Choosing the Best Detox Program

“Detoxification” has become a nice buzz word lately. It sounds good, rolls off the tongue easily and, depending on where you live and your lifestyle, it’s likely to make you seem “in the know” about natural healing and health. But do you know what detoxification really is and why it is so important?

The human body is an amazing thing. In its healthiest state it has the ability to keep itself clean and relatively poison-free. In this sense, detoxification is the body’s natural process of eliminating or neutralizing toxins. This happens via the liver, kidneys, and lungs as well as through urine, feces, and sweat. Yet, your body can become so overloaded that its natural detoxification system can’t keep up; when this happens the toxins build up and can affect virtually all of the systems of the body, head to toe.

Chemical Cocktail

• Over 69 million Americans live in areas that exceed smog standards.
• Most drinking water contains over 700 chemicals, including excessive amounts of the heavy metal lead.
• Some 3,000 chemicals are added to the food supply.
• As many as 10,000 chemicals in the form of solvents, emulsifiers, and preservatives are used in food processing and storage.
• U.S. chemical companies hold licenses to make 75,000 chemicals for commercial use; the federal government registers an average of 2,000 newly synthesized chemicals each year.
• The government has tallied 5,000 chemical ingredients in cosmetics, more than 3,200 chemicals added to food, 1,010 chemicals used in 11,700 consumer products, and 500 chemicals used as active ingredients in pesticides.
• In 1998 U.S. industries reported manufacturing 6.5 trillion pounds of 9,000 different chemicals, and 2000 major U.S. industries reported dumping 7.1 billion pounds of 650 industrial chemicals into our air and water.
• Chemical companies are not required to tell the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) how their compounds are used or to monitor where their products end up in the environment. Neither does U.S. law require chemical companies to conduct basic health and safety testing of their products either before or after they are commercialized.
• Eighty percent of all applications to produce a new chemical are approved by the U.S. EPA with no health and safety data; eighty percent of these are approved in three weeks.

Unfortunately, people today carry within their bodies a veritable chemical cocktail of modern-day industrial chemicals, pesticides, food additives, heavy metals, and anesthetics, not to mention the residues of pharmaceuticals, legal drugs (like alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine), and illegal drugs (like heroin, cocaine, marijuana, etcetera). The sad but undeniable truth is that we have created a living environment that is toxic to our bodies. Look at these facts, taken from respected sources: ^1,2

If these numbers startle you, that’s a good thing. No one knows how long some of these chemicals remain inside us once they are ingested or otherwise introduced to the body. And even the toxins that our bodies do know how to break down require extra metabolic energy expenditure to complete the detoxification process. That means less energy for other important things, like keeping the immune system up to speed.

A recent groundbreaking study was conducted by the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York in collaboration with the Environmental Working Group and Commonweal. Researchers at two major laboratories found an average of 91 industrial compounds, pollutants, and other chemicals in the blood and urine of only nine volunteers, with a total of 167 chemicals found in the group. Like most of us, the nine people tested do not work with chemicals on the job and do not live near an industrial facility. Of the 167 chemicals found in those nine tested individuals, 76 are known to cause cancer in humans or animals, 94 are toxic to the brain and nervous system, and 79 cause birth defects or abnormal development. What’s more, the danger of exposure to these chemicals in combination has never been studied.

In general, it’s a frightening – and frighteningly true – scenario, one we simply cannot afford to let be swept under the carpet or forgotten. Dr. Marshall Mandell, one of the world’s leading allergists and father of bio-ecologic medicine stated, “The current level of chemicals in the food and water supply, and the indoor and outdoor environment, has lowered our threshold of resistance to disease and has altered our body’s metabolism, causing enzyme dysfunction, nutritional deficiencies, and hormonal imbalances.” ³

Is it any surprise, then, that although America is considered one of the wealthiest countries in the world, it doesn’t even rank in the United Nations top 20 list of the healthiest? 4

Detoxification Therapy

Each year, people are exposed to thousands of toxic chemicals and pollutants in the Earth’s atmosphere, water, food, and soil. These toxins manifest in the body through decreased immune function, psychological or mood disturbances, neurotoxicity, hormonal dysfunction, and even cancer. Detoxification therapy helps to rid the body of chemicals and pollutants and can facilitate a return to health.

