Influenza Vaccine – A Comprehensive Overview of the Potential Dangers and Effectiveness of the Flu Shot

Influenza is the most common infectious disease. According to the World Health Organization, 20-30% of children and 5-10% of adults come down with the flu every year. Usually, the flu is a manageable illness, but serious complications can occur. We are told that ¼ million to a ½ million people die every year due to serious complications from the flu, usually pneumonia. 1

These numbers are subject to a great deal of interpretation since they are based on projections and best guesses, not lab tests confirming the patient who died from pneumonia ever suffered from actual influenza. In addition, 70% of deaths are patients over 75 years of age with a combination of health issues. If influenza is such a major health concern, why aren’t doctors and hospitals testing for confirmation? Chances are, we would find the numbers highly over inflated.

Spanish Influenza

No discussion of influenza would be complete without mention of the Spanish Flu pandemic. In 1918, up to 5% of the global population died due to the Spanish flu, with more fatalities in one year than four years of the bubonic plague. Estimates, of the dead in that one-year, range from 20 million to 100 million.

Most influenza strains target children, the elderly, and the infirmed. This strain was just as deadly for healthy young adults, many of whom died within hours of exhibiting their first symptoms. The dead were tagged for name and race as hemorrhaging under the skin made later identification impossible.

This horrific pandemic has become the scare tactic to promote vaccine programs such as ours, even though the vaccines are dirty, dangerous, and largely ineffective.

History of The Flu Shot

It was previously believed that a bacterium, Haemophilus, caused the flu. In 1933, researchers learned that viruses cause influenza. Five years later, Thomas Francis and Jonas Salk developed the first flu vaccine. Initially, the vaccine was used on U.S. soldiers during WWII. 2

The influenza vaccine, or flu shot, is a commonly utilized vaccine with over 40% of Americans regularly receiving the inoculation. The CDC recommends that anyone over 6 months old receive the annual vaccine, stating that vaccination is the most effective method to prevent the flu and to avoid potentially serious flu-related complications. 3

How Influenza Spreads

People infected with influenza can spread the disease to others a full day before their first symptoms develop and for a week after developing symptoms. Children are likely to spread the virus for longer than a week.

The flu is spread by contact with infected people. When sick individuals cough, sneeze, or talk they produce tiny saliva droplets that carry the virus. When others breathe in these droplets, they can become ill. In addition, infected people spread the virus by touching solid surfaces, such as doorknobs. The virus can survive on solid surfaces for days and on porous surfaces or hands for many hours. When other people touch those items or surfaces and then their mouth or nose, the virus can spread.

It is also possible to get the flu from recently vaccinated individuals. Some flu vaccines are made from live attenuated viruses. For instance, those receiving live vaccine strain nasal viruses can spread the virus for a week or more.

How Flu Shots Are Made

There are 16 different flu shots approved by the FDA, made by several pharmaceutical companies. Some of these vaccines are designed solely to protect against the H1N1 influenza virus A strain. But most flu vaccines distributed in the U.S. are designed to provide protection from three strains of influenza viruses; two strains of type A influenza viruses, and one strain of type B influenza virus. The strains are chosen every year by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control, based on a best guess as to the greatest threat in any given year.

There are three main methods employed in the manufacture of flu vaccines.

  • Egg based vaccines
  • Cell based vaccines
  • Recombinant flu vaccine

At present, many influenza vaccines are manufactured by inoculating the virus into eggs where the viruses multiply. Afterwards, the viral components are harvested. An effort is made to remove egg particles but some egg ingredients remain. Alternately, animal cells can be used instead of fertilized chicken eggs as the culture medium.

Influenza

The authentic flu virus causes a respiratory illness, specifically referred to as type A or type B influenza virus. This virus can be found in secretions of the nose, throat and lungs.

Every year we have a flu season when it appears the flu sweeps over the population. However, it is estimated that as many as 80% of the flu-like illnesses that occur during flu season are not actually the flu. Curiosity is expensive. A lab test is the only reliable confirmation of whether a patient’s flu-like symptoms are caused by influenza or another viral or bacterial cause.

Symptoms of the FLU

The flu has similar symptoms to a cold virus, though flu symptoms are more severe. Different strains of the flu have similar symptoms. Common symptoms include a fever over 100°F, feeling feverish, chills, a cough and/or sore throat, a runny or stuffy nose, headache, body aches, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea. Sometimes symptoms can be more severe and require medical attention. These include difficulty breathing, cyanosis (purplish or blue lips), pain or pressure in the abdomen, sudden dizziness, confusion, persistent or severe vomiting, seizures, or symptoms that are flu-like then dissipate before returning with a worse cough or fever.

Ingredients in the flu shot

With all of the different flu vaccines on the market, the ingredient list varies a little from shot to shot. Common troublesome ingredients include polymyxin, beta-propiolactone, formaldehyde, aluminum, thimerosal, polysorbate 80 and neomycin.

All of the Ingredients are Toxic but Many Are Known Carcinogens

Thimerosal, which is present in most flu vaccines, is highly toxic and synergistically toxic, meaning it becomes significantly more toxic when in the presence of other chemical compounds such as aluminum and many antibiotics. Thimerosal is made of thiosalicyclic acid and ethyl mercury. Mercury is 500-1,000 times more toxic than lead. Paradoxically, pregnant women are told by their doctors to limit their seafood intake due to mercury concerns, but now, pregnant women are also told to get their mercury-containing flu shots.

If you’ve ever heard the saying “mad as a hatter,” it refers to the fact that mercury was once used in the making of fur hats. Hatters, those unfortunates souls who made fur hats, would often go insane due to mercury poisoning. Studies have linked high levels of mercury to Alzheimer’s disease. High levels of mercury has also been linked to autism, ADHD, and other learning disabilities and neurological impairments.

Polysorbate 80 is often contaminated with 1-4-dioxane, a carcinogen that has been shown to cause reproductive disturbances in rats. Even though people are not rats, how could polysorbate 80 be good for human health?

Beta-propiolactone is a powerful and toxic disinfectant with multiple uses. It is used to sterilize blood plasma, shots, tissue grafts, surgical instruments, and enzymes. It is also “reasonably expected to be a human carcinogen”, especially when injected into the bloodstream (International Agency for Research on Cancer, 1999).4

Many Flu Vaccines Also Contain GMOS

Many flu vaccines contain human genetic material that has been genetically modified. With ingredients this questionable and this toxic in the vaccines you would want to be confident that the vaccines are highly safe and effective, but there is limited evidence to support this notion. Dangers of the flu vaccine, on the other hand, are not hard to find.

Dangers of the Flu shot

Adverse reactions to the flu shot do happen. Most commonly, these reactions begin within 12 hours of vaccination and can last several days. These common symptoms include: fever, fatigue, painful joints, and headache.

Serious reported complications to the flu shot include brain inflammation, convulsions, Bell’s palsy, paralysis of limbs, neuropathy, shock, asthma, wheezing, and other problems breathing.

There are other serious reactions to the influenza vaccine such as Guillain-Barre Syndrome or GBS, which occurs 2-4 weeks following vaccination. GBS is an autoimmune disease and nerve disorder characterized by muscle weakness, unsteady gait, numbness, tingling, persistent pain, and paralysis of the face, and/or limbs. About 5% of GBS cases prove fatal. Full recovery or permanent disability can result.

