The Rocky Road to Menopause and How Essential Oils Can Help

Most women can agree that there was little information regarding women’s hormonal changes when our mothers transitioned through menopause. Hot flashes were commonly the only thing addressed, which gave most of us the impression that menopause is a brief hot mess and then the menstrual cycle stops for good. Though this is the case for a small percentage of women, perimenopause—the period of time before the cessation of menstruation—is a challenging reality that can last 3-15 years before actual menopause.

Today, we have access to knowledge about our bodies that our mothers, aunts, and grandmothers were without. Now we know that gastro-intestinal distress, mild to severe anxiety, panic attacks, insomnia, itchy skin, depression, loss of libido, muscle pain, cold and hot flashes, fibroids, heavy monthly bleeding, tension and migraine headaches, heart palpitations, mood swings, irritable bladder and a host of other sometimes-frightening physical challenges are common symptoms of hormonal changes at midlife. Women who are unaware of the hormonal havoc their bodies are experiencing often rush to the doctor for cardiac tests when their hearts won’t stop racing or get extensive gastrointestinal tests when heartburn, indigestion, or constipation become chronic. These tests show nothing abnormal most of the time, which only adds to the frustration factor.

Perimenopausal hormonal shifts can put the female body and psyche on a roller coaster, pumping too much estrogen one moment and too little the next. Progesterone can also drop dramatically or surge, and testosterone is often low enough to give many women a profound disinterest in sex despite healthy, passionate relationships. The adrenals—the body’s stress glands—work harder during perimenopause and take over for aging ovaries. This means that even individuals with healthy adrenal function will most likely be affected, and those with genetic or acquired adrenal fatigue will feel the changes of midlife even more strongly.

Hormone tests for perimenopause are often unreliable because of erratic hormonal surges; the results usually reflect hormonal status of the time they are taken and cannot accurately portray what is happening inside the body on a daily basis. Only during the later stages of perimenopause are these tests reliable, so many conventional doctors choose not to test hormones or fail to take their female patients seriously. Perimenopause can be the most challenging time of a woman’s life, and the last thing she needs is a doctor who will not take hormonal changes into account.

Many women opt for hormonal replacement therapy (H.R.T.), but much relief can come from diet, herbal, and vitamin supplementation, and clinical aromatherapy. The latter can have profound effects on the nervous system, which in turn affects the endocrine system. Essential oils can be a great solace both physically and emotionally. Let’s look at a few essential oils that could make the difference between barely functioning and feeling a whole lot better:

Geranium: Geranium is a gentle but effective essential oil that can be a woman’s best friend during any time of life, especially perimenopause. It helps to tame wild surges of estrogen or progesterone and promotes harmony between not only these hormones but other hormones such as testosterone and stress hormones like cortisol and adrenalin. It fortifies the adrenals, reproductive organs, and nervous system in a way that can be felt almost immediately. It can be used for most symptoms including perimenopausal digestive distress, erratic mood swings, sore breasts, and weepiness. Geranium can be applied to the soles of the feet using 2 drops per sole 1-2 times a day. It can be mixed with evaporated sea salt or Epsom salts and added to a bath using up to 10 drops per bath. It is the essential oil to use daily, through ovulation right up to the onset of menstruation. Most women see less severity of symptoms, easier periods, and more stable emotions. Geranium’s pleasant green, floral scent is usually enjoyed singularly or mixed with other oils such as lavender or ylang ylang. Lavender is a good choice, for its balancing effects work synergistically with geranium.

Vetiver: Vetiver is a deep, earth-scented essential oil that promotes balance between estrogen and progesterone. It is best used 2-7 days before the menstrual period begins and can have calming, harmonizing effects on the body and psyche. It soothes the nervous system, calms panic, eases worry, and encourages feelings of safety. It is best applied daily to the soles of the feet using 2 drops per sole. A drop on the hand can be inhaled to calm the nerves or prepare the body for sleep.

Clary Sage: Clary sage is a grassy, pleasant essential oil most valuable for hot flashes and other symptoms of waning estrogen. It also lifts depressive states, melancholy, and instills confidence when the spirits are low. Clary sage can boost libido in some women. It is best applied daily to the soles of the feet using 2 drops per sole. This essential oil is a lovely addition to a hot bath and can be combined with geranium or black spruce for added adrenal support. It can also be inhaled to bring harmony and positivity to the nervous system. *Caution: women with estrogen dominance, breast cancer, or history of estrogen-dependent cancers should avoid dermal use (through the skin). Inhalation is okay.