Citing Parasites

Did you know that at some time in their lives, three out of every five Americans will have had a parasite living inside of them? Easier to contract than some less deadly diseases, parasites are among the most highly numbered living organisms in the world – and they live right inside of you. But what does that mean?

The August 2000 issue of Discover magazine made this incredible statement:

Every living thing has at least one parasite that lives inside or on it, and many, including humans, have far more. Scientists…are only just beginning to discover exactly how powerful these hidden inhabitants can be, but their research is pointing to a remarkable possibility: Parasites may rule the world. The notion that tiny creatures we’ve largely taken for granted are such a dominant force is immensely disturbing. We are collections of cells that work together, kept harmonized by chemical signals. If an organism can control those signals — an organism like a parasite — then it can control us. And therein lies the peculiar and precise horror of parasites.”⁵

The problem is simple: The average American diet produces a sick colon, complete with deadly fecal build up that becomes the perfect breeding ground for parasites. Humans can actually play host to over 100 different kinds of parasites, ranging from those that are microscopic to tapeworms that can grow to be several feet in length. And they don’t just sit in your intestines. They can migrate to other parts of the body, including the liver, lungs, muscles, joints, skin, blood, and even to the brain. ⁶

While they are not terribly difficult to clean from the body, parasites are often unsuspected and therefore completely unnoticed by their hosts. This allows the parasites to thrive, taking the most valuable nutrients away from the host, who then has to deal not only with poor nutrition and all of its attendant complications, but parasitic waste products as well.

Some Common Signs of Parasites in Humans

• Constantly bloated abdomen
• Dark circles around or under eyes
• Diarrhea or chronic constipation
• Teeth grinding
• Cravings for sweets
• Depression
• Anemia
• Bad body odor
• Sinus congestion
• Constant abdominal discomfort
• Inability to lose weight
• Bad breath
• Persistent acne
• Insomnia
• Moodiness
• Chronic fatigue
• PMS
• Food allergies
• Digestive problems
• Anal itching
• Water retention

The Body Burden

Scientists refer to the level of a person’s chemical and toxin exposure as an individual’s body burden – the consequence of lifelong exposure to industrial chemicals that are used in thousands of consumer products and which linger as contaminants in air, water, food, and in the soil. There are literally hundreds of chemicals in drinking water, household air, dust, treated tap water, and food. And they come from household products like detergent, insulation, fabric treatments, cosmetics, paints, upholstery, computers, and TVs. What’s more, they accumulate in fat, blood and organs, or are passed through the body in breast milk, urine, feces, sweat, semen, hair, and nails. 7

Carrying a high body burden translates into all sorts of maladies: Headaches, insomnia, constipation, fatigue, weakness, blurred vision, greater susceptibility to infection, allergic reactions, joint pain, recurrent respiratory problems, back pain, mood changes, stomach pain, digestive problems…the list goes on and on. It’s shocking to realize that many of the problems just mentioned have become so commonplace in our culture that we don’t stop to wonder why we experience them with such regularity. There are entire over-the-counter product lines that depend on us to be and feel ill. Indeed, some companies need us to carry a high body burden!

Everyday Toxins

The Bad News

The simple truth is that toxic chemicals enter our bodies every day in the form of unhealthy and refined foods, additives, pesticides, and environmental pollutants. These harmful molecules can be found in great abundance in our air, drinking water and food supply. Chemicals poison our lakes, oceans, soil, and, as a consequence, our bodies. In today’s world the body’s natural detoxification system becomes quickly overburdened and is unable to function like it is meant to and like it has in past generations. Since we are unable to Bacteria – Detox process or eliminate these “modern” toxins, they become stored in our glands, tissues, and cells, slowly breaking down all body systems on a cellular level. This process takes place gradually and undetectably, until the onset of obesity and disease finally signals their presence. 8

As if that were not enough, we also need to worry about parasites and the very real threat they pose to our health and wellbeing. “Silent killers” of sorts, many of us are never even aware that we are offering our bodies as homes to these harmful creatures. Even worse, we may be eating the kind of diet that directly encourages their growth and proliferation. And parasites don’t just “go away” – they can stay inside us our entire lives if we don’t clean them out of our bodies. That alone should be reason enough for everyone to complete a detoxification program.