Brain and nerve disorders including encephalopathy, optic neuritis, partial facial paralysis, brachial plexus neuropathy and vasculitis have also been reported following the flu vaccine.

Adult influenza vaccine injury claims are the number one claim submitted to the federal Vaccine Injury Compensation Program or VICP. It is very difficult to get a fair hearing in the VICP. Most of the cases are simply dismissed. Vaccine manufacturers enjoy special protection from liability; they cannot be sued. All claims must be handled through the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.

“As of November 2013, there have been more than 93,000 reports of reactions, hospitalizations, injuries and deaths following influenza vaccinations made to the federal Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS), including 1,080 related deaths, 8,888 hospitalizations, 1,801 related disabilities and over 1,700 cases of GBS. In 2013, the Federal Advisory Commission on Childhood Vaccines (ACCV) voted to add GBS to the Vaccine Injury Table within the federal Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP).” 5

The CDC posts all kinds of statistics, but there are not clear statistics regarding the risks of the influenza vaccines. Hard numbers like the number of vaccine injuries, vaccine deaths, or proof of vaccine efficacy are unavailable. For instance, it would be helpful to know how many of the influenza related deaths were people who had been vaccinated. The CDC’s claim that the flu shots are highly safe and effective would be more believable if they publicized the number of vaccine injuries or the percentage of risk. At a minimum, these numbers should match the number of claims settled in the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, if not exceeding them.

How To Avoid Getting The Flu

The basic bottom line to avoiding any serious illness, including influenza, is a healthy diet. We must feed the body the nutrients it needs while constantly aiding it in detoxifying from our polluted environment (air, water, and constant exposure to chemicals).

A truly healthy diet consists of 80% raw produce, more vegetables than fruit. All food ingested should be whole and organic, free of artificial flavorings, colorings, preservatives, MSG, GMOs, trans fats, and artificial sweeteners. To learn more about a healthy diet, read 80% Raw Food Diet.

Make Your Immune System Bulletproof with These Natural Remedies can help you prevent of treat the flu.

Other flu prevention strategies you’ve heard in the past may help. Yes, wash your hands frequently, but do not use antibacterial soaps, wipes, or solutions. These are toxic; they do more harm than good and they are creating super bugs. Plain old soap and water with a bit of scrubbing has been proven just as effective, if not more effective.

One very effective strategy is intensive gargling at the first sign of illness. Gargle with apple cider vinegar every hour or more to significantly cut the viral load. You will be aiding your immune system in killing off rapidly multiplying virus cells. If the infection takes hold, it will not be as severe.

Make sure you are getting enough vitamin D, vitamin A, vitamin E, and vitamin C (if not, supplement). One way to help ensure you get enough vitamins and minerals is to add Total Nutrition Powder to your daily diet. The link will take you to an article with a recipe to make your own. Also, stay hydrated, get plenty of sleep and exercise, and reduce stress.

If you do catch the flu, rest, hydrate, eat well, and avoid all sugar. Sugar feeds both bacteria and viruses, making the current infection worse and secondary infections more possible. Lemon water or cranberry lemonade sweetened with stevia are great alternatives to water. Just add pure, unsweetened cranberry juice and lemon juice to water and sweeten with stevia to taste.

And finally, if you do choose to vaccinate yourself or your child with the flu vaccine, do not forget the fact that it includes mercury, among other toxic ingredients. Please read How to Detoxify from Vaccinations and Heavy Metals.

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Candida and Inflammation

Inflammation is a natural, healthy response to cellular damage or a natural, healthy immune response to a perceived threat. The idea that inflammation can persist without serving a purpose is a misnomer that allows the cause of disease to go unchecked and ignored.

When any part of the body is inflamed, it is either damaged and healing or damaged and deteriorating. Forget the idea that inflammation is “wrong” or “unnecessary” or that it can even get out of control. It’s not inflammation that is “out of control.” Inflammation is what brings the disease fighting cells and the extra nutrition needed to heal damage to the site. Without inflammation, we wouldn’t heal.

What causes damage? Damage, in this case, is cell trauma. Cells malfunction due to trauma caused by an external force or from internal trauma caused by toxicity of some kind and (or) a lack of nutrition.

It’s important to note that while nutritional deficiencies are one of the main causes of cell malfunction, diet is not always to blame. Sometimes the problem is a lack of ability to absorb and assimilate nutrition due to damage from toxic foods. For example, many people consume plenty of nutrition while they also ingest way too much sugar.

Candida Causes Inflammation

Inflammation is not the root of disease; Candida is typically the root of disease.

An overgrowth of Candida causes an imbalanced gut that cannot digest and assimilate nutrition well, and Candida burrows into the gut lining, penetrating the gut wall to allow proteins, sugars, infectious microbes, and other particles into the bloodstream.

Candida Albicans is a very opportunistic parasite. It can normally live in our intestinal tract in harmony with bacteria. “Normally,” in this case, indicates the natural way, but in today’s society, a balanced gut is far from the norm. An imbalance in the gut almost always leads to a massive overgrowth of Candida, which is very good at tearing through the intestinal walls to flood the whole body, opening the door to other infectious agents that should not escape the gut, causing infection and inflammation everywhere.

Candida and other infections microbes cause inflammation by being properly perceived in the body as an infectious agent (when an immune response is activated) and also due to the toxins they release throughout their lifecycle.

Fungal infections and other parasitical infections cause massive amounts of toxic substances to overwhelm the body, causing cellular damage everywhere. Infection also feeds off of dead and decaying cells, and infection leads to more dead and decaying cells. It’s the epitome of a vicious cycle.

Check out For more on gut health, check out Candida and Leaky Gut  and What Causes Chronic Inflammation. Mercury fillings are also a source of chronic pain, and a cause of excess Candida.

 

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The MMR Vaccine – A Comprehensive Overview of the Potential Dangers and Effectiveness

The MMR vaccine is an immunization against three viral diseases: measles, mumps, and rubella (German measles) that is scheduled to be given to children 12-15 months old and 4-6 years old. Adults are scheduled to receive 1-2 doses after the age of 19.

