/dear-president-obama/

With so many positives going for it, don’t you think it is time that hemp was grown commercially in the US like it is in so many other countries? China is the world’s leading producer but Canada, Great Britain, Spain, France, Germany, Romania and other countries are also growing hemp.

The US is cutting off its nose to spite its face.

When the outbreak first occurred, there was a lot of panic and the WHO declared it a pandemic. Everyone was fighting over stocks of flu vaccine and then it all died down just as quickly as it started, so that various health authorities were left with a huge stockpile of vaccine which they had to try and dispose of. One of the ways they did this was to sell them to countries in the Southern Hemisphere just in time for their winter months along with appropriate advertising to make sure everyone rushed out to get their flu shots.

Back in the Northern hemisphere last October, it was business as usual with flu shots being offered at supermarket pharmacies and airport departure lounges in the US accompanied by all the usual TV and other advertising. I know because I was staying there between September and November.

In the UK, people were not all that interested in getting vaccinated when suddenly the bad weather in December arrived and the media were full of stories of rising flu cases. Next thing, they were reporting a shortage of vaccine! The number of deaths this winter from flu in the UK (verified by the Health Protection Agency currently) is 50, with 45 of these due to swine flu. These are hardly earth shattering figures when compared to the total population.

Now in a report by Michelle Roberts for BBC Health News, it is said that people who recover from swine flu may be left with an extraordinary natural ability to fight off flu viruses.

The report goes on to say:

“In beating a bout of H1N1 the body makes antibodies that can kill many other flu strains, a study in the Journal of Experimental Medicine shows.

Doctors hope to harness this power to make a universal flu vaccine that would protect against any type of influenza. Ultimately this could replace the “best guess” flu vaccines currently used. Such a vaccine is the “holy grail” for flu researchers. Many scientists are already testing different prototypes to put an end to the yearly race to predict coming flu strains and quickly mass produce a new vaccine each flu season.

Dr Patrick Wilson who led the latest research said the H1N1 swine flu virus that reached pandemic levels infecting an estimated 60 million people last year, had provided a unique opportunity for researchers.   He said that it demonstrates how to make a single vaccine that could potentially provide immunity to all influenza and that the surprise was that such a very different influenza strain, as opposed to the most common strains, could lead them to something so widely applicable.

In the nine patients they studied (who had caught swine flu during the pandemic) they found the infection had triggered the production of a wide range of antibodies that are only very rarely seen after seasonal flu infections or flu vaccination.

Five antibodies isolated by the team could fight all the seasonal H1N1 flu strains from the last decade, the devastating “Spanish flu” strain from 1918 which killed up to 50m people, plus a potentially deadly bird flu H5N1 strain.

The researchers believe the “extraordinarily” powerful antibodies were created as the body learned how to fight the new infection with swine flu using its old memory of how to fight off other flu viruses.

Next they plan to examine the immune response of people who were vaccinated against last year’s swine flu (but did not get sick) to see if they too have the same super immunity to flu.

Dr Sarah Gilbert is a expert in viruses at Oxford University and has been testing her own prototype universal flu vaccine. She said: “Many scientists are working to develop a vaccine that would protect against the many strains of flu virus. This work gives us more confidence that it will be possible to generate a universal flu vaccine.”  But she said it would take many years for a product to go through the necessary tests and trials. “It will take at least five years before anything like this could be widely available.”

This story can be seen at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12152500

The point about this report that I find interesting is that if these people who had the flu now have all these wonderful antibodies in their system, surely it is better and more natural to let nature take its course and allow the majority of people to catch the flu in the first place. Obviously, those people who are really at risk would be the exception to this. The immune system is a wonderful thing if we let it do its job. If we abuse our immune system with sugar, artificial sweeteners, smoking, vitamin D deficiency and more, then of course it will inevitably let us down.

I await with interest to see if the proposed study, on those who had the flu injection, finds that they too now have an extraordinary natural ability to fight off flu viruses.

I suspect that they will not.

What do you feel about tanning beds? Are you for or against?

According to a BBC news report, Russian health authorities confirmed that a Russian prison will soon be fitted out with various health-promoting amenities, including tanning beds, which officials say will help to change the nation’s reputation for having poor quality prison facilities. The Russian officials say the tanning beds will help improve prisoner health.

We have all been hearing a lot about the benefits of Vitamin D lately and of course I have been writing about it too.