As you can see, without help our bodies are destined to weaken, break down, and fall apart. When this happens, it lowers our quality of life and also affects the lives of our families and loved ones. You can see it all around you today: people succumbing to infections, experiencing illnesses of all kinds, and popping pills that (at best) only cover up the symptoms, and (at worst) weaken or poison the body even further. No doubt about it, it’s a grim picture.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

The Good News

Fortunately, the human body is quite resilient. One of America’s leaders in complementary medicine today, Dr. Andrew Weil, a firm believer that our bodies want to be healthy, tells us, “Health is the condition of perfect balance, when all systems run smoothly and energy circulates freely. This is the natural condition, the one in which least effort is expended; therefore, when the body is out of balance, it wants to get back to it.” When we take the steps necessary to alleviate our body burden, we assist it with its natural process of detoxification. We literally give our body the extra nutrients, natural substances, and energy it needs in order to set the balance straight and get the process of detoxification back in high gear.

Now – more than ever before – it is imperative that we assist our body’s detoxification processes. Detoxification is a natural, health-preserving therapy, which helps remove harmful toxins from the cells and tissues, restoring their immune-protecting functions. Dr. Elson Haas, Director of the Preventive Medical Center of Marin, in San Rafael, CA, and author of The Detox Diet says, “The process of detoxification… is the missing link to rejuvenating the body and preventing such chronic diseases as cancer, cardiovascular problems, arthritis, diabetes, and obesity. The modern diet, with excess animal proteins, fats, caffeine, alcohol, and chemicals, inhibits the optimum function of our cells and tissues. The cleansing of toxins and waste products will restore function and vitality.” ¹⁰

What To Look For in a Detoxification Program

All detoxification programs are not equal. Some, due to the relatively recent discovery of the need for detoxification, are nothing more than low-quality attempts to cash in on a potential market. So, you need to know what makes a good detoxification program. Here are the components that I suggest:

• An “All Systems” Detoxification Program. While it is great to target one particular system of the body from time to time and as necessary, such a regimen is no substitute for a complete, full-body cleanse. Completing a detoxification program that cleans all systems of the body is an essential step to achieving maximum health and wellness.
• A Convenient and User-Friendly Program. Let’s face it, the more difficult the detoxification procedure, the less likely most people are to start it, let alone see it through. Luckily, detoxifying is not as difficult as you may think. You shouldn’t have to make trips to and from a detoxification facility or specialist, and in general, the program needn’t be uncomfortable or something so complicated that you don’t want to try it again. I recommend finding a detoxification program that comes pre-assembled and ready-to-use so that you do not have to spend hours and hours searching for all the right components. But be aware and do your research: never sacrifice quality for convenience. The right detoxification program will offer both.
• Natural, “Human-Friendly” Ingredients. You should use a detoxification program only if it contains 100% natural, non-genetically modified ingredients. After all, you can’t expect to help detoxify your body by pouring more potentially-harmful synthetic chemicals into it! Look for a program that uses primarily herbs, vitamins, and minerals, and steer clear of anything with ingredients that you can’t pronounce.
• Anti-Parasite Support. Recent medical studies suggest that 85 – 95% of the North American adult population is infected with at least one from of parasite. Easily spread from person to person and through contaminated water, food and soil, parasites cause our bodies to lose their biological balance by secreting toxins and damaging vital organs. ¹¹ A good detoxification program will have an anti-parasite component to help expel parasites as well as to clear their eggs and hatching larvae from the body.
• Intestinal/Colon Cleansing Support. Making sure that the bowels are consistently active is vital to healthy detoxification. Toxins and “dead” foods lead to poor digestion, constipation, toxic colon build-up, weight gain, and low energy. These common symptoms are more than just an inconvenience – they can lead to long-term health problems and serious disease. Irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, gas, diverticulitis and colon cancer are simply not things we like to discuss. And yet, as the old expression goes, “death begins in the colon.” Don’t believe it? Ask any coroner. Autopsies often reveal colons that are plugged up to 80% with waste material. ¹²
• Probiotic Support. You may not be aware of this, but inside each of us live vast numbers – as in, several thousand billion – of bacteria without which we could not remain in good health. We call these “friendly” bacteria to distinguish them from the “harmful” bacteria that also inhabit our bodies. When the “harmful” bacteria proliferate and outnumber the “friendly” bacteria, we experience all manner of ailments, including excessive gas, bloating, diarrhea, intestinal toxicity, constipation and poor absorption of nutrients. If this imbalance is left untreated the symptoms can become chronic and can compromise the immune system, leading to other serious illnesses. A good detoxification program will provide you with a potent probiotic to help tip the scale back in favor of the “friendly” bacteria. Look for a probiotic that contains at least eight different strains of “friendly” bacteria and which is “enteric coated.” This ensures the bacteria are released in the intestines where they are needed and not in the stomach, where they can be destroyed by digestive juices.
• Multivitamin/Mineral Support. Few Americans actually obtain the minimum recommended amounts of vitamins and minerals from their diet, and yet our bodies cannot function optimally without them. When you add to that the fact that an unhealthy and toxin-burdened body cannot make complete use of vitamins and minerals as they are made available, you have a recipe for very poor health. As your body becomes progressively cleaner and toxin-free, its ability to uptake and utilize much-needed vitamins and minerals increases dramatically. This, in turn, super-charges your body, optimizing it to perform all of its functions flawlessly.
• Oral Chelation. Probably one of the most beneficial and yet unknown treatments available today, oral chelation is highly effective at assisting the body in the removal of dangerous heavy metals and toxins. A well-documented, firmly established medical practice, it draws toxins and metabolic wastes from the bloodstream, thereby promoting improved circulation, reduction of internal inflammation caused by free radicals, and anti-aging effects that remarkably increase a person’s energy. Most oral chelation supplements will contain a handful of vitamins that are natural antioxidants, but the best oral chelation products will also contain an ingredient called EDTA (ethylenediaminetertraacetic acid). EDTA is a naturally safe chemical that passes through the body, taking toxins and heavy metals out with it. It is so safe, in fact, that according to current drug safety standards, it is nearly three-and-a-half times less toxic to the human system than aspirin.