Contents

The MMR is one of the most controversial vaccines due to claims that it causes autism. While Merck, the MMR II manufacturer, does not list autism as one of the possible side effects of this vaccine, it does list many other serious, adverse reactions. This list includes meningitis, encephalitis, pancreatitis, diabetes, decreased blood platelets, convulsions, seizures, arthritis, bronchial spasm (asthmatic reaction), pneumonia, anaphylactic shock and death. The list also includes many severe illnesses/reactions that are not commonly recognized or understood by the general public. These include:

  • Pneumonitis – inflammation of the lungs
  • Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) – a severe, life-threatening disease in which the body attacks the nervous system causing paralysis.
  • Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) – a rare, fatal neurological disease
  • Encephalopathy – abnormal brain function that may denote structural damage
  • Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)- a post infection or post vaccine inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system. (Attacks brain tissues and nerves).
  • Transverse myelitis – an inflammatory disease of the spinal cord that causes weakness and loss of sensation and it affects the autonomic nervous system (breathing, the heart, digestion, reflexes).
  • Ataxia – lack of control of muscles suggesting brain and nerve damage.
  • Polyneuritis – weakness, numbness and pain – nerve damage
  • Polyneuropathy – damage to nerves causing tingling and pain that may begin in the hands and feet and spread to other parts of the body and may affect the autonomic nervous system
  • Ocular palsies – Damage to the nerves of the eye affecting eye movements, pupil constriction, and eyelid movement often resulting in an inability to focus without double vision.
  • Panniculitis – inflammation of the fat layer and connective tissue just under the skin
  • Stevens-Johnson syndrome – following a painful rash, the top layer of skin blisters, dies, and sheds.
  • Erythema multiforme – skin reaction similar to Stevens-Johnson syndrome.
  • Nerve deafness – hearing loss and dysfunction.
  • Retinitis – damage to the retina causing damage to vision.
  • Optic neuritis – inflammation of the optic nerve, which can cause temporary blindness.
  • Papillitis – Inflammation of the optic nerve head
  • Epididymitis – Inflammation of the tube at the back of the testicle.
  • Orchitis – inflammation of the testicles. 1

Of course, less serious reactions also occur including fever, vomiting, swollen glands, diarrhea, rashes, pain and swelling of the injection site, and contracting measles, mumps, or rubella from the vaccine.

The question we need to ask ourselves before deciding to swallow, apply, inhale, or inject any pharmaceutical is whether the benefits outweigh the risks. We are repeatedly told that vaccines are safe and effective. As the listed adverse reactions  confirm, the MMR vaccine is not safe for everyone. The vaccine manufacturer freely admits the vaccine may cause one or more serious, lifelong, debilitating conditions or even cause death. Their stance is two-fold: they claim the benefits outweigh the risks and that it is our civic duty to take that risk to protect others.

The government and the pharmaceutical industry are asking for compliance without full disclosure. Although this list of adverse reactions seems comprehensive, we are not told the percentage of risk, how often any of these singular reactions occur. And of course, it is clear that autism is left off the list. As parents, we need to know the odds. Is there a one in a million chance my child will experience a severe life threatening or life altering reaction? One in a thousand? One in a hundred? One in 50? One in ten?

We could and we should be able to make a truly informed decision. We could and should know the number of adverse reactions- the risks and the chances of actual vaccine injury.  With any operation or other medical procedure, we make a choice, an informed decision based on percentages. For example, when faced with triple bypass surgery, the patient is told the risk of serious complications that leads to death is 1-4% – that the survival rate is 96-99%.

Why do the government and the pharmaceutical companies refuse to supply this information? We not only need to know the risk for each possible outcome, we need to know the cumulative risk- the risk of sustaining any serious vaccine injury.  Instead the pro-vaccine argument remains an emotional one, devoid of logic and real scientific information. This lack of information and the corruption of the pharmaceutical industry, an industry that has paid out billions and billions of dollars in fines due to fraud, make informed consent impossible. This lack of confidence and information is the primary driving force behind the anti-vaccine movement.

The Autism Connection

The vast majority of doctors say there is no link between the MMR shot and autism, but you can’t tell that to countless parents like Aidan Quinn. The Irish actor says his daughter was healthy and perfectly normal until she received the MMR vaccine.

“So we had a normal child that was walking, talking, doing everything way faster than she was supposed to. Then, after an MMR she got 106 fever and turned blue and woke up the next day with dark circles and not knowing who she was. And uncoordinated. And her arm lifted up. Of course the doctors are all saying ‘Oh that’s normal’.” 2

Parents all over America report that their children were fine the day they received the MMR vaccine – moments, hours, or days passed and the lights went out. The child they knew was gone, lost forever.

Vaccine Court

Naturally, you would expect vaccine-injured families to sue the vaccine makers, but our government has passed laws to make it illegal to sue pharmaceutical companies for vaccine injuries or deaths. Instead a special vaccine court hears cases and passes judgment. All vaccines are taxed. These taxes are pooled and used for any and all awards made by the vaccine court.

As of May 2011, there were 13,755 claims filed in the federal government’s Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP). As of that time 2,621 awards had been paid: a ratio of about 1 in 5 complainants received compensation with 5,277 cases dismissed and 5,857 cases pending. 3

Knowing how the MMR vaccine interacts with other vaccines is an additional issue that has never been addressed. No studies for the cumulative effects of the MMR vaccine with all of the other vaccines in the schedule seem to exist.

Many argue that the triple shot is the problem – that the vaccines need to be separated because they overwhelm the immune system. And doctors do not seem to have any clear guidelines when it comes to administering vaccines off schedule. Stories about childhood deaths or vaccine injuries after a child was injected with multiple vaccines (such as the MMR along with the DTP and more) are frequent.

Others argue that measles, mumps, and rubella are mild childhood diseases that rarely cause serious side effects, especially in countries with good medical care and effective treatment for secondary infections, should one occur. And some argue that the death count alone is higher for the vaccine than the diseases.

Measles

Measles is a common childhood disease that is caused by the rubeola virus. When first infected, symptoms do not typically present for 10-14 days. Measles is highly contagious; it is easily spread by coughing and sneezing. The virus can persist for hours in the air or on solid surfaces after an infected person has coughed or sneezed. Infected individuals can spread measles four days before the first rash appears and four days after the rash fades away. 4

Measles is a member of the genus Morbillivirus, which belongs to the family Paramyxoviridae. It is most closely related to the rinderpest virus. Like smallpox, scientists believe that measles evolved from viruses found originally in cows, like the rinderpest virus. The rinderpest virus is also called RPV, steppe murrain, cattle plague, or contagious bovine typhus. This highly contagious disease plagued cattle worldwide until the 21 st century. The last reported case occurred in Kenya in 2001. It is now believed to have been eradicated. 5

Symptoms of measles include fever, coughing, sneezing, and pink eye, followed by a characteristic red rash. With adequate nutrition (Vitamin A is especially important) the disease rarely proves fatal. Worldwide, measles infects approximately 30 million people a year; 0.65% of those infected do not survive the disease. Most of these deaths occur in 3 rd world countries. 7

Mumps

Mumps is a contagious disease caused by the parotitis virus. It is distantly related to measles, as it is also a member of the paramyxoviridae family.

The time from infection to the onset of symptoms (incubation period) can vary a bit, 2-3 weeks (12-25 days) is typical. Typical early symptoms include headache, loss of appetite, and a low fever. The most notorious symptom of mumps is a pronounced and painful swelling of the parotid salivary glands (parotitis), these glands are located right by the ears, below and in front of the ears. More serious complications are less common but do occur in a minority of those afflicted with the disease. 8

One of the more serious complications of mumps is orchitis, which is pain and/or swelling in the testicles. In severe cases, this can cause sterility. Mumps can infect other organs of the body, and in very rare cases it can be fatal. Mumps tends to be more serious in adults. 9

Rubella

Rubella is caused by the rubivirus, a member of the togaviridae family of viruses. Rubella (also known as German measles) is spread in a similar fashion as measles or mumps and many other viruses, through an infected person coughing, sneezing, and contaminating surfaces that others touch. 10

Those who have contracted rubella are contagious for about a week before they develop symptoms and for another four days after developing the rash. 11 The symptoms are generally mild and the most characteristic symptom is a red bumpy rash. Other symptoms include a slight fever, enlarged lymph glands, sore throat, and your run-of-the-mill upper respiratory tract infection (coryza).

