Unjustly maligned for decades, coconut oil is reemerging as a miracle fat that boosts energy, burns fat, is antibiotic, and helps with thyroid problems. In the past, poorly done, misleading studies were used to discredit the saturated fats in coconut oil in order to displace it in our diet with soybean oil. Now that soybean oil has caused an epidemic of health problems, healthy coconut oil is being reintroduced. After a yearlong study of coconut oil, I recently approved a superior product and added it to my own diet.

Coconut oil has been safely used for thousands of years. Natives in tropical climates who consume lots of coconut oil don’t suffer from the heart disease, cancer, colon problems, and other health challenges that we do. Because it is highly saturated, coconut oil is very stable, stores well, and is suitable for cooking. But don’t let the saturation bother you. These saturated fats are different. The medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil are easy to absorb, digest, transport, and metabolize in the body. Unlike other saturated fats, the medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil speed up the body’s metabolism and are used by the body to produce energy rather than being stored as fat. Coconut oil does a body good. Let’s have a look at the reasons why:

Heart Healthy

Population studies show that coconut oil lowers cholesterol, and reduces risk of heart disease. Americans consistently have higher cholesterol levels than coconut eating cultures.

Weight Control

Coconut oil helps you to lose, maintain, or gain weight depending on your body’s need. It contributes to weight loss by speeding metabolism and being used as fuel rather than stored as fat. For underweight people, coconut oil helps to gain weight, especially useful to those suffering from AIDS or cancer.

Infection Fighting

The medium-chain fatty acids and monoglycerides found in coconut oil are the same as those in human mother’s milk, and they have extraordinary antimicrobial properties. By disrupting the lipid structures of microbes, they inactivate them. About half of coconut oil consists of lauric acid. Lauric acid, its metabolite monolaurin, and other fatty acids in coconut oil are known to protect against infection from bacteria, viruses, yeast, fungi, and parasites. While not having any negative effect on beneficial gut bacteria, coconut oil inactivates undesirable microbes such as H-pylori, Candida albicans, and Giardia. Natives in Southeast Asia who drink filthy water, loaded with bacteria and parasites, are nonetheless healthy, mostly due to the protective effect of the coconut oil in their diets.

Thyroid Support

Coconut oil helps people with low thyroid function. Regular oils such as soybean, canola, safflower and corn suppress thyroid function. The medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil stimulate metabolism, boost energy, and promote weight loss. While not a cure, some people have been able to reduce and even eliminate their thyroid medications.

Cancer Protective

Coconut oil appears to protect against cancer and not to promote cancer. Animal studies have shown that when animals are fed carcinogens and a variety of oils, the animals that do not develop cancer are those on coconut oil.

Anti-Inflammatory Effects

Coconut oil appears to have anti-inflammatory effects. For the past 20 years it has been known that coconut oil has been beneficial to patients with inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn’s disease. Coconut oil appears to have a direct effect in suppressing inflammation and repairing tissue, and it may also contribute by inhibiting harmful intestinal microorganisms that cause chronic inflammation.

Good for the Skin

Coconut oil rejuvenates skin and wrinkles and slows the aging and wrinkling of skin. Used as a lotion, it protects against sun damage and strengthens underlying tissues. It moisturizes, heals sores and injuries, and prevents production of “liver spots,” (oxidized oils). When liver spots occur, this same oxidative damage is also happening in other tissues such as the brain, heart, eyes, and blood vessels.

Among other properties, coconut oil:

• Does not require refrigeration, and is stable at room temperature from one to five years.
• Increases lung function by increasing the fluidity of cell surfaces.
• Regulates blood sugar and prevents hypoglycemia by providing a supply of fuel not affected by insulin.
• Boosts energy in chronic fatigue and suppresses herpes and Epstein-Barr viruses.
• Doesn’t oxidize easily, thereby protecting the body from lipid peroxidation.

Selecting a healthy, high-quality coconut oil was no easy task. Obtaining reliable information about production techniques and quality was difficult. These products come from far away third-world countries, and from small producers who may speak poor English and have difficulty answering technical questions. I found that even some usually reliable sources in the U.S. were not offering the best oil because they ran up against the same problems, didn’t do their homework, and made poor choices.

The virgin coconut oil I have approved is the least processed oil on the market. This extraordinary oil is not heated above normal air temperature, and it is made form freshly harvested coconuts. Most oils are made from copra (dried coconut), which can be contaminated with mold. Coconut oil is a sensible addition to anyone’s diet, and the purity, flavor, texture and quality of the oil I have selected is truly superior. A therapeutic dose is three tablespoons a day.