Black Spruce: Black spruce is a wonderful evergreen oil that supports adrenal and kidney function. It is excellent to lower excessive cortisol and other stress hormones as well as restore a frazzled nervous system. It is best applied daily to the soles of the feet using 2-3 drops per sole, preferably in the morning or at bedtime. It can be mixed with evaporated sea salt or Epsom salts and added to a bath using up to 10 drops per bath.

Rose Absolute: Rose absolute, even in diluted form, is a lovely oil that brings harmony and stability to the female body. It lifts the libido, balances hormones, and soothes the emotions. It can be added to unscented lotion and applied all over the body for a balancing moisturizer. Rose may also be helpful for premenstrual food cravings.

Neroli: Neroli, even in diluted form, is a powerful but gentle oil with sedative qualities. It is invaluable for heart palpitations, trembling, panic attacks, general anxiety, excessive worry, and insomnia related to hormonal shifts. A few drops on the palm of the hand help the body to find equilibrium almost immediately. Neroli works incredibly well with ylang ylang, especially for women who are awakened by adrenalin rushes in the middle of the night.

Ylang Ylang: A heady, floral essential oil, ylang ylang helps the body to balance its output of adrenalin. It is most valuable for heart flutters, intense outbursts and changes of mood, and the effects of stress. A few drops applied to the soles of the feet will help the body through stressful times and hormonal fluctuation. It can be mixed with evaporated sea salt or Epsom salts and added to a bath using up to 5 drops per bath. 1 drop of ylang ylang and 1 drop of neroli applied to the palm of the hand can bring immediate calm when inhaled.

Spearmint: Bright and sweet, spearmint is a wonderful essential oil for overall hormonal balance for women. It can be used for PMS to ease headaches, indigestion, discomfort from water gain, low energy and achy muscles. It can be applied daily to the soles of the feet using 2-3 drops per sole once, preferably in the morning. It can also be inhaled for a quick pick-me-up.

Perimenopause is a time of transition, and like all transitions, temporary. It is easy to forget this when we are in its grip, but essential oils can help ease the passage and bring many unexpected gifts of healing. Essential oils work with our physiological processes as well as the emotional and spiritual selves. They can be our greatest allies, reminding us to be gentle with ourselves and that the best years of our lives are truly ahead of us.

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Foods You Can Grow and Store All Winter – The Lowdown on Storage Crops

Eating local is something many of us strive for, but it can be easier said than done. We are at the mercy of the growing season for whatever local fresh produce is available and at the mercy of our work schedules for the time to track it down.

Farmers markets and local farm stands are a great place to find in-season fruits and veggies during a good part of the year, but busy schedules and weekend obligations can make regular market shopping difficult. The reality for many of us is that quick trips to the grocery store on the way home are what we can manage.

Some stores will carry local produce when they can, but most of the year it is imported from other regions. Additionally, prices are often higher for local because small farmers can’t offer stores the same wholesale margin as giant corporate farms. Those of us who garden can only enjoy meals from dirt to plate for so many months before the growing season ends.

Still, we know how important it is. We know that buying from local farms strengthens our local economy. We know we reduce our impact by supporting sustainable agricultural practices and reducing the distance our food travels to reach us. This is why we need to know more about storage crops.

Storage Crops to the Rescue!

Storage crops are foods that will last most of the year under the right conditions and include foods like potatoes, onions, shallots, garlic, root vegetables, winter squash, and pumpkins. The right conditions may seem daunting and mysterious, as root cellars have become something in our grandmother’s stories of the past, but just because you don’t have a root cellar doesn’t mean you can’t keep storage crops through most of the winter.

I have used my garage, pantry, attic, and closet to store local staples and had great success. Sure, some things only make it to April, but there’s enough produce growing again by that time that it really doesn’t matter. You can make the most of a single trip to the farmers’ market or a local farm stand in the fall and stock up a store of these crops at excellent prices. It takes a little planning, but there are many creative ways to keep your food supply local year round.