If a pregnant woman contracts rubella, it could lead to serious complications for her unborn child. There is a significant risk of miscarriage or for the child to be born with CRS, congenital rubella syndrome. 12  The three major symptoms of CRS are sensorineural deafness, eye abnormalities, and congenital heart disease, but there are other possible damaging conditions including physical and intellectual disabilities.

MMR Vaccine Ingredients

The MMR vaccine contains three different live attenuated viruses- rubeola (measles), parotitis (mumps), and rubivirus (rubella or German measles).

There are many steps to manufacturing the MMR vaccine and a multitude of ingredients used in the manufacturing of the final product.

The MMR vaccine contains the following ingredients along with remnants of prior processing. Note the vaccine contains MSG, animal products, and the antibiotic neomycin. The MMR vaccine also contains human protein that has been genetically modified.

Ingredients: Sucrose, hydrolized gelatin, urea, sodium chloride, sorbitol, monosodium L-glutamate, sodium phosphate, human albumin sodium bicarbonate, potassium phosphate, potassium chloride, residual components of MRC-5 cells (including DNA and protein), neomycin, bovine serum albumin, other buffer and media ingredients, sodium phosphate dibasic, potassium phosphate monobasic, potassium phosphate dibasic 13

Some of the More Controversial Ingredients

WI-38 human diploid cells

WI-38 fibroblasts are derived from the lung tissues of a fetus aborted in 1964. 14 15

MRC-5 cells

MRC-5 cells are cell lines that are commonly used in vaccines, but they are also used in other medical research. The cells are grown in culture, and then distributed widely. J.P. Jacobs originated this cell line in September of 1966. The cells were taken from tissue of an aborted fetus.14

Recombinant Human Albumin

The MMR vaccine contains genetically engineered human albumin, the most common protein found in blood. The FDA warns that all drugs containing human albumin could have the possibility of prion or viral disease contamination. 18

Animal Ingredients

The MMR vaccine includes ingredients derived from poultry and cows. The measles and mumps viruses are cultivated in cultures of chick embryonic cells while the growth medium for all three viruses contains fetal bovine serum.

History

Maurice Hilleman first developed the measles, mumps and rubella vaccines in the late 1960s. By 1960, improvements in medicine, sanitation, hygiene, and diet had already rendered measles a manageable disease, and death from measles was becoming a thing of the past in the industrialized world. 20 One of the reasons for this change was the availability of antibiotics to treat pneumonia, the most frequent cause of death associated with measles.

The three vaccines were combined in 1971 as the MMR vaccine. In the U.S., it is difficult to find individual vaccines for measles, mumps, or rubella.

In 1993, Japan banned the MMR vaccine, instead opting for separate measles, mumps, and rubella vaccinations. Dr. Hiroki Nakatani of Japan’s Ministry of Health and Welfare stated that administering three separate vaccines costs twice as much as the MMR vaccine “…but we believe it is worth it”. 21

Moral Objections

Many churches are outspoken critics regarding the use of tissue used from abortions for vaccines or for any other product. There are many different religious objections to vaccines; the following are statements from three well-known Christian denominations.

Catholic Church View

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has issued the following statement about vaccines derived from aborted fetal tissue culture lines.

“Should a government agency or private company use tissue from induced abortions for vaccine development or other research? The Catholic bishops have answered in the negative. Such use tends to legitimize abortion as a source of “life-affirming” treatments, and requires collaboration with the abortion industry, which should be avoided. This judgment is reflected in policies governing Catholic health care.” 22

Orthodox Church View

The Eastern Orthodox position is one opposed to abortion and any products that involve abortion. This includes using aborted fetal cell lines in vaccines.

A Baptist Pastor’s View – Utilizing Tissue from Aborted Fetuses

To get a broader Christian perspective, Pastor Scott Miller of the Summit Baptist Church was asked about Baptist views on fetal cell lines in vaccines. He gave the following statement:

“The statement I have written below does not represent the view of an entire denomination.  Baptist churches are autonomous.  I share this as a follower of Christ. God’s Word prioritizes life from the very beginning – in the mother’s womb.  In Psalm 139:13-16, David celebrates life before birth, and we should join our God in respecting and protecting every human being from conception to the grave.  Tissue from an aborted, pre-born child should not be utilized in any vaccine.  Such medical steps could rationalize or even promote and mobilize the abortion industry.  Think of the paradox – should a preborn baby be destroyed in order to enhance the life of a living person?  Let’s pursue both and a solution.  Let’s protect preborn children and continue to search for God-honoring, appropriate life-enhancing vaccines.”

Do You Trust China to Make Your Vaccines?

Quality control is far from adequate with vaccines. The majority of vaccines are manufactured in China. This puts the safety of vaccine manufacturing in doubt. There are many stories of Chinese manufacturing resulting in harm to their consumers. A prime example of this is the melamine contamination that left an estimated 300,000 babies sick and six dead. 23

There are dangers that should not be ignored or minimized. If the manufacturers mistakenly put toxic ingredients in food products, what might they do with products that are supposed to have precise levels of toxins in them for them to be effective?

If we make vaccines mandatory while we simultaneously make it difficult to hold vaccine companies accountable, then this sets an incredibly dangerous precedent. The products don’t need to be of the highest quality and safety when the vaccine makers can’t be sued. This would mean that the profit motive would not necessarily motivate business to manufacture safe vaccines. Vaccines could be the invitation into the sick care system, so you can be a customer for life. Bad genetics is what is usually blamed instead of vaccines. But genetic epidemics don’t happen so quickly. We are in an age of autism where 1 in 88 children are diagnosed with autism.

It Takes A Lot Of Trust To Believe The MMR Vaccine Has No Connection To Autism

If we are going to trust a product to be injected into us, we need to trust the company. Also the product should be of such high quality that it can stand on its own, without special protections. A free market should not have coercion. If the MMR vaccine really is as perfectly safe as the pro vaccine crowd claims it is then it should be selling itself without the help of mandates. In California, current bills are being discussed that would force all children to be enrolled in public schools as well as all adults who work with children to be vaccinated, including the MMR vaccine. These bills would do away with religious and philosophical exemptions. 24 We have a one size fits all vaccination program, which doesn’t take into account genetic vulnerability to vaccines. Why should healthy individuals be forced to take the MMR vaccine? Why should it be mandated to medically treat the absence of disease with medicine?

And as for the company, Merck is currently facing charges of defrauding the U.S. government due to two whistleblowers revealing how the company overstated the effectiveness of the MMR vaccine in order to meet the contracted efficacy. 25 

A Whistleblower Steps Forward

In the summer of 2014, William Thompson became a reluctant whistleblower when telephone conversations with another scientist were recorded and released without his permission. Thompson, a senior scientist with the CDC since 1998, admitted that he and others omitted data from a report that indicated a link between autism and the MMR vaccine in African American boys given the vaccine under age one.  In his statement, Dr. Thompson goes on to state his support for vaccines but says that it is the duty of the CDC to properly communicate those risks to those who receive those vaccines. 26 Since this story broke, Thompson was granted whistleblower immunity status by the Obama administration.