Raymond Francis is an M.I.T.-trained scientist, a registered nutrition consultant, author of Never Be Sick Again, Never Be Fat Again, Never Fear Cancer Again, and an internationally recognized leader in the field of optimal health maintenance.

Reprinted with permission from Beyond Health® News
Copyright 2005, Beyond Health

Recommended Supplements:

• Coconut Oil 

All of the cells in our body require the proper pH balance to function at an optimal level. If our body is acidic or too alkaline, chemical reactions including enzyme activity, cellular repair, and cellular reproduction are inhibited. Raymond Francis writes, “On the pH scale, 7 is neutral; 0 to 7 is acidic, and 7 to 14 is alkaline. The normal pH inside a cell is 7.4, which is slightly alkaline. Maintaining normal pH in the fluid inside the cell as well as the other body fluids is crucial for keeping the body systems functioning normally.”

While most of the body can still operate, however poorly, outside of the optimum pH zone, blood cannot. Dr. Shillington writes, “Your blood operates between 7.3 and 7.5 on the alkaline side of this pH scale. If it goes out of this range, you’re dead!”

Fast foods and processed foods are highly acidic. So how do we survive eating a Big Mac and a Coke? Our bodies pull alkalizing minerals—calcium, sodium, potassium, and magnesium from soft tissues, organs, glands, and bones to neutralize the acid and return our blood to the proper pH balance. If we continually eat a diet high in acidic foods, chronic acidosis will result. “Eventually, as time goes by, your body will leech your teeth and bones of their much needed calcium to balance this out-of-whack situation,” writes Dr. Shillington. “This is the ’cause’ behind arthritis, bone loss, tooth decay, liver and kidney failure, and a multitude of other diseases too numerous to mention.  According to my up-to-date research, every disease has some connection to an acid/alkaline imbalance.”

The typical American diet is very high in protein. Most meat eaten is not organic and the animals are not fed their natural foods. Cows’ main diet staple is grass, but we proudly hail the “best choice meat”; as “grain fed.”;  Grains are not the natural diet of cows. When they eat grains, their bodies become acidic and they are more likely to become ill. They are then shot full of antibiotics (in addition to hormones) and we eat meat which is more acidic than nature intended.

In addition, our industrial society pollutes water, feeds us chemical laden foods sprayed with poisons, wraps and stores foods in toxic plastic and Styrofoam, and encourages us to eat fast foods and processed foods. Is it any wonder chronic illnesses and devastating disease has reached epidemic proportions?

Though the belief that chronic acidosis is the cause of chronic illness or the basis for much of our disease today is not upheld by mainstream conventional medicine, conventional medicine does agree that acid diets pull calcium from bones and that alkaline diets help prevent osteoporosis, kidney stones, and age-related waste of muscle mass.

When you think about acidity of foods, you may immediately think of citric acid in oranges, lemons, and limes. Citrus fruits are acidic, but they turn alkaline when digested. The same is true for tomatoes. It doesn’t matter whether a food is acidic or alkaline. What matters is how it is chemically metabolized in the body. You may search through books on the subject and through sites on the Internet to find lists ranking foods on the pH scale. Unfortunately, the lists are not comprehensive nor are they in agreement, but they all do say to increase fruits and vegetables.

So how do you use this new information? How can you find out if your body is acidic? You can test your pH using the same test strips you might have used in high school chemistry class or to test the pH in your aquarium. Some recommend testing both saliva and urine. Raymond Francis recommends measuring your first morning urine before you eat. “This test offers an indicator of your cellular pH and can be used to monitor changes as you work to normalize your pH. First morning urine should be in the range of 6.5 to 7.5. If readings fall below 6.5, you are too acidic. Occasional readings above 7.5 are normal, but consistent readings above 7.5 are an indication of tissue breakdown, and a pH over 8.0 is a serious matter.”;

What’s the easy way to make sure your body is not too acidic or alkaline? How do you make sure your body has the right amount of omega 3s and omega 6s? How do you make sure your food has just the right amount of vitamins and minerals? How do you decrease the number of toxins you ingest? How do you rid your body of all virtually all disease and illness? Does it seem overwhelming? It’s not. It’s simple. Eat more raw, fresh, organic foods!