While it sounds like a large bill to fill, a good detoxification program will meet and/or exceed all these suggestions. Because detoxification is such an item of interest lately – and with good reason – your options are fairly open. By staying within the guidelines prescribed above, you can take a lot of the hassle out of figuring out if a program will meet your detoxification needs.

1. ELIMINATE REFINED SUGAR FROM YOUR DIET

Table sugar, brown sugar, high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, and most of the other common sweeteners are poison to your body. Artificial sweeteners are toxic chemicals and should be avoided at all cost. Given a choice, choose white sugar over NutraSweet any day but know that both are terrible for your health.

2. CUT OUT OR AT LEAST CUT DOWN ON ALL OTHER PROCESSED AND REFINED FOODS

If you’re one of those people who has nothing but microwave dinners in your fridge and snack bars, cereal, and chips in your pantry, you’re not eating healthy. Even if all of those products wear the organic label, processed, refined, and pre-packaged foods should not be your main staples. There are some great meal replacement bars and shakes out there that are very nutritious but they need to be secondary to the mainstay of a healthy diet: raw fresh produce.

3. GET SUNLIGHT

Sunlight is natural and we need it. All of life needs it in one way or another. If you are healthy and do not have toxins oozing out of your pores, then you shouldn’t have to worry about skin cancer. Use common sense. The more fair skinned you are, the less sun you need. Build your tolerance slowly and get a tan. For more information read Sunshine & Vitamin D featured in this issue.

4. TAKE THE RIGHT MULTIVITAMIN/MINERAL SUPPLEMENT

If you bought your multivitamin/mineral supplement at GNC or a drug store, you’re probably wasting your money. For more about multivitamin-mineral supplements read What’s Wrong With Vitamins from our May issue.

5. MAKE SURE YOUR DIET IS ALKALINE

If you follow the previous suggestions, your diet will be alkaline. Cancer, viruses, bacteria, and virtually every other illness or disease from lupus to diabetes thrives on, even generally requires, an acidic environment. Dr. Shillington recommends Body Balance to help you regain the proper alkaline pH in your body. Body Balance is available at his website www.organicsolutionsstore.com.

6. MAKE SURE YOU GET ENOUGH OMEGA 3’S

Dr. Kelly recommends Cod Liver Oil by Nordic Naturals. “This will give you a healthy dose of Omega 3s.” He says, “I don’t recommend a 3-6-9 blend because the body can convert Omega 3s into 6s and 9s if needed. But it can’t convert anything else into 3s. And you need the 3s to heal. You need the Omega 3s to take away inflammation. Studies show that most people will die from inflammation and inflammation related health problems.” Dr. Kelly’s contact information is available on his website www.drtimkelly.net.