A Doctor Who Dared to Speak Out is Vindicated

In 1998, Andrew Wakefield, a British physician, and 12 other doctors published a paper that showed a possible correlation between autism and the MMR vaccine. The paper called for further study into the subject.

Although the paper itself did not state a definite causal effect, Dr. Wakefield publically stated his belief that the MMR caused autism and called for the MMR vaccine to be discontinued in favor of single vaccines for each disease.

The outcry that followed resulted in a sharp drop in vaccine compliance and a backlash against Wakefield and others. The paper was declared fraudulent by The United Kingdom General Medical Council regulatory board (GMC) and  was retracted by the publisher.

Ten of the doctors signed a statement retracting any claim that the MMR caused autism (although the paper never said it did). Wakefield, Prof John Walker Smith, and Dr. Simon Birch refused and were brought up on charges of misconduct by the GMC.  Wakefield and Smith lost their licenses to practice medicine.

However, Smith won an appeal against the GMC in 2012 that not only restored his license, it ruled that the published paper was not fraudulent and the study it was based on met required standards.

Although Wakefield has not sued for restoration of his license, he certainly has been vindicated for the study and the publication in question. 27

The MMR Comes With No Guarantees

A vaccine is considered successful if it generates antibodies some time after being administered. This does not impart lifetime or even long lasting protection from the disease, and the protection granted from the disease is not at all absolute. Many individuals who have had the MMR vaccine still contract measles, mumps, or rubella. This has been noted in criticisms of the MMR vaccine. Outbreaks among vaccinated populations occur frequently.

New Autism Studies and Vaccine Court

All over America, autism is on the rise, and for decades the government has vehemently denied that the vaccines have any connection with autism. But a new study reveals government duplicity regarding the vaccine autism link. The study was peer reviewed and published in Pace Environmental Law Review. The study was authored by Mary Holland, Louis Conte, Robert Krakow, and Lisa Colin.

The Federal Vaccine Injury Compensation Program Court records show 83 different cases of children with autism compensated for vaccine-induced injury. The study’s authors state this is probably just the tip of a very large iceberg. They also call on Congress to examine a potential lack of credibility; the lack of fairness and inconsistency in VICP compensation determinations.

How do the 5,000 cases of autism differ from compensated cases of “encephalopathy,” “residual seizure disorder,” and “developmental regression” 28 that were compensated? Given how little we know about autism, how can we trust the vaccine court ruling that vaccines caused those injuries but that vaccines didn’t cause the other cases of autism?

These semantics are stretched even further in the case of Hannah Poling “In acknowledging Hannah’s injuries, the government said vaccines aggravated an unknown mitochondrial disorder Hannah had, which didn’t “cause” her autism, but “resulted” in it.” 29

America’s infant mortality rate is the highest in the industrialized world, and we have the most aggressive vaccination schedule of the industrialized world with more vaccines than any other country in the world. We also have the highest SIDS rate in the world, with higher rates of autism, learning disabilities, and asthma than the rest of the industrialized world.

The Japanese not only banned the MMR, they vaccinate about half as much as we do. Their infant mortality rate is about half the rate of the U.S.

The Italians May Be Seeing The MMR Vaccine Differently

A landmark Italian ruling has been more straightforward in assigning blame. The Italian court has said that Valentino Bocca’s autism was provoked by the MMR vaccine that he received at 9 months old. 30

It’s hard to find stories like this reported in mainstream media. With many other subjects, anecdotal evidence makes for good news stories, but not with vaccine injuries. This shows a clear bias in reporting.

Pharmaceutical companies heavily fund mainstream media. They bring enormous influence to bear in how vaccines are presented in the news. People who raise questions about vaccines are labeled as “anti-vaxx fanatics”. When the CDC whistleblower first came forward, mainstream media ignored the story. The media is very quick to present the pro side of the vaccine argument. Talking heads like CNN’s Campbell Brown proclaim the judgment is in and vaccines are safe. Vaccine “experts” like Paul Offit make bold claims such as “each infant would have the theoretical capacity to respond to about 10, 000 vaccines at any one time.” 31

The medical model’s argument for vaccines isn’t that there is no risk of an adverse reaction, their argument is that it is a bigger risk not to vaccinate than it is to vaccinate. But when the evidence for these claims is provided primarily by studies done by the CDC, you have to question the reliability of the source.

The CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics (with their deep ties to the pharmaceutical industry) choose to pretend that there is no evidence of a link between vaccines and autism. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommendation is suspect because they get a lot of money from vaccine manufacturers to recommend their products.

Beyond what many consider to be morally questionable ingredients, live attenuated viruses, GMOs, animal products, human products, The MMR vaccine is said to work when the patient generates antibodies to the diseases, this does not equate to complete protection from the diseases. Outbreaks among vaccinated individuals still happen.

Conclusion

The mainstream media wants us to believe that vaccines are perfectly safe or that the risk is so minimal no one needs to be concerned. They want us to believe that anyone questioning a currently recommended vaccine is anti-science. Shutting down dialogue and ignoring and/or suppressing evidence is anti-science. All of the ingredients in the MMR vaccine are toxic to the body. The question is, do the benefits outweigh the risks? This is a very difficult question to answer when we don’t know the risks (because they don’t want us to know), we don’t know the efficacy (the few numbers they do provide do not add up), and we do know that corporations, pharmaceutical corporations or any other, put profit before human beings.

Also check out How To Detoxify and Heal From Vaccinations – For Adults and Children.

Further Reading:
Sources:


Everything You Need To Know About Stretch Marks

When parts of our body grow so quickly the elastic fibers under our skin can’t keep up, the fibers break. Stretch marks are the result -red or purple lines across the skin that fade over time to a gray or silver color. Stretch marks most commonly occur on the abdomen, breasts, lower back, thighs, and upper arms.

Stretch marks are very common during pregnancy, puberty, or any time when weight is gained quickly. How quickly you gain weight may be more of a factor than the amount of weight you gain. Research has suggested genetics may play a major role in whether you get stretch marks. You may also be more prone to stretch marks if you are a younger mum, which is a surprise to many, or if you’re carrying a big baby, twins, or you have excess amniotic fluid.

So What Can We Do To Try And Avoid Stretch Marks?

Drinking lots of water is really important as it can help keep your skin hydrated and full of elasticity.  A healthy diet with good fats and lots of vegetables will aid in skin health.  You can also try a range of oils or creams, but stick to organic, healthy products. Remember, your skin absorbs anything you put on it. You should always choose pure products, especially when pregnant.

What Can I Do If I Already Have Stretch Marks?

Well, the good news is that most stretch marks fade over time. However, the best time to treat stretch marks is when they are new and darker red in color. When stretch marks fade a silvery color they are easier to hide, but they are also harder to completely remove.

Everyone’s skin is different, so what works for someone,  may not work for you. But here are some natural solutions that you can use to see if they reduce the appearance of your stretch marks. Try applying one of these at a time, two or three times a day.