Recommended Supplements:

• Shillington’s Body Balance+
• Shillington’s Total Nutrition Formula

Many alternative health care practitioners believe one of the most effective treatments for a wide array of diseases and ailments is hot and cold hydrotherapy, but very few are willing to say it can help cure cancer and many other diseases. Stating a non-medicinal treatment is a cure is illegal in the United States, and the FDA and big pharmaceutical companies tend to go after anyone who makes such claims. But the truth is there are many things you can do to make so called incurable diseases disappear. Whichever detox or treatment modality you choose, consider including hot and cold hydrotherapy.

Hot water increases blood flow to the surface of the body. Cold water drives the blood from the surface to the core of the body. Alternating hot and cold water increases blood flow and speeds up circulation. It brings fresh blood with oxygen and nutrients to the organs and glands and carries away toxins and pathogens. Dr. Shillington suggests starting with water as hot as you can stand for a minimum of two minutes. Then turn off the hot water for two minutes of cold—the colder the better. Alternate back and forth for a total of 20 minutes, ending with cold.

Dr. Shillington says, “For serious cases of cancer do this whole sequence three times a day. Use a shower wand or just stand in the shower and have the stream of water focused on an afflicted area. By itself, this procedure has wiped out major breast tumors. If I only had one therapy to use, this is it.”

Do this for almost any ailment you have. Use this procedure for muscle pain, kidney problems, aches and pains, tissue damage, and lumps or tumors. You’ll be amazed at the results!

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.

William Duffy’s bestselling book, Sugar Blues, published more than 30 years ago, raised America’s awareness about sugar addiction and its prevalence in our diet. Duffy pointed out the connection between physical and mental illnesses and sugar consumption. He also taught his followers to read labels, to discover that sugar was added to our canned fruits and vegetables, drinks, crackers, bread, soups, and to nearly every processed food. But Duffy wasn’t the first. The hazards of refined sugar have been known since the late 1700s.

Refined table sugar comes from two sources: sugar cane or sugar beets. Sugar cane is crushed to extract its juice. The juice is boiled until it thickens into syrup. The syrup goes through multiple processes that purify it and separate the sugar crystals. It may be treated with phosphoric acid and/or calcium hydroxide and carbon dioxide, and filtered through activated carbon or bone char. The final result leaves pure sucrose crystals void of color.

Beets are washed, sliced, and soaked in hot water to remove their juice. The juice then goes through several steps for purification, much like cane juice, until it too is reduced to sucrose crystals.

Refined sugar is void of all nutrition. All of the vitamins and minerals once present in the sugar cane or sugar beet have been removed. In order for our bodies to digest and detoxify from sugar ingestion and regain proper ph (refined sugar is acid forming), the body must pull vitamins and minerals from the bones, teeth, and organs. The reason excessive sugar intake leads to tooth decay is because it leaches calcium from the teeth and bones. It also kills off the symbiotic bacteria in our intestines which produce B vitamins.

Nancy Appleton, PhD, author of Lick the Sugar Habit explains why sugar is linked to allergies. “Sugar suppresses the immune system – but first it depletes minerals. Minerals become deficient and we can’t digest food because every enzyme needs minerals to work. Some of this food that can’t be digested gets into the bloodstream. The body reacts to this putrefied spoiled food and decides this is the problem and becomes allergic to the proteins in this food just because it could not be properly digested.”

Sugar cane and sugar beets in their natural state do contain vitamins and minerals. Sugarcane juice is the least processed product of the sugar cane.

It contains protein, iron, phosphorus, vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, and C, calcium, and chromium. In Asian countries and India it is poured over ice and sold as a drink. For use
as a sweetener it is pressed from the cane and heated with lime to remove impurities.

The first two times sugar cane juiceis boiled the by-product is a light sweet molasses known as fancy or sulfured molasses. The third boiling produces blackstrap molasses, a very dark dense molasses rich in vitamins and minerals. One tablespoon contains 20% of the U.S. RDA of calcium, magnesium, and iron. The molasses from sugar cane is sold in all three varieties for human consumption. The molasses from sugar beets is not fit for human consumption; it is sold for animal feed.

Raw sugar is processed sugar. It may have minimal or no chemical processing, but generally is processed about half as much as refined sugar. It is dark in color because it still contains some molasses.

Brown sugar is white refined sugar coated with molasses syrup.

For many years the health food stance was “no sugar is a good sugar.” The recent organic movement has brought us “better sugar choices” from organic cane juice and raw organic sugar to organic agave nectar and organic honey. Is there a better sugar or should we avoid them all?