Sensible sun exposure provides the body with the vitamin D that it needs to fight heart disease, stroke, cancer, osteoporosis as well as making us feel good and ward off depression – there is a lot of truth in the fact that grey days can make us feel down. But if you live in the Northern hemisphere with long winter months, it is difficult to incorporate sunshine into your life and this is when the vitamin D levels can drop and why so many today are vitamin D deficient. Some people take vitamin D3 supplements but others are turning to tanning beds to replace the sunshine.

But are tanning beds safe to use?

According to www.womentowomen.com they are not an advisable source of vitamin D because of the characteristics of ultraviolet light rays and how these affect the body. They say:

“Both the sun and tanning beds emit two types of ultraviolet light rays, UVA and UVB. The skin absorbs both types, but in different ways. UVA rays have longer wavelengths that penetrate into the deepest layers of the skin, whereas UVB rays’ wavelengths are short and only reach the surface layers of skin. Both types of rays contribute to the health risks associated with excessive sun exposure. However, UVB rays also trigger the synthesis of the vitamin D precursor in the skin, and thus are solely responsible for the healthy benefits of sunshine. For most people, exposing as much of your body to sunshine for about 20 minutes per day provides the skin with enough UVB rays to eliminate vitamin D deficiencies, without causing long-term damage to the skin.

However, while UVB rays account for the health benefits of sunshine, tanning salons are more interested in UVA rays. This is because overexposure to UVB rays, which affect the surface layers of skin, quickly causes sunburns. On the other hand, UVA rays are responsible for the golden-brown tan sought after by most salon patrons. As a result, most tanning salons calibrate their tanning beds to emit approximately 95 percent UVA rays. This calibration maximizes the tanning effects of the machine and minimizes the risk of burning. Unfortunately, it also minimizes the amount of vitamin D that can be metabolized relative to the exposure to damaging ultraviolet rays.

In theory, a tanning bed can be calibrated to emit a greater percentage of UVB rays. However, it is important to remember that the safety of exposure to either type of ultraviolet rays depends upon its moderation. Most people do not enter tanning beds wearing pants and T-shirts, and exposing too much surface area of the skin can quickly result in excessive absorption of ultraviolet light rays.”

It would seem that the tanning beds in tanning salons are not properly geared up for boosting your vitamin D levels but rather just for the appearance of a golden tan.

On the other hand Dr Mercola, who is an avid proponent of healthy living, markets and sells home tanning beds on his web site www.mercola.com.

He says:

“Vitamin D is an essential nutrient that can make a world of difference for your heart health, bones, skin, immunity and even your mood. It’s so important that your body produces it naturally when sunlight comes in contact with your skin. In reality, you are your own Vitamin D producing machine! But without enough outdoor sun exposure, it’s hard to maintain adequate levels of Vitamin D all year round.

The Mercola Vitality Home Tanning Bed is a complete tanning system that utilizes UVB rays to stimulate natural Vitamin D production in your body. It’s made even better than conventional tanning beds because it has two more beneficial types of light which are red and infrared light. With your Mercola Vitality Home Tanning Bed, you’ll enjoy:

- The benefits of  UV rays that help your body produce just the right amount of vitamin D, without overdose.

- Red light in the 633 nm range to reverse wrinkles and help give you more youthful skin.

- Infrared light to provide temporary relief of muscle and joint pain, stiffness, and spasm — and improve blood circulation.

- The convenience, privacy, and cleanliness of getting your tanning and health-enhancing light in the comfort of your own home.

- The newest technology in indoor tanning systems, which is far more advanced than the often-outdated equipment in tanning parlors.”

Scientists at the Vitamin D Council have endorsed the Mercola Tanning Systems as a safe and effective way to help you achieve natural levels of Vitamin D. The Vitamin D Council is a nonprofit organization whose aim is to educate the public about Vitamin D deficiency and how to prevent it.

For the most part, American and European medical officials have warned the public against tanning beds, citing that they could cause skin cancer. However, research continues to show that when used properly, tanning beds can actually do the opposite by exposing the body to vitamin D-creating ultraviolet (UV) rays as given off naturally by the sun.

I have never used a tanning bed myself as I live in a climate where there is sunshine most of the year round and I able to get my daily dose of vitamin D top-up but, if I did live in a colder climate, I think I would be very tempted to invest in a tanning bed. Like all things, balance is the key and moderation is safest.