Potatoes

People have been raising families on potatoes for centuries. They’re versatile, they’re nutritious, and they’ll keep for months. They are easy to grow and don’t require a lot of garden space. There are even creative options like vertical potato cages that allow you to keep layering as the foliage climbs upward. If you don’t have room for gardening, or have a larger family than you can grow enough potatoes for, many farmers offer them at discount bulk prices as a storage crop. The important basics are storing them in a cool, dark, well-ventilated place; 50 to 60 degrees is your target temperature. Cellars and basements are ideal, but covered boxes in the garage, or bins in the bottom of your kitchen cabinets will keep them for quite a while. You can make a lot of different local meals centered around potatoes in the middle of the winter, which makes them a storage crop staple. Depending on the variety of potato, storage conditions, and outside temperatures, potatoes will keep up to 6 months.

Onions

Let’s face it. Almost every recipe calls for onions, so stocking up on your own local supply of this vegetable is going to take you a long ways towards a more local year-round diet. Much like potatoes, farmers will offer discounted prices on bulk quantities in the fall, so calculate how many onions you think you might use per week and do the math to find out how many pounds you need. Onions need cool, dark, well-ventilated storage conditions, but unlike potatoes they need to stay a little more dry. I like to store my onions in baskets, mesh bags, or hanging braids in my attic. Garages are also a fine place, but cellars and basements can lead to spoilage. Under the right conditions, onions will keep up to 6 months.

Garlic

Garlic is one of those foods that doubles as a medicine and overall health booster, so I try to put it in as many dishes as I can. Garlic is easy to grow and doesn’t require a lot of garden space, and I have managed to grow my entire garlic supply for the year for quite a while now.

This year I planned ahead and grew extra to plant as the following year’s garlic seed so I wouldn’t have to buy it. Garlic can be grown, cured, and braided for hanging storage, or it can be purchased from a farmer in bulk. You want to store it pretty much the same way as onions. Because it can be stored hanging in long braids, it doesn’t take up much room and adds a festive look to your storage area. You can easily get away with never buying garlic from the grocery store again. You can easily get away with never buying garlic from the grocery store again. Under the right conditions, hardneck garlic varieties will keep up to 10 months and softneck garlic varieties will keep up to a year.

Winter Squash and Pumpkins

I heard something in the news recently about the expected canned pumpkin shortage for the coming year because of this past spring’s wacky weather in the Midwest, so now is a better than ever time to start buying and storing local pumpkins and winter squash. This is a fun crop to stock up on, because it can involve an October trip to the pumpkin patch. Usually farms with a u-pick pumpkin field will also offer a variety of squash in their farm stand. As long as there is a stem left on them and they are kept below 60 degrees, with low humidity, squash can keep until the following summer in your garage, attic, closet, or sometimes just sitting out on your kitchen counter. They are more prone to spoilage than the other storage crops, so it is important to sort them regularly and eat the ones that don’t look like they’ll make it. The great bonus thing about having a lot of storage squash is that every time you cook one, you can roast the seeds as a healthy snack. Depending on the variety, storage conditions, and outside temperatures, pumpkins and winter squash will keep up to 8 months.

Storage Crops are Winter Staples

Once you get in the habit of planning winter meals around the storage crops you have on hand, you will find yourself with a delicious, nutritious, local and seasonal diet. Potatoes provide plenty of potassium, iron, B6, and fiber. Onions are high in Vitamin C, B6, essential minerals, and fiber. Garlic is rich in calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, zinc, selenium, antioxidants, and Vitamin C; and also provides anti-microbial and anti-bacterial properties. Winter squash and pumpkins are a straight up superfood, offering high levels of beta-carotene, Vitamin C, Vitamin D, antioxidants, polysaccharides, and fiber. Let’s also not forget the seeds, offering a powerhouse of nutrients in a tiny, crunchy package.

There are even a few other veggies that will keep as storage crops with a little ingenuity. Root vegetables like carrots, parsnips, turnips, and beets will keep for months in the refrigerator or a bucket of moist sand. Apples can keep for months if stored in a cool place and sorted regularly for rot.

Remember that the lack of a root cellar is not holding you back. There are a lot of storage options that mostly fit the criteria and will give you months of local meals. Now that you know the low-down on storage crops, it’s the perfect time of year to get out there and stock up. You will thank yourself for it in January.

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Three Homemade Toothpaste Recipes – Better Oral Health for Less Cost

If you’re shopping for an all natural toothpaste, the list of ingredients to avoid includes diethanolamine, propylene glycol, fluoride, aspartame, saccharine, sodium lauryl sulfate, Triclosan, glycerin, sorbitol, and microbeads. After careful examination of the ingredients, the discerning shopper will see the similarities between food products and other body care products. There are a lot of toothpaste companies that are merely pretending to be healthy.