Common sense tells us that the more natural and unrefined the source, the more “whole” the source, the better we can digest and utilize its nutrients. This approach suggests cane juice is preferable to raw sugar and raw sugar preferable to refined sugar. But considering the fact that refined sugar is no better than a poison, is this saying much?

If you suffer from an overgrowth of Candida (yeast), it is best to avoid all sugars until you regain a proper balance of bacteria to yeast in your system. If you are acutely ill with a bacterial or viral infection, the same is true. Refined sugar promotes and feeds bacteria, candida, viruses, and parasites.

If you have cancer, realize that simple sugars feed cancer. In fact, Dr. Appleton reminds us that sugar feeds cancer so well it is used to diagnose tumors. Patients are given an injection of radioactively labeled glucose before a PET scan. This sugar injection helps to locate tumors because cancer cells absorb more sugar than normal body tissue cells.

While Doc Shillington agrees that the less processed the better, he also tells us that sugar shuts down the immune system. “Each time you eat sugar, the immune system takes a few days to recover and start working well again.”

While we can find a vast amount of research proving the link with refined sugar and disease, we are unable to find research to support the belief that eating cane juice,agave nectar, maple syrup, and other such products is harmless.

What we can suggest is a common sense approach. No refined sugar is good for you. It is poisonous to the body and leads to disease. Avoid it.

Once you eliminate processed foods and hidden sugars from your diet, the true taste of food shines through. For instance, rolled oats have a delicate nutty flavor. Real oatmeal is delicious. If you want to sweeten it, add raisons, dates, or other fruit.

When you use sweeteners, remember to choose nutrient dense sweeteners—sparingly. Strive to maintain even blood sugar levels. Every steep rise in blood sugar is followed by a crash. You’ll crave more sweets, no matter their source.

Remember, our goal is to eat a nutrient rich diet filled with whole vegetables and fruits. Raw, live, enzyme-laden food is best. Whether you call it poison, parasitic food, or dead, empty calories, there is no room in a healthy diet for processed sugar.

If you have trouble getting out of bed in the morning, feel sleepy in the afternoon, or find yourself having trouble focusing all day, these 10 strategies should help you have more energy.

1. Stop Drinking Coffee

Look into the effects coffee has on your kidneys and adrenal glands. Coffee stimulates the production of adrenaline and puts excessive wear and tear on the adrenal glands. The higher your caffeine intake, the more your body stops producing energy on its own and the more it relies on caffeine’s effects on your body chemistry.

2. Eat a Healthy Breakfast

Don’t skip breakfast, but don’t eat an unhealthy breakfast either. They say it’s the most important meal of the day. It sets the tone. Pancakes and fake maple syrup will put you on a sugar high. You’ll either crash and burn or ride that rollercoaster all day.

3. Eat better and More Often

Eat every 4 to 5 hours: Eating throughout the day provides your brain and body with a constant source of fuel. This 4-5 hour eating strategy can dramatically prevent dips in your blood sugar levels. Concentrated sources of sugar like soda, candy, fruit juice, jam, and syrup will create radical spikes in your blood sugar that leave you feeling tired as soon as the level drops. And even though refined grains you eat in white bread, crackers, bagels, and pasta do not naturally contain sugar compounds, they are metabolized into sugar very quickly and can create the same effect.

4. Drink More Water

Most people are dehydrated. Dehydration causes a host of problems including irritability, low energy levels, poor concentration, and lethargy.

5. Deep Breathing

If you find yourself yawning, try some deep breathing exercises to revitalize yourself.

6. Have a Positive Attitude

Negativity drains your energy. Remember, lack of exercise and vitamin deficiencies make it harder to have a positive attitude.

7. Exercise

The twenty minutes you spend exercising could pay you back an hour or more due to better focus and deeper, higher quality sleep. Stop saying you don’t have time to exercise. If you are too busy, you don’t have time not to.

8. See a Doctor

A naturopathic doctor can tell you if your thyroid glands are not working properly and if you need a thyroid supplement, if you’re B vitamin deficient, or if you need adrenal support. Problems in these areas will lead to chronic tiredness and poor sleep.

9. Get Enough Sleep

While the amount needed varies, experts say adults should get
seven to nine hours per night. Regardless of the numbers, if you’re dragging yourself out of bed in the morning, fighting off the need to nap in the afternoon, or falling asleep watching TV, you’re probably not getting enough.

10. Get Quality Sleep

6 hours of deep sleep is better then 9 hours of tossing and turning.