Although the final results of the study will only be available in another year, some 80 000 of these mats have been sold in Sweden during 2010. Anette Kjellgren, Associate Professor of Psychology at the Karlstad University, has led a study where pain patients had an opportunity to try out the spike mat.

She says:

“What we found in the study was that pain peaks were truncated. This difference was sufficiently great to be significant as we researchers say, that is, big enough to be measured and established statistically. The spike mat thus appears not to help patients’ constant dull pain, but it can offer some relief for powerful pain attacks.”

A big plus is that the mats are eco friendly as they are made from recylable materials.

The mat is marketed as being useful for alleviating pain and headaches, soothing tired and aching muscles and even combating insomnia. It has been developed to be used for a number of back-related ailments such as slipped discs, stiffness, lower back pain, stress, tense muscles, knots, chronic aches and pains, whiplash and fibromyalgia.

The mat is used by many professional specialists to treat and relax their clients when they need therapy.

There are two types of spike mats to choose from:

-  The classis model which has hard plastic spikes to work deep into the muscles.

-  The soft model which as the name suggests is less intense and is recommended for the neck as well as people with sensitive skin. If you prefer the sound of the soft model, this can also be used on the neck, back, lower back, buttocks and thighs.

It is easy to increase the intensity of the spikes’ pressure by using the mat on bare skin or to decrease it by wearing a T-shirt.

Proving very popular with all kinds of athletes either for sports injuries or to use as a muscle relaxation after a good work out, this mat was voted the best Christmas gift in Sweden last year.

The developers of the mat call it their “bed of nails” but the difference is that the “nails” of the mat have a rounded tip and cannot harm you. They suggest that for added benefits, you lie on the mat for 20-40 minutes as needed, preferably at least a couple of times a week or even every day. The experience should feel “nicely painful” to achieve its effect. They point out that everyone has different pain thresholds, so most people will need to adjust the effect by putting a towel or thin cloth on the mat to soften the pressure of the “nails”.

If you would like to find out more about this innovative mat, you can go to http://www.spikemat.com

Sounds like an easy way to benefit your health, relieve pain and to relax. If anyone has had experience of the spike mat, I would love to hear from you.

Most of the time I live in South Africa but over the past few months I have spent time in England and California and it has been interesting to see the different methods of recycling. In our part of Cape Town, we don’t yet have municipal collections for recycling but it will come. So there is no designated blue or green wheelie bin that you can fill and put out every second week. Each household is responsible for their own and recycling has become a way of making money for many charities and schools. At the end of my street, is a school with a well organized re-cycling depot complete with live-in janitor who keeps an eye on the whole set up, helps people where necessary and generally makes sure the area is clean. I am sure the income generated covers his wages and more. There are massive bins clearly labelled ensuring you put everything in the right place. They don’t take batteries, light bulbs or empty printer cartridges but next door is a shopping center which does. They also don’t take cardboard but if you leave this on top of your wheelie bin on refuse day, homeless people come and take it away and exchange for cash from a cardboard collection facility.

In my garage, I have hung 3 of those large blue Ikea bags on hooks on one wall to collect glass, plastic and paper with small bags for the bulbs, batteries and printer cartridges. Then as soon as one bag is full, I take a walk down to the school to empty it. All my kitchen waste goes into the garden compost bin. So my system is working well.

But back to contaminating a whole load of recycling by just adding one incorrect item.

Frozen-food boxes are one of the most common items in any household fridge and look just like paper. But this kind of packaging is wasted on the paper bin as it has been coated with wax or plastic and can’t be recycled. Aluminium foil is another “no, no” because it damages recycling companies’ machines. Glass remains the most eco-friendly storage item as it can be recycled “forever”, unlike plastic which downgrades to a point where it cannot be recycled any more.

Contaminated waste is one of the main reasons recyclable material ends up as landfill – for example one disposable diaper will soil an entire bin because the rest of the contents are no longer hygienic to recycle. But that doesn’t mean your food, drink and toiletries packaging must be scrubbed clean – a simple rinse is sufficient.

But there is a 4th R and that is Re-think:

- We urgently need to rethink the way we sustain ourselves and become more aware of how our food and goods are made and packaged.

- We need to be conscious about whether it is really neccessary to constantly upgrade everything in our lives to the latest version.

- We need to buy goods with the least amount of packaging.

Recycling should actually be the last resort.