Finding a toothpaste that is actually good for you, in other words, one that actually helps improve oral health, can be challenging. So why not make your own?

All you need is a formula that you can brush into the teeth and gums that helps to scrub away and kill bacteria and other microbes while it polishes the teeth lightly without acidifying the mouth with toxins that damage tissue and leach calcium from the teeth. It’s actually not so hard when you forgo the chemicals! Here are four recipes for oral health that you can use to mix and match and come up with your own regimen. You’ll save some money and extend the life of your yappers.

Simple Toothpaste Recipe

You can make homemade toothpaste, that’s not really a paste, with the following:

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon unrefined sea salt, finely ground

Instructions

Just mix the ingredients. You can also add an essential oil like peppermint or cinnamon; you can easily add a drop on the brush before brushing.

Homemade Earth-paste Recipe

If you like the earthy shampoos and soaps, then this toothpaste formula is right up your alley:

Ingredients

  • 4 Tbsp bentonite clay
  • Distilled water
  • 5 drops tea tree oil
  • 1 drop liquid stevia
  • 10 drops peppermint essential oil
  • 2 Tsp unrefined sea salt

Instructions

  • Combine 2 tablespoons of water with the bentonite clay in a glass bowl and mix well using a non-metal spoon (the clay shouldn’t come in contact with metal)
  • Add tea tree oil, stevia, and peppermint essential oils
  • Add salt, mix well
  • Add water to taste and texture
  • Store toothpaste in a glass with a lid (the toothpaste will dry out over time if left uncovered)

Homemade Remineralizing and Whitening Toothpaste Recipe

Make your own remineralizing toothpaste with calcium, magnesium, stevia, coconut oil, and essential oils to help your teeth stay strong and your gums stay healthy.

Ingredients

  • 5 parts calcium/magnesium powder (the best calcium for this can be obtained with this homemade calcium recipe)
  • 2 parts baking soda
  • 1 part unrefined sea salt, finely ground
  • 3-5 parts coconut oil to get desired texture
  • Optional ingredients: Essential oils for flavor and/or kill germs (mint, cinnamon, tea tree, peppermint, orange), and stevia (takes very little)

Instructions

  • Mix calcium, salt, and baking soda in a bowl
  • Add coconut oil, one part at a time until you reach the desired consistency
  • Add any optional ingredients
  • Store in small glass container

Hydrogen peroxide is added to many homemade toothpastes, especially those formulated for whitening. But hydrogen peroxide is one of those ingredients you are not supposed to swallow and it can irritate the gums. It is not a good idea for kids or for anyone with sensitive, damaged, or diseased gums.

Shillington’s Tooth and Gum Formula

If you suffer from oral health issues such as gingivitis or cavities, add oil pulling, chewing on garlic, and also add Shillington’s Tooth and Gum recipe to your homemade toothpaste.

Dr. Shillington’s Tooth and Gum Formula Recipe (or purchase here)

(Use Organic ingredients where ever possible).

  • 10 oz Echinacea tincture
  • 1/4 cup of tea tree oil
  • 4 oz. bayberry tincture
  • 2 oz. oak gall (or 3X oak bark) tincture
  • 2 TBS. Cayenne tincture
  • 2 1/2 dropperfuls of peppermint oil
  • 2 1/2 dropperfuls of clove oil

A “part” is a measurement by volume, not weight. Blend all ingredients together and make into a tincture using a 50/50 blend of alcohol and distilled water. For more, see How to Make a Tincture.

We also recommend addressing gut health and the first three sources below for acute gum infections and other more serious oral health issues.

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What Vaccines and GMOs Have in Common

Vaccines and GMOs have more in common than many people realize. Both the biotech and the pharmaceutical industry use the same arguments to get you to accept their products. If you are against GMOs or vaccines, then you must be anti-science!

Nothing could be further from the truth. It is the people who research vaccines and GMOs who turn against them. In today’s busy world, most people don’t feel that they have the time to research every product. A desire for convenience and a touch of apathy motivates people to trust the government to guarantee the safety of our products. The same people who claim that they don’t trust their government paradoxically trust the FDA, the USDA, and the CDC. What most people don’t know is that the same studies that the regulators use to verify product safety are funded by industry. Those who stand to benefit the most from product approval are the same ones doing studies that verify safety for vaccines and GMOs.