7. HOT COLD HYDROTHERAPY

Hot and cold hydrotherapy dramatically moves blood and can lower your stress levels for optimum health. Many health practitioners will tell you there is no better way to treat disease than hot and cold hydrotherapy. For more information see page 65.

8. WORKOUT THE RIGHT WAY

Yoga is a great way to get a good, low-impact workout, to tone muscle, and to build stamina. Do something at least a few times a week that will make you break a sweat and breathe heavily. Your body detoxifies through its skin and lungs more than though defecation and urination. Sweating and breathing heavily has many health benefits.

9. STOP SUPPRESSING YOUR SYMPTOMS

When you take drugs for colds, headaches, and other minor (and major) health ailments you are not making yourself well. You are generally suppressing the symptoms. A lifetime of suppressing symptoms like headaches, sore throats, and coughs will have detrimental affects on your health. When you don’t feel good, your body is trying to tell you something while it tries to fix the problem. Don’t ignore it.

10. HAVE THE RIGHT MINDSET

Dr. Shillington says, “All disease is curable! But not all patients are! There are those who are determined to be victims and who are actually trying to succumb!”

Sometimes people want to be sick, whether they know it or not. If you swear you have tried everything, then maybe it’s time to ask yourself some really tough questions. What is your illness doing for you? How do you benefit? Tough ones to answer, and hard truth to face, but the reality is you won’t get well until you are emotionally ready to be well.

Agave nectar is produced from the juice of the agave plant, the same juice which is fermented to make tequila. Agave juice is filtered and heated then concentrated into a liquid, with a viscosity similar to maple syrup. It is much sweeter than sugar but has a much lower glycemic index.

Agave nectar is high in fructose and low in glucose. Lighter grades have a mild, neutral flavor. The amber and dark grades offer the delicate flavor of agave with increasing intensity.

We at OLM do not recommend agave as an alternative sweetener. Too much fructose is no better for you then too much glucose. How much is too much? Not much at all. Excess fructose cannot be processed in the liver and gets converted into insulin resistant fatty triglycerides. And raw agave nectar is still heavily processed and not really “raw”.

I know a couple who buys only organic meat. Most of their processed food, like energy bars, is organic. They made the decision to start buying organic food years ago, and yet they still drink soda every day! That’s like a crack addict trying to cut down on smoking. I just want to yell at them, “Save your money! Buy the cheap meat. Buy the frosted flakes and the power bars. Cut out the soda!”

There are 10 to 12 teaspoons of sugar in one can of cola! People who drink soda are destroying their bodies’ ability to properly utilize the nutrition they are trying to get from their organic foods. If you want to improve your health, the first step is to cut out the refi ned sugars like high fructose corn syrup and white table sugar. The next step is to eat more raw fruits and vegetables. The third step is to get a proper multivitamin/ mineral that is easily assimilated. I’m sorry to say that buying organic is not at the top of the list.

I know this is Organic Lifestyle Magazine. It may sound as though I am telling people to stop buying organic foods. I’m not. I’m saying that if you care about the environment, you have every reason to buy organic foods. If you care about fair treatment of animals, you should certainly buy organic meat. But the people I am specifically speaking of are pharmaceutically dependent soda junkies, and I just have to wonder why. They don’t get it. The only reason they are buying organic foods is for their health. And they just can’t figure out why they’re spending so much money at the grocery store and not getting any better. They say they may not be able to keep buying organic if gas prices continue to go up. This couple is even trying to conceive a child, and they can’t figure out why she can’t get pregnant!

Health is so simple, yet we have convoluted it and perverted it and allowed ourselves to be brainwashed. Eat what we ate before cancer, diabetes, ADHD, and auto-immune diseases were rampant. Eat what we ate before we had a food industry bombarding us with commercials. Eat fresh, raw fruits and veggies!

If you are trying to improve your health, you need to start thinking for yourself. Quit believing everything you hear from a company that is trying to sell you something. I see so many people who have decided to follow the advice of a study that says coff ee is good for them, because they’re addicted to coff ee. If I were to show them a study that says coffee is bad for them, they would dismiss it. This isn’t education, it’s self delusion.

Simplify things. Think for yourself. Eat more raw fruits and vegetables. Eat fewer refi ned and processed foods. You will notice a diff erence, not just with your health, but in your pocketbook, too.