A few extra tips about recycling of which you might not be aware:

- Use a composting tumbler. Unlike traditional bins, a tumbler’s rotatable design is a faster way of distributing heat within organic waste and turning it into garden gold.

- Don’t send your organic waste to a landfill, where it releases greenhouse gases, leaches into the soil and contaminates otherwise recoverable material.

- Don’t accept items like plastic spoons, paper napkins and salt sachets at fast-food outlets.

- Don’t choose items with complicated packaging. Look for more easily recyclable alternatives.

November 15 was America Recycles Day. If you want take your own recycling a step further, there is an application you can download from EPA – The United States Environmental Protection Agency – that calculates how much energy you are saving by the recycling you and your family are carring out. Fun and educational for parents and children alike and called iWARM, the app translates the total energy savings from recycling the materials you choose into an equivalent amount of electricity. The tool then tells you how long you could run a variety of household appliances using that amount of electricity and shows the results in a graph. Here is the link http://www.epa.gov/warm

One of the most controversial vaccines has been the HPV and you will find many convincing arguments both for and against this one on the internet.

Norma Erickson is a freelance writer who describes herself as being dedicated to providing complete and current information regarding all aspects of the vaccination controversy. She strongly believes every person has the right to know the risks and benefits of vaccines prior to consenting to any inoculation. Her mission is to provide that information in a clear, concise, easy to understand format. You can find out what she has to say on her website
http://www.examiner.com/vaccines-in-national/meet-the-gardasil-girls-savanna-from-ohio

The more you read about this subject on the internet, the more interested and the more confused you can become. But one thing for sure is that in whatever country the vaccine is being promoted, there are worrying side effects being reported. Most government health departments are quick to come up with excuses for these but India has taken a strong stand and recently halted vaccine trials in that country after 6 Indian girls died.

In the The United States, with a population of approximately 307 million, 29,323 young women participated in the clinical trials for Gardasil. During those trials, there were 37 deaths reported and 255 serious systemic adverse reactions. There were 463 reports of new medical conditions reported by participants that were ”potentially indicative of systemic autoimmune disorder(s).

In a new article out today as part of vaccine awareness week, Dr Mercola says: “It’s been four years since Gardasil debuted as a blockbuster vaccine with sales that rocketed to over $1.1 billion in its first nine months. Touted as a wonder vaccine that would end cervical cancer, it was supposed to be the savior of both mankind and Merck’s Vioxx-damaged bottom line. But now according to CNN Money, it’s a dud.

It just posted $219 million in sales. But in the pharma world, that’s a paltry pittance, nothing short of an in-flight explosion that’s caused Merck stock to drop 3 percent, with analysts and investors scrambling to figure out what went wrong.  So what happened? How did a vaccine that was supposed to be Merck’s beacon for higher profits in the 21stCentury go from flagship to flop?

CNN Money calls Gardasil’s crash a “design flaw” and faults the economy, puritanical parents, bad press, and Merck itself for contributing to the fallout. The article ends with the hypothesis: “Or, maybe people just aren’t ready for a cancer vaccine when it’s for a sexually transmitted disease.”

I think they’re way off the mark. The real reason Gardasil is a flop is that people have become educated about this vaccine. They’ve looked at the science and weighed the risks vs. the supposed benefits, and have made a choice not to get it for themselves or their children. The word is out: despite what the CDC would have you believe, Gardasil’s safety record is in serious question. As of September 28, 2010, the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) has more than 18,000 Gardasil-related adverse events listed in it, including at least 65 deaths.” http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/11/05/gardasil-vaccine-is-a-flop-for-good-reasons.aspx

If you want to read some of the stories of those children who have died or been severely affected by the vaccine, go to http://www.sanevax.org.

What is HPV?

HPV or Human Papilloma Virus is a group of more than 100 viruses of which over 30 strains can be passed from one person to another through sexual contact. Some types of HPV cause genital warts – those single or multiple bumps that appear in the genitalia of both men and women including the vagina, cervix, vulva, penis, and rectum. These are mostly considered to be low-risk strains. The high risk strains of Human Papilloma Virus may go on to cause cancer of the cervix, vulva, vagina, anus and penis. And it is the strains types 16 and 18 that the HPV vaccine targets as well as the two types that cause most genital warts (6 and 11).