An Informed Opinion Leads to a Predictable Point of View

That old adage, “When we know better we do better,” holds true for both vaccines and GMOs, and some of us know better than others. More often than not, it is the highly educated who refuse vaccines and buy organic. The political elite is no exception.

While Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton both espouse the benefits of GMOs, neither Hillary nor President Obama actually eat them. The White House doesn’t serve GMOs, and this elitism is not limited to Democrats. Both George Bush and Mitt Romney have strong ties to Monsanto, and both also only eat organic foods. If GMOs are not good enough for them, then why would they be good enough for you and your family?

It is the Highly Educated Who Refuse Vaccines

When it comes to vaccines, the situation is markedly similar. In Germany, a safer vaccine was offered to the politicians, soldiers, and civil servants than the rest of the population. Amid fears of a swine flu epidemic, the German government ordered the Pandemrix vaccine for the German public and the Celvapan vaccine for government officials and the military. Both vaccines vaccinated for the same disease; one was simply safer than the other.

Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) revealed that most of his children are not vaccinated.

I believe it’s the parents’ decision whether to immunize or not. And so I’m looking at my wife — most of our children, we didn’t immunize. They’re healthy. Of course, home schooling, we didn’t have to get the mandatory immunization.

The higher someone’s formal education and the more informed someone is about vaccines, the more likely they are to refuse them. Many former pharmaceutical employees refuse to vaccinate their children.

An education, whether formal or informal, changes you forever. When it comes to vaccines or GMOs, a little knowledge can go a long way. It is the same people who have read the vaccine warning labels and the people who learn about vaccine ingredients who invariably refuse them for their children. The more you know about GMOs, the less likely you are to eat them as well.

If knowledge is power, ignorance is powerlessness. It is ignorant to believe that we don’t need to know what is in our food because we are too scared of science. It is just as ignorant to believe that vaccines simultaneously work so incredibly well, and yet so phenomenally badly that everyone must have them. As GMO activists struggle to educate the world about what is in their unlabeled food, anti-vaxxers struggle to educate others about what is in vaccines.

The Same Struggle by Different Names

The struggles against GMOs and vaccines are intrinsically linked, and yet what happens more often than not, is that these activists fight against billion dollar companies alone, when the fight is essentially the same and the industries that oppose them are essentially the same people as well.

GMO activists want GMOs labeled for the same reason that anti-vaxxers oppose mandatory vaccines. They all want control over what is to be put in their bodies, or the bodies of their children. Admittedly, in vaccines, the struggle over labels is slightly different. Instead of having vaccines labeled (though some of the labeling is intentionally ambiguous) there is a push to get others to read the ingredients, and to read the warning labels. Most people refuse to even discuss what’s in a vaccine or the known risks involved in vaccination. One of the many known risks to vaccination is death. Dying from a vaccine or being permanently disabled is far more likely than dying or being disabled from the disease that the vaccine is supposed to prevent. This may sound hard to believe, but this is easily verifiable. Mortality statistics for all diseases are easily found by searching the Internet. For instance, measles hasn’t killed anyone in the U.S. in decades, but the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System admits to 329 deaths from the vaccine, and almost 7,000 serious adverse reactions. (Numbers for adverse reactions are most likely low due to underreporting.) The question becomes what’s worse, the disease or the vaccine? To those who know how to do the research, the answer is obvious.

Both of These Industries Want You To Trust Their Products and Not To Do Your Own Research

The majority of those opposed to vaccines and GMOs are highly educated. These people are not anti-science, they embrace the pro-precautionary principle. A good definition and description of the precautionary principle quoted from Mindfully.org follows:

When an activity raises threats of harm to the environment or human health, precautionary measures should be taken even if some cause and effect relationships are not fully established scientifically.

Key elements of the principle include taking precaution in the face of scientific uncertainty; exploring alternatives to possibly harmful actions; placing the burden of proof on proponents of an activity rather than on victims or potential victims of the activity; and using democratic processes to carry out and enforce the principle – including the public right to informed consent.

…Sometimes if we wait for proof it is too late. Scientific standards for demonstrating cause and effect are very high. For example, smoking was strongly suspected of causing lung cancer long before the link was demonstrated conclusively that is, to the satisfaction of scientific standards of cause and effect. By then, many smokers had died of lung cancer. But many other people had already quit smoking because of the growing evidence that smoking was linked to lung cancer. These people were wisely exercising precaution despite some scientific uncertainty.