• Castor Oil – Apply directly to your stretch marks. It can also be used to treat other skin problems.
• Aloe Vera – Lots of soothing and healing properties, but make sure you use an all natural Aloe Vera product without alcohol in it.
• Egg Whites – Yep, this rich source of protein can be used to help treat stretch marks by applying them directly.
• Lemon Juice – Its natural acidity helps heal and reduce stretch marks.
• Potato Juice – Good for so many things, potato juice helps restore skin cells.
• Cocoa Butter – An awesome natural moisturizer.
• Sugar – Don’t eat it! Use it to exfoliate your skin. Add a few drops of almond oil and lemon juice and mix together. Use to scrub the skin.
• Lavender Oil, Almond Oil, and Chamomile Oil – Mix together 4 parts lavender oil, 1 part almond oil and 1 part chamomile oil and apply directly to your stretch marks.
• Alfalfa – Rich in vitamin E & K. Mix alfalfa powder with a little chamomile oil to form a paste, which is a great natural remedy.

What you eat on a daily basis could be helping or worsening your stretch marks. Eat whole, real foods and avoid processed foods and refined sugars. Also, eat a good amount of healthy protein. Try eating some foods high in vitamin C and vitamin E such as dark, leafy green vegetables, oranges, papaya, kiwi, and broccoli. Nuts and seeds rich in minerals will also help tone up your skin.

How To Be Ok With Your Stretch Marks

Stretch marks are really common, and although we can try different techniques to lessen their visibility, sometimes they may be almost impossible to entirely remove. Know that you are not alone and that your body is beautiful, even with stretch marks.

I love the Instagram account, @LoveYourLines, which is beautifully celebrating women’s stretch marks. If you haven’t checked it out, make sure you do. It was started by two moms who were inspired to feature beautiful photos of stretch marks on women’s bodies after a discussion about how their own bodies had changed after bearing children. They get hundreds of submissions from people all over the world who want to share beautiful photos of their stretch marks. It’s inspiring.

What are your experiences with stretch marks? Were you able to minimize the appearance of them? We would love to hear from you.



Gluten & Neurological Disorders – Understanding the Connection

Gluten is the common protein molecule found in wheat, barley, rye, kamut, and spelt. Gluten is a sticky, storage protein that binds to the small intestinal wall where it often causes digestive and immune system disorders. The most common condition associated with a gluten sensitivity is celiac disease where the small intestinal villi are flattened. However, the immune reaction that takes place with gluten sensitivity can affect many different tissues, and when it does, it is termed non-celiac, gluten sensitivity (NCGS).

NCGS is an epidemic that is a major factor in inflammatory disorders of the brain and nervous system.  Studies have found associations between gluten sensitivity and disorders in every part of the neurological system including the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. 1

Gluten and Major Neuropathic Disorders

Gluten is a significant trigger in psychiatric disorders, movement disorders, sensory ganglionapathy, ataxia, neuromyelitis, multiple sclerosis, cerebellar disease, cognitive impairment, dementia, restless leg syndrome, migraines, apraxia, neuropathy, myoclonus, hearing loss, and virtually every other neurological disorder. 2,3,4,5,6

For many individuals, their immune system gets so overworked from gluten sensitivity and other environmental challenges such as toxins, parasites, vitamin D3 deficiencies, and trauma they can have severe immune reactions that last months after one provoked exposure. This means that consuming gluten on one day can cause an inflammatory assault that could last for 2-3 months. 5 This is why it is so critical to be as strict as possible when avoiding gluten and other inflammatory irritants.

The Complexity of Gluten Sensitivity

Gluten is made up of a sticky portion called glutenin and a protein portion called gliadin. Gliadin can be broken down into alpha, omega, and gamma gliadins. Most lab tests only look at alpha gliadin antibodies but this is only a very small component of the total molecule. Often times this lab comes back negative, but the individual is reacting to some of the other components of the gluten molecule.

Glutenin gives wheat dough strength and elasticity and is very commonly used in the baking process due to these desirable characteristics. Many people have severe reactions to this molecule, but it never shows up on the basic gliadin antibody testing.6

The food processing industry very often deamidates the gladin molecule to make it water soluble. Deamidated gliadin has been shown to trigger severe immune responses in many individuals. This never tests out for gliadin antibodies.7

Gluten Based Opioids

When the body metabolizes gluten, it creates opoids in the form of gluteomorphin. One can have a blood test to see if the body produces antibodies to gluteomorphin and the building block prodynorphin.8

When someone has an opioid sensitivity, going gluten free can cause severe withdrawal symptoms that are similar to coming off of opioid drugs such as heroin. These symptoms include depression, crazy mood swings, nausea, and vomiting, as well as abnormal bowel activity. This can last anywhere from several days to weeks.

Cross-Reactivity Immunology & Nervous System Dysfunction

Immune cross-reactivity happens when the immune system mistakes one protein for another. The gluten protein is similar to protein structures in the nervous system and the thyroid tissue. When the body creates antibodies for gluten, it may also produce antibodies to the body’s own nervous tissue or thyroid.9 This cross-reactive effect leads to damage to the brain, thyroid, and other neurological tissue when the individual consumes anything with even the slightest bit of gluten.

The most common area of cross-reactivity is through a family of proteins located on neurons called synapsin. These proteins help to regulate neurotransmitter release. This is most common in the cerebellum, which can cause problems with vertigo, motor control, balance, and anxiety.10

Further Reading:

Sources:
  1. Functional and metabolic disorders in celiac disease: new implications for nutritional treatment. – Pub Med
  2. Gluten sensitivity presenting as a neuropsychiatric disorder. – Pub Med
  3. Non-Celiac Gluten sensitivity: the new frontier of gluten related disorders. – Pub Med
  4. Gluten-related neurologic dysfunction. – Pub Med
  5. [Gluten-related disorders and demyelinating diseases]. – Pub Med
  6. [Neurological disorders associated with gluten sensitivity]. – Pub Med
  7. Dispersion in the presence of acetic acid or ammonia confers gliadin-like characteristics to the glutenin in wheat gluten. – Pub Med
  8. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity: literature review. – Pub Med
  9. Salivary antigliadin and antiendomysium antibodies in coeliac disease. – Pub Med
  10. Sporadic cerebellar ataxia associated with gluten sensitivity. – Pub Med


Unique Soil Based Organisms Improve Your Health

For most of the history of mankind, we lived in close contact with the Earth. The majority of our diet consisted of foods and water that had soil clinging to it.  This soil was not an inert substance; it was a dynamic mineral rich, probiotic infused source of electrochemical energy.  The unique, soil-based probiotic, bacillus subtilis, was one of the key components that gave the soil its powerful nutritional benefits.

Humans are the only species on the planet that does not intentionally consume soil.  Our ancestors always had soil in their diet through picking produce out of the ground and drinking from lakes, rivers, and streams.  Many original doctors and medicine men used dirt in their various healing concoctions. Today, we intentionally attempt to sterilize our food and avoid the consumption of soil.

Bacillus Subtilis and Our Immune System

Bacillus subtilis is an ubiquitous bacterium that is commonly found in water, soil, air, and decomposing plant residue.  This bacterium is called a human soil organism (HSO) and has an extraordinary ability to survive harsh environments.  It produces an endospore that allows it to endure extreme conditions of heat, dryness, humidity, and acidity in the environment.