Tired of big oil raking in all this profit while they also benefit from massive government subsidies thanks to the Bush administration? Is your children’s college fund going out of your pocket and into your local gas pump? Maybe you are a tree hugging hippie with a hybrid that used to cost $15 to fill up and now you spend $45. Or maybe you’re a hummer-driving logger who would run over a spotted owl if you saw one lying on the road. Either way, unless you are heavily invested in big oil, you’re probably not too happy with what’s happening at the gas pumps. There is no denying that big oil companies are taking advantage of us. But I for one am VERY HAPPY ABOUT IT!!!

I’m not invested in oil. I’m not a wealthy man by any stretch. It hurts me as much as it hurts you to fill up at the gas station. I feel the pain of the people on eBay who are selling their wedding rings to pay for gas. But I also know this: we as Americans drive and drive and drive, and until recently we had no concern over whether or not we were damaging the environment. Oh sure, we’ve all heard of people who carpooled, but we’ve probably never met one unless we live in California. We drive SUVs while people in Europe are cramming themselves into tiny cars like the ones a dozen clowns try to squeeze into at a circus.

A few years ago someone asked me, “What’s it gonna take to curb our oil usage?” I told them it would take more than global warming, more than war, more than the availability of alternative fuels. I said it would take very high gas prices. How high? Well, a lot higher than they are now.

We’re bitching, but how many of us have bought a hybrid? How many of us have written our local congressman or senator to ask why we don’t have electric cars? How many of us have done enough research to discover that this whole hydrogen fuel cell campaign was put together by the same people who bought up the battery patents for electric cars and then chose to sit on the technology so it can’t be used for another 12 years? How many people really understand that biofuel from corn is a worse idea than what we are doing now?

Until we are paying the true cost of gasoline, including the environmental cleanup and the health care costs associated with pollution, we will continue to drive like there is no tomorrow.

I was at the gas station in South Georgia when I overheard a guy talking about how he was thinking of trading in his pickup truck for a hybrid. I couldn’t help but smile. When a guy who wears a cap that says, “I’d rather push a Ford than drive a Chevy,” —a guy who drives a new Ford F 150 pickup with a gun rack, a confederate flag on the rear window, and a McCain bumper sticker—talks about trading in his truck for a hybrid, there’s hope for us all.

The truth is electric engines are a much better alternative to replace the combustion engine than hydrogen fuel cells. The truth is war is incredibly profitable to the powers that make decisions about whether or not we go to war.

The truth is all of the studies that show global warming to be a hoax are well funded by the companies who benefit from those results. The truth is whether global warming exists or doesn’t exist is not the only issue. We are the stewards of our planet. Protecting our planet and caring for our fellow creatures that inhabit it benefits us in many other ways.

The truth is, to a large extent, major corporations control our government. The truth is hemp could be an incredible source of paper, food, and textiles for us while benefitting our soil and our environment.

The truth is that antibiotics and antibacterial products are doing much more damage to our bodies and to our environment than the bacteria that we fear. The truth is that we need bacteria to survive. The truth is that E-coli and salmonella would not plague us if it weren’t for our grotesque farming practices. The truth is that pasteurization of our food is very bad for us.

The truth is that almost all medications are unnecessary if one leads a healthy lifestyle. The truth is that conventional farming and agriculture are stripping the nutrients from our food while poisoning our bodies and our environment. The truth is that there is a simple cure for cancer, diabetes, and for the many new diseases that did not exist until fairly recently. The truth is that in this country, “the land of the free,” doctors who practice natural medicine are going to jail for curing diseases without the use of conventional medicine.

The truth is that we are brainwashed.

Big business is designed to realize short term, not long term profits. While it can be very profitable to go green or to promote health in the long run, the change requires a massive initial investment and a major shift in perception. Big business is all about returns. Stockholders want profits and they want them now. Profits drive business.

But I see that times are changing. People are waking up. Big business knows that if it doesn’t start making changes, consumers will take their business elsewhere. The truth is most of the large corporations would rather convince us that they’ve changed or that they are changing while they keep doing things their way.

We, as consumers, need to start educating ourselves. We need to vote with our pocketbooks. We need to speak out. Anyone who thinks pasteurization of foods is beneficial is brainwashed. Anyone who thinks the word “refined” on food packaging to be a good thing is brainwashed. Anyone who thinks every visit to the doctor should result in a prescription for antibiotics is brainwashed.