Often a problem – such as a cluster of cancer cases or global warming – is too large, its causes too diverse, or the effects too long-term to be sorted out with scientific experiments that would prove cause and effect. It’s hard to take these problems into the laboratory. Instead, we have to rely on observations, case studies or predictions based on current knowledge.

According to the precautionary principle, when reasonable scientific evidence of any kind gives us good reason to believe that an activity, technology or substance may be harmful, we should act to prevent harm. If we always wait for scientific certainty, people may suffer and die, and damage to the natural world may be irreversible.

Rather than conduct (or publish) long-term independent studies, both the biotech and the pharmaceutical industries opt to do their own short-term studies. They also both successfully lobby governments for special protection from liability.

In 1986 a law was enacted making it illegal to sue vaccine manufacturers: The National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act. This law established a vaccine court, a system that will only compensate families for known vaccine reactions, and then far less than what actual standard liability would pay out. The vaccine court is funded by taxes on vaccines, and so far they have paid out over 3 billion. This court is far from fair or impartial. They pay a maximum of 250,000 dollars for wrongful death from vaccines, and they dismiss 80% of all cases presented to them. Buying the claimant’s silence is a common stipulation to receive any compensation.

A provision was added to the Agriculture Appropriations Bill that serves no purpose other than protecting the biotech industry at the expense of the public’s health. Specifically, HR 933, section 735 is the provision that makes genetically engineered foods immune from liability. This law has been dubbed the Monsanto Protection Act. President Barack Obama signed the bill into law.

If the pharmaceutical and biotech industries thought these products were safe, then why did they lobby the U.S. government for immunity from liability? It stands to reason that they wouldn’t spend millions of dollars lobbying for special protection from lawsuits if the products were safe to begin with.

Industry Funded Pseudoscience

It is difficult to find truly independent research on vaccines. Most vaccine safety studies use all of the toxic ingredients that are found in vaccines for both the control group and the group receiving vaccines – the same adjuvants such as heavy metals, aborted fetal cells, formaldehyde, etc. The only difference between the “placebo” and the vaccine is that the “placebo” doesn’t have the attenuated pathogen, or the “placebo” is an experimental vaccine. Real long-term safety studies that study vaccinated versus unvaccinated or long-term studies that look at the safety of the entire vaccine schedule are never funded by the industry or the U.S. Government. The CDC has blatantly refused to study vaccinated versus unvaccinated because they know what they would find.

There is a similar situation with GMOs. All of the safety studies published by the industry are short-term studies, 90 days or less. The reason for this is that the harmful effects of GMOs typically begin to show up after 90 days. Neither the biotech industry nor the U.S. Government ever published long-term studies. There have been numerous studies conducted in Europe and Russia that reveal kidney damage, liver damage, cancer, and other health problems linked to GMO consumption.

Biotech and the Pharmaceutical Industries Are Separate in Name Only

Monsanto and Pfizer used to be one company, a pharmaceutical company and a biotech company. Pfizer and Monsanto still maintain close ties with both companies staffed by a revolving door of scientists and businessmen that switch back and forth between both companies and regulatory agencies. When you consider how pharmaceutical companies make money (the more sick people are, the more money they make) strong ties to a biotech company should be a major concern to the public.

Many people who are opposed to GMOs are pro-vaccine and vice-versa. These views are far from consistent, and any activist that is against one and for the other is an activist who fails to grasp the issues at hand. If an activist can’t tell what vaccines and GMOs have in common, they could be more of a hindrance than a help to their cause. In an effort to avoid dividing their followers, most anti-GMO and anti-vaccine movements avoid discussing anything they see as unrelated to their cause. This demarcation hurts both movements, as there is strength in numbers. When fighting against the influence and propaganda of companies that are worth billions, a united front would be far more effective. A well known, but often looked over fact, is that many vaccines contain genetically modified ingredients. If you wouldn’t want to ingest GMOs, then why would you want to have them injected into your body or your children’s bodies?

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Four Easy Ways to Improve Your Thyroid Function

If your thyroid isn’t working well, you can improve your thyroid function with diet. Of course, the optimal way to fix any health problem is to eat raw, organic produce. These types of foods help the body heal. If you’re specifically concerned about your thyroid, there are a number of easy, simple steps you can take to help it heal.

Eat the Right Foods

Certain foods help support thyroid function. Look for foods that are high in selenium and iodine. Good sources of iodine include meat, seafood, yogurt, milk, and eggs as well as seaweed, blackstrap molasses, navy beans, cranberries, and Himalayan salt. Good sources of selenium include organic meats, seafood, Brazil nuts, and shiitake/white button mushrooms as well as lima/pinto beans, chia seeds, broccoli, cabbage, and spinach.