B subtilis is fully resistant to bile salts and can handle the harsh stomach acid environment, which allows it to get into the digestive system and colonize.  It has beneficial effects in the digestive system. 1,2,3  Research has revealed that supplemental B subtilis improves symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. 4

B subtilis is able to suppress the growth of harmful pathogens, strengthen the mucosal biofilm, and enhance the growth of other good probiotic strains such as lactobacillus species in the gut microflora. 5,6

Soil Based Organisms and Our Innate Immunity

As our ancestors were exposed to trillions of organisms every day through their dirt consumption, they were strengthening their microbiome and their immune system.  They were exposed to many different pathogenic organisms to which their immune system learned how to adapt and destroy.

If the pathogenic load was too strong, the individual would get sick and sometimes they would die.  This was obviously tragic and was a leading cause of death.  However, those who didn’t die often had robust immune systems that were well-adapted to the harsh pathogens around them.

Modern Technology and Improving Immunity

With modern technology, we are not exposed to these natural microbes.  The use of our technology can reduce the pathogenic load we are exposed to in order to prevent sickness and infectious fatalities, meanwhile, providing the proper stimulation to our immune system.

One such way to gain these benefits is the inclusion of human soil organisms in our natural diet.  This would include growing much of our own food in gardens and consuming it right out of the ground with little cleaning.  We could also drink water from clean rivers, lakes, springs, and streams. (Editor’s note: If we could find clean sources. Most are contaminated with giardia and other parasites as well as pollutants.)

Finally, one can use naturally fermented foods and supplement with probiotics containing HSO’s such as bacillus subtilis.  Most probiotics on the market only contain the lactobacillus and bifido bacterium species.  These are fantastic for the health of the small and large intestine, but some individuals struggle with a sensitivity to these microorganisms.

It is wise to find a probiotic supplement with HSO’s such as bacillus subtilis, which is hyposensitive and easy for most individuals to tolerate.

Sources:
  1. Improved growth and viability of lactobacilli in the presence of Bacillus subtilis (natto), catalase, or subtilisin – Pub Med
  2. Improved growth and viability of lactobacilli in the presence of Bacillus subtilis (natto), catalase, or subtilisin – Pub Med
  3. Evaluation of Bacillus subtilis strains as probiotics and their potential as a food ingredient. – Pub Med
  4. Effect of Bacillus subtilis PB6, a natural probiotic on colon mucosal inflammation and plasma cytokines levels in inflammatory bowel disease. – Pub Med
  5. Sticking together: building a biofilm the Bacillus subtilis way – Pub Med
  6. Soil Organisms: Bacillus Subtilis – Organic Fitness


What Causes Chronic Inflammation, and How To Stop It For Good

Almost all diseases or ailments stem from inflammation. This is why inflammation is thought to be the root of disease, but it’s not. This distinction makes sense when you consider the causes of inflammation.

Inflammation is a natural, healthy response to cellular damage or a natural, healthy immune response to a perceived threat. The idea that inflammation can persist without serving a purpose is a misnomer that allows the cause of disease to go unchecked and ignored. A symptom cannot be the root of disease. Chronic inflammation is a symptom.

When any part of the body is inflamed, it is either damaged and healing or damaged and deteriorating. Forget the idea that inflammation is “wrong” or “unnecessary” or that it can even get out of control. It’s not inflammation that is “out of control.” Inflammation is what brings the disease-fighting cells and the extra nutrition needed to heal damage to the site. Without inflammation, we wouldn’t heal.

What causes damage? Damage, in this case, is cell trauma. Cells malfunction due to trauma caused by an external force or from internal trauma caused by toxicity of some kind and (or) a lack of nutrition.

It’s important to note that while nutritional deficiencies are one of the main causes of cell malfunction, diet is not always to blame. Sometimes the problem is a lack of ability to absorb and assimilate nutrition due to damage from toxic foods. For example, many people consume plenty of nutrition while they also ingest way too much sugar.

Contents

Candida Causes Inflammation

Inflammation is not the root of disease; Candida is typically the root of disease.

An overgrowth of Candida causes an imbalanced gut that cannot digest and assimilate nutrition well, and Candida burrows into the gut lining, penetrating the gut wall to allow proteins, sugars, infectious microbes, and other particles into the bloodstream.

Candida Albicans is a very opportunistic parasite. It can normally live in our intestinal tract in harmony with bacteria. “Normally,” in this case, indicates the natural way, but in today’s society, a balanced gut is far from the norm. An imbalance in the gut almost always leads to a massive overgrowth of Candida, which is very good at tearing through the intestinal walls to flood the whole body, opening the door to other infectious agents that should not escape the gut, causing infection and inflammation everywhere.

Candida and other infectious microbes cause inflammation by being properly perceived in the body as an infectious agent (when an immune response is activated) and also due to the toxins they release throughout their lifecycle.

Fungal infections and other parasitical infections cause massive amounts of toxic substances to overwhelm the body, causing cellular damage everywhere. Infection also feeds off of dead and decaying cells, and infection leads to more dead and decaying cells. It’s the epitome of a vicious cycle.

Related: Best Supplements To Kill Candida and Everything Else You Ever Wanted To Know About Fungal Infections

Foods That Cause Inflammation

Candida flourishes when there is not enough beneficial bacteria in the gut. Candida can survive toxic substances more easily than bacteria. Candida spores are almost indestructible. When alcohol is consumed, beneficial bacteria are killed as soon as alcohol enters the gut. Candida bounces back to take over the intestinal tract, and soon invades the whole body when the gut becomes “leaky”. Toxic foods either kill beneficial bacteria due to their toxicity, or they feed Candida and other infectious microbes, which then outnumber the beneficial bacteria.

Foods that feed Candida cause inflammation by feeding Candida, but these and many other foods cause inflammation in other ways, too. Some foods have natural, and naturally beneficial inflammatory properties, like many omega 6 fats. But these fats are not “bad,” they promote the healing process.

Refined Carbohydrates

Sugars feed Candida and almost all other well-known infectious microbes as well. Almost everyone has too much sugar in their diet. In nature, sugar is harder to get. Fruit is seasonal, and in areas where people eat lots of fruits all day, their diets also included strong anti-microbial foods to keep the gut flora in check. Take papaya, for instance, which is high enough in sugar that it could lead to a gut imbalance (especially for those who don’t have the healthiest gut to begin with) if it is eaten too often. In areas of the world were people eat a lot of papaya, they also eat a lot of papaya leaves and seeds, which, among other benefits, have anti-fungal properties that offset the sugars of the fruit.

When healing the gut, it’s important to cut out sweets, including fruit juices (even fresh, slow pressed), honey (even raw), agave, brown rice syrup, and all other sweeteners with the exception of stevia.

Acid Forming Foods (Generally Refined Foods)

When fiber is removed from foods, many of the minerals that alkalinize the body and the beneficial fats are also removed.

It’s imperative to cut out all other refined carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, other refined flours, and any processed starches. They feed Candida as well, but they also are inflammatory and acidic by nature, having lost their anti-inflammatory fatty profile and alkalinity due to the processing that removed fiber. For instance, the brown part of the rice contains the fiber and anti-inflammatory properties.