I found this comment on the internet “While the HPV controversy may go on, it’s usually through ignorance and rumor instead of facts. Make sure your decision to get your child vaccinated or not is based on knowledge, not hearsay, especially when it comes to a potentially life-saving vaccine such as the HPV vaccination.” Purporting to give an unbiased opinion but then making you feel bad about questioning the vaccination anyway.

Resolve to do your own research on the subject of vaccinations on children in particular and on adults in general so that you too are informed on this highly controversial matter of life and death. I used to think that if many took advantage of these vaccinations to protect themselves, in generations to come the HPV virus would lessen and eventually be eliminated altogether. Now I am not so sure anymore. You have to weigh up the risk of the side effects of the vaccine including disability and death against the risk of contracting the virus.

Remember too that if you are healthy with a strong immune system, you stand a good chance that should you contract the virus, it could well work its way out of your system in time while if you are unhealthy, surely you should be avoiding the vaccine anyway.

You may not be aware that you cannot develop shingles unless you have had chickenpox – the virus usually remains dormant in your system unless or until something such as a weakened immune system or extreme stress triggers it. But in the past, during adulthood and as and when you came into contact with cases of chickenpox in children, this would act as a booster to your immune system to protect you from developing shingles.

Now that we as adults are no longer coming into contact with chickenpox in young children, we no longer receive those boosters.

Dr Mercola says: “It’s now been fifteen years since Merck’s chickenpox vaccine was approved for market. What had always been regarded as a relatively benign childhood illness was suddenly reinvented in the 1990s as a life-threatening disease for which children must get vaccinated or face dire health consequences.

But wait—Merck to the rescue!

As is true with many new and potentially unnecessary medical interventions used on a widespread basis, there are often unintended consequences. The chickenpox (varicella) vaccine is a perfect example. By trying to prevent all children from experiencing chickenpox naturally, this policy may have actually created a NEW epidemic—not in children but in adults, especially elderly adults. Vaccinating children for chickenpox may very well be causing a shingles epidemic.”

Dr Mercola goes on to explain: “Nature has devised an elegant plan for protecting you from the shingles virus.

After contracting and recovering from chickenpox (usually as a child), as you age, your natural immunity gets asymptomatically “boosted” by coming into contact with infected children, who are recovering from chickenpox. This natural “boosting” of natural immunity to the varicella (chickenpox) virus helps protect you from getting shingles later in life.

This is true whether you are a child, adolescent, young adult, or elderly—every time you come into contact with someone infected with chickenpox, you get a natural “booster shot” that protects you from a painful—and expensive—bout with shingles. In other words, shingles can be prevented by ordinary contact, such as receiving a hug from a grandchild who is getting or recovering from the chickenpox. But with the advent of the chickenpox vaccine, there is less chickenpox around to provide that natural immune boost for children AND adults.

So as chickenpox rates have declined, shingles rates have begun to rise, and there is mounting evidence that an epidemic of shingles is developing in America from the mass, mandatory use of the chickenpox vaccine by all children.

As hard as scientists try to come up with ways to “improve” human biology, they just can’t outsmart Mother Nature.. In trying to tinker with the natural order of things, we tend to destroy processes that nature has masterfully orchestrated to keep us healthy.

This dance between chickenpox and shingles is a perfect example.”

In his article http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/11/02/chicken-pox-vaccine-creates-shingles-epidemic.aspx goes on to quote research carried out by Gary S. Goldman, Ph.D. who served for 8 years as a research analyst with the Varicella Active Surveillance Project in Los Angeles County with funding from the CDC, revealed high rates of shingles in Americans since the government’s 1995 recommendation that all children receive chickenpox vaccine, while a team at Britain’s Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS) found that adults living with children enjoy higher levels of protection from shingles. They stated that, although chickenpox can be life threatening for the immune compromised, thousands of elderly people could also die from the complications of shingles. PHLS called for a re-evaluation of the policy of mass chickenpox vaccination in the U.S., as well as other countries implementing this practice.

One common thread that stood out from many of the comments was the fact that the chickenpox vaccine was being pushed by government to prevent parents from having to stay home from work to look after a child with chickenpox for a couple of weeks. The cost to the workforce was too great but never mind the cost to the child, and now the elderly who have to suffer the pain and discomfort of a shingles outbreak.

I can see that this is going to be the subject of much debate in the coming months. Whether you are a parent of young children or an older adult who is fearful of developing shingles, there is plenty of food for thought for you here.