Get the Right Supplements

Being deficient in some vitamins can inhibit thyroid function. If your body is low in vitamin B12, vitamin A, or vitamin D, your thyroid will show down its production of thyroid hormones. If your body is low in vitamin A, your levels of thyroid hormones will drop quickly. By supplementing with natural sources of these vitamins, you can help your thyroid function as well as possible. With B12, it is best to take a B vitamin complex that has extra vitamin B12 instead of taking vitamin B12 alone.

Avoid the Wrong Foods and Drinks

There are a number of foods and beverages that are important to avoid if you have thyroid issues. Consuming these substances aggravate your thyroid problems. Caffeine, and more specifically coffee, can inhibit your thyroid from producing thyroid hormones at optimal levels. Unfermented soy is a known endocrine disrupter, and as such, it will inhibit the proper function of your thyroid. Other foods that cause thyroid issues are foods that contain gluten. Wheat, barley, malt, and rye are some of the more common grains that contain gluten. If your body cannot tolerate gluten, it can damage your gut, causing leaky gut syndrome. So much of the body’s health is related to gut health. By avoiding caffeine, unfermented soy, and gluten you can help your body heal the damage to your thyroid and encourage it to produce at optimal levels.

Detoxify the Body

In order for your body to fully heal damage to your thyroid, you need to detox properly. While a number of specific detoxes would be helpful, these are the most important ones to focus on. The most important one is the gut. If you are suffering from an overgrowth of Candida, it is extremely important to rid your body of that pathogen, as Candida constantly assaults the body with toxins. Another important detox to focus on is ridding the body of heavy metals. If your body is toxic with mercury, arsenic, aluminum and/or other heavy metals, the thyroid will never be able to heal. Getting mercury fillings removed is vital. The blood is another important detox. If the blood is thick or toxic, it puts added stress on your glands, including your thyroid. A cheap and easy way to detoxify your blood is to use this cranberry lemonade recipe.

Conclusion

Taking just a few of the steps mentioned can help bring immediate relief to your thyroid symptoms, but the thyroid takes time to heal. A leaky gut is likely to be the source of the matter, so check out Gluten, Candida, Leaky Gut Syndrome, and Autoimmune Diseases and be sure to see Understand Hypothyroidism – Prevention and Natural Remedies.

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Five Symptoms Your Thyroid Needs Help

Millions of Americans today suffer from thyroid dysfunction, and many of them do not even know it. Startling enough, over 80% of people who suffer from poorly functioning thyroids do not show problems on standard thyroid tests. Knowing some common symptoms of thyroid problems can help you get proper treatment early.

The thyroid is part of the endocrine system that produces our body’s hormones. When the thyroid is not working properly, chances are the adrenals, the pineal gland, the hypothalamus, and all of the other glands are not working optimally either.

Neck Pain or Swelling

One common sign of thyroid problems is persistent neck pain. More specifically, a subluxation in the C3 through C7 vertebrae in your neck can be a major indication of problems with your thyroid. When your thyroid is not working optimally, it becomes inflamed and swollen. This pushes one of the nearby vertebrae out of place, causing a subluxation in the cervical spine.

Low Energy & Poor Sleep

Feeling sluggish and tired all the time is another sign of poor thyroid function. When your thyroid is not producing enough thyroxine (T4) and/or triiodothyronine (T3), it can affect your energy levels during the day as well as your sleep at night. Thyroid issues can cause insomnia or poor quality sleep in many people. If you find yourself always feeling tired during the day, despite sleeping enough hours at night, it is very likely that your thyroid is not working well.

Joint Pain

Another common sign of thyroid problems is joint pain anywhere in the body. Achiness, swelling, or a feeling of “being out of place” in any joints is your body’s way of telling you that your thyroid is not functioning properly. Most commonly this can show up in the neck and shoulders, wrists, elbows, or hips. Bursitis and carpal tunnel syndrome are frequent joint problems as well that indicate thyroid problems.

Hair & Skin Problems

A frequent, though not well-known, sign of thyroid issues is hair and skin problems. Dry, brittle, or thinning hair is a telltale warning that your thyroid is struggling. A dry, flaky, scalp is another sign as well. Also, if you notice that your eyebrows are thinning out, especially at the outer corners, then your thyroid is likely not working optimally. Dry, rough, and itchy skin are other warning signs of hypothyroidism or related thyroid issues. Hypothyroidism can also cause your skin to develop a yellowish tinge as a result of your body’s decreased ability to convert beta-carotene to vitamin A.