GMOs and Pesticide Laden Conventional Foods

Pesticides and herbicides are designed to kill pests and microbes, and they do this in our gut as well. GMO foods that are designed to kill the “pest” or the microbe that would otherwise infect the crop will kill the good microbes in the gut, too. Candida will bounce back, along with other infectious microbes, because the gut becomes inhospitable to our naturally beneficial flora as the toxic food keeps coming in.

Factory Farmed Animal Products

Factory farmed animals are raised on genetically modified grains that are already on the inflammatory side of the spectrum, even without being genetically modified. For instance corn, wheat, oats, hay, and certain grasses are inflammatory, especially when they are not balanced with a wider variety of natural foods within the diet.

A cow, for instance, would normally eat many different kinds of grasses and other plants growing from the ground. Now, beef comes from cows that are typically feed toxic grains that they would not normally eat and lots of antibiotics. Even grass fed cows (especially from larger scale farms) are typically only given access to a very limited diet with only one or a few kinds of grasses. This lack of diversity does not meet their nutritional needs for optimum health.

Dairy has the same issues, plus pasteurization and homogenization destroy many nutrients in milk and makes proper digestion more difficult. Homogenization also changes the protein molecules.

If we were making bread the way we did a very long time ago…

Wheat, Bread, Gluten

If we were making bread the way we did a very long time ago, we would be using probiotic and yeast cultures to fully break down the gluten proteins before they are ingested. The flours would be processed by hand and not refined (no nutrition removed). The sugars added to make the bread would be much less refined, and the bacteria would go to work on the sugars like it does with yogurt, leaving an end product many beneficial properties.

Today, due to hybridization, there is a new kind of gluten molecule that we ingest. This gluten molecule in our wheat is more inflammatory than previous varieties. It’s not the only gluten molecule in bread, but it’s prominent, and it’s not found in ancient wheat strands.

Today’s bread is made from wheat sprayed with Round-Up and other chemicals that is then refined and processed with most of the nutrients stripped before being fortified with toxic manufactured vitamins and minerals that the body cannot properly assimilate. Then sugar is added along with other chemical ingredients like preservatives and colorings. The end result is a bread far removed from the kind of food the Bible mentions.

“Bad” Fats

Omega 6s are not all inflammatory fats or “bad” fats. Omega 6s are just as important as omega 3s. Healthy, naturally occurring “inflammatory” omega 6s, in balance with omega 3s, and 9s, help the body properly respond to injury, and consequently, to heal. An imbalance of fats causes an inflammatory response for many different reasons, including but not limited to, the natural inflammatory properties found in some fats.

On the other hand, there are “bad” fats. No, they’re not saturated fats. Most informed people know by now that coconut and avocado and plenty of other fats have tremendous healing properties and do not naturally contribute to obesity. The bad fats are commercial, highly processed fats, rancid fats, trans fats, and otherwise unnatural fats. These fats cause inflammation and contribute to every autoimmune disease.

Other Toxic Ingredients

Soy lecithin, casein, and protein isolates generally have heavy omega 6 profiles and are also very acidifying.

Excitotoxins like MSG, aspartate, and glutamates, excite nerves, damaging the nervous system.

In cells, glutamate and aspartate can be synthesized from each other. The two main food additives that are sources for excitotoxins are MSG (monosodium glutamate) and aspartame (NutraSweet). High levels of glutamate and aspartate are found naturally in protein rich foods, including very high levels in wheat gluten, and milk casein. While these amino acids are necessary for normal brain function, excess amounts of them create a wide range of bodily damage.” – Dr. Amy A. Yasko

We could go on and on about artificial sweeteners, artificial colors, artificial flavors, preservatives, and other food additives, but the body needs whole foods to heal, not processed foods with ingredient labels.

Inflammation and Free Radicals

Inflammation causes free radicals, which damage cells and cause more inflammation.

You can picture free radicals as red-hot particles bouncing around inside a cell burning anything they come into contact with such as your DNA, cell membranes and proteins in the cytoplasm. – Evergreen Nutrition

Free radicals are created by our natural everyday functions, and they play many important roles, including the elimination of the weakest cells in the adjacent area (like infectious microbes). But too much inflammation means way too many free radicals that are overwhelming the body, impeding healing.

Specific Nutrient Deficiencies Known To Cause Inflammation

Any nutrient deficiency can cause inflammation one way or another. Two common nutrition deficiencies well known to directly cause inflammation include:

Vitamin D deficiency

Vitamin D deficiency is linked to depression, pain, increased overall inflammation, an ineffective immune system, inflammatory bowel disease, many different autoimmune diseases, many forms of cancer, and so much more.

Vitamin B deficiencies (especially B6 and B12)

Vitamin B deficiencies can cause, exacerbate, and also be the result of inflammation. When the body’s digestive system isn’t healthy, B vitamin assimilation becomes more difficult, and extra B vitamins often give some almost immediate relief to those suffering from inflammation. This is especially important for anyone dealing with an abundance of stress.

How Excess Weight Causes Inflammation

Most studies that point to obesity as a cause of inflammation rely on the problems associated with obesity to show correlation to inflammation. This is problematic because the cause of the inflammation is not obesity. Inflammation is due to causal factors that leads to obesity. While a fatty liver can lead to inflammation, it’s not obesity that makes a liver fat; it’s a poor diet that makes the entire body overweight.

That said, carrying a lot of fat on the body is stressful to the body, which leads to damage, which requires repair and causes inflammation. But there are some interesting studies showing a direct cause.

We did not know fat cells could instigate the inflammatory response. That’s because for a very long time we thought these cells did little else besides store and release energy. But what we have learned is that adipocytes don’t just rely on local resident immune cells for protection… – A Mechanism by Which Fat Causes Chronic Inflammation

Chronic Anxiety

This is another chicken and egg scenario. Inflammation of the body causes a tremendous amount of stress, both physical and emotional. Chronic pain is stressful! On the other hand, chronic anxiety will leave the body in an inflammatory state as well. The two feed off of each other.

When intense anxiety has been a part of someone’s life for more than a few days, anxiety causes depleted levels of certain nutrients, like B vitamins, which are needed to get over anxiety. A deficiency in B vitamins also leads to anxiety.

Chronic anxiety eventually causes numerous nutritional imbalances, and the whole endocrine system begins to function poorly. Anyone who has been dealing with any kind of chronic stress needs to nourish and heal the thyroid, the adrenals, and the gut before inflammation will subside.

Conclusion

Whole foods, foods that have no need for an ingredients list, heal the body. There are lots of conditions that cause allergic reactions, sensitivities, or other inflammatory responses from otherwise healthy foods. For instance, someone with severe hypothyroidism may worsen with the consumption of cruciferous vegetables. The problem with eliminating whole, healthy foods in the diet is that the nutrient deficiencies that are at the cause of the problem get worse. Remove all unhealthy foods from the diet. Temporarily remove some healthier foods if you must, but add them back in as soon as you are able.

For those who are forced to breathe toxic air regularly, or live under power lines, or have other environmental issues that cause inflammation, it takes much longer to heal the body if the environmental toxins are not removed. For most people, it is doable. The body can handle a very heavy toxic load if the gut is balanced and the diet is good. Also, be sure to read How To Heal Your Gut if you’re suffering from chronic inflammation.

Recommended Supplements:
Further Reading:
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