It is challenging to re-educate ourselves. We are bombarded with so much misinformation. When someone asks me questions about health, I often think that my answers are just plain common sense. But as they say, common sense is uncommon, especially when there are so many people who stand to profit from uneducated consumers.

What would you do if you just invested 168 million dollars in a new drug to treat cancer and someone told you that a simple change in diet would eradicate cancer cells? Would you even consider the possibility? If you’re like most people you’d convince yourself it wasn’t possible. But if you did recognize the truth, would you risk that investment? Would you do the right thing?

I’m not saying that all the people in charge of big businesses knowingly hurt us or our planet. I’m not a conspiracy theorist. While many of them knowingly do harmful things for a profit, I believe the majority chooses to remain oblivious, just like the general population.

The truth is times are changing. It’s time to wake up. We’re at a turning point. Let’s be sure we take this opportunity to make things change for the better.

Michael Edwards

Editor in Chief

Floaters

I have a question about “floaters” in the eyes. I have asked several nutritionalists about what they are and how do you get rid of them. Do you have any data on “floaters”?

Thanks,

Joy

DR. SHILLINGTON ANSWERS:
Floaters are caused by minute pieces of protein matter (cellular debris) in the viscous fluid within the eyeball. Some people consider this to mean a weakening of the retina attachment and where there are many of them, have gone the lengthy surgery route to handle a detached retina. I have only run into a couple of people with this problem and in each case, the floaters very quickly and permanently disappeared by doing a thorough Intestinal Cleanse and Liver/Gallbladder Flush/Cleanse in addition to using a special tincture applied directly to the eyes.

My special Eyebright Formula is as follows:

1 part Eyebright Herb
1 part Red Raspberry Leaf
1 part Goldenseal Root
1 part Rue Flower
1 part Mullein Flower
1 part Fennel Seed
1/8th part Cayenne Pepper (hottest you can find = Habanero)

In a base of 50% alcohol or 100 Proof Vodka and 50% distilled water. Fill your tincture jar from 2/3rd to 3/4th full of the herbs. Blend the herbs in a blender with your alcohol mixture and let stand in a dark room for a minimum of 14 days. A part is by volume not by weight. It is best to make this tincture on the New Moon and to press it on the Full Moon. Use only 1 to 10 drops in an eye cup and fill the remaining space with distilled water. Start with 1 drop and work up to 10 as this is a warm mixture. Place over eye and open and close your eye for a minute or two while moving eye up, down and to both sides.

Hope this helps

Best regards,

Doc

Ear Infections

Can you recommend a herbal remedy for ear infections?

Joni

DR. SHILLINGTON ANSWERS: One of the best remedies for ear infections I’ve ever used is to crush a clove of garlic into about 3 tablespoons of olive oil, let sit for 24 hours, strain out the garlic pieces, and put a few drops in the ear every hour on the hour while awake. It worked wonders on the children and adults I’ve recommended it to.
Best Regards,

Doc

Distilled Water

I’ve heard that distilled water is too acidic. Is this true?

Susan

DR. SHILLINGTON ANSWERS: The only time distilled water gets too acidic is when it is left out without a cover since it picks up CO2 very easily. As soon as you make your distilled water, put it into an old gallon apple juice glass bottle, put the top on it, and you’ll have no pH problems with it.

Yours in Knowledge, Health, and Freedom,

Doc

Herbs

I know a herbalist from Romania who recommends that his clients places the herbs (made into powder) under the tongue and keep them there for 20 minutes, After that the herbs are swallowed. My question is, would all the power of the herbs be absorbed in the body in this way? Also which parts of the herbs are insolvable in water?

Kind Regards,

Cristian

DR. SHILLINGTON ANSWERS: Herbs are more absorbable as tinctures than the way you suggest. Tinctures (Extracts) are probably the most effective way to get the biochemstry of the herbs into the body, short of intravenous injection 😉

With love,

Doc Shillington

Second Hand Smoking

I work in a smoke filled environment. I’m a bartender. What supplements can I take to reduce the side affects associated with second hand smoke?

DR. KELLY ANSWERS: N-Acetyl Cysteine, or NAC is my first choice. NAC is an amino oxidant antioxidant and a free radicalscavenging agent that can help your liver detoxify. I’d also recommend a quality Vitamin C. Clearing the air is the best choice, obviously. If possible see if your boss could install a quality air filtration system.
Yours Truly,

Dr. Kelly