Sudden Weight Changes

One last major sign of thyroid problems deals with sudden weight changes. If you have sudden weight gain or struggle to lose weight despite exercise and a healthy low-calorie diet, chances are your thyroid is not working well and you may have a case of hypothyroidism. If you find yourself losing weight rapidly, you might have hyperthyroidism, a condition where your body overproduces thyroid hormones.

Conclusion

If you find yourself suffering from one or more of these symptoms, there are things you can do to improve your thyroid function. Thyroid conditions can be managed and fixed naturally with proper diet and supplementation. For more information, see Understand Hypothyroidism- Prevention and Natural Remedies.

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Optimize Your Candida Cleanse & Minimize the Symptoms of Die Off

You’ve finally figured out that Candida is causing so many of your health problems, and you’ve started the perfect protocol to rebalance your gut bacteria…but for some reason you feel even worse than before. There’s a moment of despair (I’ll never get rid of this ridiculous fungus!), but then comes a light at the end of the tunnel!

When Candida is killed it releases nearly 80 different toxins into the body, causing myriad symptoms from nausea to fatigue to fevers and headaches. There isn’t a way to avoid the release of these toxins, but there is a way to minimize their effect and the discomfort you feel while on your way to a healthier you.

Good news, though – if you’re following a protocol designed to eliminate your overgrowth and maintain a long-term balanced gut, you’re already doing a lot of things that can mitigate the die off symptoms. Here are some suggestions that can help you get over the die off more quickly.

Evacuation Station

The easiest and most accessible way to minimize Candida die off is to push those toxins out of your system as fast as you can. A diet consisting of 80 percent raw produce (more vegetables than fruit) has enough fiber to keep waste moving efficiently through your body. The longer it takes you to push out the dying Candida fungus, the longer you will suffer from the die off symptoms.

The same principle is true of liquid waste. Make sure you drink a large quantity of clean water from a trusted source. It is one of best things you can do to flush out Candida toxins. Upgrade your water to cranberry lemonade (see the link below and use stevia so you don’t feed the Candida you’re trying to get rid of), and you’ll also improve your kidney function and give your immune system a shot of much-appreciated vitamin C. The best part of upping your fiber and liquids to flush out the fungus die off? Everything you need is a trip to the nearest market away.

Super Charge the Immune System

Die off doesn’t effect everyone is the same way. Some people hardly notice the release, whereas other people experience particularly bad reactions. One of the most destructive toxins released during Candida die off is acetaldehyde, a neurotoxin that attacks red blood cells and destroys brain cells. If you’re having a difficult time dealing with the symptoms or worried about potential damage, it’s time to boost your immune system. Flushing the body with cranberry lemonade will provide vitamin C. You’re also going to get great immune system benefits from Echinacea or cat’s claw.

Get Sweaty

Exercise, especially exercises with up and down movements like dancing, rebounding, and jumping, lets you sweat out your toxins while also moving your lymph system. Since your lymph system doesn’t naturally circulate, this movement can increase its ability to expel Candida waste. Movement also gets your circulatory system moving and expelling more die off.

In some cases, Candida die-off can make it difficult to exercise, due to nausea, joint and muscle pain, and possible infections. Even if exercising isn’t an option, there are still others ways to get rid of die off toxins through sweat, like saunas or hot and cold hydrotherapy. With exercise, it’s important to pay attention to your body, so as not to overdo anything or do anything you aren’t comfortable with.

Slow and Steady Wins the Race

It seems unfair, really. After everything you’ve been going through with fighting actual Candida, you’re still not done, as you have to deal with the aftershock. Getting discouraged and letting up on your Candida treatment to make the fatigue and brain fog go away seems like an appealing solution, but making it through the die off and coming out on the other side will have you forgetting how awful you felt in the first place. Relief can come when you efficiently flush the body’s waste, sweat out the bad stuff, and keep your immune system functioning at a high level. Even if you’re still experiencing some of the symptoms, don’t stop all of your hard work or stop taking antifungal supplements because it’s likely you have a major overgrowth. Scale back for a little while. But don’t let yourself get caught up in an unhealthy cycle again. Keep pushing through and you’ll reap the rewards.

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